Resource Brainstorming

A new one for the organic list.

Resource: Dye
Description: A coloured substance that has an affinity to the substrate to which it is being applied. Generally applied in an aqueous solution. Allows colouration of fabrics.
Sources: Animal, vegetable, or mineral origin. Most however come from plants.

We should also include sources of food here as well. This would depend on the organisms present on the planet, but places that are good for the growth of certain crops or the ranching of certain animals would become very important strategically, especially very early on in the game. These should be put into a few categories for the sake of our programmers (I'm not doing these like resources, since I lack the time to do so);
Small herd animals (Sheep and goats here)
Large herd animals (Cows)
Fruit trees (Apples and Oranges here)
Fruit bushes/vines (Raspberries and tomatoes here)
Grains (Wheat, oats, and barley here)
Game (any wild animals really)
Large aquatic animals (Whales here)
There should also be an option for fishing to take advantage of the food sources in the ocean (On a side note, this would be especially useful for a carnivorous species to be able to set up a civilization int he first place)

I think that is big enough of an idea to deserve its own thread. However, much of that has to do with soil fertility and biodiversity.

There should be an agricultural thread WHEN THE TIME IS RIGHT

Would plastic count? :S
Resource: Plastic
Description:A synthetic material made from a wide range of organic polymers; Can be molded into various shapes, impervious to water, easy to manufacture, slow decay rate
Sources: made from distilled oil

Perfect! I was jsut thinking of adding plastic myself!

I'll add it under synthetics...

Resource: Aluminum
Description: silvery white, relatively soft, durable, lightweight metal. It is nonmagnetic and does not easily ignite.
Source: Extraction from bauxite ore.

Resource: Steel
Description: mostly iron alloy; varies in ductility, hardness, etc.
Source: smelting of iron ore followed by mixture with other materials

Resource: Milk
Description: a usually potable fluid produced in mammary glands.
Source: mammary glands of any mammal.

@StarMage42; mammals are likely unique to earth, so putting milk would be a bad idea. However, if an animal can produce an edible substance form an organ it possesses, that should be play a part in the game.

I think a good generalization would to have food as a resource, no matter where its gathered from.

I think we should have customizable food, or at least food separated into different categories, but ok. We'll figure that out later, maybe...

I think for food the main categories are probably meat, fruit, vegetable, seafood, and a category to cover seeds and nuts. This list is more for durable goods than foodstuffs.

Sorry for the double post, but I got an addition for the resource list.

Resource: Rubber
Description: An artificial elastomer, meaning that it can undergo much more elastic deformation under stress than most materials and still return to its original state without permanent deformation.
Sources: Factory production.

Anybody know how rubber is produced, as in its source?

Wikipedia wrote:

Natural rubber, also called India Rubber or Caoutchouc, is a mixture of organic compound polyisoprene and small amounts of other organic compounds as well as water. This polymer is the main component. This material is classified as an elastomer (an elastic polymer). It is derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants are ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined into a usable rubber. Polyisoprene can also be produced synthetically. Natural rubber is used extensively in many applications and products, as is synthetic rubber. It is normally very stretchy and flexible and extremely waterproof.

First paragraph on its Wikipedia page.

I think we're missing something incredibly critical; oil!

Resource: Oil
Description: A black liquid made from plants subject to heat and pressure underground. It's essential for powering many vehicles and manufacturing plastics.
Sources: Underground deposits in sedimentary rock.

First I would like to say that Rubber is refined sticky resin from Rubber trees. The first recource I would like to add would be lumber which can be used with a lumber camp. Lumber is the most basic recource because it is used for biulding and is used for weapons. I want to make suhat you include the metals like iron, copper, tin, and aluminum. Which are used in building progects, weapons, and electronics.

Please read the original post before posting.

Don't forget cotton for wool. So possible to get it also from plants.

Yes thats a good point, but how would we define to a computer which parts of the plant can be used for cotton? We have to set basic parameters to identify certain plant matter that qualifies as cotton or a substance similar to it.

Sorry for the double post, but could someone please check the OP and help me with the incomplete resources?

Based on your descriptions, the sources would be:

• Limestone - sedimentary, many composed of decayed skeletal fragments: Planet surface & mines (increased in areas with high concentrations of multicellular life in the past)
  
• Granite - igneous: Volcanoes
  
• Marble - metamorphic: Deep underground (mines)

As for the cotton thing, can it not be solved with the use of a part/paint/property-tag? (Yup, I really don't know much about cotton )

Titanium (Very robust material. Could be used for very advanced alloys and also for the space travel)

Silver Sterling wrote:

Titanium (Very robust material. Could be used for very advanced alloys and also for the space travel)

Source: CORNWALL! All over the place, in rocks (including meteorites), particularly igneous rocks.
Source of knowledge of source: Wikipedia.

Ah thx, forgot about this part.

Lead (Used for radiation shielding (fission reactor, projectile weapons and as weight [heavy building material)
Source: Common metal. Found in ore, normaly in compounds with other minerals)

@Silver Sterling: Thanks for the suggestions, I added them to the list.

@The Uteen: But how would you identify to the computer what conditions qualify a certain part of a plant as being "cottony"? Is cotton just a specific type of plant fiber that spins well into cloth? I apologize for my ignorance of biology.

@Everyone: Is it too "Earthy" to put "poisonous to organisms in certain amounts" as a descriptive quality of lead? (Now my ignorance of chemistry/biology showing through.)

I think we could add poisonous for organisms in it. Because we only building on carbon based life (there are rumors, that there are also silicon based lifeforms out, but we actually don't know enough from other organisms to implement them in the game [A lot of fun for the modder ;)]). So to get to the point, i think much of the elements would be act to the lifeforms like they do on earth. So we already know how the reaction is of the materials and that it most likely woudn't change if we stay by carbon lifeforms.

For additional materials, we have a whole period system, but we should only include materials, we really need and should also use a simplified system. thats also how i tought about the materials. Some materials would a bit difficult to sort out.

First i get a list about detailed materials. Could be to detailed for the game, but i get them here for the brainstorming:

Spoiler:

So here the usable stuff of the list:

Hydrogen (Usable as fuel for burning directly, in hydrogen oxygen fuel cell, or in fusion reactors)
Oxygen (Lifeforms need it, if they intend to breathe)
source: Hydrogen from gas giants and both from water

Nitrogen (cooling and extinguishing)
source: Atmosphere

Noble Gases [like Helium] (Lifting gas [ballons, etc.], reaction gas [light sources], later gases to create plasma as example for ion engines)

So here also an idea how the materials could be used in technologies:

Spoiler:

The supraconductors gets to another materials:

Mercury (producing of metalic supraconductors. extremly poisonic and liquid metal)
source: (cinnabar crystals near vulcans and hot springs)

Thats actually my way to get new materials.