...I have a question for you.
I'm working on a lantern which needs fuel to become lit and stay lit. So far, it's looking good, but at the moment what it uses for fuel is a wood log.
Understandably, it's kind of immersion breaking to just throw a log into a lantern and refuel it. However, it's also a bit better than the alternative, which is to make a different fuel resource and have you guys go through an entire production chain to make the fuel just so that you can have an early light source which can be moved around and doesn't require power.
What do you think? Should I leave it as it is, or do the fuel distillery thingamajig?
A wood burning lantern is fine.
yeah it's fine.
Maybe a simple recipe for an existing production table that turns wood into an efficient lantern fuel.
Maybe add multiple types of lanterns, like a Ground Lantern, a Lantern Post, a Double Lantern post. Different brightness and fuel consumption. Changes beauty with different materials.
I ran into the same question when I made a similar appliance, the standing torch. I just made it work with wood because it's not totally immersion breaking for a standing torch. :P
I do have a suggestion for solving the matter of fueling the lantern. If an asset like fat was added to animals, all you'd need to do is then add a rendering recipie to the stovetops and use that as candle fuel. Its logical and a bit easier to impliment than other possibilities.
Thanks for the suggestions guys. :)
The easiest thing to go for in terms of fuel, I think, would be to have sesame plants in some biomes, allow the player to grow them, and then press the seeds to make oil. As a byproduct colonists would also get flour.
Well ... the easiest thing would be to just use wood. I mean, if you want to make this one modded item more realistic than the rest of the game combined, go for it. Seems weird to have a three-stage resource chain to do one thing. But hey, I approve of unnecessary complexity. :)
Quote from: MarvinKosh on May 08, 2016, 06:24:45 PM
Thanks for the suggestions guys. :)
The easiest thing to go for in terms of fuel, I think, would be to have sesame plants in some biomes, allow the player to grow them, and then press the seeds to make oil. As a byproduct colonists would also get flour.
Maybe sesame oil can also be a non-perishable food source? Long lasting vegetable food product.
I don't think a long production line just for a lamp fuel product would be a good idea. You'd save more time just making a standing lamp. Just add the recipe to an existing workbench so it doesn't end up adding more clutter to workshop rooms.
I would say that is fine I would not care if I threw in a tree for it to burn still wood not in real life
Ultimately it's going to be both rough and ready wood, and the complicated/work-intensive way of getting fuel. I wanted to have an alternative so that later on, you don't have to depend on wood so heavily.
I increased the fuel consumption quite a bit, you see, because it was ridiculously cheap compared with, for example, the fuel you would use to power a fueled generator and turn on a standing lamp. Of course, a fueled generator doesn't produce power in increments of 150W, only 1000W at a time, but as I said it was ridiculously cheap.
Use fuel, but have it fueled by beer, as it is the only alcohol in the game, and probably wouldn't burn, but whatever. Seriously, the brewing table is for one thing. We need more alcohol types.
An alcohol-based fuel is actually a really good idea.
Quote from: Zombra on May 09, 2016, 12:36:54 PM
An alcohol-based fuel is actually a really good idea.
This. Make vodka out of potatoes, vodka burns well. In the belly (for the cold snaps, or for just bingeing on it!) and the lantern.
Who needs parka's in this -100C when you have vodka to keep the inside warm and vodka fire to keep the outside warm!
Quote from: Z0MBIE2 on May 09, 2016, 10:24:22 PM
Who needs parka's in this -100C when you have vodka to keep the inside warm and vodka fire to keep the outside warm!
Vodka is basically watered down ethanol
Quote from: dareddevil7 on May 10, 2016, 12:39:51 PM
Quote from: Z0MBIE2 on May 09, 2016, 10:24:22 PM
Who needs parka's in this -100C when you have vodka to keep the inside warm and vodka fire to keep the outside warm!
Vodka is basically watered down ethanol
Instilled with patriotic spirit, don't forget comerade.
Hmmm, wood + cooking table = charcoal. Or you could simply add charcoal as a byproduct of one or more of the current wood burning "buildings". Charcoal fired lanterns are pretty much what was used back in the old days anyways, when liquid fuel or wax wasn't available.
I think the idea of using the brewing table to make lamp fuel is a good one. Doesn't have to relate to any edible fuels, could be methanol, which is wood based. But edible fuel, aka Vodka(as already suggested) would be more fun. ;) The lamp fuel would be more efficient then using charcoal since the fuel source is a lot more compact and portable. Relates to a longer burn duration and/or you get more fuel from about the same amount of resources used to make it, then you get from charcoal.
Also, if you want to get technical, liquid fueled lanterns tended to be a lot brighter then their solid fueled counterparts. But they also had the ability to turn down their flame to a dimmer setting by adjusting the wick. So your choice, as the mod creator, on that part.
Progress report. Did pretty much what I said I was going to do. A lot of the time today went into making new art assets.
I came up with a very simple way of switching lanterns from burning oil to burning wood - added a recipe to convert them on the basic crafting spot. You can of course also build them from the architect as usual.
As long as I can keep my colonists from refueling them, I like it.
Hmm, yeah that should be easily doable, I just have to add CompProperties_Forbiddable and see if that works.
Quote from: MarvinKosh on May 15, 2016, 09:21:00 PM
Hmm, yeah that should be easily doable, I just have to add CompProperties_Forbiddable and see if that works.
You know how to forbid things, you are now my favorite person.
A long in a Lantern? pff, I don't discriminate. As long as it works properly.
Perhaps in the future you'll think up an alternative?