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Collecting resources and materials is essential in Beyond as there will be a large variety of blueprints to choose from, which can include different types of materials to give them specific characteristics (for buildings: heat insulation, fire resistance, air tightness... for clothing: thermal & damage protection, etc)
The initial concept was for resource gathering to happen mostly in the world map, in an abstract way. The dweller would go on an expedition and find various items she can use in the form of tools, materials, blueprints, even NPCs. While this will still be a key aspect of the game, it would be a better gaming experience if gathering was less random, put more firmly in the hands of the player, and possible from the start within the confines of the main map.
I can introduce a SciFi element, make this part of the lore of the game, and solve the resource gathering conundrum by introducing a piece of equipment called the transmuter.
The first Dweller could be the inventor or custodian of a prototype, and this can be tied to the beginning of the story arc, in which she is tasked with testing & safeguarding it by settling in a remote location. This separate arc can be scripted in ways that interact with the crisis that's happening in the world, eventually making it the end game condition, as deploying transmuter technology can be one of the pillars of re-building society.
The transmuter is essentially an advanced 3D printer that can produce materials and resources needed for survival and building. The key point is that it accepts all sorts of inputs like water, biomass (twigs, branches, grass, leaves...), ores, scrap metals, etc. Those inputs are available both in the main & world maps.
The goal is to bypass the need for refining raw materials into usable resources, reducing the busy work I'd like to avoid in Beyond, while being very thematic. Thanks to the transmuter, the dweller doesn't need to build a smelter to turn scrap into usable metal, weave fibres to get fabric, or rely on finding electronic components to build advanced structure & equipment. All those things can still be done - and much more efficiently - with dedicated workstations, but the transmuter can do all of it, given enough time, power & the correct inputs.
This could be central to strengthen the unique way Beyond does building. Since blueprints & skills are as important as resource gathering, building time will not be mostly spent collecting resources, but researching new blueprints, improving skills through study & practice, and securing sources of materials rather than actually collecting them (in Beyond, once a material is discovered, the dweller automatically goes to pick it up when needed without player intervention - less busy work). The transmuter can become the central hub where raw materials are refined into usable building blocks & equipment.
Again, this device will always be less efficient than going through a specialised crafting process. (Example: In order to get 50 Kgs of steel, it could take days and lots of energy, while a dedicated smelter would do that in a matter of hours). But instead of the player getting stuck on one key missing element for her building projects or survival needs, the transmuter can always be used to provided it, as long as fairly common input materials are provided and the blueprints are known.
Later, more advanced blueprints may require more unique inputs and maintain a need to focus on research. It could be a very natural way to neatly balance time spent on survival, gathering, building, maintaining the settlement, and researching / exploring the world.
All raw inputs listed above (atmosphere, liquids, biomass, scraps, ore...) must be described in terms of what fundamental elements they give: clean water, nutrients, vegetal fibres, Iron, Titanium, Silicon,... More complex elements could be obtained and be initially useless, but become needed as more advanced blueprints are researched. Similarly, all outputs must include amounts of said elements as well as time and power needed for the transmuter to synthesise them.
Power will be an important requirement of the transmuter, so finding long-term sources of power will be essential. It could have a low-power mode relying on built-in solar panels to allow the dweller to recover from catastrophic failure. The whole concept is to prevent the player from feeling stuck, so the situation should always allow for some use of the transmuter, even if slow and limited.
One key aspect of the concept is to provide everything the dweller will need to survive & thrive initially, not to force the use of the transmuter, but to allow it to be used when more traditional ways of gathering, crafting & building can't do the job. Example, the transmuter can create a food paste out of raw biomass if needed: the process is slow and the resulting food is disgusting, but if the dweller has no other options, that will keep her from starving.
With research, and maybe through some exploration, recruitment, or by being regularly contacted by the inventor of the transmuter, the dweller will learn new blueprints that might require new materials as input. But in the beginning, the idea is to start with a set of basic blueprints that can all be made from common materials.
The list below is a work in progress.
Blueprint: The name of the blueprint to be printed
Materials: List and quantities of materials needed
Power: The minimum power needed to print this blueprint, and the maximum power that can be used to print it faster. (In Watts).
Energy: The total energy needed (in Watt-Hours) to print the blueprint, and the corresponding time needed (in Hours) to print it at maximum and minimum power
| Blueprint | Description | Materials | Power (max/min) | Energy (min/max time) |
| Food Paste | Per 1,000 kcal of balanced nutrients.A nutritive but disgusting food paste, which provides. | 2 kg of biomass (See notes) | 2k/500 | 1k (0.5/2 h) |
| Drinkable water | Per 1 L of drinkable water | 1 L of dirty water | 1k/500 | 500 (0.5/1 h) |
| Cement | Per 25 kg, can be used to make concrete by mixing with water, gravel & sand | 12 kg Calcium, 6kgs Silicon, 1kg Aluminum, 0.5kg Iron, 0.5kg Calcium, 0.5kg Sulfur, Oxygen | 4k/500 | 10k(2.5/20 h) |
| Steel | Per 1 kg. WIP | 1 kg Iron, 0.1 kg Carbon , 0.1 kg Manganese | 8k/2k | 4k(0.5h/2h) |
| Plastic Type A | Per 1 kg. WIP. The most basic kind of plastic, with low thermal & damage resistance. | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Carbon fiber sheet | Per 1 sqm. WIP. | 12 kg Carbon, 10 L clean water | 1.6k/400 | 3.2k(2h/8h) |
| Carbon fiber beam | Per 1 m. WIP. | 12 kg Carbon, 10 L clean water | 3k/500 | 3k(1h/6h) |
| Glass pane | Per 1 sqm. WIP. Regular 5mm thick windows | 12 kg Silicon, Oxygen | 60k/500 | 120k(2h/240h) |
| Double glazed glass pane | Per 1 sqm. WIP. Made of 2x4mm panes with some space in between. | 20 kg Silicon, Oxygen | 100k/500 | 200k(2h/400h) |
| Armoured glass | 6 sheets of glass+5 of polycarbonate. WIP | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Hammer - TO DO | Tool | Iron, Steel, Wood | TO DO | TO DO |
| Tape Measure - TO DO | Tool | Iron, Steel, Plastic A | TO DO | TO DO |
| Screw driver - TO DO | Tool | Iron, Steel, Plastic A | TO DO | TO DO |
| Pliers - TO DO | Tool | Iron, Steel, Plastic A | TO DO | TO DO |
| Level - TO DO | Tool | Iron, Steel, Plastic A | TO DO | TO DO |
| Saw - TO DO | Tool | Iron, Steel, Wood | TO DO | TO DO |
| Trowel - TO DO | Tool | Iron, Steel, Wood | TO DO | TO DO |
| Fabric (standard) | Per 1 sqm. Standard fabric (low thermal and damage protection). WIP. Printed as part of other recipes, so cannot be stored. | 1 kg of biomass (See notes) | 2k/500 | 2k (1/4h) |
| Fabric (strong) | Per 1 sqm. Strong fabric (good thermal and damage protection). WIP. | 2 kg of biomass (See notes) | 4k/500 | 4k (1h/8h) |
| Clothing - TO DO | Various types of clothing - TO DO | Fabric (standard or strong) - TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Pipes - Copper | Per 1m, scales with L/h capacity, WIP -TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Pipes - PVC | Per 1m, scales with L/h capacity, WIP - TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Cables - AC | Per 1m, scales with Wattage, WIP - TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Cables - DC | Per 1m, scales with Wattage, WIP - TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Electronics | Per unit, WIP. | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Mechanical parts | Per unit, WIP. | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Water bore - TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Water pump - TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Water tank - TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Solar Panels - TO DO | TO DO. Will need WIPs : Solar cells, Frame, electronics | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Wind turbine - TO DO | TO DO. Will need WIPs : 1 generator (electronics), 1 gear box (mechanical parts), 1 tower (concrete). The blades are unique to wind turbines, so will be part of its recipe. | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
| Transmuter - TO DO | It is possible to print another transmuter, to add capacity. | TO DO | TO DO | TO DO |
Notes:
- Biomass is obtained from leaves, twigs, branches, grass... The amount given depends on the input and can generate by-products like Carbon & Nitrogen.
- When description says "Per <unit>", the energy cost (in Wh) is multiplied by the number of units printed, but minimum and maximum energy doesn't scale up: more units means longer printing time. The unit cost is the minimum amount that can be printed.
- WIP: cannot be stored. They are printed as part of other recipes.
List of inputs and what materials they give
| Input | Materials | |||
| 1kg Lime | 0.5kg Calcium | |||
| 1kg Sand | 0.5kg Silicon | |||
| 1kg Bauxite | 0.5kg Aluminum | |||
| 1kg Magnetite | 0.8kg Iron | |||
| 1kg Hematite | 0.5kg Iron | |||
| 1kg Pyrite | 0.2kg Iron, 0.3kg Sulfur | |||