[CT27]

Plot-wise, at the time of Inferno:  Nostos, how close is the Icanus to completion?

[Nyctaeus]

Icanus is not confirmed in new Nostos continuity so far. If it appear, it's unlikely to be somekind of insane warship but perhaps something more sophisticated.

[CT27]

Does that mean the original Gigas plans for Inferno could get changed too?  IIRC the original plan was for a superjuggernaut Icanus to be used a response to a superjuggernaut Gigas.

[Nyctaeus]

We certainly don't want stupid superjugg vs superjugg battle as old Inferno was supposed to portray. Future of Icanus is uncertain at this point, but Gigas is more likely to happen. If we decide to introduce Gigas, it will be something more then just oversized warship hellbent on destroying Earth.

Let me say it this way: High-poly asset for Gigas exist and it's even textured. At this point we're debating how to introduce this thing to Nostos timeline, but plans are loose. We're focused on upgrading Nostos R1 and upcoming Nostos R2.

[Zarax]

Well, supercaps are interesting when properly used as plot devices.
One could envision a mission arc where you slowly "starve the beast" by cutting its logistics and depleting its fighter and bomber wings, so that you can finally strike at some subsystem that would enable your fleet a chance...
Rather than sending capital ship after capital ship dragonball-style (or your 21st century equivalent), fabian tactics applied to space war could make for a decent story.

I agree that old inf storyline that consumed more capital ships than pop-corn at a movie theater was over the top (but hey, we were all younger back then!) but Volition made two stellar games with the "big bad ship" theme...

[Nyctaeus]

We have nothing against "big bad ships". Inferno already introduced one of them in form of Vidyadhar superdestroyer. Gigas is likely to appear, but it won't be just ridiculously large warship designed to engage enemy fleets. It's sheer size must have some point, but being just a giant warships for being giant warship is wasting resources for something, that is in turn also logistics nightmare. Gigas is already shortened from 22 to about 11km. It's real purpose, probably associated with some strange, subspace magic is being debated inside our team.

As for Icanus, this thing is ridiculous especially for terran usage. As we slowly rework EA from "generic space nazist" faction to more intelligent and cunning enemy, we also drop ridiculous things. EA proved that they can build smaller warships [Nemesis] capable of engaging much larger targets, like Sathanas. They really don't need such a thing. Instead they can maintain balanced fleet of high tonnage, full of specialized capitalship designs and easily roll out new forces to the frontline as situation change.

[starlord]

A pity for the change as it reduces the fear factor of the gigas, but I suppose it’s understandable given how hard it would be to get from point a to point b on this ship.

[Colonol Dekker]

I, C, Anus development...


I had to.

[Darius]

Someone misspelt Icaunis maybe.

[Iain Baker]

"...shortened to 11KM". Damn, I wanna see that now.  Also wanna see the 22k version. 

 Just a thought - would a 22k ship be the largest ship in a space game?

[Nightmare]

"...shortened to 11KM". Damn, I wanna see that now.  Also wanna see the 22k version. 

I know I know... It's at best twice as long as a Sath, pretty big but not overwhelming.

Just a thought - would a 22k ship be the largest ship in a space game?

Neither in FS nor in scifi games in general.

[Droid803]

I'm still arguing for a Gigas-Icanus supercap duel, even if the both the Gigas and Icanus are reduced in size. We've also floated ideas of the "Icanus" being...something else entirely 
The main argument has been that it's incredibly difficult to make a mission around something of that scale that is meaningful.

"...shortened to 11KM". Damn, I wanna see that now.  Also wanna see the 22k version. 

You can see the 22km version in INFR1 (and in the FS wiki)

[Nightmare]

I'm still arguing for a Gigas-Icanus supercap duel, even if the both the Gigas and Icanus are reduced in size.

Personally I'd like to see a 22km Gigas vs a 11km Icanus, but that's just my personal opinion~

[starlord]

I’d be curious to know what its sub space weapon looks like (or that of the Sathanas for that matter).

Also, I tend to agree with nightmare, but I’d understand if it was impossible.

[Zarax]

We have nothing against "big bad ships". Inferno already introduced one of them in form of Vidyadhar superdestroyer. Gigas is likely to appear, but it won't be just ridiculously large warship designed to engage enemy fleets. It's sheer size must have some point, but being just a giant warships for being giant warship is wasting resources for something, that is in turn also logistics nightmare. Gigas is already shortened from 22 to about 11km. It's real purpose, probably associated with some strange, subspace magic is being debated inside our team.

As for Icanus, this thing is ridiculous especially for terran usage. As we slowly rework EA from "generic space nazist" faction to more intelligent and cunning enemy, we also drop ridiculous things. EA proved that they can build smaller warships [Nemesis] capable of engaging much larger targets, like Sathanas. They really don't need such a thing. Instead they can maintain balanced fleet of high tonnage, full of specialized capitalship designs and easily roll out new forces to the frontline as situation change.

I fully agree with adding more depth to EA and move away from capships as main measurement stick for campaign progress.
If anything, in my personal speculation an isolated EA would have gone in a completely different path technology-wise, especially as an isolated system would lack the resources available to GTVA.

I definitely wouldn't see them as space nazis, more like a culture shaped by its isolation and fear of annihilation, with every single scarce resource dedicated to looking for an escape from the solar system and watching for any sign of Shivan activity, possibly with the assumption that what was left of GTA and Vasudans have been exterminated already.

Something like the Icanus could be seen as a project to grant humanity a last chance to escape, basically attempting to replicate Shivan ability to navigate unstable nodes and possibly the Lucifer's capital ship shielding. More an ark than a juggernaught in concept, its size being more about preserving a self-sustainable population than to fight capital ships.

[Colonol Dekker]

I'd hope their land armies/marines/conventional forces would be absolutely razor sharp.

[Zarax]

I'd hope their land armies/marines/conventional forces would be absolutely razor sharp.

Honestly I suspect they would get as much priority as the Italian army in WWII: given that Shivans prefer to glass planets from space, they would get the scraps.

[Colonol Dekker]

I imagine a **** load of civil unrest post node collapse, maybe even civil war? If it's the only planet in the solar system with a natural ecosystem it'd make sense to not nuke it into oblivion leaving conventional war to decide victors.

[Nyctaeus]

We recently managed to obtain old INFA:SA files, and made some general upgrade. There is still a chance for the "EA history campaign" to happen.

[Iain Baker]

"...shortened to 11KM". Damn, I wanna see that now.  Also wanna see the 22k version. 

I know I know... It's at best twice as long as a Sath, pretty big but not overwhelming.

Just a thought - would a 22k ship be the largest ship in a space game?

Neither in FS nor in scifi games in general.

There is a ship in FS larger than 22k? Now that I have to see :-)