Based on the current needs of my company’s development, I’ve independently developed two planets. I’ve suddenly realized that, as a game focused on a slow-paced experience and cosmic exploration, we lack incentives for deep-space exploration. After years of gameplay, many planets have been developed, including those in remote areas far from the center. But who the developers are and when they arrived can only be guessed through the PPS window. I hope developers will consider adding a new structure called the “Pioneer Monument.” The first player to establish a base on a planet would be able to build this monument. Once completed, it would appear in the PLI just like other PPS structures. When other players click on it, they’ll see information like “Company XX arrived on this planet on XX/XX/XX”. It would be even better if the builder could leave a message on the monument. This would be more formal and meaningful than having players go through the hassle of checking the PPS window to find out who built what infrastructure days ago. After all, who wouldn’t want their own monument?
sounds awesome!
would also let you know when explorer’s grace ends
This would add a lot of character and history to the game.
It shouldn’t be too easy to build the monument though. Compared to other games (like Elite Dangerous), I would say the world-to-player ratio is pretty small so some buffer should be in place so half the planets in the entire galaxy don’t end up tagged by the same player. Maybe a limit on how many monuments a single player can build. Or have the monument taken down if the player’s base is removed one way or another.
I agree that this will be a nice addition (though someone may try to game this and get their name on as many planets as possible by ripping up and remaking core modules). I’ll probably stick to the KI/WU/OE triangle as the furthest I go out. Any more than that and logistics will have to wait until I have many more ships.
I like this idea, as it would add some more character and history to the game. Such a monument should probably use some more unusual and expensive materials, and maybe construction of them is limited to like one per month. People doing legitimate colonization wouldn’t be going terribly fast, and that would make it very difficult for someone to just plaster their name across dozens of planets.
Could remove the monument (or remove the name) if the planet ever drops to 0 bases on planet. Would probably solve that.
I think we could make the materials used to build monuments extremely expensive, making it difficult for anyone to replicate or construct them quickly. Additionally, if the person who built the monument removes their base within 30 days after completion, the monument will be removed. Then, others can build new monuments on that spot. We could also require that a planet be considered a new colony and eligible to build monuments only when its population reaches 1,000 people.
I would favor having the monument be “free” to the first settler, but they would have to be on the planet for 6 months and build a COGC, ADM and Safety Station. Once all conditions are met you get to put a tag on the system. I think that is a high enough cost - and built the infrastructure that would benefit others - that I think this would be a nice reward.