thixotrop
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Posts posted by thixotrop
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Not so long ago I wanted to do my own maps but the (in my eyes) crappy editor repelled me, and I definitely don't want to learn and memorize all of the props and tiles. I just don't have the patience and time for this.
So Skitso, your offer to do maps suits me well.
I have a lot of map ideas but do only one here (as a starter *giggle*):
Type: Arctic or desert (it can be farmland too, but I would not prefer that)
Theme: A canyon with UFO and dropship at far ends. The canyon has many, MANY obstacles the soldiers/aliens have to get around or destroy to advance. It will be a tricky firefight with lots of natural protection.
The white area is the ground level. Trees and rocks - shallow, large, mesas, maybe small water ponds and so on - are the obstacles.
The light grey are the larger mesas you can land on with flying armor. Mesa walls are building the canyon.
Now it gets fuzzy for me, because I don't know if it is possible: Mesas on mesas?
So a second but set back wall of mesas to open the canyon further at second level (dark grey).
Feel free to change it like you see it will work (if at all).
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Damn, that throws my whole mind control theory out the window!
See, he's mind controlling you too.
You just now believe he is paying his people.
Look here, a definite proof of it:
...they're already happily working...Chris = Beloved Leader
So who is the Leader (note: capital letter here) in Xenonauts? A Praetor, correct.
Hence, the alien invasion did happen in 1979 and we are ruled by them since. Mind control all over the place.
What is he doing to me then....ugh...have...to stop...typin
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Most alien bases have corridors wide enough for vehicles.
maybe not every room is accessible though.
And expect to drive around some bit when your soldiers might take a shortcut through the hidden pathways behind the destructible hatches. Also some rooms may have a lot of obstacles that may require some "removal".
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I bet if Xenonauts had released with that then people would still complain that they couldn't see what was happening on the other side without having to walk round it
LOL
This is exactly what I think would happen. Especially with the wave system of UFO appearances.
Can also imagine the comments:
"Meh, once the waves are coming I always have to rotate, pan and zoom back and forth to target, follow and waypointing my jets. Meh, it is so tedious and brings no fun, please do change this to a flat map and scrap the globe. This is game breaking for me!"
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The small game description reminded me instantly on the Polygon based "Carrier Command" from my early Amiga time, though this is some time back now. As far as I remember it was complex but fun.
Wish you great success with both of the games.
And a great portion of luck that you pick the right engine/software in the beginning and not having to find "effortful" workarounds to implement what you want in the games.
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In "the other thread" there are some guys that could and would like to help. They are all nice and eager to enhance the game, just ask them.
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Then I suggest you report it in the bug section.
Best to do with image and even better to do it with a save game.
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Encountered this. The screenshot isn't mine, but taken off the Steam's community hub. Exact same problem I had encountered.
It's possible to walk into the printer and get stuck there, forever.
http://cloud-3.steampowered.com/ugc/36343045661089529/C0AA2A4578DFD49E101ED0177BDE141AF1DF3042/
Then it is an old needle printer that "nailed you down on the spot".
Sorry couldn't resist.
Can you shoot your feet and destroying the printer to get out?
Otherwise it is a bug.
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Another one...great!
Have you seen this discussion?
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And it is a direct competitor to Elite Dangerous by David Braben.
Both interesting games.
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Quite objective review, no hipe no shitstorm. Great.
Although I think he (or his group) did not get quite far into the game to see other armour, psionics or other things.
Also funny that "the game is all about detail...focussing on the smallest features", in short micromanagement of stuff compared to Firaxis version. *giggle*
Would like to see him in a discussion with some community guys here who want even more micromanagment.
And one thing: SKITSO!
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@kahvipannu
Thank you for your comments.
I can do the animations for any direction, as an avi-video, although I don't know the visual isometric angles. How to do the sprites out of that is unknown to me. The paint over to look like game style has to happen then too.
The destrucive models will take some additional time, but definitely want to have that too.
I have never heard of Milkshape (maybe because I am normally not looking around in game industry software tools). I stumbled over Blender because I want to do photorealistic paintings with 3D perspective and so on.
Do you think Milkshape will be better for this here than Blender? Or is it just "another" software to dig into?
@Gaudlike
Yes I have read about the Scuttler some time ago and that it should be a small fast spider like "facehugger-but not hugging" inspired robot.
The Juggernaut, if shrinked to Andron size, seems to me obsolete as it will just be another Andron. I would prefer a Sectopod then.
@Ogaburan
Doing this is for me not money related but time related. I have a full time job and so spare time for such things only at weekends. Ah so much to do so less time...
@TacticalDragon
Help is always appreciated, exactly as kahvipannu said, even if it is only for a push in the right way. I actually thought that having such a unit available for other modders, as I will definitely not do an own mod.
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In terms of the third floor shooting gap and walls - thanks for pointing this out so precisely - I wanted to give the command room aliens LoF in different rooms. Do you think it won't work out well? I guess it wouldn't be a big deal to change this, perhaps I was unnecessarily strict in breaking down level 2 to three rooms.
And for Christ's sake, it's alien aircraft. It can appear odd rather than all tidily shaped every now and then, that's not necessarily a game-breaker. I'm a bit disheartened from the tone of some replies
I think the gaps are a nice idea and the UFOs with it will be a hard task to master if the aliens of the upper levels can shoot from there. However, a rocket up to them may lead to instant victories but also to much damage and no loot. So an option in it for everone.
Me mentioning the symmetrical UFOs is just my opinion and view of the game style, you don't need to comply to it; your designs not mine. Sorry if it bugged you, not my intention.
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I haven't planned it, just wanted to picture my imagination here to khavipannu.
So, I don't know what is necessary to do that and if I can do it - with my software and with my skills. I know all the animation is possible with blender (I did this with a tutorial) so you can walk it, shake and tilt its head and waver ist "arms". (Sigh, don't have the time to dig my way into that really.) With SolidWorks this is more work I guess, but my only option right now.
However, if someone would tell what is necessary, why not. Would love to try.
Drawing this was fun, though I would probably change it to be not a blunt copy as it is now.
I have some more features for it in mind:
- now it can see only to front (45°), it can be equipped with a backside view or other
- different weapons
- weapons to sides, back or 360° all around
- rocket launcher on back (like Fireaxis version
- shield to support alien troops with a mobile cover
- flame/gas/acid thrower
All this maybe with generation models like the drones in the game now.
I guess all the weapon modders would like this to use, but I don't know if anyone of them "upgraded" the alien armory.
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I wouldn't worry too much about a lore explanation - it's already canon that the aliens have a thing for mechanical bipeds (i.e. Androns) in spite of their inefficiency.
And, the models look cool!
I always think about the reason why something should be in the game or how it should be in there. I don't want to break immersion or the "feel" of the game. This is important for me.
Actually, I thought the Lore+ Xenopedia text were so similar to Chris' texts as I did some translations, totally in line with the game.
And thanks.
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So I had some time and created my own "Droneoid Sectopod":
It is quite obviously based on the Heavy Drone. I have changed the pointy "wings" - as skaianDestiny has put it - into weapon-arms, though the real Heavy Drone fires from the white area it seems in the game.
The body could be tilted a little bit so that it is not that even as it is now, but for presentation sufficient I guess.
My thought about, why the aliens want to use walkers instead of drones: Terror.
As a second thought, maybe also as a vehicle that can approach soldiers very close. For instance if such a walker will carry a "shield", it would be a counter measurement to the Xenonauts that use shields. So this is the quick answer of the aliens to that. Sure they could equipe their drones with force fields, but either they don't have it or the change of production line is too much.
I have made this in SolidWorks as my Blender skills are too low and it would take me ages to get this done. SolidWorks is more natural to me. Ok it is definitely more complex for such modell building, but I am fast with it. And here you can move legs and arms.
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Which full height walls below the gap do you mean, mate? They should be precisely over the middle of every bottom room.
I don't want to make the second level more triangular, if anything it was supposed to be more round, but it came out pretty much okay. My concern was regarding space as it is significantly smaller than the vanilla Battleship but it should make for a more intense battle. If I redraw the walls to get a more symmetric shape the second floor will lose space and I won't be able to fit the necessary props.
Yes, there are props outside the UFO hull. Do you see this as a problem? Vanilla Battleship also has those and I wanted to remain faithful to its unique characteristics without directly copying, but I also tried to get the spirit of the original game's version of this UFO type.
The top level "white room" has the gap directly above the red walls below.
I have drawn the gap of the white room as a blue rectangle on top of the red room, the yellow shaded walls are what I mean. They should be exchanged against the red half-height walls from the gaps in this room (made a blue wobble line around it).
If other walls have the same issue, I don't know.
Hope you get my drift here.
Damn can't delete the thumbnails here...
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Saucer Battleship, Andron version.
This looks great.
The floor gaps to see lower levels are nice. But do not have full height walls below the gap, take the half-height versions.
I would make the middle layer more triangular, right now it is quite strange as the footprint isn't rotation-symmetric. Mind you, the UFOs doesn't have to be that way, but it should fit the other layers in my opinion. If unsymmetric, then as a general design style.
Make the walls in NE and NW and S all the same length and keep the chafered edges of the triangle (as in N direction).
Uh wait, do you have props on the outside of the UFO hull?
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Man, I admire and envy you for your 3d graphic abilities, you are so fast.
The design looks really like the original game with its round shapes, though I think you should keep the style of the alien technology in Xenonauts.
Maybe more like ED209 form Robocop (1987) but "alienated":
1987 ED209 (from here)
2014 ED209 (from here, haven't seen the movie)
Just a thought, not compulsory for you.
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Have you seen kabills mod "Enhanced Crash Sites"?
It is also within the "Fire in the hole" mod where you can breach the UFO hulls.
Wonder why he didn't mentioned it himself, but maybe he hopes that everybody read his signature.
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...I was mainly thinking pure vertical movement anyway. In my head, I imagine UFOs doing a lot of vertical movement for landing/takeoff/moving in and out of the atmosphere etc.
Ah, but you have seen the UFO movement on the (flattened globe) geosacpe? Definitely horizontal movement too me, unless they go straight up into orbit, move horizontal and come straight down again. Hmm, I doubt the radar stations could follow them all the way and neither the jets.
Or maybe the aliens are just German. They defy poor understanding of physics and defenses of their hosts. Plus who cares about a hole in the middle when you have Neuer in goal?Ah Kevin and his sarcastic humor
Neuer...who? Ah one of the football idi...players.
*Cough* As you might have guessed from that, I do not care a teensy tiny little bit of a morsel of a nano...unit about that issue.
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@Kevin
The collapsing wall concept is really nice and can explain this for me, so I can live with it. A Xenopedia description would be really nice then.
However, this also shows the aliens doesn't understand human soldiers well...once trapped that way, they will blast their own entrance into the UFO (see FITH mod ).@Kabil
Ok, wasting space may not be the same for the aliens as it is for humans due to the powerful alenium technology and its surplus of energy.
"Moreover, reducing the overall mass of the ship is almost certainly advantageous from a resource-consumption perspective (less fuel) and from a mobility perspective (faster, less resistance moving vertically in an atmosphere). Possibly also helps with access in a zero-g environment."
Less fuel - absolutely agree.
Atmospheric mobility - no. The hole may be OK for pure vertical movement in atmospheres but not when horizontal movement is happening too, due to a lot of turbulences (see drag coefficient). Yeah, you could kill this argument again with the surplus of energy, but this applies to aliens only, not to human technology. Gravity has no effect here, as only the total mass of the UFO is important then. Then a hole may be reasonable. Though, in viscous conditions like an atmosphere turbulences have a drastic effect.
@Ragnarok
You are right, human engineering should not be applied as the alien technology may have other constraint, but still there is physics. And this is everywhere the same (as far as we know).
Furthermore, the aliens changed their crafts for atmospheric travel, it says so in the Xenopedia, so they seem to struggle with physics already, so they don't have other physics as we do. An UFO with an engine at one side will spin unless there are those thruster that will negate this spin. The space shuttle had thrusters for rotation in all degrees of freedom.
Additionally, the research progression in the Xenopedia tells a lot about how humans can understand alien technology after some time and with some struggle. And yes I know Arthus C. Clarks laws.
The "beam down - UFO without doors" is absolutely reasonable for me. Why use doors when teleporters exist and you have enough energy?
Before this all goes too much off-topic: I don't want to force you all to consider physics and engineering aspects in each and every way. Just keep in mind that the whole "story of aliens arriving on Earth" should not be too much a fairy tale and stay science fiction and this means a fiction (imaginative approach) of science.
Yeah and this not-fariy-tale-approach should also apply to combat and the ground missions, hence the narrow corridor headache.
When I see all the "realistic weopanry" modders, they do a lot of work too to get it all right, I guess reasonable ground combat scenes will be appreciated.
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I don't want to spoil your fun with this, and I definitely see that you put a lot of work into it, but I just wanted to say, please don't create UFO designs in a way that they are complex for combat sake only. Make them in an "alien" way reasonable.
Something similar has been said for maps: "Maps should look real and logical and not obstruse and strange to boost complexity." (or at least in that meaning).
Two examples:
Light Scout:[ATTACH=CONFIG]4787[/ATTACH]
It has only one engine off-center, this UFO will rotate but not travel along. If "not visible thrusters" should compensate this they must be immensly powerful. Seems illogical for me.
Saucer Cruiser (Andron)
Why would anyone (engineer, designer, architect) want to create an entrance/exit between such narrow walls. And then this "hole" in the center of the UFO goes straight through it; what a waste of space.
This seems to me the best example to create "complexity" over reason.
I know I have mentioned earlier to play a bit with split-up entrances on ground level, and the original four "footed" UFO looks somewhat similar on ground level, but there the aliens have also four exit routes and not one narrow "pearlchain-shoot-me-corridor".
Again, don't get me wrong. I see a lot of your effort here. Just want to keep you in line with the rest of the game style and its approach to technology.
I don't know if others see this like me....maybe my engineer soul comes out again.
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You didn't get as far as the FAQ, did you?
Yes I did, but I am not playing at the moment, so I can't test. Also, just wanted to mention that these two mods will/would be great together.
I'll realise your map idea
in Mapping Discussion
Posted
hmmpf...
Ok next one...
Type: Farm / City / Terror
Theme: Some Palace gardens or a Public Park like from Renaissance time
Some paved area and lots of garden with sandy walkways.
Stuff it with statues, low stone walls, potted plants, plants and flowers in ornamented grass fields, hedges (labyrinth?), fountains, some water ponds maybe and what else. I guess you get the idea.
In my minds eye there is an elevated area with broad stone stairs...but I guess you say again just "not possible".