Game Mechanics The Sun

[The1DarkLord]

Right now, the sun travels from west to east. That's backwards. I'd just like it to be flipped to the correct direction. It should rise in the east and set in the west. Same with the moon.

That's all.

 

[critcodedtuna]

This bothered me for a while when I first noticed it, but is easy to reconcile. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west for us because the Earth rotates on its axis counter-clockwise. Since Terrarian worlds aren't Earth, perhaps they rotate clockwise instead, making it non-issue. If that's the case,the only thing that might really be out of whack is the order of the moon phases. I'm not sure a super-realistic astronomical model is really that necessary though, since it doesn't add anything particularly meaningful to the game. I'm totally fine with it the way it is.

 

[Alabaster]

I think that the west>east sun pattern is kinda like the path of nearly every game ever. For some reason most sprites and the starting position in Terraria point to the east, so I guess it just makes it fit in. But this change is so easy to tweak I don't see a reason not to or to do it at all.

 

[Bethany]

The sun rises in the east and sets in the west for us because the Earth rotates on its axis counter-clockwise. Since Terrarian worlds aren't Earth, perhaps they rotate clockwise instead, making it non-issue.

Can't be. By definition a body's north pole is the one that, when an observer looks down on it, the planet is seen to rotate counter-clockwise. This means east is always the direction of sunrise. The game's just plain wrong on this.

Should it be changed? I think so, but it doesn't "bother" me.

 

[critcodedtuna]

Can't be. By definition a body's north pole is the one that, when an observer looks down on it, the planet is seen to rotate counter-clockwise.

My understanding of "north pole" is where the axis of a spinning body intersects with the surface, upward relative to the invariable plane of the solar system (how the IAU defines it). That doesn't say anything about the direction of rotation. Most of the planets in our solar system do rotate counter-clockwise relative to the north pole, except for Venus which rotates clockwise -- which would make the sun appear to track in the opposite direction when observed from the same relative position.

This means east is always the direction of sunrise. The game's just plain wrong on this.

I'll concede this one on the basis of etymology, but not rotation. The modern word east indicates the direction to us primarily because it derives from the Greek ēōs, "dawn". So yeah, calling the apparent right side "east" where the sun sets goes against our agreed upon notions of "east" and "west". But then, Terraria is a world with unicorns, wyverns, and giant ride-able bunnies, so I'm not sold on the idea that any aspect of Terrarian logic is required to follow any element of our real world.

 

[Bethany]

The IAU's definition differs from the one used when I was in college, but my first-year astrophysics professor was Copernicus so I'm not surprised it's changed since then. I disagree with the IAU on a number of naming issues but — despite my mailing them a series of long, diagram-packed letters writ in orange crayon on paper toweling — they refuse to discard their definitions in favor of mine.

Agreed that Terraria's version of "fantasy" is more absurd than most. Mechanics use plumbing tools to install electric wiring, acorns grow into different trees depending on where they're planted, we drink water to keep from drowning and alcohol to improve fighting skill. The sun might as well rise in the north and set in the south.