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[Torchwood202]

Currently, the Remnants use the same music as Tri-Tachyon. This mod changes that.

• Two variations for hostile fleets!
• Two variations for battlestations!
• One track for being friendly (only possible with Nexerelin mod)!
• Five unused tracks* because they would require Java to implement (and I don't know Java)!

Download: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1S-vDjxbyy07zjNN9ds5Cklu38Yjn9ui9/view?usp=sharing

This can be added and removed mid-save. It should be compatible with all other mods, music-adding or otherwise.

This does not add battle music. It only changes the music that plays when the Remnants intercept your fleet or when you willingly approach a Remnant battlestation.

Soundcloud samples

Spoiler

• REDACTED - Hostile Encounter - Variation 1: https://shorturl.at/A7T6l
• REDACTED - Battlestation - Variation 1: https://shorturl.at/0wcU9
• Unused - SUPER ALABASTER REDACTED - Encounter Hostile - Variation 1: https://shorturl.at/NhwOP
• Unused - Boss Defeated: https://shorturl.at/z6obM

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How did you make these tracks?

Spoiler

Heretical AI was used.

More specifically, I 'jury-rigged / trained' Suno AI on an edited sample from one of my favorite songs. I took snippets of what it outputted and mixed the tracks further in Adobe Audition.

A cookie to whoever guesses where the original sample is from. Hint: It's from a free video game and is not copyrighted.

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Why did you make these tracks?

Spoiler

tl;dr I hyperfixated on a 25 second sample of a song for a little over a year.


While listening to the song for the umpteenth time, I had the sudden idea that a specific section would work perfectly as faction music for the Remnants. I let this idea float around.

I felt like something was there. The sample itself was already great... but it could be even better. So, I grabbed the instrumental version and went to work.

The result? After days of effort, my remixed sample was... better? I could certainly listen to it on repeat and enjoy it more than I did before, but it still lacked something. I went back to work.

After trying several different methods and hundreds of different instrumentals / sounds / samples / what-have-you, I still could not elevate the music to the quality I desired.

What I had did not work... and what I could add did not work... so... I came to the conclusion that I had to change what I already had.

Eventually, I considered Suno AI. To summarize it, it's a free website that makes music. As silly as it sounds, the quality of its music depends on how much effort you put in. Sure, you can just type "make a pirate shanty" and it'll output a 7.5/10 song. But you can also give it a full sheet of lyrics, ask it to extend a song from the middle, or even get it to make genres of music that do not currently exist.


Aware of the stigmas, I lapsed in faith and fed Suno my remixed sample.

It spat out nonsense that only very occasionally sounded like perfection.

20 times, I fed Suno.
20 times, it gave me a rough, grainy statue of what I desired.
20 times, I cut through to the diamond inside, discarding the rest.

And with my supply of remixed-remixed(?) samples, I set back to work.

What you hear is the result. Having been bathed in the music, I am no longer able to distinguish whether it is glorious or garbage. The only thing I can do now is bask in the creation that is not-quite-mine.

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*accessible in folder REDACTED Music Replacer > sounds > music > unused music

[Torchwood202]

Faction music, ultimately, is supposed to both set the tone of said faction and be background music. To this end:

• Do these tracks set the tone of a glitchy, hostile AI faction?
• Are the tracks too different from the rest of vanilla Starsector? Is it immersion-breaking?
• Are the tracks stress-inducing in a good way? You are in a dangerous situation, after all.
• Is the music too... intrusive? Disruptive? Attention-demanding? Is it not 'background-y' enough? Can you still focus on reading what the Remnants say or do?
• Opinions on the unused tracks? More specifically, would you describe the unused SUPER ALABASTER Omega-related tracks as, "walls of noise, wails of the damned, and putting down an apex predator for the good of humanity"?
• Any recommendations for different ways to offer previews / downloads?

[Terethall]

I don't mind that it's AI generated - cute and meta to me, but some might dislike, as leading AI music models produce a very distinctive timbre right now. On their own, I like these tracks. Good job!

That said.... it's a little aggressive, not very "background". And doesn't quite match the tone of the vanilla music. I will probably keep listening to FTL soundtrack when I need a break from vanilla.

Spoiler

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[Joejoemyo]

I will probably keep listening to FTL soundtrack when I need a break from vanilla.

Glad to hear I'm not the only one. Really can't go wrong with it

[Torchwood202]

FTL soundtrack rocks, I have it for combat music. FTL Multiverse's soundtrack is great as well

[Kipax1]

While it is an excellent idea, I do not believe this works as-is.

The mixing is too "flat" compared to the rest of the game so it feels very jarring.
I also don't feel they really fit the tone of the Remnant in the game, they are too upbeat and positive especially in the beginning, though it does get closer to where I feel it should be around the 0:15 seconds mark for the REDACTED hostile encounter.
The soundtrack should really give you the feeling like you just messed up and stumbled upon something alien, unknowable and extremely dangerous, any resulting musing should sound like a glitchy techno Remix of the "ALIENS" theme.

Thankfully! There arleady exists a soundtrack for a game about fighting a hostile AI in deep space - System Shock 2
https://youtu.be/psgzGoAPiUg?t=1980 - Specifically Command 3 theme, this link should take you right to that moment in the soundtrack.
It does not quite communicate just how much danger you are in right now, but I think it does a pretty good job of communicating you just met something very non-human, and very angry

[Torchwood202]

quote snip

Appreciate the critique, this is the kind of feedback I'm looking for.

I can definitely see (hear?) how the beginning portion of REDACTED Hostile Encounter could be too upbeat. I was aiming for the beginning to be grounded in Tri-Tachyon musical themes (a mix of fake cheerfulness, advertisement jingles, and techno) before it abruptly turns into... that aggressive beat. This is a parallel to the Remnants being forever stuck between reciting Tri-Tachyon messages and getting mad that every random passerby isn't Omega.

I gave your examples a listen, and I agree that they convey a dangerous non-human threat very well! However, I feel they are lacking the vibe I'm trying to capture: "the non-human threat is right in front of you! And it's squaring up!! AAAAH!!!" You did mention that it lacks the danger aspect. It sounded much more ominous than dangerous.