The Hand Drill - Tunnel Bore Mode
This is a proposal for a Hand Drill feature that I think would redefine early game experience:
Model as seen in Pioneer Edition Art Book
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"TBM" - Tunnel Bore Mode
This is a proposed function on the hand drill that replaces the current iteration of Right-Click and replaces it with a more useful system for hand mining in early game.
What is this mode?
When a player right clicks with the hand drill, the 4 beam nodes on the drill will fold out and the entire drill would begin to spin (creating a circle). See very rough Mock-Up image below.
This has a small range - say 5-10m in front of the player.
This mode would make drilling into Voxels much more efficient as you no longer need to be touching them. Like before, this mode only removes Voxels. No resource collection.
Higher level drills can expand the Circle size or the range.
Why consider this?
There is and always has been a tedium to mine clean and straight-forward tunnels to the ore we want below ground. We currently have to essentially "hug" the ground to get anywhere - and often times the path created isn't easily traversable.
This would help in mitigating the frustration of getting to Ore by having the tool literally Bore Tunnels for you! Then players can feel that they can potentially divert more time into making that mine look nice + lit up!
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I do actually love early survival gameplay of SE - but the tedium of actually getting to the ore has always been a major issue for me.
The feeling of building a mining ship after mining in the tunnels makes the engineering/ creation element so much more satisfying as well! The early gameplay should be fun throughout the entire experience, and I think this may help contribute to that.
I think overall, SE2 will thrive if the slower elements of the game are looked at more - some being:
-Overall On-foot / Rover gameplay + polishing what makes them different and unique.
-Movement Adjustments (I think the player speed should be set to the slow walking speed by default!)
-Flight Speed Adjustments in Atmosphere ~ See my speed limiters forum post
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Inspiration:
Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM), or "mole" Machine. Made for tunneling underground.
Additional Notes:
This feature would be for the Hand Drill. The Grid-Based Drill would remain as is.
However, potential beam drills for ships now open up (Imagine a rover with a Drilling Beam Turret!)
I am working on this proposal separately and I would like to refine my idea before sharing officially!
But to discuss the key feature:
-Small voxel deformation radius + Limited resource returns.
-How it works: Uses a gravity component to draw the ore to the central collector.
-Visual Reference: See Star Citizen Mining!
A reminder too that regardless of this Beam Drill Idea - the traditional Drill remains the most efficient for resource gathering. The Beam Drill stands apart for the ability to Mine at Range (useful in Asteroid clusters)
I like this feedback
Update on this: I had the thought that it may be better to have it so the beams actually project a "Voxel Hands" style hologram so players can visually see what Right-Click will actually remove:
Its almost like a projection that comes out from the laser nodes I pointed out above. This feature could also allow the drill to swap "voxel hands" so it can drill out different shapes like a square tunnel.
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I think the tunnel boring tool is still VERY useful and I have a concept brewing that is a new tool called "Terrain Manipulator".
It is exactly what it sounds like and can be used to restore voxels to it's original, "paint" paths, and obviously dig and place voxels. It uses canisters as "ammo" - these are filled when removing voxels. Players can also buy pre-filled Terrain canisters from stores.
Update on this: I had the thought that it may be better to have it so the beams actually project a "Voxel Hands" style hologram so players can visually see what Right-Click will actually remove:
Its almost like a projection that comes out from the laser nodes I pointed out above. This feature could also allow the drill to swap "voxel hands" so it can drill out different shapes like a square tunnel.
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I think the tunnel boring tool is still VERY useful and I have a concept brewing that is a new tool called "Terrain Manipulator".
It is exactly what it sounds like and can be used to restore voxels to it's original, "paint" paths, and obviously dig and place voxels. It uses canisters as "ammo" - these are filled when removing voxels. Players can also buy pre-filled Terrain canisters from stores.
Back to the hand drill:
Drilling via left click: the ore is added to you inventory automatically as it does now in VS2.2
Drilling via right click (hologram): the ore falls to the ground and can be collected by hand - not automatically placed in inventory
I think this system may be a way to incentivize more player mining by not punishing the usage of the Right Click feature. Using right click is simply a different approach to mining.
Back to the hand drill:
Drilling via left click: the ore is added to you inventory automatically as it does now in VS2.2
Drilling via right click (hologram): the ore falls to the ground and can be collected by hand - not automatically placed in inventory
I think this system may be a way to incentivize more player mining by not punishing the usage of the Right Click feature. Using right click is simply a different approach to mining.
I think there could be many more ways to manipulate voxels in survival, going beyond just digging tunnels.
I’ve always liked how the game uses more “modern” tools like drills instead of futuristic lasers to excavate voxels. It feels immersive and fits well with automation. But it has always been quite difficult to do intentional terraforming. Drills are basically just spherical voxel tools.
There could be other tools too—like a shovel—that allow you to create flatter surfaces. And once you dig too much, there’s currently no real way to fix it.
We should really be able to place voxels in survival as well: fill holes, smooth terrain, build flat landing pads, ramps, walls, bunkers, even add grass to create parks and more natural environments.
I think there could be many more ways to manipulate voxels in survival, going beyond just digging tunnels.
I’ve always liked how the game uses more “modern” tools like drills instead of futuristic lasers to excavate voxels. It feels immersive and fits well with automation. But it has always been quite difficult to do intentional terraforming. Drills are basically just spherical voxel tools.
There could be other tools too—like a shovel—that allow you to create flatter surfaces. And once you dig too much, there’s currently no real way to fix it.
We should really be able to place voxels in survival as well: fill holes, smooth terrain, build flat landing pads, ramps, walls, bunkers, even add grass to create parks and more natural environments.
Rather than a Terrain Manipulator tool (like the one in No Man's Sky, for example), I would appreciate the ability to mark out (design) tunnels and chambers that would then be created—either "manually" or "mechanically"—by excavation.
In other words, the ability to mark a boundary that defines the area in which the tool operates (destroying/mining voxels).
Perhaps it wouldn’t be necessary to limit the tools’ working area.
In its simplest form, it would suffice to at least have the option to mark a straight path, for example, using a guide beam that the player would see in front of them — for example, by manually setting two GPS markers that would be connected by a visible line, or four GPS markers that would create a constantly visible "area" serving as a guide for the player.
It would also be desirable for “drilling” tools, both manual and mechanical, to have the option to set a fixed “range,” meaning that voxel drilling would stop at a predefined boundary and, when the vehicle stops moving, would not continue to expand the drilled space. This is one of the biggest problems—when the speed changes, the drilling device’s range changes, and it is impossible to achieve a flat surface.
Rather than a Terrain Manipulator tool (like the one in No Man's Sky, for example), I would appreciate the ability to mark out (design) tunnels and chambers that would then be created—either "manually" or "mechanically"—by excavation.
In other words, the ability to mark a boundary that defines the area in which the tool operates (destroying/mining voxels).
Perhaps it wouldn’t be necessary to limit the tools’ working area.
In its simplest form, it would suffice to at least have the option to mark a straight path, for example, using a guide beam that the player would see in front of them — for example, by manually setting two GPS markers that would be connected by a visible line, or four GPS markers that would create a constantly visible "area" serving as a guide for the player.
It would also be desirable for “drilling” tools, both manual and mechanical, to have the option to set a fixed “range,” meaning that voxel drilling would stop at a predefined boundary and, when the vehicle stops moving, would not continue to expand the drilled space. This is one of the biggest problems—when the speed changes, the drilling device’s range changes, and it is impossible to achieve a flat surface.
Designing and building an Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) isn't a problem (in SE1). The real challenge is keeping the TBM on course — and removing the excavated material.
This is what my first "drilling rig" in SE1 looked like — a working machine with a pistons and gyroscope-stabilized drill. It was capable of drilling a straight hole about 150 meters long. The machine was held in place against the tunnel walls by magnets while working.
The latest version of the drilling rig was capable, in its "full configuration," of drilling a tunnel over 600 meters long from a single position in roughly an hour (insane—over 150 telescopic pistons in eight rows).
Designing and building an Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) isn't a problem (in SE1). The real challenge is keeping the TBM on course — and removing the excavated material.
This is what my first "drilling rig" in SE1 looked like — a working machine with a pistons and gyroscope-stabilized drill. It was capable of drilling a straight hole about 150 meters long. The machine was held in place against the tunnel walls by magnets while working.
The latest version of the drilling rig was capable, in its "full configuration," of drilling a tunnel over 600 meters long from a single position in roughly an hour (insane—over 150 telescopic pistons in eight rows).
HAHA!
Turns out this was a concept already! Thought I'd attach this as it is an interesting concept still.
HAHA!
Turns out this was a concept already! Thought I'd attach this as it is an interesting concept still.
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