What is the most effecient cell layout?

[Chasp]

Not including shower rooms, canteens or any utilities, what is the way to pack the most effecient method of packing in prisoners?

[Sheap]

One ginormous dormitory.

[Grubberdeck]

I guess a lot of 2x2 rooms with just a bed and a toilet and maybe a bookshelf or radio.. Don't think they will be too happy tho

[Chasp]

Originally posted by Sheap:

One ginormous dormitory.

The problem I have found with that is that the prisoners can work together on the same tunnel, which makes their tunneling efforts far more effective.

[Chasp]

Originally posted by Grubberdeck:

I guess a lot of 2x2 rooms with just a bed and a toilet and maybe a bookshelf or radio.. Don't think they will be too happy tho

There are many more effective ways than many 2x2, i have tried using a 4x3 dorm with 3 bunks in it.

[Trixi]

Im using 3x1 cells with additional shower

Bookshelfs doesnt work at all

[Sheap]

Originally posted by Chasp:

Originally posted by Sheap:

One ginormous dormitory.

The problem I have found with that is that the prisoners can work together on the same tunnel, which makes their tunneling efforts far more effective.

Oh, sure. I didn't say it was the best. But it does pack the most prisoners into the least space. One 4000-square (80x50 or roughly 60x70) dormitory can hold 1,000 prisoners. This many prisoners would take up about twice that much space using 1x3 cells.

Though, actually, with one giant cell... you pretty much know where to search for tunnels, right? And since you would be searching a single cell, rather than a block or shakedown, your guards' chance of missing the tunnel should be slim or none. Be sure to set escape attempt punishment to lockdown rather than solitary!

I guess you could stuff them in even tighter in a holding cell, if you weren't particular about them actually being able to sleep.

[Pixus]

Originally posted by Sheap:

I guess you could stuff them in even tighter in a holding cell, if you weren't particular about them actually being able to sleep.

From the last time I played, you could put beds in a holding cell and let prisoners in there sleep in said beds, although it could have been changed.

[Sheap]

Essentially, the determining factor on space efficiency is how much space you devote to walls and halls, which in terms of capacity, is just wasted space. Although 1x3 cells have fewer floor squares per prisoner (3) than dormitories (4), they require much more wall space. A 1x3 cell is actually 3x5 (15 squares) on the map, and all but 3 or 5 (depending on alignment) of those squares are marginal cost (i.e. not shared with the previously built cell). Discounting the shared wall (charged to the previous cell in the block), a 1x3 cell is 7 squares of overhead for 3 squares of usable space, not counting hallways, which adds at least 1 more square of overhead. A 2x3 cell is 9 squares of overhead for 6 squares of usable space. So even though 1x3 cells are half as big for the prisoner, they're 2/3 as big for the architect (the difference is even less when you factor in hall space), and as a result I tend to not use a lot of them.

2x2 cells are different. They're more efficient than 1x3 in terms of walls per square of space, but less efficient in terms of how many you can jam into an unconstrained area. But since the main use of small cells is for maximum density, they don't have much use, unless your space is constrained in an odd way.

But while individual cells are pretty consistent in terms of overhead per usable space, dormitories aren't. The bigger they are, the more efficient they get, since the usable space grows with the area but the overhead only grows with the perimeter. Big dormitories have basically zero overhead. The only limiting factor on dormitory size, besides absurdity, is escapes. But a perimeter wall and nightly search probably keeps the escapes under control.

Silly, but hey, when you push a sim game to the limits, it almost always turns silly.

[Sheap]

Originally posted by Cheeyev:

Originally posted by Sheap:

I guess you could stuff them in even tighter in a holding cell, if you weren't particular about them actually being able to sleep.

From the last time I played, you could put beds in a holding cell and let prisoners in there sleep in said beds, although it could have been changed.

Yeah, they'll sleep in beds in holding cells... but they won't sleep in bunk beds, I don't think. Because dormitories need 4 squares per inmate and beds need at least 2 squares per inmate, you can only increase the density so far (wall to wall beds, plus space for toilets and the required bench) before you just can't fit in any more beds and, therefore, sleeping prisoners.

[V1KING]

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=552660172

[Toma58]

the problem with sharing cells is the complaint is uncontrolable. there is a needs. safety and privacy. well if u didnt fulfil it then. i guess its ok with min sec and more careful on med sec. but no hope on max sec lol

[lissa_981]

I personally find this to be the most effecint layout:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=678063862
As I like the cell grading system. You could trade out the bigger cells for more of the same 2x3's though. The dorm holds 100, and there are 35ish family cells for a total of approx 400 prisoners in the wing. The width is just right to run your hot water to all the cells.