Structures
From Neverend
Players can build structures with sufficient supplies and skill. Structures use various building blocks that create elaborate buildings and cities when placed properly. Oddly placed structures will have natural openings to attack, and be less desirable.
Structures come in the form of building pieces, walls, streets, siege weapons (ballista, catapult), and contraptions (elevator). Structures have a base size, and when built larger than base size, they become weaker and have less defense and HP. The only solution is to use stronger building materials, which takes more resources, time, effort, and skill. This provides balance between low tech cities and high tech cities, as low tech can create more structures faster and easier.
graphics are abstracted much like an RTS, so a damaged building will show signs of damage when hit, but on a generalized basis to the location of the attack and the severity. The graphics displayed are an estimate of damage done, type of damage (fire, piercing, bash) and may be innacurate at times. The calculation priority is given to gameplay statistics, while graphics query statistics to generate results. So a building at full health will appear normal, while a building with 35 percent damage will look relatively damaged, and eighty percent damaged will look highly damaged. The same applies to building creation, as material points are added, the building has an abstracted construction graphic that appears accurate but is only an approximation of percentage complete.
after graphics abstraction phase, graphics become "real" 3D models with full interaction. When a building is being constructed, it is an abstract representation of being completed, so you can't climb through windows or walls. When it is completed or construction has halted, it stops abstracting and becomes an accurate model representation, thus you can climb through holes just fine. Abstraction is used when objects are being created or damaged, or when graphics cards need to process less data when too many objects exist.
