Floating BA's: A how-to.

Discussion in 'Knowledge & Info' started by Fractalite, Aug 28, 2018.

  1. Fractalite

    Fractalite Rear Admiral

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    This is a short guide on how to consider and build floating BA's. By: little ol' me.


    **** I will begin and end with the same important message; as of right now, floating BA's can only be worked on in creative, added to the base game by the developers, or added via a server owner/admin. Players cannot spawn them by themselves in single player(default or default akua-omicron.) ****


    How to start:

    • First things first, as of game version 8.5, start up a new game in default creative. Floating bases can be done in orbit or planet-side.
    • Orbital bases require no set up, but the lighting can be.... tricky.
    • For planet-side bases it is recommended to create them on the planet type you feel that they should end up on - temperate, arid, desert, frozen, lava, barren, or alien. Using the teleport command is the best route for that. Open up the console using the "~" key. Then in the command line type in "teleport XXXXXX" where the X's are the planets name. Is case-sensitive. In the event that you use the base default creative and do not create your own planets, you will only have temperate and arid as choices.
    • The actual process is the same regardless of the planet type.
    • When on planet first set up your God mode, or "gm" for short. Open the console "~" and type in "gm" or "god mode."
    • Also, to keep our buildings/structures, which will soon be floating in the air, from collapsing on us because they no longer have contact with the ground open the console "~" and enter "si off."
    • Next, by pressing the "H" key, open up the item menu and find the BA starter and the "steel" base block type.
    • Place BA starter and generate a small "plate" or flat surface of blocks around the core - does not need to be much as it is only there to help you see it in the sky.
    • Next, open the console with the "~" key and type in "di" This will create a small black window at the top of the screen that looks like:


    Floating BA info.jpg

    • The box contains the entity id and it's position.
    • Next, open the console again using "~" and type in "setposition XXXX XXXX,XXXX,XXXX" where the first set of X's is the entity I.D. in the box and the second, its position. The middle of the three sets of "XXXX's" is the verticle. Increase that number by... say, 100? It will move the base upwards "100." Fiddle about with it until you get it to where you want. If the base is to be larger, it should be higher - to give you room, if smaller, it can be anywhere.


    Floating BA concepts:


    Floating BA's are tricky in that they are like a space station in that they need the "underneath" to be filled out, but have the added step of orienting on the ground or planet-side. So two things are true:
    1. You need to fill out the "underside."
    2. The underside must contain some kind of technology, machine, or chemical(i.e. crystals in rocks) that sells the story of how the base stays aloft.
    This is one such example:


    Floating BA example..jpg

    The next aspect, also seen in that image, is the general shape of the underside:


    Floating Base concepts Image.jpg

    - these are a few of the approaches. The idea is to make a cohesive entity, not just a random series of extensions and to help eliminate a completely flat underside(which it would have if it were terrestrially based.) Also, the base does not need to be armed, but remember if you want it defended, it will need to be defended from all six spacial directions with respect to the cube of the bounding box(the bounding box being the theoretical representation of the framework that encompasses the entity for the game's code.)

    There are, like in all things, exceptions. If you want to make a floating base that is a series of islands, each island needs to have the "technolobabble" reason for it to be floating on each of the undersides of each island, but it would not come in the shape of the above images. Some bases, like:


    20180827154358_1.jpg

    Do not have the "technobabble" reason for staying afloat expressed in blocks, but work as a result of the over-all shape and theme(in this case "unknown.") Base by @Faith

    Also, added bonus points for adding the deco hover engine located in the alien blocks group.

    **** I will begin and end with the same important message; as of right now, floating BA's can only be worked on in creative, added to the base game by the developers, or added via a server owner/admin. Players cannot spawn them by themselves in single player(default or default akua-omicron.) ****

    Feel free to ask questions and post any you make here. They might be used or they might not, but either way, it will be a nice resource.

    Have fun!
     
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    Last edited: Aug 28, 2018
  2. The Tactician[ Λ ]

    The Tactician[ Λ ] Rear Admiral

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    very nice dude
     
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  3. binhthuy71

    binhthuy71 Rear Admiral

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    Concise, complete. I can even build one!
     
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  4. Kaeser

    Kaeser Rear Admiral

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    Just a few additions

    Before starting to build anything, and you have to do this every time you start or load a new game, open the console and type SI OFF, this will guaranty your build wont blow out in the sky.

    With SI OFF Structural Integrity wont be considered but once the build is used in game it will so, don't build stuff too outrageous as it may be blown apart by a single good hit with rockets in game.

    Building in planets has the added benefit of a better light so use DEBUGMODE to set the time of day at 12 h when the light is better

    If the build is not oriented or aligned as you want just use SETROTATION or SETPOSITION to place it as you like.
     
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    Last edited: Aug 28, 2018
  5. Fractalite

    Fractalite Rear Admiral

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    Oh crap, yeah. The SI off is an excellent addition!

    Edit: The debugmode is not needed in creative as the weather can be changed there without a command and the setrotation and setposition is not relevant to the creation of floating POI's - that would be for a generic building How-to.
     
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  6. Kaeser

    Kaeser Rear Admiral

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    Well, guess I was mislead by the thread name, but yes if you building for a possible POI than you don't need them as the position will be determined by the game and YAML file....

    But if you building a floating BA in SP then you need to use those commands to set it where you want it
     
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  7. binhthuy71

    binhthuy71 Rear Admiral

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    @Kaeser
    Turning off SI is a must for me to keep things from disintegrating when I start salvage.
    I want to throw things when that happens. :mad:
     
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  8. binhthuy71

    binhthuy71 Rear Admiral

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    Works! WIP player house built in survival mode. Thanks, Frac!
    floatation.png
     
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  9. Myrmidon

    Myrmidon Rear Admiral

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    I am planning to make Oblivion Tower as float BA in the future. I have not tested yet but I think for SP games it should be easy. Two ideas :

    1. Spawn the BA as usual touching the planet's surface and use command setposition increasing y axis, to position the BA at desired height.
    2. Spawn the BA on a planet that already has a floating POI BA and replace it. First the player has to change the POIs core with a "Player type" one and then copy the first BA file to the "captured" floating POI's for the save game. Finally delete the file of the first BA and that is all. Again command setposition is needed to position the "new" BA as desired. That step makes me think that of No 1, so this idea is not really needed.

    If I knew a way to make a scenario having floating POIs upon creation I would try to make one using either my creations or other from the workshop, that fit floating BA scenario. I really haven't experimenting at all with this, though I have used idea 1 often in the past, even before floating BAs where introduced to the game. For MP games I have no idea at all since I never played any.
     
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  10. Kaeser

    Kaeser Rear Admiral

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    Floating bases have been in game including MP since long ago, but they were done with CVs with an anchor, the advantage is you don't have to worry about SI, the problem is you can't use any of the stuff BAs can, like solar power and some devices....

    Here's one I used in some servers....

    https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1205496453

    I also build one Oblivion Tower some time ago.....

    On the other hand if you try to build using a BA in SP you can't forget that any small change, like adding a light, may implode your build if you forget the SI OFF, so save often.....
     
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  11. Myrmidon

    Myrmidon Rear Admiral

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    You can change the type by copying a CV.area file over a BA.area file of a spawned starter block and vice versa. I do this over a year now. You don't actually need to start with a CV to make it BA and you can add BA blocks on it in the end. Of course do not forget to remove the type of blocks that are not used in the final type of the building, i.e. remove CVs thrusters for a CV to BA or remove solar panels for a BA to CV.

    Also I use SI off extensively when I build BAs, since the ability to turn it off was introduced...;)
     
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  12. Kaeser

    Kaeser Rear Admiral

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    Yes that is ok, but this is how it can be done in MP, or SP if we don't wan't to fiddle with console or save games every 5 secs...

    And they can be blueprinted and used everywhere....
     
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  13. marcadius14

    marcadius14 Ensign

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    A few of my friends and I recently took over one of the alien POIs (Unknown Artifact) with our own core in survival mode. However we've been cautious about salvaging anything as we aren't sure about how it is kept floating. Based on this tutorial, I still can't really determine what it is that keeps the base in the air as we are in survival mode and none of us have god mode.

    Any tips on how we should handle salvaging the POI? We'd like to take over the POI and make it our base. We've added our own core. Since the game mode is survival I can't turn SI off (it says it is off in the console but SI still occurs). Is the bottom of the POI technically count as the "ground?" Is there a hidden speck of "land" somewhere on the ship? Is it still a CV?

    Would appreciate any advice we can get!
     
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  14. Fractalite

    Fractalite Rear Admiral

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    Hey Marc! Sorry about the sluggish response.

    I had not actually taken one over yet, but I was just conviently fighting my way through the abandoned factory when you posted this so I cored one:


    20180908183948_1.jpg

    Added my own core:


    20180908184008_1.jpg

    Everything appeared to be okay.

    So then I placed a block:


    20180908184027_1.jpg

    And no exploded POI. :) That means the thing keeping it in the air is magic :p:D *cough* coding *cough* and it should be okay to take over as a base. At some point I think the idea is to have it tied to a device, but that is a long way off. If it does explode that would likely be a bug with the SI vs the new floating approach and sadly there is not way to detect if that is going to happen. :(

    Still! I say go for it. Faith did an outstanding job on that one and it should make for one spiffy base. Just have a backup. :eek::cool:
     
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  15. marcadius14

    marcadius14 Ensign

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    Thanks for the reply! We've gone ahead and make some additions to the POI with our own core, no issues so far. We'll make sure to take plenty of backups.
     
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  16. An actual floating POI doesn't have structural integrity, even if you recore it. This means you can take it over without worry of it collapsing. You can also continue to build on it without worry.

    If it's defined in the yaml as a "floating poi" it will never have SI (unless there is a bug.)
     
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