Dynamic Construct

Dynamic Constructs

A dynamic construct is one that is not permanently attached to the environment where it is placed and can me moved with the correct permissions either by externally moving the construct with the maneuver tool or by adding the correct elements e.g. Engines. A dynamic construct requires a dynamic core unit of an appropriate size. To view dynamic constructs purely as ships would be misleading, some of the community created constructs using a dynamic core include; sailboats, cars, trains, hot air balloons. If you wish to create a construct that moves, a dynamic core and some imagination is all that is needed.

Physics Engine

All the physics in Dual Universe are performed on the client with the vectors saved to the server. This means that nothing moves unless there is someone near it. All players engage in physics calculations when in range. If a player's ship is falling through the atmosphere and they log off, the ship will freeze until the player or another player comes online and is in the range of the construct.

Basic Elements of Flight

The most prevalent use of a dynamic construct is for atmospheric or space flight. There are essential elements required to enable a players construct to fly, some of these elements work only in atmosphere and some only in space, understanding the basics of ship construction will help you select the correct elements. After placing a dynamic core there are six requirements to build ships for flight; Control, Torque, Fuel, Force, Brake and Lift.

Elements for flight

Requirement	Image	Element	Description
Control		Hover Seat	Non enclosed flight seat
		Cockpit	Enclosed flight seat
		Command Seat	Flight command seat
		Remote Control	Enables pilot to remotely control ship
Torque		Adjustors	Provides adjustment of yaw, pitch and roll. Works in atmosphere and space, does not require fuel
Fuel		Atmospheric	Tank for atmospheric fuel
		Space	Tank for space fuel
		Rocket	Tanks for rocket fuel
Force		Atmospheric Engine	Works in atmosphere and requires atmospheric fuel
		Space Engine	Works in space and < 10% atmosphere, requires space fuel
		Rocket Engine	Works in space and atmosphere, providing high thrust for short periods. Requires rocket fuel
Brake		Atmospheric Brake	Works in Atmosphere only and does not require fuel
		Retro Rocket Brake	Works in space only and does not require fuel
Lift - Low Altitude		Hover Engine	Requires atmospheric fuel and works in atmosphere only
		Vertical Booster	Requires space fuel and works in atmosphere and space
Lift - High Altitude		Wing	High altitude lift with high lift factor
		Aileron	High altitude lift with high drag factor
		Stabilizer	Provides lift in horizontal plane and stabilizes drift when placed vertically

A great majority of ships fly in both space and atmosphere so will need a combination of one or more, and sometimes all of these elements. Building a space-only ship will not require the Atmosphere elements and likewise atmosphere ships do not need space elements. Dynamic constructs that do not need lift for example Cars will not usually need wings.

The starter hovercraft is a example of an atmosphere only ship that has all the requirements for flight, albeit without any high altitude lift and is considered a ground vehicle.

You will notice in the image the stabilizers are vertical, providing no high altitude lift, but preventing lateral drift, by moving the stabilizers to a horizontal position the speeder can maintain a higher altitude. For more details on lift, drag and drift see the section on Airfoils

There are a variety of associated flight support elements that are not mandatory, but assist in flight mechanics.

Flight Support Elements

Image	Element	Function
	Telemeter	Detects the distance to the closest object
	Gyroscope	Can modify the forward attitude of core
	Emergency Control Unit	Provides emergency maneuvering capabilities

When choosing voxels for the structure of the ship the player will need to take into account the weight and resistances to damage of the materials they use. Alternatively the player may choose not to use voxels at all on their dynamic construct.

Ship construction can become and in depth subject and while the above information may provide a brief guide, a more detailed study can be found under Ship Building Guide and will include subjects on cross-section, sustentation speed, brake force and inertia matrix

Limitations

One of the major limitations of a dynamic core is that a player cannot deploy industry or mining units on the construct.