Star Trek Armada II: Fleet Operations

Today we want to take a look at some of the new units and models which will arrive in the Fleet Operations v3 final release.

Lets start with the Klingons. One of the most famous small Klingon vessels - the K't'inga is finally getting a bit old. After more then 300 years of service the Empire decided to replace it with the latest child of its production line, K'beajQ. Both vessels share a large portion of their technology and their basic construction blueprints, but the K'beajQ profits from latest shield generator technology and years of experience with the chassis. Fans of the old K't'inga will still be able to acquire it by dispatching a Topmey's storage containers.

(http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Klingon/thumbs/FOScreenShot_080203_143125.png) (http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Klingon/FOScreenShot_080203_143125.png)

(http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Klingon/thumbs/FOScreenShot_080203_144543.png) (http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Klingon/FOScreenShot_080203_144543.png)


Another addition in v3 - already promised in an earlier news post - is the Miranda-II! The Federation Mixed-Tech unit achieved if capturing Dominion Technology. The Miranda-II is what the Miranda once was, a powerful heavy cruiser. Her "Backbone" passive ability reduces damage taken from sources with a lower offensive value then her defensive value, that leads to a very durable vessel if fighting destroyer fleets. If damage reduction seems to be not enough for turning the tides the Miranda-II may still engage her "Blockade Breaker" special ability, greatly increasing the rate of fire of her heavy Quantum Pulse weapons! A powerful asset for every Federation fleet!

(http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Federation/thumbs/FOScreenShot_080203_142348.png) (http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Federation/FOScreenShot_080203_142348.png)

(http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Federation/thumbs/FOScreenShot_080203_150730.png) (http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Federation/FOScreenShot_080203_150730.png)


With all these new designs the Romulan Empire decided to give the Rhienn a small face-lift, too. A complete new model! A small gameplay addition has also been made. Booth Rhienn refits will now feature a new passive ability in addition to their normal effects. The Disruptor-Rhienn's Kaleh Maneuver ability increases her damage once every 2 minutes when opening combat, granting her superior hit-and-run abilities for evil Romulan tactics. The Torpedo-Rhienn gained the Predatory Strikes ability to deal increased damage against hostile cruiser - the Romulans never liked Akiras.

(http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Romulan/thumbs/FOScreenShot_080203_143533.png) (http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Romulan/FOScreenShot_080203_143533.png)

(http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Romulan/thumbs/FOScreenShot_080203_145828.png) (http://www.fleetops.net/images/Gallery/FleetOps3Romulan/FOScreenShot_080203_145828.png)


More details about Fleet Operations v3 will come soon, stay tuned!

Awesome beginning to V3. Always cool when reviving an old design with new textures and slightly different model.

I've been itching for an update, and these new models look great. I'm loving the new Excelsior II models as well.

I love this! Can't wait *fidgets impatiently*  :thumbsup:

Nice, especially the Miranda II.

The new Rhienn model has some incredible detail work.  :woot:

You guys are very very talented. Lukas arts has noting like you.  -_-

lol ewm90 those models do look fantastic great job guys :thumbsup:

Just curious... how far can a mod like this go? Can it be pushed forever, because it certainly does not seem that the game engine shows any signs of "aging". Or am I wrong there?  :blush:

The Armada2 Engine is a good one which is capable of most things you need for a good looking strategy game :) and the things it cant will be added someday ;D

Excellent! I guess there is no need to worry about anyone pulling the plug here then, whew  :D
Fleet Operations shall live for an eternity  :woot:

great! Brilliant!
Will be better though once we got to PLAY!
In anticipation!

It goes without saying that the models in those pics are fantastic! I love the K'beajQ; its looks just like its predecessor (as it would if they share components), yet at the same time you can instantly tell them apart thanks to the engine glow colour and the module on its back (good thinking there). The Miranda II looks quite cool too (as does her abilities), and the new Rheinn...i think breathtaking is the only word that covers it (though the Disruptor-refit's passive confuses me a bit; does it cause more damage the longer it remains in a battle?).

btw; the weapon from that borg cube is stunning!. B) Is that a holding beam or a normal beam weapon?

Yep, thats a normal Borg Beam Weapon, the Holding Beam looks a little different :)

The Rhienns passive ability allows her to deal increased damage with the first volley she fires when opening combat. That underlines some interesting hit-and-run tactics :)

Normally I don't like Miranda models with slices cut out of the back, but your one looks great, and it has the rollbar! :woot:

I like the new pseudo-K'Tinga design as well. Whilst I agree with Bernd Schneider that we should ignore the K'Tinga model used in Enterprise (which was later claimed to be a VFX error), that would still make the basic design at least 150 years old. Scheider also quivels that the D7 in VOY: Prophecy is represented on-screen by a K'Tinga model (whereas the D7 in DS9: Trails and Tribble-ations is in fact a D7 model), complaining that if it's a K'Tinga (even though the script calls for a D7 and the K'Tinga model was clearly just a VFX error, much like the Ent-D firing a phaser from its torpedo launcher in TNG: Darmok), that the line about them being 'decomissioned years ago' makes no sense. But again, the ship was intended to be a D7, not a K'Tinga, so why Schneider continues complaining about it I don't know...

Still, the basic D7 design, which was apparantly refitted to the K'Tinga design possibly around the same as the Constitution refit and perhaps in response to it, or even the other way around (the Constitution refit being a response to the K'Tinga), is still at least 150 years old, so I agree with the decision to, at the very least, change the model a bit. Looks great by the way... :thumbsup:

since we've revamped the Feds, Klings, and Roms, could we also please revamp the Dominion side.
If what we see in V3 is all that the Dominion has to offer, then that side is now - compared to the new Borg, and revamped Feds, Roms, and Klings - boring.

revamping the Dom, with maybe the Weyoun avatar including Card ships, like the Breen avatar includes Breen cruisers, would help. But as suggested on another recent thread - a Dom supercruiser version of the Tavara would be nice.

Let's not neglect the Dominion plz.

Bearing in mind that the team don't show us everything beforehand, I'd doubt that they have been neglected. It's possible we just haven't been shown everything yet, which does make sense.

Beautíful new ships, espeically the Rhienn.
And the new Borg beam weapon looks amaaaaaazing  :borg:

hopefully

Good job as always Optec :) FO does need some new eye-candy  :sweatdrop:


BTW: serpicus Im sure they are not neglecting the Dominion side :D They wouldnt dare :P  IMO the reason why the feds, klingons and roms get all these brand new models is because they are old, so they need redoing so they dont stick out too much in games while in contrast the Dominion models are all new and up to date  :thumbsup:
Also I dont know if Id call them boring :S I find their style quite different to other races and so are quite challanging and unique to play. IMO of course. They use specialist units, which can always work in your advantage :) Im a little disappointed that their battleship sucks so much, but I think it really is not as strong as a Negh'Var or Sovie for instance (stronger than the Warbird IMO tho). Also I have a feeling they will get something stronger in last v3 ;) The ONLY thing I am missing for the Dominion is an all-round cruiser aka Vorcha/Akira/Griffin, but one can always use bugs in that role ^^ And if they had one, they wouldnt really have specialist units, now would they :D
About the Weyoun avatar, they will not use it because FO is based after the Dom war and so the Cardies are not allied with the Dom anymore and Weyoun is also dead :)
From a purely gaming perspective I must say that they are properly balanced against the other races and I can (and have) cope with any other race in MP and against any player :)

After v3 is released I can guarantee you u'll be satisfied with them ;)

is that a new vorcha retexture i see in the first pic. if so have you retextured the bird of prey  :woot:

if we are sticking by timelines such as after the dominion war - are we to then assume that the Borg are different now due to the virus Janeway released at the end of Voyager - or is this now going to be a game set between the Dom war and Voyager's return.
Come on.

I see what you're driving at, and I respect your perspective.

But I dont think many of us are actually so hardcore when it comes to "timeframe".
We would like to play a robust game with as much eye candy as possible.
Cardassian ships like the Galor and Keldon are staple StarTrek race ships, and not having the Cards, when an entire series was devoted to them, in a Star Trek game is like having no Roms.

If we want to be so hardcore then we can safely say that with Odo having barely cured the founders after the Dominion War, their entry into another war would be non-canon.


The main issue is fun. Let's not get too hung up on timelines. I'm sure you enjoy playing as is - but many of us would like to see a few additions to the Dom side, and would not like to simply get stuck on non-essential timeline constraints.

But it's upto the mods.  :sweatdrop:

Well, we know for a fact that the developers have consistently stated that Fleet Operations takes place after the Dom war (and perhaps even after Nemesis)... but they have stated (if I may put my foot in my mouth) that they have been taking their own liberties. Thus, you may get your wish, depending on which way the current ebbs.  ^-^

The K'tinga is only about 90-100 years old, introduced in the 2270s. Gotta say I'm still not a fan of simply making new ships to replace perfectly useful old ones, as it is incredibly redundant. In your defense they do look good though. It's your mod, so do whatever.

This just looks incredible!
The new miranda I think looks particularly good, I wonder how exclusive it will be?

I'm blown away :woot:

Oh common PD, they also added the Miranda (II)  :D
Say something uplifting for a change, please  ^-^

Yea, but the D7 spaceframe (which became the K'Tinga class, much as the Constitution spaceframe became the Constitution refit) is at least 150 years old, so it probably was time for an upgrade... :D

Didn't the Klingon's use D7's at the time of Enterprise (NX-01) already?

No, the producers said that was a VFX error...

They actually had a new Klingon ship designed, but they ran out of time to make a CG model of it.  Shame, since it was a pretty neat design.

It can arguably be said that the D7 and the K'tinga have nothing but the same shape in common, as the K'tinga was a leap and 2 bounds forward over the D-7 in terms of technology.

And if they wanted to add the Miranda, they'd add...the Miranda. This Miranda they plan on adding is just another ship the Federation side never needed.

I think a lot of work has been added for the purpose of countering destroyer rushes.

I prefer added counters over nerfed fed destroyers any day.

Agreed  :D

You know, I reckon the seemingly unbalanced destroyers is just the N-Squared law kicking us in the ass... :lol:

Hey Optec, any chance at a well lit render of the new Rhienn class, the texture style is great from what I can see.

what about some of those neat interactive displays you presented many of the previous designs with?  :woot:

nice

IIRC, the canon Miranda will be in FO (i think they were planning it to be either summoned from Starfleet Command or be one of the "Uncommon" ships. Same for the canon Excelsior to my knowledge).

Wasn't there a screenie sometime last year with a Miranda in it? (it was fighting alongside a Sovereign).

I dunno about the screen, but yes, the canon Miranda will be included as a map object in a future release of Fleet Operations.

Oh so they will have the canon Miranda as a map object, and the one they made up as the only buildable one. Well that just solves everything doesn't it? Time for me to redownload, ignore all the other made up ships, and play the mod for the sake of maybe getting a canon Miranda on a few select maps.

Calm down mate... I like the Miranda to, but that's no reason to go all pshyco on us... :lol:

lol.

Starfleet, being smart, builds new ships.  Live with it.

Well, I guess that makes them smarter than the Aermican navy... :lol:

ImageShack - Hosting :: lolwutqq0.png (http://img231.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lolwutqq0.png)

300 years of civilization have to lead to something, at least!  :lol:

300 years of "civilization".
What civilization?

you mean the cheap imitation of Greco-Roman society.. come on.

Well, with water vessels there isn't much need for change regarding the hull shape.  What really gets upgraded are the internal systems, adding such indispensable components as nuclear power and fiber-optic data transmission.  Space vessels, on the other hand, seem to have no articular regard for a certain hull "aerodynamics", and thus have more room on the outside for change.

Not to mention that the last battleship was decommissioned a few years ago.

If it works, why build a new one until you have to? Thats why 2 Iowas were being used up through the 90's. Same for the Miranda and Excelsior, K'tinga, Bird of Prey, and a few other designs in Star Trek.

The universal answer is money. And of course politics.
By the way, new US naval ships are in the works... it's just that there is a certain green thing that needs be added to the mixture, which will be approved/denied by said politics.

In Star Trek, the Federation and other groups are in a state of semi-permanent hostile relations. Also, money is not truly a question (specifically in regard to the Federation). Thus there is a huge incentive to build bigger and badder weapons and technology, just like in our world's very own Cold War.

sweet now all our navy ships are going to be green Literaly :ermm:

They weren't used in combat.  The served in a capacity closer to that of giant troop ferries.  Basically, true battleships are useless compared to modern carriers.  And the K'tinga is in use still, just in the much more reasonable role of mining freighter.  The Excelsior is harder to explain, and unfortunately is just due to the sheer laziness of the Trek VFX department (the same laziness that renamed the Sao Paulo to the Defiant just to re-use combat footage).

Actually, the Iowa's ended up being a giant guided missile cruisers by the time they were decommissioned. I mean if the Iowas and the older ships in Star Trek were never upgraded, they would be very worthless, but in the Dominion war, both the Miranda and Excelsior have modern Phaser strips as well as shields i'm sure, etc, and the BoP and K'tinga have upgraded weapons and stuff as well.

It's not hard to explain at all, as it's always cheaper to just refurbish older material then build completely new stuff. It may not be AS effective, but you can get a LOT more of it in the end.

Actually, the Iowas were used for shelling during the Korean and Vietnam War, Operation Earnest Will and the first Gulf War. The US congress was reluctant to have Missouri decommissioned (they'd blocked any  Navy advance in that direction for years) because no other vessel had the ability to strike at targets as far into the enemy mainland as these ships could.

Right now, the US is developing the Zumwalt-class destroyer which will again fill the role of naval-bound artillery. Some people are sceptical the proposed gun solution will match the 406mm main guns of the Iowas, though.

In my opinion, the USN would still use this venerable class if their guns' recoil hadn't made it impossible to fit them with Air Sparrows, since their guidance systems are quite shock-sensitive...

There's nothing venerable in a warship. It's a machine for murder and imperialist hegemony nothing more.

ouch.

Well, what about that makes "venerable" an inappropriate word?

Something else i just thought of with regards to ships in FO; when your playing a faction, your playing that faction at war. Older ships like the Miranda and Excelsior may be in extensive use in the Federation for exploration and science duties, but when it comes to military assingments they stand aside while Starfleet calls in the newer, more advanced (and thus rarer) vessels, only going to the front themselves in times of great need (such as the Dominion war, where AFAIK Starfleet was outnumbered).

So you could think of oldies like the Excelsior as the unseen heroes; they're doing all the peacefull work to free up the Akiras, Sovereigns and Excelsior-IIs that your commanding.

Well see, thats all and fine, except thats not canon. The following image, for some reason, has these 'Peaceful' ships you talk about. Odd thing is, they have Phaser banks! Why would they have Phaser banks if their only science ships and transports? Oh thats right, because nearly every ship in the Federation arsenal is actually a exploration vessel first.
(http://www.ditl.org/gpaf/GChnBattle1.jpg)

^Thats what I'm looking for in Fleet Ops. Which is where we're at, except many useless uncanon designs, and many good canon designs taking a back seat.

I disagree...

To start with, the Excelsior and Miranda not being avaliable to a fleet commander is perfectly understandable. Firstly, Fleet Ops is set after the Domion War, where many Excelsiors and Mirandas were destroyed or extensively damaged. Second, surely both designs are well and truely out of production by the TNG era (thus building them at the shipyards wouldn't make sense), and thirdly, the Dominion War proved that the designs are kinda old and a little frail now, so I think it makes perfect sense that the remaining ones would be kept out of combat (or even decomissioned), and thus you can't call them in using a command base either. Besides, the Fleet Ops team was kind enough to include homages to both designs in the forms of the Excelsior II and Miranda II, so what exactly are you complaining about?

If I were you guys. I'd be asking a more poignant question, like where the hell is the Ambassador? I know it's a fairly old design as well, but I personally think it might be a good idea to make the Amb a warp-in ship. It's not as old as the Excelsior and Miranda and still looks OK along side a modern fleet...

The only other canon designs I can think of (aside from the DS9 Kitbahses and the Wolf 359 ships) are the Nova, Prometheus and Constitution. I still think the first one should replace the Canaveral, the second would admittedly be hard for the FO team to balance and the third I only mention because there was one at 359 (meaning the class didn't go out of service as the Undiscovered Country suggested) and is clearly too old to have any bearing on anything (just as the NX would be to old to have any bearing on anything in the TOS era).

EDIT: Two more classes I didn't mention were the Oberth and Constellation, but both of these designs were lightly armed science ships from the very beginning, and certainly wouldn't be used in a combat situation, not to mention that the Grissom was destroyed by a single hit from a TMP era BOP disruptor and the Stargazer was described as being an "overworked, underpowered vessel", so I think we can safely dismiss these two...

The old Excelsior will be accessible via warpin

Looking forward to blasting that thing to heck   ^-^
You will be assimilated.  :borg:

When is the projected release of v3.0 Final?  I want to try out the pre-release but if the final version is close to going live I would rather wait for that.  Also will this enable the Armada to work on 64 bit systems with lots of ram?

I use 8 gigs of ram on vista, and it would suck if I could not play it.

It probably won't be out for awhile  :sweatdrop: ; play the PR, and join the rest of us online  :thumbsup:

It'll be worth the wait  :D
Posted on: February 25, 2008, 11:27:33 PM

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I just noticed something... not sure if anyone saw this... but one of the pictures has an explosion occuring NOT on the main plane: in other words, the explosion is vertical! Does this mean all explosions have random explosion vectors (not like PR) or is this just a mirage?

the explosion shockwaves are now spherical :)

Is that your German heritage showing through in your grammar? :P

That's incredible!!!!!   :woot:

Thank you so much  ^-^
Posted on: April 24, 2008, 06:53:28 PM

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Just wondering... does that also mean all the other effects are spherical as well (like mine detonations, artillery explosions, special weapons etc...)?  :sweatdrop:

Yay!  News!!

Any screenshots of the effect?

Yup, first page: there is an explosion in one of the images that looks vertical, instead of horizontal. Although the team did not announce it, it looked peculiar to me... and tadaaa!!! we have spherical explosions!