Transport Energy [Batteries]

[nuhll]

Hey,
please add the possibilty to load and unload batteries. It makes sense and would be easy do able via assemblers (load and unload) (like barrels). (if you want to make it cheap) - or real new buildings for it.

Would be cool for outposts.

[leadraven]

I like this idea, but it will require at least new type of building. And technically, you don't need it : you can transport fuel or steam, or use stationary accumulators and separate power grids.

I don't think it will ever appear in vanilla, but it could be done as a mode :

• New item - charged battery.
• New building - charger, with locked recipe.
• New building - discharger, consumes charged batteries like fuel, producing power and empty batteries.

[nuhll]

In vanilla you would need to transport water and fuel. (very inefficient)

Only transporting steam is even more inefficient (i guess?)

There should be a vanilla way

To make it harder you could make it so that you cant recharge battereies (bc batteries cant be recharged).

For crafting charged and uncharged should be useable.

So you would need to build batteries, charge them one time, bring them to outpost, uncharge them, bring them back and use them in crafting.

[weaknespase]

Using steam as energy capacitor more efficient, because you need same amount of water to use it in boilers, and water doesn't carry any extra energy.

One tank full of 165C steam contains 750MJ of energy, about 13 minutes of one steam engine working at full capacity. The one downside - fluid wagon is not very portable and requires rails.

[Ranakastrasz]

Making a mod for this is fully possible. Not sure if you can forbid beacons from effecting assemblers, but as long as you can....

Battery recipe -> charged battery.

Discharger structure, which burns charged batteries to produce electricity, and has waste product of uncharged products.


That said, the game's electrcity system is simplified to the point that this is entirely pointless. Large power poles can connect between outposts easily, and accumulators can store power. So can steam tanks, but those are "Weird and gamey" and I don't use them.

[nuhll]

Making a mod for this is fully possible. Not sure if you can forbid beacons from effecting assemblers, but as long as you can....

Battery recipe -> charged battery.

Discharger structure, which burns charged batteries to produce electricity, and has waste product of uncharged products.


That said, the game's electrcity system is simplified to the point that this is entirely pointless. Large power poles can connect between outposts easily, and accumulators can store power. So can steam tanks, but those are "Weird and gamey" and I don't use them.

There are ppl playin factorio hardcore, where biteres destroy everything (poles), thats why i thouight about the battery thing.

[nosports]

There are ppl playin factorio hardcore, where biteres destroy everything (poles), thats why i thouight about the battery thing.

So the way to go then is using local solar power where needed, so no pollution and no poles that will be destroyed

[leadraven]

Idea:

• Common accumulator (5MJ) has 1MJ built-in capacity and 4 slots for 1MJ batteries.
• Once built-in capacity is charged, it instantly transfers charge into empty battery.
• Once built-in capacity is discharged, it is instantly charged from full battery.

The only problem : full cargo wagon of charged batteries will contain 8GJ of energy. Actually, it is energy capacity of coal. May be it's ok.
I'm starting to like this idea)

[Darinth]

Idea:

• Common accumulator (5MJ) has 1MJ built-in capacity and 4 slots for 1MJ batteries.
• Once built-in capacity is charged, it instantly transfers charge into empty battery.
• Once built-in capacity is discharged, it is instantly charged from full battery.

The only problem : full cargo wagon of charged batteries will contain 8GJ of energy. Actually, it is energy capacity of coal. May be it's ok.
I'm starting to like this idea)

I like the idea of a single building capable of charging or discharging batteries. Could actually make some interesting setups using chests of batteries with power monitoring that will charge batteries during surplus and discharge them during low-power conditions. More difficult to setup than massive banks of accumulators, but probably much more compact per MJ of storage.

I'd be inclined against the usage of accumulators; having to insert batteries into every accumulator just to get yourself full capacity honestly seems like a pain. If it was to be used, I'd be more inclined to leave 3 or 4 MJ built-in, and have it charge it's battery(ies) when it gets close to full capacity one at a time. This also prevents an accumulator from ever being fully drained by the process of charging a battery.

[bobucles]

If you think about it, fuel is like a battery that you use once and it doesn't leave any trash behind.

[weaknespase]

But it does! Pollution is everywhere!

(And it always requires a source of water for power generation in vanilla Factorio, not self-contained at all)

About batteries, i'd like to bring up another topic - using plain batteries as power source for personal equipment. While having unconditional and perpetual power source for equipment modules is good for hassle-free gameplay, i'd prefer a way to complicate the matters for myself and use only consumable batteries to power equipment. And where's my battery powered hand-held laser cannon?

[nuhll]

If you think about it, fuel is like a battery that you use once and it doesn't leave any trash behind.

If you argument that way, why we have so many differnt fuels, one would be enaught..

I think vanilla factorio has too less items... and buildings...


its a nice, logic, easy and usefull addition to the game.

[darkfrei]

Is the accumulator wagen not better than charging of tiny batteries?

The density of energy in the batteries must be lower than in coal or wood.

[mrudat]

totobest has built a mod that does exactly what you describe: PowerCubes.

[nuhll]

totobest has built a mod that does exactly what you describe: PowerCubes.

Thanks, but thats not what i reuqested.

I requested a change to the vanilla game (which would also include that you can still use these batteries for crafting).

[darkfrei]

totobest has built a mod that does exactly what you describe: PowerCubes.

Thanks, but thats not what i reuqested.

I requested a change to the vanilla game (which would also include that you can still use these batteries for crafting)

It the mod will be popular then it has much higher chances to go into vanilla. The largest part of the game is always in mods.

[nuhll]

totobest has built a mod that does exactly what you describe: PowerCubes.

Thanks, but thats not what i reuqested.

I requested a change to the vanilla game (which would also include that you can still use these batteries for crafting)

It the mod will be popular then it has much higher chances to go into vanilla. The largest part of the game is always in mods.

Not always...

[Darinth]

Nuhll, nobody means disrespect nor is it an attempt to disagree with an idea by pointing towards mods when suggestions are brought up. Wube has previously stated that mods becoming big enough can in fact have an important impact on their decision to implement a feature set.

So pointing to the mod A: gives an alternative if a suggestion isn't implemented, and B: directs people towards something to show Wube that there's interest in the concept, and C: provides proof of concept to Wube of how it could be implemented.

[nuhll]

Nuhll, nobody means disrespect nor is it an attempt to disagree with an idea by pointing towards mods when suggestions are brought up. Wube has previously stated that mods becoming big enough can in fact have an important impact on their decision to implement a feature set.

So pointing to the mod A: gives an alternative if a suggestion isn't implemented, and B: directs people towards something to show Wube that there's interest in the concept, and C: provides proof of concept to Wube of how it could be implemented.

Hey, yeah i know, all okay.

The batterie thing came up already some times, the new idea was m eant to be that you can use them still like today in crafting...