Mech node

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Mech node

Mech node

A self-powered mechanoid node of unknown function. Mech nodes can be deconstructed to yield valuable resources - but only if they are captured intact. The internal micro power cell will flame out and ruin the materials if the unit takes too much damage.

Base Stats

Type
BuildingSpecial
Market Value
200 Silver
Mass
9 kg
Beauty
-20
HP
50
Flammability
0%
Path Cost
30

Building

Size
1 × 1
Minifiable
True
Placeable
True
Passability
pass through only
Cover Effectiveness
75%
Blocks Wind
True
Light Radius
1.65

Creation

Deconstruct yield
Plasteel 22 + Component 1
Destroy yield
nothing
Technical
thingCategories
BuildingsSpecial


Mech nodes are light-emitting buildings that can be claimed from a mech cluster once it is defeated, assuming they are not destroyed in the fight.

Acquisition[edit]

Mech nodes can be claimed from a mechanoid cluster once it has been defeated. Simply claim and uninstall it.

Summary[edit]

The white area (1 tile out) is 50% illumination, required for best surgery success chance. These tiles subsequently represent 30% or better: adequate for all general labor, avoiding mood penalties, and for growing decorative plants indoors in plant pots.

A mech node provides 50% light to tiles directly adjacent, and no further. It also provides a small amount of cover. It has a beauty value of -20, so is very ugly to look at.

Mech nodes can be deconstructed for Plasteel 22 plasteel and Component 1 component. It cannot be sold.[Verify]

Like all mech cluster buildings, they not only have a Flammability of 0%, but also take no damage from attacks with the Flame damage type. This is in contrast to, for example, a stone wall which will not be ignited by molotov cocktails, but will take the 10 flame damage from the initial attack.

Analysis[edit]

Mech nodes are a reward for not destroying everything in a mech cluster. If they are preserved, nodes can be deconstructed for a decent amount of resources. Whenever this is worth mostly depends on whenever it is possible to destroy the mech cluster without causing a massive explosion. This itself depends on cluster arrangement and your colony's combat prowess.

Otherwise, mech nodes aren't very useful as actual buildings. They can provide cover, but a plasteel barricade has more health. You can use them to lure raiders into (poor) cover, but stools are easier to build. They can provide emergency light for surgeries during a solar flare, but a torch lamp is easier to make, if wood is available at all.

There is also a tiny niche for emergency surgical lighting, being completely independent of fuel, power, EMI and solar flares and with light being vital for surgical success.

Version history[edit]

  • 1.2.2719 - Added as Gloomlight.
  • 1.2.2753 - Fix: Gloomlight would prevent a sun lamp from producing "brightly lit" cells within the radius of the Gloomlight. Due to: the glowColor of the Gloomlight not having an explicit alpha of zero. It now correctly ignores the alpha from the xml.
  • 1.3.? - Renamed from Gloomlight to Mech node, possibly to avoid confusion with darktorches. Description changed from "A self-powered mechanoid light. Gloomlights can be deconstructed to yield valuable resources, or used as lights - but only if they are captured intact. The internal micro power cell will flame out and ruin the materials"