Proposal Discussion Plantary Landing Ideas (its far off I know but..)

[Colonel Kenney]

After hearing DB talking about future ideas and reasons behind planetary landings I was thinking how we could go about implementing it and why...

DB had mentioned dropping off a mining or resource collecting apparatus on planets in which would be there working in which we could collect the resources periodically. It would be the initial purpose for land based structures and a first step.

I think this is the perfect start.

Imagine we find a moon that is rich in Helium3. We only have a ship with limited cargo space. How do we build an outpost? We can't really physically land and do it ourselves.

So we'll need robots and automated machines to do this.

So without re-inventing the wheel we could make "outpost construction parts" that are -prepackaged and interchangeable as an item we can carry in our cargo hold. These are "modular" and robotic in nature that will assemble themselves into practical parts. Each cargo space could include basically a rover with a robotic arm, metal hull plating and refinery parts.

These would be initially unmanned stations that produce ore for you.

So we scan a moon and see a heat map of the elements on the moon. We discover a hot spot of Helium3 and hover over the spot and then jettison our cargo canisters that contain the automated parts. They land on the ground via parachute or other means, self deploy and begin the building process.

Tiny Outpost would require 20 cargo units to make a fully functioning refinery and produce and store only small quantities of ore.

You would return later with more canisters to add on to the refinery

Small Outpost would require 50 of the expensive canisters and would upgrade the size and output and type of materials you could extract/refine. You can add more and more to increase the capacity and production of these sites.

If you wanted to add a landing pad you'd need to return with 50 modular "Port Facility Fab Units" that would add on a landing pad for you. Bring 50 more you make a large pad. This would help automate the loading and unloading (no more jettisoning of pods which could destroy some of these valuable and expensive components).

There would be many types of modular units that would add and or expand different aspects of your outpost. Such as:

*Habitation Quarters Modules
*Defense Turret Modules (to protect against other players)
*Storage and Warehousing Modules
*Shield and Cosmic Radiation Modules
*Remote Communications Array (to contact you if it is under attack or is full of resources)
*Player transaction and trading hub interface.

All would require several numbers of these modular automated construction packages that "unwrap" themselves and work together to build.

So you could return later and see your base change over time and even collect the profit!

So this is my vision of how we'd start some sort of ground based base in the future. Very simple and elegant and automated. The actual processing of the facility would be calculated the next time you visit or another player visits. Since it is based on a time calculation. So it really does need much more in the way of processing power unless someone is "there" to interact with it in some way.

What are your ideas? I know its probably a year or two away.. .

 

[Rog]

I just love the thought that you could go off exploring and come across an undiscovered idyllic world, set down and be the only person on the planet.

Wander about, look at the wildlife, do a spot of fishing, watch a beautiful sunset, whatever.

*Really* hope this sort of thing is going to be in the game.

 

[Siggi]

I regard these kinds of components as ultimately essential.

 

[Colonel Kenney]

I just love the thought that you could go off exploring and come across an undiscovered idyllic world, set down and be the only person on the planet.

Wander about, look at the wildlife, do a spot of fishing, watch a beautiful sunset, whatever.

*Really* hope this sort of thing is going to be in the game.

That'll come when there is first person running around.

In an interview he said the very early stages would only be moons first that we cold plop down mining equipment etc..

 

[Colonel Kenney]

*Habitation Modules (When first person is added this will be necessary to drag the dead carcasses to cook up and eat)
*Defense Turret Modules (to protect against other players) The more you add the more power needed and less mined resources you'll need to produce missiles and such.
*Power generation (solar power, geothermal nuclear etc) Upgrade to increase output.
*Storage and Warehousing Modules - allows more storage of your ore before production stops.
*Shield and Cosmic Radiation Modules (additional defense from the elements and attack)
*Remote Communications Array (to contact you if it is under attack or is full of resources)
*Player transaction and trading hub interface. (Allow players to land and buy your ore)

 

[Poweti]

*Player transaction and trading hub interface. (Allow players to land and buy your ore)

I'd love to see an expansion of this

Such as an underground storage area, added to the initial landing area.

So you have your landing module that allows one ship to touch down and interface with other modules, or allow the pilot to leave the ship and walk around on surface. Then you have an additional module for storing ships. This module would dig/drill out an underground storage area capable of storing one ship, then install appropriate lifts/support structure. Additional storage modules would dig out additional space for storing ships. Larger ships would have to remain on the surface.

What I like about everything in the thread thus far is that this could allow a single person, with sufficient means, to set up a small trading outpost on the frontier. Obviously this is not an opportunity for players to earn money while not logged in. Players would have to supply all of the goods to the outpost themselves, and supply all of the money for purchasing power.

To make this all game friendly, the cost would have to be high enough that these outputs would never give a sufficient ROI if placed in already established systems. And even if placed in distant worlds would likely not have a decent ROI without good traffic through the system. (through organization/guilds or because it is a prime spot to launch exploration campaigns)

 

[metatheurgist]

I just love the thought that you could go off exploring and come across an undiscovered idyllic world, set down and be the only person on the planet.

Wander about, look at the wildlife, do a spot of fishing, watch a beautiful sunset, whatever.

*Really* hope this sort of thing is going to be in the game.

I think I watch too much horror. I was expecting a nasty creature to leap out and eat you then.

 

[SAB380]

After hearing DB talking about future ideas and reasons behind planetary landings I was thinking how we could go about implementing it and why...

DB had mentioned dropping off a mining or resource collecting apparatus on planets in which would be there working in which we could collect the resources periodically. It would be the initial purpose for land based structures and a first step.

I think this is the perfect start.

Imagine we find a moon that is rich in Helium3. We only have a ship with limited cargo space. How do we build an outpost? We can't really physically land and do it ourselves.

So we'll need robots and automated machines to do this.

So without re-inventing the wheel we could make "outpost construction parts" that are -prepackaged and interchangeable as an item we can carry in our cargo hold. These are "modular" and robotic in nature that will assemble themselves into practical parts. Each cargo space could include basically a rover with a robotic arm, metal hull plating and refinery parts.

These would be initially unmanned stations that produce ore for you.

So we scan a moon and see a heat map of the elements on the moon. We discover a hot spot of Helium3 and hover over the spot and then jettison our cargo canisters that contain the automated parts. They land on the ground via parachute or other means, self deploy and begin the building process.

Tiny Outpost would require 20 cargo units to make a fully functioning refinery and produce and store only small quantities of ore.

You would return later with more canisters to add on to the refinery

Small Outpost would require 50 of the expensive canisters and would upgrade the size and output and type of materials you could extract/refine. You can add more and more to increase the capacity and production of these sites.

If you wanted to add a landing pad you'd need to return with 50 modular "Port Facility Fab Units" that would add on a landing pad for you. Bring 50 more you make a large pad. This would help automate the loading and unloading (no more jettisoning of pods which could destroy some of these valuable and expensive components).

There would be many types of modular units that would add and or expand different aspects of your outpost. Such as:

*Habitation Quarters Modules
*Defense Turret Modules (to protect against other players)
*Storage and Warehousing Modules
*Shield and Cosmic Radiation Modules
*Remote Communications Array (to contact you if it is under attack or is full of resources)
*Player transaction and trading hub interface.

All would require several numbers of these modular automated construction packages that "unwrap" themselves and work together to build.

So you could return later and see your base change over time and even collect the profit!

So this is my vision of how we'd start some sort of ground based base in the future. Very simple and elegant and automated. The actual processing of the facility would be calculated the next time you visit or another player visits. Since it is based on a time calculation. So it really does need much more in the way of processing power unless someone is "there" to interact with it in some way.

What are your ideas? I know its probably a year or two away.. .

Yes.

 

[Hellhawk666]

I'd very much like to see the addition of some sort of multi-function module that could be used to create small personal outposts on asteroids or planet surfaces. Something that comes as a kit and occupies about 30 tons of cargo space, so a Cobra could carry the parts for one module.

The basic module would provide a habitat suitable for up to 4 people with all basic fittings and facilities - water & air recycling etc. - and a generator. Sort of a space caravan the facilities could be expanded by joining several modules, and more advanced equipment could be available as options.

It's hard to believe that colonization would only ever take place on a huge corporate basis. There must surely be room for family or group colonists who want to strike out on their own, and this sort of infrastructure would seem obvious as a commercial package to support them.

I wouldn't be in favour of this sort of concept escalating into the construction of large facilities or factories, but an individual freehold on some distant planet seems to me totally in keeping with the game's core principles.