Tournesol's End Game Content Package:
4 additions only, interacts carefully with each other and they are easy to implement. Coding: ~4 hours (all the key functionality), graphics: ~1 hour, play testing/balancing: lots
1. More colonists means more unhappiness: 1-5: no change; 6-10: -2 for each extra; 11-15: -4 for each; 16-20: -5 for each.
Ex: 10 colonists gives a constant -10 unhappiness, 15 gives -30 and 20 gives -55. Prisoners count little or nothing.
2. Advanced food dispenser: Uses 3-5x more food for each meal, uses 1200W, ~500 metal, gives +12 happiness, researchable (~10-20k)
Needed for larger colonies to manage happiness. Puts real pressure on food production, so you need several (~4) trained growers and a well designed colony with good transportation layout.
3. Superior beds, with blanket heating, air-condition and back massage: Gives +5 extra happiness for one day (slept well), gives +10 happiness for ~two days (has a nice bed), uses 750W, ~600 metal, very long construction time ~one day (if easy), needs frequent time consuming repairs (if easy), 2x2 size, researchable (~5-15k).
Again needed for larger colonies to manage happiness. Puts real pressure on power grid and repair, so you need several (~4) trained constructors and a colony layout that makes repairs easy.
4. Gardens of beauty (pot plants): gives +5 happiness while in same room, stacks 4 times, uses 25W, ~20 metal, requires lots of styling/gardening, dies slowly if unpowered (~2 days), 1x2 size, researchable (~10-15k), might make dirt when worked on (if easy).
The last mile of new happiness. Puts real pressure on artistic or gardening/cutting (pot plant fallback). Several (~2) trained colonists are needed to maintain them, with 4 each in 20 bedrooms. Possibly 1-2 colonists extra for cleaning up the mess.
--Done--
All 4 reuse elements and code that already exists, and should be relatively fast to implement
I also believe that the AI manager hardly *need* changes with this package. The happiness buildings and colony size has basic self balance properties, as bigger setbacks means you can turn off the expensive stuff.
The total effect happiness effect is balanced so that at 20 colonists and all new buildings gives +0 happiness.
This imposes 'Gardens of beauty' everywhere in the base however. So, even with peaceful settings getting 20 colonists is supposed to require good planing.
The happiness modifiers, food usage, repair time and energy usage are semi-guesses.
Hopefully the package is somewhat balanced in the resources needed. Each element taxes different skills, and has varied resource requirements.
Also great stories are possible!:
When raiders attack during a solar flare you have to arrest many "trouble makers" (reducing number of colonists).
However after the battle you have lost several skilled gardeners, but have 3 new raiders captured.
On this dark day you arrest some of your own assassins that can't grow food, and take in the captured people.
As food supply drops with the half trained growers, you sell your arrested assassins to buy a stockpile of food.
With the colony safe from starvation you let the new guys train growing, and start patching up the new defences