New(ish) player here. Been playing about 20 days, and you have NO idea how jealous I am of your builds. They are literal works of art.

@ShiftyshadowTV

28 күн бұрын

Thanks, they are the results of many years of experimentation. I'm quite happy with them. Many of my better builds are on the Steam workshop. If you have access to that you can dissect them and maybe get ideas for your own.

@daddy0798

26 күн бұрын

You will get there also. For me trying to build a large grid ship with welders built into the build with projector setup right when taking damage trigger welders on to get repaired fast .

@wildman4709

4 күн бұрын

No I'm in the same boat. Just trying to make something that goes to the moon 😅

My obscure tip to add is that while "Door" and "Offset Door" can pass air through them, no oxygen seems to actually be stored in their block space. This means that while an airlock made from two back-to-back sliding doors will vent out two blocks' worth of oxygen into space every time you go through it, the same kind of airlock but made instead with offset doors (or normal doors if you don't have Frostbite) will keep all of the air inside (when operated correctly). This can be kind of useful if you don't like "Keen airlocks" but still don't feel like building a fully proper airlock, and hate venting oxygen into space. Great video btw, thanks for the tips!

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

I noticed that, but never though to use them for a lossless airlock. Good idea.

I love using the defensive block to increase the turret automatic target tracking range. That's an awesome trick! Definatly adding that to my guide.

Small personal hack: If you're using a docking camera on a small grid ship connecting to a large grid, when you build the large grid connector orient it in a way that the little side lights will be in line with where your camera will be on the small grid ship. Those side lights make great aiming references. For example at 14:47, I would rotate that large grid connector by 90 degrees so that one of those side lights is on top, and now the camera will be staring directly at it. It will also help with seeing the connection status.

@ShiftyshadowTV

29 күн бұрын

Good idea, I never noticed that. For some reason I tend to place my large grid connectors with the lights on the side.

@oldmankatan7383

21 күн бұрын

Yes! I do this too. If you place the camera right on the small grid, you basically just fly straight at the center of the light.

@simatufordu9204

11 күн бұрын

My tip is use ai modul. Very very annoying to me when i need to docking. ( specially when the docking place is moving. Like a mother ship or etc.) I just use ai modul instead my docking skill. Or another tipp i using docking arms in my base. when my ship in position ( AI) docking arms get my ship. And a piston connecting to my ship. Ai thing a little effort. But longer campaign is usefull.

@davidfenyes9784

10 күн бұрын

Hmm, sounds like a good playground for Clang. :D I would never use subgrid to hold my ship or connect it to another grid.@@simatufordu9204

A nice quality of life upgrade I've done for a few years now on my smaller ships is a 1-button startup/shutdown... well, really 2, as it's 2 timer blocks. Shutdown is pressed after I dock with a connector. It shuts off all the gyros, antennas/beacons, thrusters, lights, etc., and sets batteries to recharge, and O2/H2 tanks set to stockpile. Startup is the same thing in reverse, switching everything on, then unlocking the connector. With the Automaton update, I was able to make it even more seamless by setting up event controllers. Now, when I dock with a connector, shutdown sequence occurs. I still prefer a manual startup, which ensures everything is running before disconnecting the connector. It makes life much nicer aboard my ship, and doing quick outings.

I didn't know about the range difference between the antenna and decoys for lightning strikes. I'm never counting on an antenna for lightning defense again. I knew about curved block airlocks before, but I really liked seeing how you implemented them in your ship. You have airtight integrity between sections of your ship, like watertight integrity on IRL naval vessels.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yeah, decoys are the way to go. Sectioning up your interior also allow the airtightness calculations to be easier (making it bug out less often). It can be necessary for very large or complex spaces.

I knew most of them but did not know about the seat having a target lock detection. An addition to the door closing repeater that can be done: if you never want to have the door closing in your face but don't want to wait 20 seconds, you can add an event controller that detects the opening of all the doors and then it starts the timer to close all the doors, you can set it up to 3-5 seconds instead of 20 seconds. My favourite thing to do on any ship I pilot: is to make a group of all the breaking thrusters and have them turn on/off on the first control bar (I always set it up at position 9). That way you can save a lot of energy\fuel by just gliding, and the nose is always pointing in the direction you are going: which is better than turning off the dampeners in 0 gravity

That airlock concept is legit awesome. Just having a single piece of curved glass looks weird and feels cheaty, but incorporating it into a real airlock is a cool way to prevent wasting air.

@ShiftyshadowTV

5 күн бұрын

Yeah, using them in airlocks and hallways where you don't notice them is my preferred method. On servers where I'm scraping for PCU (or trying to reduce lag) I'll use them more liberally.

The curved blocks are nice. Easy to hide. Thanks for the vid!

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yup, you can use the panel blocks with the same shape too, if you don't want a window.

I knew some of these, but today I learned about the AI target locking and turrets! Great vid!

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Nice, I figured a lot of these are common knowledge and I've talked bout most of them in other videos already, but I wanted to share them all in one place. Hopefully people can learn at least one thing from it. :D

The airlock & periscope, I really like!

Important note, the target lock detector applies to friendly target locks aswell, and some people will target lock friendlies to check grid name, distance, relative and approach velocity, etc, with the targeting info, so if you are using the third upgrade, make sure it wont do anything you wouldnt want to happen in the event of friendly lock, or just make sure they know not to lock on you lol

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yeah, that's a good point. I though of that when setting up my timer blocks, but didn't think to mention it in the video.

I must say, I'm mostly critic, and while those ideas are fairly known for long time players, you explained it absolutely well and added some bonuses. I wasn't fully aware of the air tight blocks, which can save you 125 pcu instead of a door. Superb. As a mini cherry on top, you might have could said for your periscopes, they can't be projected (from their main grid), as they are a subgrid. Veterans know this ofc, but I saw a few new comers in the comments. Splendid work overall.

@DocuAddict666

14 күн бұрын

and yeah, if guys want to use fancier stuff, like said periscopes or extra remote controls, etc and are limited by pcu (like on the servers often times), one has to outweigh the cost/usefullness depending on ones situation and desire.

Exactly the information I was looking for in the past couple of days! Thank you greatly!

@ShiftyshadowTV

5 сағат бұрын

Thanks for watching, hope it helps!

I've well over 1k hours in the game and you just explained something I ran into only a couple days ago! I was positioning a blueprint and it vanished. I thought I took too long to position it, but every time I reloaded the blueprint it would instantly vanish. I thought the block was bugged so I ground it down and replaced it, making sure I checked the box in time so I wouldn't run into (what I thought was) a bug again. I had *no* idea it was the *alignment* that was making it go away! (I always thought it was timer based) Thank you! Also, I've seen demonstrations of the curved block airlock before, but they were usually quite awkward looking. You did a nice job incorporating them into your design. I may just start using them now. 😀👍

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yeah, it can be frustrating if you forget to check the save blueprint box. The curved blocks can definitely look nice, there are a lot of options though so it's good to putz around and see which ones you like.

This video is so helpful, I’ve been playing for many years and have forgotten how the projector functions, thank you so much!

@ShiftyshadowTV

22 күн бұрын

Glad it helped, projectors are useful in many ways, but this one is my favorite.

For the decoys, yes the lighting will hit the decoy as you have stated but it also has an AOE for damage. Now this AOE can be negated by placing the decoy on a sub grid. The reason is that indirect damage does not travel through sub grids.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yeah, I probably should have mentioned that you should place them a few blocks from anything important.

All excellent tips with super-easy application. 👍

@ShiftyshadowTV

5 күн бұрын

Thanks, I hope they get some good use!

What I use instead of just a timer for my doors is an event controller along with a timer block. Any time a door on my base is opened the event controller starts the timer block of 5 seconds to close all doors on the base/ship. The reason I don't use the timer block by itself is because there are annoying times when you go to open the door just as the timer block activates to close the doors on you.

Most of these, I’ve encountered over my years of playing SE, but there’s still stuff to learn here! The turret range increase via defense block is handy for static grids. I used something similar to the periscope in one of my last builds, just sans piston for space constraints. And probably the most useful is the way you use keen airlocks; I’d heard of them before, but always thought they were necessarily ugly and not viable for aesthetic builds. That’s one I’m glad to be proven wrong on.

@ShiftyshadowTV

5 күн бұрын

Yup, the AI range increase is most useful for bases (static grids). I felt the same way for a long time about the airlocks, but a year ago I started trying to work them into my builds and have found many ways to sneak them in.

Knew most of these but the airlocks stuff was new! Thanks for the video :)

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Glad you found something new! Keep up the great channel.

1-9 are all great tips, which I use all the time as well. #10 is an exploit, as that isn't the intended behavior of those blocks, but I can see in the case you suggested (you have friends that don't wait for your airlocks and constantly vent everything) it is a reasonable solution that doesn't break immersion too badly. Nice work!

@ShiftyshadowTV

12 күн бұрын

Yeah, I usually keep #10 hidden. I don't like breaking immersion, but sometimes I want to save PCU or make things foolproof. I've actually put in bug reports for the windows (and panels), but it seems they're working as intended. :/ At this point I'm embracing it.

A small tweak on the automatic closing doors, set an event controller to check if any door has been opened, then start the timer block with ~5s delay, doors only shut after you open them

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

I like that idea. Need to make sure the time is set properly for each build though. Often I'm walking specific routes through multiple doors. I don't want the second or third door I open to always close on me because the first door triggered the close function.

@Epb7304

29 күн бұрын

@@ShiftyshadowTV could always seperate out the doors, but that would be tedious at best

Man, the 'airlock cheat' blew my mind... The amount of times I have vented the ship because I was too fast/careless is staggering. I will use that trick on my next build. Massive thanks! Also - 'reverse camera+controller' - so easy but I have never though about it. I had reverse cameras and used them but it's sometimes tricky. I wish keen has introduced the direction option to the movement AI and recorders. Making autodocking for the grids that need to reverse to the connector sucks.

@ShiftyshadowTV

29 күн бұрын

Yeah, it's nice not having to worry about venting your air. I've only used the new AI for autodocking a few times, it does seem like a pain. Only worth it to me if I'm fully automating something (that I'll use a lot).

Regarding the doors one: You can prevent the doors from shutting in your face completely by having an event controller check if the group of doors is open, and if it is, start a timer block with a 5-10 second delay that closes that group. That way, if any door is open in that group, the timer block will close them after 5-10 seconds of them opening. I checked this, it should work.

@ShiftyshadowTV

20 күн бұрын

That's a good idea.

Wow i missed the air lock with walkthrough blocks. I heard of it but haven't seen it till now but i can now save ship interior space with this thank you for the video

These are some awesome ideas! I just started getting into SE about a week ago, so I'm still learning so much about the game. For the door closing one, I made a slight modification: I set the timer block for 2sec and close all doors, no repeat. Then, I used a control block to start the timer whenever a door is opened. Works really nice!

@ShiftyshadowTV

12 күн бұрын

Adding the event controller is a good idea. I've played for a long time and ECs are relatively new, so I often overlook them (especially when I've been using another method for almost a decade). It's always nice seeing better methods, new players, and fresh innovation in the comments.

20:52 I wish Keen would add an option to have controls and camera orientation linked to the direction of the cockpit, so no matter what, left is left, right is right, down is down, and up is up. Would be a great QOL feature and shouldn’t be too hard to do

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

That would be nice.

Great vid Shifty! I don't use the Keen airlocks; always thought they were a bit cheaty, but I quite like your take on them. Especially the one combined with stairs. Very cool! Keen airlocks are in fact so sneaky, I'll have to check my HQ if I haven't accidentally placed random airlocks around the place. lol I use a lot of ECs. I build small grid servers on Hinges with those conveyor access doors. They're stuffed with TBs, ECs, PBs,... Every Door has a dedicated EC. This way I can create airlocks easily. If a certain door is opened, then specific doors close. Endless possibilities. Edit: Also, I find it quite annoying walking peacefully through pressurized areas with my helmet open and suddenly suffocating because I'm in the space of an airtight block. On my main Exploration ship I control it from an Industrial Cockpit, which sits inside a Round Window bubble. Which again is encased in other window blocks which presents the cockpit from the outside. (Cockpit in a cockpit in a cockpit if you like). I can walk around the industrial Cockpit freely but must close my helmet first... meh!

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

I usually use the Keen airlocks in places where you won't notice them. They do break immersion for me. I need to experiment more with Event Controllers. I'm sure they have tons of uses I have yet to discover. As long as the main parts of my rooms are airtight I can overlook small spots where it's broken. I try to avoid it, but it's not always worth sorting out for me.

Thanks a bunch for this as a reasonable noob its always awesome to see what can be done with the blocks. Thanks!!

@ShiftyshadowTV

29 күн бұрын

Even after playing for a decade there's always something new to learn. Glad I could share a few of my favorites.

Really nice video! I Have Space Engineers for a really long time now, but still learned something new!! Keep it going!

@pimmiecreeper4459

Ай бұрын

Subscibed!

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Thanks, glad there was something new for you! :)

For the parachute one, i actually use two event controllers and a logic gate script to basically figure out altitude and speed, and if both meet the criteria (aka youre plummetting at fast speeds) the emergency systems kick in to save you. Just so i can fly or drive in low altitudes without auto systems freaking out

Such a clean design

So for #8 (the door closing repeater), I actually do it slightly differently. I have an event controller that checks for if any door is open that I want to auto close. When it detects any open, it starts a 5 second timer, which then closes the door. If all doors successfully close, then all is set, but if a door fails to close, it repeats the 5 second timer again.

@ShiftyshadowTV

4 күн бұрын

That's a good way to do it.

I don't know if it was mentioned yet but putting an air vent pointed to the exterior and set to depressurize will collect oxygen. Of course you can use it for larger grids but it's also useful for cockpits since they require an oxygen supply even in atmosphere

@ShiftyshadowTV

14 күн бұрын

No-one has mentioned it, but yes that's a good idea. I do that for most of my builds (anything that flies in atmosphere). If I make another of these upgrade videos that might make it in.

tip 8 should use an event controller reacting to door epened trggering a timer block on 1.5s to close all door. That's what I do ^^.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

That's a good idea! I might make it 2-3 seconds for my slowness though. :)

Those airlocks though. definitely useful,

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

For sure.

Great video. Well done.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it. :)

there is some awesome ideas there great job thank you

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it, hope you get some good use out of them. :)

This video is ridiculously helpful! Thank you

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Thanks, hope you get some good use out of the tips!

Very nice video, thanks for the tips!

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Hope they help, good luck with your builds!

These are very handy tips!

@ShiftyshadowTV

20 күн бұрын

They're things I wish I'd know as a new player, hopefully they can help others as well.

good stuff. all new to me. please post more upgrades.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

As soon as I have another good list, I'll do so. Glad you enjoyed.

Wow I had no idea about the windows for airlocks. I will adopt.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yeah, a lot of the angled and curved windows work. Also, all of the panels of the same shapes.

I like to start my door close timer using an event controller, rather than having it repeat. Never shuts in my face.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Dang, that's a good idea. There are so many great uses for the event controller, but I never think of them because I'm so used to doing things without it.

@mediocreman2

24 күн бұрын

This is what I do. Also means you can't really lose O2 in an airlock situation.

good work, the better microphone is a game changer ^^

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Thanks! Yeah, it makes my life easier. I think I could work on the settings a little more and it would be even better.

@kevinknutson4596

Ай бұрын

I honestly thought the old mic was a audio filter so it sounded like a helmet mic. It fit the aesthetic too well xD

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Haha, it really did, but no, it was just low quality.

nice base

@ShiftyshadowTV

12 күн бұрын

Thanks, it was my initial base on our prior community server iteration. Spent a lot of time living there in survival, many good memories (and explosions).

To think that I made an event controller driven complete airlock system with safety off (to prevent accidental opening), and all I had to do was put a curved window in front of a door. 😜

@ShiftyshadowTV

10 күн бұрын

Hahaha, yeah. Just about any window (or panel) would do.

Airlock trick seems useful, but actually its a glitch I'd say 😛 might be fixed in some update, and then builds that are using it are going to suffer

@ShiftyshadowTV

21 күн бұрын

The window airtightness has been like that for at least 5 years, and just last update they added more blocks that do the same thing. There's probably core code that makes it that way. Then again, the last time they tried to change anything about it was when they planned to remove the oxygen mechanic alltogether. Ever since then the airtightness of many blocks has been buggy, and none of it has ever been fixed. I honestly wish they cared more, but I wouldn't hold my breath on this one.

I like the ship in the first section! Is it on the workshop?

@ShiftyshadowTV

22 күн бұрын

The large grid ship isn't on the workshop, but most of the small grids shown are.

The 1st one is a great idea however I would making sure I have a control seat, cockpit, helm or what ever that can "control" said grid, and take a seat in it and just use the hotbar numbers to control how to line it up and after you're done, remove said hotbars, you'll need 2 free hotbars for max control one for rotations and another for shifting/sliding!

@elementalblaze79

28 күн бұрын

The 6th one great idea however in case of me needing a abandon my ship and ease of escaping, I put my drills on the back of my ship and use that method to flip the controls to the correct direction for mining however for normal flying my cockpit is facing the reverse of those drills for if I need out, I'm not stuck in my drills or have to squeeze between my ship to go back though the hole I made!

@elementalblaze79

28 күн бұрын

The rest are nice to know, hope they don't patch that last one! Lol

@ShiftyshadowTV

28 күн бұрын

I can line up a grid with the sliders faster than I can set up a hotbar for it (usually takes me 5-10 seconds). So if I'm only ever lining up a projector once I don't bother. Its a good idea of you find using the hotbar easier though.

@ShiftyshadowTV

28 күн бұрын

Hmm, interesting miner setup, I make welder and grinder ships that way sometimes, mostly due to piping decisions. Do you often find yourself needing to get out of your drill ship while drilling?

I do an event controler activate a 3 second timer to close all doors when one is open

@ShiftyshadowTV

22 күн бұрын

Also a good method. As long is it's timed properly for your grid, and the routs you walk through it, you'll never have a door shut in your face.

Not favourites, They're MUST haves..!!

@ShiftyshadowTV

29 күн бұрын

Some of them definitely fall into that category for me. :D

does the AI extended turret range trick also allow to target multiple enemies?

@ShiftyshadowTV

5 күн бұрын

I honestly have not tried that, but I'm pretty sure they will only fire at max range on your locked target. You can only lock one target at a time (manually or automatically) so I'd guess not. The turrets will still be able to fire at multiple targets if they are within 800m though. This inspires further testing.

i actually really like the periscope camera idea. shame that its easier to just use third person or just chuck a camera on the front. is there a way to disable third person?

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yeah, you can slap one on front, or use a turret. However; if your ship is better off staying level in gravity, or you want to look around while traveling straight, the periscope is superior. That's why I used it in Small Grid Only.

@ShiftyshadowTV

27 күн бұрын

You should be able to disable 3rd person in the world settings (I think). If not I'm sure there's a mod for it. XD

@guesswho2778

27 күн бұрын

@@ShiftyshadowTV ah yep, thanks It sounds like something that would be in the world settings, i just thought that i would have found and done it by now if it was.

I like the ship. Is that on the workshop?

@ShiftyshadowTV

18 күн бұрын

The large grid one is not, most of the small grid ships are though.

Are any of these available in the workshop? id love to try some of them out.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Yes, a few of them are. There should be a link to my workshop in the video description.

@scottsadler4215

28 күн бұрын

you have some great additions in the video... but I love the design you created with the rib-cage look.@@ShiftyshadowTV

@ShiftyshadowTV

27 күн бұрын

@@scottsadler4215 Thanks, a few of the small grid ships in the video are favorites of mine.

Отличная игра. Я с другом играл в неё когда она вышла, но к сожалению разработчики не хотят развивать свой проект и не занимаются рекламой игры.

@ShiftyshadowTV

22 күн бұрын

Игра определенно нуждалась бы в доработке, но сейчас она значительно лучше, чем была при первом выпуске. Если у вас есть доступ к модификациям, они действительно выведут игру на новый уровень.

Cool

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

:) Thanks!

Please post this ship on the workshop

@ShiftyshadowTV

5 күн бұрын

Will do, need to polish it up a bit first though.

3rd Video I've come across of yours so far, Excellent job so get a sub and something for the algo.

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Hahaha, thanks. Hope you continue enjoying them.

18:39 timer blocks are a nice quick way to auto close your doors but if you have the room sensors work better because you can go completely hands free with doors opening and closing for you and you don't have doors closing in your face because you opened a door 2 sec before the timer activated.

@ShiftyshadowTV

26 күн бұрын

Yeah, sensors are nice. I use them in airlocks, but I'm too lazy to set them up for every door.

these airlocks... are bullshit.... they call this buggy mess dlc?

@ShiftyshadowTV

27 күн бұрын

The DLC just uses the same programming as the vanilla versions. 90% of the airlocks like that are vanilla, not DLC. But yeah, airtightness has never been a priority for KEEN. They even tried to get rid if it entirely at one point (changed their mind due to backlash from the community).

@BlackRainEntertain

26 күн бұрын

@@ShiftyshadowTV if i would have known, what the DLC Ladder blocks, do to my mental, i wouldnt have argued about the open door airlock syndrom omg, these ladders are missing essential puzzle pieces, in order to make them work with a somewhat functioning railing, i had to slap a halfslap catwalk on the backside, a full one on the underside, and a solid block on the opposite site. my brain melted , trying to make that thing work on a visual 2 block scale. i now totally believe without checking out that 90 % of the airlocks like that are vanilla, because the ladders suffer from the same sickness. 21 dlcs all based on unfinished buisness. as if they never played their own game. essential stuff like, why cant i hang a lightbulp to the ceiling, when im walking on a catwalk? their logic kills me. same with pipeworks, in the middle of the room is a T junction wich seems to have 2/3 of the size of a normal block, no catwalk fits underneath and no light on top, that should all be placable in the same blockgrid. i dont understand their issues, they made it work with blastdoors, why is the rest of it not the same?

You do not say "forwards", with an s. You JUST say 'forward'

@ShiftyshadowTV

Ай бұрын

Hahahaha