Messages

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Work In Progress / Re: Drawing routine/animation help

« on: December 16, 2017, 03:37:06 pm »

So, it turns out I've lost a number of my original files. I can release the oculat.png under creative commons since it is wholly my own work (sharknade is edited from the displacer launcher). Is that all I need to do to make sure it's a resource freely available to future modders?

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Work In Progress / Re: Ideas for my TFTD megamod

« on: December 15, 2017, 01:20:59 pm »

One solution I thought of for the problem of no air interceptions is a concept of alien subs traveling  through a network of subterranean tunnels. Even if xcom craft were being hauled over land, surely the local governments should have technologically improved fighter designs? But then detecting them at all won't make sense. It might be possible to modify the map way points to reduce the chances of alien craft traveling over land but it's been a while since I looking into that (I did modify some of the zones for balance, if I can dig out my old computer for the files I'll send them)

Molecular control seems to be based around chips;. Personally I see the tasoth as the ultimate molecular control result: they're just sacks of goo until a single chip turns it into an inteligent and dangerous creature. Xcom implants their own chips into their aquanauts which allows them to hack the aliens control network. Except the aliens use mc attacks on unchipped aquanauts which is when it starts to get confusing. It could be that xcom start with nerfed non-elerium based psi-amps and need to research m.c. tech to get better ones that work on chipped aliens. There's a case for capping aquanauts psi-strength due to anti alien bias against psychically strong humans being suspected hybrids (indeed, depending on how far back the alien infiltration goes those super psi-soldiers of the first xcom may have been partial hybrids). You lose the surprise of finding out your best soldiers are terribly vulnerable to psionics though.

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Work In Progress / Re: Ideas for my TFTD megamod

« on: December 15, 2017, 06:18:10 am »

I think you've got the right idea, especially since you've put thought into balancing the old land tech so it actually serves a purpose beyond steamrolling early gillmen terror sites. May I humbly suggest chryssalids in early terror missions? If xcom get to keep their fancy equipment then it seems only fair that these most hated enemies remain as an infestation on earth. I think the biggest question is psychics; why there aren't over-powered psy-agents running around, why the deep sea creatures must be immune to it if it isnt being used, and why 'molecular control' does the exact same thing somehow. My personal preference is to just use psychics and have it unlocked from the start but heavily reworked mechanically in the way some existing mods do.

I had been thinking about extensive mods for tftd about a year ago. I have fond memories of the original because of the mechanical improvements; difficulty bug fixed, alien grenade spam, melee, heavy plasma equivalent not being the be all end all. But all that and more can and has been done for ufo now leaving the inconsistencies of tftd all the more glaring. So I do think it could do with a drastic change of pace in early game to make it it's own thing.

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XPiratez / Re: Suggestions on how to improve the mod

« on: June 19, 2016, 06:01:43 am »

I think it's the map personally, facing ratmen on a completely flat field would be a completely different affair. Probably involving Napoleonic  musket squares.

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Work In Progress / Re: [TFTD]Terrain Expansion

« on: June 14, 2016, 12:06:43 pm »

I know, I used Civilian's conversion as the base, it's in the credits. I just wanted to give it a nautical theme.

This is a work in progress on an oil rig, a 6x6 map with sea on all four edges. It'll be highly scripted but enough variations for the number of times it'll be seen in game, I hope.

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Work In Progress / Re: [TFTD]Terrain Expansion

« on: June 11, 2016, 11:26:59 pm »

Yes! Looks like Hobbes has taken care of porting polar island terrain to UFO now.

I don't think I'm going to work any more on the beach urban map, I'm not exactly happy with it as a terror site but I'll keep it in. If i'm going to spend more time on the concept I'd rather just make a whole new map, I'm not exactly lost for ideas there. Preview of what I'm working on next:

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The X-Com Files / Re: The X-Com Files - 0.4.2 alpha: Going Postal

« on: June 11, 2016, 11:08:43 pm »

This could get interesting

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XPiratez / Re: [MAIN] XPiratez - 0.99 - 7 Jun - First Impressions

« on: June 10, 2016, 10:23:11 pm »

Shortly afterwards he changed UFOExtender accuracy back to FALSE... because that's how he wants to play it... providing a config file will not force him to do otherwise. In my humble opinion, it just makes our life harder, nothing else. But maybe I am missing something... @people who are using the delivered config file, can you please explain why?

I did a fresh install in a new folder just for the new version, I felt better knowing all the essential settings like using up research items and the UFOextender accuracy were set up right. The other stuff like video setting I'm always tweaking anyway. Although it took me a while to realise why the geoscape seemed to have so bad fps, that was the geoscape clock speed I had no idea was an option.

So far, starting off with only flintlocks and tribal armor was difficult but the early game feels smoother when there aren't all these expensive toys to buy right from the bat. Adding weapons to the shopping list as you research them is nice. I've ended up with tommy guns way earlier than I did in the last game, haven't even seen any hunting rifles or homeslice rifles to loot yet.

Watchtower seems ridiculously easy (free slaves bascially) which is probably okay because I find ratmen rodeo very difficult with starting gear (in part because finding them all in that maze of a map wears me down through attrition). Megascorpion hunt is refreshingly different but I still haven't followed the research path to do something useful with the stings yet.

Mostly just chasing down the requirements to build a still in my other manufacturing base.

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XPiratez / Re: [MAIN] XPiratez - 0.99 - 7 Jun - First Impressions

« on: June 08, 2016, 07:30:33 pm »

I happened to have just lost my game due to a government crackdown while all my ships were in repairs and my best hands injured after trying to shoot down a government ship. I considered myself fairly warned about this, although enabling the 'injured soldiers fight in base defense' option was on my to do list. I put up a good fight with parrots and dogs carrying explosives and a heavy machine gun set up at the end of a corridor. I know a bit better what kind of opposition to expect from a retaliation now.

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Work In Progress / Re: [TFTD]Terrain Expansion

« on: June 08, 2016, 10:10:15 am »

Thanks you, I found it! The map tile is called COMRCURBAN16 and luckily the fix was as simple a copying the corresponding file from X-Piratez. I think I used an old version. I'll upload the individual file for you as a hotfix, although I'm pretty sure it won't fix any existing saves

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Released Mods / Re: [TFTD] [CRAFT] Enhanced Reskin of T.f.t.D. Craft

« on: June 07, 2016, 02:02:09 pm »

Don't worry, but looking forward to this.

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Work In Progress / Re: [TFTD]Terrain Expansion

« on: June 07, 2016, 01:54:04 pm »

You can control the number of aliens that start inside/outside UFOs by setting a percentage for each on alienDeployments. Probably easier than creating terrains with different RMP settings.

Ah, I had just assumed that having soldier spawn points on the terrain would mess that setting up but I haven't really tested that. Still, having two versions around means twice as much work fixing any bugs.

Yeah, I had wondered what was that about, but I decided to leave it for now since I'm also considering removing the 'wave' effect. I only use it for ships at sea since for me it works better on TFTD and not in UFO

Probably a good idea, for TFTD I think it makes the sea look like a menacing place that monsters crawl out of but not needed for UFO. Plus the sea tiles repeat in an awkward 3x3 pattern, if you switch to normal flat water the coast tiles won't need to be placed in a specific order. Those invisible wall tiles are still a good idea for higher elevations since I think otherwise you can drop down onto the impassible sea tiles and get stuck.

I think beachfront is bugged. One of the bungalows had stairs that went upward but not downward (AKA: you could go to floor two, but not back to floor one). An alien trapped there made the terror mission unwinnable.

Which bungalow is it? Do you have screenshot? And was it a bio-drone that was stuck out of curiosity?

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Work In Progress / Re: [TFTD]Terrain Expansion

« on: June 07, 2016, 02:09:19 am »

That is certainly excellent! I have always kept the thought of conversion to UFO in mind. Only slightly related, I've just added the complex/facility map and it happens that TFTD ships fit under the pipes and walkways just fine:



I'm uploading the latest version I've got here with the lighthouse and main building maps, along with the basis for a UFO recovery version (no coast, no 'soldier' spawn points, more weight to natural terrain). The rest of the mod is still unstable since I was in the middle of adding new civilians which turned out to be way more of headache than expected. By the way, I'm seeing an issue along the coast in your screenshots which is to do with the first MCD entry in COLDISLEA1: it's supposed to be an invisible tile used to block access to the sea. I'm guessing the converter just deleted the entry from the pck file or something similar?

0.1.1
    -Improvements to Polar Island terrain
    -Canal added to beach urban
    -Integrated map and route fixes from combo patch
    -Modified Cargo ship part 1 with more spawn points so civilians don't look like they're being lined up to be shot
    -Adapted Complex terrain as port terror
    -Added more civilians
    -Modified bikini civilian to work with randomized skintones and hair colours plus alt version in red bathing suit

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Work In Progress / Re: [TFTD]Terrain Expansion

« on: June 03, 2016, 10:27:52 pm »

The sewers do give me ideas for something more ambitious, that'll have to leave for another time. I'm having fun with the mapscripts and two new coast tiles for the polar island: a smaller island with either a lighthouse or bare rock. The script will place one of them on either the east or west edge of the map, with a chance of none at all. Changed the lighting how I wanted and changed the alien spawn points again: they should be scattered fairly evenly across the map with only a very few high priority spawns.

Play testing on superhuman has been difficult:


Simple canal implemented for the urban beach map and size increased to 60x50

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Work In Progress / Re: [TFTD]Terrain Expansion

« on: June 02, 2016, 11:30:48 pm »

Oh, The Thing was totally another inspiration which is why I didn't go for the ultra modern space age look (using TFTD's pipe terrain or some of robin's tilesets). I'm pretty sure I put 'huskie kennels' in my initial notes.

May need some more bits to make a good canal, this kind of asymmetry is  going to bug me although technically probably okay:

Other potential ideas, more made difficult by elevation issues. I'm picturing this terrain as something like miami or LA beachside:


A more involved seaside town would be great. One of the issues I've noticed is the TFTD coast areas don't actually get used a lot either because there's little tactical value or because aliens just don't spawn there. There's like only one tile out of the 8 coastal tiles from the port terrain that ever seems to get used in my game and the island coast tiles are also known as the most annoying map tiles ever. And I haven't worked out how to give my own coastal tiles much value either, other than the beach being that place where civilians go to die.