From 86e083c40973d7c4d450546659571f964b4bfefa Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: SmallJoker <mk939@ymail.com> Date: Wed, 11 Jan 2023 20:43:06 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] Document a few derived textures --- manual.md | 672 +++++++++++++++++-------------------------------------- 1 files changed, 214 insertions(+), 458 deletions(-) diff --git a/manual.md b/manual.md index 071cc6a..bd4a3cf 100644 --- a/manual.md +++ b/manual.md @@ -1,354 +1,241 @@ -Minetest technic modpack user manual -==================================== +# Technic User Manual -The technic modpack extends the Minetest game with many new elements, -mainly constructable machines and tools. It is a large modpack, and -tends to dominate gameplay when it is used. This manual describes how -to use the technic modpack, mainly from a player's perspective. +The technic modpack extends Minetest Game (shipped with Minetest by default) +with many new elements, mainly constructable machines and tools. This manual +describes how to use the modpack, mainly from a player's perspective. -The technic modpack depends on some other modpacks: - -* the basic Minetest game -* mesecons, which supports the construction of logic systems based on - signalling elements -* pipeworks, which supports the automation of item transport -* moreores, which provides some additional ore types -* basic_materials, which provides some basic craft items - -This manual doesn't explain how to use these other modpacks, which have -their own manuals: +Documentation of the mod dependencies can be found here: * [Minetest Game Documentation](https://wiki.minetest.net/Main_Page) * [Mesecons Documentation](http://mesecons.net/items.html) -* [Pipeworks Documentation](https://gitlab.com/VanessaE/pipeworks/-/wikis/home) +* [Pipeworks Documentation](https://github.com/mt-mods/pipeworks/wiki/) * [Moreores Forum Post](https://forum.minetest.net/viewtopic.php?t=549) * [Basic materials Repository](https://gitlab.com/VanessaE/basic_materials) -Recipes for constructable items in technic are generally not guessable, -and are also not specifically documented here. You should use a -craft guide mod to look up the recipes in-game. For the best possible -guidance, use the unified\_inventory mod, with which technic registers -its specialised recipe types. +## 1.0 Recipes -substances ----------- +Recipes for items registered by technic are not specifically documented here. +Please consult a craft guide mod to look up the recipes in-game. -### ore ### +**Recommended mod:** [Unified Inventory](https://github.com/minetest-mods/unified_inventory) -The technic mod makes extensive use of not just the default ores but also -some that are added by mods. You will need to mine for all the ore types -in the course of the game. Each ore type is found at a specific range of -elevations, and while the ranges mostly overlap, some have non-overlapping -ranges, so you will ultimately need to mine at more than one elevation -to find all the ores. Also, because one of the best elevations to mine -at is very deep, you will be unable to mine there early in the game. +## 2.0 Substances -Elevation is measured in meters, relative to a reference plane that -is not quite sea level. (The standard sea level is at an elevation -of about +1.4.) Positive elevations are above the reference plane and -negative elevations below. Because elevations are always described this -way round, greater numbers when higher, we avoid the word "depth". +### 2.1 Ores -The ores that matter in technic are coal, iron, copper, tin, zinc, -chromium, uranium, silver, gold, mithril, mese, and diamond. +Technic registers a few ores which are needed to craft machines or items. +Each ore type is found at a specific range of elevations so you will +ultimately need to mine at more than one elevation to find all the ores. -Coal is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found from elevation -+64 downwards, so is available right on the surface at the start of -the game, but it is far less abundant above elevation 0 than below. -It is initially used as a fuel, driving important machines in the early -part of the game. It becomes less important as a fuel once most of your -machines are electrically powered, but burning fuel remains a way to -generate electrical power. Coal is also used, usually in dust form, as -an ingredient in alloying recipes, wherever elemental carbon is required. +Elevation (Y axis) is measured in meters. The reference is usually at sea +level. Ores can generally be found more commonly by going downwards to -1000m. -Iron is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found from elevation -+2 downwards, and its abundance increases in stages as one descends, -reaching its maximum from elevation -64 downwards. It is a common metal, -used frequently as a structural component. In technic, unlike the basic -game, iron is used in multiple forms, mainly alloys based on iron and -including carbon (coal). +Note ¹: *These ores are provided by Minetest Game. See [Ores](https://wiki.minetest.net/Ores#Ores_overview) for a rough overview* -Copper is part of the basic Minetest game (having migrated there from -moreores). It is found from elevation -16 downwards, but is more abundant -from elevation -64 downwards. It is a common metal, used either on its -own for its electrical conductivity, or as the base component of alloys. +Note ²: *These ores are provided by moreores. TODO: Add reference link* + +#### Chromium +Use: stainless steel + +Generated below: -100m, more commonly below -200m + +#### Coal ¹ +Use: Fuel, alloy as carbon + +Burning coal is a way to generate electrical power. Coal is also used, +usually in dust form, as an ingredient in alloying recipes, wherever +elemental carbon is required. + +#### Copper ¹ +Copper is a common metal, used either on its own for its electrical +conductivity, or as the base component of alloys. Although common, it is very heavily used, and most of the time it will be the material that most limits your activity. -Tin is part of the basic Minetest game (having migrated there from -moreores). It is found from elevation +8 downwards, with no -elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond that point. -It is a common metal. Its main use in pure form is as a component -of electrical batteries. Apart from that its main purpose is -as the secondary ingredient in bronze (the base being copper), but bronze -is itself little used. Its abundance is well in excess of its usage, -so you will usually have a surplus of it. +#### Diamond ¹ +Use: mainly for cutting machines -Zinc is supplied by technic. It is found from elevation +2 downwards, -with no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond that point. -It is a common metal. Its main use is as the secondary ingredient -in brass (the base being copper), but brass is itself little used. -Its abundance is well in excess of its usage, so you will usually have -a surplus of it. +Diamond is a precious gemstone. It is used moderately, mainly for reasons +connected to its extreme hardness. -Chromium is supplied by technic. It is found from elevation -100 -downwards, with no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond -that point. It is a moderately common metal. Its main use is as the -secondary ingredient in stainless steel (the base being iron). +#### Gold ¹ +Use: various -Uranium is supplied by technic. It is found only from elevation -80 down -to -300; using it therefore requires one to mine above elevation -300 even -though deeper mining is otherwise more productive. It is a moderately -common metal, useful only for reasons related to radioactivity: it forms -the fuel for nuclear reactors, and is also one of the best radiation -shielding materials available. It is not difficult to find enough uranium -ore to satisfy these uses. Beware that the ore is slightly radioactive: -it will slightly harm you if you stand as close as possible to it. -It is safe when more than a meter away or when mined. +Generated below: -64m, more commonly below -256m -Silver is supplied by the moreores mod. It is found from elevation -2 -downwards, with no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond -that point. It is a semi-precious metal. It is little used, being most -notably used in electrical items due to its conductivity, being the best -conductor of all the pure elements. +Gold is a precious metal. It is most notably used in electrical items due to +its combination of good conductivity and corrosion resistance. -Gold is part of the basic Minetest game (having migrated there from -moreores). It is found from elevation -64 downwards, but is more -abundant from elevation -256 downwards. It is a precious metal. It is -little used, being most notably used in electrical items due to its -combination of good conductivity (third best of all the pure elements) -and corrosion resistance. +#### Iron ¹ +Use: multiple, mainly for alloys with carbon (coal). -Mithril is supplied by the moreores mod. It is found from elevation --512 downwards, the deepest ceiling of any minable substance, with -no elevation-dependent variations in abundance beyond that point. -It is a rare precious metal, and unlike all the other metals described -here it is entirely fictional, being derived from J. R. R. Tolkien's +#### Lead +Use: batteries, HV nuclear reactor layout + +Generated below: 16m, more common below -128m + +#### Mese ¹ +Use: various + +Mese is a precious gemstone, and unlike diamond it is entirely fictional. +It is used in small quantities, wherever some magic needs to be imparted. + +#### Mithril ² +Use: chests + +Generated below: -512m, evenly common + +Mithril is a fictional ore, being derived from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-Earth setting. It is little used. -Mese is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found from elevation --64 downwards. The ore is more abundant from elevation -256 downwards, -and from elevation -1024 downwards there are also occasional blocks of -solid mese (each yielding as much mese as nine blocks of ore). It is a -precious gemstone, and unlike diamond it is entirely fictional. It is -used in many recipes, though mainly not in large quantities, wherever -some magical quality needs to be imparted. +#### Silver ² +Use: conductors -Diamond is part of the basic Minetest game (having migrated there from -technic). It is found from elevation -128 downwards, but is more abundant -from elevation -256 downwards. It is a precious gemstone. It is used -moderately, mainly for reasons connected to its extreme hardness. +Generated below: -2m, evenly common -### rock ### +Silver is a semi-precious metal and is the best conductor of all the pure elements. -In addition to the ores, there are multiple kinds of rock that need to be -mined in their own right, rather than for minerals. The rock types that -matter in technic are standard stone, desert stone, marble, and granite. +#### Tin ¹ +Use: batteries, bronze -Standard stone is part of the basic Minetest game. It is extremely -common. As in the basic game, when dug it yields cobblestone, which can -be cooked to turn it back into standard stone. Cobblestone is used in -recipes only for some relatively primitive machines. Standard stone is -used in a couple of machine recipes. These rock types gain additional -significance with technic because the grinder can be used to turn them -into dirt and sand. This, especially when combined with an automated -cobblestone generator, can be an easier way to acquire sand than -collecting it where it occurs naturally. +Tin is a common metal but is used rarely. Its abundance is well in excess +of its usage, so you will usually have a surplus of it. -Desert stone is part of the basic Minetest game. It is found specifically -in desert biomes, and only from elevation +2 upwards. Although it is -easily accessible, therefore, its quantity is ultimately quite limited. -It is used in a few recipes. +#### Uranium +Use: nuclear reactor fuel -Marble is supplied by technic. It is found in dense clusters from -elevation -50 downwards. It has mainly decorative use, but also appears -in one machine recipe. +Depth: -80m until -300m, more commonly between -100m and -200m -Granite is supplied by technic. It is found in dense clusters from -elevation -150 downwards. It is much harder to dig than standard stone, -so impedes mining when it is encountered. It has mainly decorative use, -but also appears in a couple of machine recipes. +It is a moderately common metal, useful only for reasons related to radioactivity: +it forms the fuel for nuclear reactors, and is also one of the best radiation +shielding materials available. -### rubber ### +Keep a safety distance of a meter to avoid being harmed by radiation. +#### Zinc +Use: brass + +Generated below: 2m, more commonly below -32m + +Zinc only has a few uses but is a common metal. + + +### 2.2 Rocks + +This section describes the rock types added by technic. Further rock types +are supported by technic machines. These can be processed using the grinder: + + * Stone (plain) + * Cobblestone + * Desert Stone + +#### Marble +Depth: -50m, evenly common + +Marble is found in dense clusters and has mainly decorative use, but also +appears in one machine recipe. + +#### Granite +Depth: -150m, evenly common + +Granite is found in dense clusters and is much harder to dig than standard +stone. It has mainly decorative use, but also appears in a couple of +machine recipes. + +#### Sulfur +Uses: battery box + +Sulur is generated around some lava patches (caves). + + +### 2.3 Rubber Rubber is a biologically-derived material that has industrial uses due to its electrical resistivity and its impermeability. In technic, it is used in a few recipes, and it must be acquired by tapping rubber trees. -If you have the moretrees mod installed, the rubber trees you need -are those defined by that mod. If not, technic supplies a copy of the -moretrees rubber tree. +Rubber trees are provided by technic if the moretrees mod is not present. -Extracting rubber requires a specific tool, a tree tap. Using the tree -tap (by left-clicking) on a rubber tree trunk block extracts a lump of -raw latex from the trunk. Each trunk block can be repeatedly tapped for -latex, at intervals of several minutes; its appearance changes to show -whether it is currently ripe for tapping. Each tree has several trunk -blocks, so several latex lumps can be extracted from a tree in one visit. +Extract raw latex from rubber using the "Tree Tap" tool. Punch/left-click the +tool on a rubber tree trunk to extract a lump of raw latex from the trunk. +Emptied trunks will regenerate at intervals of several minutes, which can be +observed by its appearance. -Raw latex isn't used directly. It must be vulcanized to produce finished -rubber. This can be performed by alloying the latex with coal dust. +To obtain rubber from latex, alloy latex with coal dust. -### metal ### +## 3.0 Metal processing +Generally, each metal can exist in five forms: -Many of the substances important in technic are metals, and there is -a common pattern in how metals are handled. Generally, each metal can -exist in five forms: ore, lump, dust, ingot, and block. With a couple of -tricky exceptions in mods outside technic, metals are only *used* in dust, -ingot, and block forms. Metals can be readily converted between these -three forms, but can't be converted from them back to ore or lump forms. + * ore -> stone containing the lump + * lump -> draw metal obtained by digging ("nuggets") + * dust -> grinder output + * ingot -> melted/cooked lump or dust + * block -> placeable node -As in the basic Minetest game, a "lump" of metal is acquired directly by -digging ore, and will then be processed into some other form for use. -A lump is thus more akin to ore than to refined metal. (In real life, -metal ore rarely yields lumps ("nuggets") of pure metal directly. -More often the desired metal is chemically bound into the rock as an -oxide or some other compound, and the ore must be chemically processed -to yield pure metal.) +Metals can be converted between dust, ingot and block, but can't be converted +from them back to ore or lump forms. -Not all metals occur directly as ore. Generally, elemental metals (those -consisting of a single chemical element) occur as ore, and alloys (those -consisting of a mixture of multiple elements) do not. In fact, if the -fictional mithril is taken to be elemental, this pattern is currently -followed perfectly. (It is not clear in the Middle-Earth setting whether -mithril is elemental or an alloy.) This might change in the future: -in real life some alloys do occur as ore, and some elemental metals -rarely occur naturally outside such alloys. Metals that do not occur -as ore also lack the "lump" form. +### Grinding +Ores can be processed as follows: -The basic Minetest game offers a single way to refine metals: cook a lump -in a furnace to produce an ingot. With technic this refinement method -still exists, but is rarely used outside the early part of the game, -because technic offers a more efficient method once some machines have -been built. The grinder, available only in electrically-powered forms, -can grind a metal lump into two piles of metal dust. Each dust pile -can then be cooked into an ingot, yielding two ingots from one lump. -This doubling of material value means that you should only cook a lump -directly when you have no choice, mainly early in the game when you -haven't yet built a grinder. + * ore -> lump (digging) -> ingot (melting) + * ore -> lump (digging) -> 2x dust (grinding) -> 2x ingot (melting) -An ingot can also be ground back to (one pile of) dust. Thus it is always -possible to convert metal between ingot and dust forms, at the expense -of some energy consumption. Nine ingots of a metal can be crafted into -a block, which can be used for building. The block can also be crafted -back to nine ingots. Thus it is possible to freely convert metal between -ingot and block forms, which is convenient to store the metal compactly. -Every metal has dust, ingot, and block forms. +At the expense of some energy consumption, the grinder can extract more material +from the lump, resulting in 2x dust which can be melted to two ingots in total. -Alloying recipes in which a metal is the base ingredient, to produce a -metal alloy, always come in two forms, using the metal either as dust -or as an ingot. If the secondary ingredient is also a metal, it must -be supplied in the same form as the base ingredient. The output alloy -is also returned in the same form. For example, brass can be produced -by alloying two copper ingots with one zinc ingot to make three brass -ingots, or by alloying two piles of copper dust with one pile of zinc -dust to make three piles of brass dust. The two ways of alloying produce -equivalent results. +### Alloying +Input: two ingredients of the same form - lump or dust -### iron and its alloys ### +Output: resulting alloy, as an ingot -Iron forms several important alloys. In real-life history, iron was the -second metal to be used as the base component of deliberately-constructed -alloys (the first was copper), and it was the first metal whose working -required processes of any metallurgical sophistication. The game -mechanics around iron broadly imitate the historical progression of -processes around it, rather than the less-varied modern processes. +Example: 2x copper ingots + 1x zinc ingot -> 3x brass ingot (alloying) -The two-component alloying system of iron with carbon is of huge -importance, both in the game and in real life. The basic Minetest game -doesn't distinguish between these pure iron and these alloys at all, -but technic introduces a distinction based on the carbon content, and -renames some items of the basic game accordingly. +Note that grinding before alloying is the preferred method to gain more output. -The iron/carbon spectrum is represented in the game by three metal -substances: wrought iron, carbon steel, and cast iron. Wrought iron -has low carbon content (less than 0.25%), resists shattering, and -is easily welded, but is relatively soft and susceptible to rusting. -In real-life history it was used for rails, gates, chains, wire, pipes, -fasteners, and other purposes. Cast iron has high carbon content -(2.1% to 4%), is especially hard, and resists corrosion, but is -relatively brittle, and difficult to work. Historically it was used -to build large structures such as bridges, and for cannons, cookware, -and engine cylinders. Carbon steel has medium carbon content (0.25% -to 2.1%), and intermediate properties: moderately hard and also tough, -somewhat resistant to corrosion. In real life it is now used for most -of the purposes previously satisfied by wrought iron and many of those -of cast iron, but has historically been especially important for its -use in swords, armor, skyscrapers, large bridges, and machines. +#### iron and its alloys -In real-life history, the first form of iron to be refined was -wrought iron, which is nearly pure iron, having low carbon content. -It was produced from ore by a low-temperature furnace process (the -"bloomery") in which the ore/iron remains solid and impurities (slag) -are progressively removed by hammering ("working", hence "wrought"). -This began in the middle East, around 1800 BCE. +Historically iron was the first metal whose working required processes of any +metallurgical sophistication. The mod's mechanics around iron broadly imitate +the historical progression of processes around it to get more variety. -Historically, the next forms of iron to be refined were those of high -carbon content. This was the result of the development of a more -sophisticated kind of furnace, the blast furnace, capable of reaching -higher temperatures. The real advantage of the blast furnace is that it -melts the metal, allowing it to be cast straight into a shape supplied by -a mould, rather than having to be gradually beaten into the desired shape. -A side effect of the blast furnace is that carbon from the furnace's fuel -is unavoidably incorporated into the metal. Normally iron is processed -twice through the blast furnace: once producing "pig iron", which has -very high carbon content and lots of impurities but lower melting point, -casting it into rough ingots, then remelting the pig iron and casting it -into the final moulds. The result is called "cast iron". Pig iron was -first produced in China around 1200 BCE, and cast iron later in the 5th -century BCE. Incidentally, the Chinese did not have the bloomery process, -so this was their first iron refining process, and, unlike the rest of -the world, their first wrought iron was made from pig iron rather than -directly from ore. +Notable alloys: -Carbon steel, with intermediate carbon content, was developed much later, -in Europe in the 17th century CE. It required a more sophisticated -process, because the blast furnace made it extremely difficult to achieve -a controlled carbon content. Tweaks of the blast furnace would sometimes -produce an intermediate carbon content by luck, but the first processes to -reliably produce steel were based on removing almost all the carbon from -pig iron and then explicitly mixing a controlled amount of carbon back in. + * Wrought iron: <0.25% carbon + * Resists shattering but is relatively soft. + * Known since: 1800 BC (approx.) + * Cast iron: 2.1% to 4% carbon. + * Especially hard and rather corrosion-resistant + * Known since: 1200 BC (approx.) + * Carbon steel: 0.25% to 2.1% carbon. + * Intermediate of the two above. + * Known since: 1600 AD (approx.) -In the game, the bloomery process is represented by ordinary cooking -or grinding of an iron lump. The lump represents unprocessed ore, -and is identified only as "iron", not specifically as wrought iron. -This standard refining process produces dust or an ingot which is -specifically identified as wrought iron. Thus the standard refining -process produces the (nearly) pure metal. +Technic introduces a distinction based on the carbon content, and renames some +items of the basic game accordingly. Iron and Steel are now distinguished. -Cast iron is trickier. You might expect from the real-life notes above -that cooking an iron lump (representing ore) would produce pig iron that -can then be cooked again to produce cast iron. This is kind of the case, -but not exactly, because as already noted cooking an iron lump produces -wrought iron. The game doesn't distinguish between low-temperature -and high-temperature cooking processes: the same furnace is used not -just to cast all kinds of metal but also to cook food. So there is no -distinction between cooking processes to produce distinct wrought iron -and pig iron. But repeated cooking *is* available as a game mechanic, -and is indeed used to produce cast iron: re-cooking a wrought iron ingot -produces a cast iron ingot. So pig iron isn't represented in the game as -a distinct item; instead wrought iron stands in for pig iron in addition -to its realistic uses as wrought iron. +Notable references: -Carbon steel is produced by a more regular in-game process: alloying -wrought iron with coal dust (which is essentially carbon). This bears -a fair resemblance to the historical development of carbon steel. -This alloying recipe is relatively time-consuming for the amount of -material processed, when compared against other alloying recipes, and -carbon steel is heavily used, so it is wise to alloy it in advance, -when you're not waiting for it. + * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron + * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stainless_steel + * ... plus many more. -There are additional recipes that permit all three of these types of iron -to be converted into each other. Alloying carbon steel again with coal -dust produces cast iron, with its higher carbon content. Cooking carbon -steel or cast iron produces wrought iron, in an abbreviated form of the -bloomery process. +Processes: -There's one more iron alloy in the game: stainless steel. It is managed -in a completely regular manner, created by alloying carbon steel with -chromium. + * Iron -> Wrought iron (melting) + * Wrought iron -> Cast iron (melting) + * Wrought iron + coal dust -> Carbon steel (alloying) + * Carbon steel + coal dust -> Cast iron (alloying) + * Carbon steel + chromium -> Stainless steel (alloying) -### uranium enrichment ### +Reversible processes: + + * Cast iron -> Wrought iron (melting) + * Carbon steel -> Wrought iron (melting) + +Check your preferred crafting guide for more information. + + +### Uranium enrichment When uranium is to be used to fuel a nuclear reactor, it is not sufficient to merely isolate and refine uranium metal. It is necessary @@ -523,35 +410,15 @@ industrial processes -------------------- -### alloying ### +### Alloying -In technic, alloying is a way of combining items to create other items, -distinct from standard crafting. Alloying always uses inputs of exactly -two distinct types, and produces a single output. Like cooking, which -takes a single input, it is performed using a powered machine, known -generically as an "alloy furnace". An alloy furnace always has two -input slots, and it doesn't matter which way round the two ingredients -are placed in the slots. Many alloying recipes require one or both -slots to contain a stack of more than one of the ingredient item: the -quantity required of each ingredient is part of the recipe. +In Technic, alloying is a way of combining items to create other items, +distinct from standard crafting. Alloying always uses inputs of exactly +two distinct types, and produces a single output. -As with the furnaces used for cooking, there are multiple kinds of alloy -furnace, powered in different ways. The most-used alloy furnaces are -electrically powered. There is also an alloy furnace that is powered -by directly burning fuel, just like the basic cooking furnace. Building -almost any electrical machine, including the electrically-powered alloy -furnaces, requires a machine casing component, one ingredient of which -is brass, an alloy. It is therefore necessary to use the fuel-fired -alloy furnace in the early part of the game, on the way to building -electrical machinery. +Check your preferred crafting guide for more information. -Alloying recipes are mainly concerned with metals. These recipes -combine a base metal with some other element, most often another metal, -to produce a new metal. This is discussed in the section on metal. -There are also a few alloying recipes in which the base ingredient is -non-metallic, such as the recipe for the silicon wafer. - -### grinding, extracting, and compressing ### +### Grinding, extracting, and compressing Grinding, extracting, and compressing are three distinct, but very similar, ways of converting one item into another. They are all quite @@ -625,57 +492,17 @@ It recovers both components of binary metal/metal alloys. It can't recover the carbon from steel or cast iron. -chests +Chests ------ -The technic mod replaces the basic Minetest game's single type of -chest with a range of chests that have different sizes and features. -The chest types are identified by the materials from which they are made; -the better chests are made from more exotic materials. The chest types -form a linear sequence, each being (with one exception noted below) -strictly more powerful than the preceding one. The sequence begins with -the wooden chest from the basic game, and each later chest type is built -by upgrading a chest of the preceding type. The chest types are: +See [GitHub Wiki / Chests](https://github.com/minetest-mods/technic/wiki/Chests) -1. wooden chest: 8×4 (32) slots -2. iron chest: 9×5 (45) slots -3. copper chest: 12×5 (60) slots -4. silver chest: 12×6 (72) slots -5. gold chest: 15×6 (90) slots -6. mithril chest: 15×6 (90) slots +Features of extended chests: -The iron and later chests have the ability to sort their contents, -when commanded by a button in their interaction forms. Item types are -sorted in the same order used in the unified\_inventory craft guide. -The copper and later chests also have an auto-sorting facility that can -be enabled from the interaction form. An auto-sorting chest automatically -sorts its contents whenever a player closes the chest. The contents will -then usually be in a sorted state when the chest is opened, but may not -be if pneumatic tubes have operated on the chest while it was closed, -or if two players have the chest open simultaneously. + * Larger storage space + * Labelling + * Advanced item sorting -The silver and gold chests, but not the mithril chest, have a built-in -sign-like capability. They can be given a textual label, which will -be visible when hovering over the chest. The gold chest, but again not -the mithril chest, can be further labelled with a colored patch that is -visible from a moderate distance. - -The mithril chest is currently an exception to the upgrading system. -It has only as many inventory slots as the preceding (gold) type, and has -fewer of the features. It has no feature that other chests don't have: -it is strictly weaker than the gold chest. It is planned that in the -future it will acquire some unique features, but for now the only reason -to use it is aesthetic. - -The size of the largest chests is dictated by the maximum size -of interaction form that the game engine can successfully display. -If in the future the engine becomes capable of handling larger forms, -by scaling them to fit the screen, the sequence of chest sizes will -likely be revised. - -As with the chest of the basic Minetest game, each chest type comes -in both locked and unlocked flavors. All of the chests work with the -pneumatic tubes of the pipeworks mod. radioactivity ------------- @@ -813,115 +640,44 @@ Tricky shine paths can also be addressed by just keeping players out of the dangerous area. -electrical power ----------------- +## Electrical power -Most machines in technic are electrically powered. To operate them it is -necessary to construct an electrical power network. The network links -together power generators and power-consuming machines, connecting them -using power cables. +Electrical networks in Technic are defined by a single tier (see below) +and consist of: -There are three tiers of electrical networking: low voltage (LV), -medium voltage (MV), and high voltage (HV). Each network must operate -at a single voltage, and most electrical items are specific to a single -voltage. Generally, the machines of higher tiers are more powerful, -but consume more energy and are more expensive to build, than machines -of lower tiers. It is normal to build networks of all three tiers, -in ascending order as one progresses through the game, but it is not -strictly necessary to do this. Building HV equipment requires some parts -that can only be manufactured using electrical machines, either LV or MV, -so it is not possible to build an HV network first, but it is possible -to skip either LV or MV on the way to HV. + * 1x Switching Station (central management unit) + * Any further stations are disabled automatically + * Electricity producers (PR) + * Electricity consumers/receivers (RE) + * Accumulators/batteries (BA) -Each voltage has its own cable type, with distinctive insulation. Cable -segments connect to each other and to compatible machines automatically. -Incompatible electrical items don't connect. All non-cable electrical -items must be connected via cable: they don't connect directly to each -other. Most electrical items can connect to cables in any direction, -but there are a couple of important exceptions noted below. +### Tiers -To be useful, an electrical network must connect at least one power -generator to at least one power-consuming machine. In addition to these -items, the network must have a "switching station" in order to operate: -no energy will flow without one. Unlike most electrical items, the -switching station is not voltage-specific: the same item will manage -a network of any tier. However, also unlike most electrical items, -it is picky about the direction in which it is connected to the cable: -the cable must be directly below the switching station. + * LV: Low Voltage. Low material costs but is slower. + * MV: Medium Voltage. Higher processing speed. + * HV: High Voltage. High material costs but is the fastest. -Hovering over a network's switching station will show the aggregate energy -supply and demand, which is useful for troubleshooting. Electrical energy -is measured in "EU", and power (energy flow) in EU per second (EU/s). -Energy is shifted around a network instantaneously once per second. +Tiers can be converted from one to another using the Supply Converter node. +Its top connects to the input, the bottom to the output network. Configure +the input power by right-clicking it. -In a simple network with only generators and consumers, if total -demand exceeds total supply then no energy will flow, the machines -will do nothing, and the generators' output will be lost. To handle -this situation, it is recommended to add a battery box to the network. -A battery box will store generated energy, and when enough has been -stored to run the consumers for one second it will deliver it to the -consumers, letting them run part-time. It also stores spare energy -when supply exceeds demand, to let consumers run full-time when their -demand occasionally peaks above the supply. More battery boxes can -be added to cope with larger periods of mismatched supply and demand, -such as those resulting from using solar generators (which only produce -energy in the daytime). +### Machine upgrade slots -When there are electrical networks of multiple tiers, it can be appealing -to generate energy on one tier and transfer it to another. The most -direct way to do this is with the "supply converter", which can be -directly wired into two networks. It is another tier-independent item, -and also particular about the direction of cable connections: it must -have the cable of one network directly above, and the cable of another -network directly below. The supply converter demands 10000 EU/s from -the network above, and when this network gives it power it supplies 9000 -EU/s to the network below. Thus it is only 90% efficient, unlike most of -the electrical system which is 100% efficient in moving energy around. -To transfer more than 10000 EU/s between networks, connect multiple -supply converters in parallel. +Generally, machines of MV and HV tiers have two upgrade slots. +Only specific items will have any upgrading effect. The occupied slots do +count, but not the actual stack size. -powered machines ----------------- +**Type 1: Energy upgrade** -### powered machine tiers ### +Consists of any battery item. Reduces the machine's power consumption +regardless the charge of the item. -Each powered machine takes its power in some specific form, being -either fuel-fired (burning fuel directly) or electrically powered at -some specific voltage. There is a general progression through the -game from using fuel-fired machines to electrical machines, and to -higher electrical voltages. The most important kinds of machine come -in multiple variants that are powered in different ways, so the earlier -ones can be superseded. However, some machines are only available for -a specific power tier, so the tier can't be entirely superseded. +**Type 2: Tube upgrade** -### powered machine upgrades ### +Consists of a control logic unit item. Ejects processed items into pneumatic +tubes for quicker processing. -Some machines have inventory slots that are used to upgrade them in -some way. Generally, machines of MV and HV tiers have two upgrade slots, -and machines of lower tiers (fuel-fired and LV) do not. Any item can -be placed in an upgrade slot, but only specific items will have any -upgrading effect. It is possible to have multiple upgrades of the same -type, but this can't be achieved by stacking more than one upgrade item -in one slot: it is necessary to put the same kind of item in more than one -upgrade slot. The ability to upgrade machines is therefore very limited. -Two kinds of upgrade are currently possible: an energy upgrade and a -tube upgrade. - -An energy upgrade consists of a battery item, the same kind of battery -that serves as a mobile energy store. The effect of an energy upgrade -is to improve in some way the machine's use of electrical energy, most -often by making it use less energy. The upgrade effect has no relation -to energy stored in the battery: the battery's charge level is irrelevant -and will not be affected. - -A tube upgrade consists of a control logic unit item. The effect of a -tube upgrade is to make the machine able, or more able, to eject items -it has finished with into pneumatic tubes. The machines that can take -this kind of upgrade are in any case capable of accepting inputs from -pneumatic tubes. These upgrades are essential in using powered machines -as components in larger automated systems. - -### tubes with powered machines ### +### Machines + Tubes (pipeworks) Generally, powered machines of MV and HV tiers can work with pneumatic tubes, and those of lower tiers cannot. (As an exception, the fuel-fired -- Gitblit v1.8.0