Wireless Modem Recipe Changed?

This is more directed towards ComputerCraft staff, but if anyone else knows please speak up.

I'm wondering why the recipe for the wireless modem was changed to require an ender pearl instead of the redstone torch?

Hunting endermen to get the pearl for a wireless network of 20+ computers/turtles is a nightmare. That's quite a step up in price per wireless modem if you ask me…

I mean the rest of CC is fairly cheap (except maybe for the gold needed for advanced stuff, especially on FTB, but that is still fair) - just doesnt make much sense to me, that wireless modems have been stepped that much up. I never have much luck getting any ender pearls ..

It's making the wired modems more viable, Otherwise you could just use rednet wit hthe same functionality(kinda)

Regardless of how well the recipe is balanced, ender pearls can me made from four iron ingots using a minium stone from EE3, which should be in most FTB packs. That should make things a little easier.

@Xyexs
Yea I get what you are saying Xyexs, but wires and turtles don't mix at all - hence: wireless.

@Kingdaro
I really should look more into EE3. Thanks for that tip.

…

I still think that ender pearls is a horrible choice …

Thanks to both of you for taking the time - appreciate it :)/>

It was just a balancing attempt. Plus all the other mods are using ender-esque stuff to do wireless transmission and storage, so it kinda just matches in with that really.

Plus, with the addition of wired modems, what would you have made that recipes? Oh also, heaps of people complain that CC is too cheap…

I get the idea of trying to make wired modems more viable - cheap to make, wires are easy to come by and such. I'm all for that, don't get me wrong. Except wires and turtles don't mix - i.e.: wired modems for turtles = useless <=> requires wireless modems for turtles. This again requires at least one computer with a wireless modem, plus one wireless per turtle … you get the picture.

But: as you yourself are pointing out so well my friend, ender pearls are used for a ton of other things already.

If CC wants to balance the wireless modems more expensively and harder to get, compared to wired modems, then use a different mineable material instead. Use a diamond or better yet an emerald (requires more intense mining in a specific biome) instead. Everything else in CC can be mined or grown and does not require mob hunting. Wireless modems do and that's what doesnt make any sense to me at all …
Real life wireless transmission things use crystals to generate wireless radio frequencies, so where does the teleporting thing fit in, in this picture?

Maybe I'm just too braindead on this point, sorry.

Ender pearls have always eluded me. Efter since they were added in vanilla, I have a total collected amount of only 58 pearls collected in who knows how many hours of game play. 58 total! Not as if lady luck has ever smiled in my direction, when I'm hunting endermen. I guess she hates me or something :P/>

Anyways - there's no way CC will change that recipe again, so I guess this is just blowing off some steam.

Thanks for the feedback all … I'll go waste 5 days hunting endermen …

Sharidan, on 25 July 2013 - 12:19 PM said:

I get the idea of trying to make wired modems more viable - cheap to make, wires are easy to come by and such. I'm all for that, don't get me wrong. Except wires and turtles don't mix - i.e.: wired modems for turtles = useless <=> requires wireless modems for turtles. This again requires at least one computer with a wireless modem, plus one wireless per turtle … you get the picture.

But: as you yourself are pointing out so well my friend, ender pearls are used for a ton of other things already.

If CC wants to balance the wireless modems more expensively and harder to get, compared to wired modems, then use a different mineable material instead. Use a diamond or better yet an emerald (requires more intense mining in a specific biome) instead. Everything else in CC can be mined or grown and does not require mob hunting. Wireless modems do and that's what doesnt make any sense to me at all …
Real life wireless transmission things use crystals to generate wireless radio frequencies, so where does the teleporting thing fit in, in this picture?

Maybe I'm just too braindead on this point, sorry.

Ender pearls have always eluded me. Efter since they were added in vanilla, I have a total collected amount of only 58 pearls collected in who knows how many hours of game play. 58 total! Not as if lady luck has ever smiled in my direction, when I'm hunting endermen. I guess she hates me or something :P/>

Anyways - there's no way CC will change that recipe again, so I guess this is just blowing off some steam.

Thanks for the feedback all … I'll go waste 5 days hunting endermen …

Maybe go to the end? in most packs they have soul shards? There are a lot of ways to get ender pearls

Sharidan, on 25 July 2013 - 12:19 PM said:

Real life wireless transmission things use crystals to generate wireless radio frequencies, so where does the teleporting thing fit in, in this picture?

How much of Minecraft actually is realistic…………

Also as Lord_Spelunky stated, go to the end… also EE3 gives you a way to get enderpearls. There are also other mods that add in ways to get enderpearls… Dartcraft adds ender tots, which are baby enderman that when killed summon the parents. Thats a chance of 3 pearls there. Also, using vanilla mechanics get a looting (or whatever it is called) enchant on a sword to increase the enderpearl drops.

Like I said: 58 total since ender pearls were first added. Not like lady luck has been on my side in terms of drop chances even with a Looting sword. Usually they teleport away from me just before they die and it seems I just don't have the luck to find the spot they died in, before the 5 minute despawn time is up. Too bad for me :)/>

I play on two different server setups. One of them is FTB (direwolf package) and the other one is a vanilla + CC.

First one is still running with the old recipe (the redstone torch), so until it gets updated to the new recipe there's no problem and once it updates, I can swap over and craft the pearls.

Now on the second one, the vanilla+cc only, it's a completely different story. I can't exactly craft ender pearls there, because there are no other mods installed. (It was because of this second server setup, that I realised the recipe had changed because he's running the latest CC)

Anyways … thanks everyone. There's no point in continuing this any further.

if i would remake the recipe then it would be:
——————————–
|Stone | RS torch | Stone |
——————————–
|Stone | Ender Pe | Stone |
——————————–
|Stone | Stone | Stone |
——————————–

and it would give you 2 modems

The recipe feels well-balanced to me. Ender pearls are used in other mods as frequency generators/teleportation components, so their use in wireless modems is a sensible way to steer players toward wired infrastructure, especially in permanent locations. Mining turtles (the primary use for them) don't require modem communication at all. Investment in progression through the rest of the minecraft gameplay being the barrier to superior automation and interconnectivity is a sensible design choice.

Lyqyd, on 25 July 2013 - 02:44 PM said:

-snip-

Well said… whole-heartedly agree!

I would agree with the decision to make wireless modems require ender pearls if wireless modems had an infinite range like other wireless tech mods that use ender pearls. Right now, with the limited range, it seems that it would be more sensible to use iron or gold.