Allow 3x3 SG Merge Block to Merge Directly to LG Merge

what happens if you merge and a small grid cube is adjacent to a large grid one?

Have you actually ever opened a blueprint file? The size parameter is just about the first and topmost item in the XML hierarchy, coming even before the blocks actually making it up; so, unless the cubeblock items actually handle the size themselves and are merely inheriting it from the parent, good luck with that.

Yes. I have over 7000 hours in Space Engineers, been in technology for 20 and looked at the many aspects of how the game could be improved. If you do a quick Google search for supergridding in Space Engineers, you will find that mixed grid structures can already be done by simply changing the definition of 1 of those "block sizes" from large to small, creating a blueprint and then going into the game and pasting that block onto an SG structure. You can now build in both directions. This feature is currently considered an exploit because enterprising individuals also discovered that you could also make the ship indestructible by changing other aspects of the blueprint file.

The positional starting point is really all the current engine needs to then allow you to build the rest of the mixed grid. What I am proposing is to use the 3x3 merge itself to create the positional starting point of the small grid in relation to the large grid and some tweaks to allow this to happen in a safe and effective (non exploitative) manner. This would then allow you to build off the large grid without needing to change the SBC file because as you've already pointed out the rest of the blocks placed on that SG will inherit the SG size.

If you merge and the small grid blocks are adjacent (but would not pass through) then the small grid would simply become part of the large grid. However, since the two blocks sizes can be easily separated by type in the SBC file, I would say that this would be considered a temporary merge and allow for disconnecting of the small grid at a later time. Hopefully this would allow for oxygenated mixed grid interiors, etc. or other interesting combinations.

That said, if the small grid had blocks protruding past the SG merge block's plane, then I would say a merge would not be possible, just as when you try to merge a large grid structure and a component of one of the two grids is blocking the path.

I'm not saying any of this would be easy, or trivial, all changes require effort but if you focus only on the impossible, you will never achieve the possible. I've always trained my people to focus on the possible and we've achieved great things.

No, what you are proposing is that they entirely rearrange the grid system code to allow both large and small blocks to be placed and utilized on the same grid.

This, will, never, happen.

Pipe dream.

I remember this was major letdown when I discovered this isn't a thing in game years ago and it still annoys me.

For now we can only join grids with rotors and hinge heads this is dumb stopgap solution that stayed.

This can be a thing since we have mods like "Attachments" and "Electronics" Panel.

Both of those mods are secretly a rotor if I am not mistaken. That said, I still think grid mixing is something that needs to happen in SE. Other games are coming out which can do this and it really makes sense to have both details built from grids and flexibility to do so (examples: Starship EVO, Dual Universe). While these games use more flexible block building systems (i.e. stretchable blocks for hepta, tetra, etc) they at least understand that mixing grid component sizes allows for very flexible and detailed ships. I was suggesting the use of the 3x3 merge because it seemed that it might interface nicely with the larger grid variant. I hope Keen still considers this for SE either through a mechanism like this, supergridding, or some layered grid system.