Factorio Forums

Mechanical Power

Expanding on my idea from another thread.

Taking heavy inspiration from Better Than Wolves mod, mechanical network would be an early game alternative to electricity, although it would remain important throughout the game as the main means of generating electricity and to power certain contraptions. It's use differs from electric network in how it's meant for the more crude (fun) stuff, like cranes or shredders. It makes early game more automation-based, and conversely provides more manual interaction in the mid-game (similar to cars).



Mechanical Power mediators:

Gearbox - this is to mechanical network what electricity poles are to electric network. They have 4 connectors for shafts.

Drive Shaft - they connect the gearboxes, making mechanical networks. They're built similarly to tunnels, you plug one end to a gearbox, the other end to another gearbox in a straight line (linear with the grid). Shafts run underground and are normally invisible, except for connection with gearboxes, where a mechanism transferring power to the underground shaft is seen. Shafts can be max 10 tiles long. A single shaft can serve multiple mechanical power consumers above the ground, assuming they're built directly above it.

Both Gearbox and Drive Shaft could be ingredients for crafting vehicles.



Mechanical Power generators:

Steam Turbine - similar to our current Steam Engine, it consumes hot water (heated up in good old boilers) and turns it into energy - except in this case it's not electricity yet, but rather mechanical power applied to a shaft connected to it.

Wind Turbine - analogy to Solar Panels, you need a lot of these to get the same amount of mechanical power as you would from a Steam Turbine. Doesn't always work, performs better further away from trees.

Clockspring - analogy to Accumulators. Stores those precious megajoules and releases them when your wind turbines have the wind taken from their sails (or blades). Technically can be used as a cheap alternative to store energy for electric network as well (see electric network interaction).



Mechanical Power consumers:

Hopper - the primitive form of inserter. Intended to be built at the ends of transport belts, hoppers powered by a shaft will pick up anything that happens to enter their tile and insert it into anything their funnel is facing. This makes hoppers perfect for filling up chests as they can handle large amounts of items instantly - even if you supply one with three express belts. Make sure not to fall into it, though.

Mechanical Drill - an alternative to burner drill, mines resources when provided with a spinning shaft to draw power from.

Mechanical Assembling Machine (AKA Assembly Machine 0) - a simple shaft-powered cog-based assembler for early game. Crafts stuff as fast as you would, except automatically.

Item Shredder - similar to hopper, except turns items into iron/copper scrap (depending on raw material ratio of the item), which can be smelted back into iron/copper plates. Intended to be used for scrapping obsolete early game technology.

Railway Turntable - is a railway turntable that is operated from inside the locomotive parking on it using A/D keys. Useful for turning around the weird Factorio locomotives that can't go both ways properly. Might be even more useful when locomotives won't be available to be picked up and carried in one's pocket. Which brings me to...

Mechanical Crane - a really big inserter. Can be used for picking up vehicles and small (1x1) buildings up and placing them down on pre-marked locations. Makes chest-on-a-belt possible (albeit the chest is unavailable while being transported). When used with new flatbed cars, can place chests on trains.

Vehicle Shredder - scraps vehicles placed on it. When you put a full chest on it, chestsplosion happens. Fun.





Electricity Network interaction:

Power Generator - when you connect a powered shaft to it, it generates electricity. Replaces Steam Engine.

Electric Motor - the opposite of Power Generator, consumes electric power and provides it to Mechanical Network. Useful for solar-powered factories and balancing power between the two networks.

Panis wrote: ...I agree that players need more to stay a bit longer in the "pre-electricity" era...

...As for the Inserters, you can't really automate them in their current stage, but they could be equipped with secondary arm that would grab nearby coal and put it in the Inserter itself, or as you said, have it connect to transport belts automatically (like Assembling Machine 3 + Pipes). Also added variety of different solid fuel powered Inserters....


...I'd really love to be able choose which path to take, environmentally friendly or not...

Garm wrote: -snip-
About last one: think about it. Now if you want to establish large mining outpost you usually start with rails, then extend electricity all the way from main base. Then start building defences and drills. Now imagine if there was no need to place electric poles at all. All you would need to start is rail connection. Train will bring coal for smelteries, fuel for diesel generators, or factories themselves, Perhaps same fuel could be used as ammo for flamethrower turrets to protect this colony. Not only it would promote train usage it would also promote very far colonies. (hint: building rails in moving train is much faster than building poles)

Rusty wrote:Maybe there's a story element here that's been overlooked. You're a future civilisation, come to colonise an alien world. You're not simming the Industrial Revolution. Therefore, you'd create the efficient technology as soon as you could.

Another note, most of the early game is still coal, as the coal is used to make the electricity. The differentiation isn't really there at all.

On the other hand, there are some scenarios that could be generated if the target planet was lacking in a specific resource, meaning a different approach was required.

On the belt-only feed: wouldn't the coal just keep piling into the furnace, burning wastefully?