Jonas Spatial Compresser (Hyperspace storage with a catch)

[eMander]

Relocating long distances can be quite the ordeal in vintage story, especially after a player has established themselves, and now has an extensive inventory at their base. Though something akin to Minecraft's Shulker Box would go a long way towards easing that burden, it would also trivialize a lot of the challenge vintage story is known for; even if its a late game item. So if something like that were to be introduced, there would need to be a limiting factor that prevents it from being too convenient.

My idea for this is the Jonas Spatial Compressor, a late game item with a recipe similar to other Jonas tech. It would be able to hold as much as a 1-block chest, but also be picked up and placed in an ordinary inventory slot with all its items still inside. However, even after its crafted, the process to do this would require a wait time:

The compressor will need to be first placed on the ground and items placed inside. The interface screen for the spatial compressor would resemble that of a typical wooden chest, except there would also be an additional temporal gear slot, and a 'compress' button in the corner. Once the desired items are placed inside, and a single temporal gear provided to fuel it, this button can be pressed. Now, the compressor will need to sit for 5 in-game days before it is ready to be collected. The items inside will be viewable but inaccessible. Breaking the compressor before this time has elapsed will cancel the compression process and reset the timer, as well as drop much of its items, but there will be a chance of some of the items stored inside being lost if it is broken prematurely.

Once the time has elapsed, the compressor's physical block will appear smaller, and can be collected by breaking. All items stored will remain inside, regardless of whether the compressor is placed on the ground, held in the player's inventory, or dropped as an item. Additionally, when on the ground, it can still be right clicked to view its contents, but the contents will remain view-only.

Once the player has moved the compressor to the destination location, they can press a 'decompress' button on its interface (temporal gear is only required for compression, not decompression). The decompression process will require another 5 in-game days to complete. Breaking the block during this time will cancel the process and reset the timer as with compression, but items inside will not be lost. Once decompression is finished, the items will once again be accessible, and may be unpacked.

 

I figure this wait time, in addition to the temporal gear cost, would be a good counterbalance to the convenience of their usage. Rather than something a player could use on a whim to have a massively-oversized inventory, it would require planning ahead, and only be feasible for a larger-scale move to a new long-term residence or outpost.

Of course, the exact wait time and the number of item slots in a single compressor may need to be tuned to better balance it, but I'd say this is a good start.