Design Concept

[Dyonovan]

Place things below and this top section will combine them...

[Dominance]

Overall theory

So to expand upon the game play while keeping most of Immersive engineers already good balance, We need ages similar to Gregtech. Some recipes within IE will need to be adjusted but not many. First thing to tackle would be the Alloys needed to craft the multiblocks needed to progress.

As it is right now Immersive Engineering has Copper but does not generate Tin and or make use of a bronze alloy. I think IE lacks a bit of early game and is normally bypassed for simpler mods at first because of this. So to make a bronze/steam age that can really fill 5 or so hours worth of gameplay and have some features that may last much further in game. Like Bronze steam / fluid pipes. To make this early game viable we need to have a new block like a crucible to make this new allow and eliminate the existing starting blast furnace and replace it with a bronze style blast furnace with steam bellows. Also enforce the need for Medium voltage and electric preheaters on the advance existing blast furnace. Also to limit the production of aluminum to the advanced blast furnace to tier off recipes and progression. Same method goes for the Arc furnace by enforcing the need for HV and the need to process a certain type of alloy needed for the advance portion of the mod.

Bronze Age / Steam / Mechanical

So we need to make this a attractive option. More so than gregtechs grind of just wanting to get past it ASAP. Steampunk technology without to much science fiction evolved. First of all as for the progression side of it we will need to have a blast furnace that consist of bronze technology such as a steam engine and a Blowing engine

One thing we need to also address during this initial age is some sort of 3x3 miner, Maybe even just a 2x2 steam powered mining drill that requires pressurized steam tanks you wear in your chest slot. This of course would be a nerfed version of the existing modular mining drill. As it is right now you dont get a 3x3 miner until MUCH later in the game with default Immersive Engineering and because of this other mods like tinkers shine.

[Dominance]

Just posting this here so we dont loose it in the depths of discord chat. Leagris has some great input

leagris - Today at 9:13 AM
I am not familar enough with IE to deep value it in term of progression. Though I can agree with what you wrote
The second steam engine picture is a very early steam engine that uses low pressure very large pistons. Design was from James Watt and was quite fast replaced by high pressure steam boilers and small pistons, those used for automotive steam powered vehicles.
High pressure steam won and was used for everything.
The Watt steam engine still remained in activity in London for pumping water for several years. One is kept in a museum.
That mean I would prefer a small piston, large inertial wheel industrial power steam engine
I'd also like instead of piping steam into small engines we use cams and belts to transmit rotational power to various machineries like it was done in the early 19s
So one big multiblock steam engine with belts and cams to transmit power.
Axial transmission with cam axis, perpendicular transmission with belt on wheel
And then sure you will not power a blast furnace with steam 😃
But powering the macerator or some tooled engineer workbench is ok with the steam engine.
You would also be able to use Windmill and Whatermil rotational power directly
Or attach weels to a simple axis
I'd add a sawmill also
give extra planks and sawdust from logs
no stupid lubricant. I know no sawmill using lubricant to cut wood.
See this about Steam Powered Workshop https://ixquick-proxy.com/do/spg/show_picture.pl?l=francais&rais=1&oiu=https%3A%2F%2Fs-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com%2F564x%2F30%2F5c%2F2b%2F305c2bf22910c3d805c8f1a25f38af3b.jpg&sp=7e2483dddd70a52df98a7dc704c5b590
Dominance - Today at 9:46 AM
Well one thing I didnt like about IE was no early game x2 ore processing.
The only one is a huge multiblock crusher, So something like a macerator with a chance to not do x2 or something for balance would be great.
As if we add a inital step to even the default IE it will push out the crusher to even further in the game.
One thing about IE is 90% of it requires Iron or steel but still requires you mining Iron in large quantities. If we where todo a gregtech / Harder Ores inspired ore gen it wouldnt be so bad,
But vanilla ore gen is terrible without a 3x3 miner thats for sure.
And yeah a Steam Jack would be good. Not really a saw mill but more of a log spliter.
A saw mill does require some sort of lube, without it the blade would warp as it heated up pretty quickly
So you would have the steam jack which is more or less a Press with a semi sharp end. Splits the logs and the you use the split logs in something like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IW-ErJEwk0
YouTube
Jer N
Belt Driven Wood Planer

That would go well with the belt / pully power system