It would be nice to have an option of building a line diagonally at any angle and have the game make a wall placement accordingly that would set up a secure wall. Horizontal and vertical should be default options, but by using a modify key or a toggle button, people might want to be able to place walls at a more natural angle without having to click each individual wall part to wall of an area with a diagonal line. Basically allow the free placement of a line of wall however the player sees fit.
I can see the interest in that (as I do foresee the mayhem some people would create with it :P).
As of now the most basic unit for everything but characters (and animals) is a 1x1 square.
This unit allows every form of terrain to be associated with and "grounded" on the map (which is 200x200 as of now).
For diagonals to work, I suspect Tynan would have to severely alter his game engine (AKA "lot of work").
The problem I can see with this, is that if walls are not aligned to the gridmap anymore, the other structures (such as tables, consoles, nutrient dispenser...) will also need to be tweaked somehow to allow being aligned on those diagonal walls.
Then comes the problem of making use of the ground space: if a table (for instance) is diagonally put in a room, how many ground units (1x1) of that room are actually occupied, and thus which ones are free to use or walk by ?
How do we define a unit as being occupied ?
If my table occupy only one pixel on the next square which is close to a wall, then characters can't walk on it, and neither can you build there ?
To alleviate this, I suppose Tynan would have to rewrite most of his code...
TL;DR: I kind of like the idea, but I do think it would bring a lot of issues.
Let's not even speak of the pathfinding issues, rendered easier by the grid :)
I understand the request from a realism standpoint, but every new suggestion should raise the same question: will it improve the created stories? If it doesn't, it's not necessarily a bad idea, but it has few to no chance to be included in the game ever.
I do not mean diagonals as in half block like. I mean diagonals as in a pixel based diagonal. Like the one on the right side of this image: http://docs.overviewer.org/en/latest/_images/chunk_width.png
Of course it would need to add additional blocks to not allow people to move inbetween the gaps if it is possible to go through diagonal lines. I just want it to be able to drag out diagonal lines with the current mechanics, similar to the tool in paint:
http://i.imgur.com/WnuMnoH.jpg Notice how the diagonal line has gaps inbetween, the game needs to make them securely.
It is just an interface enhancement, right?
Got it :)
In that case, yes, it's a good idea, and a cheap one (http://ludeon.com/forums/index.php?topic=174.0) too.
oh i get it now your talking about a line tool.
so maybe hold shift for squares and rectangles and just hold down the mouse for lines, but they can run at angles.
this is a great idea and it would help when building more interesting structures :D
yeah totally add this to the cheap ideas thread
Seems doable, but it might get fugly.
Any tester that could provide us with a "simulation" of such a wall ?
This may brings a few mores issues, though...
Will two diagonal units be considered completely sealed (some games have problems with similar cases) ?
If not, and maybe also to improve visuals, double the width of the wall ?
That won't probably look any good though (not to mention the loss of usable space)...
Done.
(https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--B_YqaZNksw/UlnPA6qPKjI/AAAAAAAAL3E/zDBQJNoL1qI/s640/Untitled-2.jpg)
You can build a room with diagonals, they even form a proper roof, and the door seems to function but looks weird.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gzcD5MKj1To/UlnQ6-6-NOI/AAAAAAAAL38/43C03YIgz1Y/s640/Untitled-3.jpg)
It's not crossable, but it doesn't create roofs either if I remember correctly.
thank you for adding a screenshot miah999
makes me wounder if you can fire through the spots where two diagonal blocks converge (most likely not)
Quote from: salt1219 on October 12, 2013, 06:40:57 PM
makes me wounder if you can fire through the spots where two diagonal blocks converge (most likely not)
That's what I was actually thinking about...
miah999, what about walls that are not 45°, but more like 15° or so ?
One that would be like 12 blocks long, changing line every 4 blocks or so.
Quote from: Hypolite on October 12, 2013, 06:40:35 PM
It's not crossable, but it doesn't create roofs either if I remember correctly.
It does add a roof in the build I have, I updated my post.
Actually, the cover system currently allows for someone to fire from a corner cover at a slightly too open angle. The shots would visibly go through the rock or wall the shooter would be covered behind. This has been reported to Tynan's, but until its resolution, that kind of wall would provide an excellent fire cover. One can imagine a W wall to protect its colonists from raiders fire...
Seems to work, this is build 211 BTW, gotta go now.
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-fX88VDwjnU0/UlnTAL5zufI/AAAAAAAAL4g/vkF5Rl9HMpw/s640/Untitled-4.jpg)
Thanks for your time, miah999.
This was mainly to confirm that it looks odd :P