Hard Light Productions Forums

Modding, Mission Design, and Coding => The Modding Workshop => Topic started by: gershom on November 15, 2017, 07:22:32 pm

Title: Modular Ships?
Post by: gershom on November 15, 2017, 07:22:32 pm
Would it be possible to make ships composed of modules that dock together?
Title: Re: Modular Ships?
Post by: Asteroth on November 16, 2017, 01:15:07 am
I think it depends on how exactly far you want to take it, but basic functionality totally works. IIRC somewhere in nuJAD there's a ship which is basically a mephisto but the cargo it docks with has turrets on it.
Title: Re: Modular Ships?
Post by: gershom on November 17, 2017, 07:56:42 am
I'm thinking about a mod in which the player can own a shipyard. I want to be able to watch the ships being assembled, and then fly them into battle. I also want to be able to dock different turrets on it to change it's loadout in-game. Is there a way to save the docked parts and then load them in another mission without having to Fred them in? My plan is to make a sandbox campaign in which the player can visit and explore different systems, earning money and building their fleet. I also want to make some multiplayer missions so the player can take their fleet up against other fleets. I also had an idea to make easy player-controlled capital ships by building the hull out of docked parts, docking it to a smaller, player-flyable ship which represents the command bridge, and then using SEXP's to emulate control of the turrets.
Title: Re: Modular Ships?
Post by: Asteroth on November 17, 2017, 07:05:06 pm
Most of that seems technically possible, but would an overwhelmingly massive technical implementation. Bem Cavalgar has a lot of campaign persistence with your and the shivan fleets, but no modularity at all, and that was already pretty darn impressive and probably a nightmare to implement. You should think thrice about even attempting this. Multiplayer is also completely out of the question, it's hard enough to get that stuff working, both technically and playerbase-wise, with retail, let alone such an extreme mod. And that last one, with docking your fighter and sort of making it into a capital ship seems like a stretch.
Title: Re: Modular Ships?
Post by: gershom on November 17, 2017, 08:14:14 pm
I figured so.