Scaling Spaceports?

[liveware]

That's disappointing if true. I like the idea of building up your spaceport until you have something truly massive that can easily resupply multiple fleets. Like the Earth Torus from X3 that stretches all the way around the Earth.

+1

X3 is pretty epic.

Alternatively, consider the moon torus of Starship Troopers (movie).


However I am somewhat conflicted by the fact the player may construct custom space stations in Aurora. Maybe a separate 'orbital' or 'ring' classification for space stations would be entertaining? Perhaps orbitals need to be a space station of certain minimum size, and rings must be enormously larger? But orbitals/rings benefit from reduced orbital hab/terraforming/mining complex size/cost? Just thinking out loud....

X3 developed the 'complex' concept for space stations which I think was a reasonable approach. Perhaps Aurora will someday adopt some similar customization mechanics?

[Borealis4x (OP)]

That's disappointing if true. I like the idea of building up your spaceport until you have something truly massive that can easily resupply multiple fleets. Like the Earth Torus from X3 that stretches all the way around the Earth.

+1

X3 is pretty epic.

However I am somewhat conflicted by the fact the player may construct custom space stations in Aurora. Maybe a separate 'orbital' or 'ring' classification for space stations would be entertaining? Perhaps orbitals need to be a space station of certain minimum size, and rings must be enormously larger?

X3 developed the 'complex' concept for space stations which I think was a reasonable approach. Perhaps Aurora will someday adopt some similar customization mechanics?

I had an idea about how to 'add' sections to existing space stations, actually. What you can do is build another station and put it in the same fleet as an existing one and name it something like 'Jupiter Complex'. Bang, you've got your X3-style complex right there for all intents and purposes. I plan to do this with my Sol gas miners around Saturn and Jupiter by adding a habitat and recreation station. 

[liveware]

Nice.

This a concept I must explore more deeply.

However I still like the idea of dedicated orbitals and/or rings... I've read too much of Bank's fiction perhaps.

[pwhk]

According to changes list posted by Steve... (emphasis mine)

1.
> Refuelling Orders
> ...
> Multiple spaceports or refuelling stations at the colony will not increase the rate of refuelling.

2.
> Ordnance Transfer Orders
> ...
> Multiple spaceports or ordnance transfer stations at the colony will not increase the rate of ordnance transfer.

3.
> Cargo Shuttle Bays
> ...
> Spaceports and Cargo Shuttle Stations can service any number of ships simultaneously but they do not stack. In effect they count as a single Cargo Shuttle Bay for any ship at the population.

However, there is also a line
> They retain their existing bonuses to loading and unloading cargo.
Do note that this line come before "Cargo Shuttle Bays" rule post, so this may have changed... 

So while it appears to me that nothing stacks, I am not too sure if multiple spaceports still make cargo loading faster like in VB

[smoelf]

According to changes list posted by Steve... (emphasis mine)

1.
> Refuelling Orders
> ...
> Multiple spaceports or refuelling stations at the colony will not increase the rate of refuelling.

2.
> Ordnance Transfer Orders
> ...
> Multiple spaceports or ordnance transfer stations at the colony will not increase the rate of ordnance transfer.

3.
> Cargo Shuttle Bays
> ...
> Spaceports and Cargo Shuttle Stations can service any number of ships simultaneously but they do not stack. In effect they count as a single Cargo Shuttle Bay for any ship at the population.

However, there is also a line
> They retain their existing bonuses to loading and unloading cargo.
Do note that this line come before "Cargo Shuttle Bays" rule post, so this may have changed... 

So while it appears to me that nothing stacks, I am not too sure if multiple spaceports still make cargo loading faster like in VB

I just did a test and increasing the amount of cargo shuttle stations or spaceports did not decrease the loading time. The loading time of a cargo ship without cargo shuttle bays was 5 days and 18 hours no matter if I had 1 or 5 spaceport or cargo shuttle station. Adding one cargo shuttle bay to the ship did decrease the actual loading time to 2 days and 21 hours, even if the class overview still said 5 days and 18 hours. That's good to remember.

[SpikeTheHobbitMage]

According to changes list posted by Steve... (emphasis mine)

1.
> Refuelling Orders
> ...
> Multiple spaceports or refuelling stations at the colony will not increase the rate of refuelling.

2.
> Ordnance Transfer Orders
> ...
> Multiple spaceports or ordnance transfer stations at the colony will not increase the rate of ordnance transfer.

3.
> Cargo Shuttle Bays
> ...
> Spaceports and Cargo Shuttle Stations can service any number of ships simultaneously but they do not stack. In effect they count as a single Cargo Shuttle Bay for any ship at the population.

However, there is also a line
> They retain their existing bonuses to loading and unloading cargo.
Do note that this line come before "Cargo Shuttle Bays" rule post, so this may have changed... 

So while it appears to me that nothing stacks, I am not too sure if multiple spaceports still make cargo loading faster like in VB

Installations don't stack with each other at all.  Multiple spaceports and/or shuttle stations only count as one extra shuttle bay.  Multiple shuttle stations would be totally worth it on major industrial worlds if they stacked.

I just did a test and increasing the amount of cargo shuttle stations or spaceports did not decrease the loading time. The loading time of a cargo ship without cargo shuttle bays was 5 days and 18 hours no matter if I had 1 or 5 spaceport or cargo shuttle station. Adding one cargo shuttle bay to the ship did decrease the actual loading time to 2 days and 21 hours, even if the class overview still said 5 days and 18 hours. That's good to remember.

The rule of thumb is that each shuttle bay can move roughly 5k tons of cargo or 10k colonists per day.  Ground based shuttles increase your effective shuttle bays by one.  TN shuttles doubles that.

[Lamandier]

I had an idea about how to 'add' sections to existing space stations, actually. What you can do is build another station and put it in the same fleet as an existing one and name it something like 'Jupiter Complex'. Bang, you've got your X3-style complex right there for all intents and purposes. I plan to do this with my Sol gas miners around Saturn and Jupiter by adding a habitat and recreation station.

I did something similar this in an old VBAurora game. I designed a bunch of different 'modules', each specialized for a specific function (habitat/rec module, fuel module, hangar module, command module, weapons module, etc.), each equipped with a tractor beam. Once assembled, I linked them to each other with the tractors(though in my head they were physical linkages between modules, not tractor beams), grouped them together in a TG, and named the TG "Commonwealth Station". That way it could perform both military and commercial functions, making it much more versatile - and much, much larger - than any of the regular stand-alone space stations I'd built to that point.

[consiefe]

I think this is already Steve's intended model. I remember I read something about you can make commercial space stations with no armor function for maintenance and recreation, and then put some military stations to protect that which is maintained by that station. As long as you put those to the same location (maybe same fleet) they can work together.

[SpikeTheHobbitMage]

I think this is already Steve's intended model. I remember I read something about you can make commercial space stations with no armor function for maintenance and recreation, and then put some military stations to protect that which is maintained by that station. As long as you put those to the same location (maybe same fleet) they can work together.

Some things are intended to require the same fleet while others are intended to only require the same location, so yes.