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