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Messages - WarStalkeR

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31
Modding Resources / Re: Making Spaceship from Scratch (Tutorial)
« on: August 22, 2012, 11:49:11 AM »
Is the gradient there a transparency one or solid colour?
Well, I was selecting empty space between lines with Magic Wand and then feeling it on another layer using Gradient Tool with 2 colors: Dark Grey and Light Grey.

32
Modding Resources / Re: Making Spaceship from Scratch (Tutorial)
« on: August 22, 2012, 12:54:05 AM »
Well, now that I've found out how to do that using my old kitbashed ships, I'm turing quiet a profit. :) Made two fighters in the space of ten minutes, and both look great!  I thank you once again for this.
Can you post your work? I interested to see it :)

33
Mods / Re: Fight For Universe: Sector Xplo (1.0.1.7)
« on: August 21, 2012, 10:57:58 PM »
And now IDF Freighter joins the Fray :)

Why 4 large turrets on Freighter? In order to avoid unnecessary conflicts ;D

34
Modding Resources / Re: Making Spaceship from Scratch (Tutorial)
« on: August 21, 2012, 10:04:56 AM »
Excellent!  Now my onl problem is actually getting that pesky Design layer.  Very hard to make on a computer. >_<
It's actually not that hard, I first like though like this :) But then pixel by pixel I started to draw form, when I didn't liked something, I was removing and remaking parts until I was getting satisfying form :)

35
Mods / Re: Fight For Universe: Sector Xplo (1.0.1.7)
« on: August 21, 2012, 07:41:09 AM »
if your done with the turtorial could you post it in the spriters thread?
Well I finished it quite a time ago and it's here: http://fractalsoftworks.com/forum/index.php?topic=4062.0

36
Announcements / Re: Starfarer 0.53.1a (Released) Patch Notes
« on: August 21, 2012, 05:28:52 AM »
Alex, can you post please original Engine Styles like LOW_TECH, HIGH_TECH & etc?

37
Modding Resources / Making Spaceship from Scratch (Tutorial)
« on: August 21, 2012, 03:15:04 AM »
Before we start, we need couple of things:
1) Photoshop CS5 - I prefer it, because of amount of tools and features.
2) Imagination - You need at least and idea, what do you want to create and how it should look.
3) Patience - You will need a lot of this. And remember the bigger ship, the more time it takes.

As example, I will use IDF Frigate "Hesed", it takes for me about 15~19 layers per ship.

01. Let's start from sketch, or rather I call it Design Layer:

Bear in mind, when you're creating design, you must plan ahead, where you will place turrets, engines, hardpoints, hangars and windows.
First you make approximate sketch of how ship should look. Then you refine it, until you look satisfied. And after that you start add some basic details, that will give this ship basic form.

02. Next thing we need to do is to fill empty space between ships lines, I call it Filling Layer:
+ =
In my case I used gradient tool in Photoshop, but it can be anything, monotonic color, texture & etc. Depends on how you want your ship to look: metallic, bionic & etc.

03. It's important to make ship look more or less seamless, thus I use here Outline Layer:
+ =
In my case I just copied Design Layer, changed it's color in to monotonic Dark Grey, added 50% opacity Outer Glow property of same color with 1 pixels size, then flattened it and removed outer glow part, that passes over original Design Layer. Now we got more or less harmonic ship sprite.

04. If you think that current ship sprite is too bright or too dark, you can add Tone Layer to help with that:
+ =
For me ship was too bright, and thus I fixed it by adding 30% opacity layer with black color.

05. Now its time to give to sprite more realistic looks, it will benefit you in future, in other words Shadows Layer:
+ =
Almost same as Tone Layer, except that you black out only parts of ship that should be more dark due the shadows. I used black color layer with 30% opacity here.

06. So far it looks good enough, but because ship now colorless, it's kinda depressing, so we fix it with Overlay Layer:
+ =
I just took some camouflage texture, cut it to have for of the ship and then turned whole layer in to Overlay Mode with Photoshop. If ship turns out to be too bright or too dark you can change opacity of Tone Layer to fix it.

07. Sometimes Overlay Layer obscures original outlines, thus making it less detailed and this why I use Overline Layer:
+ =
Here I used 30% opacity of main ship's color, for me it was dark green. My opinion that it made ship more detailed.

08. Now we start to add decorations to ship to make it look like a real one. Decorations can consist from multiple Decoration Layers:
+ + + =
I used 3 layers for decorations: windows, lights and danger lines. But it can be anything.

09. Next layer I used to give ship more realistic looks and I called it Plating Layer:
=>
In my case it was dark lines with bright 1 pixel outline. It can symmetric or asymmetric, it can be just dark lines, or lines with pixels that represent rivets, flexible alien alloys & etc. Bear in mind, when you creating Plating Layer it must be in harmony with already predefined hangars, turrets & hardpoints layer, that will be above it. I was satisfied with my IDF Frigate "Hesed" final look :)

10. Now it's time to add to your ship unique sign of you race or civilization, it's called Insignia Layer:
=>
Just place you sign whatever you like, so everybody could see it. Better to place it where it won't be obscured by turret or something else.

11. And the last one set of layers are Equipment Layers:
=> => =>
For me it took 3 layers, one for engines, one for external decorations and one for turrets and hardpoints.

P.S. This is actually first spaceship sprite I ever created from zero, just from my own imagination. I hope it will help other people who want and don't know where to start as it helped me :)

38
Mods / Re: Fight For Universe: Sector Xplo (1.0.1.7)
« on: August 20, 2012, 11:16:36 PM »
Well...sh*t.  EPICNESS!!!  I love it all!
Thanks, should I release small tutorial how to draw from scratch? It may help to other people to make their own unique style...

39
Mods / Re: Fight For Universe: Sector Xplo (1.0.1.7)
« on: August 20, 2012, 09:07:32 AM »
New sprites for IDF Ships, everything except transport ship is ready, there is even a place reserved for it :)


Okim, I want to thank you. I've seen your ship sprites and I remember that you mentioned about usage of Gradient Tool and I thought, I should give it a try too, to create ships from scratch. At first, when I started working on sketch of IDF Frigate "Hesed", I wasn't so sure how it will look in the end. But my personal opinion - it turned out very well, around 16~19 layers per ship in my favorite Photoshop :)

Eventually IDF ships do like a kit-bashed ones, but it's because I intended them to look like this. Kit-bashed ones was very close to what they should like and these ones, created from scratch by me look exactly like I wanted them too look from the very beginning :)

Comments and personal opinions are welcome ;D

40
What about Mono? I have no idea how good it actually is, but it seems like a way to get a C# program to run on Mac/Linux. Assuming it's not an enormous pain to set up and use.
It's pretty much pain, I can tell you from my own experience.

neonesis, you've done very great job writing mod manager, you can try to write it in Java, Java & C# have pretty much the same syntax, both of them object oriented and in addition Java works on every possible OS :)

41
Announcements / Re: Starfarer 0.53.1a (Released) Patch Notes
« on: August 16, 2012, 12:55:42 PM »
Patch truly great, IDF Main Caliber weapons with built-in function now can be used as intended ;D
Alex, seeing you how hard and great you working on Starfarer might give me courage to start my own 2d top down spaceships MMORPG project :)

42
Mods / Re: Project Ironclads, version 2.7 (0.52.1a with campaign)
« on: August 13, 2012, 08:23:09 PM »
Here we are! Ladies and gentlemen! Hail to the mighty mother of destruction!
Sweet mother mercy! Now I convinced that ISA really need Supercarrier to complete the set :o

43
Mods / Re: Project Ironclads, version 2.7 (0.52.1a with campaign)
« on: August 12, 2012, 10:26:40 AM »
Still no intentions on giving ISA a Supercarrier to match against RSF Dreadnought and Alien Mothership? ;D

44
Mods / Re: Fight For Universe: Sector Xplo (1.0.1.7)
« on: August 03, 2012, 10:34:44 AM »
New style for IDF ships (for all IDF related mods).
Currently redrawn only IDF Frigate "Hesed":

45
Announcements / Re: Starfarer 0.53a (Released) Patch Notes
« on: August 03, 2012, 12:37:01 AM »
Alex! We need grappling weapon! Imagine like some pirates grapple enemy ship with titanium chains, then use insertion to collide it with other enemy ships or make it impossible to escape from the ship which grappled it!  It will look just awesome and unique! (Yeah I know Sots was first space game to utilize them, but there are lots of 15th century era setting games with naval battles where they are used).

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