Hello Vendetta,

I have an idea for tractor beam device, ship hauling & game balancing adjustment (to not make it too easy for pirates) that could be a lot of fun.

Let's get to the point. Tractor beam effeciency would be limited - so you can catch only objects that aren't travelling much faster than You are. For example:

------- Tractor beam device MkI
+ Can catch objects with speed difference of 25 m/s (I mean you can catch an unmanned craft while travelling with 25m/s when it's sitting still in space with 0m/s speed)
+ Range 25m

------- Tractor beam device MkII
+ Can catch objects with speed difference of 50 m/s
+ Range 50m

To balance the game out, and not make it easy for pirates, there would be also anti-tractor beam devices, which would disallow catching of a ship if it's manned (its not being hauled):

------- Positron hull polarizer MkI (anti - tractor beam device)
+ Detaches tractor beam from ship's hull after 3 seconds, when vessel is manned.

------- Positron hull polarizer MkII (anti - tractor beam device)
+ Detaches tractor beam from ship's hull after 1 seconds, when vessel is manned.

Also, some good ships could have specially polarized hull without any addons, so they would be completely uncatchable (when manned).

Additional details:
+ Catching a vessel should be impossible when speed difference between the catching and vessel being catched is too big. So, this would not make it too easy for pirates.
+ When catching an object with different speed than Yours, the object speed & speed direction vector is slowly (let's say 10-20% of difference/second) matched to Your own speed.
+ When hauling a ship with tractor beam, the hauled ship's mass is added to Your own mass, so You become slower and harder to maneuver.
+ During battle, the hauled ship can (of course) be detached, and tractor beam disengaged, so the battle can be finished.
+ When encountering an Ion storm, the exotic particles of Ion storm interfere with the tractor beam, so its dispersed and You have to re-catch the ship You were hauling again.
+ When hauling a ship, 50% of power cell energy is required for normal jump, not standard 25%.
+ Extra non-weapon slot could be added to every ship to make some more room for new addons. That slot could be only used for scanners/radar extenders/scanner blockers & tractor beams.
+ Hauled/unmanned ship can too have cargo of its own (just think of the trade possibilities !)
+ A ship with 2 tractor beam devices installed can target & engage tractor beam with each one, so it HAULS 2 SHIPS/OBJECTS AT ONCE.
+ Ships are not the only objects that can be catched. You can also tractor beam objects floating in space (ie. ore, ship parts)
+ Perhaps it should be even possible to catch roids (again: think of the possibilities !), but their mass is added to Your mass so You become A LOT slower.

--------
The fun part is that with tractor beam You could buy ships in one sector of the galaxy and haul them to other sector (ship trading).

Of course, traded/hauled ship hijacking by pirates would be also made possible.

The idea would probably require some heavy dev work though (for example there would have to be possibility of docking of an unmanned ship on tractor beam).

too tricky. FYL

This isn't really a "new" conception anyway.

@ladron

_{This isn't really a "new" conception anyway.}

Of course it isn't, but i have described in details how to IMHO implement it properly with greatest fun factor.

@Kierky

_{too tricky. FYL}

Would You care to elaborate on this, dear Sir ?

Tractor beams are way too powerfull as proposed...

For me:
-Tractor beams only work is relative speed is below 2m/s (two)
-Range is 120m and dragging strenght is affected by distance, so:
--Small one drags up to 20ton@30m, 6ton@100m. Large one up to 50ton@30m, 15ton@100m
-only works for metallic hulls (ships), so no roid/cargo pulling
-You can launch from station with ONE other ship already attached

The relative speed limit is imperative. Do some basic calculations and you find out why. And it is really too easy to match speeds and vectors.

Also, what happens when both ships are manned? If pilots decide to go in opposing ways, and use their engines? And if the tractoring ship stops, the beam becomes a repulsive beam and stop tractored ship??

I guess we should consider a possible tractor beam as a directional vector, a constant acceleration with Xnewtons in direction of beam. And if you don't move, them pulled ship rams on you...

A lot do develop from physics simulation side. But interesting

_{Tractor beams are way too powerfull as now...}

I designed the rules to map the Star-Trek series, and i limited them anyway, as in ST the beams were much more powerful (just think of the Borg's green tractor Beam - that was a mighty bitch).

_{-Tractor beams only work is relative speed is below 2m/s (two)}

This would make mid-flight tractor beam catching impossible, which would not be much fun.
You should watch some more Star Trek. There are many scenes where fast flying ship intercepts some cargo and instantly goes to warp speed. That is cool.

_{-Small one drags up to 20ton. Large one up to 50ton}

The Star Trek - beams had much larger cargo weight limit. They could even haul asteroids i think.
For me a limit of 100-200 tons would be good.
However this is a matter of game balancing - such details can be discussed later - if the feature is implemented at all.

_{-Range is fixed at 20m}

Agreed. And 30 meters for MkII version ;)

_{only works for metallic hulls (ships), so no roid/cargo pulling}

For now this probably is good idea, as stealing roids would become too common and in short time every spot in the universe would be without roids (except for small, mining-guild-guarded places full of roids) :D
However hauling roids could be possible if another feature would be implemented - "dynamic roids", which randomly travel through space and fill up the space left by roid-thieves.

_{-You can launch from station with ONE other ship already attached}

Agreed. You can do it first time, detach beam and leave ship floating next to station, then launch second time with second ship and then catch the first ship back. So this way You could effectively travel with 2 hauled ships - one for every tractor beam. Of course leaving the station this way without escort would potentially allow ship thievery ;).

_{The relative speed limit is imperative. Do some basic calculations and you find out why. And it is really too easy to match speeds and vectors.}

Watch some more Star Trek. In Star Trek, this relativity somehow does not affect tractor beam in this way. Pehaps it uses some workaround of this problem (as they did with inertial dampers & heisenberg compensator for teleportation).

_{Also, what happens when both ships are manned? If pilots decide to go in opposing ways, and use their engines? And if the tractoring ship stops, the beam becomes a repulsive beam and stop tractored ship??}

Star Trek answers this question pretty precisely: The hauling ship always "overrides" the ship being hauled using beam. Somehow the tractor beams blocks any independent action of hauled object.
So when You are under an influence of a tractor beam, You can't do a thing: move, maneuver, rotate, turbo (unless You have anit-tractor beam device of course).

_{I guess we should consider a possible tractor beam as a directional vector, a constant acceleration with Xnewtons in direction of beam. And if you don't move, them pulled ship rams on you...}

Star Trek's tractor beam does not work that way.
After watching probably everything Star Trek that is out there, i suppose that the beam creates some kind of "speed & force free-zone" around the object it affects and then ship's computer automatically calculates the forces needed to move it either way. Ramming the ship being hauled never happens this way.

So, unless You point Yourself precisely at the target object, press turbo and engage beam just before You hit the object so the beam will not manage to speed it up to Your relative speed/direction on time, You will not ram the object.
That's the only situation this should happen.

Between Alloh and Admiral "I'm quite the hardcore programmer" Douchebag here, this should be pure entertainment.

/me grabs popcorn

@Alloh - responding to edit

_{--Small one drags up to 20ton@30m, 6ton@100m. Large one up to 50ton@30m, 15ton@100m}

OK i think i know how to balance this.
What about the smaller one can haul fully packed Centaur (the biggest version) with heaviest possible cargo per cu and the big one can haul largest version of Behemoth (200cu cargo) fully loaded the same type of cargo ? (I mean they can also haul their equivalents in mass of course)

I think that would be quite reasonable and balanced.

@Dr. Lecter

_{Between Alloh and Admiral "I'm quite the hardcore programmer" Douchebag here, this should be pure entertainment.}

Oh at last You are here. I was starting miss You and wonder if You are coming at all.

/me grabs a Beer.

----
Ah BTW, what is wrong about being a hardcore programmer ? You have a problem with programmers ? I know a good specialist...

That's Vice Admiral to you, Rear Admiral.

And for you other pedantic types, you haven't considered what happens to the pilot of said ship.

I don't like Star Trek's tractor beams. They are way much convenient, and not realistic from a physics perspective.

And as Snax said, I am considering other pilots.

Like, if someone left his ship mining and gone AFK, you can easily haul his ship and sell it. What happens to that player when he comes back? Why?

So, for that make more sense to me, we should have targetable subsystems, and you can haul any ship after destroying its engines OR life support (killing pilot). What is way more complex...

Commodore, Captain Canuck, Commodore.

_{I don't like Star Trek's tractor beams. They are way much convenient, and not realistic from a physics perspective.}

Well,
- ST teleportation technology is also much too convenient an unrealistic from TODAY's physics perspective. Does it mean we should reject the possibility that it will be invented in the future ?
- Vendetta's "mining beams" are also much too convenient, but we still use them and don't complain.
- Perhaps even both of the devices mentioned can be invented using some smart workaround's of today's physics. You never know.

.
.
_{Like, if someone left his ship mining and gone AFK, you can easily haul his ship and sell it. What happens to that player when he comes back? Why?}

That's simple. Just add a rule "You cant sell manned ship". And that will solve the problem.

.
.
_{So, for that make more sense to me, we should have targetable subsystems, and you can haul any ship after destroying its engines OR life support (killing pilot). What is way more complex...}

The thing You are proposing is WAY much more complicated than the thing i'm proposing.

Perhaps let's stick to the tractor beam thing and trying to find *relatively* simple solutions which can be implemented without using 6 months of devs time.

This is how ideas evolve...

Ok, more limits for tractor beams:

-Only work with ships.

-Pulled ship must be empty, i.e., no pilot
---> Better: Ships engines must be off. If there's a pilot inside, you cannot sell it.

-Makes possible SHIP TRADING. You leave station dragging a ship, sell it outside, the buyer also should have tractor beam.

-Tractor beam is a vector, from physical perspective, it is just like another engine in pulled ship delivering a force of P Newtons in direction of beam.
Why? Pulled ship's engines still work, and if they can deliver more force than tractor beam, it can break free.

-Pulled ship's engines AND weapons remains operational.

_{This is how ideas evolve...}

Definately, discussion with You is so constructive that it is almost a pleasure.
.
.
_{-Only work with ships.}

For now, i agree. Later, if/when dynamic roids are avaiable, this could be changed.
+ 1
.
.
_{-Pulled ship must be empty, i.e., no pilot
---> Better: Ships engines must be off. If there's a pilot inside, you cannot sell it.}

Agreed. +1
.
.
_{-Makes possible SHIP TRADING. You leave station dragging a ship, sell it outside, the buyer also should have tractor beam.}

Very agreed. +1
.
.
_{-Tractor beam is a vector, from physical perspective, it is just like another engine in pulled ship delivering a force of P Newtons in direction of beam.
Why? Pulled ship's engines still work, and if they can deliver more force than tractor beam, it can break free.}

Well, that's not how Star-Trek-based tractor beam works. It generates some sort of "disability field". The only way you can break from it is use some clever trick, or fire on the ship that's using the beam on You.
What about you need to fire on the ship that's holding You ? That would be also nice. Remember that the ship holding You cannot do any real maneuvering anyway, as Your mass is added to his mass, so it should be easy to target and shot.

Perhaps let's make it "Receiving any damage breaks beam for 5 seconds" (which gives the beamed ship time to escape).

.
.
_{-Pulled ship's engines AND weapons remains operational.}

Agreed. But only when pilot is inside.
+1

You're never going to get an idea approved by the devs with only approval of Alloh.

_{You're never going to get an idea approved by the devs with only approval of Alloh.}

Well, why don't You help me by approving it then ? ;)

The details can be polished, but i think the general idea is cool.

This popcorn is great. Keep it up guys.

_{This popcorn is great. Keep it up guys.}

Always happy to help.

Two hundred USD says "PaladinOfLancelot" is Alloh.

They're both wildly incoherent, but in markedly different ways.