Overhaul tanks so any tank can hold any gas/fluid
I have long wished i could use the small grid 3x3x3 O2 tank for H2, for those ships where the 1x2x2 tank is too small but the 5x5x5 is too large.
at the same time who needs that huge 3x3x3 O2 tank for a small grid? it holds over 220 hours of O2! (if i did my math right) ((of course i only just now learn there is a 1x1x2 O2 tank when I'm trying to find the numbers for that math, but i feel the point stands!))
now with water being a resource perhaps it's time to consider making all tanks able to hold any fluid/gas? (simply Fluid from here on out)
I'd probably set the tanks up so in their control panel menu they have a drop down option defaulted to nothing that you can set for any Fluid.
done properly this opens up grid design options for players, as well as a fluid framework for moders and future development. (why just O2, H2, and H20? maybe oil? later entire refinery chains to make different fuels to specialize thruster behavior!)
my thoughts on potential problems follow.
tanks in existing worlds: scenarios or blueprints: have a hidden option in the Fluid select dropdown for "undefined" that makes the tank default to it's legacy option.
existing text on tank models: just remove it, maybe add in some sign blocks for the contents with some DLC or something? alternatively (and probably more difficultly) have the texture change based on selected contents, though a more universal system to change text on blocks (such as doors) would be better if you are gonna develop something like this.
Thank you all for your time and consideration.
ARockRaider, Space Engineer of over 3k hours :)
I like this feedback
Replies have been locked on this page!