New mod needs your help

[Urendi Maleldil]

I'm in the middle of building a new mod. And this mod needs you.

- It's in runnable condition. No errors.
- It has working AI (but not very effective)
- Uses latest imagemod packs

Mod currently has:
- propulsion system is a new QNP/mQNP hybrid
- reactor-based supply system
- rebuilt tech tree
- Several distinct tech tree branches including Nuclear, Plasma, Hyperspace and Antigravity
- some surprises and unique techs based on "known" sci-fi universes
- "breakthrough" type research (costs need tweaking)
- strategic fighters & shuttles
- strategic and gun drones
- orbital defense platforms
- Neo-standard ship sizes (more will be added)
- 7 types of shields: Navigational, Leaky, Solid, Harmonic, Regenerating, Phased, and Gravitational
- Planetary shields
- Planetary shield projectors and receptors
- 2 types of armor: Leaky, Solid
- 3 propulsion types: Standard, Hyperdrive-type, and Solar Sail-type
- Artificial gravity system (that needs tweaking)
- Mount-based unit weapon systems
- Increased emphasis on electronics and targeting systems
- fleshed out cloaking-sensor system (still needs testing)
- More warhead types
- Seeker decoys

I Plan to include:
- space colonies
- Proportions-type facilities
- megascale facilities including Arcologies, Orbital Towers, and Orbital Rings
- political and administration facilities
- Industrial facilities and remote miners
- Pirates and Nomadic races
- 2 types of Space Monsters (standard and another)
- Unit-based troop system
- unique Neutral AIs
- variable armor type
- variable shield type
- Weapon-specific mount types (ie: phasers & disruptors)
- expanded racial technology


As you can see, I've done a lot, but there's still a lot to do. I need your help to complete this mod. If you would like to participate, just post your email here and I'll send you a copy of what I have so far. Doing it all myself just takes up way too much of my time.

Oh. And this mod also needs a name.

[General Woundwort]

What do you mean by a unit-based troop system?

[Ed Kolis]

This sounds like it could be one heck of a mod... what kind of help do you need?

[Iansidious]

I'm willing to help. Sounds neat!

[Atrocities]

Good luck and all but you might find doing some of the things on your list beyond the capabilities of SEIV. "Space Colonies" is really one of them unless your think along the lines of modifying the RW and SW components. And even then they can only be built around stars.

For the Conquest mod we decided to do this and add a new bmp image for those structures. We called them Drifts.

[Fyron]

- political and administration facilities

What sorts of facilities? In Adamant, I have System Capitals, which have low levels of all of the system resource modifiers and a spaceport ability, as wells as the Customs Bureau, which uses the new resource point abilities that ignore planetary value.

[Urendi Maleldil]

What do you mean by a unit-based troop system?

Basically, instead of small, medium, and large troop sizes there are several different Army sizes (5kt-300kt). The troop components, instead of your standard weapons and shields, are Infantry, Artillery, Tank, etc. while the troop cockpit is the Command Unit, the troop life support is the Command Support Unit, and the troop crew quarters are Communications Relays. A smaller army only requires a Command Unit, while a medium army requires a Command Unit and 1 or 2 Command Support Units. The largest armies require the above plus Communications Relays.

There was a mod a long time back called Great Naval Battles that had a similar system. I really liked it. Too bad the mod was never finished.

Space Colonies

Yeah. There's no way to do these perfectly. But basically my Space Colonies are special planet sizes. They are built by special planet creator-like components from "materials mined from asteroids". So basically you transform asteroids into space colonies. I think this will work, and I've created the components, but it's not fully tested yet.

political and administration facilities

System Administration facilities will be like in Adamant. (I didn't even know they were in there.) I also like the immigration facilities in Proportions. They will be facilities that have a positive influence on the whole system large enough that you will miss it when it gets blown away.

... what kind of help do you need?

The mod can be broken down into individual focus areas. I've already done most of this:

- Tech Tree (which is mostly done)
--- Racial and "ruin" techs

- Components
--- Weapons
--- the Shield and armor systems
--- the Propulsion system
--- the Reactor system
--- Sensors and Electronics

- Facilities
--- Some facilities need to be added

- Planet Sizes (the planets and systems are all FQM Deluxe, but things like Space Colonies still need to be added)

- Mounts
--- special mounts (for phasers and disruptors)

- Vehicle sizes
--- Ship sizes (includes Fighters and Shuttles)
--- the Troop system + troop components

- Player testing

- AI (default and converted stock AI)
--- Research

- New idea generation
--- In some ways, mods are just never finished.

[Suicide Junkie]

More importantly than how the troops are designed:
does the mod encourage captures / discourage glassings?

[Urendi Maleldil]

That will depend on the technology an empire has researched.

A race with lots of high damage weapons would do better to just glass a planet, while a race with lots of troop techs would be better off invading and capturing a world whole.

At least that's how I'd like to balance the mod. The tech file is a really big part of this mod and determines a lot about how a race will play the game. And crap of all craps I had a brainstorm the other night and I'm reorganizing the tech areas file yet again, which means I have to write a new AI research file. Again.

[Suicide Junkie]

Another thing I was thinking of:

If you crank up the hitpoints and damage of troops by 10x or 100x, then it would be worthwhile stacking a bunch on your worlds just to be decoy targets for orbital bombardment.

If you've got efficient, low supply cost bombs, you could spend a turn or two to glass it...
but if you've got high-powered infantry it would be simpler to just dump them on the surface so they can rapidly lay waste to the high-hitpoint troop population. If you don't manage to capture, then at least you've cut down on the time it will take to glass the planet as punishment .