Genetic Expansion Pack! Suggestions and interests?

[DrFlaggstaff]

Hi all,
Pretty new to modding here, but Rimworld is just so got-damned inspiring I know I have to learn now.

I've just begun working on my own mod, which I'm currently calling: The Genetic Expansion Pack!

My hope for this topic is to spur some thought, and get some Responses/Suggestions/NewIdeas,
Just, in case you're really into this stuff like me, don't get too excited as you read, this is gonna be a long and tedious project and most of it won't be functional untill probably A18/19 at least.

On that note though, I would love to begin releasing what I have done once it's actually added a couple functions to the game.

-----------------

So, the goal:
In the Rimworld Universe, supposedly genetic engineering and drastically new environments has lead to a dizzying range of human races. Much to my own dismay, the only humans are 'baseline, mostly unchanged by genetic engineering and new environments' or whatever exactly it says. And the only other 'races' include a very limited number of animals, and less than a handful of artificial beings.

I don't aim to add aliens, I want to stick to the vanilla story here, because there is just SO MUCH MORE for it.

I'm working on a new worktable called the GEIC: the Genetic Engineering Incubation Chamber.
Odds are the details are more complex than I'm anticipating, and i might have to implement some of these things slowly, if ever. But the goal for the GEIC is to be a 2x3 machine where one 1x2 corner is translucent, like glass, and the rest of the block looks like machinery. A pawn will lay down in the 1x2 glass tube and go into 'Incubation', where they're inactive for perhaps 2-4 days. The purpose of this being, you can use Nanostructures (A new manufactured item) and the process of Genetic Implanting  (A new skill perhaps? Any ideas?) to engineer your pawns for the better. Over the course of the 2-4 days, depending on the operation, they would age about a year, but they could acquire minor, post-embryonic changes. Some of my first ideas for these include: Enhanced Regeneration (Scars and gunshot wounds will now fully heal), Circulatory Pressure Valves (Bleeding would cap out at a certain percent, giving you more time to save them, but making their blood circulation drop faster, probably making them drop faster), Artificial Nervous Structures (Enhancing all pawn stats [like manipulation and moving] by 5, maybe 10%. Perhaps also giving them the 'Too Smart' trait. Maybe not, it's not necessarily a neural structure.) Maybe even cosmetic changes that only take a day or less!

Later in development I hope to add embryonic changes!
You'll be able to take a Male Gamete Sample and a Female Gamete Sample, collected by a doctor from a select list of animals (Which I hope to one day widen to just about all the animals), and finally, combine them in yet another new workbench I'll have to make, giving you an (Animalspecific)Zygote! At said workbench, you'll be able to Engineer the Zygote and give the coming pup some mutations. After growing the zygote in a different, specific incubation unit, you'll get a baby animal that could have things from a new color coat to an extra set of perfectly functioning limbs. Ever wanted flying Yorkies? Or a muffalo that has to occasionally eat steel because it's skin has a 20% chance to deflect bullets? Maybe you'd actually like a boomalope pet if it could project it's explosive material rather than simply going kamikaze.

And last but CERTAINLY not least, I hope to one day add Non-Baseline Humans!!!
You'll have a very low chance of getting most of them as wanderers, a decent chance in escape pods, and maybe I'll be able to come up with a few wild variations that would make sense as a faction on 'this' Rimworld.
Eight foot tall, scrawny stalky workers who have to sleep in water chambers with a breathing apparatus, because prolonged 1g force hurts them. Breathing apparatus would NOT require electricity to avoid solar flare complications.
Three foot tall Gravity Dwarfs, industrious, don't eat much, but the things they eat can't be eaten by humans. (Maybe? Idk, ideas? Negatives are what make things fun!)
Crafted Perfect mates that have a range of traits like non-functioning wings, color changing eyes, tinted skin, etc.
Omni-animals that function exactly as pawns with different stats!
Super soldier variants! AND LOTS OF THEM, this one is way cooler than the vanilla story goes into: Yeah, adrenaline junkie soldiers, but also reverted packs of super-human&proto-human ape things, Empaths that can feel other peoples Alpha/Beta waves (or some other sciency shit) and feel their feelings. Maybe the other way around, they can project feelings?



As you can tell, this is a HUGE undertaking that's going to take a long, long while, and a lot of custom textures. I would SERIOUSLY appreciate input, ideas, or people that find value in this that wouldn't mind leaving a comment to say I could ask them for coding or art help sometime. Like I said, I'm pretty new to this, but I think you can see my inspiration firing.

[AngleWyrm]

Start by building tiny one-off mods, which are complete and self-contained, and don't have big dreams of being a total rewrite of Rimworld one day. This is a necessary psychological surgical procedure, so that you may then get some practice with success and completion of versions. Like all artistic endeavors, it's been said that artists don't finish their works, they abandon them. The thing being practiced is a refinement of the threshold area between much more to do and that about wraps it up until it becomes a sharper feeling of resolution. It's a wetware rewiring process that only happens through use.

[DrFlaggstaff]

I appreciate the input! :) And that was the plan!
I think it will all be very interesting so I'm starting with the GEIC worktable and the ability to heal bullet wounds.

It will all be very incremental, I know, and thats ok I enjoy the game as is very much.

Am just looking for some extra ideas or people who find it interesting too and may want to help!
Posting on the forums is great but sometimes your post will just drift into the darkness so, having a list of some contacts would help a lot.

[Granitecosmos]

I call dibs on the gravity dwarves. I want to implement them myself.

[DrFlaggstaff]

I call dibs on the gravity dwarves. I want to implement them myself.

I imagine I am a very long way off from doing the extra races, will probably be the last thing I get to. If theres some kind of rule about it I can respect that, otherwise, they would be a very small part of my Mod, and I'm sure yours could be more specifically enjoyable. Though, maybe when I get to that point I could check in with you about some kind of colab? I haven't the slightest idea right now where to begin with the races, I'm still familiarizing myself with the files.

[ChaosChronicler]

Was going to say you could still play around with Abhumans (sorry 40k reference) using the Humanoid Alien Framework. Might be a good jump point but take my word with a grain of salt, I myself am new to this sort of thing

[DrFlaggstaff]

Was just looking into that the other day, but like I said races are probably the last thing I'll go into so I might have my own entire framework by then.

[ChaosChronicler]

But still looking for ideas? Got a couple

[DrFlaggstaff]

But still looking for ideas? Got a couple

Always! Thats the point of this forum, though I know it will soon enough fade into the depths..

Whatcha got? If it's anything expansive or you could help me with it in anyway I'd be more than happy to give you credit

[SpaceDorf]

I have some Ideas of my own, but Phase II is still a long way off.

I was thinking more about enhancing the local wildlife but I like your Idea very much.

For the baseline of your Idea I would look at Skullywags Dermal Regenerator
https://ludeon.com/forums/index.php?topic=14177.0;topicseen

It has some features you might like and even the C# code is quite easy to understand.

[Sokestu]

That's sound awesome

I'm not an expert in genetic neither in C# XML but here is my idea for you:
- First of, I you wish to use animal gen too in order to have hybrid humans, then you should think about how your mod will interract with animals mods, especially those who add extra animals.
- Second, I suggest you to add genetic prothese, like the bionic ones, they can either be as strong or weaker than bionics ones, but perhaps stronger than regular member (something like 105 or 110% efficient unlike bionic 120%). This is for the photophobe people than you can't heal without giving them weaker member.
- Third, if you going to create non base humans, I suggest you to look over mods who create aliens

I think I can't give you any other relevant thoughts. I hope you will succeed, I a mod like this

[DrFlaggstaff]

I have some Ideas of my own, but Phase II is still a long way off.

I was thinking more about enhancing the local wildlife but I like your Idea very much.

For the baseline of your Idea I would look at Skullywags Dermal Regenerator
https://ludeon.com/forums/index.php?topic=14177.0;topicseen

It has some features you might like and even the C# code is quite easy to understand.

So SpaceDorf, I've spent a couple days looking through the dermal regenerator files trying to familiarize myself with C# but thus far my only experience is in XML and I'm having a very hard time.

Do you maybe have some guidelines, tips, or starting ideas for familiarizing myself with this specific mod? Or maybe know of a relevant C# tutorial?

[SpaceDorf]

Everything I know about C# I mashed together from what I allready knew about C++ and Java.
What you want to look for is the XML lookup Milon has put up in the ModHelp Subforum. It gives you the language the Game speaks.
C# .. on the forum and the wiki are some tutorials on how to create a .dll
and some links to C# Beginner guides ..

The thing that is nice to know and have with the Dermal Regenerator is that you can change Pawn Settings and Pawn races .. and pretty much everything about a pawn, if you find the right field entry.

What you will encounter soon enough is .. you can work with xml and create  new enhanced bodyparts with hediffs and put them into your pawns, however you want. Look at the Bionics from EPOE and RBSE .. Implants can just be attached to the overlying organ ( arm, head, body .. )

The problem start when you want to use or create organs and bodyparts that have not been there before but need to be defined as part of the body.
Tails or Wings can not ..
This is where you have to create new Races .. for the kind of Stuff you are thinking about I would suggest the Chtulluh and WH40k mods ..

For myself this was the point I had to abandon my own Astartes project.

[The-Eroks]

Start by building tiny one-off mods, which are complete and self-contained, and don't have big dreams of being a total rewrite of Rimworld one day. This is a necessary psychological surgical procedure, so that you may then get some practice with success and completion of versions. Like all artistic endeavors, it's been said that artists don't finish their works, they abandon them. The thing being practiced is a refinement of the threshold area between much more to do and that about wraps it up until it becomes a sharper feeling of resolution. It's a wetware rewiring process that only happens through use.

^ That is great advice.