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Author Topic: Small gripes with (hopefully) easy fixes.  (Read 683 times)

Techhead

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Small gripes with (hopefully) easy fixes.
« on: August 12, 2009, 04:09:55 pm »

There are a couple of annoyances in the game people have that probably can be easily fixed if addressed. I was hoping that we could collect them together here in one thread.
1. Job manager cannot queue up more than 30 jobs at a time. The limit should probably be increased.
2. "Construct a Wooden Weapon Rack" Shows up as "Construct a Wooden Weapon" in the carpenter's workshop unless you expand the menu. It often snares new players into thinking they are making weapons. It could be renamed something like "Build a Wood Weapon Rack"
3. No string search (like in job manager) in trade and stocks menus.
4. No "whatever I bought last year" option and/or saved order profiles for trade negotiations.
5. 10x10 limit on constructions seems arbitrary, and many players find it limiting. Bigger would be better.
6. No "clear this area" designation to prepare a cluttered but urgent stockpile for use. Dwarves will clear an area when building, perhaps code could be recycled.
7. Unable to set a default stone for constructions, one that shows up on the top no matter what.
8. Unable to burn wooden items into ash, would be similar to melting down metal items for bars.

More to come! Feel free to add to my list!
« Last Edit: August 13, 2009, 06:41:09 am by Techhead »
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lucusLoC

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Re: Small gripes with (hopefully) easy fixes.
« Reply #1 on: August 12, 2009, 05:25:08 pm »

Constructions are limited to 10x10, probably a good technical reason for this, but annoying none the less.

Funiture is not rawified

Workshop reactions are not rawified

A lot of these are going to be in the eternal voting thread. Or are you looking more at minor interface gripes?
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Grimlocke

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Re: Small gripes with (hopefully) easy fixes.
« Reply #2 on: August 12, 2009, 06:58:06 pm »

Intergrade an option in the orders menu that lets you disable damp wall/warm wall warnings and cancellations. I know there is a utility, but having it in the gam would be far less awkward, as well as more friendly to new players.

Maybe add a string filter to material selection menu, which remembers the string you entered untill you leave the 'b' menu. Looking for 'alunite blocks' amongst loads of bars, blocks, raw stones, soap, etc. over and over is kinda mind numbing, especialy when you want to make colorfull paterns in you main hall or when your building yourself ramparts that are made of a couple hundret constuction designations.

This could be coupled with the removal of the 10x10 limit of construction designation. If making the designation surfaces larger then 100 squares proves too troublesome, maybe make the limit a surface rather then a width and length?
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ArPharazon

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Re: Small gripes with (hopefully) easy fixes.
« Reply #3 on: August 12, 2009, 07:02:34 pm »

Can't order 25 *olivine* tables, no ability to affect rock type used in workshop profile. Having only good masons use the nice rocks just seems like such a natural thing to me...

Again, probably a reason for it, but can't order more than 30 items at a time.

No "clear this area" designation to prepare a cluttered but urgent stockpile for use. There's dump, but maybe I don't want the rock (or worse yet, ore) to be chucked into lava, or carried to the other side of the map.

Dwarves suck at prioritizing jobs, especially hauling and mining: I would love to have something like traffic zones, which instead affects job priority. Say, define a 3x10 rectangle of high priority work at your entrance so that the traps get set up RIGHT NOW. (Could work like the bin organizing code, by making jobs in high priority areas appear closer) Sticking a labors list like for dwarves (this low priority zone affects: Fishing, butchering, furniture hauling.) would be godly. Maybe this is a feature, but honestly, if I can designate jobs one item a time for perfect optimization control, I say it's a silly feature to keep.

Forbidden area: Works just like outside areas when "dwarves stay inside". Placed just like fishing or dumping zones. You use it, no one (or no one civilian) goes there.

Dwarves stay inside: Can't they just check if their destination is outside before even accepting the task? Yes, they still must check as now in case there is an above ground path connecting A to B, but is the crowding at the door and associated job cancel spam/FPS rape really necessary?

No string search (like in job manager) in trade and stocks menus. No "whatever I bought last year" option and/or saved order profiles for trade negotiations.

...

Not enough bloodthirsty elephants. Not enough cave ins. (Why don't we have to use supports anymore, anyway?)

If making the designation surfaces larger then 100 squares proves too troublesome, maybe make the limit a surface rather then a width and length?

I don't see why this would be the issue. The game can already designate huge areas (map wide dig). And once placed, each tile of the construction becomes completely independent, anyway. And having several thousands of buildings slated (painstakingly, in 100 tile bits) does not really kill the game in any significant way.
« Last Edit: August 12, 2009, 07:06:45 pm by ArPharazon »
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lucusLoC

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Re: Small gripes with (hopefully) easy fixes.
« Reply #4 on: August 12, 2009, 07:07:17 pm »

Building a 100 tile long wall in one go would be awesome!

How about being able to set a default stone for constructions, one that shows up on the top no matter what.
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Techhead

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Re: Small gripes with (hopefully) easy fixes.
« Reply #5 on: August 13, 2009, 06:32:50 am »

Funiture is not rawified

Workshop reactions are not rawified
Adding stuff to the raws is a long and ongoing process. I'm looking for things that may have been overlooked.
Intergrade an option in the orders menu that lets you disable damp wall/warm wall warnings and cancellations. I know there is a utility, but having it in the gam would be far less awkward, as well as more friendly to new players.

Maybe add a string filter to material selection menu, which remembers the string you entered untill you leave the 'b' menu. Looking for 'alunite blocks' amongst loads of bars, blocks, raw stones, soap, etc. over and over is kinda mind numbing, especialy when you want to make colorfull paterns in you main hall or when your building yourself ramparts that are made of a couple hundret constuction designations.

This could be coupled with the removal of the 10x10 limit of construction designation. If making the designation surfaces larger then 100 squares proves too troublesome, maybe make the limit a surface rather then a width and length?
They're going into my post.
Can't order 25 *olivine* tables, no ability to affect rock type used in workshop profile. Having only good masons use the nice rocks just seems like such a natural thing to me...

Again, probably a reason for it, but can't order more than 30 items at a time.

No "clear this area" designation to prepare a cluttered but urgent stockpile for use. There's dump, but maybe I don't want the rock (or worse yet, ore) to be chucked into lava, or carried to the other side of the map.

Dwarves suck at prioritizing jobs, especially hauling and mining: I would love to have something like traffic zones, which instead affects job priority. Say, define a 3x10 rectangle of high priority work at your entrance so that the traps get set up RIGHT NOW. (Could work like the bin organizing code, by making jobs in high priority areas appear closer) Sticking a labors list like for dwarves (this low priority zone affects: Fishing, butchering, furniture hauling.) would be godly. Maybe this is a feature, but honestly, if I can designate jobs one item a time for perfect optimization control, I say it's a silly feature to keep.

Forbidden area: Works just like outside areas when "dwarves stay inside". Placed just like fishing or dumping zones. You use it, no one (or no one civilian) goes there.

Dwarves stay inside: Can't they just check if their destination is outside before even accepting the task? Yes, they still must check as now in case there is an above ground path connecting A to B, but is the crowding at the door and associated job cancel spam/FPS rape really necessary?

No string search (like in job manager) in trade and stocks menus. No "whatever I bought last year" option and/or saved order profiles for trade negotiations.

...

Not enough bloodthirsty elephants. Not enough cave ins. (Why don't we have to use supports anymore, anyway?)

If making the designation surfaces larger then 100 squares proves too troublesome, maybe make the limit a surface rather then a width and length?

I don't see why this would be the issue. The game can already designate huge areas (map wide dig). And once placed, each tile of the construction becomes completely independent, anyway. And having several thousands of buildings slated (painstakingly, in 100 tile bits) does not really kill the game in any significant way.
Most of this stuff is either semi-major (job prioritizing, cave-ins) or has already been addressed for the next version. (Dwarves stay inside)
Logged
Engineering Dwarves' unfortunate demises since '08
WHAT?  WE DEMAND OUR FREE THINGS NOW DESPITE THE HARDSHIPS IT MAY CAUSE IN YOUR LIFE
It's like you're all trying to outdo each other in sheer useless pedantry.