You can't seal it off, you have to leave a place for the cart to go through and therefore a person can walk through.
I don't see it as an issue, I was just asking
Oh no no, not totally seal it off. I meant just putting up a fence around the edges, leaving a space for the carts to emerge.
As it is, they're already elevated so it should keep most things from jumping up and interfering. I'm just saying that if things DO start messing with them (cows, whatever), a fence may help.
Something to think about is the Minecart Mania! plugin for hey0.
This mod intrigues me. I wouldn't mind in the least if it was added, if it is stable. I'm a little concerned how it would "play along" with future updates from Notch, so that is my main hesitancy with this mod. Otherwise, I second the notion to look into it.
I would be against any mod that actually changes the way the game functions. It's just too difficult, with a group this size. Once we open the door to game-changing mods, then everyone will want their favorite mod on the server, and it will be impossible to find a set of mods that makes everyone happy.
It makes the most sense to leave the game functioning as intended. If the official devs want to change carts, they will. Until then, we work with them as they are.
Digi and CB make excellent points. Yeah, I guess the minecart mod wouldn't be a wise and fair choice. Besides, the engineering of the complex cart stations is rather neat in my opinion. Sorry, Tony.
Digi and CB make excellent points. Yeah, I guess the minecart mod wouldn't be a wise and fair choice. Besides, the engineering of the complex cart stations is rather neat in my opinion. Sorry, Tony.
No worries. Maybe we can revisit this after there is a true mod API in place, which would mean that updates from Notch wouldn't breaks mods the way it does now. I brought it up mostly because what allows minecart boosters to work now is a glitch that will eventually get fixed as well.
ON a different note, I'd love to put some time into fixing up the spawn area. I'm really starting to hate spawning in freefall randomly.
From what I gather no matter where the spawn is set, we will not be able to edit that area. But the spawn point is moveable. We could set a date to move the spawn temporarily, flatten the current spawn, put whatever we need to put there and then move the spawn back.
From what I gather no matter where the spawn is set, we will not be able to edit that area. But the spawn point is moveable. We could set a date to move the spawn temporarily, flatten the current spawn, put whatever we need to put there and then move the spawn back.
Actually... if spawn can be moved... what would you guys say about possibly moving it to inside ICtown, or just outside ICtown? ICtown was originally supposed to be near spawn anyways, and there's a rail station right at ICtown to go back to Grand Central Station.
If people don't like this idea, I fully and completely understand. But since ICtown is a great central hub for people to meet, many of us keep at least some of our stuff there, AND spawn seems flexible (I did NOT know this)... would people be interested in moving spawn there?
We could always move spawn there temporarily and see how it works out, and move it back if it doesn't. But yes, wanted to throw this out there. I think it would work great, and when people died they can go re-equip from their chests without worrying about being miles from their stuff. Just keep spare tools and armor in your house, and it'll be there whenever you need it.
I brought that up to Ryder, not a good idea as teh middle of town is not as big as the spawn chunk so we would end up with parts of town not being editable.
I do think we need some storage lockers near spawn though, so after someone dies they can equip up real quick. Matter of fact I will set that as a project and use the NE corner of spawn (inside the mountain across from Basils little shop/building.
If that's the case, then why not make spawn at the center fountain of ICtown, and disable protected spawn area? The town square is fairly mob-safe and it won't ever change much if at all. I think it would be a nice convenience for many of our players and just makes sense to me, but it's up to you guys. What do you all think?
Digi and CB make excellent points. Yeah, I guess the minecart mod wouldn't be a wise and fair choice. Besides, the engineering of the complex cart stations is rather neat in my opinion. Sorry, Tony.
I don't find the current spawn point difficult at all. It's 20 seconds to Grand Central, very well lit, and I can get to where I died in a minute or two by taking a train from there?
Of course, if you're going to go off on a grand journey, maybe you want to leave your most prized possessions at home?
I don't find the current spawn point difficult at all. It's 20 seconds to Grand Central, very well lit, and I can get to where I died in a minute or two by taking a train from there?
Of course, if you're going to go off on a grand journey, maybe you want to leave your most prized possessions at home?
I don't think that was the point, The current spawn area has Lava, multiple creeper craters, is half covered in a mountain and is sometimes difficult to get to where you need to go. I would be happy with a 34x34 (or whatever the size is) flat gray stone area (maybe a couple of landmarks but no trees as they invite mob spawning) with easy access to all 4 directional roads and maybe a shortcut over to Grand Central.
(I haven't died for a while so I'm only basing this off of what others are saying)
Town makes more sense to me than freefall over a rough pit. Just sayin'.
If the general consensus is to turn on the ability to change around spawn then I am 100% for moving spawn to center of town also.
Edit: Though I am also a fan of having spawn near grand central. If someone is trying to get back to where they died, that is the place they will want to spawn.
Cool. Well in that case, I can see three viable options, both with their pros and cons. These are just suggestions/ideas for discussion, feel free to build upon them or suggest alternatives.
Options A: Have an admin climb on top of the ICTown central fountain and type "/spawn", so people will spawn around the town square.
Pro's
In a central hub
Most everyone has a house that can store backup gear
99% guaranteed Mob-free area
Has a dedicated minecart line to Grand Central Station
Easiest to set up, no further construction of lockers, etc necessary
Con's
Not right at Grand Central
Some people that had places right by spawn may feel slightly inconvenienced
Option B: Next to Grand Central Station, create a new attachment to the station. Call it the Station Platform or something classy. It should be 30x30 blocks or some other size large enough that no matter where you spawn, you'll still be on the platform (since you spawn in a slightly randomized location relative to the spawn point). Not sure how spawning is programmed, but if it places you on TOP of the highest point near spawn, the platform cannot have a ceiling, so it'll be just that: an elevated, raised platform that is well-lit and too high for mobs to jump up onto.
Pro's
Right next to Grand Central Station - allows easy transport to any connected area
A short trip to ICTown
Still near original spawn point, so nobody should feel inconvenienced
Con's
Still a short trek back to town, may not be ideal for everyone to make this extra leg every time they die to get back to their home base
A platform or structure with similar functionality to what I suggested would have to be built, with lockers, etc
Option C: Just leave spawn where it is, but fix it up and make it safer.
Pro's
Not much of a change so people happy with its location will remain happy
Con's
Still has a sheer cliff next to it that invites spawned mobs to drop in from
Not right by Grand Central
Requires both construction of new features (item lockers, etc), as well as re-construction of the blasted ground
We have the opportunity to move it wherever we want... why not take advantage of this and put it in a place that makes sense compared to what we've built in this world?
Again, just my thoughts and observations. Suggestions and discussions are encouraged.
A few seem to not fully know it's location, so I'll point it out for ya on a map.
Take a look at this image I just made. Note that North is TOP LEFT. I circled spawn (on the left) and town (on the right). You can see the space cruiser ship Drasnor built, Cola's, er, "rock hard" statue, and Winfey's red "Hand of Nod" structure to help get your bearings.
I'll go along with moving spawn to Grand Central. That does seem like the better idea given it is the main hub for rail travel. Coincidentally it's also slightly closer to my Keep than spawn and WAY closer than ICTown.
A few seem to not fully know it's location, so I'll point it out for ya on a map.
Take a look at this image I just made. Note that North is TOP LEFT. I circled spawn (on the left) and town (on the right). You can see the space cruiser ship Drasnor built, Cola's, er, "rock hard" statue, and Winfey's red "Hand of Nod" structure to help get your bearings.
Whenever I get on, I look for the spaceship and the dick tower. Line 'em up and walk away such that the ship is farther behind than the dick. You'll hit town soon enough.
I don't mind where spawn is currently, I just want it to be flat. If we could just turn off the protected flag, so that people can put some time into flattening it, that would be super sweet.
Honestly, I was under the assumption that we didn't know how to turn off protection, and that as soon as we figured it out, it would be turned off. If we know how, then it's a mystery to me why it's still turned on.
Comments
Oh no no, not totally seal it off. I meant just putting up a fence around the edges, leaving a space for the carts to emerge.
As it is, they're already elevated so it should keep most things from jumping up and interfering. I'm just saying that if things DO start messing with them (cows, whatever), a fence may help.
This mod intrigues me. I wouldn't mind in the least if it was added, if it is stable. I'm a little concerned how it would "play along" with future updates from Notch, so that is my main hesitancy with this mod. Otherwise, I second the notion to look into it.
It makes the most sense to leave the game functioning as intended. If the official devs want to change carts, they will. Until then, we work with them as they are.
No worries. Maybe we can revisit this after there is a true mod API in place, which would mean that updates from Notch wouldn't breaks mods the way it does now. I brought it up mostly because what allows minecart boosters to work now is a glitch that will eventually get fixed as well.
ON a different note, I'd love to put some time into fixing up the spawn area. I'm really starting to hate spawning in freefall randomly.
Actually... if spawn can be moved... what would you guys say about possibly moving it to inside ICtown, or just outside ICtown? ICtown was originally supposed to be near spawn anyways, and there's a rail station right at ICtown to go back to Grand Central Station.
If people don't like this idea, I fully and completely understand. But since ICtown is a great central hub for people to meet, many of us keep at least some of our stuff there, AND spawn seems flexible (I did NOT know this)... would people be interested in moving spawn there?
We could always move spawn there temporarily and see how it works out, and move it back if it doesn't. But yes, wanted to throw this out there. I think it would work great, and when people died they can go re-equip from their chests without worrying about being miles from their stuff. Just keep spare tools and armor in your house, and it'll be there whenever you need it.
I do think we need some storage lockers near spawn though, so after someone dies they can equip up real quick. Matter of fact I will set that as a project and use the NE corner of spawn (inside the mountain across from Basils little shop/building.
If that's the case, then why not make spawn at the center fountain of ICtown, and disable protected spawn area? The town square is fairly mob-safe and it won't ever change much if at all. I think it would be a nice convenience for many of our players and just makes sense to me, but it's up to you guys. What do you all think?
I don't find them complex.
Of course, if you're going to go off on a grand journey, maybe you want to leave your most prized possessions at home?
I don't think that was the point, The current spawn area has Lava, multiple creeper craters, is half covered in a mountain and is sometimes difficult to get to where you need to go. I would be happy with a 34x34 (or whatever the size is) flat gray stone area (maybe a couple of landmarks but no trees as they invite mob spawning) with easy access to all 4 directional roads and maybe a shortcut over to Grand Central.
(I haven't died for a while so I'm only basing this off of what others are saying)
If the general consensus is to turn on the ability to change around spawn then I am 100% for moving spawn to center of town also.
Edit: Though I am also a fan of having spawn near grand central. If someone is trying to get back to where they died, that is the place they will want to spawn.
Less behind changing the spawn since I've gotten somewhat used to where it is now and I have no idea where ICTown is ;_;
Options A: Have an admin climb on top of the ICTown central fountain and type "/spawn", so people will spawn around the town square.
Pro's
- In a central hub
- Most everyone has a house that can store backup gear
- 99% guaranteed Mob-free area
- Has a dedicated minecart line to Grand Central Station
- Easiest to set up, no further construction of lockers, etc necessary
Con's- Not right at Grand Central
- Some people that had places right by spawn may feel slightly inconvenienced
Option B: Next to Grand Central Station, create a new attachment to the station. Call it the Station Platform or something classy. It should be 30x30 blocks or some other size large enough that no matter where you spawn, you'll still be on the platform (since you spawn in a slightly randomized location relative to the spawn point). Not sure how spawning is programmed, but if it places you on TOP of the highest point near spawn, the platform cannot have a ceiling, so it'll be just that: an elevated, raised platform that is well-lit and too high for mobs to jump up onto.Pro's
- Right next to Grand Central Station - allows easy transport to any connected area
- A short trip to ICTown
- Still near original spawn point, so nobody should feel inconvenienced
Con's- Still a short trek back to town, may not be ideal for everyone to make this extra leg every time they die to get back to their home base
- A platform or structure with similar functionality to what I suggested would have to be built, with lockers, etc
Option C: Just leave spawn where it is, but fix it up and make it safer.Pro's
- Not much of a change so people happy with its location will remain happy
Con's- Still has a sheer cliff next to it that invites spawned mobs to drop in from
- Not right by Grand Central
- Requires both construction of new features (item lockers, etc), as well as re-construction of the blasted ground
- We have the opportunity to move it wherever we want... why not take advantage of this and put it in a place that makes sense compared to what we've built in this world?
Again, just my thoughts and observations. Suggestions and discussions are encouraged.A few seem to not fully know it's location, so I'll point it out for ya on a map.
Take a look at this image I just made. Note that North is TOP LEFT. I circled spawn (on the left) and town (on the right). You can see the space cruiser ship Drasnor built, Cola's, er, "rock hard" statue, and Winfey's red "Hand of Nod" structure to help get your bearings.
If you want to zoom in more or browse around, look at this map Tony put up.
Hope this helps.
I'll go along with moving spawn to Grand Central. That does seem like the better idea given it is the main hub for rail travel. Coincidentally it's also slightly closer to my Keep than spawn and WAY closer than ICTown.
you can also look at http://sota.llarian.net/tectonicus/map.html for the a deeper level of zoom that won't be updated as often as the other one.
I will take care of the spawn thing when the server is back here (hopefully this weekend).
What did you decide to do with spawn?
Honestly, I was under the assumption that we didn't know how to turn off protection, and that as soon as we figured it out, it would be turned off. If we know how, then it's a mystery to me why it's still turned on.