Good idea. I would use accelerators (like in Terran space in X3:AP) for intra-system travel instead of highways. Maybe small ones for 3rd level, but except for Aldrin I don't see the need. Aldrin was a bad exception in any way possible, it was killing performance and a bit unrealistic as the huge mass creates gravitational forces that were totally ignored (hard to model).Général Grievous wrote: The best way for a stellar map to be represented is to represent it like it should be:
- 1st level: A view of the galaxy, with systems joined by each other with lines. Travel made by jumpgates.
- 2nd level: A solar system with a star in the center and planets around it. each planet or stellar body, is a sector. Travel by large ships "booster" ou blue highways.
This representation in X Rebirth is a mess.
- 3rd level: A stellar body (planet, asteroids, etc...). Composed of different "zones" or "area" if you want.
About the gate and accelerator placement: the X3 layout of having the gates at the edges of the sector was helping, otherwise there is a strong impression of emptyness for the space beyond the gates. Yes, space is big and empty, but empty sectors seem to be lifeless, reduces immersion. So, my proposal:
- gates in the middle relatively close to each other in one plane (ex: N-S-E-W). It will allow fast travel across the universe and limit system to system traffic to the gate zone. No stations in that area!!!
- accelerators at the edges of the sector, same or a bit farther away than X3 gates, in the same plane or perpendicular to the gates
- also make the sectors more 3D in layout, they were mostly in the gate plane and up-down were rarely utilized, even if in space all directions have equal value
- as modern computers have much better performance, moderately more populated sectors - both stations and ships - without making them crowded; nobody has a good reason to go crowded in space, it's so much emptyness there. Maybe 15 to 25 stations per sector in core sectors and 10-15 in others? Meaningful stations, not random ones created by build missions that broke the universe in time