someone mentioned something about particle generated thruster effects, so I did it, zip has been updated, you will need to make changes in you're ships tbl
here is an example
note; this is for technical explanation of what you have to do and my testing of the code, the example that follows is extreemly ugly in game, this is becase it is only being provided to let you see how the table is formatted, I repete it is ugly as sin. it is you're job to make a good looking one!!!
$Name: GTF Myrmidon
$Short name: TFight2t-05
$Species: Terran
+Type: XSTR("Advanced Space Superiority", 2987)
+Maneuverability: XSTR("Average", 2988)
+Armor: XSTR("Average", 2989)
+Manufacturer: XSTR("RNI Systems", 2990)
+Description: XSTR(" ", 2991)
$end_multi_text
+Tech Description:
XSTR("removed for great justice.", 2992)
$end_multi_text
+Length: 16 m
+Gun Mounts: 6
+Missile Banks: 2
$POF file: fighter2t-05.pof
$Detail distance: (0, 180, 300, 1100)
$ND: 253 253 168
$Show damage: YES
$Density: 1
$Damp: 0.2
$Rotdamp: 0.35
$Max Velocity: 0.0, 0.0, 75.0 ;; in x/y/z -- z only specified forward. use special tokens for backward movement
$Rotation time: 4.0, 3.7, 5
$Rear Velocity: 0.0
$Forward accel: 2.4
$Forward decel: 2.0
$Slide accel: 0.0
$Slide decel: 0.0
$Expl inner rad: 25.0
$Expl outer rad: 75.0
$Expl damage: 25.0
$Expl blast: 1000.0
$Expl Propagates: NO ;; If set to Yes, then when the ship dies, the explosion propagates through it.
$Shockwave Speed: 0.0 ;; speed shockwave expands at, 0 means no shockwave
$Allowed PBanks: ( "Subach HL-7" "Akheton SDG" "Morning Star" "Prometheus S" "Prometheus R" "UD-8 Kayser" )
$Allowed Dogfight PBanks: ( "Lamprey" "Prometheus D" "MorningStar D" "Circe" )
$Default PBanks: ( "Prometheus R" "Subach HL-7" )
$Allowed SBanks: ( "Rockeye" "Hornet" "Tornado" "Tempest" "Trebuchet" "Stiletto II" "Hornet#Weak" "EMP Adv." "Infyrno" "Helios" )
$Allowed Dogfight SBanks: ( "Rockeye D" "Hornet D" "Harpoon D" )
$Default SBanks: ( "Rockeye" "Tornado" "Tempest" )
$SBank Capacity: ( 20, 20, 40 )
$Shields: 390
$Shield Color: 100 100 255
$Power Output: 2.4
$Max Oclk Speed: 95.0
$Max Weapon Eng: 150.0
$Hitpoints: 290
$Flags: ( "player_ship" "default_player_ship" "fighter" "in tech database")
$AI Class: Captain
$Afterburner: YES
+Aburn Max Vel: 0.0, 0.0, 135.0
+Aburn For accel: 0.8
+Aburn Fuel: 320.0
+Aburn Burn Rate: 60.0
+Aburn Rec Rate: 25.0
$Countermeasures: 36
$Scan time: 2000
$EngineSnd: 126 ;; Engine sound of ship
$Closeup_pos: 0.0, 0.0, -30
$Closeup_zoom: 0.5
$Shield_icon: shieldft-05
$Ship_icon: iconfighter2t-05
$Ship_anim: ssfighter2t-05
$Ship_overhead: loadfighter2t-05
$Score: 10
[b]$Thruster Particles:
$Thruster Particle Bitmap: particleexp01
$Min Radius: 0.5
$Max Radius: 1.0
$Min created: 1
$Max created: 2
$Variance: 0.12
$Thruster Particles:
$Thruster Particle Bitmap: thrusterparticle
$Min Radius: 0.5
$Max Radius: 1.5
$Min created: 1
$Max created: 4
$Variance: 0.10
$Thruster Particles:
$Afterburner Particle Bitmap: ParticleSmoke02
$Min Radius: 0.75
$Max Radius: 1.75
$Min created: 2
$Max created: 6
$Variance: 0.20
[/b]
$Trail:
+Offset: 0 -4.29 -.75
+Start Width: 0.25
+End Width: 0.05
+Start Alpha: 1.0
+End Alpha: 0.0
+Max Life: 1.0
+Spew Time: 120
+Bitmap: Contrail01
$Trail:
+Offset: 8.11 -.81 -.47
+Start Width: 0.25
+End Width: 0.05
+Start Alpha: 1.0
+End Alpha: 0.0
+Max Life: 1.0
+Spew Time: 120
+Bitmap: Contrail01
$Trail:
+Offset: -8.11 -.81 -.47
+Start Width: 0.25
+End Width: 0.05
+Start Alpha: 1.0
+End Alpha: 0.0
+Max Life: 1.0
+Spew Time: 120
+Bitmap: Contrail01
$Subsystem: sensors, 10,0.0
$Subsystem: communications, 10,0.0
$Subsystem: weapons, 10,0.0
$Subsystem: navigation, 10,0.0
$Subsystem: engine, 35,0.0
the important part here is obviusly the
$Thruster Particles:
$Thruster Particle Bitmap: particleexp01
$Min Radius: 0.5
$Max Radius: 1.0
$Min created: 1
$Max created: 2
$Variance: 0.12
$Thruster Particles:
$Thruster Particle Bitmap: thrusterparticle
$Min Radius: 0.5
$Max Radius: 1.5
$Min created: 1
$Max created: 4
$Variance: 0.10
$Thruster Particles:
$Afterburner Particle Bitmap: ParticleSmoke02
$Min Radius: 0.75
$Max Radius: 1.75
$Min created: 2
$Max created: 6
$Variance: 0.20
you can have three (this can be raised if so desired) independent particle emiters on each thruster glow each with diferent values, radius is relitive to the thruster glow, so 1.0 will have particles of the same size as the glows, Variance is a scale of how close it stay on the negitive z value of the ship, 0 would be a strait line of particles, 1.0 (or 2, the documentation was a bit vauge) would have a fire ball going out in all directions
the life of the particle (and thus the length of the particle stream) is based on the length of the ani (it may or may not be affected by framerate of the ani, I have not tested)
you can have (at this time, this can be raised with one key stroke) three of each of the two (normal and afterburner, diferentiated by the bitmap line) '$Thruster Particles:' sections, the order in wich you enter them is not relevent but the formatting of each section is.
