Re: B5 MOD General
 

I have not played with the Hyperspace map in a long time - I had almost forgotten it.

Next game, I will use it. I like how it makes "borders" less significant and forces players to keep forces even in the heart of their empires, much as they are alsways talking of in the series.

Help
 

Ok, so I'm new here. Love the game. I have SEv4Gold. I've patched it with the latest patch. Found the B5 Mod and thought PRAISE JESUS AND BLESS THE INVENTORS! But then I installed the darn thing and its not working right. Can't research any ships... can't build any... when I try to go to the next turn it brings up lists of errors for each race it runs through....

What did I do wrong? Is there a new mod that fixes all that? Or... do I have to learn how to mod an fix it myself lol. PLEASE TELL ME THIS IS NOT SO!!!!

Thanks.

Re: Help
 

PS... I am jdfimage on AIM if ya wanna holla back lol, and Nathanmay710@hotmail.com on MSN Messenger. Thanks.

Re: Help
 

What did you download, exactly?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

I am wondering where or what website I can get the most up to date version of the B5 mod? I have rambies version 1.8, but is there a higher version? I am sorry if this was asked before, but with over 300 pages to search through I thought I would ask again. Thx

Re: B5 MOD General
 

There is the now dated copy of the updates Grumbler has been working on:

Babylon 5 Mod 2.0

Grumbler, when will a stabilized version be ready for sending? It doesn't need to have every single thing finalized, just something to replace all of these disparate copies floating around...

Re: B5 MOD General
 

As always Fyron has the answers to the most urgent questions. Thanks for helping out the newcommers Fyron!

I didn't mean the actual hyperspace map (sorry for my poor choice of words), but the hyperspace image in the B5 Mod. What purpose does it serve?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Fyron,

I downloaded the version found here... http://www.xmission.com/%7Erstulce/B5Web.htm its the 1.8 I believe.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Try patching it with the file I linked to a few posts ago.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

I downloaded the v2 you linked to above and it's still not working. Here's the order of installs I've done. From CD, downloaded the Gold Patch, then the 1.8 B5 Mod, and now the v2 B5 Mod. Anything wrong with that order?

When I install the patch, I should be just copying and pasting the contents of each filefolder in the download into the filefolders of the HD directory right? Or should I be copying over the file folders altogether?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

What are the errors you are getting specifically?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

When the game loads up and click on 'New Game' a short list comes up detailing "Quadrant Type Data File Errors." There are four errors listed there. A "Type 16 Name" "Type 16 Chance" "Type 17 Chance" and "Type 17 Name."

The same list comes up when I try to generate a Quadrant Map.

Once I create the game and get into it, I am without structures on my homeplanet. When I try to build some, there aren't any listed in the que.

The same goes for researching Bases and Ships or building them. There aren't any intial ship hulls "Escort, Colony, Small Transport" with which to design from. And when I try to research the ship tech, nothing happens.

If I try to go to the next turn a list of errors comes up for every other race it seems. Some of them have to deal with Tech Values and others have to deal with Default Strategies.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Oh and when I research something, it takes one turn to research everything. lol.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

You have to select racial traits appropriate to your race, one of B5 Standard Race or B5 Ancient race, and one specific to each race (Human, Minbari, etc.).

Could you be more specific in the quadrant errors? It should be listing which quadrants have problems.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

The errors for the Quadrant Type Data Files are as follows:

"Could not find field 'Type 16 Name' in record 'B5 Standard'"
"Could not find field 'Type 16 Chance' in record 'B5 Standard'"
"Could not find field 'Type 17 Name' in record 'B5 Standard'"
"Could not find field 'Type 17 Chance' in record 'B5 Standard'"

Re: B5 MOD General
 

I did what you said and selected the appropriate racial trait an it indeed give me research and build options, but the Engines for the ships are 500k when a Scout can only hole 100k. Whats up with that lol?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

You need to use mounts to reduce the engine size to fit on the ship.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

I selected the appropriate Racial Trait and it did give me ship design options and researchable items, but when I tried to design a ship, the engines are 500k and a Scout can only hole 100k. For that matter the Colony Ship can only hold 300k. lol. Whats going on with that?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Mounts... where would I find those? Sorry to be so inept guys. Like I said, Im new.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

The "Weap Mount" button onthe ship design screen - it's a bit misleading since you can use it for things other than weapons, as modders quickly discovered http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Top right corner of the ship design window.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Ahhhh yes a very confusing feature... Thanks guys.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Ed Kolis said:
The "Weap Mount" button onthe ship design screen - it's a bit misleading since you can use it for things other than weapons, as modders quickly discovered http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Or rather, as modders incessently requested until Aaron relented and patched in such capabilities. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

To fix the quadrant problem:

Open B5 MOD\Data\QuadrantTypes.txt

Replace this line (46):

Number of System Types := 17

with this:

Number of System Types := 15

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Does this mod still have the annoying weapons without any descriptions or anything?

(I'm slowly getting dragged into the B5 universe...)

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Thanks for the Quandrant fix Fyron. Another couple of questions for you. Why does one engine that says it produces four movement points only move you through one secotr of space each turn?

What should I do about all the Tach Value errors and Default Strategy Errors made by the computer every time I make a turn?

And, as I asked above lol ha ha, what is up with all the different colony classes? Its a pretty long, confusing list.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

A large ship may require 4 or more movement points to get one speed.

You may also be suffering from movement penalties due to lack of Bridge/lifesupport/crew quarters, or lack of supply (power reactors).

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Kool okay, think its all working out now. The errors I keep getting have to do with 'Drones.' Should i just go in and delete those lines?

And does anyone know what you do when you find a derelict ship in the game?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

I think that the derilect ships are just planets to be colonized.

What sort of drone errors? Are they in AI files or in one of the data files (components, techarea, vehiclesize)? If they are AI files, use the following instructions to patch whichever AI race is giving you trouble to Gold compatibility:

http://www.spaceempires.net/home/ftopict-302.html

Eventually, I hope to get a compiled, working version set up somewhere, so we can avoid all of this trouble...

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Drone errors are usually to do with AIs, make SURE you're using the Gold edition of the mod if you have SE4 Gold.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

I downloaded the v2 that was posted and I am having the same problems with errors and not having any facilities to build. I will keep an eye out for fixes. Thanks for the post on where to find the newest updates.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Drones...be sure the following lines are the last ones in the AI_SETTINGS.TXT file for EVERY race:

Percentage of total drones to keep as planetary cargo := 40
Number Of Anti-Ship Drones Per Target := 3
Number Of Anti-Planet Drones Per Target := 3
Maximum Anti-Ship Drone Target System Distance := 5
Maximum Anti-Planet Drone Target System Distance := 5

The numbers can vary BUT you MUST have those lines or else you get errors.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

That is not a mod error. You must select either B5 Standard Race or B5 Ancient Race and the trait that matches your race (Narn, Drazi, etc.).

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Sorry, folks, I have been at conferences for most of the last month. I must admit that I do not understand some of JohnFutch's errors, but am REALLY glad someone is starting this from scratch, as I don't have a good handle on "configuration control" and he, alas, will find all the stuff that I will not have encountered by virtue of the gradual changes!

You have to select "B5 standard race" as your race. None of the others work right now. The plan is to have the B5 Ancients work as a non-player race at some point, but B5 Nomads probably will never work, for reasons of me not understanding how to make them work! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

The AI should all be modded up to speed, unless you are trying to use Technomages, Raiders, Shadows, Vorlons, or League of Non-Aligned Worlds. The later is now in the game as seperate races, and the first three are not activated and any AI they have is bad juju.

I hope this weekend to get out a "more final" version of the mod with the weapons racialized (though not yet the facilities). Timstone has some ideas on how to make the weapons more in line with the B5Wars books, but since i don't have the books I am not sure where we are going with that.

Please keep trying. It is very valuable to hear of your problems, and your pain will yield a better mod.

Keep chacking back for updates. I am trying to bag this before the end of August.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

We don't want you to rush through completion. Just need a stabilized version to host in place of all of the different files out there now...

Re: B5 MOD General
 

At this point in the games life span, I would call this a dead dog mod. Just tag and bag it.

The B5 mod, DOA.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Or not... *hands AT a mellowing brewski* http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image.../beerglass.gif

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Game over man, game f'ing over man!

Re: B5 MOD General
 

*Ignores AT completely*

Fyron:
Thanks for the support man! Thumbs up for you! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon14.gif

Grumbler:
I'll make some of the weapons I've send you (I mean the ideas for the plans).
Please send me a mail (if you have the time of course) to tell me what you don't understand or just see differently.
I'll send the weapons ASAP.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Okay, after a few false starts i am in production mode on the weapons for each race. Maybe 25% done. I have also gone and "commented out" the race types, races, and technologies that are not applicable to human players in the race selection portion, so that hopefully will get rid of some of the confusion.

Anyone want to volunteer to do the .emp files and associated AI_general files?

Re: B5 MOD General
 

.emp files are easy to generate automatically after you get the AI_General.txt files done.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

.EMP files are very overrated.

Randomly selected, unknown opponents are much better.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Grumbler:
Okay, you're busy on the weapons, could you drop me an e-mail about that? Because, as you know,m I would like to help, but I don't want us to do the same weapon twice.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Timstone,

Sorry, I keep meaning to send the email but get sucked off into just doing the production.

My plan is this: I will finish the "complete version" with a sorta-kinda plan for Improved and Advanced weapons that works. You, and whoever else wants to, can then come in and change the specific generic weapons that exist into something more racially-specific. That is the real advantage of setting up a system with each race having its own weapons and weapons tech - it is easy, then, to customize weapons for race without worrying about the effects of any change on other races.

The drag is creating all the specific race files (and more specifically with going back and including new changes in what is already done) to begin with, but I am 90% done with that.

This weekend, I hope to finish it all off, and have the component.txt, AI_Research.txt (s), and techarea,txt from hell all done and posted.

Then will be the time for all the cool revisions basd on the B5wars manuals. At that time, also, we can change the point costs for selecting specific races.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Good luck then, Hope you can pull it off. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Great stuff Grumbler! Thanks for the explanation.
I'll begin with making the weapons. Maybe they can be included into this version just before your deadline. I hope I can make it.
I'll certainly try a bit harder now. Great going! As always, two thumbs up for you. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif

AT:
Wow, thanks for the enthusiasm... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Sorry man, its just that its been nearly four years since the mod was started and well....... still waiting. It would just be nice to see it finally released so ya, Good luck.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

I understand.
This Mod is one of the biggest projects undertaken (I think, don't be rough on me if it isn't) and it called for a great many changes to the stock game. And because so many people helped creating it, eveyrbody wanted a piece of himself implemented into The Mod. Nowbody ever did have the time (or will and stamina) to complete this huge project in one go. It had to be broken up into several pieces and that took a long time. If Grumbler needs help, I'm ready to do my part. Currently I'm busy making weapons for some races. I'll send him the weapons and see if he can (wants to) implement them or not. Just sit tight and wait for dear Grumbler to complete this magnificent task. All hail the B5 Mod!!
So AT, sorry for the rough texts earlier.

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Carrier Battles mod is pretty close to the spirit of B5, if not the canon elements.
Rip out the shields, edit the descriptions, rename the weapons, throw in some low-pop penalties and you should get a nice B5-lite mod.

Feel free to use elements of it

Re: B5 MOD General
 

Ironically, it is the four-year anniversery I am trying to beat. I really hope Val will swing by on the fourth anniversary (if not sooner) and say "cool."

Re: B5 MOD General
 

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/rant.gif Too late. You are correct, but I have taken the mod this far and just want to complete it as is.

Lots of room for tweaking once the damned thing works.

And it does work. The current test game has the "human" player in eighth place after 200 turns in spite of optimising for planets.