Basic Mod Questions

Force player location, modify pirates, specfic neutral defenders etc.

from Sins Forums
Hi guys,
Working on a simple Moo2 mod/map that has Orion at the centre of the map with a guardian vessel.  Two things I'd like to do but dont know how.

1) I'd like to make the world special, for example a terrain world with double the pop level.  Is this possible?
2) I want there to be a powerful Guardian capital ship that will take a fleet to destroy it.  Is this possible?  For example can I deploy a Kol battleship there with double combat stats?

A few other questions.  In MoO2 the Antarians were high tech random invaders who would hit colonies before disappearing.  Is it possible to introduce such a faction or modify the pirates to do this?  Would require the removal of the bounty system and the ability to change their portrait and allow capital ships.

Also, how do I lock players to start in certain areas?  For example if I want player zero to start on planet-X?  It seems it randomely sets the starting planet for a player from the availble slots.

Thanks.
modding
5,560 views 7 replies
Reply #1 from Sins Forums Top
1) Yes. All the planet stats, their upgrade progression, etc are listed in their entity files (PlanetTerra.entity, for example).

2) Again yes, just make a new copy of the ship's entity (if you want to preserve the original) and modify its stats, and add it to the race's build list (only needed if you made a new entity).

A few other questions. In MoO2 the Antarians were high tech random invaders who would hit colonies before disappearing. Is it possible to introduce such a faction or modify the pirates to do this? Would require the removal of the bounty system and the ability to change their portrait and allow capital ships.
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You can give them capital ships and change their portrait, but you can't get rid of the bounty system. There are some tweaks you can do, such as making the monetary bounty having a very small effect and count planets owned or tradeships present a bigger factor (gameplay.constants). But this might mess up the AI.

Also, how do I lock players to start in certain areas? For example if I want player zero to start on planet-X? It seems it randomely sets the starting planet for a player from the availble slots.
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This, unfortunately, is not currently possible to my knowledge.
Reply #2 from Sins Forums Top
Thanks for the reply. That's a shame about the starting location since one of the maps I was working on its important. I wanted to build a map based around the cinematic - so the TEC player starts with a large empire (undefended) while the advent/vasari start with a single system/planet but with a large fleet and resources. Doesn't really work if the Advent player ends up starting at the TEC starting position.

These entity files are these entries in the galaxy file or something separate?

Whats a wormhole do exactly? Never come across one in SP mode.

Does the editor let me add ships/fleets to a particular race or I have to edit that in the galaxy file (or somewhere else)?

Is it possible to use something other than the Terran planet as a homeworld? Tried an asteroid and the pirate base but didn't work (player is instantly defeated).

Thanks.
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Reply #3 from Sins Forums Top
These entity files are these entries in the galaxy file or something separate?
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They are in GameInfo. The ones in the game's installation folder are mostly in binary, you will need to download the mod tools (the site's Downloads link) and use the text versions from there.

Whats a wormhole do exactly? Never come across one in SP mode.
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Go in on one end, come out the other ;) Wormholes always come in pairs and are connected. They can both be in the same star system, or different ones (but the latter requires manual editing of maps, Galaxy Forge's current version can't do this). You need to research the wormhole travel tech before you can jump 'em, though.

Does the editor let me add ships/fleets to a particular race or I have to edit that in the galaxy file (or somewhere else)?
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Each race has a master entity file (PlayerTech for TEC, PlayerPhase for Vasari, PlayerPsi for Advent) that lists their entire build lists (structures, ships) and their research techs. Adding new buildable ships is as easy as adding them to the build lists and increasing the respective counter. Note that currently the Frigate factory can support 9 ships of each type (9 frigates and 9 cruisers), but the Capital factory can only support 5. This is being changed in 1.1 so the Capital factory can also support 9.

Is it possible to use something other than the Terran planet as a homeworld? Tried an asteroid and the pirate base but didn't work (player is instantly defeated).
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It's possible, and there's at least one official map that I can recall that has you start on a desert. As far as I know, the only thing you need to do is tag whatever planet as a homeworld in Galaxy Forge. But I don't do map making, so maybe there's something else involved as well.
Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top
Thanks for your help. Will need to troll the forums as well. The beginners guide doesn't really go far enough for what I want to do.

I went to the download page and I can only see forge and particle engine. No tools that you mentioned.

Regarding fleets and techs. I wasn't so much after what a player could do potentially but what each race starts with. For example I want the Vasari to start with a fleet and the tech that allows inter solar system travel. Are they all in the same file (PlayerPhase entity file) or do I use templates for that?

Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top
Also, how does the game know if the map is small, large etc? Is that something you set or something it calculates?

And is it possible to create phaselines between stars using a text editor?

Thanks.
Reply #6 from Sins Forums Top
Thanks for your help. Will need to troll the forums as well. The beginners guide doesn't really go far enough for what I want to do.
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Nope, but it does show you the ropes of how mods come together ;)


I went to the download page and I can only see forge and particle engine. No tools that you mentioned.
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The tools is a rather generic term.. there's no GUI editor for entities or a generic "modding" program. Notepad is your friend. The archive for the Forge Tools download (below Particle Forge) will contain a Reference Data folder that contains text versions of every file the game uses. This isn't just GameInfo, it's also files from Window, etc. Everything you need is in there.

Regarding fleets and techs. I wasn't so much after what a player could do potentially but what each race starts with. For example I want the Vasari to start with a fleet and the tech that allows inter solar system travel. Are they all in the same file (PlayerPhase entity file) or do I use templates for that?
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You can't set researched techs at game start, unfortunately. The starting units/buildings for the various races are defined in galaxyScenarioDef.galaxyScenarioDef and are held in the homeworld templates. The galaxyScenarioDef file is a little confusing, but not too difficult to figure out if you look at the templates and do in-file searches for the names it uses to see where they come from.

Also, how does the game know if the map is small, large etc? Is that something you set or something it calculates?
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I believe you set the "map type" (2v2, 4v4, etc) when you create the map, and that's how it knows if it's small/medium/large.

And is it possible to create phaselines between stars using a text editor?
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Stars are all automatically connected, you don't need to create anything :)
Reply #7 from Sins Forums Top
I went to the download page and I can only see forge and particle engine. No tools that you mentioned.
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Ignore. Found them. Didnt register since they had BETA in there name. Thought it was the new patch.