Alpha Centauri Mod Discussion Thread

[Hugh Manatee]

I will try to do the progenitor graphics and I would like to attempt to set up a decent tech tree and facilities and components(I was good a this in SE3, lets hope I can handel it.). This is my first time modding and I'll have a lot to learn. I think you(Chronon) should take on the responsibility as coordinator, we should check in here every now and then(at least every other day) and meet once a week and delegate commitee style. While I can do the progenitors shipset, and the tech tree, I don't think I'm up to the challenge of the component and facility pics themselves, this will likely involve photoshopping the stuff from the game and I suck at photoshopping. I'll also need somebody to do the progenitor race pics too. Somebody else can set the actual empire files and AI up.

First we need to get some of this on paper before we start actually modding, otherwise it will all be disorganized. Now like I said I still have the complete tech tree poster, and lots of refferace stuff and at least a hundred hours of SMAC play experience, so I have a few good Ideas. First I think we need to specify the starting point of the game, the Unity captain got wacked and the crew split up into 7(or 12) factions(? we need to decide too if we want to work in the Alien Crossfire factions, I guess we do???) and landed on separate planets instead of 1. We need to decide what techs they start with and how many bases they start with, and define what those techs are. In the game there is actually a dialouge about the difficulty and expense of launching the simplest of space probes, so I assume that in this mod we should assume they put everything up to this point into aeronautics, giving them doctrine Airpower, flexibility, mobility, fossile fuels, and Orbital space flight from the start. this should give them missile weapons, lasers, units like needle jets and satelites, troops and speeders and basic colony ad cargo hulls and a moderate space explorer ship, and the fission reactor(this will be their supply and engines). For facilities, they get the bases I mentioned, but low end ones, which an be upgraded by advancing to the apropriate tech later, and basic terrain enhancements(farm, mines, and solar collectors).As for starting secret prodjects I will have to consult the tech tree and my book. What do you think of my broad outline so far?

[edit]BTW my email is listed up there and it's the same as my IM. I also have a website under construction if we need to use it to host the mod, I didn't really have anything to put on it except the swarm after my old comp crashed. Hugh Manatees Ship Yard, under construction

[ July 04, 2003, 06:54: Message edited by: Hugh Manatee ]

[Fyron]

I think we might be able to arrange something about the number of facilities as well. What if we modified the Advanced Storage Techniques trait to 100% instead of 20%, and then made its cost 0 and gave it to all the factions? Then every colony would have twice as many facility slots. I wonder if that would work?

You can get the same effect by doubling the number of facilities and such on the planets themselves in PlanetSize.txt. This does not force every empire to require advanced storage technigues.

[Taera]

I say we work with SMACX factions because i, personally, find some of them to have much more interesting personalities than some of the original SMAC - for example, my favorite Counsciness is far better than original University.

Agree regarding to tech, Hugh. But how are we going to incorporate Secret Projects?

[Chronon]

Hugh, I agree that we should probably sort out the big issues before we go do our separate tasks. And I'm happy to be the coordinator of the project. I'll try to keep track of everything and keep the "official" mod files here on my computer. I'll also help with the AI modding for the factions (I need to do one for the Verdurans anyway, so I'm learning how to do it now).

Taera, thinking and typing is exactly what we need at the moment. Once we've sorted out the "big picture" perhaps your computer will be back in action and you can work on some of the graphics.

I agree with you, Taera, about some of the SMAX factions being more interesting. How about this group of factions: Angels (intel), Cyborgs (research), Drones (construction, industrialists), Cult (religious and organic), Believers (religious), Pirates (good space combat), and Progenitors (we'll need to make a special racial tech tree for them). We can throw in some neutrals (perhaps from SMAC), and the spaceborne mindworms, too.

Excellent point about planet size, Fyron, I just noticed that Last night when I was skimming your tutorial (very nicely done, btw). So, we won't have to modify AST after all, just the planetsize.txt file.

For the "secret" projects (that always amused me - how could they be secret when everyone knew you were building one?), I like Hugh's idea about making them system facilities. The Network Backbone, for example, would work like the system research facility (I forget what it's called). I always thought the exclusivity of the projects was way too powerful. So, having all races have access (assuming they have the tech) makes sense to me.

Hugh, I like your ideas for beginning techs. I think they should begin on a planet just as usual for SEIV. Also, thanks for volunteering to host the mod on the web.

Since this is a holiday weekend here, and we have family visiting, I probably won't be able to post again until Sunday night. But, I'm sure I'll be thinking about mod ideas all weekend, anyway...

[ July 04, 2003, 18:23: Message edited by: Chronon ]

[Chronon]

Okay, I'm back in action. I was thinking a little bit more about the tech trees, and how the Progenitors and other factions would work. It would have three main tech trees: 1) Human factions (weapons, shields, facilities, etc.), 2) basic items (colony components, minesweepers, etc.), 3)Progenitor tech. All but the basic items would be racial techs (so humans cannot understand the Progenitor tech and vice versa).

I was thinking that the Progenitor techs would be fewer in number, but more powerful and expensive to research. We'd probably have to be very creative with them, considering there really wasn't much explanation of how all the progenitor stuff worked in the game.

The human ones would be very similar to the SMAC tech tree (as you described them, Hugh), including psionic weapons, ability to develop mindworms, industrial nanorobotics, etc.

I think the main thing we should do is keep the tree pretty simple overall, but interconnected and balanced so one can pursue different strategies and win (just like SMAC). We don't want uber weapons like the PPB, or uber advanced traits like religious.

As far as the images go, I don't think we need to go crazy with the ship sets. We can make a few ourselves, but for the rest we can just use the SMAC faction pictures with some of the standard SEIV ship sets. The only original ones we'll really need are the Progenitors and the mindworms/space monsters. Everything else (Gaians, Pirates, Cyborgs) is just a bonus.

For the other images - Taera do you think we can rip off the component images (missile launcher, laser, etc.) from SMAC? That would be helpful. We'll probably have to make our own facility graphics (although we can probably use many of the standard SEIV ones for that too).

For the speech files, I'll do some mining of the quotes in the game from the various factions, and blend them into to my AIs.

On the whole, I think our philosophy should be to keep it as simple as possible so we actually are able to complete the mod. Let's not make work if we don't have to!

So, what do you think?

[ July 07, 2003, 02:57: Message edited by: Chronon ]

[Fyron]

We'll probably have to make our own facility graphics (although we can probably use many of the standard SEIV ones for that too).

Why not use the Image Mod?

Also bunkers, perimiter defense and tachyons fields increase troop defense.

You can not mod facilities that increase ground troop strength. There is an ability available for it IIRC, but I do not think it actually works.

You will need to have 20 races in the mod. If you have less, you get weird results. Empires will be created with random combinations of ship sets and AIs, and other weird things.

[ July 07, 2003, 09:00: Message edited by: Imperator Fyron ]

[TNZ]

Try this in the SETTINGS DATA FILE to set number of computer players.

Set maximum number of computer players One lower than maximum number of races in mod.
e.g ten races in mod maximum number of computer player nine.

Maximum Computer Player High Setting := 9

It seemed to work no weird results.

[Taera]

hmm... images shouldnt be a problem.
As for tech tree - you do realize normal races can research Progenitor techs in SMACX do you? (which annoys me at the least). Perharps it could be a ruin tech?

pre-made ships, thats right...
for Nautilus (hate those guys and their ships...) - have you seen the Space Pirates ships?

[Fyron]

TNZ, you will not notice the weird results until you look at the AI empires and see that they are not acting like the correct race.

[Taera]

Progenitor techs are very well explained in SMACX as they're pretty simple - there are the energy fields existing everywhere (bio-energetic fields, as they're usually called) and the Progenitors are simply able to manipulate these fields to make physical affects.

At least thats how i see it.