[Akalamanaia]

Hydra? Wasp?
I say just keep the weapon names like they are, so far i aren't troubled at all by their naming.

[Warnstaff]

I ain't good with names, so I ask you guys to try to come up with names (credit givin in readme for contributions). In the meantime, I'll give them temp names, like the hornet will be "Shivan swarmer".

One more thing, how do I change the names of the weapons? They don't change ingame. I change the title and desription name, but thats all I know how to do on them. Little help?

[Warnstaff]

Update on shivan primaries: I've completed a prelimerary modification that makes shivan primaries more powerful. Heres a "list" of the cnages:

Shivan light laser = Subach with slightly higher damage
Shivan heavy laser = Prometheus S with slightly higher damage
Shivan Mega Laser = Kayser with slightly higher damage, slightler lower rate of fire, and lower consumption.

These will be subject to change as required at a later date.

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[Cobra]

hmm, ok, i've played through the first 2 missions (damn my lack of RAM), and I must say, I think it's a little too easy. the missions were literally over in 3 minutes or so. try making it harder.

[Warnstaff]

I try, but I this is my the FREDing I've done in years, so I'm more then a little rusty (how do I use campaign persitant strings? Is there an "unless" command?). I've also found that with the Shivans, it almost either too easy and short, or too long and near impossible. For the moment though, the campaign is based ostly on hit and runs and other shivan nubula activities. It won't be untill......... mission six or so that theres some real heavy combat (might even include a variat of my Battle of Endor Syndrom mission in, if possible).

[karajorma]

(how do I use campaign persitant strings? Is there an "unless" command?).

What do you mean by an unless command. If you tell me what you want to do I can probably explain it. As for campaign persistent strings it sounds like you're looking for something which campaign persistent variables can help you with. There is a fairly detailed explaination of how these work in my FAQ. Learn how to use them and the new conditionals and you'll find a lot more interesting things you can do than you could when you first learnt FRED

[neoterran]

The new weapons are better. They still look and feel like shivan weapons, but now they also act like the weapons of a technologically superior race should as well. Fantastic !

My suggestion to you is this : make this campaign in episodes of several missions at once, that way you can gauge fan reaction and you can improve your FREDing skills along the way, instead of trying to do all the episodes in one huge campaign that never gets released.

If you want to see an example of a hard campaign, check out neo-terra, that campaign, you play as an NTF pilot and it's quite hard  but not so hard that it is impossible, in fact it's quite fun and action packed. maybe it'll give you some ideas how to make this campaign a little more difficult as it goes on. 

[Warnstaff]

(how do I use campaign persitant strings? Is there an "unless" command?).

What do you mean by an unless command. If you tell me what you want to do I can probably explain it. As for campaign persistent strings it sounds like you're looking for something which campaign persistent variables can help you with. There is a fairly detailed explaination of how these work in my FAQ. Learn how to use them and the new conditionals and you'll find a lot more interesting things you can do than you could when you first learnt FRED

By "unless" command, I mean.... well, heres a scenerio:

I want to have  Cruiser "A" to jump in when Shivan corvette "C" is destroyed and/or Shivan cruiser "D" has departed, but (unless) not jump in if Destroyer "B" is destroyed. I don't know how to do that.

I've also read your FAQ, but it won't click in my head, so I don't understand how the campaign persistent variables work. All I really need them for are red alert missions, as the red alert command either crashes the game or doesn't take effect (after a bunch of errors).

[karajorma]

Right. What you need to do for that is make your arrival cue for Cruiser A look like this.

When
-and
--or
---is-destroyed-delay
----0
----Shivan Corvette C
---is-departed-delay
----0
----Shivan Cruiser D
--not
---is-destroyed-delay
----0
----Shivan Destroyer B

The important part is the Not SEXP. Remember that every "trigger" SEXP is a Boolean operator. It eventually evaluates to true or false. The Not simply reverses that meaning that Not-is-destroyed evaluates to true as long as the Shivan Destroyer isn't dead.


As for the red-alert problem what have you tried?

[Warnstaff]

Ahh, so there is an unless command (just long). Thanks.

My red alerts - I've tried putting the second misison as the red alert, disabled debriefings (also tried enabled) for the first one, set the "red alert" ships to red alert carry on status for the first mission, then the second misison, then both. I've done the red alert thing in the events,  but I still get problems, and when the mission does load, it doesn't have the red alert status.

[karajorma]

Don't disabled debriefings, the red alert code automatically gets rid of them if the mission red alerts and you'll need them for your AWOL debriefs unless you've taken out the players jump engines. (You are using AWOL debriefs right? I mean it's mistake number 1! )

Mission 1 should have red alert carry status on all the ships you want to appear in the next one. Mission 2 should have ships with the same name (and class I assume but I've never tried not doing that). Set mission 2 to be a red alert mission. End mission 1 with a red alert SEXP. Have no other branches in the campaign file other than to the red alert mission (You must have a campaign file. Red Alert won't work from the tech room!).

[Warnstaff]

I always try to remember to make an AWOL debrief (I read the common mistakes before).

I have put the ships on both missions on red alert carry stats. The red alert SEXP was listed as well, but it doesn't seem to matter. I keep getting crashes whenever I do it (with retail or SCP FRED). The test campaigns I've been using are only 2 missions long - pre-red alert and red alert. And yes, both ships were the same class.

Is it possible it doesn't like it for friendly shivan ships, especially for player controled shivan ships (aside for SF (Terrans) Mara)?

[Akalamanaia]

Update on shivan primaries: I've completed a prelimerary modification that makes shivan primaries more powerful. Heres a "list" of the cnages:

Shivan light laser = Subach with slightly higher damage
Shivan heavy laser = Prometheus S with slightly higher damage
Shivan Mega Laser = Kayser with slightly higher damage, slightler lower rate of fire, and lower consumption.

These will be subject to change as required at a later date.

I hope the actual campaign is still balanced according to stock tables..

[karajorma]

Is it possible it doesn't like it for friendly shivan ships, especially for player controled shivan ships (aside for SF (Terrans) Mara)?

Make yourself a test mission with terran ships. If it doesn't work post it and I'll tell you what you did wrong

[Cobra]

that's a big pain in the ass. the Shivan tag is permanently hostile (probably since thought we wouldn't try something like this). isn't there a table somewhere that determines that?

[Warnstaff]

Could change all the shivans to vasudans, but I have 2 ways around it. 1: Use retail FRED for the shivan ships, which allows you set them as friendly. 2: Use Terran ships, then when all is well, change their ship class to the appropiate shivan class, which retains their frinedly status.

I hope the actual campaign is still balanced according to stock tables..

Be advised, the missions are being designed for "purist" weapons, so the "fun" weapons will probly unbalance the campaign, at which point I'll reform the missions for a second campaign to balance it out (provided I have the time).

[Cobra]

it's possible to do that, but i think you would just have to do it old-school style and keep it retail, since SCP might correct that.

[Warnstaff]

The demo campaign was done with the retail then converted to SCP succesfully, along with the other current missions to-be-released when done.

[karajorma]

Is it possible it doesn't like it for friendly shivan ships, especially for player controled shivan ships (aside for SF (Terrans) Mara)?

Okay I'm confused here. Exactly what is stopping you from setting the Shivans to be friendly in the Ship editor?

[Warnstaff]

When using the SCP FRED, it automaticly designates the shivan ships as hostile. Changing the ship's team doesn't help. I can do with with the IFF SEXP, but it takes a couple seconds to take effect (just long enough to get shot be an AAAf). It's most ennoying, especially since it has caused some irreperal damage to nearly completed missions, causing them to be scraped (otherwise I'd be ready to release a full nebula campaign next week ).