Coal/Torch Rebalance

Suggestion:
Remove coal requirement from torches, but have them cost more wood.

Since wood is no longer starship fuel, coal is too sparse. I have other mining metals spewing out of my inventory, but jealously hoard coal and have started going around salvaging old torches because it is so valuable. I am more excited to find coal deposits than my current progression minerals.

I assume this is not intended, I believe that coal is used for too many things, and removing it from torches make the early game flow better (quick access to light), could give a purpose back to wood by consuming more of it (an unrefined wood each torch wouldn't be unreasonable), and really solidify coal's role as spaceship fuel.

 

I think a better solution would be to increase the amount of torches you get per coal, for example 4 or 5 torches for combining one coal and one (or maybe more) wood. I think this would reduce the strain on your coal supply sufficiently while also being more logical. I mean, who puts a giant lump of coal on a stick to make a torch anyway?

 

This is another good take on it. My motivation for the suggestion is just that coal is too heavily taxed right now, with no other real alternatives for travel or light. I think reducing the coal burden for torches makes a lot of sense. You could also have torches require plant fiber instead (actually more realistic than coal) or be tweaked in a number of other ways.

 

I like the idea of plant fiber for torches. Not necessarily for realism, because striving for "realism" tends to be the enemy of fun, but also because there's not much use for plant fiber in the early game if you're good for bandages.

 

I agree. Coal is a huge bottleneck, especially in later tiers when you need it for refining metals--I am definitely more excited to find coal than anything else in the game. The fact that you need coal to make torches which you need to go looking for coal is a big problem.

 

or another solution may be make coal more common, yes i realize how common it is.

 

[QUOTEI like the idea of plant fiber for torches. Not necessarily for realism, because striving for "realism" tends to be the enemy of fun, but also because there's not much use for plant fiber in the early game if you're good for bandages.][/QUOTE]

I'm with you that realism isn't all that important.

 

I have gone through all the tiers and I have hundreds of diamond ore, platinum, ceriluim, plutonium, you name it. However, since I use up all my coal for smelting ores into their counter part (like steel, durasteel, etc.) I have no coal left for torches. This is not only a balance for the ship power because I use other things to power my ship. It is still imbalanced just because of all the crafting needs for coal. Please make a substitute crafting item as well.

 

Lets look further into this issue. If there is a lack of coal for fuel, perhaps add something else to the game for fuel? (such as oil in a barrel or a really powerful battery?)

I think the requirements of coal should stay, since coal is not the only fuel in existence.

Maybe there should be an alternative way of making torches too, it would be handy to have multiple methods of crafting the same item.

 

Like I said, even if you add oil to be used for ship fuel, it won't fix the imbalance. I am out of coal even though I don't use it for ship fuel.

 

I don't use plant fiber for anything... That's because I use Red Stimpacks from killing all of those silly Avians........

 

Yet I am not out of coal and I use it for my ship. Yet I am having trouble finding any other materials.

 

May I make a suggestion? you get two coal per coal ore. It's pretty much the most commonly used crafting material that isnt wood.

Edit: Also why not allow torches to be made out of plant fibers or cloth?

Why not buff the amount of fuel plutonium/uranium/solarium gives you?

 

THIS. seriously, coal, even if made entirely of carbon-14 wouldn't give nearly as much fuel as a good uranium rod would. this would solve our coal problems, at least for higher tiers. making uranium like diamonds on beta sector would also help a bit, but this is attacking the root of the problem.

 

I don't see this as absolutely necessary. Assuming you get a decent starting planet you are bound to have a tree type that drops 2 seeds. With that, you have unlimited Coal because you can smelt Unrefined Wood into it.

I'm certainly not against any of the ideas though. I would say increase Torch output to 5 per craft and make late game fuel more useful. That combined with a better axe (chainsaw?) Would fix the problems.

 

If it was 5 per coal then I would be able to make 1,000 torches after I mine on my STARTING PLANET! But then again... I do mine for hours....

 

I hear that you can dual wield stone axes, so it effectively takes 6 chops to knock down a tree. I'm pretty sure this is true, since i have looked through my own screenshots and saw some with me using an axe and a shield.

 

I never tried it but it looks like it is true. Still, it bugs me that the only equipment we upgrade is the pickaxe and armor. If this is the future, why are we behind our current technology?

 

Yes, you can dual wield the stone axes, but can't swing both at same time.

 

Well, crap. Back to the coal mines.