New Mechanic Idea: Energy Supply

[N.Core]

I've been thinking about this a lot. Late-game production is kinda lacking building choices, and you just build available buildings without worrying about wasting many turns by building the wrong building.

It would be cool if there's a game mechanic that appears late-game, to make it not boring.
This is just a concept, for now, heavily inspired by Civ VI's Electricity mechanic.

What the game need is some sort of Energy mechanic that started in the Modern Era.
The game introduces a new mechanic when you reached the Modern Era, Energy Supply.

Energy Supply is localized in each city, similar to VP happiness mechanism.
All cities will have a base amount of Energy Supply, like 5.
It can only be increased by energy generation buildings, like power plants. Also, power plants are no longer mutually exclusive buildings, now they are stacked with each other by providing more Energy to the city.
All current power plants' abilities are transferred to other buildings.
You can make the city that has power plants generate Energy for other cities within 5 range from that city, you can expand the range by other things.

All future buildings now require Energy, so you must build more energy-related stuff (building/project) to increase Energy Supply (as a means to make energy more efficient).
Training units also take Energy, but only when you train that unit.
City Population also affects Energy Supply, but not instantly after you enter the Modern Era. As you research more tech, the demand goes up from the population.

Spoiler Example :

Buildings:
Hospital requires 1
Airport requires 2
Military Base requires 3

Units:
Infantry takes 1 when training
Tank takes 2 when training
Stealth Bomber takes 3 when training

The energy supply can only withstand some amount of usage threshold:

- If it's too low (underload), then you have an abundance of supply that you have to spend (additional percentage of Production boost), but you're taking a huge penalty on GPT.​

- If it's too high (overload), then there is a percentage of Production reduction in affected cities. Also, if you reach more than the tolerance level, there's a big chance that the city will be affected by Blackout (no Production on a turn).​

So, you have to keep it within the tolerance level, which is also a game mechanic that can be affected by energy-related buildings.

Spoiler Example :

Example 1:
Maximum Energy Supply: 50
Tolerance level: 10

Used: 35
Unused: -15
70% (35/50)
The amount of unused is below the tolerance level (< -10), therefore the Energy Supply is underloaded by -5.


Example 2:
Maximum Energy Supply: 30
Tolerance level: 8

Used: 30
Overused: +10
133% (40/30)
The amount of overused is above the tolerance level (> 8), therefore the Energy Supply is overloaded by +2.

Because of this, you have to think twice about what should you build/train next in your cities.
Also, the ones that will hit the most are cities in remote/isolated places, since they can't build more buildings. You have to build energy generator buildings to increase it. This will make late-game expansion much more interesting.

You could technically make Energy Supply a strategic resource, but I think this gives a wrong impression of how energy generation works. Because strategic resource works globally across the empire, whereas Energy Supply does not. So it really needs a new localized mechanic like VP happiness.

This could be expanded to more of an environmentalist aspect of the game but within limitations. The game engine can't alter the terrain graphics mid-game, unlike Civ VI. So having a mechanic that makes the sea level rise is impossible in this game. (It's possible, but only if you want to reload your save. So it is still a no for me.) We could leverage the Events mechanic capability to make things like natural disasters happen in the game. But this will only appear if you play with Events turned on.

Of course, if I have the skills and unlimited time (and money) to make this I will definitely do it. This will need an overhaul change of the game mechanics and UI.

So what do you guys think about this?

 

[pineappledan]

There are a couple modmods that add a power late game resource

 

[N.Core]

There are a couple modmods that add a power late game resource

I know, but I want Energy as a localized resource only for the city, because strategic resource works globally.
If you put Energy as a strategic resource, then a super remote city in the Arctic can build more stuff. That's not how Energy works, it has to be generated by something and only affects locally.

Also, the emphasis of look over the available Energy Supply when you want to build something is reflecting on how energy usage is in real life. Energy generated must keep up with the demand, not unused or overused energy usage. Otherwise bad things could happen.

 

[Revolutionist_8]

I think underload would be a bit unfun from gameplay perspective (but maybe not, just as a first thought), but otherwise any energy / electricity related mechanics would be really appreciated for the end game.

 

[Rekk]

That's not how Energy works, it has to be generated by something and only affects locally.

For a given value of "local".

The vast majority of the United States, for example, works off the same grid. There are links with Canada so that they can buy and sell energy.

It's less efficient to get power from distant locations instead of locally, but every city potential has access if they have the money to pay for it.

 

[gwennog]

After my proposal to the congress aborted because not worked enough, I had just started a mod on the same theme. On the other hand, for me the model of a strategic resource seemed sufficient to me, if I take as an example the European electrical network, it is completely interconnected. The notion of local resource is therefore relatively weak compared to that of strategic resource. But indeed, a city under siege should be cut off from the general network and only be able to benefit from its local production.

 

[N.Core]

For a given value of "local".

The vast majority of the United States, for example, works off the same grid. There are links with Canada so that they can buy and sell energy.

It's less efficient to get power from distant locations instead of locally, but every city potential has access if they have the money to pay for it.

Yes, but you need a power grid, otherwise, the city is not connected to the electricity network and has to rely on its own electricity generation. Since you mentioned the US, Texas is not connected by the grid to the rest of the US.

I don't want to make this super complicated to reflect the real world, it would make unfun gameplay, but I think having a localized energy supply would suffice.

I think underload would be a bit unfun from gameplay perspective (but maybe not, just as a first thought), but otherwise any energy / electricity related mechanics would be really appreciated for the end game.

I know it's a bit unfun to have a penalty mechanic. But, given that's how energy generation work, I think it's fair to have that mechanic to simulate that in a game. You gain a Production boost, but really take a hit on GPT (high maintenance cost).

 

[N.Core]

Another idea to increase Energy Supply is to add a new project similar to Public Works, but for adjusting electricity needs.
This would add more turns taken, so late-game buildings cost must be adjusted.

There could be one city whose sole purpose is to be the energy center that gives electricity to nearby cities. But each city still can increase its own Energy Supply.

 

[gwennog]

But anyway, not having your skills, it will necessarily be better than what I can do. If you need help with anything, it will be with pleasure.

 

[Revolutionist_8]

I know it's a bit unfun to have a penalty mechanic. But, given that's how energy generation work, I think it's fair to have that mechanic to simulate that in a game. You gain a Production boost, but really take a hit on GPT (high maintenance cost).

It's not the penalty itself (for example in my own modmod there are countless penalties... I like pain ) but rather that contradicts the notion of the game a tiny bit: you want to build and expand* and if I build more power generators thus having more energy that I need right now, I'll get penalized (although with a good production boost I wouldn't even say that's the case, it's actually an interesting choice to make).

Overextending (= overload) makes perfect sense, it caps how much I can expand, thus I'm feeling compelled to build even more to push the boundary of my expansion, which is fun. That's all I meant with my comment. (although I most probably couldn't explain it very well)

Spoiler * :

Restrictions may apply ofc

Btw, do you have an estimation how much effort would it be, and if you could do it alone or would need help with it? Or is it just the brainstroming-phase yet?

 

[N.Core]

Btw, do you have an estimation how much effort would it be, and if you could do it alone or would need help with it? Or is it just the brainstroming-phase yet?

It's only a concept, I can't do this alone myself.
I genuinely want to delve into DLL modding stuff, but my PC somehow can't compile the DLL as it throws a weird error.

I might want to revisit this in the future if I already have a better PC and time.

 

[Rekk]

I don't want to make this super complicated to reflect the real world

Simplifying a power system would remove corner cases like Texas (to be like the vast majority of the US or the EU), not make the entire system based on real life corner cases.

 

[amateurgamer88]

Regarding Energy, it's a very tricky thing to add to VP. A lot of the late-game buildings are already difficult to justify building due to how late they are available and whether they are worth the hammers. At times, processes do seem more worthwhile. If you start adding more restrictions with Energy, then there may be even less incentives to build things that late. Just my two cents anyways.

 

[pineappledan]

Agreed. This is why I made the power plants boost processes in the game, as a sort of approximation of electrification.

 

[Stalker0]

Regarding Energy, it's a very tricky thing to add to VP. A lot of the late-game buildings are already difficult to justify building due to how late they are available and whether they are worth the hammers. At times, processes do seem more worthwhile. If you start adding more restrictions with Energy, then there may be even less incentives to build things that late. Just my two cents anyways.

I agree with this. I think if you really want to make energy a thing (as a modmod to start, this is not the kind of things to just "put" into the mod....and then you can integrate it if it proves popular), I would focus on some immediate benefits. You need to provide real incentives to move the needle at that point in the game.

 

[gwennog]

There is a proposal from @balparmak to increase the maintenance cost of the last buildings, it could be an alternative. It's also a way of slowing down the game a bit in later eras, I think, and adding a bit of complexity (which may not be appealing, of course). The way of making the war can be enriched by it, by making energy blockades of the cities, by limiting the construction of mechanized units.