As a long time player (Alpha 3 or so), I'm frustrated with gold, components.

[Datajack]

I like the addition of components as a concept. When I'm in the depths of winter and one of my batteries or hydroponic trays breaks down and I'm out of components, my heart drops. As it should. I imagine my colony's technician, were she more aware, would be shitting bricks at this realization, because it means we might not survive the winter. Same with turrets breaking down with raiders on the horizon, etc.

What I don't like is how trader RNG takes that helplessness to a frustrating extent. In the 2 years of my current colony, I can count on one hand the number of caravans/ships that I was actually glad to see. A giant train of people and pack animals laden with goods, and the vendor screen offers me ... two components and three slaves? Two components and a $4,500 helmet made out of uranium? Some medicine and a $30,000 spear made out of gold? It got to a point where I was praying for mechanoid raids to happen, which completely kills my immersion.

[Shurp]

On the subject of "research", I imagine that the escape pods came loaded with encyclopedias, but it still takes time to figure out how to translate academic knowledge of quantum mechanics into building a functional charge rifle -- even when you have the charge rifle schematics right in front of  you.

Hmmm, considering the dangerous toys they're playing with, research tables should blow up occasionally

[RedSchuhart]

Research doesn't really fit well into this mindset.

Well actually it can be called "research" as a group of actions that you should do before you can actually build something. Like making calculations on, for example, fuel consumption of a generator, it's power output, figuring out how you can build it with materials and tools that you have, then making blueprints for those who will actually build it.

Like in my graduation paper I was given some data on what should my hydraulic classifier produce, then I made calculations of what's happening inside it, what sizes it's sections shoud have to work right, how powerful should an engine be etc., then I made blueprints showing how it should be assembled, installed, what are the tolerances etc.
Those are things that you can't do without when making something more complicated than just stick and stone axe. At the very least you should have blueprints to keep track of what is done and what is not, maybe you can make something small and simple keeping all in your head, but there's no way you can build a geothermal generator without them, or if something is built by someone else you absolutely shoud have blueprints as a way to explain what exactly you want them to make if you want them to make it right.

[nuschler22]

I like the addition of components as a concept. When I'm in the depths of winter and one of my batteries or hydroponic trays breaks down and I'm out of components, my heart drops. As it should. I imagine my colony's technician, were she more aware, would be shitting bricks at this realization, because it means we might not survive the winter. Same with turrets breaking down with raiders on the horizon, etc.

Traders certainly have some unusual stuff from what I've seen.   The last trader had one component and didn't want anything I offered. 

What I don't like is how trader RNG takes that helplessness to a frustrating extent. In the 2 years of my current colony, I can count on one hand the number of caravans/ships that I was actually glad to see. A giant train of people and pack animals laden with goods, and the vendor screen offers me ... two components and three slaves? Two components and a $4,500 helmet made out of uranium? Some medicine and a $30,000 spear made out of gold? It got to a point where I was praying for mechanoid raids to happen, which completely kills my immersion.

Traders certainly have some unusual items.  The last trader had one component and didn't want much of what I had. 

[hoochy]

Research doesn't really fit well into this mindset.

Well actually it can be called "research" as a group of actions that you should do before you can actually build something. Like making calculations on, for example, fuel consumption of a generator, it's power output, figuring out how you can build it with materials and tools that you have, then making blueprints for those who will actually build it.

Like in my graduation paper I was given some data on what should my hydraulic classifier produce, then I made calculations of what's happening inside it, what sizes it's sections shoud have to work right, how powerful should an engine be etc., then I made blueprints showing how it should be assembled, installed, what are the tolerances etc.
Those are things that you can't do without when making something more complicated than just stick and stone axe. At the very least you should have blueprints to keep track of what is done and what is not, maybe you can make something small and simple keeping all in your head, but there's no way you can build a geothermal generator without them, or if something is built by someone else you absolutely shoud have blueprints as a way to explain what exactly you want them to make if you want them to make it right.

I really feel like "knowledge" should be part of what pawns provide - and since it is 2016 special participation time, we should let everyone be equal in what they are able to learn! Maybe just the intelligence of the pawn controls how fast they learn things, and intelligence is at least a semi fixed pawn trait. So instead of sending a pawn to a research station you send a pawn to the "Teaching room" and have a teacher teach others. Otherwise when your crippled, frail, cataract'd professor dude falls over eating his simple meal and hits his head, or gets stabbed in the back during a prisoner escape you won't be able to build that nuclear reactor anymore.

This is an interesting game dynamic, because what you are able to create is not based on "you" the game player any more, it is based on the pawns on the map that actually have to build that thing, which seems to have a better connection to the world. All buildings should be visible in the interface, but the ones you can't build due to lack of knowledge should just simply say "no colonist with required knowledge to build this exists".

[Nictis]

Let the tribals come, my first gold in source was smelting down a golden spear, amd it gave me 700 gold because of the weight.

[ComradeKhan]

I've been playing since around Alpha 3 as well, and to be honest, I feel like having more finite resources and components actually makes the game so much more fun. Back then it was a mad rush to have power and turrets and then... that was it. Sustainability was easy, and it became more of a tower defence game than a survival sandbox.

Now you need rare metals for advanced equipment and actual working parts that can break down and need to be replaced. It now feels like you're surviving rather than defending. But that's just my 2 pence worth.

[sadpickle]

Let the tribals come, my first gold in source was smelting down a golden spear, amd it gave me 700 gold because of the weight.

As much as I love this, I think balance-wise we need to stop seeing small-stuff weapons in tribal raids. Uranium shivs I can sort-of understand, but the gold/silver spears and maces are absurd.

Anyway, I've been shamelessly dev-moding trade ships when I run out of space for raid loot, and I was struggling with components before I got a trade ship. Now I'm double my bottom limit (60 components just lying around for breakdowns). I think when Tynan balances the frequency and we get trade ships regularly again, most of the component headaches will go away. Even on a mountain map my main source is traders.

[Mathenaut]

Well actually it can be called "research" as a group of actions that you should do before you can actually build something. Like making calculations on, for example, fuel consumption of a generator, it's power output, figuring out how you can build it with materials and tools that you have, then making blueprints for those who will actually build it.

Essentially, this. People are approaching this from the early-civ game approach of literally-no-exposure-to-the-concept and research as a discovery process. It's not. It's more about engineering.

Alot of the things being built aren't even all that complex by modern standards, not to mention 3000 years from now. Alot of this is core-curriculum for general education, nevermind what actual engineers could pull off.

[Too-DAMN-Much]

at this point it's so bad even playing with mods i give myself all the gold i ever expect to use (for nice beds) and plan on never finding any naturally, components on the other hand? i've got those for days.

gold though? ah heck no, that stuff is rarer than unobtanium in fact most of the time there's none available on the map from what i remember hearing.

[Shurp]

There are only two realistic sources of gold:

1) Trade -- but you have to mod trade back to being useful, and
2) Vaults.  Spacers carry gold for no obvious reason.

Once you fix trade, a13 is actually fun to play.

[Too-DAMN-Much]

There are only two realistic sources of gold:

1) Trade -- but you have to mod trade back to being useful, and
2) Vaults.  Spacers carry gold for no obvious reason.

Once you fix trade, a13 is actually fun to play.

good to know thanks, had already fixed it in another way with the prepare carefully mod, surely it has to be available as an ore too though? at least in theory even?

[Shurp]

good to know thanks, had already fixed it in another way with the prepare carefully mod, surely it has to be available as an ore too though? at least in theory even?

In theory you can find gold on the map to mine.  But it turns up only on about 10% of the maps I've played. 

Of course, once you fix trade, an orbital exotic goods trader will show up with 30 components, and you won't *need* to build a component manufacturing bench anyway!

[Too-DAMN-Much]

good to know thanks, had already fixed it in another way with the prepare carefully mod, surely it has to be available as an ore too though? at least in theory even?

In theory you can find gold on the map to mine.  But it turns up only on about 10% of the maps I've played. 

Of course, once you fix trade, an orbital exotic goods trader will show up with 30 components, and you won't *need* to build a component manufacturing bench anyway!

actually components i haven't minded yet once, i usually mine any ore veins nearby the colony early on so the crashed ship parts eventually get to the point i'm not concerned for months on end.

[b0rsuk]

1) Trade -- but you have to mod trade back to being useful, and

I'm still getting my gold and stuff from traders, and I haven't modded the game. What am I doing wrong ?