Laser Antenna Broadcaster

The Laser Antenna Broadcaster feature allows players to send messages across your entire Nexus cluster using Space Engineers Laser Antennas. This enables cluster-wide announcements, faction communications, and emergency broadcasts.

How It Works

Broadcasting to Everyone

When enabled, Laser Antennas can select “Everyone” as a broadcast target:

1. Player setup — Place a Laser Antenna on their grid
2. Antenna configuration — Set broadcast target to “Everyone”
3. Message transmission — Type message and transmit
4. Cluster relay — Message is sent to all Nexus antennas on other servers
5. Delivery — Receiving players see the message with server prefix (if enabled)

Default Broadcast Modes (Always Available)

Even with “Everyone” broadcast disabled, players can still use:

• Faction broadcasts — Send to all faction members across servers
• Specific target broadcasts — Send to targeted antenna coordinates
• Local broadcasts — Send to players on the same server

Message Format

Broadcast messages include sender information:

[SERVER_NAME] Player_Name: Your broadcast message here

If server abbreviations are enabled, the format becomes:

[ABBR] Player_Name: Your broadcast message here

Configuration

Enable/Disable Everyone Broadcasts

In torch.cfg (Nexus Plugin Settings):

# Allow "Everyone" broadcasts (default)
EnableChatBroadcasterChannelEveryone: true

# Disable "Everyone" broadcasts
EnableChatBroadcasterChannelEveryone: false

Effect of Settings:

Server Abbreviations

Enable or disable server name prefixes in broadcast messages:

In torch.cfg:

# Show server prefix in broadcasts
EnableServerAbbreviations: true

# Hide server prefix (no prefix added)
EnableServerAbbreviations: false

Message Examples:

With abbreviations enabled:

[PLANET_A] PlayerName: Emergency, need rescue!

Without abbreviations:

PlayerName: Emergency, need rescue!

Use Cases

When to Enable (“Everyone” Broadcasts)

✅ Public servers — Allow community-wide announcements and events
✅ Faction PvP — Enable cluster-wide faction communications
✅ Multiplayer campaigns — Coordinate players across sectors
✅ Emergency systems — Alert all players to critical events

When to Disable (“Everyone” Broadcasts)

❌ Prevent spam — Restrict who can broadcast to everyone
❌ Roleplay servers — Force in-character faction communications
❌ Performance concerns — Reduce message relay load
❌ Enforce isolation — Keep servers/sectors separate from each other

Broadcast Scenarios

Scenario 1: Public Announcement (Everyone Enabled)

1. Admin on Server A has Laser Antenna
2. Sets broadcast target to “Everyone”
3. Sends: “Server maintenance in 5 minutes”
4. Result: All players on all servers receive the message with [SERVER_A] prefix

Scenario 2: Faction Communication (Any Setting)

1. Player on Server B in “BLUE” faction
2. Sets broadcast target to their faction
3. Sends: “Gathering at coordinates X, Y, Z”
4. Result: Only BLUE faction members on all servers receive it

Scenario 3: Emergency Alert (Everyone Disabled)

1. Laser Antenna broadcasting to “Everyone” is disabled
2. Player attempts to broadcast to “Everyone”
3. Result: Transmission fails; antenna reports error; player must use faction or specific target instead

Technical Details

Antenna Requirements

• Laser Antenna must be placed on a functional grid
• Player must have ownership/access to the antenna
• Grid must be powered for antenna to function
• Receiving antennas must also be powered and accessible

Cross-Server Relay

When a player broadcasts on Server A:

1. Local antenna on Server A sends message
2. Nexus plugin intercepts transmission
3. If broadcast target is “Everyone”:
   • Message is relayed to all connected servers
   • Each server delivers to local antennas
   • Antennas on other servers relay to players
4. If broadcast target is faction/specific:
   • Message is sent only to matching targets (faction/coordinates)
   • Works the same across servers

Performance Considerations

• Enabling “Everyone” broadcasts increases network traffic
• Each message is transmitted to all connected servers
• Consider disabling on large clusters with heavy antenna usage
• Monitor server logs if experiencing performance issues

Troubleshooting

“Everyone” Broadcast Not Working

Symptom: Antenna won’t let you select “Everyone” as broadcast target

Cause: EnableChatBroadcasterChannelEveryone is disabled in torch.cfg

Solution:

1. Edit server’s torch.cfg
2. Set EnableChatBroadcasterChannelEveryone: true
3. Restart torch server
4. Retry antenna broadcast

Messages Not Reaching Other Servers

Symptom: Antenna sends locally but other servers don’t receive

Causes:

• Receiving server has antennas unpowered
• Server connection to controller is offline
• Player doesn’t have access/visibility on receiving server

Solution:

1. Verify all servers are connected to controller
2. Check receiving antennas are powered
3. Verify player faction/target settings
4. Check server logs for connection errors

Server Prefixes Not Showing

Symptom: Broadcast messages don’t show [SERVER_NAME] prefix

Cause: EnableServerAbbreviations is disabled

Solution:

1. Edit server’s torch.cfg
2. Set EnableServerAbbreviations: true
3. Restart torch server
4. Send new broadcast to see prefix

Related Features

• Chat Sync — Player-to-player global chat (separate from antenna broadcasts)
• Faction Broadcasts — Faction-only communication (always available)
• Server Abbreviations — Display server prefix in all cross-server messages
• Action Relay Sync — Synchronize antenna relay block events across servers

See Torch Configs for configuration details.