is there a programmer out there that is looking into what can be done with the shield rendering system. i was bored the other night, so i used the metaball tool to create a quickie shield mesh for the lucifer, making use of that import data button in an older version of pcs. the rendering was kinda screwie, so i started working on a lower poly mesh for lucy, hopefully this one will render better.
with the high poly mesh, not every shot will create an energy distortion on the mesh, some go right through it. beams and fighters go through as well. i think it would be cool if some additional special effects were added, such as energy waves along the beam's slice. another feature would be a shild icon with more than 4 sections, maybe a pair of top downs (ventral/dorsal views) with hexagonal shield sections so you can see where the weak spots are.
flying you fighter through the shileds should have some consequenses. to start they could cause emp effects and a turbulant entrance (similar to afterburners or engine wash). you could fly throgh a weak section and take minimal damage, take severe damage from a fully powered section, and none from a depleted section. another idea is to make your fighters shields stop working while you are within the capship's shield mesh (making you a sitting duck for turrets).
the shild mesh could also be used for other special effects, such as mapping out an energy field in a subspace portal. done simply by layering electrical arc textures over the mesh. any other ideas?