[-Norbert-]

Not sure how much of this should be in spoiler tags so I'm going to put the lot in:

Spoiler:

Something I've been trying to wrap my head around that is bugging me is Ken's contradicting motivations. For instance, it was Ken himself who informs you in Act 3 that the GTVA are essentially trying to eliminate Vishnan-influenced elements in Sol (or at least that's how I interpreted it). But this is a good thing. This should play right into his hands, or the Shivan's hands I should say. It might not be clear what Ken's end-goal is, but one thing that seems to be pretty clear is that he is thouroughly anti-Vishnan. (I say 'he', 'it' would probably be a better descriptor).

So why then does Ken directly instruct you in part 1 to "destroy the GTVA"? I found it really weird when he says this, not least because as a Shivan metamind the success or failure of one trivial human faction in a trivial war seems completely inconsequential (relative to him). Asides from that, assuming he actually gives a crap he should want the GTVA to win and steer Sol and the rest of humanity away from Vishnan influence (if that's even possible).

One thought I had was that the element of Ken that is Aken Bosch is still prejudiced against the GTVA and wants to destroy it, but that seems far too narrow-minded and pointless. It got me thinking though, how exactly does a Human-Shivan metamind work? Is it possible it can suffer from split personalities, each with different goals that can potentially conflict with one another? Perhaps the fragility of a human consciousness can cause the metamind to hiccup every once in a while. I'm sure we'll see in the end that Ken ultimately has a goal and a plan to achieve it, but I kind of like the idea that a Shivan can be made susceptible to human error.

I was sure from the beginning that the GTVA had much stronger motives for going to war than just for the lulz and Act 3 pretty much confirmed it for me. It's sad because the UEF is obviously the much more stable, evolved society, but that its

Spoiler:

Vishnan infection

has pretty much tainted it.

Spoiler:

Remember that Ken also believes that GTVA victory will be the end of mankind.
With the GTVA attack on Earth being only days away, that is the more immediate problem. The "Vishnan infection" is more of the mid- to longterm problem that can be dealt with later, if the UEF survives the war.
Besides, getting rid of Vishnan influence in Sol is only part of the GTVA agenda.

[niffiwan]

Spoiler:

What does destroying the GTVA mean anyway?  Literally wipe out every non-Sol Human & Vasudan?  That seems extreme to me (although Ken is kinda Shivany).  Or is it about breaking the treaty between the two races? That also seems odd given the comments regarding the 1st incursion being designed to encourage/force co-operation between the two races.  Would a three part alliance of UEF/Tev/Zod with a new treaty count as destroying the GTVA?  Or with the UEF (minus Vishnan influenced Elders?) replacing the Tevs?  Iunno...

[Aesaar]

You can see capship beam armed Mentus in Pandora's Box, armed with a pair of SVas, and in Vassago's Dirge armed with a single VSlash.

So?  Neither of those are BP.

[An4ximandros]

 I am under the impression that:

Spoiler:

the reference to a binary outcome on UT meant that the GTA/VI were either going to be wiped out or one was going to absorb the other, becoming a sort of cultural hegemony.
 In FS2, don't the Vasudans feel like they have become some kind of pet to the humans? Khonsu II is (or was) a human fanatic, this lead to the abolition of several Vasudan customs, and their absorption into the GTVA command chain, just look at how the entire Imperium had become a branch under the General Assembly.
 Post-Capella, the Human half of the GTVA became a dictatorship, doing everything in the name of security for the future of mankind, yet oppressing any movement that would threaten their position as "Guardians of Man".
 The UEF was isolated (by chance) because the Shivishnans saw some sort of potential in Sol, and it's program for a better future for humanity (It was somewhere on the website.)
 The UEF, unlike the GTVA, has cultured a variety of governments on it's "garden."
 Inside the Sol system we can find: United Earth; Mars (whatever gov. it has.); Jovian Republic and the Gaian Effort. 4 different governments, with different ideologies on the same system, and most of them cooperate with each other for the benefit of themselves and others.
 My opinion is that the Vishnans saw the potential in the GTA's better future program and had Sol isolated, where they could use the already established philosophies such as Ubuntu, to drive the human race on the direction they wanted.
 The Shivans, Destroyers (and Preservers both) see the UEF's creative potential as the key to fill the final responsibility: Creation, the role of Brahma.

[MatthTheGeek]

In FS2, don't the Vasudans feel like they have become some kind of pet to the humans? Khonsu II is (or was) a human fanatic, this lead to the abolition of several Vasudan customs, and their absorption into the GTVA command chain, just look at how the entire Imperium had become a branch under the General Assembly.

Wut. Nothing you said here ever happened. The Emperor never abolished Zod customs, although the Zod culture progressively started to become more similara to the Terran's ; and the Imperium never was a branch of the General Terran Assembly. All three of the General Terran Assembly, Vasudan Imperium and Security Council form the GTVA as per the Beta Aquilae Convention.

Post-Capella, the Human half of the GTVA became a dictatorship, doing everything in the name of security for the future of mankind, yet oppressing any movement that would threaten their position as "Guardians of Man".

They didn't became a dictatorship, they never ceased to be one, all the way back from the beginning of the T-V war. At least in fact. Technically, the GTVA is a democracy, but AFAIK they are still under martial law.

[General Battuta]

The GTVA's a democracy* though.

[manwiththemachinegun]

It's a little unfair to judge the harshness of the GTVA's government considering their situation, living with the threat of extinction at any time. Remember, Sol has more resources and population that the rest of the colonies combined. The GTVA was out dealing with the very real possibility extermination, averted only through collapsing the jump nodes. We're also viewing this war from mostly one side, and from an unreliable narrator who interjects her own opinions without knowledge of the entire scope of the war.

It's worth noting that in Freespace 2 canon, Petrarch mentions a massive Shivan fleeting attempting to break through to Vega. Even if a holocaust wasn't the Shivans main objective at Capella, it probably would have happened anyway had not the GTVA fought tooth and nail. From their government's perspective, they won, validating their world view even if the civilian population center was traumatized and stunned into apathy. When you've stared down the barrel of the apocalypse, how can that not shape your world view? It plays into their perspective that the UEF are dangerous because their shiny beacon of hope simply won't work outside of the Sol system.

Any peaceful attempts to extend the Ubuntu Party's control outside of Sol would result in the total collapse of their sociopolitical simulation system, which has been painstakingly refined and parametrized to handle the Sol system alone. The Party would be unable to govern and rapidly lose control of its new citizens. The resultant anarchy would unacceptably compromise our defenses.

[Dark Hunter]

From reading what the tech room has to say, the Terran bloc of the GTVA is on the verge of societal collapse. The only thing really holding them together is the prospect of reuniting with Earth. That's one thing all the Terrans can agree on and that's what the GTVA is focusing on.

If the GTVA falls, the Terran race will be nigh-on defenseless against the Shivans. They need the GTVA's military power to defend themselves. Not to mention the utter chaos and civil wars that would erupt among the colonies if the GTVA fell apart, resulting in the loss of millions as well as precious supplies. That's the other side of the moral conflict.

I'm not saying I necessarily agree with their actions, but the GTVA isn't doing what they're doing for the sake of being oppressive. They have real reasons.

[Fury]

You might want to update the Troubleshooting topic, as it contains outdated information like inferno builds.

[crizza]

Please tell me I don't have to create a new pilot...again.


[attachment deleted by a basterd]

[Crybertrance]

Please tell me I don't have to create a new pilot...again.

Fortunately...nope 

However, I appears you are using the cockpit mod thingy for BP...Try running without that...I've had many crashes because of the conflicting tables and what not.

E: Scratch that...clearly you are not...   Something other than the pilot file is causing the (crash? Malloc Failed?)...

[crizza]

Please tell me I don't have to create a new pilot...again.

Fortunately...nope 

However, I appears you are using the cockpit mod thingy for BP...Try running without that...I've had many crashes because of the conflicting tables and what not.

E: Scratch that...clearly you are not...   Something other than the pilot file is causing the (crash? Malloc Failed?)...

Uh...I guess it was something with antipodes again, will reproduce the error.

[Colonol Dekker]

I think i'll do a clean reinstall of everything when i get around to playing Tenebra.

[crizza]

You know, I did that 'cause I reinstalled everything, started with the OS...

[Hellzed]

Does the Indus falling into the Sun after a crash jump, and its crew being rescued by the Masyaf, has anything to do with the intro of Descent 3 ?

[General Battuta]

Does the Indus falling into the Sun after a crash jump, and its crew being rescued by the Masyaf, has anything to do with the intro of Descent 3 ?

No, does that happen in Descent 3?

[NGTM-1R]

No, does that happen in Descent 3?

Well, the old Pyro GX does the solar nosedive too.

[bigchunk1]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSlzKON8lLk

Damn I loved that game.

[Apollo]

Just finished Tenebra on my friend's computer. I thought the writing was a little bit weaker than WiH 1+2 and you could of done a better job explaining the new mechanics, but other than that I have no complaints. Every single mission was unique and very well-designed. In particular, One Future stands out as the best FreeSpace mission I've ever played--and this is coming from a guy who's played through Silent Threat Reborn, Derelict, Age of Aquarius, Procyon Insurgency, and several other excellent campaigns.

At this point, i'd be willing to pay as much as $60 for AoA and WiH (still glad they're free though!). Blue Planet has a better narrative than any other game I've played, including ones with good story-lines, and even manages to beat many novels (which almost invariably have better stories than games).

Seriously, amazing job. You've taken a decade-old game engine and created something at least as good as many modern AAA titles (if a lot shorter).

Side note: The conversation between Noemi and

Spoiler:

Samuel Bei

seemed like a veiled attack on Christianity or perhaps organized religion in general.

Spoiler:

Samuel looks upon the Vishnans as holy beings, calling them the embodiment of good (or something that basically means that) and refusing to judge them harshly when they abandon humanity to the Shivans. The obvious parallel would be the Christian God damning people to eternal torment that eclipses any of their sins by several orders of magnitude while claiming that he loves everybody and is good.

I apologize if that offends anybody, but that was the way I interpreted it.

[An4ximandros]

Afaik. Vishnans are based on... well, Vishnu! Excerpt, courtesy of Wikipedia: "The Vishnu Sahasranama declares Vishnu as Paramatman (supreme soul) and Parameshwara (supreme God). It describes Vishnu as the All-Pervading essence of all beings, the master of—and beyond—the past, present and future, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates and develops all elements within. This illustrates the omnipresent characteristic of Vishnu. Vishnu governs the aspect of preservation and sustenance of the universe, so he is called "Preserver of the universe"."

The Kurukshetra War and the Bhagavad Gita might give you somethings to think about regarding the... personalities of the Vishnans.