Well, have at thee. I don't really need to say anything more...

This has been suggested, and I think it would be a great item to be included in either a new series of mining missions like the current prospector badge (too long to produce given current Dev state) or, more likely, as a Mk I and II item at high mining levels (which there is currently little to no incentive to chase).

It seems like it would need to work just like a current mining beam, except for no extraction rate and a negative heat curve. I won't speculate about stats, but I'd say that even the Mk II version when placed on a moth with a HD beam should still produce a positive increase in roid temperature, abet signifigantly more slowly.

We got a tweaked Neut III tossed in-game with little work; without the mission development issues, could this concept be done?

if we could move roids around, we could smash an ice yo at a rocky roid to cool it.

ah what nice spectacle that would make.

and white fog too!

Definite stamp of approval. The one thing that remains to be answered would be which scenario would be more heat-effective:

1) 1 group, 8 moths with 1 cooling beam and 1 HD beam
2) 1 group, 8 moths, four with 2 cooling beams and 4 with 2 HD beams
3) 2 groups, 4 moths each, one group with cooling beams and the other with HD beams.

4) two moths, a roid size sling-shot rope & net and an ice yo.

Just like how multiple mining beams "work in tandum" and don't heat 'roids any faster, I think that multiple cooling beams shouldn't cool any faster than a set rate.

Manharu raises a good point: is there, anywhere, a set breakdown of exactly how each additional mining beam per ship affects overall heating rate and the effect of being grouped?

No Idea...

off topic: You don't need to make a male name out of Miharu, it already is applicable to both genders.

on topic: Yes, please.

Does anyone not like this idea? I mean seriously though, could this be bad in any way?

It could be bad in that it takes time away from other more important work that the devs could be doing.

But, really, the "cooling beam" idea is pretty neat. How would it work, Jim Kirk? I mean, explain its workings, what technology does it use?

Lebicon, we don't need to explain this stuff. It could be a low energy beam of a nature that is particularly susceptible to heat exchange and dissipation... more importantly, since all the work it would require is adding two items that are modded mining beams, it seems like the Dev diversion issue would be a minimal concern.

And Tosh, you know that your point about the gender-neutral nature of 'miharu' is irrelevant to my usage, so WTF did you bother?

mind you, a roid cooling thing could make for abuse. unless perhaps it had charges like some non-regenerative gaz of some kind.

imagine a couple of cooling ship while another ship mines it, dumping it's cargo in space for any number of conveyers bring it to a station.

you have an infinite revenu stream with little efforts.

come to think of it, i'm not sure i like this idea.

though sling-shotting roids around still sounds fun. space pool.

The cooling rate would have to be set at a point where it won't produce a neutral or negative temperaure effect, ever. To do the leg work for that, I'd need to see the rules for how mining beams and groups and such are already governed. But I can't find it on the wiki or anywhere else.

I'm pretty sure it's simple lecter. Two mining beams running at the same time just doubles the heat ratio, while the rate ratio stays the same.

Heliocene Mining Beam:
i think it's = .8 Heat
And = 2.0 Rate

So two would be:
1.6 Heat
but still 2.0 rate per mining beam. Overall = 4 tho

With a Cooling beam and a Heliocene Mining Beam:

Heliocene Mining Beam:
.8 Heat
2.0 Rate

+ Cooling Beam:
.2 Cooling
and maybe an extraction % help with some random ore...

= Total:
.6 Total Heat Rate
2.0 Rate

Note: this is a very good version, as it shouldn't get too much better than this for simple balancing issues, Players would simply have too much money.

The real reason I thought of this was because I hate going into sectors I know have great roids, but can do nothing but wait until I can mine them. There should be something that counter-acts this, however small.

UPPER CASE: I don't see that as abuse at all. I see that as making mining more of a fun teamwork operation, and we've had endless discussions on how to encourage more teamwork in this game to make it more fun. Take your own scenario, you've got two ships cooling a 'roid and one mining and dumping, and we'll assume two ships hauling away the cargo. Already you have five players who will be splitting the profits, and if even one of them thinks he's been cheated of his share, the team will fall apart. No exploit there. This would become a guild activity. Also, these guys would be sitting ducks, armed only with all those mining beams, and all that ore lying around. You'd want a couple fighters, or gun platforms with turrets to defend the group. That's more who'll want a cut, or they'll shoot you instead.

Another thing that would mediate abuse a bit is consumable 'roids. It's amazing how you can mine and mine a 'roid, and end up at the end (after a very long time) with more ore than there was asteroid to begin with. This is a long way down the road game change, but I'd imagine it's a long-range goal the devs already have (pure speculation there). I'd love to see 'roids get mined down to nothing, and slowly replenish as more drift into the sector. That of course requires moving 'roids, which would be extra cool but processer/development intensive, so not for at least a couple years I'm sure.

My only problem with this suggestion is the technology. As Lexicon suggested, how would it work? I know a lot of people roll their eyes whenever someone suggests making something realistic, but if we can make it fun without sacrificing realism, why sacrifice realism?

Currently there's no beam I know of that doesn't add heat to its target. The only way for a 'roid (hemo or aster, take your pick) to lose heat is through radiation. I suggest an item that is very heavy that you can drop like a mine, and it attaches itself to the nearest asteroid and cools it. It would basically be a radiator, and it would cool just the way a refrigerator works. If there's a cluster of highly profitable 'roids you know of, drop a radiator on each of them.

This idea requres fewer hours of work than the beams, so the "abuse" complaint will come up immediately I'm sure, but the trade-off is that if you see a 'roid with a radiator, you know someone thinks it's valuable. Also, it would be heavy, you'd have to make an entire trip for each one. If 'roids are consumable, maybe you can pick it up, or maybe it was consumed with the 'roid. Also, if we ever have IR detection abilities, the heat radiated by these would show up bright and red on-screen, and everyone would know where this thing is whether the 'roid is hot or not.

no jim kirk, mining beams operating in tandem do provide some sort of added benefit other than just doubling the temp, so what lecter is wondering is, just what kind of benefit

Professor Chaos: I like your "radiator" idea, but I think that it should not be implemented, unless it is to such a small degree that it is almost worthless anyway. I think that anything that you can leave unattended and works for you, doesn't promote group activity (like you said), and that is really what we want here. Too often people mine alone. The only way people mine together is in mining events.

When first I thought of this idea, I didn't even fathom that mining groups would form, and in turn, would make mining a more complex and interesting activity.

I can already see it now, guilds interested primarily in mining, and possibly becoming major suppliers for guilds that may in the future, manufacture products made from the ore. Buying and selling ore already exists, but when the new crafting system in introduced, it will become much more of an issue.

>toshiro, what benefit? More ore?

One term: AFK Coolers