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Author Topic: Use statues as levers.  (Read 1388 times)

Sizik

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Use statues as levers.
« on: September 27, 2009, 11:46:21 pm »

Or any furniture, really. You would have a new option on levers, "Hide in Furniture", which brings up a list of furniture: statue, throne, table, coffin, etc., from which you would select an individual piece of furniture. A mechanic would then bring the item over, install it, and you now have a hidden switch!

It would look and act like a normal piece of furniture, but it has the additional option "Activate", which acts like "Pull the lever". Unfortunately, you cannot add any more linkages to the lever, and deconstructing the item leaves it as furniture + a bunch of mechanisms.
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Warlord255

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #1 on: September 27, 2009, 11:51:47 pm »

Would be great for adventurer integration. Maybe Build Hidden Lever, which then goes to a submenu of eligible furniture items, such as statues, chairs, or (Eventually) torches!
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Draco18s

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #2 on: September 28, 2009, 12:46:57 am »

Unfortunately, you cannot add any more linkages to the lever, and deconstructing the item leaves it as furniture + a bunch of mechanisms.

"Can't add more linkages" what?

You can't add "more" how do you get "one"?
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Rowanas

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #3 on: September 28, 2009, 01:24:06 am »

Yeah, I say let us have as many links as we want!

The idea is a very good one. I was about to leave the suggestions forum but this caught my eye in time. I would really like to hide things in furniture because at the moment all my levers are ugly-ing up my fortress.
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alfie275

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #4 on: September 28, 2009, 01:41:15 am »

This has been suggested before, along with display cases that activate when the object is taken.
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Granite26

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #5 on: September 28, 2009, 09:34:14 am »

It's new to me... got a linky to the old thread?

display boxes are cool too

Derakon

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #6 on: September 28, 2009, 10:38:19 am »

The way I'd suggest handling this is to add the reaction "Mechanize furniture" to the mechanic's workshop. The mechanic then goes and grabs a piece of furniture and a piece of rock, makes a mechanism out of the rock, and installs it into the piece of furniture. You can then build the furniture wherever you want, and add linkages as if it were a lever.

From a realism standpoint, this makes sense as most objects would have to be somewhat extensively modified to accomodate mechanisms, which means making those modifications in the workshop, not in the field. It also neatly works the mechanisms into the same system used for decorations, which is nice from a program design standpoint.
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tfaal

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #7 on: September 28, 2009, 10:52:22 am »

From a gameplay standpoint, this also makes it easier to tell just what your levers do. You've only got a few common, distinctive stone colors, (orthoclase, microline, and bauxite) with the rest just a haze of grays and whites. Allowing you to choose the symbol as well would allow a lot more flexibility.
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alfie275

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #8 on: September 28, 2009, 12:05:24 pm »

@tfaal, there is a thing called 'notes' that allows you to place, well, notes.
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Sizik

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #9 on: September 28, 2009, 01:11:31 pm »

Unfortunately, you cannot add any more linkages to the lever, and deconstructing the item leaves it as furniture + a bunch of mechanisms.

"Can't add more linkages" what?

You can't add "more" how do you get "one"?

You link stuff to the lever before you add the statue. After adding the furniture, you can't add more links to the lever.
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Atarlost

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #10 on: September 28, 2009, 07:35:22 pm »

@tfaal, there is a thing called 'notes' that allows you to place, well, notes.

If notes were visible outside of note mode they would obviate the need for visibly distinct levers.  Unfortunately they're not. 
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thobal

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #11 on: September 28, 2009, 08:09:09 pm »

You people just want the option of putting a chair in your noble's quarters that floods the room with magma whenever they sit down!
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Nidokoenig

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #12 on: September 28, 2009, 11:49:29 pm »

 I just want to put masterpiece native gold mechanisms in my masterpiece native gold statues, both decorated with every type of bone I can lay my dirty mitts on, and watch room values skyrocket, actually. Nobles are good for getting the harvest in, at least. A Legendary Grower Hammerdwarf has its drawbacks, mind.

 Although, having a jail with the chairs set to dump some water on the occupant would be good, for the mist thought.

 Another possibility is having enemies which will actually pull exposed levers, or ones that their civilisation has found. This is something of a dick move if you can't hide them without great amounts of effort, but an interesting factor in the cost/benefit equation if you can.
 A chance for enemies to find hidden switches based on... something would be interesting in this case. Mechanics skill? Experience? I'm not aware of a perception modifier, which would be the obvious way to go about it. A curiosity value to make friendlies pull them if they pass the discovery check could be various kinds of fun.
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CaptApollo12

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #13 on: September 29, 2009, 12:40:27 am »

I really like the idea of having reactions when a thing is used. Ex: Sitting, using door - oooooooh when an item is picked up. Think treasure room for your artifacts with a Giant Cave Spider Guardian that shoots out at the thief when he picks up my perfect Ruby :)
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Draco18s

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Re: Use statues as levers.
« Reply #14 on: September 29, 2009, 01:18:08 am »

Another possibility is having enemies which will actually pull exposed levers, or ones that their civilisation has found. This is something of a dick move if you can't hide them without great amounts of effort, but an interesting factor in the cost/benefit equation if you can.

Goblin Maceman: "A lever!  We must pull it!"
Goblin Macelord: "But what does it do?"
Goblin Maceman: "Does it matter?" *pulls*

MAGMA CANNON

A goblin has died in the heat x12
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