Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Hey guys. I've been talking about building a Homeworld related shipset, but the more I thought about it the more I wanted a Homeworld Mod! So guess what? By golly I'm going to do it.

I'm in the infancy here, but I'm just curious as to the general interest. I'd like to make something people will play http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Races to start:

Hiigarans
Imperial
Rebellion
Bentusi
Children of Kadesh
Vaygr
Turanic Raiders

Tech trees: this will require some creative thinking and I'm open to suggestions.

-Real Homeworld Maps, including major planets and regions from the games, as well as era related starting positions (hiigarans on Kharak or Hiigara depending on the era of play)

I've got some other ideas I'd like to implement.

Thoughts/Ideas/Rants/Criticisms? Hurt me.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

About time someone does it. Make sure that the mother ships are the only ones that can do through warp-points and they carry the rest of the ships with them.

Mothership=Large Carrier
Ships=Fighters

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

great idea!

i always wanted to play as the bentusi!

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

So all other ships would need to be considered fighters then, and the fighter bays would have to support all of those ships. What kinds of limitations would this require I wonder... ahhh I love being creative!

Explaining away warp points and the true hiigaran conflict is the only thing that's really bugging me. And I'm not extrapolating so I don't spoil it for those who've never played it. Suffice it to say that warp points don't exist in HOmeworld.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

The capital ships can make jumps too, when the mothership jumps the cap. (frigates, destroyers, etc) ships do the same. At least on HW1, i don't play HW2. And there's also carriers on HW.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

As I recall, the motherships are not the only ships equipped with hyperdrives in Homeworld. Only the really small stuff like fighters, scouts, and corvettes need to load onto the mothership for each hyperspace jump. Everything from frigates on up just lines up in space to look pretty when they all jump simultaneously, and they don't even do that in multiplayer where hyperspace jumps aren't limited to transitions between missions.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

You'll want to check out the Highliner Mod for ideas. It already does exactly this.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

I think it sounds better if you make motherships and some capitalships able to open and close warp points. This can do by mounting these components.
Fighters and corvets should be carried by carriers. Some frigates can make they own jump points(mounts). This because Hiigarans have only one mothership. That is what i know.
I have HW, HW:C and HW2.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

You can also make the WP opening as hull abilitie

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

I've toyed with this before. One thing is that in the homeword games, planets build motherships and motherships build carriers. For this limitation I would have planets use all three materials, motherships use two and carriers use one. I'd say more, but I'm not very coherent right now.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

That sounds good. That way carrier can´t build motherships, but mothership can build carriers and those what carrier can build. But it needs to think what components you use to bouild your ships. That you wont desing ships that only planets can build.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

That will work great for vs. human play, but the AI will never be able to handle it. It all depends on what you want out of the mod...

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

I half-heartedly started a HW mod a while ago, but wuit after under 5 mins.

Fighters and Corvettes can jump too, they just need Vaygr Hyperspace Gates.

Create "comps" that are actual fighters/corvettes/frigates/capital ships from the games, but also other comps, so that you could have a Corvette not as a squadron but as a single ship, and then equipped with anti-fighter AND anti-frigate weaponry. Also, this way you could have a Corvette squadron consisting of 2 gunships and 1 pulsar. (please note: I only have HW2) Mines should be laid by corvettes only (minelayer corvettes as in the game) and the Vaygr should have some sort of "command comp" for their Command Corvette - something like ship/fleet training, combat best experience and negative sector CS interference - but then that would also help their enemy.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

I take it "Homeworld" is a game, not a mod where homeworlds are hundreds of times stronger than colonys?

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Homeworld, Homeworld:Cataclysm and Homeworld2 are 3D realtime space strategy games, IMO certainly worth a try. Nothing beats following a squadron of Interceptors or Pulsar Gunship Corvettes during an attack run on a Battlecruiser and two Carriers with supporting fighters and corvettes.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

So Strategia, why don't we work together on it? I've got a number of ideas I'd like to incorporate, and the work you've already done will be incredibly useful. Let's team up and make something every Hut fan can be proud of!

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Tiny little problem; I only did one and a half hull sizes, then thought better of it and deleted the entire thing..... but I would be most willing to help you. What do we say, I do the comps? I've got some great ideas for those..... though I must warn you, I have only got HW2, so anything from 1 or Cataclysm will have to be done by you or someone else.....

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

That mod is Proportions Mod. The basic idea in the Homeworld games is that you have lost your homeworld.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

No, in HW1 you find out that your Homeworld is not in fact your Homeworld but a planet you were banished to. In HW2 you are back home and you must fight to defend your Homeworld from an extremely dangerous threat. I don't know about Cataclysm.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Never played Homeworld 2, but you do technically have no homeworld for the duration of the game in Homeworld 1, right? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

right.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon14.gif
http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon14.gif

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

On Homeworld Cataclysm, you're finally on Hiigara (i think it name is --The real homeworld--), and the enemy planets are rioting (because of your victory), etc, etc, etc, in the middle of this, a minning ship (your ship), encounters an ancient beacon, abandoned on space. The minning ship recovers the beacon and it awakens some sort of lifeform wich assimilates ships & it's crew (similar to the borg, but using nano mechanical viruses i think), so the thing (called the beast) start spreading and your old enemy tries to capture to use it as weapons, and you're on the middle of all this trying to destroy the creature before it consumes the galaxy.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Isn't that precisely the Borg? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

oh yes thanks, the Beast. I completely forgot that... hmm that would be fun to incorporate.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Not quite. I only played the demo, but the Cataclysm Beast was organic; more of a mold-spore, I think.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

This is similar to the Homeworld2 backstory - the third of the three Hyperspace Cores has been found by a militaristic nomadic race called the Vaygr, and their leader Makaan is conquering system after system. (<font color="red">WARNING:</font> If you read on you will get a major spoiler!)

The Mothership and its fleet fights off several Vaygr attacks before they find a device called the "Oracle" which is apparently an ancient "Progenitor" device, made by the people of Sajuuk. The Oracle takes over the Hyperspace core and takes the mothership to the wreckage of an unbelievably huge Progenitor ship (you see a film where the Mothership, being 2.5km in height, is shown in comparison to the Progenitor ship. My first reaction was "OMFG that thing is HUGE!") where you must find an ancient super-warship - a Dreadnaught (no, this is spelled correctly) - called the "Gatekeeper of Sajuuk". You discover that the Progenitors were an extra-galactical race (Ocampa Caretaker, anyone?) and that their relics aren't as passive as you might think (or want). They've still got AI controlled warships, Movers, Drones and most notably Keepers, who are undestroyable uber-warships. At first you (both as a Hiigaran and as a player) think the Dreadnaught will give you superior firepower and that you will win easily, but it turns out there is a second Dreadnaught in the posession of the Vaygr. I have not yet reached the point where I encounter it, but it was said in a cutscene movie. I am currently at mission 12 of 15, Thaddis Sabbah. Any tactical advice would be appreciated http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

No really, the beast uses a beam that carries the nano-mechanical viruses to infect other ships, while the borg have to board the ships as far as i know.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

The Borg have to manually assimilate other people and hardware to use them. And, when a person is assimilated, he/she turns only partially into a Borg - further engineering is required for things like the eyepiece, the metallic suit, the funky laser pen at the side of their heads, various arm appliances etc.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Homeworld is a good game which can be used to make SE mod!
But why didn't think about it sooner?

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

People have talked about it before but no one has ever stepped foward to make it.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

*steps forward*

I shall make this. You shall love it.

Of course, by the time I'm done it'll be time to mod SEV.

My initial idea sets are implementable, although I'm working on making the warp point/hyperdrive reconcile at the moment. I'll post some solid features in the next few days once I get my head screwed back on.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

My biggest idea is using fighters/corvettes/weapons that come from the games as well as "fictional" fighters/corvettes/weapons. Say, short-ranged Missile Gunships that can launch anti-frigate missiles, or Ion Pulse Fighters which can launch long-ranged anti-frigate pulses, and Missile Turrets for capital ships that can launch long-range anti-frigate missiles as opposed to the normal Destroyer cannons; Cannons fire faster, but Missiles are more powerful with a longer range and they're seekers, but they're also larger and more expensive.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Ion Pulse fighters? Definitly too high tech for HW1. Don't have 2.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

On HW2 there is Pulsar corvets. They shoot somekind ion-pulses. But if I have understood, they are anti-corvets. At least I use them anti-corvets. They can use anti-frigate missions too.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

HW2 Pulsar Gunships are anti-Corvette Corvettes that indeed use some sort of pulse cannon, but the color of the pulses is too dark to be a genuine ion pulse. What I meant with the Ion Pulse fighters are some sort of Bombers that are slower but tougher and stronger.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

what about the multi-beam frigates from HW Cataclysm?

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Also there's the bentusi super acolyte fighter from HW cataclysm.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Never liked the cataclysm ships. Only played the demo, though.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Multi-beam frigates, can be done EaX. The (HW2) Battlecruiser already has 4 ion beams (2 turrets which each fire 2 Ion Beams IIRC, but it could also be one).

So the Bentusi have warships in Cataclysm? Ah, that's great..... In 2 they only have Bentus, some sort of super-mothership, we could make that the largest ship in the game - provided there aren't bigger ships later on..... (Please note: I've only managed to get to mission 12 (Thaddis Sabbah) of 15 in HW2, if anyone has finished all missions and encountered a larger operational ship (NOT the Progenitor ship where you find the Dreadnaught, as it is clearly broken apart, unless you encounter an intact one later on), please let me/us know!)

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Technically the acolyte fighter is a bentusi design with Somtaaw weaponry so that one could also be regarded as a bentusi ship, there's also the bentusi cargo barge and trade station.


The Bentusi is really a paradox, from what I've been able to piece together they disarmed every ship around the time the higarans where forced into exile, but in both HW 1 and cataclysm they happely use their tripple rapid fire ion cannons

I think Bentus is the largest ship I've seen in homeworld, I'm not sertain about the T-mat mothership (seen in the end of homeworld)or Naggarok (cataclysm) but my guess is that they're both about half the size of Bentus

I think the only ship larger than bentus is the progenitor mothership, but no it's a wreck and you won't see it intact. Many of the progenitor ships and technologies could be included as unique techs though.

I really find cataclysm ships to be a break from normal homeworld ships, they're too versatile, it's not like in homeworld where you can wreck a heavycruiser with a formation of bombers, the Somtaaw dreadnought is really the ultimate ship in every way, and really find that irritating.

Indeed ion cannons is a videly used weapon in homeworld I don't even want to try and find all the ships that use them, but I think all factions in HW 1 and Cataclysm use them.
I really find it strange though that the vaygr don't have any ships using them. After all they got hold of a lot of the old taiidan empire.

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Yes the Bentusi give the Super Acolyte fighter, on the last mission of HW Cataclysm.

On HW1 &amp; Cataclyms the bentusi only have very few ships, the Huge ships, (bentusi trade stations i think their name are), the super acolyte fighter, and other ship wich i don't know it's name, some kind of cargo ship i think.

I don't know if the bentusi appear on HW2, since it doesn't run on my computer http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Just to update...

I've begun on the shipsets (have to play through the games again, poor me), and Strategia is starting on the data files. I've also been building a map, and I'm going to make it capable of three eras of play.

It's going to be a relatively small map. I think this is a good idea because of how much violence there is in the Homeworld series http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif Let's get enemies together early and let the beatings begin, I say. Anyway, there it is.

Mod status --- .0000001 % completed

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

If anyone got further than me in HW2 (currently at Thaddis Sabbah (mission 12) where the damned Vaygr Battlecruisers keep creaming my Dreadnaught in some inexplicable way) and spotted new ships/technologies, please let me know?

I looked into the Homeworld2 Forums some time ago, and I saw a mention of some object called "Sajuuk", if anyone can provide info about it/him, it would certainly be appreciated. Couldnt login to the HW2 forum though, bloody thing wont accept Hotmail as an email provider.....

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Okay a bit of plot spoiling

Sajuuk is really just a dreadnaught on steroids, it's armor is almost twice that of the mothership and it's beamcannon is the most powerfull in the game, it can slice a vaygr cruiser in 3 hits (if the armor isn't upgraded) the only problem I can remember with it is that it can't target fighters.

It's what you and Makaan is searching for throughout the game

For the ultimate spoiling try
http://well-of-souls.com/homeworld/hws/
You can find information about all HW 1, HW 2 and Cataclysm ships here, as well as a few outtakes, some HW 2 ships are a bit vaguely detailed though, I think it's made before the official release of HW 2, there's also a lot about the plot

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Good call on this webpage, Akula. I've got some great shots for ships thanks to it.

I've also decided that in addition to the traditional shipsets, I'm going to make a few kiith specific sets. They'll probably use the same graphics as either the Taiidan or the Kushan, but the AI will be different. I'm sorry I don't have artistic skill or I'd draw a few ships myself http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif Maybe I can beg AT to join in? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Okay kids:

Homeworld Mod: .01 % completed

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

Were you planning to extract the assorted ship models from the HW/HW:C/HW2 games and render them as SE IV shipsets? I was poking around the various HW mod sites and that seems like a real possibility.

I've got HW/HW:C somewhere, never found the time to get HW2 so I don't know if they used the same pack file technology, etc.
--
TAZ

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

I found the disks and installed HW, I'll see if I can confirm that capability as time permits tonight.
--
TAZ

Re: Interested in a Homeworld Mod?
 

What programs would I need to extract the images? If I can do it without having to screenshot EVERY single ship, I'd prefer that.

I'm still going to need to make some custom artwork for troops and the like... Stick figures are always good right? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif