Blueprints

Every concept outlined in this section should be present in a MVP

Constructing new ships or items begins with obtaining a blueprint. This system is designed to encourage continuous improvement discouraging stockpiling and ensuring that newer items remain more effective than older ones.

Blueprints are widely available in the game and can be acquired through various means such as exploration, trade or market purchases. Each blueprint provides the basic specifications required to construct a ship or item.

Once obtained, blueprints can be continuously researched to improve the output item’s stats. This research process is key to maintaining competitive edges in the game:

• Indefinite Improvement: Players can research their blueprints indefinitely, enhancing aspects such as durability, efficiency, and power. This ensures that older ships or items become progressively less competitive compared to upgraded versions

• Research Aggressiveness: Players can choose the aggressiveness of their research. More aggressive research speeds up the improvement process but also increases the chances of research failure, adding a risk-reward element to blueprint advancement.

• Industrial espionage: Constructing advanced ships, outposts, and items often requires collaboration. Players must share their blueprints with trusted allies or specialized builders who possess the necessary facilities and skills. This sharing process inherently involves risks, as the recipient may attempt to steal the blueprint’s content and advancements.

Similar to EVE Online, blueprints must be placed in stasis during the research process. This means that the blueprint cannot be used to construct new items while it is being upgraded.

Factors Influencing Final Performance

Material Quality: The type of materials used in construction significantly impacts the final item’s attributes:

• Standard Alloys: Provide reliable performance but may not maximize the blueprint’s potential.
• Expensive Alloys: Enhance the final item’s attributes, making it more durable, efficient, or powerful.

Construction Facility Quality: The quality of the construction facilities also plays a crucial role:

• Basic Facilities: Capable of producing items to standard specifications.
• Upgraded Facilities: Can significantly boost production speed, consistency and quality, leveraging advanced technology to bring out the best in the blueprints.

Scaling of Traits

Linear vs. Logarithmic Scaling: Not all item traits can be improved linearly. For traits such as ship speed, a logarithmic scaling approach is used:

• Linear Scaling: Suitable for traits like durability or weapon power, where incremental improvements can continue to provide benefits.
• Logarithmic Scaling: For traits like speed, improvements become less impactful over time, reflecting realistic constraints and ensuring balanced gameplay.

This system is designed to discourage stockpiling by ensuring that older ships and items under perform compared to newer, upgraded versions.

The ability to research and upgrade blueprints creates a dynamic market where advanced blueprints and high-quality materials are in constant demand.

Use

Blueprints can be removed from research at any time and transferred to Building Facilities to construct the desired item.

Similarly to EVE (or real life), each blueprint will list its Bill of Materials (BOM)

However, we want to push this a bit further, the BOM will not list the specific mineral, but the list of which material attributes are best suited for the blueprint and their impact on the final product.

Example: Building a Chicken-Class Interceptor in Citadel

In Citadel, constructing a Chicken-Class Interceptor requires gathering various components and ensuring they meet specific quality standards. This example outlines the process of collecting the necessary materials, validating their attributes, and assembling the interceptor.

Chicken-Class Interceptor Blueprint Requirements:

1. Pipes:

   • Quantity: 100 units
   • Minimum Strength: C Tier

2. Nuclear Core Energizer:

   • Quantity: 1 unit
   • Minimum Power Output: D Tier

3. Wiring:

   • Quantity: 2500 units
   • Minimum Electrical Conductivity: F Tier

(Tiers are a way to visually display the float value of the property which goes from 0 to 1, the closer the property is to 1, the higher the purity of the mineral is (see Processing and Refining))

Materials and Their Attributes:

Locally Sourced Watermelonium:

• Electrical Conductivity: A Tier
• Thermal Conductivity: A Tier
• Strength: C Tier
• Elasticity: C Tier
• Hardness: B Tier
• Density: A Tier

Step-by-Step Assembly Process

Step 1: Assembling the Pipes

Pipes Blueprint Requirements:

• Minimum Strength: C Tier
• Required Material: 1000 m³ of mineral with at least C Tier strength per unit

Material Validation:

• Watermelonium has C Tier strength, making it suitable for building pipes.

Calculation:

• To create 100 units of pipes, you need 1000 m³ per unit, totaling 100,000 m³ of Watermelonium.

Result:

• Using 100,000 m³ of Watermelonium, you produce 100 units of pipes, meeting the blueprint requirements for the Chicken-Class Interceptor.

Step 2: Assembling the Wiring

Wiring Blueprint Requirements:

• Minimum Electrical Conductivity: F Tier
• Required Material: 1 unit per 1 m³ of mineral

Material Validation:

• Watermelonium has A Tier electrical conductivity, which far exceeds the minimum F Tier requirement.

Calculation:

• To create 2500 units of wiring, you need 2500 m³ of Watermelonium.

Bonus Effect:

• Due to the high electrical conductivity of Watermelonium, the wiring will receive a significant performance boost. This could translate into enhanced power grid efficiency, allowing the Chicken-Class Interceptor to fit more energy-hungry modules.

Result:

• Using 2500 m³ of Watermelonium, you produce 2500 units of high-conductivity wiring, providing a bonus to the ship’s power grid.

Step 3: Assembling the Nuclear Core Energizer

Nuclear Core Energizer Blueprint Requirements:

• Minimum Power Output: D Tier

Material Validation:

• In this example, assume we have a suitable mineral or composite that meets the D Tier power output requirement.

Calculation:

• Assemble the Nuclear Core Energizer using the validated materials to meet the blueprint requirement.

Result:

• The Nuclear Core Energizer is built to the required specifications and is ready for integration into the Chicken-Class Interceptor.

Final Assembly of the Chicken-Class Interceptor

Components Assembled:

• Pipes: 100 units of C Tier strength pipes from 100,000 m³ of Watermelonium.
• Wiring: 2500 units of A Tier conductivity wiring from 2500 m³ of Watermelonium.
• Nuclear Core Energizer: 1 unit meeting the D Tier power output requirement.

Process:

1. Gather and Transport: Collect all components and transport them to the designated shipyard.
2. Integration: Begin the assembly process by integrating the pipes, wiring, and nuclear core energizer with the hull and structural elements made from Watermelonium.
3. Final Checks: Conduct thorough quality checks to ensure all components meet the blueprint requirements and function as expected.