Improvements to Construction, Mining, & Combat Vehicles

Currently vehicles face a number of issues in space engineers.

1. Atmospheric thrusters require a lot of power, therefore wheels make a cost-effective alternative. However wheeled vehicles that get too large and heavy face trouble turning without scripts, some of which require gyroscopes to aid in turning. They also have difficulty in regards to traversing inclines, requiring thrusters to help provide movement.

2. Certain ground vehicles benefit greatly from the custom turret controller. Whether it be for mining, building, moving salvage, or for combat, being able to move tools independent of the main grid adds good movement options. The problem is that in third person, the camera does not follow where the tools go, making operating them not impossible, but difficult. In addition, while operating the custom turret controller, vehicle movement is impossible.

3. With construction/repair vehicles it can be difficult to identify blocks in various states. Even when hand welding it is easy to just walk past a block that may need attention. A block that may need welding could be completely obscured by other blocks in front of it.

4. Players often face challenges with regards to PCU for welders, drills and grinders. Ship printers can cost much PCU. Rotating printers are a good option, but are slow.

Therefore, I would like to present the following improvements. Addressing in order:

1. The addition of tracks into the game. These would come in various lengths and would be substantially more durable than wheels. These would provide more traction than wheels and add a skid steering option to the game. They would be able to more easily support heavy vehicles. Ideally, the mere addition of these would not necessarily limit the top speed of a vehicle, as light tracked vehicles can be fast (i.e. snowmobiles). However, they would be more expensive than wheels.

2. An update to the custom turret controller. This would lock the third person view to the camera that is selected for the custom turret controller. In addition, movement would be possible while operating the controller. This would function like other regular turrets, such as the gatling turret.

3. The addition of a new HUD option to identify block states. This would work similar to the option to show center of mass. Each block would show a small icon at their center. The color of the icon would indicate block states:

Green: 100% complete

Yellow: Damaged/incomplete but functional.

For armor blocks it also could still

show for complete but deformed

blocks. Deformed but complete

blocks can be hazardous to subgrids

due to clang.

Red: Nonfunctional

Purple: When a projector block is active,

this option could show blocks that

are not yet placed.

4. New large size options for tool blocks. These would provide a much larger area of effect reducing the number of tool blocks required. Ideally the radius of large welders/grinders would extend two blocks so that not only do you get the block you see, but also the one behind it.

These additions would greatly improve ground operations that follow quite different rules than space. Although space is the main focus of the game, players greatly benefit from planets which are quite plentiful of resources.