Mod Feasibility

[scienceguy8]

So, I've decided to plunge head first into mod making.  After successfully making a simple food item and working a bit with the Thaumcraft 2 API, I've decided to make a mod to extend the usability of tech mods like Industrial Craft 2 and Buildcraft.

 

Some mods like Industrial Craft and Buildcraft add their own energy systems and means of using that energy, for instance, Industrial Craft's furnaces.  Other mods add their own furnaces with special properties as well, like Thaumcraft 2's Arcane Furnace, which has a chance to double its output or smelt multiple items at a time.  However, there is no way to make a version of that special furnace that runs on Industrial Craft energy without making a mod that does just that.  My idea is to build a mod that would allow you to electrify any device that uses burnable materials to run.  I just need to know if it is feasible.

 

The idea is the player will craft an item and a block.  The item will be an "Electric Heater Assembly" and the block a "Heater Control."  The Heater Control is placed under the furnace to be electrified and connected to IC² power, while the Electric Heater Assembly is placed in the burn slot of the furnace.  Within the game world, the Heater Control supplies energy to the Electric Heater Assembly which heats up the furnace as necessary.

 

Mechanics wise, the Electric Heater Assembly is an item with a damage value.  It is crafted with an initial damage value of 0.  If it has a damage value of 1, then it becomes a fuel, supplying 100 units of energy to a furnace, equivalent to a stick.  Once it gives up that 100 units, it reverts back to a damage value of 0 and becomes inert.  Meanwhile, the Heater Control searches inventories above it for Electric Heater Assemblies with a damage value of 0.  If it finds one, then it repairs it, giving it a damage value of 1, while expending some item placed into the Heater Control, in this case, EU.

 

Here's what I need to know:

1. Can an item placed into a combustion slot in a furnace, rather than be completely consumed, take damage instead?

2. Can the damaged item remain even when it is damaged all the way to 0?

3. Can the damage level be hidden from the user so that no damage bar appears below the item?

4. Can a block search an adjacent block's inventory and replace items within that inventory at will?

[DarkGuardsman]

Would just be easier to make a new furnace that runs off of energy but you ideal is very interesting. If you don't mind in the process of make your mod could you use the Universal Electric api. The api does the electric stuff for you so you don't have to recreate it yourself. Also the api needs mod developers

 

Now to answer you questions

1) Yes, but you would have to recode the minecraft furnace and you should avoid that. What you can do instead is make it look like its being consumed. Get your heater block to add an item to the furnace and keep changing it as the block adds burn time to the minecraft furnace.

2)Not sure on this but i think it can

3)Yes just don't recall how

4)Yes, you just have to do some function to get all blocks surrounding it. Check the varables your looking for. Then do what ever is needed. If you want the source code for my Steam Power mod is open src. Just download the mod and its contained with it. There should be code in there to find the tileEntity of a block next to it and get its inventory.

[calclavia]

To all your questions, the answer would be yet. If you don't want to show the damage to the player, use item NBT data. Actually I think the main purpose of having a damage value for an item is to have it to show a damage bar. Besides that, you can easier replace the damage with NBT data. I am not sure why you want the damage to be only even...

 

Also, you can use the Universal Electricity API if you don't bother converting the electricity. UE is natively compatible with Buildcraft and will try to be compatible with IC2 and RP in the future (via add-ons).

 

Official Page: http://minecraftforge.net/forum/index.php/board,50.0.html