So, today's dev update post got me thinking about water mechanics, and I think they could contribute a lot to a mission. So what about a mission from a Hylotl, possibly before the O2 suit upgrade (or possibly available before/after, to give an easy option) wherein you go to a city under attack by... something, be it pirates/raiders/creatures/aliens, which is underwater, and slowly flooding. Here and there around the city could be doors that could be used to hold water in one chamber or out of another, or perhaps have a door holding water into a completely flooded chamber that a player needs to go through. A handful of drainage systems could be available here and there, opening/activating drains, which need not be complicated, they could be as simple as open spaces leading to blocks that drain water (ie: as dirt does on rainy planets). At the end of the mission, based on how long the player has taken, how many drains the player has activated, and other water based factors, the boss chamber could be flooded with a variable amount of water (if water physics are disabled beyond a certain draw distance (I don't know if they are but I assume they are) then this could be circumvented by having a number of water doors closed whenever the player activates a drain or closes certain "key" doors). The boss itself would be submersible (a giant fish? A submarine?) or possibly able to weaponize water (a water gun? the ability to turn water in an area into poison?) and unable to travel beyond the water level, allowing the players level of success in preventing flooding to be tied directly to the boss difficulty. So, to summarize: Flooding city mission Player uses doors to manage water and pipes to drain it. O2 upgrade optional, for an early challenge, or easier for players who struggle with the water. Boss difficulty grows greater the more water is allowed into its chamber. Just thinking out loud here. The water in starbound is superbly executed and it would be a waste not to have a dungeon revolving around it. The same underlying principles could be applied to a challenge room fairly easily as well, although possibly in reverse, a slowly draining room which is easier to swim through than jump through. I'm eager to see the Hylotl develop as a race.[DOUBLEPOST=1442427490][/DOUBLEPOST]Also an option: Boss chamber starts dry, floods at a rate based on player actions, getting harder the longer the boss takes. However, this might be tough for players with low DPS weapons who lack the O2 suit.
I do think that we get the O2 survival a little early, and it is a little too unconditional in its use. Water/breathing time adds an interesting game mechanic that could be put to very entertaining use.
In the "Floran Party" Mission we now deal with just a bit of that; pressure plates that drop poison in a place where you need to go, so you have to be careful. It would be nice to have it put to good use, the water mechanics.
All in all it's a great idea I think, might just be a little complicated to think of because water is a piece of shift.
