Ship Assembly

Assembly: The Unit Editor

The Assembly is the heart of the VoidVerse engineering system. Unlike many space strategy games with fixed unit tiers, VoidVerse features a modular unit editor inspired by the classic Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri design. This system allows players to customize every ship and drone to fit specific strategic roles.

Design Philosophy

The Assembly allows for a "Total Customization" approach. You are not just choosing a ship; you are balancing physics and economics:

Mass vs. Speed: Every module you add increases the Mass of the ship. A ship with heavy weaponry and thick hull plating will be significantly slower. Conversely, you can choose to build "Glass Cannons"—units with high-tier weapons but no armor—which can travel across the galaxy much faster due to their lower mass.
Role Specialization: You decide the trade-offs. You can build expensive, high-durability tanks or cheap, mass-produced raiders.

🛠️ Ship Modules and Designations

When creating a blueprint, the modules you select determine the technical Model Code and the ship's functional role.

Specialized Modules

eMod (Extractors): Used for collecting resources from asteroid fields and debris.
- Restriction: Cannot be combined with weapons or Transporters.
tMod (Transporters): Maximizes cargo capacity for hauling resources between colonies.
Weaponry: You can mix and match Projectile Weapons (Physical) and Energy Weapons (Shield Stripping).

Model Code Suffixes

The system automatically tags your design based on its primary function:

E: Extractor (e.g., F-10000 E1).
T: Transporter (e.g., C-20000 T3).
R (Raider): This designation is applied to hybrid builds or specialized combat ships intended for secure raiding without suffering a civilian malus.

📏 Assembly Constraints

Assembly Slots

Your ability to maintain multiple blueprints is limited by your Assembly Slots.

Base Capacity: All players start with a limited number of slots.
Research Expansion: Upgrading Advanced Engineering increases your available slots by 1 per level.

Ability Points (AP)

Each chassis (Fighter, Cruiser, etc.) has a Base AP limit. Every module you install consumes Used AP. If you exceed the chassis capacity, the ship cannot be finalized. Better chassis skeletons generally provide more AP for complex builds.

📝 Blueprint Management and Retirement

Renaming

You can rename any model to give your fleet a unique identity. Note that renaming an existing blueprint requires a Credit cost (G.E.L.D.)

Scrapping and Retirement

VoidVerse maintains a strict "Active Service" policy for unit designs.

The Scrapyard Rule: You cannot Retire a blueprint if there are still active ships of that model in the universe.
Retirement Process: To delete a blueprint and free up an Assembly Slot, you must first fly all existing units of that model to the Scrapyard and scrap them. Only once the global count of that ship model is zero can the blueprint be retired.

Technical Summary: Stats Calculation

Component	Impact on Mass	Impact on Speed	Primary Tech
Hull Plating	High Increase	Significant Decrease	Hull Plating
Engines	Moderate Increase	Major Increase	Engine Research
Weapons	Moderate Increase	Minor Decrease	Physical / Energy