[0.9.0.3 br-78] Craft Resource Multiplier has geometric progression, doesn't affect static resources and imbalanced

[ThePiachu]

I've decided to play some solo ECO with a Craft Resource Multiplier of 0.05. Most of the time, it works fine - I can make 20x amount of items than I normally would. However, there are some areas it applies inconsistently.

In Campfire, a lot of recipes have yellow border for inputs, meaning the multiplier doesn't kick in:

Which is fair enough, it's the same with Upgrade Modules. However, the Workbench works differently:

Despite not taking Upgrade Modules and having inputs in yellow border, the Craft Resource Multiplier does apply.

This means either the Craft Resource Multiplier applies oddly, or the Workbench recipes should have a green border. This wouldn't change anything during normal play, but would keep things consistent for servers that do use CRM.

[SlayksWood]

Well, now my day has come xD. I have long wanted to write a review on this Multiplier. So, This multiplier doesn't work very well in the current situation. Usually the player seeing 'Craft Resource Multiplier = 2' expects that he will spend 2 times more resources on crafting items. But it doesn't work like this for this Multiplier.

So how does it work? It simply increases all resources x2 in all recipes, except for static ingredients. But this is not right. It's very difficult to play with this modifier. Because you have a geometric progression and in fact, instead of x2, the cost of some items can reach x16. Let's take a simple example for Lumber and Brick(without any modules).

Lumber x1: 4 Hewn Logs + 4 Nail = 8 Wood + 5 Iron ore (0.83 Crushed Iron ore(Arrastra) = 0,17 Iron Concentrate(Rocker Box) = 0.25 Iron Bar(Bloomery)) Shale Brick x1: 0.5 Crushed Shale + 0.5 Clay + 4 Mortar = 2 Shale (Arrastra) + 0.5 Clay + 20 Plant Fiber (Campfire)

Lumber x2: 8 Hewn Logs + 8 Nail = 32 Wood + 53,3 Iron ore ( 13,3 Crushed Iron ore(Arrastra)=1,33 Iron Concentrate(Rocker Box)=1 Iron Bar(Bloomery)). So instead 16 Wood and 10 Iron ore It costs more then 4 times. Shale Brick x2: 1 Crushed Shale + 1 Clay + 8 Mortar = 4 Shale (Arrastra) + 1 Clay + 40 Plant Fiber (Campfire). So brick cost is x2, because brick has 2 Static ingredient and 1 mine resource.

We have been balancing the cost of brick and Lumber for a very long time, and as a result, they are very different with this multiplier setting.

Take how much rebar we made from 500 Iron ore(without any modules): x1: 500 Iron ore = 125 Crushed Iron ore (Jaw Crusher) = 50 Iroc Concentrate (Sensor Based Belt Sorter) = 100 Iron Bar (Blast Furnace) = 50 Steel (Blast Furnace) = 25 Rebar (Blast Furnace) x2: 500 Iron ore = 125 Crushed Iron ore (Jaw Crusher) = 25 Iron Concentrate (Sensor Based Belt Sorter) = 25 Iron Bar (Blast Furnace) = 6.25 Steel (Blast Furnace) = 1.5625 Rebar(Blast Furnace). 25/1.5625 = 16 times less rebar I will make. And if you take that you need x2 rebar on any recipe which use it, so x32. That's awful.

So I have 2 suggestion 1. I like this the most and it will be easier to balance. Make a couple of resources that have influence for this modificator (If roughly all mining resources like Rubbles, Logs, all raw food and etc.). Thus, the modifier will change only 1 time the cost of the item in the first craft operation. Example with Lumber and brick Lumber cost will the same = 4 Hewn Logs and 4 Nail, But the cost of Hewn Logs and Nails will be more: 1 Hewn Log = 4 Wood instead 2(x1). Nails will be a little more difficult. But all recipes remain the same except Cruched Iron Ore (2 Cruched Iron ore + 1 Sandstone = 24 Iron ore).

Shale Brick recipe will more interested: the same cost for Mortar and Crushed Shale, but Clay (as mining res) will be increased x2. 2 Shale Brick = 1 Crushed Shale + 2 Clay + 8 Mortar. Cost Mortar and Crushed Shale was increased in previous recipes.

With the recycling of rubbles, there will be the most inconvenient place. But it’s easier to do this because the Rubbles are used in other craft projects too.

2. make a modifier that affects specific recipes. But this is much more complicated and we will have to redo a lot of them.

[ThePiachu]

Yeah, I did notice it can get exponential at times. I wasn't complaining - turning a shovelful of crushed gold into a stockpile of gold was fun :D . But agreed - the resource multiplier should only apply to raw, unprocessed ingredients - rocks, raw food, animal carcasses, raw wood, etc. This way the multiplier will be applied only once and not go crazy the deeper down the tech tree you go.

I guess the only exception would be rock crushing, since you want the ratio to be 20:5, so you can apply the multiplier to crushed rock and crushed ore instead. Nothing bad there.

Also also, I noticed something interesting - the multiplier acts like the Upgrade Modules, as in if you have 10x multiplier on rocking ore concentrate, you will get 10x less tailings than you would if you just multiplied the inputs. I'm not complaining, but that's probably a balance bug too that will make things a bit more complicated.

But other than that, the multiplier works pretty sanely for me so far - it didn't multiply things like Upgrade Modules and the like, and did make things like stockpiles and storage chests proportionally cheaper, so that's good.

[ThePiachu]

Maybe if there is a Multiplier being used in the game, we could put a little star on the input that's being affected so people would recognise what is being affected rather than wonder why something takes 20 nails but only 1 log or something

[ThePiachu]

Also also worth looking into - Resource Multiplier and Oil stuff. At the moment those don't appear to be affected by it. Might be worthwhile to make things both take less oil barrels to make and produce less empty barrels to keep the ratio proper.

[IcedForge]

To clarify on the workbench, it has a yellow border because its static in its behavior that it does not receive any bonus at all ( as there is no professions tied to the crafting of those hewn logs meaning it wont get the 5% bonus from logging) but its not an actual "static" recipe itself so its in a bit of a in between place.