New Zone: High Priority Cleaning

[Zombull]

A new work category "Cleaning+" near the left side of the work chart should assign pawns to clean High Priority Cleaning zones. This would allow us to, for instance, assign cooks to clean the kitchen before preparing meals, but without having the cook running all over the base to clean every spec of dirt.

[AileTheAlien]

You can always just take on a "useless" pawn, who's got no skills or combat, and just set them to haul and clean. It's a viable in-universe solution.

[5thHorseman]

Actually I think "Clean Nearby" would be a better early trait. Maybe even make it a basic task so it doesn't add a new column. The pawn will clean any dirty tile that's only a few tiles from them. I bet this would pretty much solve all cleaning issues as your cooks will just naturally clean the kitchens without any need to set up zones or special tasks.

[bobucles]

"germophobe" heh. Just don't put that colonist outdoors or they'll go on cleaning breaks every day.

There is an issue where outdoor floors get covered in dirt and for some reason colonists go outside to sweep up the dirt. Uh. Stop. Please.

Currently there is only one cleaning priority: "Home zone". If a tile is in your home zone it will get cleaned. If it isn't then it gets ignored.

[Skryabin]

A new work category "Cleaning+" near the left side of the work chart should assign pawns to clean High Priority Cleaning zones. This would allow us to, for instance, assign cooks to clean the kitchen before preparing meals, but without having the cook running all over the base to clean every spec of dirt.

Very good idea.

[spidermonk]

You can always just take on a "useless" pawn, who's got no skills or combat, and just set them to haul and clean. It's a viable in-universe solution.

Each pawn increases raids threat level, so I personally try not to get useless ones.

[Skryabin]

Each pawn increases raids threat level, so I personally try not to get useless ones.

There are no "useless pawns"! Every pawn has a right to live and to live a happy life!
We have to issue a Declaration of Pawn's Rights and ban players for pawn's discrimination 

[Koek]

There are no "useless pawns"! Every pawn has a right to live and to live a happy life!
We have to issue a Declaration of Pawn's Rights and ban players for pawn's discrimination 

You've just convinced me to play a Cannibal/Psychopath run. Thanks

[AileTheAlien]

Cannibals and psychopaths are easy-mode.

In all seriousness, though, I'm pretty sure the game is supposed to be balanced around taking some pawns who aren't amazing at everything. (Sorry, don't have a source for that; Tynan on Reddit somewhere...) I play on Randy medium, and I can afford 1/7 colonists to just do cleaning and hauling. Plus, raids aren't supposed to be killable forever; The game eventually ramps up to a point where you just have to restart, or lose some colonists.

[Bolgfred]

My cook usually has hauling cleaning 2 cooking 3 and hauling 4. With this setup he will clean before cooking, and haul ingredients/meals afterwards.

This ensures that my cook will always work in a clean enviroment. Silly fact, when my base grows to large, he won't get to an end cleaning and forget about the cooking, so I create a zone which restricts my cook  to bed-, dining- and recreation-room plus freezer kitchen.
This works good for me, but I wouldn't be unhappy if I can tell my cook to only clean a specific area with priority or only this area.
If so, my chef might see the sun again...

[Wanderer_joins]

The work around with zoning makes sense.

The problem with high priority cleaning zones would be the same you have with high priority storage. Pawns will waste time transiting on long distances just to haul things to or clean a high priority zone.

The two imperfect solutions are either keep all your base clean with dedicated cleaners or have you cook clean with zone restriction.

A high priority cleaning zone would be almost the same, you'd have to block other pawns from entering the kitchen so they don't stop constantly what they're doing to go clean the kitchen, and like when a fire is reserved by a pawn at the opposite site of the map, if a dirt patch is reserved by a cleaner far away, it may not help to keep your kitchen clean, just have your cook do it.

[Zombull]

The work around with zoning makes sense.

The problem with high priority cleaning zones would be the same you have with high priority storage. Pawns will waste time transiting on long distances just to haul things to or clean a high priority zone.

The two imperfect solutions are either keep all your base clean with dedicated cleaners or have you cook clean with zone restriction.

A high priority cleaning zone would be almost the same, you'd have to block other pawns from entering the kitchen so they don't stop constantly what they're doing to go clean the kitchen, and like when a fire is reserved by a pawn at the opposite site of the map, if a dirt patch is reserved by a cleaner far away, it may not help to keep your kitchen clean, just have your cook do it.

Keeping other pawns out of the kitchen would be easier with my other zone suggestion: Prohibit Pass-Through https://ludeon.com/forums/index.php?topic=43132.0

[bobucles]

Some of these issues can be solved with base design. If you build the kitchen as a dead end room then no one will path through it and track mud everywhere.

Of course it is annoying that you can't choose cleaning zones by any other method than deleting home zones. When cleaners go to sweep mud from the outdoor steps instead of washing the infirmary it's definitely a "Tynan plz" moment.

[bobomite]

I think high priority cleaning zones would be a great idea.  As the base grows even dedicated cleaning pawns seem to forget to clean the kitchen all he time.

[Greep]

Yeah with a large base I've got several dedicated janitors and I still have to restrict my home zone to be smaller than my "real base" just to get cleaning done.

Ultimately I think it's best if we just got something like haul animals for cleaning, so I think this particular idea ends up being just a band-aid solution.