Monday, April 28, 2014

Modular Ships 1

I had an idea the other day as I was driving in to work, modular ships for MFZ: Intercept Orbit.  A set of base "hulls" for Frigates and Carriers/Cruisers that allow you to attach modular sections for Attachments and greebling.  Weapons, sensors, defenses, and catapults will all be detachable and interchangeable.  Wings, cockpits, engines, etc. will all be detachable and interchangeable.

The core for a Frigate is a stack of paired, alternating (north/south and east/west) 1x2 Technic Bricks.  The stack is 9 bricks long to leave room for modules and not break the 12 stud length limit for Frigates.


The core for a Cruiser/Carrier is a stack of paired, alternating (north/south and east/west) 1x4 Technic Bricks with regular 1x2 Bricks to fill in the gaps.  The stack is 12 bricks long to leave room for modules and not break the 16 stud length limit for Cruisers/Carriers.


These may look a little ugly.  Okay, they're a lot ugly.  But I'm hoping this design idea will allow new players to quickly build the base hulls to play the game and also allow players to easily remove attachments to reflect battle damage.

Here's a look at both hulls with a few Attachments and greebles.















The Attachments that I added are Turret (2 Red dice at Assault range), Mass Driver (2 Red dice at Support range), Sensor Pod (1 Yellow die).  The greebles that I added are the Bridge and the Engines.

I'll show you pictures of the modular plug-ins in my next blog post.
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5 comments:

  1. Ethan DutyApril 28, 2014 at 9:24 AM

    This makes a lot of sense for a space vessel. I wouldn't call the result "ugly," just not aerodynamic.

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  2. UnknownApril 28, 2014 at 9:44 AM

    I like it for beginning players and these type of pieces are easier to find.

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  3. James O.April 28, 2014 at 9:56 AM

    And there's no air in space anyway! Now it's a matter beyond that of building smooth bits that fit into the extra module slots well.

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  4. RubbishNoiseApril 28, 2014 at 10:24 AM

    Love the idea for demo/introductory purposes.

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  5. HenketimeApril 28, 2014 at 10:46 AM

    Aerodynamics still play a part in a spaceship if they are built planetside. Newton's original body leaving Earth's orbit was the most aerodynamic form possible; the cannonball. That begs the question; how many :IO factions build their ships in zero-g? This concept plays as a really cool bridge between the two: build the core of the ship (bulkhead to bulkhead) on land, and modify it once it's in space. Theoretically, an empty core could be stocked with attachments that have been built planetside and shipped off to be assembled in space. I'm really digging this from both a practical and narrative standpoint.

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