Subset Games Forum

So here is my thread for the mod I am developing. First, some teasers.

Title theme: http://www.tannerhelland.com/dmusic/FromHere.ogg
This is, of course, the title menu. This next screen demonstrates a number of important changes. You see that 'warning bubble'? It's green now because it represents the advancement of the federal-colonial fleet. They still prevent you from exploring areas they have passed over (think of it as everything there has already been discovered), but encountering them prompts either commerce (fuel for drones, missiles for scrap, etc.,), a quest, or a 'nothing' flavor event.

You'll also see that the hull strength bar looks a bit different. In vanilla FTL, each playable ship has 30 hull points. In this mod, each ship has either 15 (light hulls) or 30 (cruiser hulls). This is meant as a form of tiered difficulty; light hulls tend to start with a few augments and gimmicks, while the cruisers are standard FTL ships. Right now I have a minimod that runs when I want to use a 15 hull ship which modifies the hull bar accordingly. Ships! These are the plans for the ships. Five of these are basically done, and there is a bunch of work done on the others as well. See: http://www.ftlgame.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2938 So what is the deal with this mod?

It's supposed to present the foundation of the federation, rather than its fall. The Engi and Zoltan are presented as allies while the Mantis, Rock, and Slugs as aggressors; the final battle is a unifying battle in which the Engi, Zoltan, and Humanity stand against the Rock, Slugs, and Mantis (I'm thinking of casting the slugs as the manipulators of this 'axis'). The old playable ships associated with those races are mini-bosses at the end of quest chains and, of course, they will be used in the final battle as well.

Thoughts? Input? Anything?

The plan is also to rewrite a whole bunch of events, as I intend the mod to be event focused.

SHIPS

SCOUT CLASS SHIPS

The "Intrepid"

A refitted civilian vessel, the Intrepid is a dedicated science vessel coming with Advanced Scanners and both an upgraded sensor package and an upgraded medical bay. Unfortunately, it was never meant for combat and comes armed with a measly pair of Autocannon Mark Is. It was supposed to be used for studying unusual stellar events and comes equipped with powerful shields, unfortunately the shields were meant to be used to protect against solar flares and not enemy ships, so it does not start with enough power to charge both systems.
Weapon Mounts: 2 (Starboard, Port); Autocannon Mark I x 2
Drone Mounts: 2; System Repair Drone

The "Watchman"

The basic Federation scout and patrol vessel, it comes with an FTL Jumper allowing it to easily patrol Federation space. It also boasts a not insignificant Autocannon Mark II and a "Leto" Missile Launcher.
Weapon Mounts: 2 (Starboard, Port)
Drone Mounts: 2

The "Bandit"

This converted civilian vessel has been outfitted by Outcasts more to intimidate than to actually fight. Armed with only an Autocannon Mark I and a "Leto" Missile Launcher, it does however boast a much more powerful starting weapon system allowing. This allows it to sustain attacks targeting its weapons as well as appear more powerful to enemy sensors. Additionally, the ship comes equipped with an Outcast IFF which, while not 100% effective, allows the captain of the Bandit to occasionally (50%) trick Outcasts into thinking the Bandit is one of their own.
Weapon Mounts: 4 (Starboard x 2, Port x 2)
Drone Mounts: 0

The "Vigilant"

This one of a kind vessel had its keel laid at the same time as the Red Tail Kestral-class variant cruiser. It incorporates advances in armor technology, giving it both Titanium system casing and Titanium armor plating. Unfortunately, there hasn't been time to instal any shielding yet. It is armed with a pair of Autocannon Mark IIs and is equipped with both ship and system repair drones, complementing its role as an endurance fighter.
Weapon Mounts: 3 (Starboard, Port, Bow)
Drone Mounts: 2

This looks great so far! I'll definitely be keeping an eye on the progress of this, looks like it'll be awesome.

What an interesting prospect. I like the "fleet advancement" idea prompting trade and so-forth, very inspired. You have my attention sir...

Sounds like a great addon to FTL.

Thanks for your work, keep us informed.

What a great idea! I think it'd be great to play a lighter hearted story of exploration, if only because it makes the fall sting that much more. I'll be keeping an eye on this one.

Wait so you stay in the sector go to every node and have no conquences from advandce?

Looks great so far, would be a perfect addition to FTL.

Casting my support as well, can't wait to see this finished.

Moosicorn wrote:Wait so you stay in the sector go to every node and have no conquences from advandce?

In friendly areas, the fleet advances more slowly, but it will still prevent exploration of areas it covers. Jumping into the fleet, however, triggers mainly useful events (quests, trade, or nothing).

In hostile sectors and nebulae, the fleet won't even be present. So, in that case, you can explore to your heart's content.

EDIT: Oh, and thanks for the support/kind words everyone. I am shooting for a demo which will show off at least the first sector by Saturday! The event language is so flexible, lots of fun writing the quests and misc events.