Character Overlay

Character Overlay is a block-level interface element that visually renders HUD information about characters (units and enemies) on top of the game world. It displays status effects, health, shielding or armor, and active buffs or debuffs so players can quickly assess individual combatants without opening unit panels. The overlay integrates with the game's status-effect and item/liquid interaction systems to show conditions such as burning, melting, freezing, tarred, radioactivity effects, and other modifiers that affect movement, damage over time, or resource interactions.

The overlay appears wherever characters are present and updates in real time as units receive damage, are affected by liquids or items, or gain temporary abilities. It reflects liquid-applied status effects: any liquid whose data specifies a status effect will have that effect shown on the overlay when a character is hit by or standing in that liquid (for example, Lava’s melting effect). Item-based properties that alter an entity (such as flammability, explosiveness, or radioactivity-related behaviors) are also represented visually when they affect a character. Numeric values that influence gameplay—such as hardness, viscosity, heat capacity, fluxiness, combustibility, or build cost—are not directly shown unless they manifest as an active status or effect on the character.

Practical usage and interactions:

• Burning and melting effects applied by liquids (Lava, Oil when ignited) appear immediately and show remaining duration; burning damage and melting progression are visible so players can prioritize extinguishing or finishing off affected units.
• Freezing and tarred effects reduce movement speed and are displayed with duration counters; these overlays help time turret focus fire against slowed air or fast ground units.
• Radioactivity and heat-related effects (from reactors or hot liquids) that alter a unit’s behavior or damage over time are shown so players can judge when an enemy is weakened or when friendly units are in danger near energy sources.
• Explosive or highly flammable materials carried or attached to characters are indicated when they can alter incoming damage profiles (for instance, units set on fire by Pyratite or Blast Compound will show the burning status).
• The overlay updates with armor/shield values and visible health bars, allowing players to allocate repair, healing, or focus-fire more effectively during waves.
• Because status effects often originate from environmental sources (liquids, blocks, weapons), protecting distribution and storage blocks that hold flammable or explosive materials remains important; the overlay helps track spreading fires or chain reactions as they affect nearby characters.
• High-viscosity or slow-flowing liquids produce persistent local effects; the overlay will continue to reflect status on units standing in those puddles until they move away or the liquid disperses.
• Heat-capacity interactions (cooling/heating from liquids) manifest indirectly via status changes shown on affected characters; use overlays to monitor how liquids like coolant are mitigating reactor or weapon heat effects on units.

The Character Overlay is therefore a concise, actionable readout of how in-world mechanics influence individual units. It ties together liquid status propagation, item properties, and environmental hazards into a single visual layer so players can make rapid tactical decisions during base defense and offensive operations.