Hard Light Productions Forums
Modding, Mission Design, and Coding => The Modding Workshop => Topic started by: gevatter Lars on August 29, 2003, 01:58:40 pm
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I have found this pic in the Terran Vasudan War forum and thought I could do it.
Here is the original pic
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimacweb.jpg)
And now what I have done. Not an excat copy but I have tried to keep it as close to the original as I can.
(http://gevatterlars.4t.com/images/merrimac_high.jpg)
(http://gevatterlars.4t.com/images/merrimac_high2.jpg)
Well that is the best I can do. The rear is still undone and maybe it could need some more details..any suggestions, comments aso are welcome.
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The model looks good, but I don't like the ship. Too damn chunky.
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I think the designer made it so blocky because its pre FS1...the technologie wasn't that advanced as it is now...but you are right...the drawing shows a ship made of blocks ^__^
Well does the model I have made represent the drawing?
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Woooow nice. How many polies? If it is usable ingame, then you're a hero in my book, along with Raa T'orh and whoever gets to texture it.
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This model has quite to many polys for use ingame...maybe if you brake it into seperate peaces you can do it, but even then I think you have to remove some details like these round things.
The version I have posted here hase about 6206 polys
an other version without the details has 2062 polys in 5 objects.
Don't know if its convertable with the options the new sourcecode allows...cause I am just a modeler ^_^
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It looks like a swamp-cooler with a cockpit :D
Really though, if you can make a low enough poly version for the game, that'd be journalistic dyn-o-mite.
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You know, it looks like a ton of polies are used in the grilles on the front and on the fin. If you remove those, it would drastically reduce the polies. (We could simulate the grilles with texturing.)
Want to join the TVWP as a modeller? ;7
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Now, THAT can carry some serious payload.
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I think what worrys me about that design is the fact that the payload is just outside the cockpit (In fact, some ordinance has to fly directly past the cockpit to clear the ship) so there is no chance of getting a functional ejection seat of any kind into one of those. Cool looking design, very true to form, but just a little scary-looking for the pilot.
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Originally posted by Charlotte
Now, THAT can carry some serious payload.
Not really. You should've seen the model I did few years back - GTB Cube. It was very efficient, even if it did burn your eyes out with its supreme blandness.
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Originally posted by StratComm
there is no chance of getting a functional ejection seat of any kind into one of those.
considering the helmet of the pilot is not even cealed, there was anyway no possibiliy for ejection seats in the first place ;)
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:jaw drops:
Someone made one of my Drawings?! And so damn well too?!
:yes: to you my friend! Wanna try my Strike cruiser? ;7
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Originally posted by Venom
considering the helmet of the pilot is not even cealed, there was anyway no possibiliy for ejection seats in the first place ;)
Aww now you know what I ment :rolleyes:
Actually you could have the whole cockpit area seperate (like it does in most sci-fi) except that it'd bang against the missile bays. The biggest problem is that, unlike most bombers terran bombers, this one does not keep its payload in seperate modules that are only minimally connected to the fighter. The modules on say, a Medusa, could concievably be jettisoned, but not this thing. Not that it makes any difference in the long run though.
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Well I have got a version without details and it still has 2062 polys in 5 objects.
Its without the fan and the rocket and so on.
I still have to find out where the other polys are hiding so that I can reduce it further.
About worling for TVW...I am working on the Wing Commander Saga mod and have enough work with that and my education.
I have done this one just do model something else then Wing Commander ships.
Well maybe I could do something else for you..just send me an picture and I can place it on my to-do-list.
About the Cockpit...just jeteson the entire thing to the front..mostly the enemy comes from the side or back..not the front.
Oh what I forgot...I have made the model in the first place for rendering..not for ingame use. Thats the reason why I haven't looked at the polycount during creating it.
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It's not a ship I'd want to be anywhere near in a capship, even if it does look like someone couldn't park their Herc ;7
Flipside :D
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I'd really like a copy when it's finished, and if it ever gets textured. :)
And let's just say the shockwave from one of these puppies blowing would destroy the jettisoned pod and probably everything else in a 5k radius. ;7
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What, does it carry Meson Bombs or summat?
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Imagine about 5 tsunami's going off at once (realistically, like the Faustuses in that FS1 mission)
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Ah-huh..
.... it was Silent Threat...
:nervous:
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No it wasn't. It was a mission where the Shivans poured into a system and the Faustuses that were researching project Tsunami were unable to escape, so you had to escort the pods with the scientists to safety.
I know 'cuz I played it and don't have ST :p
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*Doesn't remember any of FS1. Only Silent Threat..
X_X
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Originally posted by Raa Tor'h
Imagine about 5 tsunami's going off at once (realistically, like the Faustuses in that FS1 mission)
Well I thing there is enough space for lunching 9 Big missiles at ones.
If you look close you will find out that it has 8 small Missiles slots, 9 big missile slots and 3 guns.
So in theorie if this things gets in firing range hell would break loos if you would fire all missiles at ones.
Beside that I just have got some interesting ideas what to add to the model.
I think I will build something what we Wing Commander people call a moving station...named Broadsword.
Its a realy big bomber...and when I am finished with this one I think that you will understand why we call it our litte space station.
Beside that...the rocketluncher part could be of modular design. So you can replace it at a sapce dock quite easly for different dutys. For example load it with anti-bomber missiles and swarmers for defance missions (would have many smaller missile ports) or for a bombing run and have this configuration.
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It would probably have to work like an FFAR system (Folding Fin Aerial Rocket). The original design was that these all fired at once to land a 'firestorm' on the target. Alas, it was found that if you launched them all at once, the plane ended up pointing in a different direction, so they had to fire them alternately in order to stay in the air. I think this ship would be the same, it would probably need 'realistically' to make several attack runs, but a single one of those shipps could easily take down a cruiser and would make a corvettes eyes water :)
Flipside :)
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Well you forgot that in space you could lunch all missiles at ones...just fire the thrusters I have added on the side to stay stable.
Remember in air and space ships are handeld different.
But you are right..this thing would have the firepower of a small capship. Well in WC we would call it a corvette...in FS you could call it a gunboat/missileboat?
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The side stabilisers would work, but if anything, if we were getting into physics, which is nothing to do with Freespace, the effects are even more difficult to control in space because there is massively reduced friction or pressure to stop the ship rolling when missiles are fired :)
Anyway, as I said, I'm not here to talk about physics, and theres nothing wrong with the look of the ship :)
Looking at the picture, my one concern is that you have a polygon missing on the base 'spike' part of the ship, at the front, and I'm not sure about the polygons around the missile ports either. I hope it is just compression error from the JPG.
I think it's a little small to be a gunship to be honest, I always picture them as small cruisers, more like a Missile Boat certainly, or 'Heavy Escort' might be another good role for this ship.
Flipside :D
One little thing as well, I think the ship needs 2 'widths' across the top, I must admit though, I have a big dislike of squares, I think it would look better if you made the thruster part of the ship more pronounced and didn't have the missile ports going all the way to the back of the ship?
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Well ok lets stop the physik talk...
I think the ship needs 2 'widths' across the top
What do you mean with that?
About the errors..I don't know where they come from. In the modeling programm everything is fine. But I use a different programm for rendering and it makes these strange things...its the first time that I have got this problem.
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With two widths, I mean that when you look at the ship across the top, you just get one big square with a cockpit sticking out the front, it needs some variation in width as you work your way back, this is purely from an aesthetic point of view you understand (and purely my own) :) Even if you tapered the launchers at the back in some way (you could claim the launch thrust is vented through the main thruster outlets) it would add some variance to it?
Flipside :D
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Well from this angle you can't see that the thruster parts are allready not in a line with the Missile Luncher. Also is the luncher not as long as the thrusters.
I will post an overwiev of all sides when I am done with the modifications I have in mind..but first I need some time to work on it.
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I have made some changes...small ones but I think they are ok.
(http://gevatterlars.4t.com/images/merrimac_high_perfront.jpg)
and
(http://gevatterlars.4t.com/images/merrimac_high_perback.jpg)
The smaller turrets are gattling-guns-like things. The big turret in the back is a missile turret.
You would need at least 3 Pilots for this ship.
1 Pilot, 1 Gunnary at the back and 1 Gunnary for the other turrets.
I have got a pack of pics, but I can upload only two pics at the moment. Have send the others to Raa hope he can upload them.
Does someone else things this ship should be flyable in FreeLancer?
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(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac1.jpg)
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac2.jpg)
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac3.jpg)
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac4.jpg)
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac5.jpg)
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac6.jpg)
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac7.jpg)
(http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/us/images/mods/snipes/Merrimac8.jpg)
Talk about armed to the teeth ;7 :yes:
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Sweet.
Tell you what... make a low-poly model, and use the hi-poly model you have there to render the textures. :)
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Talk about armed to the teeth
Well I told you I would make a small moving space station ^_^
With that armament you could easly defend yourself against fighters and bring your bombs to the target.
I will see if I can make a lowpoly model that is convertable. What was the polycount limit? 1000 polys for the main body and 800 for each additinal part?
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Something like that, BUT if it's going to be a fighter you would be well advised to keep the polycount under 600. Fighters are seen in groups and are quite small so most of the detail can go into the textures. Large polycounts are better left to capital ships, where the player can fly around and observe all the little details.
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*bump*
Any progress?
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Sorry no progress at the moment. I was ill and now are the last weaks right bevor the exams so I won't have much time to work on it.
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oooh, the GTxB "flying brick" :p
overall, not too bad, just a little chunky for my taste :blah:
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If I understud it right the Merimac is a pre FS1 fighter based on quite old tech. So I thought that when the new is more round like the ships in FS2 the older ships must look more like a brick.
Beside that....this is a bomber designed to bring in more firepower as any other..it shouldn't look beautifull.
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I don't care if it's a brick! It's meant to kill, not dazzle! If you wanted a pretty ship, take the Anuket. It's as fierce as it looks... (points to Terran Turrets)