Spring RTS Engine

Hi,

wouldn`t it be cool, if after a Builder Unit, with queud-up Buildings has been destroyed, some holographic Symbol over the Unit start to exist, and if you send another Builder Unit of the Same Type (or at least one that can build the next building in Queu) to that Symbol, it picks up the old Queu and starts working on it. And even Factories who where told to assist the Builder Unit - could still assist the Symbol.

It is just the Fact that Build-Ques are not used after the first 10 Minutes of a Game, just because they are way to much easy destructible Work. And it might get Games more intersting, if you have a "killed" Build-Queu to fortify a Chockepoint - and just have to assign new Builders to it, once you conquered the Point. That way we could have some repeating "Gamplaywork" fullfilled more automatic and the Players would have more Time to Focus on the Battle. This Holos should be, moveable, indestructible to the Enemy, Revived Builders should take there Old Queu. What do you think about it?

interestign idea.

go pick up the black box and keep on going :)

Amazing idea. It could just be as simple as having a little sprite, which of course could be changed from mod to mod, much like the unit radar icons.

Great Idea - yes, like the RadarIcons - And if selected a small Gif, made out of the Buildings, this Queu contains..

If you make it a RepeatOn - the Queu could be made for whole Base Rebuilding- just having the the Robot waiting that builded the Base in First Place... and a K-Botfactory producing Build K-Bots, to support the Programm, all the Time. THat would make Builders very mighty and the first Target in the Whole Attack- Process...

+1

Very good idea. Alternatively, building could work the way it does in some other games (cough, AoE). When you tell a unit to build something, it makes a construction zone thingy on the spot.

P3374H wrote:Very good idea. Alternatively, building could work the way it does in some other games (cough, AoE). When you tell a unit to build something, it makes a construction zone thingy on the spot.

Does Age have Buildques?

No it doesnt...it was the building construction zone things that i was referring to.

AgeOfMythology, if it weren't such a slow game, has a number of very good features, tooltips on units, good squad movement and management, build and other task ques etc... and is currently my favorite RTS to play against the computer.

edit: it might not have build ques... it just kinda finds nearby construction sites when it finishes one building... never mind... it's still a good game.

I would like to see this, though part of the reward for destroying early cons is that you know you wasted a chunk of your opponent's micro. Still, this is in the same vein as allowing stuff under construction to get a queue of orders.

All games with instant construction sites require LOS to the target location to prevent people from abusing it for scouting. I don't think that'd do Spring much good.

The being able to pick up a dead units orders is a very cool idea, maybe you could have a ghosted con unit over were the unit died? Then just take aother construction unit and click the ghost, ghost disapears and that unit has the old ones build que. Also... should be able to shift click on them to add the orders to teh end of the. And if you use a con unit taht is different, then it should just deleat the ones it cant build.

Also, be nice if when you mouse over the icon it shows were the buildings are like if you hold shift on a unit.

And it should have a time limit... like 1 min and then it fades.

OH!! Maybe if you have no unit selected you can adjust how long it will stay there... incase you need to build a con and want t save that que for more tahn the default min....

If any this is implamented it will kick ass...

aGorm

aGorm wrote:The being able to pick up a dead units orders is a very cool idea, maybe you could have a ghosted con unit over were the unit died? Then just take aother construction unit and click the ghost, ghost disapears and that unit has the old ones build que. Also... should be able to shift click on them to add the orders to teh end of the. And if you use a con unit taht is different, then it should just deleat the ones it cant build.

Also, be nice if when you mouse over the icon it shows were the buildings are like if you hold shift on a unit.

And it should have a time limit... like 1 min and then it fades.

OH!! Maybe if you have no unit selected you can adjust how long it will stay there... incase you need to build a con and want t save that que for more tahn the default min....

If any this is implamented it will kick ass...

aGorm

+1 but i would let the Que fannish, depending on how long it is. 14 Building Que stays for 7 Mins
1 Building Queu stays for 0:30 Secs that way, the really hard work doesent get lost that easy.

I'd better suggest another approach:

We have in Spring a possibility to DRAW on map.

Why not DRAW a build-queue (via some special interface)?
* You just place buildings you want (some buiding markers), and then (optionally) connect them with arrows to show the build order you want. You can also place a special "BUILD ZONE" marker.

* If you send cons onto that marker, they will start building the queue.

* Also, you could send cons into the middle of the queue or onto specific building image - then the con will build that building first, and then proceed within the queue to the next building.

* With such a system you can build distributed queues, parallel queues, queue trees, making cons build all the needed infrastructure and the all gather to build a crog gantry, for example =)

* If a con is put onto a "BUILD ZONE" maker, that isn't connected to ANY queue - the con starts looking for the closest building that isn't also connected to any queue and start building it (pretty much like current "Central Build" groupAI)

* If con cannot build the building required, he just skips the order if the building isn't already under construction. Example: say, you have L1 and L2 buildings in queue and L1 kbot's next order is to build Bertha. Here he has two choices: if some Con is already building that Bertha - L1 kbot goes to assist. If the Bertha is not on map - the bot just skips the marker and walks straight to the next possible choice (without even walking to that marker).

This system gives TOTAL separation of build orders from cons and MUCH BIGGER flexibility in construction workforce management.

You can plan your base from the beginning until the end, if you want. You can nicely change your queues and priorities just by redrawing some arrows on the map. You can no longer worry about dying cons, and you can no longer worry that you forget smth.

Of course, we don't want all these arrows & markers to trash the map in battle mode, so we need another "construction mode" that will display all our build orders. This mode can be enabled automatically, when you select any con or just by pressing some key (pretty much like radar&LOS overlay).
In this mode on your orders sidebar you'll have ALL the buildings you can construct and the special markers mentioned above. Then you just select them, place them, draw arrows, place usual orders like reclaim (and draw arrows to them or just leave it to the con's conciousness), etc...
There also must be an "UPGRADE" marker, that allows us to overlay buildings (to upgrade MEXes to MOHOs painlessly, and leave that practice on blowing up hundreds of windmills =) )

There, also, you can place patrol routes for cons, etc, etc, etc (use your imagination, but spare developers' hands =))


If that thing sounded interesting - I have more ideas about strategic battle control via map drawings, like battle group control, transport routes, coordinated attack, intelligent attack routes, etc..
That drawing this is really awesome and has a great potential in it! Cookies to it's developer!

apc : I don't think that human is ready for this :)
It's a great idea ... but I don't think it will ever be done.

Alert! My CyBrain implant has been uncovered!!!

Honestly, it's a pity.. ;(

Correct me if im wrong devs but can't putting down to many queue orders (ie buildings to be built) cause the game to desync? Or was that fixed?

as to apc's massive suggestion of DEWM+1... WOW i don't think anyone would use that to its fullest. Also that involves a massive rewrite of the construction code, AIs, the drawing system and a few other chunks of code which i don't think the devs are ready to tackle yet...

Yes indeed the suggestion of APC is great- although not reachable. Also this would get Spring further away from the Typical TA Experience... everything that is there - is physical there on the Battlefield - even Buildqueus (through Cons and Factorys).

j5mello wrote:as to apc's massive suggestion of DEWM+1... WOW i don't think anyone would use that to its fullest. Also that involves a massive rewrite of the construction code, AIs, the drawing system and a few other chunks of code which i don't think the devs are ready to tackle yet...

I don't think it requires that massive a recode, you'd need to add the virtual build orders as a separate class but the constructor unit behaviour wouldn't see much of it, it'd just receive a normal order consisting of build orders.