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AC 5 should still use AC 5 ammo - just chews them up quicker.
The LBX 10 has its own unique cluster rounds.
The LBX 10 has its own unique cluster rounds.
So new distinct ammo types, and using them to feed weapons, is possible -- there's another post in this subforum stating, in effect, that new ammo types don't work.
I may be confusing things for you.
The Cluster uses a new Ammunition json file, which is then used by an AmmitionBox json file.
So, yes, you can define a new Ammo type that has unique properties, and can be called by multiple Ammo Boxes (like the way MG and MG Half boxes both use MG Ammo)
But, there is also the AmmoCategory, which is defined in the MDD - which I only fooled around with a little bit on when trying to make Ammo for the Light Rifle. I have to go back and look at what I did there though
The Cluster uses a new Ammunition json file, which is then used by an AmmitionBox json file.
So, yes, you can define a new Ammo type that has unique properties, and can be called by multiple Ammo Boxes (like the way MG and MG Half boxes both use MG Ammo)
But, there is also the AmmoCategory, which is defined in the MDD - which I only fooled around with a little bit on when trying to make Ammo for the Light Rifle. I have to go back and look at what I did there though
So to create a new weapon with distinct ammo, you need:
The new weapon, which points to the box.
The new box, which points to the ammo.
The new ammo.
The new ammo category entry in the MDD.
This is turning out to be a bit more complicated than some of the CK2 mods I did.
The new weapon, which points to the box.
The new box, which points to the ammo.
The new ammo.
The new ammo category entry in the MDD.
This is turning out to be a bit more complicated than some of the CK2 mods I did.
Ok yeah. I got off BTech some time back. With Flashpoint out, I've came back to tinker a bit.
- Yes, the release versions are currently broken.
- Yes, I got them to work -- in skirmish.
- Yes, the 8550 problem seemed to have gone away.
- Yes, I'm thinking of recombining the lot. More Mechs = More fun.
- Unfortunately with so many things to load, without adjusting some stuff in constants, there will be problem.
- No, the addendum method seems to be not quite working, unfortunately.
- Yes, Flashpoint dumped out my DB keys, so they stop showing up. I need to test that before releasing. If I recombine, I do have to regen keys and SQL scripts though.
- No, I won't be using Flashpoint Crab, Hatchie and Cyclops. Not that I can't, but more that I don't want to get HBI/ Paradox pissed at me. I would likely keep my current THI versions though, for those who didn't get Flashpoint.
- Yes, as I get more familiar with weird stuff in Flashpoint, you might see them.
- No, I still hadn't gotten around to getting them to work with ModTek.
v1.3 Released!
So yeah, I seriously doubt too many people are following my mod, but I just updated to v1.3, compatible with Battletech v1.3.2 with Flashpoint DLC; Proven to work with Career mode and Skirmish. How do I know it works with Career? Well, the reason why it took so long for me to publish the updates is because I'm having too much fun making Ostscouts and Thorns explode in my new Career play-through....
Anyway the files are being updated to Nexus, so they should become available soon. I understand I'm not supposed to post new posts with links there, so you'd just have to go there yourself to look it up.
This release doesn't rock the boat too much, it's just meant to update the VersionManifest so that things would work with v1.3.2. In fact, those of you who are using the files probably can/ have updated the VM file by yourself already. If that's the case there's really nothing new in this one for you.
So moving forward... what's upcoming?
Firstly, I have to say my interest in modding isn't as strong as it was, but I'd probably continue to tinker with this at my own time and pace. I'm not looking to shake up the whole game system; for me, just adding the variety of mechs currently already make the game experience quite interesting, because of the variety of possible threat/ attacks. If the AI is a bit better, I'm fairly sure some of these mechs would make life a lot more interesting.
So, yeah.. I've been lifting the hood on some parts of 1.3.2, which HBS didn't appear to mind us lifting. Some of the things are truly interesting. The big ones are as follows:
1. The introduction of fixed equipment. The fixed hatchet on the Hatchetman and the computer on the Cyclops is a bigger deal than most think. With that now in place, I can now better implement XL engines, true engine heat sinks and probably Endo Steel -- that brings a lot more mech possibly in game. Ferro remains challenging, and most likely would not make it. Possibly, advanced Gyros.
In addition, this allows me to bring in some very odd chassis. The very obvious example is the 302X Ravens; there's really no good reason to bring a Raven-1X if you can dismount the EW equipment and put it somewhere else. Similarly, Command Orions and Beemers are now suddenly much more valuable when their Command Consoles cannot be shifted. Expect to see some changes to certain key mechs, and from there, certain odd variants may pop up.
2. The resolution of the old 8550 VM lines problem now opens the way for more mechs to be included. I should be bringing some of the old ones back in.
3. Continual exploration of some of the effects, including the new one that the Cyclops computer highlighted, will mean I'd most likely continue to tinker with stuff. Field testing is also going to fine tune some equipment; currently I am fielding a Raven-1X in my Career mode, I'm actually not quite finding the EW equipment that good... Jury is still out on that one. I'll probably revisit some of the advance tech weapons I have too, to see if there's a way for me to rework them in light of better understandings.
4. In terms of the MDD updates, HBS apparently moved from UUID to more meaningful names. I'd probably also adopt that in the future, because it's a damn sight more readable that way, and I'm no longer chained to existing UUID. Unfortunately, that does mean things would break in save games, so I'd need to think how to handle stuff.
So what's the timeline? Well... I honestly am having fun in Career mode, which eats into the time for modding. I really only have until the end of 2018 before work picks up again, so I'd see what I can do.
Anyway the files are being updated to Nexus, so they should become available soon. I understand I'm not supposed to post new posts with links there, so you'd just have to go there yourself to look it up.
This release doesn't rock the boat too much, it's just meant to update the VersionManifest so that things would work with v1.3.2. In fact, those of you who are using the files probably can/ have updated the VM file by yourself already. If that's the case there's really nothing new in this one for you.
So moving forward... what's upcoming?
Firstly, I have to say my interest in modding isn't as strong as it was, but I'd probably continue to tinker with this at my own time and pace. I'm not looking to shake up the whole game system; for me, just adding the variety of mechs currently already make the game experience quite interesting, because of the variety of possible threat/ attacks. If the AI is a bit better, I'm fairly sure some of these mechs would make life a lot more interesting.
So, yeah.. I've been lifting the hood on some parts of 1.3.2, which HBS didn't appear to mind us lifting. Some of the things are truly interesting. The big ones are as follows:
1. The introduction of fixed equipment. The fixed hatchet on the Hatchetman and the computer on the Cyclops is a bigger deal than most think. With that now in place, I can now better implement XL engines, true engine heat sinks and probably Endo Steel -- that brings a lot more mech possibly in game. Ferro remains challenging, and most likely would not make it. Possibly, advanced Gyros.
In addition, this allows me to bring in some very odd chassis. The very obvious example is the 302X Ravens; there's really no good reason to bring a Raven-1X if you can dismount the EW equipment and put it somewhere else. Similarly, Command Orions and Beemers are now suddenly much more valuable when their Command Consoles cannot be shifted. Expect to see some changes to certain key mechs, and from there, certain odd variants may pop up.
2. The resolution of the old 8550 VM lines problem now opens the way for more mechs to be included. I should be bringing some of the old ones back in.
3. Continual exploration of some of the effects, including the new one that the Cyclops computer highlighted, will mean I'd most likely continue to tinker with stuff. Field testing is also going to fine tune some equipment; currently I am fielding a Raven-1X in my Career mode, I'm actually not quite finding the EW equipment that good... Jury is still out on that one. I'll probably revisit some of the advance tech weapons I have too, to see if there's a way for me to rework them in light of better understandings.
4. In terms of the MDD updates, HBS apparently moved from UUID to more meaningful names. I'd probably also adopt that in the future, because it's a damn sight more readable that way, and I'm no longer chained to existing UUID. Unfortunately, that does mean things would break in save games, so I'd need to think how to handle stuff.
So what's the timeline? Well... I honestly am having fun in Career mode, which eats into the time for modding. I really only have until the end of 2018 before work picks up again, so I'd see what I can do.
You should try those with my BetterAI mod. If they are tagged for Brawler/Sniper/Scout with the unit_role_xxxx tags in the mechdefs the AI will give them one of my customized roles to act on. I got the sniper keeping out of LoS and in trees on the high ground, scouts play skittishly (maybe too much in 1.3, still tuning) and brawlers want to get in and hunt your weakened sides. There also also custom roles for when a unit is the last man standing and if they only have melee left available.
Yeah yours is one of those that I'm keeping an eye on tbh. I'd eventually tinker more with that, but at the moment I'm more keen to get fixed equipments into my mod. Not having to worry about XL engines going into the market is kind of a relieft.
Which reminds me, one of the things that doesn't work in Career, is that shops don't sell my stuff. At least, I hadn't seen any. Which... works for me, because that means my stuff can only be gotten in Career/ Game via battlefield salvage, which makes them A LOT SAFER to mod with. Less chance of odd things happening to save files. Still, one of the more minor changes that HBS worked into 1.3.2 is they broaden the rarity range, which means I get a bit more room to play with rarity too, when I get around to it.
How did they broaden the rarity range? Is that why I'm seeing rarity 200 in some files where it used to be 1-10?
As for stores, they use the itemscollections folders and .csv files now and don't bother with the old shopdefs. I think I've seen some modders having issues with making massive .csv files over 100 items and it not working, so watch out for that.
Yeah it used to be 1~5 or so, now the really rare stuff seems to be 99. I suspect they want more granular control over rarity and changed stuff around. It works for me because it gives much more room to segregate mech rarity with.
And yes I took note of the itemscollection item. I suspect HBS have something else up their sleeves on that one, so I'm just waiting to see what they are spinning from it. A major data structure change like that usually isn't done without a good reason.
Yeah, I love the option for fixed equipment.
FYI, it sounds like there is a bug triggered by having a mech with fixed equipment cored while the mech destruction flag is on. Destroyed mechs will return equipment to you, and no exception was made in that part of the code for the fixed equipment... so it is possible to end up with a hatchet or battle computer that can be mounted in a new mech.
Edit: Oh, and as far as having a good reason for a major structure change with the shops... I don't think you need to look any further than the flashpoint rewards.
Here's a fun little bit of stuff that I found.
For those not familiar... Command Orions don't carry EW/ ECM. It's getting the buff from that Raven-1X next to it, which does carry 7.5 tons of EW equipment. (Not Guardian ECM, and is period appropriate -- the original Raven 1X was created during the 302X and does carry EW equipment).
I don't believe this was possible prior to 1.3; however this ability was likely added in to help make the B2000 on the Cyclops work, but that means I get to abuse it to give the Raven 1X a operational level EW functionality.
Unfortunately, it looks like the rest of the targeting type handling isn't fully implemented; specifically, range limitations (necessary for a better implementation of true Guardian ECM) doesn't seem to be in place. I'd also need to test whether this approach can be used to debuff enemy units, which would broaden the horizons considerable. But as a means to give the poor Raven 1X an operational-level EW capabilities that shows up in game, this is an excellent door opening.
Also, I've reworked the Orion's Command Console to give a similar benefit to the B2000, and it works a charm. That really makes Command mechs (in my case, Command Orions and Beemers) extremely hard targets, able to take a LOT of pilot punishment and significant battlefield perks. To offset it, I'd be making the Command Console for these two as fixed equipment.
In other words, in order to field one of these in Career, not only do you need RNG to roll one up for you (because none of my mechs are in shops), you also need to kill these to salvage them, and these would be extremely hard to salvage via pilot kills -- they have a +3 cockpit equivalent, and I've seen a command Orion take head hit, ammo ex, fall over, and ignore all those pilot hits. If someone salvaged one of these, it's really going to be an achievement.
EDIT: Oh right. The Command Console's Lance Initiative bonus should be separate from a Cyclops Z's bonus, so theory goes that it should stack... along with the person initiative bonus. I'd need to do some testing there, but that could mean a Command Orion with Cyclops support and a Tactician could move before light mechs.
EDIT EDIT: A yup. 75 ton "Light".
EDIT Some More:
Gotta say, seeing this in the logs was great. The Raven survived this attack BTW.
Hmm. In case anyone is wondering why only the Raven lost "INCREASED SPOTTING RANGE" (all of me really), the reason is because the Command Console also grants the same effect by ID, so the system deemed the Orion is still entitled to the effect (which it is). FWIW, the effect ID does not stack, so there was no advantage double stacking except for resiliency, as this demonstrated.
For those not familiar... Command Orions don't carry EW/ ECM. It's getting the buff from that Raven-1X next to it, which does carry 7.5 tons of EW equipment. (Not Guardian ECM, and is period appropriate -- the original Raven 1X was created during the 302X and does carry EW equipment).
I don't believe this was possible prior to 1.3; however this ability was likely added in to help make the B2000 on the Cyclops work, but that means I get to abuse it to give the Raven 1X a operational level EW functionality.
Unfortunately, it looks like the rest of the targeting type handling isn't fully implemented; specifically, range limitations (necessary for a better implementation of true Guardian ECM) doesn't seem to be in place. I'd also need to test whether this approach can be used to debuff enemy units, which would broaden the horizons considerable. But as a means to give the poor Raven 1X an operational-level EW capabilities that shows up in game, this is an excellent door opening.
Also, I've reworked the Orion's Command Console to give a similar benefit to the B2000, and it works a charm. That really makes Command mechs (in my case, Command Orions and Beemers) extremely hard targets, able to take a LOT of pilot punishment and significant battlefield perks. To offset it, I'd be making the Command Console for these two as fixed equipment.
In other words, in order to field one of these in Career, not only do you need RNG to roll one up for you (because none of my mechs are in shops), you also need to kill these to salvage them, and these would be extremely hard to salvage via pilot kills -- they have a +3 cockpit equivalent, and I've seen a command Orion take head hit, ammo ex, fall over, and ignore all those pilot hits. If someone salvaged one of these, it's really going to be an achievement.
EDIT: Oh right. The Command Console's Lance Initiative bonus should be separate from a Cyclops Z's bonus, so theory goes that it should stack... along with the person initiative bonus. I'd need to do some testing there, but that could mean a Command Orion with Cyclops support and a Tactician could move before light mechs.
EDIT EDIT: A yup. 75 ton "Light".
EDIT Some More:
Gotta say, seeing this in the logs was great. The Raven survived this attack BTW.
Code:
CombatLog.Attacking [LOG] SEQ:11434147: WEAP:0 Loc:LeftTorso Critical Hit! Found THI EW Equipment in slot 1
CombatLog.AbilitiesAndEffects [LOG] THI/SSW Orion loses effect REDUCED SENSOR RANGE due to cancellation or removal
CombatLog.AbilitiesAndEffects [LOG] THI/SSW Raven loses effect REDUCED SENSOR RANGE due to cancellation or removal
CombatLog.AbilitiesAndEffects [LOG] THI/SSW Orion loses effect ECM DEFENSE due to cancellation or removal
CombatLog.AbilitiesAndEffects [LOG] THI/SSW Raven loses effect ECM DEFENSE due to cancellation or removal
CombatLog.AbilitiesAndEffects [LOG] THI/SSW Orion loses effect REDUCED SENSOR SIGNATURE due to cancellation or removal
CombatLog.AbilitiesAndEffects [LOG] THI/SSW Raven loses effect REDUCED SENSOR SIGNATURE due to cancellation or removal
CombatLog.AbilitiesAndEffects [LOG] THI/SSW Raven loses effect INCREASED SPOTTING RANGE due to cancellation or removal
CombatLog.Attacking [LOG] SEQ:11434147: WEAP:0 Loc:LeftTorso Critical: THI EW Equipment new damage state: DestroyedHmm. In case anyone is wondering why only the Raven lost "INCREASED SPOTTING RANGE" (all of me really), the reason is because the Command Console also grants the same effect by ID, so the system deemed the Orion is still entitled to the effect (which it is). FWIW, the effect ID does not stack, so there was no advantage double stacking except for resiliency, as this demonstrated.
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Hmm just some quick updates on progress on v1.4:
1. Have converted over to the Addendum method, which means the end user just need to add one line to the VersionManifest now. Unfortunately, still need to run SQL statement separately.
2. Speaking of SQL, I've updated the UUID format used previously to meaningful names, and the savegames didn't break. Which is good. Mostly backend work I know, but it's still good to get the housekeeping straight.
3. For all the 93 mechs I have in the mod, I've done a first pass to work out fixed equipment. All are getting engine heat sinks moved to fixed equipment; this is so that people who run games which give them "shell" mechs on salvage won't get broken mechs. This is important if the mechs are factoring in the engine heat sink issue -- without moving the items to fixed equipment in the Chassis, you can end up with odd issues that are hard to detect. Some cases will be beneficial to the users, others less so.
4. In the same vein I've modified 4 mechs specifically to include fixed equipment on their Chassis: Atlas Command, Battlemaster Command, Orion Command, and Raven-1X. The first three gets command consoles as fixed equipment, making them highly desirable chassis -- the buffs are considerate -- while the Raven gets EW equipment, which while it doesn't provide the Raven with that much, it does buff all Lancemates slightly... so there is a point.
5. Speaking of Lancemates, the aforementioned EW equipment has lance-wide effect, as does the Command Console, which has a +1 lance-wide initiative buff (amongst others). This buff won't stack with itself, but it will stack with the Cyclops Battle Computer AND Master Tactician, so.. quick-shuffling Assaults? I'd probably tweak the GECM and BAP implementations in the mod somewhat too. Will probably do a quick equipment pass to see if there's anything I particularly want to tweak.
6. I'm looking to round the 93 mechs off to an even 100 mechs; I've added one currently, and I'd see whether I can get the other 6 done fast enough. After that, I'm not likely to add more. Reason being, I keep going through the TROs and going "That's yet/ just another Vindicator variant...". So.. at some point it's just repetition.
Currently targeting a Christmas release. The 100 Mechs might not make the cut since the last few are currently being hand-crafted rather than automated, so it takes a bit longer than usual. But the rest I'm hoping to bed in shortly.
1. Have converted over to the Addendum method, which means the end user just need to add one line to the VersionManifest now. Unfortunately, still need to run SQL statement separately.
2. Speaking of SQL, I've updated the UUID format used previously to meaningful names, and the savegames didn't break. Which is good. Mostly backend work I know, but it's still good to get the housekeeping straight.
3. For all the 93 mechs I have in the mod, I've done a first pass to work out fixed equipment. All are getting engine heat sinks moved to fixed equipment; this is so that people who run games which give them "shell" mechs on salvage won't get broken mechs. This is important if the mechs are factoring in the engine heat sink issue -- without moving the items to fixed equipment in the Chassis, you can end up with odd issues that are hard to detect. Some cases will be beneficial to the users, others less so.
4. In the same vein I've modified 4 mechs specifically to include fixed equipment on their Chassis: Atlas Command, Battlemaster Command, Orion Command, and Raven-1X. The first three gets command consoles as fixed equipment, making them highly desirable chassis -- the buffs are considerate -- while the Raven gets EW equipment, which while it doesn't provide the Raven with that much, it does buff all Lancemates slightly... so there is a point.
5. Speaking of Lancemates, the aforementioned EW equipment has lance-wide effect, as does the Command Console, which has a +1 lance-wide initiative buff (amongst others). This buff won't stack with itself, but it will stack with the Cyclops Battle Computer AND Master Tactician, so.. quick-shuffling Assaults? I'd probably tweak the GECM and BAP implementations in the mod somewhat too. Will probably do a quick equipment pass to see if there's anything I particularly want to tweak.
6. I'm looking to round the 93 mechs off to an even 100 mechs; I've added one currently, and I'd see whether I can get the other 6 done fast enough. After that, I'm not likely to add more. Reason being, I keep going through the TROs and going "That's yet/ just another Vindicator variant...". So.. at some point it's just repetition.
Currently targeting a Christmas release. The 100 Mechs might not make the cut since the last few are currently being hand-crafted rather than automated, so it takes a bit longer than usual. But the rest I'm hoping to bed in shortly.
Might as well ask here.
The following is the rarity map of all mechs a vanilla game plus my mod has. I'm not sure what effect rarity has on the game itself, but doesn't hurt to get it more or less right. Any comments?
The following is the rarity map of all mechs a vanilla game plus my mod has. I'm not sure what effect rarity has on the game itself, but doesn't hurt to get it more or less right. Any comments?
Code:
Rarity MechTags UI Name
0 unit_light Commando COM-2D
0 unit_light Locust LCT-1V
0 unit_light THI/SSW Stinger STG-3R
0 unit_light THI/SSW Valkyrie VLK-QA
0 unit_light UrbanMech UM-R60
1 unit_light Commando COM-1B
1 unit_light Jenner JR7-D
1 unit_light Locust LCT-1M
1 unit_light Locust LCT-1S
1 unit_light Panther PNT-9R
1 unit_light Spider SDR-5V
1 unit_light THI/SSW Hornet HNT-151
1 unit_light THI/SSW Hornet HNT-152
1 unit_light THI/SSW Javelin JVN-10N
1 unit_light THI/SSW Urbanmech UM-R60L
1 unit_light THI/SSW Wasp WSP-1K
1 unit_medium Blackjack BJ-1
1 unit_medium Cicada CDA-2A
1 unit_medium Cicada CDA-3C
1 unit_medium Griffin GRF-1N
1 unit_medium Hunchback HBK-4G
1 unit_medium Shadow Hawk SHD-2H
1 unit_medium Wolverine WVR-6R
2 unit_heavy Dragon DRG-1N
2 unit_light Firestarter FS9-H
2 unit_light THI/SSW Falcon FLC-4N
2 unit_light THI/SSW Hermes HER-1B
2 unit_light THI/SSW Ostscout OTT-7J
2 unit_medium Centurion CN9-A
2 unit_medium Griffin GRF-1S
2 unit_medium Griffin GRF-4N
2 unit_medium Hunchback HBK-4P
2 unit_medium Shadow Hawk SHD-2D
2 unit_medium THI/SSW Crab CRB-20
2 unit_medium THI/SSW Dervish DV-6M
2 unit_medium THI/SSW Hermes II HER-2S
2 unit_medium THI/SSW Hunchback HBK-4SP
2 unit_medium THI/SSW Phoenix Hawk PXH-1
2 unit_medium THI/SSW Shadow Hawk SHD-2K
2 unit_medium THI/SSW Vulcan VL-2T
2 unit_medium Trebuchet TBT-5N
2 unit_medium Vindicator VND-1R
2 unit_medium Wolverine WVR-6K
3 unit_heavy Catapult CPLT-C1
3 unit_heavy Catapult CPLT-K2
3 unit_heavy Custom JagerMech JM6-S
3 unit_heavy JagerMech JM6-S
3 unit_heavy Orion ON1-K
3 unit_heavy Quickdraw QKD-4G
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Archer ARC-2R
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Crusader CRD-3R
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Flashman FLS-7K
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Grand Dragon DRG-1G
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Lancelot LNC25-02
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Marauder MAD-3R
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Rifleman RFL-3N
3 unit_heavy THI/SSW Warhammer WHM-6R
3 unit_heavy Thunderbolt TDR-5S
3 unit_light THI/SSW Mongoose MON-67
3 unit_light THI/SSW Mongoose MON-68
3 unit_light THI/SSW Raven RVN-1X
3 unit_light THI/SSW Thorn THE-S
3 unit_light THI/SSW Thorn THE-T
3 unit_light THI/SSW Wasp WSP-1W
3 unit_light THI/SSW Wolfhound WLF-1
3 unit_medium Centurion CN9-AL
3 unit_medium Enforcer ENF-4R
3 unit_medium Kintaro KTO-18
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Assassin ASN-21
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Clint CLNT-2-3T
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Phoenix Hawk PXH-1K
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Sentinel STN-3K
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Trebuchet TBT-5J
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Trebuchet TBT-5S
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Trebuchet TBT-7K
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Vindicator VND-1SIC
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Vulcan VL-5T
3 unit_medium THI/SSW Whitworth WTH-1
4 unit_assault Awesome AWS-8Q
4 unit_assault Awesome AWS-8T
4 unit_assault Banshee BNC-3E
4 unit_assault Highlander HGN-733
4 unit_assault Stalker STK-3F
4 unit_assault THI/SSW Charger CGR-1A1
4 unit_assault THI/SSW Cyclops CP-10-Z
4 unit_assault THI/SSW Stalker STK-3H
4 unit_assault THI/SSW Zeus ZEU-6T
4 unit_assault Victor VTR-9B
4 unit_assault Zeus ZEU-6S
4 unit_heavy Custom Thunderbolt TDR-5SE
4 unit_heavy Grasshopper GHR-5H
4 unit_heavy JagerMech JM6-A
4 unit_heavy Orion ON1-V
4 unit_heavy Quickdraw QKD-5A
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Archer ARC-2K
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Champion CHP-1N2
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Champion CHP-2N
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Crusader CRD-3D
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Crusader CRD-3L
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Guillotine GLT-4L
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Marauder MAD-3D
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Marauder MAD-3M
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Ostroc OSR-2C
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Ostsol OTL-4D
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Rifleman RFL-3C
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Rifleman RFL-4D
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Stalker STK-4P
4 unit_heavy THI/SSW Warhammer WHM-6K
4 unit_heavy Thunderbolt TDR-5SE
4 unit_heavy Thunderbolt TDR-5SS
4 unit_light THI/SSW Hussar HSR-300-D
4 unit_light THI/SSW Hussar HSR-350-D
4 unit_light THI/SSW Raven RVN-2X
4 unit_medium THI/SSW Sentinel STN-3KB
4 unit_medium THI/SSW Whitworth WTH-1S
5 unit_assault Atlas AS7-D
5 unit_assault Atlas II AS7-D-HT
5 unit_assault Banshee BNC-3M
5 unit_assault BattleMaster BLR-1G
5 unit_assault Highlander HGN-733P
5 unit_assault King Crab KGC-0000
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Atlas AS7-D-DC
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Atlas AS7-RS
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Banshee BNC-3Q
5 unit_assault THI/SSW BattleMaster BLR-1G-DC
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Battlemaster BLR-1S
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Charger CGR-1A5
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Charger CGR-1A9
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Cyclops CP-10-Q
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Daboku DCMS-MX90-D
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Hatamoto-Chi HTM-26T
5 unit_assault THI/SSW King Crab KGC-010
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Longbow LGB-0W
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Marauder II MAD-4A
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Stalker STK-4N
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Thug THG-10E
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Zeus ZEU-5S
5 unit_assault THI/SSW Zeus ZEU-5T
5 unit_assault Victor VTR-9S
5 unit_heavy Black Knight BL-6-KNT
5 unit_heavy Black Knight BL-6B-KNT
5 unit_heavy Cataphract CTF-1X
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Archer ARC-2W
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Cataphract CTF-2X
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Lancelot LNC25-01X
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Orion ON1-V-DC
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Orion ON1-VA
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Ostroc OSR-2M
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Ostroc OSR-3C
5 unit_heavy THI/SSW Ostsol OTL-4F
5 unit_light THI/SSW Flea FLE-4
5 unit_light THI/SSW Flea FLE-15
5 unit_medium THI/SSW Clint CLNT-2-3T (Denton)
Bug encountered in Career Mode for Mod v1.2 onwards.
I encountered an interesting "bug" while testing and playing various things in Career mode. It isn't a show stopper, which is why I'm still releasing Mod v1.4 later, but it's good to be transparent about these things.
So, a bit of backstory first.
The mod is about bringing extra Mechs to the Battletech game experience, but it isn't just about putting extra Jsons in. The other part of the experience is to put together Mechs that look the part from available parts. And sometimes, that requires me to steal parts from elsewhere, such as below:
Part of that was a long period of exploration and testing how parts fit together and how the system reacts to it, mostly during the BETA period. Generally speaking, I got it to a point where the Skirmish part of things work decently enough. But at that point we didn't have a Campaign or a Career mode to test with.
So, around Mod v1.2, I put in the SQL statements for people who want to put the mechs into Campaign mode, which when Career came around in Btech v1.3, also worked for that. But that doesn't mean there weren't.... problems. One of which surfaced lately when I was playing around with my own toys in Career.
So the bug is this:
The preview image in the Mechbay is not static; it's actually reading your mech's Mechdef and putting together a "Live" model. This is triggered every time you look at a different Mech. However, the method used by the SimGame to render a Mech, and the method used by the tactical game to render a Mech in combat are different.
Specifically, while the tactical game is willing to put up with stolen parts, the Mechbay one is only expecting parts from the configured prefab base. And when it encounters something that I coded that isn't from the prefab base? It literally draws a blank and spazz out, as above.
That's still not the bad part. Actually overall it's not terrible, since the data is fine, and you can actually trigger the refit and repair buttons on the front panel, but the initial null pointer can sort of snowball badly. After doing a refit, it can save the work order, but refuses to exit the panel properly, leading to what looks like a hang, or worse, an overlapping panel:
What's happening is that Mech configuration panel is overlapping with the Mechwarriors panel, which is somewhat problematic because the Mech config panel is blocking some UI elements. But generally speaking, you can still get the panels to reset properly by clicking a few times on the upper left "Back" arrow icon.
However, null pointers are fairly insidious. I am suspecting this null pointer in causing some memory issues further down the road, resulting in some crashes, including live locking when trying to load a map. But it is somewhat situational, and a restart generally clears the situation up, so it's not a show-stopper per se.
So to summarize, the way to get around this Campaign/ Career problem is as follows:
1. If you need to refit the mech, you might run into a problem where the confirmation of job panel seems to be unresponsive. If you have clicked once on Confirmed, just cancel; that should reset the panel. Check your work orders afterwards; your refit should be one task in there.
2. If your UI spazz out like above, click on the upper left "Back" arrow until it resolves.
3. If you are going into live lock, particularly when trying to load a mission, reload the client; the data is generally safe and the memory problem clears once the client has reset.
This doesn't apply to Skirmish, which appears to work as intended.
-----------
To the Devs, if any are reading: I'd like to appeal to change the method in the SimGame Mechbay to allow grabbing from other prefab bases that are declared in the VM; that opens up opportunities for mods like mine, and is more consistent with the tactical game. If not, that fixing the null pointer issue may resolve some of the memory issues/ livelock issues I'm encountering.
So, a bit of backstory first.
The mod is about bringing extra Mechs to the Battletech game experience, but it isn't just about putting extra Jsons in. The other part of the experience is to put together Mechs that look the part from available parts. And sometimes, that requires me to steal parts from elsewhere, such as below:
Part of that was a long period of exploration and testing how parts fit together and how the system reacts to it, mostly during the BETA period. Generally speaking, I got it to a point where the Skirmish part of things work decently enough. But at that point we didn't have a Campaign or a Career mode to test with.
So, around Mod v1.2, I put in the SQL statements for people who want to put the mechs into Campaign mode, which when Career came around in Btech v1.3, also worked for that. But that doesn't mean there weren't.... problems. One of which surfaced lately when I was playing around with my own toys in Career.
So the bug is this:
The preview image in the Mechbay is not static; it's actually reading your mech's Mechdef and putting together a "Live" model. This is triggered every time you look at a different Mech. However, the method used by the SimGame to render a Mech, and the method used by the tactical game to render a Mech in combat are different.
Specifically, while the tactical game is willing to put up with stolen parts, the Mechbay one is only expecting parts from the configured prefab base. And when it encounters something that I coded that isn't from the prefab base? It literally draws a blank and spazz out, as above.
That's still not the bad part. Actually overall it's not terrible, since the data is fine, and you can actually trigger the refit and repair buttons on the front panel, but the initial null pointer can sort of snowball badly. After doing a refit, it can save the work order, but refuses to exit the panel properly, leading to what looks like a hang, or worse, an overlapping panel:
What's happening is that Mech configuration panel is overlapping with the Mechwarriors panel, which is somewhat problematic because the Mech config panel is blocking some UI elements. But generally speaking, you can still get the panels to reset properly by clicking a few times on the upper left "Back" arrow icon.
However, null pointers are fairly insidious. I am suspecting this null pointer in causing some memory issues further down the road, resulting in some crashes, including live locking when trying to load a map. But it is somewhat situational, and a restart generally clears the situation up, so it's not a show-stopper per se.
So to summarize, the way to get around this Campaign/ Career problem is as follows:
1. If you need to refit the mech, you might run into a problem where the confirmation of job panel seems to be unresponsive. If you have clicked once on Confirmed, just cancel; that should reset the panel. Check your work orders afterwards; your refit should be one task in there.
2. If your UI spazz out like above, click on the upper left "Back" arrow until it resolves.
3. If you are going into live lock, particularly when trying to load a mission, reload the client; the data is generally safe and the memory problem clears once the client has reset.
This doesn't apply to Skirmish, which appears to work as intended.
-----------
To the Devs, if any are reading: I'd like to appeal to change the method in the SimGame Mechbay to allow grabbing from other prefab bases that are declared in the VM; that opens up opportunities for mods like mine, and is more consistent with the tactical game. If not, that fixing the null pointer issue may resolve some of the memory issues/ livelock issues I'm encountering.
Tetsuhara Heavy Industries/ Skunkwerks v1.4 released!
Merry Christmas!
Tetsuhara Heavy Industries is happy to announce the release of version 1.4 on Nexus.
Changes for this includes:
1. Inclusion of 2 new mechs:
Toro
This 35 ton Mech is a relic of Taurian resistance to the SLDF and is in the timeline, very rare. In its day, it was one of the few Taurian homegrown and built designs and the Taurian military fielded it in large numbers. A PPC paired with double LRM5s give this mech a good reach, and it has good ground speed, though not jump capable.
Talos
This 50 ton mech was selected for inclusion as a historical Taurian mech that brings the hard-hitting AC10 into the medium lines, backed up with LRM5s and SRM6. Without energy weapons, some might assume an ammo dependency, but this mech carries more ammo than is usually carried by SLDF and House designs.
2. Updating of Mechs to use Fixed Equipment.
Most of the Engine Heat Sinks implementation has been moved to Fixed Equipment to basically prevent looting. In addition, the following four chassis had updated Fixed Equipment:
In Battletech v1.3, HBS introduced Lance-wide effects, which has been integrated into some equipment, notably the Command Console and EW equipment. This, tied into the fixed equipment item above, is intended to make the chassis stand out and become more desirable for salvage. Do note the Command Console advantage is significant and it does turn the mech bearing it into something quite special.
Side note: while testing the mod in Career mode, I did end up fighting the Command Orion in a mission in which a total of 6 heavy mechs were involved, against my 2 heavies and 2 mediums. Having 6 heavy mechs and their firepower moving in Phase 3, often with my mediums, is significantly painful. On top of that, I basically had to raze the Orion into components in order to get rid of the buffs it gave the enemy team. So... not easy.
4. Backend work.
The Addendum method mentioned here is implemented for this mod. This allows the VM modifications to be reduced to a single line for all 95 mechs. In additional, with Battletech v1.3, HBS switched the MDD from UUID to readable names, which was complied with for readability.
5. Some debugging work.
In the course of sorting out the Career Mechbay issue, I ended up debugging some chassis to check if they were the issues. The Crusader gained the most benefit; now it is utilizing Jagermech assets more completely:
And that's what's in v1.4.
Tetsuhara Heavy Industries is happy to announce the release of version 1.4 on Nexus.
Changes for this includes:
1. Inclusion of 2 new mechs:
Toro
This 35 ton Mech is a relic of Taurian resistance to the SLDF and is in the timeline, very rare. In its day, it was one of the few Taurian homegrown and built designs and the Taurian military fielded it in large numbers. A PPC paired with double LRM5s give this mech a good reach, and it has good ground speed, though not jump capable.
Talos
This 50 ton mech was selected for inclusion as a historical Taurian mech that brings the hard-hitting AC10 into the medium lines, backed up with LRM5s and SRM6. Without energy weapons, some might assume an ammo dependency, but this mech carries more ammo than is usually carried by SLDF and House designs.
2. Updating of Mechs to use Fixed Equipment.
Most of the Engine Heat Sinks implementation has been moved to Fixed Equipment to basically prevent looting. In addition, the following four chassis had updated Fixed Equipment:
- Command Atlas - Command Console
- Command Battlemaster - Command Console
- Command Orion - Command Console
- Raven-1X - EW Equipment
In Battletech v1.3, HBS introduced Lance-wide effects, which has been integrated into some equipment, notably the Command Console and EW equipment. This, tied into the fixed equipment item above, is intended to make the chassis stand out and become more desirable for salvage. Do note the Command Console advantage is significant and it does turn the mech bearing it into something quite special.
Side note: while testing the mod in Career mode, I did end up fighting the Command Orion in a mission in which a total of 6 heavy mechs were involved, against my 2 heavies and 2 mediums. Having 6 heavy mechs and their firepower moving in Phase 3, often with my mediums, is significantly painful. On top of that, I basically had to raze the Orion into components in order to get rid of the buffs it gave the enemy team. So... not easy.
4. Backend work.
The Addendum method mentioned here is implemented for this mod. This allows the VM modifications to be reduced to a single line for all 95 mechs. In additional, with Battletech v1.3, HBS switched the MDD from UUID to readable names, which was complied with for readability.
5. Some debugging work.
In the course of sorting out the Career Mechbay issue, I ended up debugging some chassis to check if they were the issues. The Crusader gained the most benefit; now it is utilizing Jagermech assets more completely:
And that's what's in v1.4.
wow.... that is an awesome set of mechs ... but is your mod compatible with other mods
This is going to be somewhat difficult to answer but...
1. Version 1.4 isn't BTML or Modtek based, but it can easily done by user if they are so inclined and familiar. I'm... exploring to move to BTML/ Modtek at the moment, so potentially soon.
2. Other than that, the baseline JSONs are just basic data, technically they shouldn't clash with other mods unless there is a name clash. However, because some of the other mods introduce additional features, such as faction tags, and I would obviously not have those. So it shouldn't clash, but it won't be able to take advantage of any additional new features either.