How do you handle 'that' feeling?

[Mash]

No, not that feeling.

No, what I'm talking about is that special time during your FTB experience where you just feel... unmotivated. That feeling where you spend hours running in circles around your base, talking to yourself about all the things you're going to do... but never actually doing them. I like to play a little game through this last little episode I've been going through called, 'Let's see how much EU I can waste through my jetpack before doing something productive.'

So, what do you guys do to get past it? I know even the most artistic and creative people on this forum must have lapses in motivation and ingenuity from time to time.

Because, honestly, all I've been doing for the past week is screwing around on the internet arguing with people.

 

[Milaha]

No, not that feeling.

No, what I'm talking about is that special time during your FTB experience where you just feel... unmotivated. That feeling where you spend hours running in circles around your base, talking to yourself about all the things you're going to do... but never actually doing them. I like to play a little game through this last little episode I've been going through called, 'Let's see how much EU I can waste through my jetpack before doing something productive.'

So, what do you guys do to get past it? I know even the most artistic and creative people on this forum must have lapses in motivation and ingenuity from time to time.

Because, honestly, all I've been doing for the past week is screwing around on the internet arguing with people.

Stop working on my current project and work on a different one. This is common, it took me 3 goes to finally "finish" the Super Boiler nine thousand, and I still havent gone back to make it pretty (probably because I drop to about 3 fps when near it due to all the boiler animations). Or throw out my world and start a new one playing by different rules (almost always stronger than the last set). This is rare, but I might be approaching that point again.

 

[Mash]

Stop working on my current project and work on a different one. This is common, it took me 3 goes to finally "finish" the Super Boiler nine thousand, and I still havent gone back to make it pretty (probably because I drop to about 3 fps when near it due to all the boiler animations). Or throw out my world and start a new one playing by different rules (almost always stronger than the last set). This is rare, but I might be approaching that point again.

I've considered starting a new world... but I always back away from the idea as soon as I consider it. I'd need to get each of my soulshards again, which would be a massive pain in the ass.

I'm just having trouble thinking of a good project, honestly. The only thing I'm honestly good at is taking a concept and expanding it. Thinking up new systems of power or roundabout solutions to a problem has never been my strong suit. I'll probably have to move my base before I do that, anyways.

 

[PonyKuu]

Oh, I know that... And that happens to me very often. I know I can make some nice builds, but first I have to overcome that freaking apathy!
Let's say I want quantum suit. I know that I can make one more boiler, more steam turbines to speed up the fabrication process, but I'm just waiting and doing nothing productive... OK, I have quantum armor, but I'm afraid of Mystcraft ages. I have tier 5 blaze soulshard, and it sits in the chest and doing nothing. Recently I started a new world with Ultimate. Let's see if I can overcome that, because I'm starting to making progress in it.

 

[Mash]

Normally I'm against cheating shit in, but Soul Shards may become the exception to that rule.

The only thing worse than grinding out hundreds of the same mob for its materials is doing that... twice. The biggest, overwhelming factor to me hesitating to start a new world is the prospect that I'll lose my source of enderpearls, blaze rods, and experience.

 

[Milaha]

I've considered starting a new world... but I always back away from the idea as soon as I consider it. I'd need to get each of my soulshards again, which would be a massive pain in the ass.

Sounds like you use soul shards a lot. Try not using them at all and getting all the same production! (one idea might be to update MFR and use the auto-spawner, just gotta figure out how to get lots of mob essence without spawners.)

Trying new things is what is the most fun. There are so many great mods in FTB that we tend to focus on what is easiest at first, but exploring the other options and combining them in new ways can be a ton of fun too.

Thinking up new systems of power or roundabout solutions to a problem has never been my strong suit.

Practice makes perfect, and it is an excellent life skill as well. It is probably the single greatest skill games teach us. Learning a complex system of rules, and then figuring out how to work within them in different ways.

 

[PonyKuu]

That soulshard was made by grinding ONE spawner, so that was annoying, yes... And a great number of kills was made by simple sword, not soul stealer one... But I've got a lot of blaze rods from that... But, yeah. That was annoying. The funniest thing about it that I wanted it to make a bunch of Ender chests, blast furnace and fireboxes for a boiler that would run a MaassFab. But when I finally got tier 5 I had enough blaze rods to make all this stuff and also a handgun. And I made blast furnace and a boiler way before I got tier 5 shard, so I killed final blazes with quantum boots and leggings on me...

 

[Mash]

Sounds like you use soul shards a lot. Try not using them at all and getting all the same production! (one idea might be to update MFR and use the auto-spawner, just gotta figure out how to get lots of mob essence without spawners.)

Trying new things is what is the most fun. There are so many great mods in FTB that we tend to focus on what is easiest at first, but exploring the other options and combining them in new ways can be a ton of fun too.

I agree, and I've considered it.

The reason I haven't, is because one way or the other, I need those items to progress in Minecraft. The only other way to get the items is simply to well, grind them. Grinding is not particularly challenging... just tedious.

I do agree that trying new things is fun, though. I had a blast with boilers on this play through. I want to actually expand on the concept and have a biofuel buffer/production large enough to run like, 10+ boilers at once. Maybe even have some dry boilers with the excess wood from my tree farms.

After that I just need to think of a way to spend that massive amount of MJ...

Are power converters very efficient at converting MJ into eu? If so, I may just do that with my boilers. Have a few of them dedicated to running all of my EU machines. I don't know what the exact MJ/EU ratio is, but I think it's something like... 1 MJ for every 3 EU, right?

 

[Azzanine]

Play another game or do some real life stuff...

 

[Milaha]

The only other way to get the items is simply to well, grind them.

I disagree, and I will prove it. Give me one item you get from mob farms and I will give you at least 2 alternative automated (or semi-automated) renewable sources in the ultimate pack. (I am not certain about my ability to do this, but I think I will be able to).

Are power converters very efficient at converting MJ into eu? If so, I may just do that with my boilers. Have a few of them dedicated to running all of my EU machines. I don't know what the exact MJ/EU ratio is, but I think it's something like... 1 MJ for every 3 EU, right?

Arguably too efficient for the effort involved. 2.4 EU per MJ. Also very good is going straight from steam to EU (which is I think like 3x as good as using a turbine). I am using power converters a lot this game.

 

[Mash]

I disagree, and I will prove it. Give me one item you get from mob farms and I will give you at least 2 alternative automated (or semi-automated) renewable sources in the ultimate pack. (I am not certain about my ability to do this, but I think I will be able to).

Enderpearls, blaze rods, and gun powder would be the only three that I'd really NEED to finish most of the mods. Though, the gold from pigmen is certainly convenient, though that's not exclusive from them, either.

Arguably too efficient for the effort involved. 2.4 EU per MJ. Also very good is going straight from steam to EU (which is I think like 3x as good as using a turbine). I am using power converters a lot this game.

Oh wow!

I did not know you could convert straight from steam. That is outstanding. I actually wanted to use steam turbines before... but automation was always an issue, as I'd have to keep my steam production going pretty consistently to replace the rotors.

 

[Bagman817]

I've been pretty happy with Ultimate so far in that regard. When I reach a boredom threshold, I dive into another mod that I'm not familiar with. Started with a pretty basic IC2/TE/BC set up, then I started messing around with Forestry auto-farms, then a Steve's Cart tree farm and mining cart. Lately, I added an AE system, and started fooling around with extra bees machines (both of which required some fairly significant upgrades in my power infrastructure). Found a Portal Gun, and spent a day kidnapping villagers for my interment camp resort town. Still haven't really touched MFR or Twilight Forest. Also need to upgrade my Forestry farms to multi-blocks before the 1.5 update deletes my existing ones (granted, I probably have a few weeks before I need to worry about that, lol).

To do list: Nuclear Reactor, quarry over a TF large mound, Fusion Reactor (oh God, why?), stop by and take the Ender Dragon's lunch money (because, why not?), finish the Gravisuit, build a windmill or 3 for the skyline, increase my Pure Aura Node from 650 to 1000 (again, why not?), build a monorail around my base, build an inverted skyscraper in one of my quarry pits (wand of Equal Trade will help a lot, but still going to need to craft umpteen million bricks of some sort), perhaps do something with the hallway of infinite hallways my cart miner is making (again, millions of bricks), make a *controlled* production line for 64k storage cells (anyone else been trolled by Xycraft Fabricators? "No! Just 1, not 40!"). The list is ever growing.

Oh, and one day I should make a roof for my base =)

 

[Mash]

Bees are actually something I have never done in any depth. Nuclear Reactors as well.

The two things are just sort of... daunting. Nuclear Reactors I've never really looked into, but I've seen how complicated Bees are and that's just... wow. Wowowow.

Although, Bees would be a fascinating alternative to certain things...

 

[Milaha]

Enderpearls, blaze rods, and gun powder would be the only three that I'd really NEED to finish most of the mods. Though, the gold from pigmen is certainly convenient, though that's not exclusive from them, either.

Enderpearls: bees. Who does not love doctoral bees. Also centrifuging lava, then centrifuge the electrum, then convert 1 gold > 8 iron > 2 ender pearls via EE3. Neither option is as fast as a mob farm, but I know from experience that an enderman farm produces WAY more than you need, so slower is fine.

Blaze rods: So many options here. Cinderpearl to start then the infinite EE3 > maceration chain. Never even have to kill a blaze or go to the nether. Also bees directly, also bees via the magic flower pollination (would be neat to set up some auto-harvesting in this case, might be a fun project).

Gunpowder: Bees of course. Also Xenos, also the recipe with saltpeter, sulfer, and coal/charcoal dust (all of which can be automated). This is the only one you need in huge quantities thanks to GT, so it would be a fun project to set it up to get the output you need.


So that is a no-mob solution. For intermediate mob (less work than making soul shards of each) solutions may I suggest a domestic animal soul shard. Breed them automatically via MFR (which will let density increase to crazy amounts, unlike the railtcraft option) and then walk in with a nice vile sword and click like crazy for just a few minutes. Use domestic animal shard to provide the mob essence for auto-spawners for the resources as you need them. Less grind, less setup time, more appropriate for the amount of resources you actually need. (not in the FTB version of MFR though, so no go till we see a patch if on a server and unable to do an update yourself)

 

[Bagman817]

Bees are actually something I have never done in any depth. Nuclear Reactors as well.

The two things are just sort of... daunting. Nuclear Reactors I've never really looked into, but I've seen how complicated Bees are and that's just... wow. Wowowow.

Although, Bees would be a fascinating alternative to certain things...

Bees are great fun, although a huge time sink. Find something to do while waiting for bees to die, lol. Once you can get Imperial and Industrious bees going, however, you can start making the Extra Bees machines which will allow some genetic manipulation, eliminating a fair bit of the tedium (spoiler alert: Marbled Bees have a trait you very much want to bottle, Rocky Bees have 3). If you want to figure out everything completely on your own, well, plan on several IRL days of trial and error research. Personally, I don't have the patience for it, so I'd recommend some research on YouTube, and the vital Master Apiarist's Database https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AgYOUdPlRXN-dEpUOUtKdDNqa29DN0cyam45Mlo5N3c#gid=3. Also, go farm yourself a bunch of Cocoa. Chocolate Frames are a breeder's best friend.

 

[Sneeria]

But Ender pearls and blaze rods are so much easier to get with EE3

 

[PCPuddin]

mash I totally agree with what your sayin man, atm I'm going through the exact same thing I'm thinking of delving into the depths of gregtech which may alleviate the problem

 

[NTaylor]

Enderpearls: bees. Who does not love doctoral bees. Also centrifuging lava, then centrifuge the electrum, then convert 1 gold > 8 iron > 2 ender pearls via EE3. Neither option is as fast as a mob farm, but I know from experience that an enderman farm produces WAY more than you need, so slower is fine.

Blaze rods: So many options here. Cinderpearl to start then the infinite EE3 > maceration chain. Never even have to kill a blaze or go to the nether. Also bees directly, also bees via the magic flower pollination (would be neat to set up some auto-harvesting in this case, might be a fun project).

Gunpowder: Bees of course. Also Xenos, also the recipe with saltpeter, sulfer, and coal/charcoal dust (all of which can be automated). This is the only one you need in huge quantities thanks to GT, so it would be a fun project to set it up to get the output you need.


So that is a no-mob solution. For intermediate mob (less work than making soul shards of each) solutions may I suggest a domestic animal soul shard. Breed them automatically via MFR (which will let density increase to crazy amounts, unlike the railtcraft option) and then walk in with a nice vile sword and click like crazy for just a few minutes. Use domestic animal shard to provide the mob essence for auto-spawners for the resources as you need them. Less grind, less setup time, more appropriate for the amount of resources you actually need. (not in the FTB version of MFR though, so no go till we see a patch if on a server and unable to do an update yourself)

Also in gregtech at least all of those items can be made with UU matter.

In IC2 without gredtech you could make gunpowder directly and enderpearls by making iron ore then macerate -> cook -> EE3 to pearl.

 

[southernfriedbb]

If you don't want grind the soulshards for the mobs you want, MFR auto spawner is probably your best option. it's slower, but it and a few safari nets will get you there. As an added bonus the auto spawner mobs can be used for filling up soulshards with less hassle. A MFR cattle farm with about 10 cows with a breeder, a couple of cronotypers, and a grinder will get you started producing mob essence (and meat and leather). As an added bonus if you use sewage collectors below your cattle pen you can use the sewage to create fertilizer for an MFR farm.

 

[Saice]

No, what I'm talking about is that special time during your FTB experience where you just feel... unmotivated.

I go do something else. And I mean something other then Minecraft. I find a lot of my motivation and ideas happen when I'm no were near MC. I'll be derping it up in say Dark Souls and be all. OH man you know what I need... a mage tower! and I'll start thinking about that. Then when I pop on MC agian I got all these ideas and I am ready to go.