What Makes A Ship Good? | Space Engineers

Timestamps:
00:00:00 Intro
00:01:08 Good Weapon Composition
00:02:45 Internal Systems
00:03:45 Decoys And Welders
00:04:50 Camera Placement
00:05:42 Thruster Placement
00:07:03 Gyroscopes
00:08:06 Overall Shape Of Your Ship
00:09:22 Outro
Music: Space Engineers OST

[@thee_number_six6227]

It needs looks but it has to be functional.

[@Eggmayor]

For some reason people think that they cant make a good looking ship more functional than a good looking ship, but thats bullshit tbh

[@Nemoticon]

I play tihs game so wrong, lol... I don't PVP and barely do any survival. I spend most of my time just building ships/vehicles, stations and bases in creator mode! But I love watching these videos for inspiration, advice, tips & tricks.

[@Wyzmar]

Do what you love doing man, just because some people enjoy pvp doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy other things, it is a sandbox game after all lol

[@Nemoticon]

@@Wyzmar o7

[@CaspianR]

ignore the PvP parts of SE if you are not interested bechas you can always jump away

[@JCauI]

What a great video that gets an easy recommendation to others. You made a lot of great points centered around design philosophy, thanks for taking the time to make this!

[@Wyzmar]

No problem! I will be making more videos on theory about other things like stations, mining ships, and much more too!

[@comensee2461]

The defense shields mod has a major impact on ship design as well. The dynamics of weapons changes a lot because some are stronger against shields and weak against armor and vice versa. Also, slower ships can compensate by putting more reactors in to pump out more MW for stronger shields. They end up turning into big tanks that can soak up a lot of damage and if your shield is weaker they can rip through it more easily.

[@fallendarke]

Top-Tier Vid. Looking forward to more. Earned my sub. Eager for the next.

[@Wyzmar]

Thank you!

[@dakaodo]

Apologies for what turned out to be another wall o' text: Superfiring is a term for describing turrets placed to fire over lower turrets (exhibit A: the Dorito chip). In a sandbox, anyone can build anything they want, then justify it with a set of lore specific to their goals. But I feel like good ship design doesn't have to run counter to RP lore, and what some people dismiss as "game meta" is just sensible. this is a bit of semantic arguing, but superfiring turrets are generally a logical conclusion for good combat design (barring specific reasons to want to compartmentalize and hide your turrets by countersinking them within the armored hull). Internal thruster blocks are game meta, b/c IRL you can't do that with real thrusters given our current understanding of drives using reaction mass. :D And this isn't to deride internal thrusters or other meta, b/c I've used them too -- if it works, it works. On my own though, I like to make my game lore or whatever coherent with rule-based ship class designs, broadly similar in concept to how GetBrocked does their Outlands ship classes. For myself in solo PVE, no tool/production blocks (drills, welders, grinders, refineries, assemblers) on the same ship/grid with weapons; only survival kits and basic assemblers/refineries. That keeps my utility ships distinct as auxiliary or non-combat ships. The two basic production blocks are a deliberate design choice to restrict my combat ships from simply being factory/mining ships plus guns, and my production ships simply being warships plus refineries/assemblers. :D Otherwise, I found myself smearing all my functions into a single all-rounder, like how Luca describes her survival warships plus full refinery plus full assembler plus drill. I'm also reaching a point where I finally need to learn to make a (not so?) basic mod for automatically charging the player space credits per owned and active PCU, per time period. With a default multiplier for small grid blocks, large grid blocks, and optional specific per-block multipliers as inputs. Using this little RP idea of paying regular maintenance/overhead fees for grids/PCUs used gave me an abstracted analog to real-world operating costs, and spurred me to secure an income (even if it was a trifling moment's work to sell some magnesium for a few million credits :P ). This soft constraint on blocks made me reconsider slapping down 20 drills, b/c they're more expensive. And when I set price tiers and higher specific block upkeep costs, it further shaped my gameplay/design choices. With the Aerodynamics mod, I usee SG 300 and LG 150 m/s speed caps. With my voluntary upkeep cost game rule, I charge myself 1 credit per small grid PCU, and 10 credits per large grid PCU. For my current economy/combat focused play, an additional stacking 100x multiplier for any tool/production block -- so a large grid drill costs me 190,000 credits per ingame day (every 2 hours). This motivates me to NOT build huge grinding pits, massive drill rigs, etc and leave them lying around. Either they pay for themselves with stuff I can make/sell from their output, or I tear them down when not in use, or I keep only a minimal 1-2 drill rig that's very adaptable. And previously, once I got out of the early survival resource grind (easy enough with a series of bootstrapped drills and rigs), there was no real advantage to using small grid ships. In fact, PCU-wise, there's often a strong disincentive to use small grids. They die if an enemy weapon gives them a dirty look. They're PCU-expensive. They can't carry much or do much damage. But the above combination of 300 SG speed cap and relatively cheaper space credits upkeep cost makes them more viable in my little bubble world now. When a modest large grid warship could cost me 200k credits per ingame day to maintain, printing and running a series of cheap 2k credit task-specific small grid interceptors and bombers/gunships makes a lot more sense. Especially when combined with AI block drones. It helps remind me to be more PCU-efficient, less lazy, clean up my grids, use a more diverse range of ships, etc. Until now, I have virtually NEVER built a small grid large cargo container or small grid cargo ship. :D Now within these rules, they actually have a niche, serving as fast local couriers to fulfill high-value, low-volume contracts or trade station resource sales (thus letting me afford those large grid warships more time-efficiently by quickly hitting all the local stations for selling magnesium, platinum, etc). Anyway, I guess my point is that anyone motivated thusly can create their own set of RP/lore-based reasons, implemented as a coherent set of self-imposed game rules or game mode. Doesn't have to look like Brock's or my paradigms at all. The goal should be, per your previous video about making SE fresh again, for these gameplay rules, objectives, or conditions to spur ship use, resource management, or ship design that's new and different from how a person regularly plays. Splitsie, Wellington6012, and AndrewmanGaming have all used scenario rules to create a low/no-RP game experience that's different from the usual unrestricted progression from survival kit to space dreadnought.

[@Wyzmar]

I responded to your other comment, but I totally agree. I’ve watched a lot of these other youtubers create some rules for themselves and it definitely seems very cool. I enjoy lore that dictates the style and ships you make too, I personally think it’s very cool!

[@cmqptkloacjko]

My two cents: Any ship you enjoy having and using is a good ship. You’re happy because it’s cool lookin, even though it’s unable to fly in two directions? Great! You’re happy because it’s great for stalking down your enemies to a dark demise? Perfect! In my eyes it truly does not matter what it is, as long as it’s a ship that makes you glad to be playing SE

[@Wyzmar]

I completely agree

[@gabrielkesshinsanchez9139]

If you want to have the most effective turret placement you need a pillar of autumn type ship design. Excels at frontal bow combat and is decent at broadside.

[@vandygamingcorner6483]

any grid i make is S tier, until you shoot at it then its F or lower

[@Dagonius.]

Good job! Thanks for the info!

[@Wyzmar]

No Problem!

[@VisceryonGaming]

As you mentioned, at the end of the day a lot of people have a style in mind when they design a ship. But this video was very helpful, for myself in particular, because it still gave me things to consider that apply to the design of any ship, cosmetic or pvp. Great video, have subscribed, look forward to more :) *thumbs up*

[@Wyzmar]

Thank you

[@Narcopathic]

Great vid. I've recently picked SE up again after a while, with some friends, and we're probably going into Multiplayer (with not just us) soon and this will be really helpful. Love the different ships showcased as well!

[@Wyzmar]

No problems! Glad this helped

[@MegaKBabs]

Great video!

[@Wyzmar]

Thank you!

[@Cayman192]

My ship was designed to be a heavy cruiser and mobile base. I consolidated all crew areas and expanded the cargo hold and smaller hangar. I also built triple redundancy for power and thrust. It has a capable turret system in case of broadside, but I prefer to keep enemies at range using 4 forward facing rail guns hooked up on timers in order to stagger the shot in a manner that I can decide to fire two instead of firing all 4 at once. I hit them from afar while a small fighter compliment does most of the heavy lifting. If they try to maneuver back up and orient forward. My fleet command style is keeping all ships on line and focus fire forward using rail gun batteries.

[@Wyzmar]

thats cool!

[@spacegobbieentertainment4270]

There are so many ships that when I load them, say there are missing parts. So many pretty ships that I have no idea what parts are missing. 😂😢 I rate ships on a few things: 1st, overall aesthetic. I have a theme I like going so the ships need to look similar. 2nd, weapon placement and types. I generally arrange ships by damage types with good front and broadside layouts. Missile cruisers with gatling defenses, laser weapons and rail guns, and then artillery, gatling, and auto cannons. 3rd, role of ships. This is often included with weapon layouts, but this is more geared to size and support roles. Speed is important here as fighters go zoooooom vs big boys going put put. Lol.

[@Wyzmar]

If ships are not loading correctly it could be that either you don’t have the correct mods installed, or possibly not owning certain DLCs for the game.

[@spacegobbieentertainment4270]

@@Wyzmar pretty sure it is visual mods. I have found a few good ones that loaded fine. Just takes a long time to find them.

[@shadowknightgaming1874]

Damm this is a pretty good vid for such a small channel

[@Wyzmar]

Thank you!

[@PhrooberCZ]

For small ships is manoeuvrability without doubt but big warship is something else :)

[@Chronostra]

Looks, yes. Combat ability, yes. Speed, no. Acceleration is yes though.

[@strekterdecaos9417]

good pvp ship's guide 👍👍 :)

[@Wyzmar]

thank you!

[@AdamSchadow]

The only weapons you should use in vanilla is railgun.

[@Saktoth]

You will get hydro manned so hard.

[@AdamSchadow]

@@Saktoth I'm still waiting for that to happen.

[@newfang6234]

Good Stuff

[@TubeTAG]

The Dorito shape was one of the in universe reasons the Star Destroyer was shaped the way it was. In Legends at least, I dunno if Disney has retconned that like it has so many other things.

[@fishyfinthing8854]

If all enemy is in one direction or your ship can turn around fast enough, it’s the way to go. Real life naval warfare on the other hand don’t have the the luxury of turning around quickly. Half of the directions are to the water. Also you have to cover the fighters and missile coming from anywhere so broad side is more preferable.

[@AzachieLoki]

Are these ships available in the workshop? I'd love to take a closer look at some of these blueprints.

[@mastergoog402]

Really great video - great shots and useful content. Good work! Could you refernce the ships and designs you use and include a workshop link? I would love to inspect them myself and understand their up- and downsides.

[@Wyzmar]

Yes, I’ll be getting around to adding the workshop links today, however a couple of they ships featured in the video are made by people that don’t want the link shared so all but except I believe 2 will be added to the description.

[@siklus6177]

Thanks, good advice. Looking fwd to the series. If possible, pls link the ship designs sowe can test them.

[@guillermoelnino]

What makes a good ship is how well it preforms its function. Everything else is secondary.

[@neooblisk0084]

To add more logic about broadsides vs doreetos/superfiring. If you put 10 turrets on a superfiring ship and 10 on a broadside ship, in any engagement the broadside ship can only bring 5 to bear at once while the superposition means you can bring all 10. A ship with superpositioned turrets and efficient placement can punch FAR above its weight class. There is a reason ww2 battleships often had superfiring turrets, so that outside of a broadside they could use more than 1 turret and instead 2 or 3 at a target in front or behind them.

[@Wyzmar]

well said :)

[@ScalarYoutube]

not necessarily true, you can roll your ship so the top deck is aligned with the target, all turrets will be able to shoot now

[@possiblespy7598]

OMG I DIDNT EXPECT TO SEE MY SHIP WHEN I CLICKED ON THIS

[@Wyzmar]

which ship is yours?

[@possiblespy7598]

Hexiath, the black/blue modded frigate

[@georgeobrien3956]

Could you do a video on ship types and specializations? I've seen a lot of videos naming ships things like the classic corvette, destroyer, dreadnaught, battle ship, carrier etc, but then there's also brawler, missile ship, torpedo ship and so on, so I find it confusing in the context of space engineers, since some are pretty self explanatory but others not so much

[@theloosetrigger4514]

And then there's the non-combatant! It's what I usually go with. Point defense in the form of minimal gatlings, which also serve as light self defence. Usually defined as starter space bases on the move, and usually have nothing but light armor.

[@stevendrake930]

What is the name of the blueprints for the dorito ships you showed? I really like the black one and the orange one

[@ALUCARD-us3il]

If I use large reactors and hydrogen tanks, I usually put them behind atleast 3 lairs of armor

[@Wyzmar]

The problem with that is if you can still reach max speed, for certain servers when you start layering armor really hard, it’s almost impossible.

[@ALUCARD-us3il]

@@Wyzmar I don’t typically play on keen servers or most others, I build simply for the fun of it, and if I do play survival it’s almost always with friends on servers of our own.

[@Wuulu]

What kind of pvp servers are there? I know of starcore, but is there any vanilla esque pvp servers that dont need 20 hours of grinding iron ore, just to make a ship. I love this kind of pvp oriented videos though, and your positive outlook makes it even better.

[@Wyzmar]

Thank you! Some of the current PvP servers that people play on are Skunkworks, Stone Industries, and Sigma Draconis. If you want to rush to building a ship to go into PvP i would reccomend going to either Stone Industries or Skunkworks. Ive heard Sigma Draconis takes a while to build up compared to other servers.

[@sameanigga]

guns, lots of guns

[@unsc2060]

I'd love to see a breakdown of the Black Squadron ships like the Hatrius by Hyperschnitzel.

[@Wyzmar]

I will look into it :)

[@prometheus8010]

I find survival is function over style, but if you have the time and resources creative or otherwise you do the shape first then the rest

[@tristansavela619]

A battleship hits (I think) a destroyer, which had a *core detonation,* with the main battery and it looks more intact than most ships after a light battle. And then there's a Viminal, which killed a cruiser and *then crashed straight into an asteroid unprovoked.* Viminals are known in the Outlands for being able to take on a cruiser and almost win or actually win and for dying horribly half the time. the (I think) destroyer: Oil The battleship: Eternity's Advent I wanted to type this because I have practically nothing to do.

[@itswindyyy]

Don't scare me with the "00 (hour) 00 (minute) 00 (second)" timeline! I thought this was going to be an hour video!

[@fourhead6651]

What are the blueprints of these ships?

[@DrPotato0]

I just need it to fly

[@chillitskyle]

blueprints on workshop?

[@HairyHillman]

@3:11 would a bank of small hydrogen tanks not explode together in a chain reaction when one is blown up if they are stacked side by side with no breakers?

[@Wyzmar]

depends on the server. many servers dont have chain explosions due to lag. Its still worth doing if you split them up too

[@KittenyKat]

Are the blueprints for that orange dorito ship available?

[@ehpilgrim]

Then also if your ship is significantly smaller than the enemy and in Ergo is or in this case was significantly cheaper than ramut Ram your enemy combat ships are really big missiles use them like it it's one ship one player and if you're operating a ship with more than one crew than what are you doing yes it can be cool to play with more than one play on the same ship but to me it seems to make more sense to just have as many ships as you can Ben just swarm them

[@dantedracool3407]

Hey any one know some good ships for me to look into making I need a miner that can go to space and back and carry its waight like so far the ones we could find look cool and all but can't carry a full load and feel to clunky

[@raymondbrown2135]

What is that at 4:12? is that a functional thruster set up? I am new to the game.

[@Wyzmar]

Yes, so you can actually build very close to thrusters with slanted blocks

[@arthursleep2998]

​@@WyzmarThanks! I will do some experiments with this kind of set up. This game has such a high learning curve!

[@Wyzmar]

Ofcourse! Im glad it helped!

[@wolfe8035]

I know what's good: Rows, upon rows, upon rows... Of turrets. And now we got more than the simple Gatling and missile, as well as a custom turret controller? Hehe... 😈

[@HeavensRaptor]

who cares about good... what makes it cool? :D

[@Wyzmar]

I love good looking ship’s

[@CaspianR]

can you try to brake down a vanilla "meta" PvP brick

[@Wyzmar]

yes, I have a video planned for that in the future

[@SemzG4m3r]

I'd say functions is a must for a ship, i can see the beauty in a really good ship that has function! Aethetics is just a bonus i reckon. Also, could you share the name of that ship with the sml hyd tank setup and the 4 decoy design please?

[@danikahicks2210]

It has been a few years since I played space engineers. Why are gravity drives not commonly used?

[@DovaDude]

I believe it's mainly lag, but from personal experience your ship can just veer off in a random direction for no real reason

[@thearizonaranger7376]

I personally always use gravity drives with the help of the script, "Gravity Drive Manager". It makes it so WASD controls the grav drive, super useful. But on servers, usually scripts are disabled for lag purposes. This means you have to control the ship with hot bar buttons, which can be annoying to have to manage as a solo pilot in the middle of battle. They're also expensive and take some planning to get lined up with the ship center of mass. IMO one of the most useful features of grav drives is using them to turn massive ships rather than accelerate. But again, tedious to manage as a solo pilot, whereas if you have a crew the pilot can say "grav drive full left" and have someone else fiddle with them.

[@Aereto]

Grav drives require ship planning that most do not have, and can be detrimental if mass shifts and damage are not taken into account. I prefer flying them without scripts, and have used them in both low power cruise and combat turns.

[@Gxaps]

People are too lazy to set them up, and no, they don't require much planning at all

[@TheOnlyKingBee]

There is PvP in space engineers?

[@justicegaminginc]

yes, there are servers dedicated to pvp, plus you could invite your friends to your survival and creative saves if you want to do it that way

[@Wyzmar]

Yes, try checking out servers such as sigma draconis, skunkworks, stone industries, and Star Trek continuum. Those are the largest as of now

[@Andy-lo2cb]

@@Wyzmar which one should I join?

[@bromanhimen3468]

@@Wyzmar Check out Ligma Draconis for unforgettable admin abuse experience, STC is the most decent out of the ones you mentioned.

[@xXDXDXDDDXXXXDxDXDxdXDdDXDXDXD]

ok so theres oldkings ship. and then theres a bunch of pve ships. maybe point that out to not confuse your average driller

[@Wyzmar]

PvE Tragedy

[@Gxaps]

Gotta say, this isn't the meta I'm familiar with

[@lucakrokrowinkel9576]

Does rage know about this? Dude definitely needs some help.

[@thecheshire2334]

Decently informative but was pretty minimal on design choices and their effects. Typically i divide them into 3 sections: hull, command, and hangers. Hulls are typically determined by shape, but shape should have contrast in mind "the hide of a bear is thick and soft, but the mouth is one fangs and flesh". The general shapes come in three forms: The pillar, The Wedge, or The Theatre . •The Pillar design is one that minimizes frontal view, but limits opening fire. Often you can tier guns as remedy but the focus is heavy frontal defense and brutal side assaults. •The Theatre design is on of display! They're extensively wide/ tall as method of providing vast array of weapons spacing too ensure safety, but this is extremely vulnerable and is left for artillery. •The Wedge design is balance as it's frontal weapons are powerful and broadside is worthy, but often it extremely frontal focus leaves rear view insanely vulnerable. Command centers are where you perform the ships operation like a brain, but makes you as vulnerable as a brain. One shot can easily disable a ship and make it run it's course. Often recommendations are you design reserve or evolving designs of the three: The Bridge, The Face, or The Den. •The bridge is classic design of a exterior deck with vast view angles. While vulnerable they're also valued for providing unrivaled strategic awareness. •The Face is a half buried frontal command deck designed for a strong view, but still providing a object of weakness. Often a more balanced choice. •The Den is a deep comand structure where there's no viability, But unrivaled defense! Often this relies on networks of cameras which are vulnerable but still allows command even when blinded. Hangers are the cornerstone of response and come in mainly two designs: frontal or sides. •Frontal hangers are extremely fast responsive in which fighters can be sent like missiles providing powerful assistance. Problem is hangers can be vulnerable too on coming fire. •Side hangers are the opposite naturally providing slow disoriented deployment but allow vastly more safety. Many designs can be mixed and matched, but often they define your design as well as your approach.

[@Wyzmar]

I have another video coming out on designing warship shapes and such.

[@Phantom-gc2ns]

i have 1700 hours in a PVP server.. the simplest answer to what makes a good ship is overall REDUNDANCY to every system. WATCH THE WEIGHT OF UR SHIP.. unless its a space only ship USE BLAST DOOR ARMOR IF POSSIBLE. atmospheric ships = light armor Space only ships = heavy armor Atmos/space ships = Hybrid armor, lean more on light armor and leave heavy to cover CIC and Hydro systems. Weapon placement > turret spam Welders on thrusters is king ship design: Sniping ships: long ships Broadside ships: wide ships Sniping/Broadside: Wedge/dorito ships Put every damn important system of your ship in the back, never put anything useful in/on the front.

[@Gxaps]

> turret spam Kinda crazy that you haven't ran into spin to win in 1,700 hours

[@bread_loaf_boi]

Thank you wise one

[@christianmoore7932]

I hate how ugly pvp ships are. No effort just gun walls

[@Wyzmar]

“Bricks” lol

[@mastere6115]

Tbh, I've been trying to make a functional combat ship, though I am doing it around my general theme for ships I make, so it is somewhat limiting but it also is fun to try work out. Going to do some testing on thr current build later, but from the minor testing the other day it can take a hit but also dish them out, though it's speed could do with some work and probably more gats. So essentially, I am basing it around style and weapons. (it is purely vanilla admittedly)

[@bromanhimen3468]

The looks of the ship are defined by the mechanics imposed by the server you build it on.

[@kabagaida9744]

I guarantee you, for every bruh that makes a brick with grid limit guns on it, there is another bruh who makes a brick of refineries and assemblers and then parade it as a base or mining outpost or whatever PvE shit they might consider it Does that mean all PvE buidls are ugly? No

[@prometheus8010]

I would really like to see RWI capital ships in the capital ship video. I've modified them to be good

[@prometheus8010]

Review of RWI Vengeance armorment/firepower needed. 😂

[@prometheus8010]

Can I just say I Hate internal thruster banks, I prefer modded thrusters

[@Wyzmar]

But they are sooo goooooood ... lol

[@prometheus8010]

@wyzmar Modded wise hidden thrusters use repulsors but I prefer q tech mod pack for capital ships

[@Srcsqwrn]

I really, really don't like that, that emoji kept flashing on screen when you said "meta". I don't know if its a reference, or a meme or something, but I found it particularly annoying. Otherwise, I found the information in this to be pretty useful! I'm just trying to learn how to build ships in general, and I really like learning the different ways people construct their ships. c:

[@Someone-kc9mc]

It's a meme.

[@Debbiebabe69]

Why do you need weapons? There is no combat in space engineers, unless you count spiders/wolves. The best ship is the one that can most effectively drill into the earth/asteroid to get at underground metal seams without crashing into it, and can hold its bounty without struggling with thrust.

[@Wyzmar]

people play on servers or private worlds that have modular encounters to fight AI NPCs or also PvP Servers

[@Debbiebabe69]

@@Wyzmar thats what I dont get about this game. Space Engineers is a Zero-Combat game, but it has weapons you can put on ships. You *can* transform the game into a fighting game using mods, but in the base game there is No Combat yet you have weapons....

[@lukefauver1916]

@@Debbiebabe69 there is combat base game

[@Debbiebabe69]

@@lukefauver1916 How do you get combat? I have played through several times, and never seen anything to fight.

[@zwenkwiel816]

@@Debbiebabe69 there are AI drone ships you can fight (if it's enabled in world settings) but you really have to go out and look for them I think, they do have a whole faction and reputation system now but from what I've seen so far it's really shallow and basic. (kind of like the economy)

[@generalgrievous4771]

Keen Devs are laughing RN the fact people think this is a PVP game, imagine lol not the main focus of the game but I'll let you tell it since you work for Keen

[@Wyzmar]

You know there are a lot of PvP servers right? You think I work for keen XD

[@generalgrievous4771]

@Wyzmar wow to think you actually assumed I thought you work for Keen you really dumb or were you born that way?. Like who's man's is this???? Anyone

[@probition3421]

​@@generalgrievous4771 what the fuck

[@generalgrievous4771]

Yea like all the kids that play SE "more guns more better" it's a brick with guns lol I just make ships to have fun and redesign them if need be these kids can't build but call it a ship lol

[@Wyzmar]

Hey man, it ok to go your own way. Like I said in the video, if you like to design your ships differently to how I talk about them, then by all means do so

[@MrBlackdragon1230]

Sand box game General Grievous means play it YOUR way. If you like to play with gun bricks and slaughter npc's or other players then good.

[@hayden-corvustenno-warlock7062]

What the weapon mods are in the video? I'm joined very recently to community

[@Wyzmar]

It’s the Aryx weapon pack