[mod idea] A different approach to base building

[blackrack]

So this is basically just an idea, and I'm here just probing for opinions.

Whenever I look at base building mods I always see part packs, modular bases that deploy as ships and dock together and use different parts for resource mining and ship building.

Now this is fine for small bases, small crew modules and the like, but whenever someone is building a refinery or a permanenent base or a huge off-world operations center three things tend to happen:

1. They have to use lots and lots of parts and the resulting base lags like a *****, falls apart/breaks easily and is a pain to setup.

2. Every base looks like it was patched together with duct-tape out of shipwrecks.

3. The base doesn't have any real utility, and this is probably the most important point.

Now what I'm thinking about would be the ability to construct actual static buildings like the VAB and KSC or the kerbinside buildings/bases that would just sit there not eating any CPU-time but also they would serve as fully functional bases where you can build ships (using stored resources) and the like.

These bases could have different upgrades or different modules and would be built/managed through a graphical interface and a top-down view like you would in a city building game or a strategy game, maybe even setting up possibly sophisticated production chains (like anno does) to get to the good stuff.

Every base could have a hive-view à la XCOM allowing you to see the different modules, to build stuff etc and to manage your resources/power production/space or similar things (probably unnecessary, a top-down/global view would be enough). You could build ships directly on them using onsite/stored resources. You could build a runway if you want, or a very tall VAB or some lifesupport farms or other advanced buildings.

Using small, automated vehicles or construction modules you assign orders to collect building materials from the ground and then sit back and watch them build a base over time like you would see in a strategy game (or you collect the resources yourself, drive a building unit or some kind of vehicle with a build unit and initiate the process yourself).

Obviously I'd still need to think of some game mechanics to make this interesting, to have some kind of long-term appeal, some real use for the bases. I'm not a fan of the game's science system or the game's career mode (both I find rather unrewarding and all over the place), I think what the game ultimately needs is a real sense of conquest. You never really feel like you conquered anything even with the biggest base setup on a far-away planet. Or maybe opening up some new sandbox possibilities with the bases.

Obviously I still have my hands full with scatterer and with my IRL job, so I won't be working on this anytime soon but I just wanted to get this idea out there and possibly discuss it with others.

Edited September 25, 2015 by blackrack

[wasml]

I like this idea. From your description I'm imagining it as a ELP/kerbinside cross.

I would want a way to level a site before building.

If you did use something like kerbinside as a dependency you could have this mod take care of the editing and timed placement leaving the rest to kerbinside. Could have the benefit of allowing others to contribute structures.

I'll be interested to see where this goes.

[Lt Vax]

Simply design your model to deploy in a way that looks like construction, consuming resources from a basic mining rig as it goes, I'd have it start as a simple cube that can be easily placed and hooked up via pipeline to avoid collisions. Then pack it's CFG file with all the generator/fuel/mining code you want, I'd try to integrate it with Umbra Space Industries so that it has to be deployed to function.

Hope this helps a lil.