[DEVBLOG#204] Vanilla Vehicles Expanded - Tier 2 vehicles (Patreon)

Hey guys and gals and welcome to another mod development blog! Once again we will be focusing on the Vanilla Vehicles Expanded.

First, however, a quick progress update:

We have been working very hard on the acceleration and deceleration mechanic. We are almost done with it, and once we are done, we will put out the first beta version which will contain the Tier 1 vehicles. If it works out alright, we will proceed with adding Tier 2 vehicles into the mix.

ACCELERATION

This is a mechanic that we originally hoped will be in the Vehicle framework but was immediately cut. We need to code it for Vanilla Vehicles Expanded, as I find it incredibly fitting and it helps us differentiate vehicles whilst also bringing a little bit more ‘realism’ to the mod.

Vehicles have a MoveSpeed stat. This stat should represent the maximum movement speed of the vehicle. It wouldn’t however feel realistic if vehicles suddenly reached that maximum movement speed from being completely stationary in one tick. We want to add acceleration.

The vehicle on the example below has a MoveSpeed of 7.0 and an acceleration of 0.1

When you right click a drafted vehicle to make it move somewhere, it should automatically calculate when the vehicle should start decelerating in order to stop moving at the destination. Sometimes, because of that, vehicle will not reach full speed - for example if the path to travel is shorter than it needs to fully accelerate. Deceleration rate is always the same as Acceleration rate.

But what happens if you designate a vehicle to go somewhere, and then change the direction?

The vehicle should update the acceleration and deceleration plan accordingly.

• If the vehicle reaches full speed and doesn’t start slowing down, it will keep going at max speed and calculate once again when to start decelerating before reaching the new destination.
• If the vehicle doesn’t reach full speed yet, it will continue accelerating and calculate once again when to start decelerating before reaching the new destination.
• If the vehicle is in the process of decelerating, it will start accelerating again and calculate once again when to start decelerating before reaching the new destination.
• If you designate the vehicle to go somewhere where it would not give it enough time to decelerate, handbrake activates - it’s a special mechanic we need to code that adjusts deceleration rate to fit the requirements to decelerate (can even allow doing a full stop from max speed) and plays the tire screeching sound.

HANDBRAKE

Handbrake is a new safety precaution when the player doesn’t give enough time for the vehicle to decelerate. If a path to destination is not long enough for the vehicle to slow down using the acceleration stat, it means it needs a handbrake. Handbrake allows the vehicle to increase deceleration rate, but results in damage to the tires of the vehicle. This means tires will need to be repaired.

If the player orders a vehicle to move into a cell that would require using a handbrake, following warning should display in the top left side of the screen:

[VehicleName] will not have enough room to decelerate and will need to use the handbrake. This will cause damage to the tires.

On an example below we can see that it would take around 9 cells to fully accelerate. Player then told the car to move 3 cells further and stop, not giving it enough time to decelerate (as the car would need another 9 cells to decelerate).

This means that the car has to condense the 9 cells into 3 cells, so while it was normally accelerating at the rate of +0.1 moveSpeed per tick, it will now need to decelerate at the rate of -0.3 moveSpeed per tick.

The damage to tires is calculated using the following formula, and applies to every single tire:

Required deceleration rate - acceleration rate * 10

On the example above, Required deceleration rate is 0.3 moveSpeed per tick. Acceleration rate is 0.1 moveSpeed per tick. This means that 0.3 - 0.1 = 0.2 * 10 = 2. All the tires in the car would receive 2 damage.

Because of this, vehicles are best utilised over longer paths. Unlike with pawns, player isn't encouraged to keep moving their vehicle 3 cells here, 2 cells there etc. Instead, you should decide where the vehicle should go and stick to it, as changing it at the last second can result in the handbrake mechanic kicking in.

Of course, vehicle damage is nothing scary - vehicles are repaired the same way buildings are - you don't need any resources, your pawns simply need to perform the 'repair' job.

Ok, but you guys came here for vehicles!

This post won't go into the details, stats etc yet. It won't show infographics. It will only show what vehicles are planned and what are their descriptions.

Wagon

A general all-rounder vehicle, the Wagon performs well in all categories with a good cargo and passenger capacity. Best suited on flat roads and will struggle somewhat on hills, snow or winter tiles.

Similar to other tier 2 vehicles, this has double fuel efficiency on the world map which makes them more efficient than tier 1 vehicles. They are also less visible due to improved manufacturing.

Tier 2 Civilian Car

Roadrunner

A general cargo transporter, the Roadrunner is an excellent vehicle for getting a lot of material from one location to another. Best suited on flat roads and will struggle somewhat on hills, snow or winter tiles.

Similar to other tier 2 vehicles, this has double fuel efficiency on the world map which makes them more efficient than tier 1 vehicles. They are also less visible due to improved manufacturing.

Tier 2 Utility Truck

Snatcher

A general passenger transport, the Snatcher is a solid vehicle for transporting people to different locations. Best suited on flat roads and will seriously struggle in snow or on hills.

Similar to other tier 2 vehicles, this has double fuel efficiency on the world map which makes them more efficient than tier 1 vehicles. They are also less visible due to improved manufacturing.

Tier 2 Civilian Van

Charley

A general motorcycle, the Charley is a very effective single-person vehicle with a small cargo capacity. Performs well on any road except during winter season or snowy terrain, or both, with an increased speed on the world map.

Similar to other tier 2 vehicles, this has double fuel efficiency on the world map which makes them more efficient than tier 1 vehicles. They are also less visible due to improved manufacturing.

Tier 2 Civilian Motorbike

Bulldog

A general main battle tank, the Bulldog is an improved combat vehicle that performs well in any engagement. Performs better in less favourable terrain with all sides armoured, the thinnest plating being at the rear near the engine.

Different to other tier 2 vehicles, this has regular fuel efficiency and is quite visible, which is still an improvement over the tier 1 tank.

Tier 2 Military Tank

Mosquito

A general-purpose aircraft, the Mosquito is an extremely fast and mobile mode of transportation. While it doesn’t require a landing strip, it is slower than aeroplanes and has less cargo capacity.

Similar to other tier 2 vehicles, this has double fuel efficiency on the world map which makes them more efficient than tier 1 vehicles.

Being a flying vehicle, it is extremely obvious when on the move.

Tier 2 Civilian Helicopter

Trawler

A general-purpose boat, the Trawler is an effective long distance transportation across open waters. Performs rather poorly on rivers and has to travel slowly during the winter season.

Similar to other tier 2 vehicles, this has double fuel efficiency on the world map which makes them more efficient than tier 1 vehicles. They are also less visible due to improved manufacturing.

Tier 2 Utility Boat

Smuggler

A general-purpose aircraft, the Smuggler is an extremely fast and effective mode of transportation. While it is faster and can carry more cargo than helicopters, it requires a landing strip to both take off and land.

Different to other tier 2 vehicles, this has regular fuel efficiency on the world map but moves significantly faster in return.

Being a flying vehicle, it is extremely obvious when on the move.

Tier 2 Civilian Aircraft

Tango

A general purpose armoured personnel carrier, the Tango is a slow but hardy troop transport. Ample cargo holds, hardened armour, all-terrain capability and a turret that can fire either mobile or stationary, the main downside is fuel consumption and slightly thinner plating on the rear.

Different to other tier 2 vehicles, this has regular fuel efficiency and is quite visible, its high fuel consumption rate putting a limit on the effective range.

Tier 2 Military APC

I will update you again soon with the progress, as well as let you know what T3 vehicles we have planned!