Suggestions Thread for v2.0

[Lazygun]

I would like the ability to have persistent research projects so I could re-assign scientists without having to cancel and re-designate the project (and any queued projects for the same scientist!).  Sometimes that re-assignment is forced on me, when the scientist dies suddenly.  Then there would have to be a way to deal with projects having no scientist.  Could they be pushed back into the research queue? Or just operate as if their scientist had a negative bonus?

I also think re-assigning a scientist could result in a short-term decrease in the efficiency of research while they get used to the new environment.  It takes time, a month, maybe two, to find their feet.  So they would have "current" research bonus and "max" research bonus, with "current" bonus increasing gradually each production phase. 

[Jorgen_CAB]

If anyone played Rule the Waves then I think a research model similar to that could work really well in this game and it also is quite realistic and much less deterministic or unrealistic. I must say the research in Aurora is functional but far from realistic in any way.

[joshuawood]

A New Standing Order for "fuel less than 60%" would solve A LOT of headache for me personally.

Ships set to refuel after reaching 50% fuel will almost never make it home when traveling in a straight line, it's really annoying having to micromanage my exploration ships so much with this issue.

Fuel less than 60%, maybe also 70% would really help with this. I can't imagine this is a difficult change to implement.

If people don't use <10% orders and don't want there to be more orders in the list then replacing this with a <60% would be perfect.

[Garfunkel]

A New Standing Order for "fuel less than 60%" would solve A LOT of headache for me personally.

Ships set to refuel after reaching 50% fuel will almost never make it home when traveling in a straight line, it's really annoying having to micromanage my exploration ships so much with this issue.

Fuel less than 60%, maybe also 70% would really help with this. I can't imagine this is a difficult change to implement.

Really? That sounds strange - 50% fuel order has almost always worked for me. And the list is already so long. Hopefully Steve could instead code a "fuel at X%" and a box where you could input the exact percentage. Anyway, you could probably solve your problem by changing how you explore or by bringing tankers and/or fuel depots closer.

[nuclearslurpee]

A New Standing Order for "fuel less than 60%" would solve A LOT of headache for me personally.

Ships set to refuel after reaching 50% fuel will almost never make it home when traveling in a straight line, it's really annoying having to micromanage my exploration ships so much with this issue.

Fuel less than 60%, maybe also 70% would really help with this. I can't imagine this is a difficult change to implement.

Really? That sounds strange - 50% fuel order has almost always worked for me. And the list is already so long. Hopefully Steve could instead code a "fuel at X%" and a box where you could input the exact percentage. Anyway, you could probably solve your problem by changing how you explore or by bringing tankers and/or fuel depots closer.

I'm honestly unclear how this is possible in normal survey operations. Maybe if you arrive in the target system with just over half your fuel remaining, and due to one or multiple freak accidents of orbital mechanics the distance home might be a bit longer - but that seems really inefficient, if you are reaching a survey target system with only half your fuel you need a closer base of operations or more fuel/more efficient engines in the ship design.

[kilo]

The stranded explorer happened to me exactly once. What I think has happened in that case is that the ship had finished exploring a body, decided that it would have enough fuel and picked another exploration target that was way out, surveyed it and burned too much fuel on the way to that destination to make it back unassisted.
Generally it is not a problem, as the ships do some sort of random walk and the trip home is way shorter than the course they traveled towards the last destination. But whenever you do surveys 5 jumps away out from your nearest base and the systems along the way happen to be extremely large, things can go wrong.

[joshuawood]

The stranded explorer happened to me exactly once. What I think has happened in that case is that the ship had finished exploring a body, decided that it would have enough fuel and picked another exploration target that was way out, surveyed it and burned too much fuel on the way to that destination to make it back unassisted.
Generally it is not a problem, as the ships do some sort of random walk and the trip home is way shorter than the course they traveled towards the last destination. But whenever you do surveys 5 jumps away out from your nearest base and the systems along the way happen to be extremely large, things can go wrong.

It's happened to me at least 10 times this game already, i simply can't make a base less than 10jumps from these survey locations right now, they have enough fuel to survey about 1/2 a system then return. Because of the way they survey systems they frequently end up on the far side of the system with very low fuel and don't make it home.

 

A New Standing Order for "fuel less than 60%" would solve A LOT of headache for me personally.

Ships set to refuel after reaching 50% fuel will almost never make it home when traveling in a straight line, it's really annoying having to micromanage my exploration ships so much with this issue.

Fuel less than 60%, maybe also 70% would really help with this. I can't imagine this is a difficult change to implement.

Really? That sounds strange - 50% fuel order has almost always worked for me. And the list is already so long. Hopefully Steve could instead code a "fuel at X%" and a box where you could input the exact percentage. Anyway, you could probably solve your problem by changing how you explore or by bringing tankers and/or fuel depots closer.

"And the list is already so long" it's 11 thing, 11. and there is room in the box for 3 more, it doesn't even need a UI change to add 3 more! i can't change how i explore, i can't make fuel depots closer and i can't bring tankers, because i simply don't have the resources to spare.

A New Standing Order for "fuel less than 60%" would solve A LOT of headache for me personally.

Ships set to refuel after reaching 50% fuel will almost never make it home when traveling in a straight line, it's really annoying having to micromanage my exploration ships so much with this issue.

Fuel less than 60%, maybe also 70% would really help with this. I can't imagine this is a difficult change to implement.

Really? That sounds strange - 50% fuel order has almost always worked for me. And the list is already so long. Hopefully Steve could instead code a "fuel at X%" and a box where you could input the exact percentage. Anyway, you could probably solve your problem by changing how you explore or by bringing tankers and/or fuel depots closer.

I'm honestly unclear how this is possible in normal survey operations. Maybe if you arrive in the target system with just over half your fuel remaining, and due to one or multiple freak accidents of orbital mechanics the distance home might be a bit longer - but that seems really inefficient, if you are reaching a survey target system with only half your fuel you need a closer base of operations or more fuel/more efficient engines in the ship design.

"I'm honestly unclear how this is possible in normal survey operations" my bet is you only explore when absolutely necessary and you've finished turtling, i was on nuclear gas core and 2 decades away from ion, i didn't have the option for longer range survey ships, i don't have galacite, i don't have the option for pumping out tankers, it's 10 systems away so i don't have the option of building fuel depots due to lack of minerals and cargo ships. They have enough fuel to reach the far systems, explore 1/2 of the gravitational points, then get home, sometimes they only start to return on 45% fuel (i've seen as low as 42%) and run out, causing micro and fuel tanker wasted time.

The primary/secondary conditions have room for more options, even replacing 10% fuel would do. How often do people use "fuel less than 10%"

on top of all this, my survey ships are set to "refuel, resupply and overhaul" on every return, to prevent breaking down in space since "supplies less than 20%" is also basically useless unless your survey ships have a 5+year maintenance life so my refueling stations also need maintenance facilities and supplies.

[Garfunkel]

it's 10 systems away

There's your problem then. That is a really significant distance.

i can't change how i explore

Yes, you can and you should because even if Steve agrees with you and adds your requested feature, it will not happen until 2.2 comes out and that is months away still. Meaning that you would have to suffer with this problem you have created for yourself for a long time. There is no way that your explored systems are devoid of minerals so just stop exploring further until your industry can catch up. When you start having problems keeping your survey ships/fleets going - fuel, maintenance and deployment time wise - it's a sign that it's time to simmer down the exploration and instead focus on exploiting the systems you have already surveyed.

Of course, it's a single-player game so you can play it whatever way you want. Just trying to help you out.

[joshuawood]

Yes, you can and you should

Except your only solution is to stop? There is no reason to stop? having to micro 1 trip in 10 to explore more systems isn't a big deal?

I can't afford to expand and change the way i explore significantly and there is no reason to stop?

Your solutions are terrible and you are arguing on pure opinion? the exploration of new systems takes up a good 1% of my mineral use, finding more valuable systems to exploit is well worth that tiny effort and little bit of micro.

My suggestion was to add/change something which would possibly take changing 5 numbers, maybe even only 3 depending on how the EXE is setup since in the database the order for 10% fuel is only in a single table, i'm pretty sure it's changing 3 numbers to change 10% - 60%, and making a new 60% order is 3 rows in tables and a couple of .exe changes.

it's a tiny change to help out with micro where peoples ships run out of fuel.

[nuclearslurpee]

"I'm honestly unclear how this is possible in normal survey operations" my bet is you only explore when absolutely necessary and you've finished turtling,

LMAO

Yes, you can and you should

Except your only solution is to stop? There is no reason to stop? having to micro 1 trip in 10 to explore more systems isn't a big deal?

I can't afford to expand and change the way i explore significantly and there is no reason to stop?

Your solutions are terrible and you are arguing on pure opinion? the exploration of new systems takes up a good 1% of my mineral use, finding more valuable systems to exploit is well worth that tiny effort and little bit of micro.

I'd like to politely request a slight toning-down of the aggressive rhetoric here. Garfunkel is one of the most positive and helpful veteran players on these forums, certainly not the kind of person who should be told "your solutions are terrible" while your statements make unfounded presumptions about the reasons behind folks' advice (see also: "LMAO", above).

This aside, it's important to understand that Aurora is not a game about "you can do whatever you want, and if it's too hard it's Steve's fault". The core gameplay of Aurora is based on the idea that if you want to do something, you have to set up the necessary logistics and strategic planning to support that. Exploring systems 10 jump out is one of those things that isn't meant to be simple and easy - whether this means you need to rethink your survey ship designs to get longer range, or you need to set up logistics and survey bases closer to the desired area of operations. If you don't have the capability to effect such changes, this isn't a failure of the game, it's a lesson-learned about long-term planning, and lessons learned is what Aurora is all about - how you choose to overcome those challenges in the moment is what makes the game fun.

One of the more important lessons I've learned over time is that it's easy to underestimate how many commercial and logistics ships you need, to overbuild the battle and survey fleets, and then lack the resources and throughput/tonnage to support expansion. I like to expand very aggressively which I have learned means that a large auxiliary fleet with lots of colony ships and freighters is needed to rapidly build up populations and infrastructure. If you are surveying 10 systems out, but don't have the capabilities to establish even a refueling base somewhere along the jump point chain or even dispatch a tanker to support the survey fleet, this should be a clue that you have overbuilt survey assets and underbuilt support assets. After all why explore so far beyond the limits of what you can actually colonize and exploit? This is information you can use to start adjusting your strategy and priorities even if it will take some time and feel like setting you back for a while.

In general, when you run into a problem where you're not able to do something you want to do because you've run up against some kind of limit, the answer is not to blame the game and demand that Steve make it easier; the answer is to think about what you can do differently to enable the kind of operation you want to carry out. This is what the veteran players in this thread are kindly trying to hint at with their advice.

In any case, you're welcome to disagree with the advice given, there are after all infinite ways to play Aurora, and you would appear to be correct that the suggestion is simple to implement which means it is up to whether Steve thinks it is worthwhile - my opinion certainly won't make that decision for him. That said, please try to disagree politely and respectfully, and without making unfounded presumptions about the motives or playstyles of those who disagree with you. 

[AJS1956]

Hi,

Please, everyone, let me know if I'm wrong here but:

ISTR that when a fuel% conditional order is potentially triggered, there is a check that there is a fuel source (of the type specified in the conditional order) within a certain limit (I think it might be 3 or 5 jumps). If there is no suitable fuel source within that limit then the conditional order is not triggered and the ship continues with its normal orders (and the game will not notify you because the conditional order was not triggered). If my memory is correct then adding a 60% or 70% conditional order would still not trigger in your current situation and would not help you.

I would love to see your ship design for a survey ship that can make 10 jumps and still have over 60% of its fuel left, not to mention being expected to survey at least half of any system it finds.

Andy

[joshuawood]

"I'm honestly unclear how this is possible in normal survey operations" my bet is you only explore when absolutely necessary and you've finished turtling,

LMAO

Yes, you can and you should

Except your only solution is to stop? There is no reason to stop? having to micro 1 trip in 10 to explore more systems isn't a big deal?

I can't afford to expand and change the way i explore significantly and there is no reason to stop?

Your solutions are terrible and you are arguing on pure opinion? the exploration of new systems takes up a good 1% of my mineral use, finding more valuable systems to exploit is well worth that tiny effort and little bit of micro.

I'd like to politely request a slight toning-down of the aggressive rhetoric here.

Says the guy who has just made the most condescending reply i've heard in a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time.

I'm not asking for it to be easier, i'm not asking for some big new feature, i'm not even asking for a new feature at all, changing <10% to <60%, is such a minute change and literally the only reason i suggest it is to reduce micromanaging. it's not difficult, it's not hard, it's not even tedious.

It is simple and it is easy, even at only ion at 25% research rate. At higher tech levels it would be even easier for ships to run out of fuel. It's just micromanagement with a simple and easy suggestion to which i have got no end of condescending asshole replies about how i'm playing the game wrong.

I wanna play the game this way, i didn't demand the suggestion, i didn't ask rudely of Steve, i didn't make a giant deal of it. I'm defending my position from posts that are clearly gate-keeping and condescending.  I've made other suggestions and Steve has said no, i don't care.

If i could do this change myself i would! but i don't know how to change the .exe to make the order work correctly without breaking anything...

Do people use <10% fuel anyway? is that a thing people do?
 

Hi,

Please, everyone, let me know if I'm wrong here but:

ISTR that when a fuel% conditional order is potentially triggered, there is a check that there is a fuel source (of the type specified in the conditional order) within a certain limit (I think it might be 3 or 5 jumps). If there is no suitable fuel source within that limit then the conditional order is not triggered and the ship continues with its normal orders (and the game will not notify you because the conditional order was not triggered). If my memory is correct then adding a 60% or 70% conditional order would still not trigger in your current situation and would not help you.

I would love to see your ship design for a survey ship that can make 10 jumps and still have over 60% of its fuel left, not to mention being expected to survey at least half of any system it finds.

Andy

You are wrong. Think about it, the order is for <50% fuel, if a ship travels in a straight line and reaches <50% fuel it's literally not possible for it to have enough fuel to return to it's starting point (not accounting for movements of planets etc.)

I have a planet that is always accessible (multiple actually) with millions of liters of fuel at them. If a 5 day increment has passed and the fuel is now at say, 45%, it gets the order to return home, it now has 45% fuel and it takes 54% to reach home, it runs out and i need to send a tanker out to fetch it.

my survey ships have almost 100bkm range, while traveling at 5357km/s, with ion engines and 2 survey sensors and a jump drive for only 7,000 tons

it's a completely reasonable survey ship at ion age.

[xenoscepter]

 --- This isn't the SerBeardian discord Josh, we're civil here. I too will ask you to simmer down.

[joshuawood]

--- This isn't the SerBeardian discord Josh, we're civil here. I too will ask you to simmer down.

I've said nothing bad meanwhile being berated with essentially "get gud" or "play differently" to a simple suggestion to reduce micromanagement?
Me simmer down?

The one argument to what i've said is basically about my tone when replying to someone with status, you can't just say i'm doing something wrong because you don't like that i disagree with you?

[QuakeIV]

--- This isn't the SerBeardian discord Josh, we're civil here. I too will ask you to simmer down.

I've said nothing bad meanwhile being berated with essentially "get gud" or "play differently" to a simple suggestion to reduce micromanagement?
Me simmer down?

The one argument to what i've said is basically about my tone when replying to someone with status, you can't just say i'm doing something wrong because you don't like that i disagree with you?

TBH I decided a while ago I'm just going to make my own game