Star Trek Armada II: Fleet Operations

The next version of the Armada 2 Patch Project will be the first one to feature a new ODF command, thus being the first new ODF command coming to Armada 2 ever. This should be less interesting for people using the patch just as patch, but more for our colleagues creating modifications for Armada 2 ;)

The command is called maxBuildableNumber and can be used in all craft and building ODF classes.
I'll give an easy example to explain what the command is doing:
You have created a new modification, called the "Super-Uber Defiant" mod. It adds a new Defiant class, which has tons of metaphasic torpedoes, a cloaking device and quantum-technobabble enhanced pulse phasers.
Now, it would be quite boring if the player only pulls out only your super-uber defiant class out of his or her shipyards, especially when playing the mod online. You want to limit the number of vessels the player can build.
Yes, there are possibilities out there that can limit a number of vessels build, but modders know they are not quite what they wanted when they came first up with that idea to do that in their mod. One is to use a system similar to our credits system we have used already in Fleet Operations, or to provide those units as start units besides your starbase as some mods already did in the past.
Now you get a third option - a real limit which can be set per vessel.
Just put the line maxBuildableNumber = 5 in the Super-Uber Defiant's class ODF file and ready you are. Now one player can only have a total number of 5 SU-Defiant class vessels at the same time.
Now, if you have build 5 SU-Defiants you cannot build a sixth one in your yards. Of course, after one of your SU-Defiants gets destroyed or disassembled you can then build a new one to fill the limit again.

(http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/4442/07302007151950yy1.th.png) (http://img406.imageshack.us/my.php?image=07302007151950yy1.png)
(http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/2111/07302007153442qh2.th.png) (http://img526.imageshack.us/my.php?image=07302007153442qh2.png)
(http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/5380/07302007153617ew2.th.png) (http://img406.imageshack.us/my.php?image=07302007153617ew2.png)
(http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/1315/07302007153719bk0.th.png) (http://img171.imageshack.us/my.php?image=07302007153719bk0.png)

btw. the string shown in the tooltip can then be modified through the Dynamic_Localized_Strings.h file by adding "GUI_CP_MAXBUILD", "Unit limit ( %d / %d )",

Now that's cool!
Should we expect this command to appear in some odf's in V3? Will it be part of FO or is it just an offer to other modders who might need it?
I guess there's a reason you came up with this ;)

yes, we had some ideas related to fleet operations with that command. it's not clear yet they will make it into v3

Is that possibly that we that ourselves can change that the maxBuildableNumber?

Very useful indeed, it would allow us to have buildable hero ships/flag ships aswell which can be built as a unique vessel and then replaced if destroyed.

I'd surgest this perhaps to work with some of the avatars in fleetops, for example, you choose the admiral riser avatar, and you can build admiral riser's flagship. (which I believe would be a unique avalon class) The ship would perhaps give a boost to all nearby vessels thanks to her command skills.

Along with the odf commands can we expect the new shields and possibly the custom resolution editor as a part of this new patch?

sweet  :lol: this could also be used for the  :borg: cube fusion because people often build like 4 and own every body else i also like the idea of heroes and when can we expect to see this  :D

...wow...

Go team. I think you just made AII modding history! How on Earth did you pull it off?

There's certainly a ton of possibilities with this in the code. You could give factions some really powerfull vessels, but then limit them to balance it all out and prevent spamming units like the vanilla fusion cubes Meredith mentioned, it takes fleets to destroy those things (hence why i'm always using them :shifty:).

*Realises just how many of his ideas now work thanks to this*

Can the limit impose a global limit for all players? (i.e. if a player had two SU-defiants and another had three, the limit would be hit). If that's possible, maybe some NPC ships (like the Scimitar) could be given a global limit so players race to see who can build the first one.

in later versions of the patch, remember, this patch is for armada 2.

yes, such a setting could also be implemented, though only by request if someone wants this for his mod. i don't think we could use this in fleet operations as in multiplayer that might be considered unfair ;)

fantastic work guys, this is great news alround :thumbsup:.

perhaps the first step towards a new stting that gives limited amount of the rarer ships seen in the series: i.e sovie, prommie, norexan, galaxy, Negh'Var & others ^-^

I always knew...DC is a genius... ^^

News up @ STG.

I know its for A2, thats why I'm asking. You said that the custom resolutions would come out as a part of the patch..so possibly you'll release it closer to FO3?

i have to approach differently when integrating fleet operations features into the patch project. when i program fleet operations i can modify more parts of armada without to care about backwards compatibility, so that a new function better "fits" into the program. the patch project aims to be 100% backwards compatible with all existing configuration and setting files and of course all program flow of armada 2. in fleet operations we save armada's settings now in our own file format structure, that is of course easier for me to save custom settings, too. for compatibility reasons i want to use existing files and materials as much as possible in the patch project. so some features need more time for integration into the patch project, even if they are already working fleet operations.

Okay i understand now. Well..even the new odf commands will be good..i like the idea of being able to limit certain ships...so the Romulans can't build like 5 Scimitars or something. and the Federation will only be able to build like two or three Sovereigns at a time.

Maybe you should add a build-limit for Ventures, BoPs, Bugs, Shrikes..  :sweatdrop:
Uhm... for what reason ever...

This feature opens a completely new door for balancing in A2... it's historical! Now you don't have to worry about a too strong ship as you can tweaking around with the new odf command. Also the mass building won't be any problem again. In Germany we have a saying...i dunno if you have it in the US/GB: Class instead of mass. ^^

this is so cool I can't believe it can then be part of mods featuring a very new feeling of gameplay much more authentic.

We have quality over quantity haha, which means the same thing =).

And you're right, this will be an excellent contribution to the mod effort!

now this will cause problems because if you make a mod using this and you want to play with some one else that dose not have the mod or the patch than they will have to instal the patch and the mod or the limit will not work  :ermm: i dont know you might want to test that out. make a mod and use the odf command and than try to play against some one else that just has the mod and not the patch this could cause some compatibility problems  :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

I don't think so. Sure if someone is playing a mod there is another version than stock A2 but the patch itsefl won't touch compatibility when just installed on your stock A2. that's what I understood when DC mentioned to release the Patch 1.2 series.
Maybe he should clear this up.

A plain odf command that isn't used won't effect mp compability.

I think Jan is right. As far as I know the compatibility is only affected by changes to files which are directly required for the game itself, as the odfs are. If you alter an odf which you and your opponent need, you will have a compatibility-problem. But the availability of options itself should not affect compatibility.
Uhm, well... DC, please ;)

no what im saying is that if you make a mod that uses that command you have the patch and your friend dose not i dont know what would happen if you could not play we shall see

In that case both have to use the patch and the mod because his mod wouldn't work without the patch and as he plays a modified version of Armada his friend has to do the same to avoid compatibility problems.
Hum.. his friend simply has to adapt  :borg:

no worries about that, i already thought about adding a switch to slightly alter the network crc optionally if the modder wishes so. anyway, the game would go out of sync real soon, when someone who doesn't use the patch plays together with someone who does (of course only in a mod where such game modifing commands are being used)

will the AI be bound by these commands? or like the resource costs will it just depend on what difficulty the AI is set to?

no, the ai is not bound to these commands. it can however simulated of course through the ai files.

I think that would be even better for the idea of hero ships should two different players use the same race so you don't have two Enterprises at once for example. I also think that there should be a way to make the AI accountable to this global limit too.

One idea I would have would be to have the flag ship built from a facility that warps the ship in rather than builds it, then when the ship is destroyed have the explosion appear to be a huge warp flash, so the ship seems to warp away at the last second. (that would be tricky to impliment) Then you can build it again as if recalling it. (or having it rebuilt from scratch) I hate how a lot of mods have you start with hero ships so that several players can all have the same unique hero (starwars fleet command is the worst mod for this.)

errrrr i know this topic has had no replies for ages but i was just using this new command i have noticed however that there is a string error

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v505/Jupiter/Apocalypse%20Gallery/maxbuild.jpg)

btw the limit was 5 and it does wk

read the last two line in my first post (below the screenshots) ;) you need to add a new string to dynamic_local_strings.h

errr this patch is great just on question wen using this for fighters cud the next patch allow the weapon to be assigned to a hp so if the replacementKeepOwner is enabled the seperated (fighters) come from there like theyv'e been launched

this is problematic, it may work with stations, but vessels tend to be "calculated away" by armada as both ships would block each other. it may work with a station-vessel combination (vessels leave shipyard) but i am not sure if it is possible to achieve with two moving targets. i'll keep that idea in mind.

ok kool thx