[MOD] Argon Cyclops - Released! Help appreciate to finalise mod

[BrummBear02]

Im going to add missiles to the ships turrets but I'de like some opinions about balance. Other destroyers in the game have missiles on all their turrets but im not sure if thats a good idea for this ship.
Any thoughts?

I personally don't find rocket-armed turrets particularly effective, so it doesn't make much difference to me.
I would like to see an enhanced version in the future that implements the use of an L turret more than anything else ... even if it would actually mislead its nature as an "anti-fighters platform" ...
I take this opportunity to ask you: do you plan to release another ship sooner or later? In my dreams there is a small attack aircraft carrier that can represent the main ship of the player, so to speak something of this type (just for inspiration)
http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/assets/95 ... 378472.jpg

Cool looking ship, with a few changes could perhaps be a X3-esk Teladi ship - added to my inspiration folder . I do plan on more ships yeh, I have loads of ideas, but I want to get the most 'bang for my buck' with the next one, got a very exciting idea that will really add variety to the game in gameplay terms. Its just finding the time/patience, this takes ages.

As for a different version, while making it I tried 2 large turrets in the front turret mounts instead of the 8 mediums, it works - could be a kind of 'blockade runner' with a setup like that, but I worry it would be OP. I'll have a look, and maybe release it as a 'vanguard' varient.

if u want inspiration... i have about 100gb of space ship 3d models.... some very nice designs

on another note... i have an problem i cant even put a name on because i dont know what it is called ^^ basically its brand recognition. how do people put a red line into their ships so everybody can see at first glance "thats a crucible ship" ?
i thought maybe you can help me with that ^^ since all the ships i made so far dont have that and i have no idea how to go about it...

[Axeface]

on another note... i have an problem i cant even put a name on because i dont know what it is called ^^ basically its brand recognition. how do people put a red line into their ships so everybody can see at first glance "thats a crucible ship" ?
i thought maybe you can help me with that ^^ since all the ships i made so far dont have that and i have no idea how to go about it...

Do you mean like how the Cerberus has white lines along the hull? Thats quite easy and there are 2 ways to do it. If you want to use geometry just model the lines and give them the colour vertex paint you want and then apply it to (I think) their main vertex channel (the channel that is normally green and red, that tells the game where to apply the 2 colours that all paintjobs have. Its possible its the second channel, would have to test it), move the geometry a tiny fraction above the geometry they are hugging (this is how we place logos right, we dont notice the geometry is floating ;p ).
The other way is to cut up your model instead of using new geometry, apply the same colour to that area, and then move the UV's - this way requires you to make sure that areas that will have these details have as little texture detail as possible. Have a look at my cyclops and see how I did the UVs for the curved paintjob on the cylinder above the cockpit. If you do not move the UV's the transition between the 2 colours will be blurred.

Ive not actually done this myself yet, but Im pretty sure thats how it would work, its the same way im painting engine parts in my neutral engine tints mod - I was going to do some of this kind of detailing to the cyclops in a future update, I dont consider the model finished.

Its quite hard to explain in text, i'll make a video if it helps.

[BrummBear02]

on another note... i have an problem i cant even put a name on because i dont know what it is called ^^ basically its brand recognition. how do people put a red line into their ships so everybody can see at first glance "thats a crucible ship" ?
i thought maybe you can help me with that ^^ since all the ships i made so far dont have that and i have no idea how to go about it...

Do you mean like how the Cerberus has white lines along the hull? Thats quite easy and there are 2 ways to do it. If you want to use geometry just model the lines and give them the colour vertex paint you want and then apply it to (I think) their main vertex channel (the channel that is normally green and red, that tells the game where to apply the 2 colours that all paintjobs have. Its possible its the second channel, would have to test it), move the geometry a tiny fraction above the geometry they are hugging (this is how we place logos right, we dont notice the geometry is floating ;p ).
The other way is to cut up your model instead of using new geometry, apply the same colour to that area, and then move the UV's - this way requires you to make sure that areas that will have these details have as little texture detail as possible. Have a look at my cyclops and see how I did the UVs for the curved paintjob on the cylinder above the cockpit. If you do not move the UV's the transition between the 2 colours will be blurred.

Ive not actually done this myself yet, but Im pretty sure thats how it would work, its the same way im painting engine parts in my neutral engine tints mod - I was going to do some of this kind of detailing to the cyclops in a future update, I dont consider the model finished.

Its quite hard to explain in text, i'll make a video if it helps.

no... not exactly. u know, the thing that splits love their triangles and agressive look. the paranids love rounds and sleek ships and teladis used to like scrap-ships and now they are somehow into shrooms. i wonder how to find something like this for my own faction.

[Axeface]

no... not exactly. u know, the thing that splits love their triangles and agressive look. the paranids love rounds and sleek ships and teladis used to like scrap-ships and now they are somehow into shrooms. i wonder how to find something like this for my own faction.

Oh you mean like shape/design language? Try picking a few rules, what shapes do the group construct with, what material are they made of? Eg, im going to redesign the Odysseus and i've chosen a few rules for it 1. Curves 2. Threes 3. Hollow with exeskeleton surrounding 4. Disks, im taking a lot of this from the Apotheosis model. I want to change paranid materials too, making all greeble and structure a unique dark-gold colour for the paranid (I want engines to match this too but havent figured out how to change engine colour yet). So, i'll start with whats underneath the curves and at all times i'll try to keep to those rules, even for things like structural joists i'm going to make them curved. Another good thing to keep in mind I think is why a group/race build the way they do, for Paranid I think they would simply build things that look beautiful/divine for that reason. Split might make things with flat surfaces because it may deflect bullets (eg maximum combat effectiveness), teladi might build boxy because its an efficient use of space and easy to patch.
Oh and make a colour palette for them!

A good place to look for inspiration is star citizen too, they really have the manufacturers styles down.

[Infector]

I think the term is design philosophy. Like Axeface said, look for an overarching theme in the designs, it can be the design of the cockpit, like the pilot helmet the pirate ships had in x2.

Find a basic design for a class and change it based on the functionality. Maybe take a look at Homeworld 1 and 2 or the variants of ships in x3, like the Scout variant of a ship having more engines but lacking the turret or a Multigun corvette featuring a bulkier central section for additional turret platforms, but keep the basic design idea the same.

Freelancer did a good job with the faction designs too.

[Brahemino]

I think the term is design philosophy. Like Axeface said, look for an overarching theme in the designs, it can be the design of the cockpit, like the pilot helmet the pirate ships had in x2.

Find a basic design for a class and change it based on the functionality. Maybe take a look at Homeworld 1 and 2 or the variants of ships in x3, like the Scout variant of a ship having more engines but lacking the turret or a Multigun corvette featuring a bulkier central section for additional turret platforms, but keep the basic design idea the same.

Freelancer did a good job with the faction designs too.

Personally, I have never liked the design of Freelancer ships, rather than having a functional structure for the role they play, they seemed like carnival floats. Having said that, I personally have always greatly appreciated a design that reasonably reflects the function of a particular element.
I think of titles that beyond the absolute value of the game itself had a design that I considered and that I still consider attractively today:
Starlancer https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=htt ... AdAAAAABAg
FreeSpace
Elite Dangerous
Nexus the Jupiter Incidicent (for capital ships)
just to name a few ... obviously I don't mention games like starCitizen (btw chris was in involved in starLancer too) that certainly make the design of their ships a real tool to attract potential buyers ... so they are of undisputed charm ... but in short, I limit myself to real games , released and to which I have played and not to enterne promises that who knows if they will ever see the light (probably it was before to finish a real space project that to release star citizen) ...

[Infector]

What i meant was, that you could easily distinguish ships that belonged to different factions.

[eagledelta]

Well thats immensely depressing if true... everytime I look at my ship it will be saying IM NOT FINISHED

It appears that you seemed to have gotten the ship id issue figured out, what did you do?

[Axeface]

Well thats immensely depressing if true... everytime I look at my ship it will be saying IM NOT FINISHED

It appears that you seemed to have gotten the ship id issue figured out, what did you do?

Im afraid I didnt fix that, I dont think its possible for mods to get those working. My ship just has a set code I thought sounded cool. Just one of the things us modders cant do - waypoints being the other one, so thats why docking is (more) iffy on modded ships.

[Scoob]

Hi,

I have access to this ship via the VRO Mod and I was wondering...

Would it be possible to have Vanguard / Sentinel variants of this ship? The reason I ask is because, this game, I've befriended ANT before ARG so I don't have access to it currently. Also, having tried ANT's Sentinel variants of various ships, vs. my usual ARG Vanguard variations, I thought this would be a great ship to have a similar model variation.

It might be quite subtle, so much so you'd think it'd not make a difference. However, with other ships - even Fighters such as the Nova - I'm finding the Sentinel variant to have slightly better survivability, albeit at the cost of speed.

Just something for you consideration, your mod, your way of course, no expectations

Oh, should have lead with this, but I love the design of the ship.

Scoob.

[eagledelta]

Well thats immensely depressing if true... everytime I look at my ship it will be saying IM NOT FINISHED

It appears that you seemed to have gotten the ship id issue figured out, what did you do?

Im afraid I didnt fix that, I dont think its possible for mods to get those working. My ship just has a set code I thought sounded cool. Just one of the things us modders cant do - waypoints being the other one, so thats why docking is (more) iffy on modded ships.

Bummer. I'm brand new to messing with modeling, how does one add static id to the texture? Is there a tutorial I can read/watch that helped you?

[Axeface]

It appears that you seemed to have gotten the ship id issue figured out, what did you do?

Im afraid I didnt fix that, I dont think its possible for mods to get those working. My ship just has a set code I thought sounded cool. Just one of the things us modders cant do - waypoints being the other one, so thats why docking is (more) iffy on modded ships.

Bummer. I'm brand new to messing with modeling, how does one add static id to the texture? Is there a tutorial I can read/watch that helped you?

The AAAAAAA you are seeing is just from a texture that includes all the numbers/letters, edit the UV's of each of the letters and you'll see you can just move the UVs for any letters you want.
Edit: Rereading your post, if you are asking about UV mapping fundamentals there are lots of guides, just found this one on youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7M-B6xnaEM&

Hi,

I have access to this ship via the VRO Mod and I was wondering...

Would it be possible to have Vanguard / Sentinel variants of this ship? The reason I ask is because, this game, I've befriended ANT before ARG so I don't have access to it currently. Also, having tried ANT's Sentinel variants of various ships, vs. my usual ARG Vanguard variations, I thought this would be a great ship to have a similar model variation.

It might be quite subtle, so much so you'd think it'd not make a difference. However, with other ships - even Fighters such as the Nova - I'm finding the Sentinel variant to have slightly better survivability, albeit at the cost of speed.

Just something for you consideration, your mod, your way of course, no expectations

Oh, should have lead with this, but I love the design of the ship.

Scoob.

Ive been considering making another variant, but i'de like to make it visually different. I've got lots of other ideas for ships though and dont have the time I had when I was doing the cyclops :/ Thanks for the suggestion though and yes I was already considering it. Ide keep the current one without a varient name though probably, I like how its name is much more simple like other special ships in the game.

[Scoob]

Cool. I'll look forward to seeing whatever you create - hopefully integrated into VRO

Scoob.

[eagledelta]

The AAAAAAA you are seeing is just from a texture that includes all the numbers/letters, edit the UV's of each of the letters and you'll see you can just move the UVs for any letters you want.
Edit: Rereading your post, if you are asking about UV mapping fundamentals there are lots of guides, just found this one on youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7M-B6xnaEM&

I get it now. Unfortunately, when I import the model to DAE, it doesn't seem to include the texture for some reason. I'll dig into that.

[Axeface]

The AAAAAAA you are seeing is just from a texture that includes all the numbers/letters, edit the UV's of each of the letters and you'll see you can just move the UVs for any letters you want.
Edit: Rereading your post, if you are asking about UV mapping fundamentals there are lots of guides, just found this one on youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7M-B6xnaEM&

I get it now. Unfortunately, when I import the model to DAE, it doesn't seem to include the texture for some reason. I'll dig into that.

You might have to extract the texture from its .gz archive first. Then go to the shading tab and find where the material links to the texture map, you can browse for it there and apply it.

[Sturmer]

Congratulations, sir, she's a beaut'! <3

Will you also be doing X3 TC/AP drone carriers? Or, PLEASE, Argon Titan port!