Sensor-Based Turret Targeting

TL;DR: Replace the current "perfect knowledge" turret targeting with a sensor-based detection system. This would create more opportunities for engineering, make ship layouts and power management matter, improve the usefulness of decoys, and add much more strategy to both building ships and fighting them.

The current logic behind turret targeting is very basic and doesn't offer many opportunities for players to engineer their ships in interesting ways. Instead of simply porting over the Decoy and turret targeting mechanics from Space Engineers 1, I'd like to suggest a sensor-based targeting system.

Rather than turrets automatically knowing where every block is inside an enemy ship, they should detect and target sensor signatures. Some possible sensor types include:

1. Heat Signature – Prioritize the hottest blocks, such as thrusters, O2 generators, and reactors.
2. Mass/Density – Estimate the densest section of a ship from the turret's angle of attack. Heavy armor protecting cargo or reactors would naturally attract fire.
3. Chemical/Radiation – Detect emissions from firing weapons, armed nuclear warheads, active reactors, or space wakes.
4. Electrical Signature – Detect areas with high electrical activity. This would target concentrations of active components rather than individual blocks.
5. Optical – Target only what is physically visible. This could also provide longer-range target detection and act as a secondary validation system.

Instead of targeting individual blocks with perfect knowledge, turrets would identify "hot zones" created by these signatures. Design a ship to be compact or spread out? Use small variants VS larger? Have O2/H2 tanks VS generating it?

For example, imagine an assembler, refinery, and gyroscope all located near each other. Together, they create a much larger electrical signature than any one block alone. The turret wouldn't know the exact location of each block, only that there is a significant electrical signature in that area. It would fire at the general location instead of a perfectly accurate point.

This would create many more opportunities for players to engineer their ships and would add another strategic layer to combat.

Some mechanics that could build on this system include:

1. Adjustable turret accuracy – Turrets could have configurable shot dispersion so they naturally engage an area instead of a single point.
2. Signature-based detection range – Larger signatures can be detected from farther away, while smaller, lower-signature ships remain harder to detect. Antennas would attract attention from farther away.
3. Countermeasures – Heat vents, ballast/mass blocks, and specialized paint or coatings could reduce or redirect certain signatures.
4. Improved decoys – Decoy blocks could generate false electrical or radiation hot spots, making them useful for protecting critical systems.
5. Detection thresholds – Signatures would only become targetable after exceeding a minimum threshold, helping distinguish real targets from background noise.
6. Smarter target selection – Properly tuned sensor logic would reduce unnecessary firing and make turrets engage only when appropriate.
7. Adjustable sensor thresholds – Players could tune turret sensitivity to ignore insignificant targets, such as small pieces of floating debris.
8. Power management as gameplay – Turning systems on or off before combat, or designing ships with lower overall signatures, becomes a meaningful tactical decision.

Another interesting addition would be allowing turrets to combine multiple sensor types.

For example, a turret could use Optical as its primary sensor to detect a target at long range, but require a Mass signature before opening fire. This would allow more sophisticated targeting behavior and make sensor configuration another engineering challenge.

When cameras are added to the game, they could visualize the system above to the player. The player can use a drone to fly around their ship to map out their signature. Or use the done to scout the enemy to identify their weaknesses and strengths.