The Terrans
 

I don't know how many people know this, but I'm the one who came up with the original Terran shipset for SE4 (ducks flying shoe). http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...s/rolleyes.gif I know, not exactly Humanity's finest moment. While I always liked the basic idea, I think the execution fell a little short of what I'd originally envisaged. I've trying to figure out how to manifest the idea in my head, and I think I may be on to something.
Presented for your viewing pleasure (?) is the new Terran Escort. There's still a bit of work to do on the forward section, and guns have yet to be added, but what say ye of the new design? Improvement, or not so much?

http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/thr...ran_Escort.jpg

Re: The Terrans
 

Wow, fantastic work! I rarely comment on pictures posted here, but this looks really, really great!

Re: The Terrans
 

That's an awesome piece of art! Are we by any chance going to see this as a model in SE5??!!??

Re: The Terrans
 

The metallic shiny texture and mirror effects are awesome, but it looks rather complicated for the 'low poly-count' engine that Starfury uses. From a design standpoint, the big 'wings' or 'shields' on either side are a mystery. And a major source of additional unnecesary polygons. This is a concern for a game that will sometimes have to model dozens or even hundreds of ships. Why not just go with a 'utilitarian' boxey design kinda like the MOO III human ships? Shouldn't humans have fairly simple ships? I liked the triangular 'imperial' shipset that Atrocities posted a few months ago. Nice, clean lines that sort-of resemble the Star Wars Imperial ships but not closely enough to look like a knock-off.

Re: The Terrans
 

Hm, and who told you that this model will be used in SE5? I think Tim has no right to publish his artwork for se5, unless Aaron allowed him to do it (nda and all this "secrecy of game development").

As for model - it's awesome. I think it will bring mirror effects into fashion (Last word of fashion was "glowiness"). Thumbs up!

Re: The Terrans
 

Re: the wings - I think they're supposed to be armor! Never thought of the original Terran set that way, but I like the "primitiveness" of it, with the visible components and armor! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif
And maybe SE5 has a fancier render engine than SF does, or that's just a portrait image and the model used in combat will be much less detailed? (Though I highly doubt the former, else the fancier images would surely have been used on the three teaser images which involve starships http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...s/rolleyes.gif)

Anyway, great work!

Re: The Terrans
 

Looks great! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif
The shiney, reflective translucent surfaces are very nice.

Re: The Terrans
 

Looking good. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

Thanks, and yes, the 'wings' are armor. And why do Terran ships have to be primitive, hmmm? Anyway, you won't be seeing this shipset in SE5 I'm afraid, since A) I still haven't found a way of properly exporting to .X format, and B) Under the terms of the NDA, my posting it here disqualifies it from being included in SE5.

Re: The Terrans
 

But still, make the GD Set! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

And we all know about the NDA..... Don't they regulate the food industry or something. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

Exporting to X is a real PITA and one that I do think will limit the number of ship sets put out for SE V. In compareson, I will wager that SEV will have far less fan made ship sets than SEIV because of the change to 3d ship models. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

Ah well, Aaron has said that SE5 will be able to handle 2D ship pics, they just won't look quite as pretty. Well, here's the new Terran Frigate, yup the same one that got us through the Earth-Venduu War. Course, unless you were a frequenter of the Galaxy of Fire BBS about 8-odd years ago, you've got no idea what I'm talking about. Which is cool, I'm used to it. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/thr...an_Frigate.jpg

Re: The Terrans
 

Oh, & BTW here's the evolution of Terran ship hulls as per the Galaxy of Fire timeline:

Escort (properly called a Corvette in GoF): The first interstellar vessel built by the Terrans, the Escort entered service in 2310 and was the sole ship in TSN service for nearly 40 years. Considered vastly overpowered by her critics, with her twin Rolls Royce Inverse-Pulse Drives she remains the one of the fastest ships in the known galaxy...

Frigate: At the outbreak of the Terran-Venduu War in 2357, it was quickly realized that Humanity required a heavier weapons platform to combat the larger Venduu warships. Thus was born the Frigate-class. Mounting a heavier Version of the Escort's two pulse cannons, it also sported 2 twin light beam weapons, the Terran Frigate proved more than a match for most Venduu warships.

Destroyer: Designed towards the end of the War, the Destroyer quickly became the scourge of Venduu fortifications, thanks to the addition of the Viper Missile System, something that previously had only been found on Terran Orbital Forts. The Destroyer was also the first Terran ship to feature chase armaments in the form of a pair of pulse cannons located on her main drive array which could also be rotated forward to provide additional firepower during an attack run. Destroyer squadrons first saw action in 2375, when the 1st Destroyer Squadron successfully defended an Arkon colony ship from Venduu attack.

Light Cruiser: Entering service in 2391, the year after hositlities ended between Humans and Venduu, the Light Cruiser was the first Terran warship to mount shields, a gift from our new Arkon allies. New advances in Ultramantium construction allowed engineers to place 'slots' in the Light Cruiser's side armor allowing broadside weapons placement for the first time. The destruction of two Light Cruisers, (in the presence of an Arkon observer ship), the Ajax and Renown at the hands of a Tauran War Fleet marked the beginning of the Earth-Tauran War in 2420. It should be noted that the valliant Last charge of these two ships, which allowed the Arkon ship to escape, was cited as a prime reason for the Arkon entering the war against the Taurans.

Cruiser: While the current designs were holding the line against Tauran onslaught, Terran Space Command determined the need for a heavy-hitter in order to push the Taurans back into their own space, and thus initiated Project Thor. The Cruiser-class was the first product of this project and featured an overall heavier hull to the Light Cruiser as well as broadside missile tubes. The design recieved mixed reviews, as her heavy firepower allowed the Terran-Arkon Alliance to push the Taurans back into Tauran space, but proved too weak to go up against the fortifications the Taurans had errected around their warp points.

Battle Cruiser: The end product of Project Thor resulted in a radical redesign of Terran warships. Her distinctive armored wings were flipped 90degrees, allowing the Battle Cruiser to mount far heavier broadside weapons than had ever been possible. In 2432, three Terran Battle Cruisers smashed through the Tauran's main defensive line, proving the design to be a complete success.

Battleship The Battleship was an evolutionary step up from the Battle Cruiser, designed primarily as a platform to mount some of the newest, heaviest guns to ever come out of Terran R&D. At the end of the Tauran War in 2436, only two Battleship's were in service, and both saw heavy action over the Tauran Home World.

Dreadnought The Terran Dreadnought Independence holds the interesting galactic distinction of being the only warship in the galaxy to have stopped a war without firing a single shot. In 2542, the Phaelen, having decided Humanity had grown weak enough to warrent invading, began moving their battle fleet through the Sigma Arcturous system, the sole link between the two empires. The fortuitous arrival of the 16km-long Independence caused the Phaelen to rethink their strategy and return to their own space to pray such a juggernaught would never be set loose on them...

Re: The Terrans
 

I'm not to keen on the mirror effect, it's a bit too clean. But the concept is great. HUGE engines with pumps and such, just how I imagine Earth Ships to look. It's a very Original idea http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

And a Promotion for me http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif Colonel Deadstar http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...ies/tongue.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

Not necessarily ALL Terran ships, just the escorts, since they are the first ships to be built http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

Well, compared to the big guys, that Escort IS pretty primitive. I've updated the pic, BTW, to the finished Version. And I'm afraid the reflectivity is here to stay, since these ships are based on the GoF Terran ships, which were well documented as being quite shiney.

Re: The Terrans
 

On August 7th, 2359, a Venduu Cruiser entered the Proxima system and broadcasted the following message: "This system is now under the control of the Venduu Consortium. All planets, bases and ships are now Venduu property."
The Terran destroyer Achilles was on hand to broadcast an appropriate response.
(Click the attachment to see what they had to say)

Re: The Terrans
 

I see they used two channels to ensure there was no misunderstanding. Very wise.

Re: The Terrans
 

Did you make that attachment pic with Bryce?? The flame effects look Bryce-like.

Re: The Terrans
 

Yup. Pretty much all my artwork is done exclusively using Bryce. Used to have a really good explosion texture, but it seems to have up and disappeared on me.

Re: The Terrans
 

Ship is great. Explosion looks unrealistic.

Re: The Terrans
 

Yeah, I'm none too happy with the explosion either. The probelm with it is twofold: 1) I don't have a really decent explosion texture. 2) I haven't gotten around to moddelling a Venduu Cruiser, so I have no ship model to put in the middle of the explosion.

Re: The Terrans
 

How about random blackened shapes? The original design is pretty much irrelevant at this point http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

Teh design is neat, but for some reason the structure connecting the two giant side panels and the under-slung turrets seem flattened and distorted.

Re: The Terrans
 

If you're referring to the Destroyer pic, I think that's actually the reflection of the connecting structure. Attached is a more traditional view of the Terran Destroyer.

Re: The Terrans
 

are these going to be downlodable?

Re: The Terrans
 

Actually, I don't like the guns being so visible. These images have to serve for any sort of ship at that size class. So what sesne do those guns make if you build a missile-only ship? Not to mention that the concept for various types of beam weapons might require very different 'emitter' configurations than those rather obvious tubes sticking out the front. It would be smarter to not have obvious guns like that.

Re: The Terrans
 

No, I was actualy talking about the structure itself and the turrets mounted under them. To me, they simply lack the 'girth' - if you will - that would support the metal plates.

Re: The Terrans
 

Sefta Aruna: Yes, I am working towards having a complete, downloadable shipset sometime in the future. Don't know when it'll be done though, since I only found the time to work on them since I was sick and off work. Now that I'm better it'll probably take me quite a while to get em finished off.

Baron Munchausen: In principle, I would agree with you about the guns. However, keep in mind that the shipset is being built according to very well established guidelines that unfortunately were not created with SE in mind. And the Galaxy of Fire Terran ships' most prominant feature has always been their guns. While most GoF races conceal their guns internally, the Terrans revel in their reputation as the most fearsome warriors in the Galaxy, and place their weapons on open display as a challenge to any who might oppose them.

Klvino [ORB]: I see where you're coming from, and I may actually go back and lengthen the struts to make them look a bit more heavy-duty. Keep in mind though, that a considerable amount of Terran ships' hulls are composed of a substance called Ultramantium, whose strength-to-weight ratio makes titanium seem like tinfoil.
From the Galaxy of Fire Encyclopedia (and mostly from memory too!): "Ultramantium, and the composition thereof, is a closely guarded secret of the Terran Federation. It is such an incredibly strong, durable substance that in order to construct with it, solid pieces of ultramantium must be forged with pockets of a dense carbon-fibre 'mesh' where the piece is to be joined to another. This makes it extremely difficult to work with, and in fact most of the ultramantium in a Terran ship's design is concentrated in the two or more massive shields that typifies Terran design...."

If memory serves the article continues in depth about the costs associated with ultramantium construction, and why those costs prohibit Terrans from building their entire ships out of it and so forth but I don't remember that part so well, and it's not terribly relavent anyway.

As for the shipset itself, I've got the LC sketched out, and hopefully will get it rendered tomorrow, along with hopefully the Cruiser as well, if I managed to get it sketched during a quiet moment at work tomorrow...

Re: The Terrans
 

What is this Galaxy of Fire?
SE5 or SE3?

Re: The Terrans
 

Neither, actually. The Galaxy of Fire was a BBS that existed before the internet (or at least before the internet in it's present form). The BBS hosted a rudimentary multi-player strategy game along with a forum where players would 'role-play' their empire between the daily turns. Like most BBS's it is now defunct, unfortunately.
But on the upside, I got the Cruiser done! The Vengeance-class Cruiser was the Last of her line, before the radical re-think that resulted in the new design of the heaviest Terran ships.

http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/thr...an_Cruiser.jpg

Re: The Terrans
 

Shinyness!

I like the reflection. It's a neat change from, well, all the shipsets I remember.

Re: The Terrans
 

Thanks, Narf. Good to see you back. I've decided to retool the bits at the end that connect the engines to the main hull, coz I just don't like the look of them, then I'll be trying to finish up the warships part of the set over the weekend. Got the Dreadnough sketched out now and it is one nasty looking customer!

Re: The Terrans
 

They seem oddly vulnerable from the top and bottom... 2d defensive shields/plates aren't all that helpful in 3d environments.

Re: The Terrans
 

I like em alot. But I the side armor to me is just a tad too tall. Otherwise rock on set.

Re: The Terrans
 

I like it, it has a feel of high tech, mixed with steampunk.

Re: The Terrans
 

Fyron: You're perfectly right, although the smaller Terran ships would be manoeverable enough to keep their armor facing the enemy, and the LC & CR can hide behind said armor while delivering broadsides to the enemy. That said, the Last three in the series will have the armor on the top and bottom, with only a comparatively small gap for weapons to poke out. That way the only really vulnerable bits are the front and rear, but hey, you can't have everything.

AT: Praise from Caesar, I am honoured. Although I would say if someone's going to be flinging depleted uranium and other nasties at me, I want the biggest shield you can give me. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

ZeroAdunn: I'm not sure what 'steampunk' is, but I'm gonna take that as a complement. So, thanks! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

A mere three enemy ships at linearly independent vectors can make the ship vulnerable no matter what orientation it is in.

In any large combat, the plates would be of little use. Just spread out, and pick off the ships you have a clear shot at... if they try to angle towards you, somebody else in your fleet will get a shot.

Re: The Terrans
 

It basically means 'retro-tech' science fiction, backformed from Cyberpunk.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk

Steampunk is a subgenre of speculative fiction, usually set in an anachronistic Victorian or quasi-Victorian alternate history setting. Fiction in the steampunk genre is set in the past, or a world resembling the past, in which modern technological developments occurred earlier in history, but were accomplished via the technology already present in that time period. The genre typically falls into the realm of science fiction.

Re: The Terrans
 

I don't think that shipset makers should care about physical or engineering credibility of their models. I don't care that armor plates on the left and right side of the ship are useless in 3-dimensional combat, but I found them appealing from aesthetical point of view.

Side armor all the way! Don't fall under realist's influence AgentZero!

Re: The Terrans
 

On the other hand, doing that will also likely put your ships out of mutual support range and make defeat in detail more likely.

Consider a cruiser firing missles at your fleet. Would you rather have those ships close enough to ALL engage the incoming missiles with PDC, or spread apart so only the targeted ship could hit it?

Re: The Terrans
 

With realistic combat being fought at reasonable distances, sure.
I was thinking more along the lines of the overlapping formations and dogfighting I see in SE4 combat...

BTW, in the example there, I'd rather have at least that one ship be able to return fire effectively, rather than none of them. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

Don't worry Aiken. In art, as in life, I refuse to succumb to the demands of reality. And as a matter of fact, the original design I had for these ships actually had the armor plates wrap all the way around the ship so only the front and rear would be exposed, but it ended up looking, well, alien. And when you're making a shipset for humans, if it looks alien, you've failed in your design concept.

Re: The Terrans
 

I decided I didn't quite like the look of the Cruiser, so here's an updated Version. Improvement, yes or no?

http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/thr...an_Cruiser.jpg

Re: The Terrans
 

I like the new look better.

Re: The Terrans
 

The new one is definitely better. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Re: The Terrans
 

What's with the two shield plates facing each other in the center of the ship?

Re: The Terrans
 

Well, if the first engine will be destroyed in battle, inner armor could protect second engine of explosion consequences. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...s/confused.gif

note on ship: it's a nice one, but due to mirror effect the hull itself seems translucent in some places.

Re: The Terrans
 

Ah, and its probably easier to mass manufacture the rounded plates instead of making a custom one for the middle.

Re: The Terrans
 

True, and it also ensures a near miss on one engine pod won't carry through and hit the other one. Mainly though, it's an artistic condideration, it just looks better to have the armor plates in there rather than a big empty space..

Re: The Terrans
 

But what's gonna protect debris from the engines from tearing into the primary hull areas from behind?