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1

Bug Reports & Support (modded) / Repeating crash in ongoing heavily modded campaign (getTravelDays)

« on: November 29, 2021, 04:42:38 PM »

I'm having a weird issue where the game will crash every time it tries to set up a route for a fleet, if I'm reading things right. This happens every single time, and all that's needed to cause it is for me to load my save and wait for a little while. The campaign's got about 10-15 hours into it already, if I had to guess, with no prior issues -- this came seemingly out of nowhere.

The crashes (and lines just before) always look something like this:

Spoiler

113794 [Thread-3] INFO  com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.SurveyPlanetMissionIntel  - Created SurveyPlanetMissionIntel: Hispaniola, faction: independent
114354 [Thread-3] INFO  com.fs.starfarer.loading.LoadingUtils  - Loading JSON from [DIRECTORY: C:\Games and apps\Fractal Softworks\current\Starsector 0.95a RC15\starsector-core\..\mods\Nexerelin (data/config/exerelin/factionTraits.json)]
114357 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.diplomacy.DiplomacyBrain  - Diplomacy brain for keruvim considering options
115299 [Thread-3] ERROR com.fs.starfarer.combat.CombatMain  - java.lang.NullPointerException
java.lang.NullPointerException
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.fleets.RouteLocationCalculator.getTravelDays(RouteLocationCalculator.java:54)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.raid.TravelStage.updateRoutes(TravelStage.java:43)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.raid.TravelStage.notifyStarted(TravelStage.java:34)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.raid.RaidIntel.advanceImpl(RaidIntel.java:221)
   at exerelin.campaign.intel.fleets.OffensiveFleetIntel.advanceImpl(OffensiveFleetIntel.java:504)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.BaseIntelPlugin.advance(BaseIntelPlugin.java:78)
   at com.fs.starfarer.campaign.CampaignEngine.advance(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.campaign.CampaignState.advance(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.BaseGameState.traverse(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.state.AppDriver.begin(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.combat.CombatMain.main(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.StarfarerLauncher.o00000(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.StarfarerLauncher$1.run(Unknown Source)
   at java.lang.Thread.run(Unknown Source)

[close]

Or this: (after giving all Keruvim markets to Tri-tach to see if that'd do anything)

Spoiler

419632 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.intel.rebellion.RebellionIntel  - Updating rebellion on Balrog Backwater: day 71
419632 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.intel.rebellion.RebellionIntel  -   Stability: 0.0
419632 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.intel.rebellion.RebellionIntel  -   Initial force strengths: 102.89145, 42.644096
419632 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.intel.rebellion.RebellionIntel  -   Government engagement strength: 11.031347
419632 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.intel.rebellion.RebellionIntel  -   Rebel engagement strength: 7.0636096
419632 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.intel.rebellion.RebellionIntel  -   Updated force strengths: 102.73666, 41.894142
419632 [Thread-3] INFO  exerelin.campaign.intel.rebellion.RebellionIntel  -   Conflict intensity: 15.269367
420119 [Thread-3] INFO  com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.fleets.EconomyFleetRouteManager  - Added trade fleet route from Indrani Sachi to Beszel
422178 [Thread-3] INFO  data.scripts.campaign.intel.VayraPlayerBountyIntel  - updating player-targeted bounties
423734 [Thread-3] ERROR com.fs.starfarer.combat.CombatMain  - java.lang.NullPointerException
java.lang.NullPointerException
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.fleets.RouteLocationCalculator.getTravelDays(RouteLocationCalculator.java:54)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.raid.TravelStage.updateRoutes(TravelStage.java:43)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.raid.TravelStage.notifyStarted(TravelStage.java:34)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.raid.RaidIntel.advanceImpl(RaidIntel.java:221)
   at exerelin.campaign.intel.fleets.OffensiveFleetIntel.advanceImpl(OffensiveFleetIntel.java:504)
   at com.fs.starfarer.api.impl.campaign.intel.BaseIntelPlugin.advance(BaseIntelPlugin.java:78)
   at com.fs.starfarer.campaign.CampaignEngine.advance(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.campaign.CampaignState.advance(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.BaseGameState.traverse(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.state.AppDriver.begin(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.combat.CombatMain.main(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.StarfarerLauncher.o00000(Unknown Source)
   at com.fs.starfarer.StarfarerLauncher$1.run(Unknown Source)
   at java.lang.Thread.run(Unknown Source)

[close]

There's a few variations on the theme, but they all end the same way. Tried 6 loads and got crashes all 6 times, so I'm guessing my run is gone?

Console mod list and specs/setup output: (all forum releases fully up to date)

Spoiler

System info:
---------------
Game version: Starsector 0.95a-RC15
Game resolution: 3840x2160 (60hz, 32bpp, windowed)
Java version: Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment 1.7.0_79-b15 (Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM)
Platform: Windows (64-bit)
JVM RAM: 416.37 MB / 8,006.00 (7,589.63 MB free, 8,006.00 MB allocatable)
System RAM: 9,045.54 MB remaining, 32,699.12 MB total
Launch args: -XX:CompilerThreadPriority=1 -XX:+CompilerThreadHintNoPreempt -Djava.library.path=native\\windows -Xms8G -Xmx8G -Xss2048k -Dcom.fs.starfarer.settings.paths.saves=..\\saves -Dcom.fs.starfarer.settings.paths.screenshots=..\\screenshots -Dcom.fs.starfarer.settings.paths.mods=..\\mods -Dcom.fs.starfarer.settings.paths.logs=.

 Graphics card info:
---------------------
GPU Model: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070
Vendor: NVIDIA Corporation
Driver version: 4.6.0 NVIDIA 472.12
Free VRAM: 466.61 MB
Dedicated VRAM: 8,192.00 MB
Maximum VRAM:   8,192.00 MB

 Active mod list:
------------------
Regular mods (63):
 - 7s Integration 0.1.4 by xSevenG7x
 - Arma Armatura 1.5.2e by shoi
 - Automated Commands 1.1a by borgrel
 - Better Colonies 1.63 by Techpriest
 - Better Deserving Smods! 1.2 by Jackie!
 - BigBeans Ship Compilation 0.1.7a by BigBeans
 - BigBeans Ship Compilation - IP ship Submod 0.1b by BigBeans
 - CWSP 1.2 by Coherent Watermelon
 - Captain's Log 0.1.4 by stormbringer951
 - Caymon's Ship pack 1.1.3 by Caymon
 - Cebby Ship Pack 1.1.1 by Cebby
 - Commissioned Crews 1.999999gg by Techpriest
 - DIY Planets 1.0.14 by Kentington
 - Detailed Combat Results 5.1.2 by Nick XR
 - Diktat Enhancement 1.0.3 by JAL28
 - Experimental Ship Pack (EXPSP) 0.47 by Unit9461
 - Extratential Lanestate Union 0.7.5b by Protonus
 - Fighter Expansion Rebalanced 1.1.1 by Adapted for 0.95 by Retry, Original author MrHoon
 - Fleet Size By DP 1.0.0 by Chozo
 - Fluff Ship Pack 0.2.3-1 by MrFluff
 - Forge Production 1.0.3 by Ontheheavens
 - Gladiator Society 1.3(beta) by Snrasha
 - Grand.Colonies 1.0.b by SirHartley
 - Grytpype and Moriarty's Defense Authority 0.9.7c by King Alfonzo
 - HMI Supervillains 0.0.2c by King Alfonzo
 - Hazard Mining Incorporated 0.3.4f by King Alfonzo
 - High Tech Expansion 1.4.7 by theDragn
 - Hyperdrive 2.1.1 by Sundog
 - Industrial.Evolution 2.2.g by SirHartley
 - Internal Affairs 1.1 by Inventor Raccoon
 - Iron Shell 1.06 by Techpriest & Selkie
 - Kazeron Navarchy 1.2 by PeachPatrol
 - Keruvim Shipyards 0.4 by Connortron7
 - LTA 0.6.0b (Pre-Tournament Release 3) by Yui
 - Luddic Enhancement 1.2.5i by King Alfonzo
 - Magellan Protectorate 1.25a by Harmful Mechanic
 - Missile and Sundry 0.95a RC12 0.13 by DatonKallandor
 - Missing Ships 0.4.1 by Scarface,Nautilus81,Archaeon
 - Nes's ship and weapon 1.4 by Nes
 - Nexerelin 0.10.3g by Histidine (original by Zaphide)
 - No Such Organization - Phase ships 0.3.2 by Kayse
 - Objects Analysis 002 by Harpuea
 - Osiris Alliance 2.6 by null
 - Persean Chronicles 2.0.3 by Wisp
 - Planetary Shield: Access Control 1.4 by Wyvern
 - Remnant Command Transfer 1.0.2 by theDragn
 - Roider Union 1.3.6 by SafariJohn
 - Seafood Shipworks 0.0.7b by LILI&ZeroXenon
 - Ship/Weapon Pack 1.12.999 by DarkRevenant
 - Starship Legends 1.5.5 by Sundog
 - Superweapons Arsenal 2.1a by Mira
 - Survey Corps SP 1.2 by Elseud
 - The Exalted 1.3.2 by Connortron7
 - Unknown Skies 0.43 by Tartiflette
 - Unusually Gullible Hullmods 0.4.0b by Protonus and special credits to whoever discovered that armor-cell script
 - Vayra's Sector 3.2.1 by Vayra; unofficial update by theDragn
 - Weftin's Ship Pack V0.9.3 Public Beta by Weftin (pixel art from keptin)
 - WhichMod 1.1.0 by theDragn
 - Yunru's Midline Expansion A.1.0 by Yunru
 - Yunru's Pirates and Pathers A.1.0 by Yunru
 - YunruCore A.1.0 by Yunru
 - asteroid ship pack 1.3d by Liam556
 - prv Starworks v21 by Prav
Utility mods (15):
 - A New Level of Confidence 40 1.2 Fast by Panteradactyl
 - ClearCommands 1.0.d by SirHartley
 - Combat Chatter 1.11.4 by Histidine
 - Console Commands 2021.4.10 by LazyWizard
 - Dynamic Tariffs 1.3.1 by Tuv0x
 - Fuel Siphoning 1.2.0 by Sundog
 - Hostile Intercept (and Autopause!) 1.3.2 by SafariJohn
 - LazyLib 2.7 by LazyWizard
 - Logistics Notifications 1.3.3 by SafariJohn
 - MagicLib 0.34 by Modding Community
 - Practice Targets 1.41rc2 by Created by Tartiflette. Based on an idea from Foxer360.
 - SpeedUp 0.7.1 by DarkRevenant
 - Starsector Apocalypse 1.4.0 by Jaghaimo
 - ZZ Audio Plus 1.1.3 by DarkRevenant
 - zz GraphicsLib 1.5.1 by DarkRevenant

[close]

Full most recent log: https://gist.githubusercontent.com/xPXpanD/c8cff1a0441ed972d9c9a00cc132dbe9/raw/6bb767fc980ddd0c8c300fa662fde40e2894faeb/gistfile1.txt (couldn't include more than one session due to the sheer size)

One thing to note: I raised "minimumPlanets" to 10 in Nexerelin's config while testing some stuff and accidentally created this whole sector with that active, which I read was problematic in past versions. In-game sliders were set to maximum, random sector. Not sure if this could affect anything here (especially as it was all running fine until now), but figured that might be worth mentioning.

I know that this is the risk in running mods, especially with some of the more bleeding edge stuff like unofficial Vayra's. Still hoping that someone will happen to know more here, though! Thanks for reading.

2

Bug Reports & Support / [0.9a RC10] "Ghost interfaces, credit doubling on ship sales" part two

« on: December 14, 2018, 08:07:07 AM »

A while back, I found and reported a bug with interface persistence in 0.8.1 which allowed you to break the game in various ways. Since upcoming changes (at the time) looked like they might fix the issue, I said I'd report back if I was able to break it again on a newer version.

Long story short, I ended up completely forgetting about the issue until a few days ago, when I managed to accidentally reproduce it again during the course of a normal game. I've done a bit of testing and it seems like the issue is still there, although I'm no longer seeing doubled credits (more like an extra 50% now, not sure what changed there).

This is the old thread, the details still apply:
http://fractalsoftworks.com/forum/index.php?topic=13421.msg226303#msg226303

I've also made a video (watch in 1080p60) to try and show off the issue:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwNhyQC_ivs

There's a little overlay thing in the top left that shows which keys I'm pressing, with what I think is a 100ms expiry on each shown key press. Keep an eye on the ship cost and my credits total -- I should have 56370 credits by the end of this, but end up with 60290 due to the ghost sale.

This was all done on an unmodded game with a fresh character. Some minor settings tweaks were in place, but I don't think they're related. I can provide the file if necessary.

Hope this helps track things down any! Let me know if you need any further details.

(and yes, 0.9 has been lovely once again -- rounding up my second of two consecutive 30-to-40-hour playthroughs now )

3

Bug Reports & Support / [0.8.1a-RC8] Ghost interfaces, credit doubling on ship sales

« on: May 13, 2018, 07:27:19 AM »

I found an interesting issue on my latest playthrough, and after a bunch of testing managed to break it to the point of giving me double the payout for sold ships. My screenshots are from a modded game, but I've confirmed this also works in vanilla.

If you press the Sell hotkey ("S") while also picking up a ship with the mouse and you get the timing just right (pressing "S" just after the click seems to work pretty reliably), this happens:
http://www.expand.rs/starsectorbug2.png

The game will prevent you from clicking the ghost box, but pressing Space/ESC still performs the action, leading into the cash issue mentioned into the title. You can stack multiple copies of these boxes, which then lets you sell exactly two (?) copies of every ship before it stops working. After the second copy, sales stop making the little sell noise and stop adding money.

Using this trick, you can sell your entire fleet twice if you so desire:
http://www.expand.rs/starsectorbug4.png (I had some cash on me, so any variation is due to that -- my fleet got paid for exactly twice)

Don't actually sell everything you own, though, or this happens:
http://www.expand.rs/starsectorbug5.png

...yup, that was a bad idea.

Also, if you press the same hotkey while clicking "Refit", you can do this:
http://www.expand.rs/starsectorbug1.png (very weird, you can still edit the ship after selling it but it vanishes when you close out)

Apart from being able to sell ships twice this issue seems pretty benign, but there might be uses for it that I haven't found yet.

Thanks for reading, and keep up the good work. Still having a ton of fun with the game, and it's only been getting better.

4

Suggestions / Minor - can't move illegal items around OWN inventory when trading legal markets

« on: October 24, 2014, 07:16:12 AM »

Wasn't sure whether to place this one under Suggestions or Bug Reports, but I figured it'd be a bit more at home here.

Currently, you cannot move illegal items (Recreational Drugs in this case) around your own inventory when connected to a non-illegal market. You have to click the Black Market tab first, and then move around. The "Sort" button works too, but of course only does things in its own set order. This isn't really a big deal at all (and I can see how it happens, possibly how it'd be explained in lore as well), but it'd be kinda nice if we could also move illegal items around our inventories when connected to a legal market instead of having to switch tabs first. Just a bit of polish.

5

Bug Reports & Support / Infinite 0-supply repairs, minor but odd - now with extra drug trafficking!

« on: October 23, 2014, 03:39:53 AM »

Got a very minor issue to report here, didn't see a thread up on it just yet.

I was flying around Sindrian territory for a bit, picking fights with some independents for some phat l00t. Went back to the Command & Control station for some repairs, paid about 50 supplies and got my fleet patched up. Then I noticed something a bit funky -- I was able to repair again, after having just done a repair. Did that, and the following loop happened:



Any time I head to another menu section (or close the interface entirely) and then come back to this menu, I am given another chance to "repair" my fleet for zero supplies. As far as I know it's purely cosmetic -- I can't see any way to abuse it, and I am free to quit out or ignore the option. Still figured it'd be worth reporting this little quirk, though.

File showing it in action:
Click me!

No mods loaded, only thing changed was a save file edit when I started out to give me a bit more cash and a positive reputation with the pirates (for a custom start).

6

Modding / Want to extend arc of all weapons with a hull mod, where do I start?

« on: February 11, 2014, 11:58:03 AM »

Hey all,

I've been trying to make a few hull mods for a hopefully upcoming mod of mine, though I'm admittedly a bit stuck on this one. I'm not too used to Java just yet, though I'm willing to learn...

Anyways, is it possible to extend the arc of all weapons (preferably turret mounts only) from within a hull mod? I had a look through the MutableShipStatsAPI, but couldn't really find anything I could go on there for this specific use. I was hoping for there to be a way to grab the arc of individual weapons somehow - if that's the case I can probably sort something out with a loop that runs through all of the available mounts and maybe appends the values there. Dunno how Starsector handles that stuff though, so any help is very much appreciated!

7

Bug Reports & Support / Low-CR ships suffering failures in simulations - intended? Mod issue?

« on: February 09, 2014, 02:46:02 AM »

Done in pictures, because they speak a thousand words:

Spoiler

[close]

Spoiler

[close]

The ship on the left in the first picture is at 30% CR, and starts off with exactly 50% during the simulation. It is freshly bought, not having seen any combat yet. The two ships to the right of that are both at 7% (in the fleet window), and both came out of an earlier battle. Both of those suffer critical malfunctions... in a simulation. Not sure if that's intended, so I figured I'd make a topic for it!

All three of these ships are from the Valkyrians mod, running in Exerelin as usual.

Topic can be locked, see below.

8

Suggestions / UI tweak: Mark weapon damage types in the weapon group assignment window

« on: February 09, 2014, 02:10:53 AM »

The above is a very basic and ugly draft, but yeah... there's my suggestion! Would totally dig seeing something like this in the game with a fancier font or maybe using the game's own damage type icons. I'd imagine it'd help people a lot when fitting weapons to bigger ships, especially for people like me who tend to fit kinetic weaponry to a separate group and keep having to go back and forth between screens with things as they stand.

9

Bug Reports & Support / Minor: engines burning out during enter-battle burn = SUPER SPEED

« on: February 08, 2014, 05:13:17 AM »

This is a pretty minor issue that I'm reporting, though I did just lose a big battleship to it. I entered a battle, and deployed said ship with about 35% combat readiness under AI orders. During the enter-battle speed boost the engines burnt out, causing this huge and heavy ship to go rocketing straight through several enemy capital ships at absolute peak (probably 400+, going by how fast I was going in my own ship) speeds. It didn't survive, though I did get a good laugh out of it. I had it happen on my own ship before though, and it made things awfully easy as I just happened to be chasing some enemies that were getting away and was easily able to get within range despite only having my flagship (a battleship, too) on the field.

I had Exerelin running with about 15 other mods when this happened, and was flying a Bushi battleship myself. The ship that burnt out and died was a Bushi ship, too. As much fun as it was to see a huge ship rocketing through several others at extreme speeds, I can't imagine it being intended. Could be a mod thing, though - my apologies for wasting your time if that is so.

(keep up the good work!)

10

Modding / The Worksmen project, feedback needed! (custom weapons, unique ideas!) (E#21)

« on: August 27, 2012, 11:36:00 AM »

Hi all,

It's been a while since I've last modded something together for Starfarer (the Positron faction for 0.50 being my latest piece of work, if I recall correctly), and I actually left the game for a while in-between. I've recently gotten back into it, so with that comes a mod idea I've been hatching for quite a while.

The idea is all about adding a new separatist miner faction (currently known as "The Worksmen") with fitting new ships and weaponry. Stuff with custom sprites, that is; part hand-drawn, part kit-bashed, all unique to this project. There's some pretty unique ideas here, as well as some that I just haven't seen in use that much just yet - missile barrage weapons, sniper guns, scrap ships, defensive mobile weapons platforms and more. The art in this mod is nearing completion, so campaign modding will probably start soon.

I am relatively new to doing big kitbashes and drawing by hand, though I feel I've been doing a pretty good job so far. However, as I am lacking in experience there's bound to be some issues that I just haven't spotted yet. There's a big rework coming soon to tie the older and newer designs together a bit more, but do please let me know if you see anything odd - I'll get right on it.

I currently need some help with a few ships that might not make it into the mod - the Xello and Axis, as listed in the "Ships pending removal" category. What do you think should happen with these ships? Are they worth saving, or should they be released into the public domain and taken out of this mod?

Now, without further ado...


Ships so far:

Spoiler

"Channel" gunship-sized gunship wing:

Info: A quick build based on the old Nemo bomber design I managed to recover from the planned second Positron update, coupled with a Pointer gun which was specially built for this ship. Yes, the Nemo name was planned for a bomber back then.
Lore: Especially designed to support slower ships at longer ranges through the use of a modified Pointer gun, Channel gunships are often seen defending platforms from faster threats such as frigates.

"Harbinger" corvette-sized corvette:

Info: A rehash of an old unused public design of mine, with a few tweaks. I mostly got rid of the horrible aliased edges the original had, and gave it a fitting new color. This is a tiny frigate, able to jump in and out of enemy lines pretty quickly but not very powerful.
Lore: Meant as a scout ship with very low deployment costs, the Harbinger sports only a single small ballistic weapon, making up for that with sheer speed and maneuverability.

"Vision" frigate-sized carryall:

Info: The Vision carryall started its early life as another ship entirely. That ship eventually came out way too small, so a lot of the work done there was put towards making this small but potent ship. It has decent weapon options and it's meant to be fast, though it can barely maneuver - ideal for a cargo runner through hostile space.
Lore: The Vision carryall is a small ship capable of ferrying a decent amount of cargo and fuel, being both cheap to deploy and effective. It is painfully slow to maneuver, but quite capable of runs through hostile space.

"Prudence" frigate-sized carryall:

Info: No real comments here - this was a pretty easy build expanding upon the original idea behind the Vision.
Lore: Two Visions fused together with a custom centerpiece. A bit more cargo space, a lot more firepower, a lot more maneuverability - a combat-ready freighter and a Worksmen icon, almost outgrowing its frigate size.

"Speartip" frigate-sized frigate:

Info: The last rehash of old (originally kitbashed for Positron) content in this list, the Speartip is a powerful and large frigate with almost destroyer-like weapons options. Don't worry, it'll be expensive and rare. There's a few hull blemishes for detail, but at the time I was making this ship I had no major experience there yet - it's basic.
Lore: Fast and well-armed, the Speartip is based off of a captured Tri-Tachyon ship prototype. Though expensive to produce and somewhat fragile, the Speartip carries a frightening amount of firepower for its speed.

"Godhand" frigate-sized area denial platform:

Info: My first ship with a serious amount of own art in it, and a huge learning experience at the time I made this. I'll get around to revisiting this later - it's not up to standards anymore, though I loved it when I first got it done. I know the size would be that of a large frigate according to Sprog's ship size chart, but I feel this thing is bulky enough to just squeeze into the destroyer bracket.
Lore: Bulky, unwieldy and hugely powerful - that's the Godhand area denial platform. Designed as a purely defensive asset, the Godhand is meant to be placed in mission-critical locations, defending them.

"Quartz" frigate-sized heavy tanker:

Info: Another rehash, used in the Positron mod for a short while. I kitbashed this ages ago, and even though it's rather crude it should do great for this mod. It's a missile/support destroyer with two rather mean broadsides that can also carry a fair bit of fuel! Same story size-wise as the Godhand - this will be a destroyer.
Lore: Based off of the frames of proven Buffalo designs, the Quartz is a custom Worksmen design - a fuel tanker with two mean broadsides. Useful and strong, the Quartz is a common sight in Worksmen fleets.

"Abandon" destroyer-sized light destroyer:

Info: I didn't exactly put a lot of effort into it, but the design still works quite well in my opinion - a throw-away destroyer made from scrap. Originally meant to be an asteroid ship, I changed things around a bit as this fits the theme much better. This actually went through a lot of revisions, eventually getting merged with the Veil destroyer idea. I might revisit this later - it's really rough around the edges right now, though I guess that adds some charm to it too, with the whole theme of it in mind.
Lore: Following the revolt against the Hegemony slavers, the Worksmen launched the Abandon, an easily-deployable conversion based on a civilian multirole hull originally used for mining and research.

"Tower" battlecruiser-sized hybrid support ship:

Info: A very tall ship, a real battleship when it comes to sheer scale. Considering the massive size, it was set to tie in with the Equilibrium design from a looks perspective - I couldn't exactly flip it around though, so it's a bit of a bridge between the lower end non-platform design style and the capital style right now. Uses some parts from the guys credited in the Positron mod.
Lore: A real jack-of-all-trades, the Tower is able to carry large amounts of fuel and cargo while also servicing wings in-combat. It is however rather vulnerable, sporting only light PD and a Hornet's Nest system.

"Equilibrium" battlecruiser-sized battleship:

Info: This was my first huge ship, and it took me about 8 hours total to make this. I was getting ready to scrap the design as I couldn't fix the horrible blandness, but then I got a little gem of an idea - select all the areas that looked too flat and emboss them. Another few hours of tweaking later and this was the outcome. Now to make something that's bridges the Tower and Equilibrium designs at the top end...
Lore: Lacking the resources for a good polish, these battleships often come out as a rough patchwork of plates, bolts and welds, though still remarkably sturdy. The Equilibrium is a potent carrier and missile ship.

[close]

Weapons so far:

Spoiler

"Mass Cannon" large ballistics sniper cannon:

Info: Long range, with charge-up and great damage. The green light thingies are planned to turn red as it charges, and then go green again after firing. Energy and OP costs will be proportional to its damage and range. To the left of the picture you can see the weapon base, followed by the actual weapon. On the right is the final result with both parts combined. Keep in mind that the barrel is actually a separate part as well, it's just not shown separately here.
Lore: The Mass Cannon is a large sniper cannon, able to punch huge holes in exposed armor plating. The high explosive nature of the shells fired by the cannon ties in well with the smaller kinetic Warp Drivers.

"Jumpspark" large missile torpedo:

Info: A relatively simple Cyclone Reaper edit, arming the torpedo with EM damage. This is powerful stuff, hence a single shot even on a large slot.
Lore: Based on the proven Reaper design, the Jumpspark large launcher fires a single EM-armed torpedo. The EM charge is delivered upon successful impact, rendering any exposed circuits inoperative.

"Pointer" small ballistics sniper gun:

Info: Needed a small counterpart to the Warp Driver and Mass Cannon - this is the result. It's not exactly in the same ballpark with its wildly varying damage type and all, but it's a nice little gun nevertheless - great for the Channel and Nemo! The sprite is an edit of the Annihilator rocket launcher from the core game.
Lore: Designed from the ground up as a long range point defense weapon, the Pointer delivers a devastating shrapnel bomb which explodes on impact. High maintenance costs hamper mass deployment.

[close]

Systems so far:

Spoiler

"Sentry Cloud" area protection system:

Info: A small pack of immobile drones with relatively heavy weaponry - this should be fun.
Lore: Meant for area protection, the Sentry Cloud is best described as a drone system. It fires out a group of very dangerous but immobile point defense drones, creating a deadly trap for smaller ships.

[close]

Planned ships:

Spoiler

"Nemo" point defense platform/destroyer:
Info: A Godhand done differently, pretty much. Lots of PD, a few missile mounts and a few mid slots.
Lore: Usually set to accompany Godhand-class area denial platforms, the Nemo is a point defense platform designed to take down nearby missiles and smaller threats that its bigger brother cannot reliably hit.

"Advent" bomber wing:
Info: Why was this name not taken? It is awesome! Anyways, a nice solid bomber with a custom EM torpedo launcher. Will be expensive.
Lore: Advent bomber wings are the nemesis of many inexperienced pilots across the Sector. The power of a torpedo strike combined with an EM wave traversing the ship's systems is a fearful prospect indeed.

[close]

Planned weapons:

Spoiler

"Warp Driver" medium ballistics sniper cannon:
Info: Long range, little damage, high OP costs and very specific uses - Warp Drivers will be ideal partners to the Mass Cannons, able to whittle down shields before cracking the hull with the big guns.
Lore: A kinetic counterpart to the larger Mass Cannon, Warp Drivers are designed to overload shields at similar ranges, creating openings for the high explosive slugs fired by their bigger brethren.

"Great Wall" medium missile bombardier:
Info: Not entirely sure if the average modern computer will like seeing a wall of missiles with great tracking and speed, but that's what this weapon should basically do - it's like a huge Swarmer.
Lore: Improving upon the standard Swarmer design, the Great Wall bombardier fires more missiles, each doing more damage. Ammunition is quite limited, though excellent tracking makes sure no excess missiles are lost.

[close]

Planned systems:

Spoiler

"Hornet's Nest Drones" mass drone deployment system:
Info: Launches a huge number of tiny drones with very little health, very low speed and very poor damage. Easy to shoot down, but disastrous to the PD systems on larger ships.
Lore: Shooting out many tiny and vulnerable drones, each with their own weapon, the Hornet's Nest drone system easily confuses most automatic weapons, leaving enemies vulnerable to larger threats.

"Torrent EM Drones" EM drone deployment system:
Info: Ouch! Not sure if this can be made to work with the current state of ship systems, but I'm certainly going to try.
Lore: Only found on absolute top-of-the-line Worksmen close combat ships, these expensive EM drones are a nasty surprise to enemies who have their shields go down while engaged by the carrier.

[close]

Ships pending removal:

Spoiler

"Axis" destroyer-sized heavy destroyer:

Info: A design that had failed originally, resurrected via extensive kitbashing and eventually turned into something usable. Also my first fully asymmetrical ship! We have a fair amount of destroyers already, and this never got big enough to be the cruiser it was planned as. It's also a bit ugly in my view, mostly due to a lack of polish. Not sure if that's worth it, though - up to you!
Lore: A powerful sniper ship with good movement speed and a lot of firepower on tap, designed to strike from afar. A largely improved built-in Mass Cannon tops off the design, with tweaks throughout the hull.

"Xello" battlecruiser-sized battlecruiser:

Info: This one was made to bridge the gap between the Tower and the Equilibrium when it comes to size and shapes. I dislike the fat jagged edges and the lighting is all wrong when compared to the other ships. It does however do an okay job of bridging those designs, so I'm wondering if it's worth finishing this...
Lore: The Xello is a sturdy mix of technology from many factions fused together to deliver an impressive package. The on-board phase cloaking systems drive up the price, but it is second to none in combat.

[close]

Scrapped ideas:

Spoiler

"Influx" EM destroyer:
Info: This idea will find use in other ships - we're way too high on destroyers already. This isn't a very Worksmen-ish design anyways, though some elements may be fun to add to the Xello design.
Lore: The Influx destroyer takes its name from the potent built-in Flux Conveyor. An EMP system and big energy reserves top off a great but expensive design, which often plays a key role in heavier Worksmen fleets.

"Veil" destroyer:
Info: This idea has been merged into the Abandon, with a suitable lore update.
Lore: Originally a mining ship, the Veil was converted to a destroyer when the Worksmen split from the Hegemony. It is able to deploy a surprising amount of ordnance via the integrated Sentry Cloud system.

"Flux Conveyor" large energy beam:
Info: Same principle as the Ion Cannon, but done far more effectively. Low damage output, massive flux "damage". As the Influx that would wield this was scrapped, so is this idea. I'll probably release it as a separate mod or the like later, though - the idea seems great to me.
Lore: Flux Conveyors attempt to distort enemy power reserves by overloading their generators, using energy from the host ship. Slow to aim and hard to use effectively, but very potent on the right vessel.

[close]

Edit log:

Spoiler

EDIT #1: Added the Quartz and Speartip ships.
EDIT #2: Added the Vision ship.
EDIT #3: Added the Godhand "ship", reworked some ship info.
EDIT #4: Added the Prudence ship, updated the topic title and added lore. Lore's subject to change, as is this entire post, really.
EDIT #5: Reworked some lore, sorted ships by long axis size and added/fixed size info according to the ship sizes list on these forums. Added the edit # to the title.
EDIT #6: Added the Equalizer, the first and possibly only capital ship for this faction! Unfinished as of now.
EDIT #7: Finalized the Equalizer, changed its lore a bit.
EDIT #8: How silly of me, I forgot to add engines and thrusters to the Equalizer. Fixed now, and also added some extra detail.
EDIT #9: Added planned designs and matching lore, and tidied up the old lore a fair bit as well.
EDIT #10: More plans - Advent, Influx and the Jumpspark. Also changed the Flux Conveyor from Large Ballistic to Large Energy.
EDIT #11: Added the Jumpspark torpedo launcher, a powerful Cyclone Reaper variant - down to 1 shot from the original 2, but with a great EM burst.
EDIT #12: Updated lore on the Xello, and added the Axis destroyer. Came out a bit smaller than I had hoped, but it's a nice ship.
EDIT #13: Finalized the Axis design for now with a new revision, and added a plan for the Tower hybrid carrier.
EDIT #14: Added the Hornet's Nest, Sentry Cloud and Torrent ship system ideas, all in a new category. No idea how far ship system modding currently goes, but it's worth a shot.
EDIT #15: Changed the lore on the Tower and fixed it on the Sentry Cloud, renamed the Equalizer to the Equilibrium, added a new plan for the Veil light destroyer.
EDIT #16: Finished the Tower design.
EDIT #17: Finished the Abandon design and updated a lot of info. More info on the uses of certain ships, less blabbering on about how long it took me or what I did to it.
EDIT #18: Updated the Axis design with some shadow/light corrections and a few more details. It's still kinda rough, but it's the best I can do and it's in line with other designs now.
EDIT #19: After a busy week, I bring you: Lore changes, a new Scrapped Ideas category, a new ship (Channel), a new weapon (Pointer) and proper ship sorting!
EDIT #20: Added a rough version of the Xello. Edits coming later!
EDIT #21: Moved the Xello and the Axis to a new "Ships pending removal" category, added new info and spoiler'd everything. Feedback is really needed right now.

[close]

There's bound to be more stuff added here before launch, so keep an eye on the thread. As said any suggestions are very much appreciated, as is constructive criticism and comments in general. I'm a complete newbie to the programs I use for editing this stuff (Paint.NET for early stages, GIMP for detailing and coloring), so do try keep art stuff simple, please.

11

Bug Reports & Support / [0.51a RC3] Broken variant editor in devmode?

« on: March 16, 2012, 03:36:47 AM »

Hi all,

Just tried to edit a few of my Positron mod ships using the game's built-in variant editor, only to find out it isn't saving anything. When I click "save", it acts as if it saved but the variant file never gets touched. When I try to "export current" via the variant manager, nothing happens at all apart from the button doing the clicked animation.

I tried changing both variants I had made before in Redbull's ship editor as well as empty variant files (which I was using to test the ships in the campaign without it taking too much time) from the same editor, and neither one had their changes saved.

Is this a bug, is the variant editor some sort of debug feature that's not supposed to be used, or am I just misunderstanding the way it works?

Thanks in advance.

12

Modding / What exactly do the "8/6/5/4%", "fuel" and "range" values in ship_data.csv mean?

« on: March 14, 2012, 08:39:06 AM »

Hi all,

What exactly do the "8/6/5/4%", "fuel" and "range" values in ship_data.csv mean? Especially range is something I'm curious about, because I have a feeling that it's important but I can't quite figure it out looking at the core game's ship data file. I would imagine fuel to be something regarding fuel usage, but don't we have fuel/ly for this?

Probably some dumb questions above, but yeah... Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

13

Mods / The Positron faction mod - v0.1 w/ campaign - mod pretty much cancelled

« on: March 11, 2012, 07:11:16 AM »

Introduction:
Hi all,

Ever since I started playing with mods in 0.50, I felt that the Tri-Tachyons didn't get all the love they deserved. I personally love the Tri-Tachyons, because I'm a sucker for energy weapons and all that other high-tech stuff that the Tris like to tout. The problem is that a lot of modded factions seem to have them as an enemy as well, which makes seeing a Tri fleet on a well-modded game a fairly rare sight. So I started thinking up ways to help the Tris out a bit. I used to do PAWN scripting which is actually quite similar to the way Java is used in Starfarer mods, so I figured... Why not start work on my own mod?

The Positron faction mod is the result, and the version that's up for download below has been the result of 30-40 hours of modding. This is an early test version, but it aims at giving a good impression never-the-less. However, because it is a test version balance issues and the like may arise. PLEASE REPORT THEM IF YOU SEE THEM. This mod is supposed to become a very much balanced addition to the core campaign over time, but that can only happen with your feedback.

Downloads:
The current version is v0.1, which is the first public release. It contains the new Positron faction, a matching orbital station (which deploys after ~7 days of game time), and 21 different ships. Once again, if you find any issues, please report them!

*click me to download*

The story:
The date is April 24th, cycle 189. The increasing amount of dismay within the Tri-Tachyon high command has come to an end - a split is to occur, breaking up the Tri-Tachyons into two parts. The Tri-Tachyons have had an unstable command structure for several cycles now, with a few members exerting more and more radical ideas onto the others. "We cannot hope to survive against the Hegemony warmongers without radical changes.", they argued. "If we keep living this way, our technological advantages will be lost to those Hegemony bastards forever and we'll be enslaved!".

And so, the split came to pass. The ones that wanted change went out and started building an orbital station of their own on the other side of Corvus V, growing explosively in the cycles following the split. While still dependent on the Tri-Tachyon mainstay for protection, a new faction was born, their goal being full independence and enough staying power to keep that so. This new faction called themselves the Positrons.

Pioneering many new technologies and creating many new blueprints from scratch in the coming cycles, independence came closer and closer, and almost all of the old Tri-Tachyon designs were trashed in favor of in-house technologies. Production was going well, recycling the many ships fallen in battle to gain remarkable amounts of resources. Things were going so well, in fact, that the power the Positron faction carries now rivaled the Tri-Tachyons themselves. Engine technology especially became a Positron forte, with almost all of their ships being comparably very fast - a requirement for not being caught by the Hegemony, bent on destroying this new and dangerous faction above all else.

...

The date is now the 5th of December, cycle 205. The Positron people are ready to fight. They're ready to claim their freedom, to crush the Hegemony forces for their persistence. They have faith in their capabilities, having massed significant fleets and power in only a short amount of time. Their Orbital Station is ready to be uncloaked, showing the world that the Positron faction exists and will continue to exist. Independence is closer than ever.

The ships:
Below are pictures of the ships included - lore can be found in the Codex in-game.

Amy:


Arachae:


Ares:


Artifact:


Crate:


Cyclic:


Dronart:


Epitaph:


Frontier:


Hauler:


Launcher:


Mended:


Nipper:


Onna Stick:


Quartz:


Rang Rang:


Scorpion:


Spade:


Speartip:


Stinger:


Swarmer:


Credits:
Most of the ships in this mod were made by Medikohl, taken from his ship sprite thread. The Cross, Dronart and Swarmer designs were made by arcibalde for the same thread. The Speartip and Quartz were kitbashed by me, using Medikohl's worksheet. Without the spriting work of Medikohl and arcibalde, this mod would not have been possible. Some of the internal campaign coding was taken from the TimCORP mod by Upgradecap.

In closing:
Comments are always welcome, and suggestions and ideas will be highly needed to get the campaign sorted. If you have anything to share, please do!


EDIT #1: Changed "Wingman" to "Scythe" because apparently it had a name.
EDIT #2: Removed the Everest destroyer because it's already in use.
EDIT #3: Lore fail. Originally the lore was set to be in a period of about half a year, so the text was written with "months" referring to time. I moved that to cycles later on to make the Positron community's growth more believable, as in: children being born and raised, expanding the very small community by a lot. Should've totally updated the text when I did that, too.
EDIT #4: Removed the Scythe as it is in use. We'll get a new capital ship, no worries.
EDIT #5: Removed the Sensor bombers because they are in use as well. Also renamed Land Here > Frontier.
EDIT #6: Added the Arachae capital ship. Thanks, Medikohl!
EDIT #7: Updated the lore on several ships, added sections for credits and progress, and generally tidied things up.
EDIT #8: Added the Crate, Cross and Swarmer ships, along with matching lore. Also updated the credits.
EDIT #9: Added the Dronart by Arcibalde, and the Ares by Medikohl. Also updated several pieces of ship lore and their roles. Oh, and I added a new teaser picture.
EDIT #10: Took out the Launcher due to the style differing a bit too much. I already have some really good fitting carriers right now.
EDIT #11: Added a new description for both the Ares and the Arachae. The Ares is now a leviathan, which is to be very rare and costly (both in buying price and upkeep) once the mod gets a campaign.
EDIT #12: Took a good look at ship classifications, and changed a few descriptions and ship types based on that. That Hauler is hard to classify, though...
EDIT #13: Added my first "own" design, made with parts from one of Medikohl's worksheets - the Speartip frigate!
EDIT #14: Did a few color shifts on the Stinger and Swarmer to make them much more theme-coherent. I didn't notice the Stinger was that green before. O.o"
EDIT #15: Also recolored the Rang Rang, Spade and Hauler. Especially the Hauler looks much more gritty now, a very serious look that fits its role in this mod well.
EDIT #16: Turns out I came out a bit short on carriers, even though I expected to have enough. The Launcher is back in action, and with a fitting recolor! Also, updated progress.
EDIT #17: Added the Quartz heavy tanker along with matching lore, to fill a gap in the Positron ship line-up. It's a custom version of the already-custom Buffalo Broadside from the sprite thread.
EDIT #18: Major updates. Campaign is nearly ready for release (I skipped the mission), lore got updated, and the ships got sorted and lore'd properly according to mod files.
EDIT #19: First release! Woo! Also, massive post update to make it a lot shorter, as all of the ship info can just be found in the Codex.
EDIT #20: Likely stopping work on this mod, so a thread title update. No actual content updates as of yet.

14

Bug Reports & Support / [0.51a RC3] VERY minor issue in Independent faction's friendly text.

« on: March 08, 2012, 03:59:29 AM »

Hi all,

I made a new campaign save file earlier and modded it a bit, so I would start off friendly with all factions and could pick my own enemies. I know that you currently cannot get friendly status with any faction (or at least I haven't found out how to, yet), but still - I found a bit of an oversight in the text for the Independent faction.

Here's what's currently there:

Code

"greetingFriendly":"I’ll be slagged, space isn’t so empty after all! And to think I assumed you were hostile. What a pleasant surprise to be wrong.",

Here's what should be there:

Code

"greetingFriendly":"I'll be slagged, space isn't so empty after all! And to think I assumed you were hostile. What a pleasant surprise to be wrong.",

The slanted quotes (’) render as question marks ingame, whereas the normal quotes (') work fine. As said, it's a very minor issue, but if becoming friendly with this faction is planned for future releases it might be good to fix that in advance.

15

Bug Reports & Support / Possible experience/money/ship/loot grinding oversight

« on: February 22, 2012, 08:19:05 AM »

Hi all,

I came across another potential issue with the game earlier, although I am not sure if it is intended or not. It didn't seem like it to me, hence me making this topic.

It is currently possible for players to grind battles, gaining pretty much infinite amounts of experience, loot, ships and credits. This is done by moving over a planet or space station where the fleets for a certain faction spawn, and then attacking everything that spawns there. The best example of this seems to be the pirate planet - new fleets spawn there very often, and with a large enough fleet of your own combined with the automatic battle option it becomes an insane source of income and new ships.

Maybe a fix for this could be spawning new fleets randomly in a fairly wide radius around the mother planet, and not in range of any existing hostile fleet?

As with the other thread I made, here are the mods that I am currently using, just in case:
http://fractalsoftworks.com/forum/index.php?topic=161.msg8766#msg8766
http://fractalsoftworks.com/forum/index.php?topic=162.0