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Kittychanley

Torch Poll

Torch Extinguishing   291 members have voted

  1. 1. After playing with the new torch mechanic, what is your opinion?

    • I like the mechanic, and I even changed the config files to make it harder.
      10
    • I like the mechanic, and am using the default config values.
      175
    • I like the mechanic, but changed the config files to make it a bit easier.
      28
    • I dislike the mechanic, and am using the default config values.
      45
    • I dislike the mechanic, and changed the config files to turn it off completely.
      26
    • I turned the mechanic off in the config files without even trying it first.
      7

Please sign in or register to vote in this poll.

114 posts in this topic

I think it's a realistic mechanic that encourages players to find other alternatives. What I don't like is that the jack-o'-lantern replaces the torch and is used to light up houses and roads on servers. I think there should be other light sources that are more realistic than everburning pumkins - like tallow candles or portable ceramic oil lamps.

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I think it's good overall and I'm definitely sticking to using it, but like others I think tiers of light should be implemented.

Maybe a metal based one that lasts longer, and then a high end one that lasts really long.

 

The biggest issue I have with it is that fences are pretty much useless now.

Before I would put lights along the fence, and light all inside the fence - there was a definite "in" or "out" of my complex.

But now much of my complex goes dark, I don't know where the boundary lies and have had a few mobs spawn inside the fence.

 

Expanding will become a problem when I build multiple buildings or my own little village, it just isn't going to work at present.

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You can carry lit torches in your inventory indefinitely. Since I play nomadically until i have bronze stuff, this doesn't affect my play style particularly. Once I settle down and make a big house I'm sure it will be annoying, but if you think about, by the time you have a big house you're sleeping during the night anyway. I think it's fine (but I would advocate for some sort of (more) permanent light source so that people could do underground bases if they wanted to).

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I dont really dislike the mechanic. I think it is really good for caving and exploring, but for your base it gets really annoying over time.

I'd rather have a more expensive but permanent lightsource as alternative to the torch.

I really hope a new permanent lightsource will get added. I could suggest something like an oil lamp, where you first have to get to a certain tier before being able to get the permanent lightsource and even then it should be expensive so its carefully used.

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I like the mechanic, but dislike the new reliance on spawn protection.

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After playing with the mechanic I have to say I find it extremely irritating. I don't think it improves the game at all it just interrupts me playing the game either by making me relight torches or by having mobs attack me while I'm trying to do stuff.  I am however playing on a server that is using the default config so I'm living with it for now

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I'm gonna agree with maga and say that the poll is insufficient.

Despite what I expected, I happen to love the feature...but only if there is a permanent light source.

Without pumpkins I think it's an awful feature and makes the game boring.

 

It's clear that a permanent light source is what a lot of us want, or at least a very long lasting one. To say that it is irrelevant to the current torch mechanic is so absurd I can't get my head around it.

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It's clear that a permanent light source is what a lot of us want, or at least a very long lasting one. To say that it is irrelevant to the current torch mechanic is so absurd I can't get my head around it.

 

No one ever said it was irrelevant to the mechanic. It is just irrelevant to the question being asked.

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It's the same like with food decay, crop growing and seasons: I like it in SSP, I don't like it in SMP. The problem is that torchs burn out while you are offline (if other people are near). I know you can configure that but the configuration can never know how long you were offline :-(

 

However I like realy the idea of dark tunnels etc.

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I feel that if torches are going to go out. Vanilla mob spawning of hostiles mobs has to change also. It's just extremely annoying. At the same time I really want permanent light sources for builds. Light is a huge thing when it comes to aesthetics.

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I've hated this mechanic since it was first being talked about here on the forums. I'm glad it can be turned off, but would rather not have to deal with it at all. I will do everything in my power to find a server which has this feature shut off entirely when I decide on a server to play on long term. IMHO, while TFC is great, and it has a lot of really awesome winning features that keep pulling me back, it already is filled to the eye sockets with menial, boring ass grinding jobs that we all have to engage in to keep healthy and productive in game. Making the lights go out on top of all of that just adds a needless annoyance to all of the other grinding we have to do. In what way am I being challenged by having to relight a torch? Im not... im being forced to wait in my house until day just like before, so I can run around mindlessly relighting torches when they go out. It adds virtually nothing to the game, and I would prefer that at the very least... the default state is disabled, or it be removed entirely.

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i like the change =)

and when we get canldes and laterns, iam even more happy =) (those with burnout aswell ofc^^ )

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With the long-standing spawn protection mechanic (which is frankly better than Vanilla's system), making torches go out doesn't really alter my gameplay style. Mass-producing torches in a firepit is annoying anyway, so I used to really only produce enough to light my earthwork/house and mines. All that really changes is that I occasionally need to relight my torches around my house, and wildlife is more likely to take up residence in my rarely-visited colonies while I'm away.

 

I consider this a change for the better, overall.

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Currently using the mechanic as is and I more or less like it. I think it's a big step in the right direction of making light a resource like everything else. But while the basic mechanic is implemented, its current context doesn't give it much place.

  • Torches are easier to make than ever via spam clicking a placed torch with a stack of sticks.
  • The protection mechanic makes light's long-term protective feature redundant.
  • The temporary lifetime of torches makes said redundant protection unreliable.

This leaves me with just using torches for visibility purposes, and for that reason relighting one's torches regularly is just a grindy chore that doesn't add nearly as much as it should.

My personal suggestion will sound crazy, but it might be worth a try. Introduce a tiered set of semi-permanent lanterns that require you to reach a certain level of sophistication first - you need a reliable source of fuel. Then, scale back torches dramatically by making them much harder to craft in bulk, provide temporary light, be unstackable, and make your avatar an in-game source of light (dynamic light/unlit torches) while a torch is still active and in your hotbar or 'equipped'. This way torches provide their function of player visibility without requiring that you place a ton of them all over the place and constantly relight them. It would also help the survival aspect by making light a resource you have to plan and ration, you can't just charge to the bottom of a cave with one dimming torch for the same reason you can't go wandering off from your shelter as the sun is getting ready to set. Also, from a multiplayer perspective, this would make bunkering down in a cave a much harder lifestyle during the early game, encouraging players to value the sun as a light source early on and keeping pvp matches from dissolving into a bunch of Batcave bases that nobody can or really wants to find.

Also, from a believability standpoint, torches aren't very useful in real life. It's temporary light for your person, and they're not just a stick that caught on fire. Given the time period/level of sophistication that TFC seems to be setting itself in, I don't think there should be a medieval-styled permalight available. Light that doesn't come from the sun must come from some fuel of which the player has a limited amount.

Anyone whose used Dynamic Lights or Unlit Torches knows the downfalls of having a light source move with your person in game, it's not easy to render and will lower FPS. But this is my opinion for what it's worth right now.

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I have to agree with the growing numbers, as I also said. The torch mechanic really is a feature that splits the playerbase, not because they can burn out, but because there's nothing that doesn't burn out. (Or doesn't last a hell of a lot longer, at least.)The idea itself, I think wins the majority without effort, but with the addition of another light source, or even a few more based with the ages of TFC, everyone would be happier.

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Re: lanterns, the current pumpkin ones are somewhat INCREDIBLY DAMN SILLY, but as far as making a proper one is concerned, seeing as we already have ceramics, I reckon that adding vegetable/seed oils as a resource (perhaps as a liquid, because I have a fever and the only medicine is MOAR BARRELS!), and making a large pot o' clay, filled with oil, with a Piece of String added could be a believable, long-term/infinite (as preferred) light source.

 

Or just go with animal fat -> candles if you're feeling lazy. Could work as Butchery skill check. 

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I have to agree with the growing numbers, as I also said. The torch mechanic really is a feature that splits the playerbase, not because they can burn out, but because there's nothing that doesn't burn out. (Or doesn't last a hell of a lot longer, at least.)The idea itself, I think wins the majority without effort, but with the addition of another light source, or even a few more based with the ages of TFC, everyone would be happier.

 

Yep, I love the idea. I never liked seeing fields of torches, and I love that abandoned or infrequently visited areas can become dangerous over time. My sole problem right now is how badly this impacts the design of villages.

 

A single, small house and farm is (usually) fine with spawn protection, but trying to secure a group of them inside a wall is frustrating me greatly.

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I don't understand what it is with people wanting lanterns when we already have them in a sense. You can easily use the chisel to make a beautiful sconce or streetlamp. I know microblocks can make a server laggy.  I would rather see an improvement to microblocks effects on servers; than see lanterns and candles added.

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I don't understand what it is with people wanting lanterns when we already have them in a sense. You can easily use the chisel to make a beautiful sconce or streetlamp. I know microblocks can make a server laggy.  I would rather see an improvement to microblocks effects on servers; than see lanterns and candles added.

It has less to do with appearance, and more to do with a long-lasting light source for the mid to late game. For an increased resource cost, you get a more reliable light.

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No one ever said it was irrelevant to the mechanic. It is just irrelevant to the question being asked.

The questions being asked is about the mechanic, so isn't irrelevant.

 

If you ask whether I like all foods, or no foods, I'll tell you that your question is insufficient.

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The questions being asked is about the mechanic, so isn't irrelevant.

 

If you ask whether I like all foods, or no foods, I'll tell you that your question is insufficient.

 

Nice try but no. The question is about the mechanics as is, not as you want them to be. So in fact lanterns are 1000% irrelevant as they are currently not included in the mechanic and thus not important what-so-ever to the current question.

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On more of a technical side to it i'm worried about lighting updates from multiple torches going out at the same time. If your caving (probably worse with a large group) and dropping torches like a champ then they all start going out could that cause some issues since MC's lighting engine isn't all that great?

 

I'm glad to see that somebody brought this up. This is indeed a valid concern, however there were a few steps taken to hopefully make it not so worrisome. For starters, torches don't actually go out at the exact moment that they hit the 48 hour timer. Instead, torches randomly tick in a manner similar to how grass ticks to spread. Each time that a torch has received this random tick, it cross references its current time with the time that it has been placed. If the difference is at least 48 hours, the torch burns out. In this way, it is extremely unlikely for a whole bunch of torches to all go out at exactly the same time, so the strain on the lighting engine updates is kept to a minimum.

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It has less to do with appearance, and more to do with a long-lasting light source for the mid to late game. For an increased resource cost, you get a more reliable light.

I don't see the personal value of a longer burning light source for the mid to late game that will cost metal being of any value. Why exactly would one need a mid-game light source that still extinguishes? 

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Nice try but no. The question is about the mechanics as is, not as you want them to be. So in fact lanterns are 1000% irrelevant as they are currently not included in the mechanic and thus not important what-so-ever to the current question.

How about you read the poll? The question is;

 

After playing with the new torch mechanic, what is your opinion?

 

There was no option for the opinion I wanted to voice, which was absolutely valid. Because the simple condition of whether or not a permanent light source exists completely shifts my disposition towards the mechanic. Plenty of us have voiced that opinion, whether or not it should be included in the poll is a question of whether you're willing to listen to community.

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Plenty of us have voiced that opinion, whether or not it should be included in the poll is a question of whether you're willing to listen to community.

 

It is not that we're not willing to listen to the community. It's that Bioxx has already stated that more semi-permanent light sources are very likely to be added in future builds. However, those future builds are likely to be released many months to a year from now, which makes it irrelevant to the discussion of how people are playing the game right now.

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