Prototypes

[Anderty (OP)]

Hi there, Aurora Community.

So, as I learn Aurora and watch my awesome senior let's-playing, some thing visited my mind.  It's called - memory.
So, when ship design was ready, I was hoping to see prototype stage of it, as such mechanic I personally saw only in one 4x game (Sword of the Stars) and nowhere else (I played 'lot of 4x games. . .  may be too much), and I'm sure it's still unique to them.

Mechanic is as follows: When design is prepared, it goes to manufacturers to prototype.  While they do that, there's no possibility to mass produce design, as while prototype is being made, engineers learn and deal with many problems and situations while they create it.  (And, yes, they usually even try to understand it, as sometimes, even super-mechanic don't quite get idea from first glance on everything in blueprints) Such prototype creation takes much longer time to finish final product.  But when it's done, engineers are fit to share knowledge and optimize workflow for mass production of model.  While they were conducting such process, there's no possible way to even start creating such models before prototype is finished.  In SOTS it was really cool, as you'll think twice, before refitting your dreadnought, as small change could, actually, lead to long prototyping.

Thanks to my senior, I gathered my bravery to write idea for your judgment.  There could be modifications to idea, like, test run for prototype before approve it for mass production.  But I'll leave that to your judgment.

And thanks for awesome game! Still way too much to learn, but I have fun while doing it.

[drejr]

I would assume that for ship components the research cost includes prototyping.

As for ships, they very rarely have prototypes.

[Erik L]

Yoostabee, (sound it out) that the first ship in a class built took extra time. I am unsure if this is still in.

[drejr]

There's no difference now in game mechanics. In practice it usually takes less time unless you're a careful planner. I find I usually run out of some pre-built component or other before an entire production run is laid down.

[Alfapiomega]

I think it actually makes sense. Putting up a ship together and researching the components are two completely different things.

So from me +1. I just don't know how AI would handle it (probably same as fuel and other ignoring it?).

[Rich.h]

I think this could be solved quite easily by simply making it so that even if a shipyard has no class assigned then tooling it for the first time takes time to do. This would pretty much account for finding faults and working out kinks in the deign when you add that to the construction period of the first off the line.

[alex_brunius]

Some of the functional prototyping you do yourself in Aurora. It's just that no-one tells you you can't mass produce that design without maintenance supplies to repair, without an engine or without fuel to get very far so you often can end up with alot of very useless prototypes

[Mor]

Mechanic is as follows: When design is prepared, it goes to manufacturers to prototype.  While they do that, there's no possibility to mass produce design, as while prototype is being made, engineers learn and deal with many problems and situations while they create it.  (And, yes, they usually even try to understand it, as sometimes, even super-mechanic don't quite get idea from first glance on everything in blueprints) Such prototype creation takes much longer time to finish final product.  But when it's done, engineers are fit to share knowledge and optimize workflow for mass production of model.  While they were conducting such process, there's no possible way to even start creating such models before prototype is finished.  In SOTS it was really cool, as you'll think twice, before refitting your dreadnought, as small change could, actually, lead to long prototyping.

If I understand the gist of it, you want a flavor event that will prologue the  design\construction of ships. Since each ship is composed of various components, this can be achieved in several ways.

1. A random chance during research of components, that will shave or add few RP to the project e.g. A breakthrough or delay in the research team effort of prototyping .. add something creative.
2. Same for the first construction\retrofit of a ship, only with BP and a shipyard.

[Anderty (OP)]

If I understand the gist of it, you want a flavor event that will prologue the  design\construction of ships.    Since each ship is composed of various components, this can be achieved in several ways.   

1.    A random chance during research of components, that will shave or add few RP to the project e.   g.    A breakthrough or delay in the research team effort of prototyping .   .    add something creative.   
2.    Same for the first construction\retrofit of a ship, only with BP and a shipyard.   

Pretty much, yes.    That's the big idea.    As for now, research actually does quite ok, as, well, in the time of researching, of course there goes in prototyping as well.    But when ship design is created, it's kinda strange, that all you do is refit shipyard and suddenly by magic means, every mechanic knows exactly how to construct completely new design.    It's like giving for truck mechanic task to design a F1 racing car.    So, adding some flaw to shipyards of "We will build it first and then we will be ready. " makes sense.

Also, I like your idea of adding 'bit randomness of creativity.    It sounds logical, as in human history, sometimes great designs in many things come out just in construction process.   .   .    or mistakes as well.   

Actually, many games simulate with random events of "sudden breakthrough", like Jesus come out from nowhere and shared technology.    If come back to SOTS, there was another interesting mechanic.    When research is conducted by overflowing funding, chances raise with bigger funding overflow of breakthrough.    And again, it was quite logical, as leisure life for scientists could possibly give them enough to shine and outsmart planned time.    The same goes for long research, as if tech is researched quite long time, it slowly get's even slower to finish.   

I'm sorry if I mention SOTS so much.   .   .    It's just the awesome Aurora and I can't feel nostalgic, while remembering gem like sots and it's quite awesome mechanics, which in many cases are unique in 4x games.   

[jem]

No offence, but if a game has a tech that removes a mechanic halfway through the tech tree then it is probably not a good mechanic. A tech (that was hidden behind some other useless techs as well) I tended to go for as soon as possible since prototyping had a tendency to ruin you if you were not careful. Sots 1 is a wonderful game, sots 2 is a collection of interesting ideas that do not work out in practice (aka Aurora done badly imo).

As for research and overflow funding, you forgot about the part where things have a chance to go horribly wrong or that it was a viable strategy to research something to 50% and then cut funding to almost nothing and wait for a breakthrough.

[Cargus10]

The  old (1991 I think?) SSI game Stellar Crusade had this mechanic, I'm pretty sure.  In fact, that game might be called a small-scale Aurora prototype, as a lot of the concepts are in it.   I remember getting terribly annoyed that my most excellent battlefleet was at one point crippled by lack of spare parts stockpiles near the battle front. 

I'm almost sure that the first ship of any new class was much more expensive.