Ape Apps

I would like to see a battery pack building that can be built to store excess energy generated. The energy stored can be added to the energy stat for example 3600/4000 + 500/1000

The stats are
conversion efficiency 30% of excess generated
can be built after clay and aluminum is discovered
used only when primary energy generated is exceeded to balance brownouts
can either be player specific or be generated as a resource to be traded

Good idea. If you can come up with images for it bast might just put this in the game.

This wouldn't really work, any excess energy is already displayed in the power, which shows how much power you use and how much you have available. It would be a cool feature but I don't see how it could be used effectively as you would have to update how much power buildings use per cycle and how much power is generated per cycle and things like that.

Just make another resource called stored power and add the stored power onto the normal power capacity whenever power capacity is breached.

For example:
Power: 45,000
Stored power: 12,000
Power when usage exceeds 45,000: 57,000.
Power capacity will stop adding the stored power when usage is less than or equal to normal power capacity.

Simple as that. It wouldnt take much for bast to add this because these are fairly simple addition and subtraction conditions.

Hmm so basically you are saying a new way to add power, but why not just add more power buildings? As how does the stored power actually get used because it's not generating power so it will get used up eventually so how would it get used.

You have a good point. There has to be a downside to using batteries because real life batteries need some power source to charge from. So here is my idea:

Each battery type would have a different charging time and a different running duration time. During charging time, the battery requires normal power and takes up part of the power capacity. After charging, the battery lies dormant and requires no power. When the power grid is overloaded, the battery then add power to the grid via the stored power resource.

For example:

During charging, each battery requires 50 power. Charging lasts for 10 minutes
You have 45,000 power. You should be able to hook up 90 batteries without overloading the grid.
Batteries done charging, they no longer require power.
Grid overloaded, now batteries step in to provide an extra 250 power each for 2 minutes. It's not much but it could save lives.
2 minutes have passed, batteries depleted, if power capacity still overloaded, power goes out, if power capacity is now higher than usage, then power returns to normal and batteries start charging again. If when batteries start charging and usage becomes higher than capacity, then power goes out.

Problem solving haha! Now it sounds very feasible! Maybe the batteries only last for a single cycle on the battery, so it's like it's a producing building but when it completes it's cycle there's no more power.

Thrimian said:Problem solving haha! Now it sounds very feasible! Maybe the batteries only last for a single cycle on the battery, so it's like it's a producing building but when it completes it's cycle there's no more power.

that's a good idea, grouping it into a cycle. That way you can see how much time you have left by hovering over one of the batteries. Of course, the example up there isn't an official number, and there should be 3 or 4 different batteries with different power draws, power supply, durations, and charging times. I think that a really small inefficient battery in the beginning of the game would still be appropriate because you will always be losing power all the way through the game due to miscalculations in how much space you have or due to the depletion of a resource, so you could still use a small battery earlier on. I'll put this in my list of things to draw images for.

Downloaded the inkscape and reading on documentation to draw. If you can all the better.
The idea was charging would based on the excess power you have currently with a predetermined conversion loss from charging and discharging. Charging stops when main power maxed or battery full. Currently building is greyed out when power exceeded as deactivated, rather when on battery building can either flash or show a power icon to indicate on battery. Later tech advance may even allow batt packs to be created and traded. If day/night cycle is really implemented, it would solve problems like solar tower not powering during night and batteries would help.

@Thrimian It is a means to supplement the main power should power draw exceed main generated. Building takes time, and selecting building to deactivate takes too much micromanaging. It is a short term fix to power problem.

I have some garbage stored up and then if I run out of power temporarily I click an incinerator and "activate all". Then when more power structures are built I turn the incinerators back of "deactivate all". Seems to work. But usually I just check before building if I'm gonna have enough power and build more power first.