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quote:

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Originally posted by JudgeMental
My first post here I actually had a few ideas myself. Some of them may already have been said, but that doesn't matter Of course, I have no idea how feasible any of these ideas are, but here it goes...

- I like the idea of aspect locking beams. It would make it much easier.

- While we're on the subject of beams... Why not beams that track the target? We have the slash beams, so why not beams (perhaps an anti-fighter beam) that tracks and follows the target, instead of just three stationary beams. A balancing mechanism could be reduced damage. Another could be a slight "lag" or overshoot, much like what the aspect diamond does.

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Heh, I don’t like most my ideas myself. I think you’re right about the flash drive. I still like the idea, even if it just doesn’t fit. You’re also probably right about the cloak. However, there probably is a way to make cloaking of a cap ship feasible. If interstellar jump drives used to be confined only to cap ships (at least in the FS storyline), maybe the same could apply to an effective cloak. I don’t know why I’m fighting for the idea though, maybe I just want to see a cool ripple effect:-P

Cutscenes may be able to be done with HUD edits, but it’s rather limiting. Even being able to design a mission as a cutscene would be nice. The Machina Terra campaign (if it’s the one I’m thinking of) could be dramatically improved by a cutscene ability. Remember those few missions where you just watch the action occur, then you call in a repair ship and warp out? I think that the story telling could be much more dramatic with an effective cutscene system.

With in-game jumps though, it would be a tricky story. Can you not return to an area you’ve left (as what would most likely happen with Red Alert missions), or would you be able to return to one staging area, even if you’ve already been there. And if the second case holds true, how on earth do you determine what has happened while you’re gone from one area??? It’s enough to give me a headache… It would probably be best to stick with the RA missions.

While I was thinking of this, one more thing popped into my head. In some missions, you’re on your own with a battle group. Occassionally, a cap ship gets damaged, but the speed at which it gets repaired seems to be miraculous, considering that you’re always on the move, and multiple missions happen within a short period of time. At least, that should be the case in swift battlegroup operations that exist without much support. Eh, I’m rambling, I’ll get to the point of my idea.

Red Alert campaigns carry over ships status from the previous mission. Why not have the campaign files retain ship status of several of the main ships? For example, if in one mission, the GTD Peace, an Orion destroyer, is damaged in an attack. Two missions later, the Peace hasn’t had an opportunity to repair the hull, so while the weapons and subsystems are repaired, the hull isn’t. So, upon arrival, the Peace shows the hull damage acquired two missions earlier.

This feature could be used in many ways. For example, let’s say in a mission, a secondary objective is to destroy a corvette, but instead it gets away. The campaign file logs this, along with the status that it left in. Now, think of a supply escort, a few missions later. The mission designer has added a SEXPT and a ship location (or however you want to describe it) that causes the mission to look in the campaign file. Since you didn’t destroy the corvette earlier, it will take place in this mission. However, the designer has indicated in the same SEXPT that I referred to earlier, that the corvette will be fully repaired, instead of partly damaged from the earlier mission.

That was just an example, and a confusing one at that:-P This feature could include many things. If debriefing frames are added and removed, based on mission performance, perhaps command briefings and mission briefings could reflect the outcome of previous missions, and not just the one before. Cap ships may be able to make surprise appearances, if you had managed to save it in an earlier mission.

All in all, I think it could be an extremely powerful tool (if I have managed to make my idea clear enough…). Unfortunately, it may make it difficult to keep the missions from spiraling out of control later on, though responsible use should lower this risk. Eh, done rambling now.

quote:

---

It's called notepad, copy over the ship's raw entries in the mission files.

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Last edited by JudgeMental on 06-29-2002 at 10:50 PM

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Heh, I don’t like most my ideas myself. I think you’re right about the flash drive. I still like the idea, even if it just doesn’t fit. You’re also probably right about the cloak. However, there probably is a way to make cloaking of a cap ship feasible. If interstellar jump drives used to be confined only to cap ships (at least in the FS storyline), maybe the same could apply to an effective cloak. I don’t know why I’m fighting for the idea though, maybe I just want to see a cool ripple effect:-P

Cutscenes may be able to be done with HUD edits, but it’s rather limiting. Even being able to design a mission as a cutscene would be nice. The Machina Terra campaign (if it’s the one I’m thinking of) could be dramatically improved by a cutscene ability. Remember those few missions where you just watch the action occur, then you call in a repair ship and warp out? I think that the story telling could be much more dramatic with an effective cutscene system.

With in-game jumps though, it would be a tricky story. Can you not return to an area you’ve left (as what would most likely happen with Red Alert missions), or would you be able to return to one staging area, even if you’ve already been there. And if the second case holds true, how on earth do you determine what has happened while you’re gone from one area??? It’s enough to give me a headache… It would probably be best to stick with the RA missions.

While I was thinking of this, one more thing popped into my head. In some missions, you’re on your own with a battle group. Occassionally, a cap ship gets damaged, but the speed at which it gets repaired seems to be miraculous, considering that you’re always on the move, and multiple missions happen within a short period of time. At least, that should be the case in swift battlegroup operations that exist without much support. Eh, I’m rambling, I’ll get to the point of my idea.

Red Alert campaigns carry over ships status from the previous mission. Why not have the campaign files retain ship status of several of the main ships? For example, if in one mission, the GTD Peace, an Orion destroyer, is damaged in an attack. Two missions later, the Peace hasn’t had an opportunity to repair the hull, so while the weapons and subsystems are repaired, the hull isn’t. So, upon arrival, the Peace shows the hull damage acquired two missions earlier.

This feature could be used in many ways. For example, let’s say in a mission, a secondary objective is to destroy a corvette, but instead it gets away. The campaign file logs this, along with the status that it left in. Now, think of a supply escort, a few missions later. The mission designer has added a SEXPT and a ship location (or however you want to describe it) that causes the mission to look in the campaign file. Since you didn’t destroy the corvette earlier, it will take place in this mission. However, the designer has indicated in the same SEXPT that I referred to earlier, that the corvette will be fully repaired, instead of partly damaged from the earlier mission.

That was just an example, and a confusing one at that:-P This feature could include many things. If debriefing frames are added and removed, based on mission performance, perhaps command briefings and mission briefings could reflect the outcome of previous missions, and not just the one before. Cap ships may be able to make surprise appearances, if you had managed to save it in an earlier mission.

All in all, I think it could be an extremely powerful tool (if I have managed to make my idea clear enough…). Unfortunately, it may make it difficult to keep the missions from spiraling out of control later on, though responsible use should lower this risk. Eh, done rambling now.

quote:

---

It's called notepad, copy over the ship's raw entries in the mission files.

---

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Last edited by JudgeMental on 06-29-2002 at 10:50 PM

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quote:

---

Originally posted by JudgeMental
I think allowing ships to re-enter the area even after they've left could be a good idea. At least, I can think of several ways it could be useful.

---

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Last edited by GalacticEmperor on 06-30-2002 at 12:09 AM

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quote:

---

Originally posted by JudgeMental
I think allowing ships to re-enter the area even after they've left could be a good idea. At least, I can think of several ways it could be useful.

---

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Last edited by GalacticEmperor on 06-30-2002 at 12:09 AM

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quote:

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Originally posted by GalacticEmperor


Well, aside from the fact that a ship would have to get to its destination, turn around, re-energize its jump drives, and travel back to your position...
[/font]

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quote:

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Originally posted by GalacticEmperor


Well, aside from the fact that a ship would have to get to its destination, turn around, re-energize its jump drives, and travel back to your position...
[/font]

---

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Bah. Ideas are what keep this community alive- not models or missions, but ideas. Without ideas, modding would have nowhere to go.

Here's an idea for the damage thing: have several sexp's set off for when the target's hull drops below certain levels (90%, 80%, 70% etc.) and use the sabotage-subsystem sexp to set the hull strength when it comes in. You can round down or up.

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Bah. Ideas are what keep this community alive- not models or missions, but ideas. Without ideas, modding would have nowhere to go.

Here's an idea for the damage thing: have several sexp's set off for when the target's hull drops below certain levels (90%, 80%, 70% etc.) and use the sabotage-subsystem sexp to set the hull strength when it comes in. You can round down or up.

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Galemp, you should be shoved into the intake of a Boeing 777.
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Yeah, that would do it. I really should fiddle with the SEXPT's a little more... Even so...

[soap box]
My way is easier to implement
[/soap box]

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Yeah, that would do it. I really should fiddle with the SEXPT's a little more... Even so...

[soap box]
My way is easier to implement
[/soap box]

I'm done now

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quote:

---

Originally posted by GalacticEmperor
Bah. Ideas are what keep this community alive- not models or missions, but ideas. Without ideas, modding would have nowhere to go.

Here's an idea for the damage thing: have several sexp's set off for when the target's hull drops below certain levels (90%, 80%, 70% etc.) and use the sabotage-subsystem sexp to set the hull strength when it comes in. You can round down or up.

---

Now that the we can have a much larger number of SEXP's in a mission that can be done but it's still a rather cumbersome method. What I want to see is the ability to pass a variable from one mission to another.

What you would do is in the first mission have this SEXP.

When
-Is-event-true
--Mission over
-Modify variable
--CapshipDamage
--HitsLeft
---CapshipName

Then in the later mission you could read in the variable and it would still have the same value as it did when you set it in the earlier mission.

I can think of tonnes of stuff I could do far more easily with this ability. Unlike judgemetal's idea this can be used for more than just capship damage. You could fix it so that the number of enemy ships showing up in one mission depends on how many you killed in a previous one.
Better yet if you`re running one of those "lone ship in shivan space" campaigns you can set the variable to 150 and subtract from it every time a wingman dies. The more wingmen you lose, the harder the campaign gets in later missions! If the variable ever reaches zero you`re on your own!

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Last edited by karajorma on 07-01-2002 at 09:22 AM

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quote:

---

Originally posted by GalacticEmperor
Bah. Ideas are what keep this community alive- not models or missions, but ideas. Without ideas, modding would have nowhere to go.

Here's an idea for the damage thing: have several sexp's set off for when the target's hull drops below certain levels (90%, 80%, 70% etc.) and use the sabotage-subsystem sexp to set the hull strength when it comes in. You can round down or up.

---

Now that the we can have a much larger number of SEXP's in a mission that can be done but it's still a rather cumbersome method. What I want to see is the ability to pass a variable from one mission to another.

What you would do is in the first mission have this SEXP.

When
-Is-event-true
--Mission over
-Modify variable
--CapshipDamage
--HitsLeft
---CapshipName

Then in the later mission you could read in the variable and it would still have the same value as it did when you set it in the earlier mission.

I can think of tonnes of stuff I could do far more easily with this ability. Unlike judgemetal's idea this can be used for more than just capship damage. You could fix it so that the number of enemy ships showing up in one mission depends on how many you killed in a previous one.
Better yet if you`re running one of those "lone ship in shivan space" campaigns you can set the variable to 150 and subtract from it every time a wingman dies. The more wingmen you lose, the harder the campaign gets in later missions! If the variable ever reaches zero you`re on your own!

__________________
Questions about FS3? Questions about Fred? Questions about missions? Questions about adding new ships to your games?

[URL=http://homepage.ntlworld.com/karajorma/freespace/intro.html]Karajorma's Freespace FAQ [/URL] (now with added GE goodness)

Supreme Overlord of The Mercury Affair Campaign.

FREDder, Modder, Story design and general busybody for [URL=http://www.3dap.com/hlp/hosted/mindgames/Background.html] Mind Games[/URL]

Last edited by karajorma on 07-01-2002 at 09:22 AM

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I think we need to 380 kb limit on ship tbl to be lifted. And there has been much talk about being able to choose your mod. Why not have freespace look into more than one ships file, and compile it's ship database from all of the files, minus duplications of course.

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I think we need to 380 kb limit on ship tbl to be lifted. And there has been much talk about being able to choose your mod. Why not have freespace look into more than one ships file, and compile it's ship database from all of the files, minus duplications of course.

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quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowWolf_IH
I think we need to 380 kb limit on ship tbl to be lifted. And there has been much talk about being able to choose your mod. Why not have freespace look into more than one ships file, and compile it's ship database from all of the files, minus duplications of course.

---

Pay attention. The first one's already been done! [URL=http://www.volitionwatch.com/vwbb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6132]Look Here[/URL]

As for the second one you say that you want fs2 to compile several tables minus duplications but what does it do when it comes across two versions of the same ship with different stats? e.g the velocity mod.
That's why you need a mod picker of some sort.

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quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowWolf_IH
I think we need to 380 kb limit on ship tbl to be lifted. And there has been much talk about being able to choose your mod. Why not have freespace look into more than one ships file, and compile it's ship database from all of the files, minus duplications of course.

---

Pay attention. The first one's already been done! [URL=http://www.volitionwatch.com/vwbb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6132]Look Here[/URL]

As for the second one you say that you want fs2 to compile several tables minus duplications but what does it do when it comes across two versions of the same ship with different stats? e.g the velocity mod.
That's why you need a mod picker of some sort.

__________________
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Supreme Overlord of The Mercury Affair Campaign.

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Thanks for the info on the table.

As far as different versions of the same ship, i guess someone should have put distinguishing marks on em right? My idea would be to have it set up to use whichever file containing the dupe was older. ie, in the case of dupe names, use the older file. This sets the stock tbl file as the standard, if you want to redo those ships go for it, just give em a new name or they won't be recognized. It's not hard to copy and paste then change the name, even with an X, MKII, Var A, or whatever to distinguish it form the original.

something like that is what i was thinking.

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Registered: Jun 2002
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Thanks for the info on the table.

As far as different versions of the same ship, i guess someone should have put distinguishing marks on em right? My idea would be to have it set up to use whichever file containing the dupe was older. ie, in the case of dupe names, use the older file. This sets the stock tbl file as the standard, if you want to redo those ships go for it, just give em a new name or they won't be recognized. It's not hard to copy and paste then change the name, even with an X, MKII, Var A, or whatever to distinguish it form the original.

something like that is what i was thinking.

__________________
Extraordinary people do extraordinary things, normal people stay home and do nothing.

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quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowWolf_IH
Thanks for the info on the table.

As far as different versions of the same ship, i guess someone should have put distinguishing marks on em right? My idea would be to have it set up to use whichever file containing the dupe was older. ie, in the case of dupe names, use the older file. This sets the stock tbl file as the standard, if you want to redo those ships go for it, just give em a new name or they won't be recognized. It's not hard to copy and paste then change the name, even with an X, MKII, Var A, or whatever to distinguish it form the original.

something like that is what i was thinking.

---

__________________
Questions about FS3? Questions about Fred? Questions about missions? Questions about adding new ships to your games?

[URL=http://homepage.ntlworld.com/karajorma/freespace/intro.html]Karajorma's Freespace FAQ [/URL] (now with added GE goodness)

Supreme Overlord of The Mercury Affair Campaign.

FREDder, Modder, Story design and general busybody for [URL=http://www.3dap.com/hlp/hosted/mindgames/Background.html] Mind Games[/URL]

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