What are the chances?

[matchbox2022]

Hey Vice,
Any chance of maybe one last hurrah major update with a new contract?

Was thinking maybe it'd get more newbies a head start credit wise as well as inject one new contract into the game to get other players back on multiplayer to augment any new players.

If that's a huge ask I understand, just brushing ideas.
Some ideas possibly smaller might include;
- the ability to give out a distress call for fuel and potentially have a hostile jump in instead.

- a new weapon with contract designed for attacking cities from orbit ballistic (could use the fulcrum warp effect observed on capital ships but as a missile which would flash on impact with the surface to annihilate a city) could be part of a contract to setup a new outpost or assault one. Where the setup outpost would provide ample credits and the assault city would possibly drop "rare" equipment on chance (some which require a blueprint for example generally).

- a drone which could be deployed (as a miniature ship so to speak) as a secondary weapon or equipment hotkey which could fire a laser at hostiles and be targetable for hostiles to be distracted when large fleets tend to chase the pilot.

Probably not, but just an ask, imo it'd keep people coming back and interested/buying.

[Vice]

I'm currently focused on some experimental efforts to try and get my desktop games running in some new and different ways. Not yet sure how those efforts will pan out (Arvoch Alliance will be the first and depending on the outcome, may be the only one due to code complexity and external dependencies/requirements). So there won't likely be significant gameplay or item/weapon changes, at this point at least.

I can say that for the first idea, it can potentially happen currently in space where hostile ships are present. At least with a hostile appearing at the waypoint and attacking the rescue ship or the player. I like new weapon concepts, something I'll continually keep in mind should plans change over time. I could see the last one kind of working how the AMS does now, but in more of an offense type function. If not a drone, some form of attachable automated cannon or something (also potentially destroyable).

[Iron man]

How about a quest of landing on earth?

[Marvin]

If I knew how to land on Earth and Vice said it was okay, I'd script one. But, ASAIK, only Seejay could do it. And he isn't telling how.

[Vice]

Any potential Earth access wasn't designed to be part of the game or serve any gameplay purpose, as such, any potential use of the option was/is just unsupported.

[Marvin]

In a few thousand years global warming will have turned Earth into a water planet anyway. And Subnautica is already a game.

[Austin]

Subnautica is the beast of scary Sea games! Yes I meant Beast.

How about an epic mission line to fight Vonari, who are ready wreck Earth and we have to return to Sol to warn them and then an epic battle in Sol?

Re-enforce the need for the Ring and have a show down at "Home".

And make the Sol Battle's nigh impossible unless you have a full wing. Dang this feel like end game battle idea's here... But I think this could be done on an epic scale, enough to require players to team up and save Earth.

Earth wasn't designed to be part of gameplay... Vice might be bug... Earth is what the Vonari want! We must stop them!

Sounds like something epic could come from that

[Iron man]

If that ok if from the 5 person I know who landed on earth on EL are willing giving a "hint" to land not a spoiler to Marvin for making his quest. I guess that will give some water to the mill.
how does that sound?
Also how about secret quest leading to the "curiosity" implented into the game? As far as I know unfortunately less peoples found it than landing on earth

[Marvin]

And make the Sol Battle's nigh impossible unless you have a full wing. Dang this feel like end game battle idea's here... But I think this could be done on an epic scale, enough to require players to team up and save Earth.

It would need to be done solo. You can hire an wing of AI pilots but you can't script a custom battle for multiplayer.

[Austin]

That is sad. But I see what you are saying. Even Solo, I think it's a great idea for end game content. Skirmishes in normal territories. Leading to bigger battles in The Rift, to Sol for a massive battle. I'd love if Vice got in on this and added some Ring action killing enemies. Maybe even back track one side of the galaxy to the other and bring the fight to the bugs. End the war once and for all, until the next game I dunno, sounds fun to me

Wow, the biggest thing, that I doubt he'll do. Could you picture that epic battle and the dang ring is firing at real enemies. Even for a scripted moment.
Dang... I forgot I mapped out the entire asteroid field in 1.X. Could be a great place for battles in Legacy.

[Marvin]

Well, there already exists a script where the Vonari attempt to take over the gated systems. With a couple of big battles, IIRC. Even an option where the player can tiptoe away and say, "Forget it, I'm not gonna risk my neck."

[matchbox2022]

Which ones that?

[Marvin]

"The Transporter" ... it comes with the game. You should pick a side (Federation or Alliance).

[matchbox2022]

bump on the weapon idea? I'll take almost any feature update, but a new capital ship / station overkill weapon with new graphics/sounds would be dope as heck.
Or a drone which can engage enemies also coolio, potentially undocks and redocks to repair itself. It could even be semi-tethered to the craft, so long as it can fly around a bit and engage enemies / split them up of you. maybe a cannon of sorts on it.

I experimented with that approach myself by building weapon modules to target my enemies, but that felt kinda tacky. Might be better as a more deployable feature with a new graphic.
Late night yammerings, just don't wanna see the game die off, if modding was more friendly a whole community could explode.
My biggest issues myself doing it was spawning enemies to fight, bar none that was the hardest part. that and getting other effects like cool red glows or an object in "phase" (such as when you build something/deploy) it builds over time / materialized. It'd be cool if there were a "deconstruction bomb" which could do that to ships and capital ships, stations in a range so long as shields were lowered to almost zero...could be a new weapon effect, like a pure flash, or at least give then that effect. and no explosion....just silent evapoation as the sound effect gets louder and brighter.
And then make it cost a bazillion dollars but then it would have a use here and there when dealing with overpowered situations including stations.
As well as them exploding via a timer or event.
Old sleepy time yammerings....
make evochron great again! I miss modding it to attempt to make it better myself.

[Marvin]

A lot of those things can be scripted in a quest. And I was about to paste a quest tutorial (how to write one) until I looked at my old one (in MS Word) and realized it was 14 pages long. Maybe SeeJay still has a copy posted to his website.

[matchbox2022]

I did notice I think there was a "red orb" effect of sorts in the quest readmes. I had a lot of issues trying to get it working, as well as spawning enemies in the right locations.
I don't think the quests allow for a situation where you have a WMD of sorts against stations/battleships, or supernovae on rare occasion to wipe out planets / bases / stations / ships in the area, leaving a nebulae and a "new" scorched planet in it's wake.
Just some cool ideas but nothing that could ever be scripted.

Other than the red orb and potentially destroying a huge area with ships included...that and my limited batch skills could make something in single player with the right variables attached so a ship with the "right stuff" could effectively do it. Any ideas of how to get that effect working?

I tried doing some things in batch but I'm pretty limited as to what I can do.

[DaveK]

A lot of those things can be scripted in a quest. And I was about to paste a quest tutorial (how to write one) until I looked at my old one (in MS Word) and realized it was 14 pages long. Maybe SeeJay still has a copy posted to his website.

I don't think that it is ... I've checked in every category that it might be in

The address is http://www.evochron2.junholt.se/

[Marvin]

Try: Legacy - Tools, Quest Options. It's in MS Word format. The other Quest document might also help.

Edit. At the above link to SeeJay's website, of course.

[DaveK]

I feel like an idiot ... I didn't dig deep enough!

[Marvin]

There was just no way I could think of to break it to you softly.

[Marvin]

The only way I can think of for you to create a scenario where you can attack and blow up a planet is by, first, creating your own planet. I used Blender to create inserts for the hidden gates in one of the default quests. You can view the textures for the inserts in the main game folder. They are .png files titled "quest4-transport...." For some of the other FX, you can peruse the document listed above (available at SeeJay's website). It contains plenty of examples on how to script battles and special FX. Granted, it's time-consuming but, in the end, getting a script to work properly is a satisfying accomplishment.

[matchbox2022]

Hard to find things like creating that red orb or a motion blur effect.

[Marvin]

Hard to find things like creating that red orb or a motion blur effect.

NMS has red orbs. Unfortunately, they don't have joystick support. Which, for me, is like SCUBA diving on dry land.