Search
New Topic
Forum Home | Login
Avalast
Avalast
Join Date 02/2011
0

Strikecraft with repair ability

August 15, 2012 12:06:29 PM from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Heya

I'm trying to make a mini-mod, but I've run into a snag...

I would like to alter the Advent carrier capital ship so that it only has 3 distinct types of strike craft.

Strike craft types

  • Offensive strike craft aka Fighter-Bomber
    This is the most basic of them and I can easierly make this one by adding a weapon to fighters that would be effective against heavier armor.
  • Defensive strike craft
    The intent with this one is to basically have it stay near the carrier at all times, using point defense weaponry to defend the carrier, any nearby vessels and ofcourse itself against hostile strike craft.
    In addition I would like it to have the ability to detect mines, and "jam" guided weapons (I imagine that's done by applying a buff to any target within range that grants "ChanceToHitAsDamageTarget" and somehow limit it to missile weapons).

    I have 2 problems with this.
    Firstly I have no clue how to create a new buff from scratch, and I don't really want to use one of the existing ones as that would probably hurt the AI too much.
    Secondly - How do I control the distance the craft stays away from the carrier? And is it possible to avoid it being selected when selecting all strike craft?
  • Utility craft
    This one I would like to act like a colonization frigate, starbase constructor and repair ship.
modding
Locked Post
Search this post
Advanced Search
Subscription Options
Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
psychoak
Join Date 07/2007
+225
Reply #1 August 15, 2012 12:21:20 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Strike craft don't have proper ability function.

 

For the Utility craft, you should be able to set the squad as mines and manage ability usage that way.  The defensive strikecraft wont work that way though.

 

The only way to get ability function onto a proper fighter is by applying it from the host ship.  You're also stuck with PhysicalDamageAsDamageDealer, or PhysicalDamageAsDamageTarget(only in Rebellion) for a method of blocking missiles.

 

Getting them to stay near your ships wont work out well, auto attack range isn't something to mod, it's a setting you can change in game.  You could default it to local area, but that's it.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
CoronalFire
Join Date 07/2012
+6
Reply #2 August 15, 2012 1:45:24 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

You could try creating a new frigate (corvette style) with said abilities, and have a carrier with the ability to spawn them for a time. Then you could have 3 distinct abilities to spawn one of the 3 types of frigates.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
Avalast
Join Date 02/2011
0
Reply #3 August 15, 2012 1:58:29 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

For Diplomacy (I don't have rebellion yet) at least it looks like it's possible to put abilities on squads. However it also seems as though putting an ability on a squad that requires anti-matter (While also giving the squad anti-matter) just resulted in a mini-dump! That however can be solved by giving the abilities appropriate cooldowns I guess.

As for getting the craft to stay with the carrier. I did change the "DefaultAutoAttackRange" to "Local" and they did indeed stay with the carrier. The problem was though that some of them fell behind and they didn't automatically try to catch up!

I tested these on the Advent Bomber.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
CoronalFire
Join Date 07/2012
+6
Reply #4 August 15, 2012 3:13:17 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting Avalast,
reply 3
For Diplomacy (I don't have rebellion yet) at least it looks like it's possible to put abilities on squads. However it also seems as though putting an ability on a squad that requires anti-matter (While also giving the squad anti-matter) just resulted in a mini-dump! That however can be solved by giving the abilities appropriate cooldowns I guess.

As for getting the craft to stay with the carrier. I did change the "DefaultAutoAttackRange" to "Local" and they did indeed stay with the carrier. The problem was though that some of them fell behind and they didn't automatically try to catch up!

I tested these on the Advent Bomber.

 

Aha another kindred. I also do not have Rebellion. However under the frigatename.entity is a place where you can code fighter-style movement. Rebellion took advantage of this with Corvettes, but the capability was there in Diplomacy.

Fighters are not meant to have abilities, the ones they have are done via link with the host.

AM amount should not matter (no pun intended), you can change the cost to 0. Cooldowns should not matter.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
GoaFan77
Join Date 10/2008
+629
Reply #5 August 15, 2012 4:31:37 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Fighters are the most restricted type of entity to work with abilities. This is because Squads can have abilities, but fighers can't. Since Squads do not physically exist, this greatly limits what types of ability functions you can use. ApplyBuffToSelf and ApplyBuffToTarget for example, the most basic functions, do not work with strikecraft since Self refers to the Squad, not the fighters, and target needs a range.

For the most part you will be limited to abilities that have AoE such as ApplyBuffToTargetsInRadius or ApplyBuffToLocalOrbitBody. This will probably prevent colony and starbase fighters off the bat. Your other things might be possible but the AI don't use them well.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
Sinperium
Join Date 02/2010
+219
Reply #6 August 15, 2012 7:58:54 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Adding shields to fighters minidumps.

Adding antimatter to fighters usually minidumps and at best does nothing.

Adding an ability that is not AoE, requires focus fir and the like minidumps.

Some abilites can be added but will not work.

Strikecraft are very limited.  psychoak spelled it out specifically in his reply.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
Avalast
Join Date 02/2011
0
Reply #7 August 15, 2012 9:42:08 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Well the repair and jam functions should be AOE anyway so no problem there other than the fact they'll be centered on the squad not the strikecraft itself. But then again the squad will be centered on the strikecraft if I just make it a 1-to-1 ratio between squad and strikecraft.

And spawning a frigate seems kinda like overkill, especially since I doubt I'll be able to get it to behave correctly (Basically orbiting the host ship) shooting at any nearby hostile strikecraft...

As for the fighter movement. Yeah there is a setting called "UseFighterAttack" which causes frigates to move like strikecraft (In other words straffing and firing on the move). Sadly this still doesn't let me put a craft into "Guard"-mode where it protects one specific unit above all else! At least I don't think so... Anyway I'll think about it some more. I thank you all for your input so far, and don't hold back if you have other ideas how to make what I'm aiming for happen

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
CoronalFire
Join Date 07/2012
+6
Reply #8 August 15, 2012 10:14:34 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting Avalast,
reply 8
Well the repair and jam functions should be AOE anyway so no problem there other than the fact they'll be centered on the squad not the strikecraft itself. But then again the squad will be centered on the strikecraft if I just make it a 1-to-1 ratio between squad and strikecraft.

And spawning a frigate seems kinda like overkill, especially since I doubt I'll be able to get it to behave correctly (Basically orbiting the host ship) shooting at any nearby hostile strikecraft...

As for the fighter movement. Yeah there is a setting called "UseFighterAttack" which causes frigates to move like strikecraft (In other words straffing and firing on the move). Sadly this still doesn't let me put a craft into "Guard"-mode where it protects one specific unit above all else! At least I don't think so... Anyway I'll think about it some more. I thank you all for your input so far, and don't hold back if you have other ideas how to make what I'm aiming for happen

Strikecraft don't guard anything, either. They just prioritize targets (fighters attack bombers). The same can be done with frigates, flak for instance will target strikecraft above other frigates.

It might be a little overkill, but one ability by the host can spawn any number of frigates, and that is the only way I know of for you to get all the abilities you want them to have.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
GoaFan77
Join Date 10/2008
+629
Reply #9 August 15, 2012 10:18:34 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting Avalast,
reply 8
But then again the squad will be centered on the strikecraft if I just make it a 1-to-1 ratio between squad and strikecraft.

You must have at least 3 strikecraft in a squadron.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
Sinperium
Join Date 02/2010
+219
Reply #10 August 15, 2012 10:26:30 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Another issue on AoE effects with strikecraft is cpu lag.  Their fast movements do not work well with ranged effects and ships moving in and out of range as a combination of their own movmemt along with the strikecraft's really bog the game down.

You can drop down squads to a single craft but they must always be the same type if there are more than one in a squad.

In Trinity I had issues where squads would be 3 then 1 and then back again.  I am rold Rebellion is better.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
psychoak
Join Date 07/2007
+225
Reply #11 August 16, 2012 5:31:16 AM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

You must have at least 3 strikecraft in a squadron.

 

Eh?  There's a whole bunch of 1's and 2's in SOA2, what kind of problem have I missed?

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
GoaFan77
Join Date 10/2008
+629
Reply #12 August 16, 2012 2:21:07 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting psychoak,
reply 12
Eh? There's a whole bunch of 1's and 2's in SOA2, what kind of problem have I missed?

Quoting Sinperium,
reply 11
In Trinity I had issues where squads would be 3 then 1 and then back again. I am rold Rebellion is better.

Interesting. Well even in Rebellion, I tried to reduce the number of strikecraft of the Advent minelayer squadron to 1. Gave me three instead. I assumed it was another hardcode...

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
psychoak
Join Date 07/2007
+225
Reply #13 August 16, 2012 3:08:48 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Maybe something specific to mines?

 

Edit:  You're not being a total noob and forgetting the squad upgrade, right?

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
GoaFan77
Join Date 10/2008
+629
Reply #14 August 16, 2012 3:15:33 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting psychoak,
reply 14
You're not being a total noob and forgetting the squad upgrade, right?

I don't know, I might have, but that was a while ago. Either way, yeah that hangar upgrade would screw up wanting just 1 homing mine anyways, so I guess its a goodthing I totally scraped homing mine squadrons.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
XATHOS
Join Date 02/2002
+16
Reply #15 August 16, 2012 8:41:56 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting psychoak,
reply 12

You must have at least 3 strikecraft in a squadron.

 

Eh?  There's a whole bunch of 1's and 2's in SOA2, what kind of problem have I missed?

I've had it at 3 for a good while in my mod.  The icon even shows 3 as the squad breakup.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
Lavo_2
Join Date 05/2010
+112
Reply #16 August 17, 2012 11:55:50 AM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting Sinperium,
reply 7
Adding antimatter to fighters usually minidumps and at best does nothing.

I would imagine, if you can actually add antimatter to strike fighters, then you can set up a convert damage to antimatter passive ability (with the damage resulting in a loss of antimatter) with the antimatter acting as a crude form of shielding.

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
CoronalFire
Join Date 07/2012
+6
Reply #17 August 17, 2012 12:38:18 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting Lavo_2,
reply 17

Quoting Sinperium, reply 7Adding antimatter to fighters usually minidumps and at best does nothing.

I would imagine, if you can actually add antimatter to strike fighters, then you can set up a convert damage to antimatter passive ability (with the damage resulting in a loss of antimatter) with the antimatter acting as a crude form of shielding.

 

Does that ability restore antimatter from damage, or actually negate damage and turn it into antimatter?

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Avalast
Sinperium
Join Date 02/2010
+219
Reply #18 August 17, 2012 10:24:42 PM
from Sins of a Solar Empire ForumsSins of a Solar Empire Forums

Antimatter can be added to fighters and mines but I am pretty sure that it cannot actually do anything other than sit there.  When I assigned abilities to mines with antimatter it did nothing.

It might work as an antimatter storage tanks to be drained by another ship's ability.  I think the restore rate worked (it's been a bit since I played with this).

Frustratingly, mines and strikecraft seem more alike than with the other ships but they also are differnt from one another--something that works on one won't on the other.

 

Reason for Karma (Optional)
Successfully updated karma reason!
Stardock Forums v        Server Load Time:   Page Render Time: