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Topics - The Reaver of Darkness

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121
I made a mod to add new types of bombs for the small launcher. It all works perfectly except that their names show as the STR_ names. I copied the method of adding language data from the functional "Retaliator" interceptor mod. Here's my whole small bomb mod, with the language at the bottom:

items:
  - type: STR_SMALL_LAUNCHER
    compatibleAmmo:
      - STR_STUN_HE_BOMB
      - STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB
      - STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB
    accuracySnap: 45
    accuracyAimed: 105
    tuSnap: 25
    tuAimed: 60
  - type: STR_STUN_BOMB
    weight: 2
    power: 80
  - type: STR_STUN_HE_BOMB
    requires:
      - STR_STUN_BOMB
    size: 0.1
    costSell: 7600
    weight: 2
    bigSprite: 38
    floorSprite: 37
    hitSound: 0
    hitAnimation: 0
    power: 80
    damageType: 3
    clipSize: 1
    battleType: 2
  - type: STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB
    requires:
      - STR_STUN_BOMB
    size: 0.1
    costSell: 9500
    weight: 2
    bigSprite: 38
    floorSprite: 37
    hitSound: 0
    hitAnimation: 0
    power: 80
    damageType: 9
    clipSize: 1
    battleType: 2
  - type: STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB
    requires:
      - STR_STUN_BOMB
    size: 0.1
    costSell: 11400
    weight: 2
    bigSprite: 38
    floorSprite: 37
    hitSound: 0
    hitAnimation: 0
    power: 80
    damageType: 2
    clipSize: 1
    battleType: 2
manufacture:
  - name: STR_STUN_BOMB
    space: 1
  - name: STR_STUN_HE_BOMB
    category: STR_AMMUNITION
    requires:
      - STR_STUN_BOMB
    space: 1
    time: 160
    cost: 3500
    requiredItems:
      STR_ELERIUM_115: 1
  - name: STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB
    category: STR_AMMUNITION
    requires:
      - STR_STUN_BOMB
    space: 1
    time: 170
    cost: 4375
    requiredItems:
      STR_ELERIUM_115: 1
  - name: STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB
    category: STR_AMMUNITION
    requires:
      - STR_STUN_BOMB
    space: 1
    time: 180
    cost: 5250
    requiredItems:
      STR_ELERIUM_115: 1
extraStrings:
  - type: en-GB
    strings:
      STR_STUN_HE_BOMB: "Explosive Bomb"
      STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB: "Smoke Bomb"
      STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB: "Incendiary Bomb"
extraStrings:
  - type: en-US
    strings:
      STR_STUN_HE_BOMB: "Explosive Bomb"
      STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB: "Smoke Bomb"
      STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB: "Incendiary Bomb"
extraStrings:
  - type: es-419
    strings:
      STR_STUN_HE_BOMB: "Bomba detonante"
      STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB: "Bomba de humo"
      STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB: "Bomba incendiaria"
extraStrings:
  - type: es-ES
    strings:
      STR_STUN_HE_BOMB: "Bomba detonante"
      STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB: "Bomba de humo"
      STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB: "Bomba incendiaria"
extraStrings:
  - type: fr
    strings:
      STR_STUN_HE_BOMB: "Bombe explosive"
      STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB: "Bombe fumigène"
      STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB: "Bombe incendiaire"
extraStrings:
  - type: ja
    strings:
      STR_STUN_HE_BOMB: "爆薬爆弾"
      STR_STUN_SMOKE_BOMB: "煙爆弾"
      STR_STUN_FIRE_BOMB: "焼夷弾爆弾"









Here's the language bit from Retaliator:

extraStrings:
  - type: en-GB
    strings:
      STR_IMPROVED_INTERCEPTOR: "Improved Interceptor"
      STR_RETALIATOR_UFOPEDIA: "VARIANT OF THE INTERCEPTOR REFITTED WITH AN ALIEN ALLOY AIRFRAME FOR INCREASED SURVIVABILITY AND SOPHISTICATED AVIONICS FOR OPTIMAL INTERDICTIONS."
      STR_RETALIATOR: "RETALIATOR"
  - type: en-US
    strings:
      STR_IMPROVED_INTERCEPTOR: "Improved Interceptor"
      STR_RETALIATOR_UFOPEDIA: "VARIANT OF THE INTERCEPTOR REFITTED WITH AN ALIEN ALLOY AIRFRAME FOR INCREASED SURVIVABILITY AND SOPHISTICATED AVIONICS FOR OPTIMAL INTERDICTIONS."
      STR_RETALIATOR: "RETALIATOR"
  - type: es
    strings:
      STR_IMPROVED_INTERCEPTOR: "Interceptor mejorado"
      STR_RETALIATOR_UFOPEDIA: "VARIANTE DEL INTERCEPTOR DOTADA DE UN FUSELAJE DE ALEACIÓN ALIENÍGENA PARA MAYOR PROTECCIÓN Y AVIÓNICA SOFISTICADA PARA ÓPTIMAS INTERDICCIONES."
      STR_RETALIATOR: "RETALIATOR"
  - type: es-419
    strings:
      STR_IMPROVED_INTERCEPTOR: "Interceptor mejorado"
      STR_RETALIATOR_UFOPEDIA: "Variante del Interceptor dotada de un fuselaje de aleación alienígena para mayor protección y aviónica sofisticada para óptimas interdicciones."
      STR_RETALIATOR: "RETALIATOR"

122
edit: Some of the things I tried which did not seem to work before may have in fact been working solutions. I was not getting any results because I had capitalized the "r" in "research:".

edit 2: I tried to do this again with manufacture dependencies and discovered that while the [] command does clear dependencies, there seems to be no way to re-declare them afterward. Deleting the section and re-creating it works like a charm, however.

manufacture:
  - delete: STR_HOVERTANK_PLASMA
  - name: STR_HOVERTANK_PLASMA
    category: STR_HEAVY_WEAPONS_PLATFORM
    requires:
      - STR_PLASMA_CANNON
      - STR_UFO_CONSTRUCTION
    space: 30
    time: 1200
    cost: 850000
    requiredItems:
      STR_ALIEN_ALLOYS: 5
      STR_ELERIUM_115: 30



-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I am trying to make the STR_NEW_FIGHTER_TRANSPORTER research only require STR_UFO_CONSTRUCTION. I can tell it to have that dependency, but it doesn't get rid of the other existing dependency: STR_NEW_FIGHTER_CRAFT.


Research:
  - name: STR_NEW_FIGHTER_TRANSPORTER
    cost: 700
    points: 30
    dependencies:
      - STR_UFO_CONSTRUCTION
  - name: STR_ULTIMATE_CRAFT
    cost: 900
    points: 30
    dependencies:
      - STR_NEW_FIGHTER_CRAFT
      - STR_NEW_FIGHTER_TRANSPORTER

123
solved, thanks!
YAML-CPP: error at line 10, column 28: end of map not found

This is the error I'm getting when I try to load my EN-GB language file into the game. I can't find any problem with it in Notepad++ and I've been using and updating it without problems until now. Line 10 column 28 is just a begin double quotation mark at the start of a UFOPedia text entry.

Here's the first 12 lines of the file:

en-GB:
  STR_INTERCEPTOR_UFOPEDIA: "COMBAT AIRCRAFT WITH DUAL PULSE DETONATION ENGINES AND SPECIALLY SHIELDED ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS. THE FASTEST COMBAT AIRCRAFT IN THE WORLD."
  STR_PUNISHER_UFOPEDIA: "COMBAT AIRCRAFT WITH DUAL TURBOFAN ENGINES, USING SPIKE INLETS AND AFTERBURNERS. THE POWERFUL ENGINES ALLOW HEAVY ARMAMENT TO BE CARRIED AT HIGH SPEED."
  STR_SKYRANGER_UFOPEDIA: "TROOP TRANSPORTER. THE FASTEST OF ITS KIND, WITH VERTICAL TAKE OFF AND LANDING (V.T.O.L) CAPABILITY."
  STR_CUSTODIAN_UFOPEDIA: "HEAVY TROOP TRANSPORTER. FAST AND POWERFUL, AND IT CAN MOUNT A WEAPON SYSTEM FOR DEFENSE, THOUGH IT IS NOT FAST ENOUGH TO INTERCEPT ALIEN CRAFT."
  STR_SPARROW_UFOPEDIA: "LONG RANGE PATROL CRAFT, SPORTING A SINGLE PULSE DETONATION ENGINE AND SPECIALLY SHIELDED ELECTRONICS`. THIS CRAFT CAN FLY SWIFTLY TO ANY POSITION ON THE GLOBE AND PATROL FOR SEVERAL HOURS."
  STR_ALBATROSS_UFOPEDIA: "MEDIUM RANGE PATROL CRAFT, WITH WIDE, LIGHTWEIGHT TITANIUM WINGS ALLOWING THE CRAFT TO STAY ALOFT FOR VERY LONG PERIODS OF TIME BEFORE NEEDING TO REFUEL."
  STR_STORMSTRIKE_UFOPEDIA: "HIGH SPEED AIRCRAFT MODIFIED TO CARRY MULTIPLE PERSONNEL. THIS CRAFT IS NOT A PROPER TROOP TRANSPORT, BUT IT CAN TAKE FOUR SOLDIERS TO A SITE IN MUCH LESS TIME THAN A SKYRANGER CAN."
  STR_VANQUISHER_UFOPEDIA: "POWERFUL FIGHTER WITH THE MOST ADVANCED ARMOR AND WEAPON SYSTEMS IN THE WORLD. THIS CRAFT IS NOT PARTICULARLY FAST BUT IT CAN DEAL WITH SOME OF THE MORE POWERFUL ALIEN CRAFT IF IT WERE EVER TO CATCH ONE.
  STR_FIRESTORM_UFOPEDIA: "VERSATILE COMBAT CRAFT.  THIS FIGHTER REPLICATES THE CLASSIC ALIEN FLYING SAUCER DESIGN, WITH CENTRAL PROPULSION UNIT. ADDITIONALLY, IT CARRIES A SMALL CARGO BAY."
  STR_LIGHTNING_UFOPEDIA: "TRANSPORTER AND COMBAT CRAFT.  A CRUDE BUT EFFECTIVE REPLICATION OF ALIEN PROPULSION SYSTEMS, CAPABLE OF CARRYING HEAVY LOADS AT HIGH SPEEDS."
  STR_AVENGER_UFOPEDIA: "TRANSPORTER AND COMBAT SPACECRAFT.  THE ULTIMATE REPLICATION OF ALIEN TECHNOLOGY."

Here's a link to the file:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/1lzsntfh2s7e0iv/en-GB.yml?dl=0

124
I'm trying to make a manufacturing project in which an existing rental craft can be consumed along with alien alloys to produce a better version of the same craft. Of course it'll have its own separate craft designation and attributes, but will be very similar to the original. How do I get an existing craft to be usable as a part? Is there some way to maybe "repackage" the craft and have it become an inventory item rather than using hangar space and having unique attributes? If I could do that, it would also help me make my aircraft storage facility that I want to put in my mod.

Another question: how do I get the names of things to show up correctly? For example, instead of STR_GUARDIAN_TANK_CANNON I want it to say Guardian Tank w/ Cannon.

Third question: Can I assign the damage to the tank instead of the ammo? It would save a lot of list space if each different cannon tank could use the same cannon rounds.

edit 22 Mar 2020: Aircraft can now be consumed in manufacturing projects as well as being sold for money, and items in stores can have a rental fee, all in Open X-Com Extended (OXCE).

125
Offtopic / X-Com Pro-tips!
« on: September 14, 2014, 08:52:02 am »
I'm so used to knowing just about everything about the old X-Com games that I forget sometimes that others haven't played these like I have. I'd like to share with you guys some of the interesting gameplay tips I have picked up through the years. If any of you have tips to add, leave them in the comments! I'll add them to the post and give you credit. Also, I'll be updating the list with more tips as I think of them.

Tips for UFO: Enemy Unknown/X-Com: UFO Defense (MicroProse 1994) and for X-Com: Terror from the Deep are preferred, but tips for X-Com: Apocalypse or X-Com Enemy Unknown (Firaxis 2012) are also welcome, as are any tips for isometric X-Com remakes such as UFO: Alien Invasion or Xenonauts. Please do not share tips for non-isometric games, or for non-X-Com games.

================================================================

Pro Tip #1: (UFO) if you use cannons/craft gas cannons to shoot down alien craft, they land intact and you can recover the Elerium-115/Zrbite. apparently this doesn't work in most versions

Pro Tip #2: (UFO/TFTD) some aliens can be frightened by weapons fire, especially terrorists. When facing a dangerous terrorist you are unable to kill, firing shots at it may make it reconsider attacking you next turn. Sometimes this leads them to waste time units and wind up in a good position to be fired upon. Alternatively (especially) , if a soldier reacts to a terrorist's movement and fires at it, it may suddenly change its movement and give up its attack.

Pro Tip #3: (UFO) an interceptor can safely shoot down a medium UFO (Abductor or Harvester) or large UFO (Supply Ship or Terror Ship) with Avalanche missiles. A single interceptor may carry enough power to shoot down a medium if the missiles score enough hits, and at best, only 2 are needed to shoot down a Terror Ship.

Pro Tip #4: (UFO/TFTD/Apoc-turn based) the higher a soldier's reaction stat is, the less likely aliens are to react to their movements. Reactions are based on the reaction attribute of both parties as well as their current remaining percentage of TUs. For example, if your soldier has 2x the reactions of an alien with 60% remaining time units, that soldier can walk and act freely in front of that alien without fear of reaction fire until the soldier gets down to about 30% time units. You can train reactions up by giving soldiers opportunities to react. Successful reactions raise the attribute.

Pro Tip #5: (TFTD) Ion and Magnetic Ion Armor has very low armor on the sides. To avoid getting your soldiers killed, always walk around unexplored corners with high time units and preferably high reactions, or find a way around that doesn't involve exposing your sides to enemy fire. When ending a turn in a vulnerable position, have your soldier face toward or away from wherever fire is most likely to come from, and point their sides away from likely fire points.

Pro Tip #6: (UFO/TFTD/Apoc) Enemies that are difficult to kill usually have a weakness, especially if they are heavily armored. Reapers (UFO) are weak to incendiary, and also I believe they are frightened by fire (don't quote me on this). Cyberdiscs (UFO) are weak to explosives (due to their low under armor and large size). Sectopods (UFO) are weak to laser, incidentally their shot type is laser even though it looks like plasma. I do not believe the X-Com: EU Sectopods are weak to lasers. Mutons (UFO) and Lobstermen (TFTD) will generally die eventually if you just keep hitting them, as they have rather low armor and merely high hit points. Lobstermen also resist AP damage. Alternatively, you can stun a Muton or Lobsterman with sun rod/thermal tazer and detonate any explosive on its body to kill it. Triscenes (TFTD) are weak to explosives, but you still need a fairly powerful one to get through their thick under armor. Multiworms (Apoc) will not spawn Hyperworms if damaged and killed with something other than HE or AP (such as laser or plasma). Shielded aliens (Apoc) can be attacked through the shield with stun gas, alien gas, and toxiguns, leaving the shield unit intact for recovery. Even an armored human can be killed with a toxigun if you have enough ammo, as its incredible fire rate will allow you to still net a rather high damage total for time spent attacking.

Pro Tip #7: (Apoc-turn based) Brainsuckers can react during your turn. If your soldier steps next to one, it just might leap on your soldier's face during your turn. You can use this to your advantage if your soldier steps underneath something or has a low clearance over their head as the Brainsucker may fail to hit and land paralyzed on the floor. It's probably better to just shoot it from one square away, however.

Pro Tip #8: (UFO/TFTD) You can use your graphs as a real-time radar map of the whole world with 100% detection chance. It will tell you where alien activity is happening and will update instantly as it happens. This is extremely useful in the early game as it is easy to notice a region climbing in activity over several minutes or hours. Often this will give you a heads-up as to where you should patrol to find targets. Just remember to watch the numbers on the side of the screen--the spike may seem to be the same height when actually the graph scale changed to fit the new, higher value.

Pro Tip #9: (UFO/TFTD) Assuming you do not have the better reactions mod turned on, there is a mechanic in these games called Mutual Surprise. When a moving unit is spotted by an enemy and they both see each other at the same time, the enemy is initially unable to react until the unit moves again. You can use this to your advantage when entering an area in which you expect aliens--just barge in such that you will see them as they see you. To best achieve this, use a door or shoot down a wall rather than walking around a corner.

Pro Tip #10: (UFO/TFTD) The larger alien craft keep their high ranks all in one room, usually the navigation room. If in your first turn at a landed craft, you manage to kill all of the leaders, you greatly diminish the morale of the remaining units, which are already less effective in combat. This is especially effective with Sectoids (UFO) or Aquatoids (TFTD), as only the leaders and commanders (Sectoids) or navigators, technicians, and commanders (Aquatoids) are capable of using psionics/molecular control. The easiest way to accomplish this is to bring Blaster Launchers or P.W.T. Launchers. You can use the first shot to blast a hole in the side of the ship. A second may be needed to breach an inner wall. The final shot, if detonated in the navigation room on your first turn, is unlikely to leave any high ranks alive. You may be able to use this tactic in later turns as those high ranks often stay in that room anyway.

126
Work In Progress / Needing a few tips for my new Lightning
« on: September 12, 2014, 01:15:30 am »
I am changing the base layout of the Lightning to allow 16 soldiers or up to 4 tanks, with 4 exits. I've got the hang of editing the map but there's some things I don't know how to do yet:

1.) I need to edit the start locations of the soldiers/tanks. It seemed as though in the How To guide for MapView, that the nodes were key to determining where the X-Com units spawn, but I don't see how. I copied the style shown in the Avenger and Skyranger maps but they don't really have much, just a single node inside the ship with no explanation as to how the rest of the units fill in, and those nodes are set to no spawn. I tried it anyway, and I got only 3 soldiers to spawn in the craft, the rest were deleted at the start of the mission. -DONE!

2.) The craft is bigger, and uses 2x2 map sections (20x20 squares) instead of the original Lightning's 2x1. So I need to make the new map sections spawn as flat land so that the Lightning doesn't clip through structures. -DONE!

3.) I'd like some tips on adding new terrain pieces. I want to make 3 more doors and ramps for the other 3 exits, and I want to replace the power source with a new 4-piece power source so that I can center it.

127
Tools / How do I edit X-Com maps?
« on: September 11, 2014, 10:21:48 am »
How do I edit X-Com maps? I can't find anything listed here (am I just missing it?) and I don't know what to search in Google to avoid coming up with endless hits about newer X-Com games.

Please help!

128
Open Feedback / Need a new Range Based Accuracy mod
« on: September 11, 2014, 09:54:55 am »
The current Range Based Accuracy mod is highly flawed, in my opinion worse than the original system even after you adjust the accuracy of the weapons to compensate for its differences.

Problems with the mod:
1.) different shot types have different effective ranges. They should have the same effective range. There is already a difference in their listed accuracy. If you give them a shorter effective range, you should give them all the same accuracy.
2.) accuracy diminishes additively, that is, it goes straight to zero on a linear equation. An enemy too far away cannot be hit, except by a lucky "miss" which is extremely unlikely at significant ranges.
3.) there is no increase to accuracy from being closer. I could argue that this is even more important than having accuracy decrease from more range. Through playing many times, I always felt that the accuracy ratings for each shot type on any given weapon were about right for shooting a target a fair distance away. I rarely made shots from so far that it seemed odd for a snap shot to hit. MUCH more commonly, I would see a soldier unload an entire magazine of misses at point-blank range just because the accuracy for auto-shot said 15% chance to hit. Range Based Accuracy does nothing to fix this.

==============================

We need a new mod which will set a specific distance as "standard distance" which all base accuracy values will be set for. A target at half the distance should have double the chance to be hit, while a target at double the distance should have half the chance to be hit. I vote the standard distance should be 20 squares. The hit formula would be:

(UA * SM) / (TD / SD)

In which:
UA = Unit Accuracy
SM = Shot Modifier
TD = Target Distance
SD = Standard Distance

If your veteran butterfingers Joe Miss-a-lot has 38 firing accuracy and is using a weapon with a measly auto-shot accuracy of 25%, then his chance to hit a target 2 squares away will be:
(0.38 * 0.25) / (2 / 20)
0.095 / 0.1 = 0.95
He'd have a 95% chance to hit the target. Now I know it's pretty difficult to fail to hit a target that close even with this cumbersome weapon, but Joe Miss-a-lot is capable of doing it...in one out of twenty shots.

129
I posted some of this before, in another post I made in the tools forum asking for advice on constructing this monster mod. Here I'd like to showcase my ideas and get feedback about what you like or don't like about it, any changes you might make, or anything you'd like to add to it. Please consider that it is designed to appeal to veterans of the franchise; while it should remain user-friendly, the wide array of choices is expected to be daunting to a newer player and I'm okay with that. Still, any tips on improving presentation without reducing complexity are appreciated!

I don't expect to get very far in modding this project due to my lack of coding experience, but Open X-Com has renewed my dream that it may someday come to be. I'm not going to give up on it, but I also wouldn't mind if any of you tried to make some of this or used some of my ideas in your own mods. And if you know how to do any of this, please share! A lot of it I don't really know how to do.

DETAILS:
-----------------------------------------
Lots of new craft will be added, expanding the existing five to a grand total of sixteen, including four basic starter craft, four special-use craft, four basic X-Com craft, and four mind-shielded craft. Furthermore, after researching Alien Alloys, your conventional craft can be boosted in performance and hit points due to using these alloys in their construction. To do this, you expend the craft in a construction project which yields the alloy version.

Starter craft (you start with one of each, in your four hangars):
Interceptor - 2100 knots, 1100 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 40 HP, 0 soldiers
 * range: 9167 NM (73%)
 * a bit more fuel than the original, but much weaker. I feel the original is too powerful compared to real technology from that time. This can still reliably take out a small or medium scout, but may have difficulty with large scout. Two can easily take on a large scout.
Punisher - 1400 knots, 800 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 100 HP, 1 soldier
 * range: 6667 NM (53%)
 * same combat capability as the original interceptor but slower and shorter range. I'm basically splitting up the original interceptor's capabilities into two more specialized craft. This one is a two-seater plane and you can fit one soldier in the copilot seat with minimal flight training if you're desperate enough.
Skyranger - 1140 knots, 1400 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 125 HP, 10 soldiers, 2 HWPs
 * range: 12,090 NM (97%)
 * Smaller cargo, but faster. This craft will get your soldiers from A to B in a reasonable amount of time. Important for fast response in the early game.
Custodian - 570 knots, 1600 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 150 HP, 18 soldiers, 3 HWPs
 * range: 15,200 NM (122%)
 * Slow but carries a large crew complement. Nice for alien base assaults. It has a weapon to defend its valuable cargo. Aliens can intercept your craft in my project, but they won't do this very often. But it's best to be on the safe side.

Special craft (you can buy these immediately-there is room in your aircraft storage facility):
Sparrow - 1575 knots, 1750 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 30 HP, 0 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 15,313 NM (123%)
 * patrol time: 41.5 hours (maximum) https:// 24.5 hours (halfway around) https:// 7.5 hours (far side)
 * This is a patrol craft which has a lot of on-board fuel. In addition, it has 50% greater on-board radar range. This is a long-range patrol craft which can get to the far side of the geoscape and still have enough fuel to patrol for a few hours. It spends a considerable amount of time refueling, however.
Albatross - 780 knots, 1200 fuel, 1 weapon slots, 60 HP, 1 soldier, 0 HWPs
 * range: 11,143 NM (89%)
 * patrol time: 66.5 hours (maximum) https:// 29.17 hours (halfway around)
 * This is a medium-range patrol craft which, due to the way fuel mechanics work in X-Com, expends fuel much slower than a normal craft. It can't fly across the geoscape without running low on fuel, but it can patrol near your base for days before stopping to briefly refuel--also sporting quick refuel (explained as it actually not spending its fuel very fast as opposed to carrying a lot). It has double the radar detect chance compared to other on-board radar.
Stormstrike - 1710 knots, 1000 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 50 HP, 4 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 9220 NM (74%)
 * This is the fastest troop transport available with human technology. It carries only four soldiers with minimum equipment, but can arrive on-site quickly.
Vanquisher - 880 knots, 700 fuel, 4 weapon slots, 150 HP, 2 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 6417 NM (51%)
 * This modern fighter craft isn't really built for catching UFOs, but if it ever managed to, it would certainly know what to do with it. These can be good for disrupting a large amount of alien activity near your base and helping you to stay hidden, or for defending your base from an alien craft on a retaliatory mission.

Starter craft alien-alloy versions:
Interceptor - 2400 knots, 1200 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 80 HP, 0 soldiers
 * range: 10,000 NM (80%)
 * now fast enough to pursue some retreating UFOs
Punisher - 1600 knots, 875 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 200 HP, 1 soldier
 * range: 7292 NM (58%)
Skyranger - 1300 knots, 1550 fuel, 1 weapon slots, 200 HP, 10 soldiers, 2 HWPs
 * range: 12,917 NM (103%)
 * now carries a weapon, but gained less armor
Custodian - 650 knots, 1750 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 300 HP, 18 soldiers, 3 HWPs
 * range: 15,799 NM (126%)

Special craft alien-alloy versions:
Sparrow - 1575 knots, 2100 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 60 HP, 0 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 18,272 NM (146%)
 * patrol time: 50 hours (maximum) https:// 32.83 hours (halfway around) https:// 15.67 hours (far side)
 * no speed increase, more fuel capacity increase
Albatross - 780 knots, 1450 fuel, 1 weapon slots, 120 HP, 1 soldier, 0 HWPs
 * range: 13,443 NM (108%)
 * patrol time: 80.5 hours (maximum) https:// 43 hours (halfway around) https:// 5.5 hours (far side)
 * no speed increase, lighter weight allows craft to use even less fuel during patrol
Stormstrike - 2200 knots, 1200 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 60 HP, 4 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 10,000 NM (80%)
 * very little increase to armor, mostly greatly improved speed
Vanquisher - 990 knots, 775 fuel, 4 weapon slots, 300 HP, 2 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 7104 NM (57%)

Basic X-Com Craft (you can research these after researching alien craft tech):
Firestorm - 4200 knots, 25 fuel, 3 weapon slots, 500 HP, 4 soldiers, 1 HWPs
 * range: 8750 NM (70%)
 * Super fast interception craft able to outrun almost all alien craft, also highly durable. Doubles as a troop transport, though only barely. I increased its fuel so it can actually make it more than halfway across the globe.
 * dependency: UFO Construction
Lightning - 3100 knots, 40 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 800 HP, 16 soldiers, 4 HWPs
 * range: 10,333 NM (83%)
 * Super fast troop transport which can deploy a large combat force extremely quickly. Can be used for interception, though several alien craft can outrun it. New setup has four ramps leading outward from the center, and four 2x2 slots that can fit a tank or four soldiers. You can't fit a large tank into it, but at least you can fit small tanks. I upped the fuel of this one as well.
 * dependency: UFO Construction
Avenger - 5400 knots, 60 fuel, 4 weapon slots, 1200 HP, 12 soldiers, 2 HWPs
 * range: 27,000 NM (216%)
 * Ultimate fighter - can outrun all alien craft easily and has the power to take down the larger ones with ease. Makes a good troop transport but it doesn't have the greatest troop complement. This has the interception capacity of the original Avenger plus a third weapon slot.
 * dependency: New Fighter-craft
Vigilante - 4000 knots, 80 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 1500 HP, 26 soldiers, 4 HWPs
 * range: 26,667 NM (213%)
 * Ultimate troop transport - carries a tremendous fighting force and can deploy worldwide in under 4 hours. Also makes a good interceptor, though the fastest alien craft can still outrun it. This has the troop layout of the original Avenger.
 * dependency: New Transport-craft

When you research UFO Construction, you will unlock two options: New Fighter-craft and New Transport-craft. Whichever one you research first will yield you a craft excellent at its job and capable of performing the other. You can then continue and research the ultimate craft for that job, or the new one for the other job. You really only need one ultimate craft, as either one is quite competent at both interceptions and transporting troops. Having both available just gives you more flexibility to choose what suits your style more.


Mind-shielded X-Com Craft (these require deeper research):
Stalker - 3600 knots, 150 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 400 HP, 4 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 45,000 NM (360%)
 * Patrol craft which flies at only 10% speed during patrol. It can move into an area quickly and patrol for a long time without alerting aliens to its presence. It has a 50% increased radar detect range.
 * dependency: UFO Construction, Medium Scout, Abductor, Mind Shield
Hercules - 2800 knots, 100 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 1800 HP, 32 soldiers, 8 HWPs
 * range: 23,333 NM (187%)
 * This is the largest troop transport, capable of carrying as much as 4 large tanks. You can take this one to Cydonia if you wish.
 * dependency: New Transport-craft, Battleship, Supply Ship, Mind Shield
Starstreak - 7200 knots, 30 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 600 HP, 1 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * range: 18,000 NM (144%)
 * This is the fastest interception craft, and also mind-shielded so they won't know you're coming. You can take this ship to Cydonia if you really want to. Might make for an interesting (and difficult) challenge.
 * dependency: New Fighter-craft, Small Scout, Terror Ship, Mind Shield
Assassin - 4800 knots, 70 fuel, 3 weapon slots, 1000 HP, 14 soldiers, 3 HWPs
 * range: 28,000 (224%)
 * This craft is a capable interceptor and transport wrapped into one, in case you can't decide what you want. It also offers a chance to have a mind-shielded craft with more normal specifications. Finally, it has the iconic 2x7 internal space of the old Skyranger, in case anyone wants that for nostalgia. And yes, you can take it to Cydonia.
 * dependency: New Fighter-craft, New Transport-craft, Large Scout, Harvester, Mind Shield

Mind-shielded craft become available once you have finished researching the Mind Shield technology and have also researched enough requisite alien craft designs.

Yankes' MoreCraftWeapons mod: https://github.com/Yankes/OpenXcom/tree/MoreCraftWeapons
Yankes' thread: https://openxcom.org/forum/index.php?topic=2425.0

Tanks:

I'm also planning on adding large (2x4) tanks, costing much more money but with much higher health and armor, and more powerful weapons. Tanks will come in three flavors:
1.) guardian tanks - high HP and armor, pretty even armor on all sides; low TUs, reactions and accuracy
 - small guardian tank: small turret mount
 - large guardian tank: medium turret mount
2.) battle tanks - small has the same attributes as the old tanks
 - small battle tank: medium turret mount
 - large battle tank: large turret mount
3.) assault tanks - low HP and armor, highest armor in front; high TUs, reactions and accuracy
 - small assault tank: large turret mount
 - large assault tank: X-large turret mount

You buy or manufacture tanks separately from their turrets. Small turrets have power between a rifle and a handheld cannon; medium turrets are a bit more powerful than handheld cannons; large turrets are a lot more powerful than any handheld weapon; X-large turrets are so powerful they can be used to overwhelm a target that is normally impervious to your current technology. X-large are great against sectopods.

Tanks cannot be destroyed in a single hit other than from an explosive or a large turret-mounted weapon:
Max damage a small tank can take from one shot from a given weapon:
* handheld/small turret - 60%
* medium turret - 80%
* large/X-large - 100% (can destroy it in 1 hit)
Max damage a large tank can take from one shot from a given weapon:
* handheld/small turret - 40%
* medium turret - 60%
* large - 80%
* X-large - 100% (can destroy it in 1 hit)
Cyberdisc weapon: large turret
Sectopod weapon: medium turret
this is just to keep a huge block of steel from splatting in one shot from a tiny gun, and mostly shouldn't affect the overall game

New Handheld Weapons:
Each basic weapon has a high-power version and a fully-automatic version. The high power version usually has a good auto-fire capability: auto-pistols/submachineguns can unload a lot of rounds in a turn, machineguns have a fairly accurate auto shot, autocannons can only fire one auto shot per turn but if you hit all three shots, you can deal a LOT of damage. Semi-auto pistols have rapid snap and aimed shots, rifles still have burst fire but their auto-shots are usually inaccurate--they instead do excellent snap and aimed shots with high accuracy. Heavy cannons are slow and unwieldy with poor accuracy, but deal tremendous damage.

The aliens will carry the three non-automatic plasma variants and once any one of these has been researched, X-Com can devise its automatic counterpart. Heavy Plasma is getting hugely nerfed, being made far less wieldy and having its accuracy reduced but time unit costs greatly increased. On the flip side, its power is being increased a bit.

Craft Weapons:
Craft weapons have been expanded a bit--I have split the laser and plasma weapons into two variants and added a new, smaller fusion weapon:
Pulse cannons: 21 range, 20 damage, 2s reload time, 200 shots - this is the short-range laser weapon and it can not only replace your cannons for shooting down a craft intact but can also replace your stingray missiles in that it out-ranges the medium scout and hits pretty hard.
Laser Beam: 44 range, 140 damage, 24s reload time, 20 shots - this is the long-range laser weapon and it easily replaces stingrays for taking alien craft down, but also has a tendency to destroy them or deal so much damage that the wreck isn't very valuable.
Plasma Cannon: 26 range, 70 damage, 3s reload time, 100 shots - this weapon has a tremendous capacity for dealing a lot of damage quickly. It has a pretty short range, but a very fast craft can get into range much more quickly, making this weapon more useful.
Plasma Beam: 52 range, 140 damage, 18s reload time, 25 shots - I made the weapon fire slower and reduced the number of shots it has. It is still an excellent weapon, but this nerf will give other weapons a chance to compete.
Small Fusion Missile: 56 range, 180 damage, 24/36/48s reload time, 8 shots - can outrange almost all alien craft and is also particularly accurate, making it easy to shoot down small scouts.

In addition to this, I'm increasing the damage of fusion ball and also increasing the HP on the Battleship. Multiple craft with fusion balls can make short work of it, but with the ability to have your damaged craft take off, it's more possible to fight these with other weapons now.

Small scouts will have a -60% hit modifier, making them difficult to hit. Stingrays will be your best bet, having a 125% base hit chance, not reduced by range. Avalanches aren't terrible either, with 100% chance to hit, but they will usually miss a small scout. It only takes one hit with either one to take the thing down, though. Medium scout has -40% and large scout has -25%. A stingray will always hit a large scout. The small fusion missile has 150% accuracy and therefore has a 90% chance to hit a small scout.


130
Tools / Seeking advice/instructions on my modding project
« on: September 08, 2014, 12:52:17 pm »
I am overhauling X-Com with a wide variety of fairly simple changes and additions that I have been working on for years now, which I believe will greatly improve game balance and gameplay options without significantly changing the overall feel of the game. Some of these changes are easy with the YAML editing, but others I am going to have a bit more difficulty with.

If I add new items to the game using existing textures, is it as simple as editing the Xcom1Ruleset.rul file and adding a new entry for the item? I'm assuming it is not. What do I need to do to add more items, craft, and research/production projects? And if I did wish to add my own artwork, how would I do that?

Is there an intuitive map editor for editing X-Com craft maps? How do I alter them and/or create new ones?

How do I change UFO interception mechanics to introduce a range-based accuracy system with turrets along with an accuracy modifier on each individual alien craft? More specifically, I want all turrets to have their listed accuracy at point-blank range and half of that value at the end of their range (missiles would maintain full accuracy at any range). Then I want small craft to have a reduction in chance to be hit, while large craft should make you more likely to score hits. All these values would be additive, such that an inaccurate weapon firing at a very small craft may have no chance at all of hitting, while that same weapon used against a very large craft might have no chance of missing.

How do I increase the base layout size to allow 8x8 bases? Do I need to change any image files?

How do I make facilities that allow certain facilities to be placed atop them? Specifically, I want to allow greater living quarters/stores/laboratories/workshops (2x2) to be placed on any combination of smaller facilities of the same type and/or empty spaces, with the existing smaller facilities contributing to a reduction in final cost and build time. Also, I want to allow a space to be pre-cleared by converting it into a facility called a corridor or empty room, which you can build any facility over, thus reducing the cost and build time of the second facility.

How do I add an aircraft storage facility? I think it should be a 2x2 facility that once built is accessed by a new button in the craft menu, with a menu system allowing you to easily move aircraft in and out of the storage. When moving craft in or out of storage, the craft should have a transfer time (about 3 hours), and when you take them out, they should need a full refueling and re-arming. Their equipment and elerium fuel should be placed back in your stores when you transfer them to the aircraft storage facility.

How do I set a cargo capacity for craft?

How do I make large (4x2) tanks? There shouldn't be any major issues with their movement on the battlescape, with proper coding. Given a 4x4 movement area minus the corners (a "circle" if you will), you have all of the squares the tank will occupy in any orientation. It would just need to check square availability when attempting to turn.

How do I give individual soldiers randomized maximum stat potentials within a set range, with the final determined maximum affecting the range their stat will start within? For instance, I want maximum strength to range from 50 to 70. I want soldiers with a strength max of 50 to start anywhere from 10 to 30, and with a max of 70 to start anywhere from 20 to 40.


=================================================================

Details of my project, for those of you who are interested:
More complete version here: https://openxcom.org/forum/index.php?topic=2924.0

Lots of new craft will be added, expanding the existing five to a grand total of sixteen, including four basic starter craft, four special-use craft, four basic X-Com craft, and four mind-shielded craft.

Starter craft (you start with one of each, in your four hangars):
Interceptor - 2100 knots, 1100 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 40 HP, 0 soldiers
 * a bit more fuel than the original, but much weaker. I feel the original is too powerful compared to real technology from that time. This can still reliably take out a small or medium scout, but may have difficulty with large scout. Two can easily take on a large scout.
Punisher - 1400 knots, 800 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 100 HP, 1 soldier
 * same combat capability as the original interceptor but slower and shorter range. I'm basically splitting up the original interceptor's capabilities into two more specialized craft. This one is a two-seater plane and you can fit one soldier in the copilot seat with minimal flight training if you're desperate enough.
Skyranger - 1140 knots, 1250 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 125 HP, 10 soldiers, 2 HWPs
 * Smaller cargo, but faster. This craft will get your soldiers from A to B in a reasonable amount of time. Important for fast response in the early game.
Custodian - 570 knots, 1500 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 150 HP, 18 soldiers, 3 HWPs
 * Slow but carries a large crew complement. Nice for alien base assaults. It has a weapon to defend its valuable cargo. Aliens can intercept your craft in my project, but they won't do this very often. But it's best to be on the safe side.

Special craft (you can buy these immediately-there is room in your aircraft storage facility):
Sparrow - 1600 knots, 1600 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 30 HP, 0 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * This is a patrol craft which patrols at 1/4 speed instead of 1/2 speed like most craft, which reduces its fuel consumption. In addition, it has 50% greater on-board radar range. This is a long-range patrol craft which can get to the far side of the geoscape and still have enough fuel to patrol for a few hours. It spends a considerable amount of time refueling, however.
Albatross - 780 knots, 800 fuel, 1 weapon slots, 60 HP, 1 soldier, 0 HWPs
 * This is a short-range patrol craft which also patrols at 1/4 speed, but due to the way fuel mechanics work in X-Com, it actually expends fuel much slower. It can't fly across the geoscape without running low on fuel, but it can patrol near your base for days before stopping to briefly refuel. It has double the radar detect chance compared to other on-board radar.
Stormstrike - 1710 knots, 1000 fuel, 0 weapon slots, 50 HP, 4 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * This is the fastest troop transport available with human technology. It carries only four soldiers with minimum equipment, but can arrive on-site quickly.
Vanquisher - 880 knots, 700 fuel, 3 weapon slots, 150 HP, 2 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * This modern fighter craft isn't really built for catching UFOs, but if it ever managed to, it would certainly know what to do with it. These can be good for disrupting a large amount of alien activity near your base and helping you to stay hidden, or for defending your base from an alien craft on a retaliatory mission.

Basic X-Com Craft (you can research these after researching alien craft tech):
Firestorm - 4200 knots, 30 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 500 HP, 4 soldiers, 1 HWPs
 * Super fast interception craft able to outrun almost all alien craft, also highly durable. Doubles as a troop transport, though only barely. I increased its fuel so it can actually make it more than halfway across the globe.
 * dependency: UFO Construction
Lightning - 3100 knots, 30 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 800 HP, 16 soldiers, 4 HWPs
 * Super fast troop transport which can deploy a large combat force extremely quickly. Can be used for interception, though several alien craft can outrun it. New setup has four ramps leading outward from the center, and four 2x2 slots that can fit a tank or four soldiers. You can't fit a large tank into it, but at least you can fit small tanks.
 * dependency: UFO Construction
Avenger - 5400 knots, 60 fuel, 3 weapon slots, 1200 HP, 10 soldiers, 1 HWPs
 * Ultimate fighter - can outrun all alien craft easily and has the power to take down the larger ones with ease. Makes a good troop transport but it doesn't have the greatest troop complement. This has the interception capacity of the original Avenger plus a third weapon slot.
 * dependency: New Fighter-craft
Vigilante - 4800 knots, 80 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 1500 HP, 26 soldiers, 4 HWPs
 * Ultimate troop transport - carries a tremendous fighting force and can deploy worldwide in under 4 hours. Also makes a good interceptor, though the very fastest alien craft can still outrun it. This has the troop layout of the original Avenger.
 * dependency: New Transport-craft

When you research UFO Construction, you will unlock two options: New Fighter-craft and New Transport-craft. Whichever one you research first will yield you a craft excellent at its job and capable of performing the other. You can then continue and research the ultimate craft for that job, or the new one for the other job. You really only need one ultimate craft, as either one is quite competent at both interceptions and transporting troops. Having both available just gives you more flexibility to choose what suits your style more.


Mind-shielded X-Com Craft (these require deeper research):
Stalker - 3600 knots, 100 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 400 HP, 4 soldiers, 1 HWPs
 * Patrol craft which flies at only 10% speed during patrol. It can move into an area quickly and patrol for a long time without alerting aliens to its presence. It has a 50% increased radar detect range.
 * dependency: UFO Construction, Medium Scout, Abductor, Mind Shield
Hercules - 2800 knots, 60 fuel, 1 weapon slot, 1800 HP, 32 soldiers, 8 HWPs
 * This is the largest troop transport, capable of carrying as much as 4 large tanks. You can take this one to Cydonia if you wish.
 * dependency: New Transport-craft, Battleship, Supply Ship, Mind Shield
Starstreak - 7200 knots, 30 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 600 HP, 1 soldiers, 0 HWPs
 * This is the fastest interception craft, and also mind-shielded so they won't know you're coming. You can take this ship to Cydonia if you really want to. Might make for an interesting (and difficult) challenge.
 * dependency: New Fighter-craft, Small Scout, Terror Ship, Mind Shield
Assassin - 4400 knots, 80 fuel, 2 weapon slots, 750 HP, 14 soldiers, 3 HWPs
 * This craft is a capable interceptor and transport wrapped into one, in case you can't decide what you want. It also offers a chance to have a mind-shielded craft with more normal specifications. Finally, it has the iconic 2x7 internal space of the old Skyranger, in case anyone wants that for nostalgia. And yes, you can take it to Cydonia.
 * dependency: New Fighter-craft, New Transport-craft, Large Scout, Harvester, Mind Shield




I'm also planning on adding large (2x4) tanks, costing much more money but with much higher health and armor, and more powerful weapons. Tanks will come in three flavors:
1.) guardian tanks - high HP and armor, even armor on all sides; low TUs, reactions and accuracy
 - small guardian tank: small turret mount
 - large guardian tank: medium turret mount
2.) battle tanks - small has the same attributes as the old tanks
 - small battle tank: medium turret mount
 - large battle tank: large turret mount
3.) assault tanks - low HP and armor, highest armor in front; high TUs, reactions and accuracy
 - small assault tank: large turret mount
 - large assault tank: X-large turret mount

You buy or manufacture tanks separately from their turrets. Small turrets have power between a rifle and a handheld cannon; medium turrets are a bit more powerful than handheld cannons; large turrets are a lot more powerful than any handheld weapon; X-large turrets are so powerful they can be used to overwhelm a target that is normally impervious to your current technology. X-large are great against sectopods.

Tanks cannot be destroyed in a single hit other than from an explosive or a large turret-mounted weapon:
Max damage a small tank can take from one shot from a given weapon:
* handheld/small turret - 60%
* medium turret - 80%
* large/X-large - 100% (can destroy it in 1 hit)
Max damage a large tank can take from one shot from a given weapon:
* handheld/small turret - 40%
* medium turret - 60%
* large - 80%
* X-large - 100% (can destroy it in 1 hit)

Each basic weapon has a high-power version and a fully-automatic version. The high power version usually has a good auto-fire capability: auto-pistols/submachineguns can unload a lot of rounds in a turn, machineguns have a fairly accurate auto shot, autocannons can only fire one auto shot per turn but if you hit all three shots, you can deal a LOT of damage. Semi-auto pistols have rapid snap and aimed shots, rifles still have burst fire but their auto-shots are usually inaccurate--they instead do excellent snap and aimed shots with high accuracy. Heavy cannons are slow and unwieldy with poor accuracy, but deal tremendous damage.

The aliens will carry the three non-automatic plasma variants and once any one of these has been researched, X-Com can devise its automatic counterpart.

Craft weapons have been expanded a bit--I have split the laser and plasma weapons into two variants and added a new, smaller fusion weapon:
Pulse cannons: 21 range, 20 damage, 3s reload time, 200 shots - this is the short-range laser weapon and it can not only replace your cannons for shooting down a craft intact but can also replace your stingray missiles in that it out-ranges the medium scout and hits pretty hard.
Laser Beam: 44 range, 140 damage, 24s reload time, 20 shots - this is the long-range laser weapon and it easily replaces stingrays for taking alien craft down, but also has a tendency to destroy them or deal so much damage that the wreck isn't very valuable.
Plasma Cannon: 26 range, 70 damage, 4s reload time, 100 shots - this weapon has a tremendous capacity for dealing a lot of damage quickly. It has a pretty short range, but a very fast craft can get into range much more quickly, making this weapon more useful.
Plasma Beam: 52 range, 140 damage, 18s reload time, 25 shots - I made the weapon fire slower and reduced the number of shots it has. It is still an excellent weapon, but this nerf will give other weapons a chance to compete.
Small Fusion Missile: 56 range, 180 damage, 24/36/48s reload time, 8 shots - can outrange almost all alien craft and is also particularly accurate, making it easy to shoot down small scouts.

In addition to this, I'm increasing the damage of fusion ball and also increasing the HP on the Battleship. Multiple craft with fusion balls can make short work of it, but with the ability to have damaged craft take off, it's more possible to fight these with other weapons now.

Small scouts will have a -60% hit modifier, making them difficult to hit. Stingrays will be your best bet, having a 125% base hit chance, not reduced by range. Avalanches aren't terrible either, with 100% chance to hit, but they will usually miss a small scout. It only takes one hit with either one to take the thing down, though. Medium scout has -40% and large scout has -25%. A stingray will always hit a large scout. The small fusion missile has 150% accuracy and therefore has a 90% chance to hit a small scout.



That's enough for now. Maybe later I'll continue.

131
Tools / How do I fully edit research project dependencies?
« on: September 08, 2014, 10:00:21 am »
The Xcom1Ruleset.rul file contains dependency lists for various research projects, but does not specify whether all items are needed, such as needing power suit and UFO navigation for flying suit, or if any one item is enough, such as how you can research almost any alien for alien origins.

How do I know which one it is, and how do I change it? For example, I wish to make both pulse cannons and laser beam available for research once you have completed any of the following: heavy laser cannon, laser autocannon, large laser turret, X-large laser turret; or pulse cannons available once medium laser turret is researched. (I'm adding some new technologies here.)

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