Additions to the train system.

[Drury]

https://forums.factorio.com/forum/vie ... ?f=3&t=678

[khh]

Thanks. I just noticed it was mentioned earlier in the thread, so sorry about that.

[filippe999]

I would like to add that trains should have an option that forces then to stay on a station until their job there is done, for example when you send your train to load you want him to stay until all cargo wagons or just one, is full, you should be able to set that as an option rather than a raw time alarm, the same goes for unloading, your train should only leave a certain station if certain/all cargo wagons are empty, kinda like how it is in OpenTTD, the wait until full and wait until empty options

[Gammro]

I would like to add that trains should have an option that forces then to stay on a station until their job there is done, for example when you send your train to load you want him to stay until all cargo wagons or just one, is full, you should be able to set that as an option rather than a raw time alarm, the same goes for unloading, your train should only leave a certain station if certain/all cargo wagons are empty, kinda like how it is in OpenTTD, the wait until full and wait until empty options

I hope that this would be possible with what's planned in 0.10:

(If time allows!) more circuit logic (circuits for electricity, trains, liquids, etc.)

[Dark_star]

Productivity: Train uses less fuel. (OT: The train uses currently too less fuel in my opinion)
Efficiency: The train can load more.

First let me state I love trains.
I agree In the real world this is true for vary far distance transfers or hard to reach locations, but currently in the game, this is not true.
After totaling up resource cost of engine, cars, track, signals, support equipment ( inserters, containers, assemble machines, protection system and energy equipment & use ).
belts and pipe still are best. It is fun to setup the train system, but costly. Also sad to say, not quicker nor does it have a better "supply rate".
I like idea of using the train as a weapon system (running down bitters as in the really great new trailer.)
mmmm, lay track around out-side wall perimeter, run one or more engines around all the time ??
I still use the train system inside the empire for communications but it means that tracks have to be kept clear for immediate right-way. (i.e. one train only)

Also I hope Sulfuric acid containers are in the future?
and I vote for all train additions, a tanker car could greatly improve the current train system.

[OOSA]

I would like to see a train car that has mounted turrets on it that could defend the train running through hotter zones, perhaps even being mountable in front of the lead car as well as a caboose.

[Drury]

The worst problem with biters vs. trains is that biters can and love to eat rails (unlike in the trailer). This pretty much means that trains only ever get attacked while stopped at a station, if you run a rail inbetween two huge biter nests they'll just eat it right away.

I mean, there's no reason to put guns on trains because placing rails in hot zones is impossible, or you can use stationary laser turrets anyway. I think it'd be better if biters couldn't eat rails at all (instead they'd get damaged by something else, like vulcanic eruptions or meteor strikes etc.), or if there were different types of critters, like birds or something that wouldn't eat rails, but they'd be really fast and they'd be able to catch up to trains and bite them. Maybe even western-type space humanoid alien robbers that would ride biters, board trains and steal all valuables Okay now that's super weird. But you get what I mean - something that would make train guns viable.

[Coolthulhu]

If biters aggressively predicted target's movement, they'd run in front of the train, clogging it with their bodies. First small biters would slow it down, then mediums would pin it, 2 big ones in front of the train could easily wreck a locomotive. That would make train guns helpful, without needing to make them strong enough to handle big biters or groups of mediums.

[Drury]

Oh, that'd be neat, a horde of biters hanging on a train like Indian passengers.

[GenericKen]

+1 for tanker car. Seems much more elegant w/ small pumps than the current barreling solution, but both can coexist if you want to put barrels on the logistic network.

I just wanna put water on trains. =/

[aRatNamedSammy]

i was running around in my train. i recently made a long trip rail section, which pass very close to bitters nests. everytime i pass by, they follow, trying to attack, and as im equiped with laser defenses on my armor mk2, it shoot at em, but i notice i cannot shoot with shotgun or machine gun.. even when inside a wagon.. so i was thinking about beeing able to shhot from inside the wagon, or a bunker-wagon where players can shoot safely until bitters destroy it
( i think it would be usefull in multi-player)
... or for someone who want just to create a kind of jurrasic park ... get in the train for some action , the stops serve to fix loco and wagons, or refill ammo

[aRatNamedSammy]

i just think about something on Tanker-Waagon.. a derivated use for it... i notice some players dont like solar panels and rely more on steam.. but i cant imagine them using steam engine in an outpost where there is.. no water around ..
so, tanker wagon could transport water too... (cold water..or why not hot water ) for steam engines.

i can see, at outpost, you set up a loop with 2 tanks, few boilers and steam engines.. first tanks have hot water, get to engines, end colder in second tank, then boilers re-heat remaining water before reinserting that remaining water to hot water tank.
train bring more water to tanks to keep power running

seriously, even if im using solar energy on a large scale for my main base, on outpost, i think ill use a setup like this more often than defenses with solar and acumulators..

[Drury]

If you managed to drag a railway all the way to the outpost, what's keeping you from running an electricity line along the track?

If you really want to power the outpost via the train, it's a little known fact that any liquid heated to 100 degrees powers steam engines all the same. You can put oil in barrels and put that on your train, empty the barrels and heat the oil on-site in boilers. It's a bit expensive relative to water or simply plugging the outpost into your main network, but it works.

But yes I would love to see long distance electricity transfer becoming problematic.

EDIT: No need to defend solar panels anywhere, even if you slap them next to a biter nest. They create no pollution and biters have no interest in them.

[bobingabout]

I'd like to see multiple rail types too, Electric rails would be a good thing for electric trains.

However, at the moment, although there is a rail type definition, it's a bit flawed in that only one type of track can be specified per track segment, or per train entity, therefore if you currently tried to define more than one type of track, there's no way to let a train work on the other type (EG, no way to let the diesel locomotive and cargo wagon run on electric track).

I'm sure when multiple rail types (EG, powered rails) Becomes a thing, the devs will fix this issue anyway.