04-17-2020, 10:13 AM
While contemplating the design of an 'ecumenopolis construction kit', I realized it would be convenient if buildings included transporters. This is because the kit would intentionally makes cities very expansive and stylistically conflict with traditional road vehicles (unless there's some way to dynamically connect regular buildings like fences to support elevated roads). As a step towards that convenience, I realized more traditional cities could use 'transporter booths' and went to the design studio to implement one. Unfortunately, only airports and capitols permit transporters, which makes things very awkward.
Looking at everything else that was restricted, I could think of interesting RP reasons why an empire would permit them more expansively. Turrets and shields? Consider a more militaristic empire where the line between civilian and soldier is blurred, and buildings are expected to be able to hold their own - it would also make city shield coverage simpler. Surgery modules? Consider a cyberpunk setting where modification booths are as common as ATMs. Launch tubes? VTOL spacecraft were considered plain fantasy for the longest time and most hypothetical space launch systems from surface were variations on launch tubes.
This could be seen as a step towards a module system where buildings no longer have a singular 'type', allowing for multi-purposed mega-buildings or simply entirely new categories of building (similarly, I would like to make a 'parking space/lot' building whose most natural categories 'shed' and 'park' both ban ground vehicle parking spaces). Of course, this would necessarily erode the building code system, but IMO the building code system should be a list of 'must-do's and leave most everything else up for grabs (which is almost the case now, to be fair).
Looking at everything else that was restricted, I could think of interesting RP reasons why an empire would permit them more expansively. Turrets and shields? Consider a more militaristic empire where the line between civilian and soldier is blurred, and buildings are expected to be able to hold their own - it would also make city shield coverage simpler. Surgery modules? Consider a cyberpunk setting where modification booths are as common as ATMs. Launch tubes? VTOL spacecraft were considered plain fantasy for the longest time and most hypothetical space launch systems from surface were variations on launch tubes.
This could be seen as a step towards a module system where buildings no longer have a singular 'type', allowing for multi-purposed mega-buildings or simply entirely new categories of building (similarly, I would like to make a 'parking space/lot' building whose most natural categories 'shed' and 'park' both ban ground vehicle parking spaces). Of course, this would necessarily erode the building code system, but IMO the building code system should be a list of 'must-do's and leave most everything else up for grabs (which is almost the case now, to be fair).