need some help/advice modifying a chassis json

[unclecid]

ok....i got this idea in my head for a run in career mode after flashpoint is released....

i plan to do it as the Bounty Hunter and crew.
his crews meks are no issue.

however as of 3015 he is piloting a custom MAD.
i have Hangar of the Dispossessed running and want to use the MAD-3D as a template for the BH MAD.

adding hardpoint and such i got it figured.

question is about engine rating and engine heatsinks.

if i set the meks speed from 64kph down to 54kph (300 to 225 engine) and subtract 10 tons from the starting weight will that count as changing the engine as BT sees it?

also...any idea on how to give the engine double heatsinks?

note : i am using the sarna description of the 3015 version of the BH MAD as reference.

 

[Dr. Banzai]

No. You need to create a new movement def for the mad.
The easiest way is to copy and existing one, rename it and reference it in the chassis def of your new mech. In your case take the marauder and reduce the walking speed to iirc 95 and running to 160. You can copy those exact values from an Atlas movement def to be certain

 

[unclecid]

ok...thanks a bunch will give it a go.

 

[ronhatch]

The way the code is currently written, all mechs in the game have the exact same inherent heat sink capacity. It is simply a single number in a global constants file that is used for every mech. The closest you could get to in-engine double heat sinks would be to create a special heat sink that has no weight and then include it in your design.

With Flashpoints, we are getting two mechs with inherent equipment that can always be repaired and never fully destroyed... but on the other hand, that equipment cannot be removed and can never be installed on other mechs. Using that new feature would definitely be the way to go for simulated doubles.

 

[Amechwarrior]

The way the code is currently written, all mechs in the game have the exact same inherent heat sink capacity. It is simply a single number in a global constants file that is used for every mech. The closest you could get to in-engine double heat sinks would be to create a special heat sink that has no weight and then include it in your design.

With Flashpoints, we are getting two mechs with inherent equipment that can always be repaired and never fully destroyed... but on the other hand, that equipment cannot be removed and can never be installed on other mechs. Using that new feature would definitely be the way to go for simulated doubles.

It just occurred to me that Hatchet/B.Comp special equipment that can be destroyed but not removed is perfect for XL engines going forward.

 

[unclecid]

The way the code is currently written, all mechs in the game have the exact same inherent heat sink capacity. It is simply a single number in a global constants file that is used for every mech. The closest you could get to in-engine double heat sinks would be to create a special heat sink that has no weight and then include it in your design.

With Flashpoints, we are getting two mechs with inherent equipment that can always be repaired and never fully destroyed... but on the other hand, that equipment cannot be removed and can never be installed on other mechs. Using that new feature would definitely be the way to go for simulated doubles.

in the chassis def there is an entry that says 'engine heat sink 0'....what would changing that number do?

 

[ronhatch]

in the chassis def there is an entry that says 'engine heat sink 0'....what would changing that number do?

Assuming it works the same way it did back when we tried changing that during the beta... absolutely nothing.

It appears to be "dead code". It can often happen in development that bits and pieces get leftover from code that has been changed. This appears to be the case here, where presumably they initially implemented the tabletop rules with internal heat sinks varying by engine size... and then decided that it didn't add enough to the game to be worth trying to explain it to new players.

But feel free to change it yourself and run a test to see if it works now.

Edit: Oh, and this is why a VERY important general rule when figuring out mods is that you should always try to change as little as possible before testing to see if it worked. Not everything in the JSONs is active, and I've seen some settings that end up making the game crash. (The one I know of off the top of my head is that the movement grid is required now, even though there is a setting for turning it off... you can see gridless movement in the first demo that they showed.)

I'm sure when HBS first switched away from any particular option that the toggle still worked, but it's not worth development time on their end to make sure that all code still supports options that they no longer use. So over time, changes that unknowingly assume an option is set a certain way can creep in.

In any case, changing things just a little at a time makes it easier to revert if something breaks.

 

[Dr. Banzai]

To avoid too much space consumption you could come up with a single one slot item called internal double heat sinks sinking 30 heat. That's as close as it gets probably. However I feel sticking to the original concept is advisable due to power creep concerns. One thing that's different from the original TT is the +++ equipment. Combining lasers dealing 20-40 percent more damage with engine double heat sinks seems like a recipe for OPness

 

[unclecid]

To avoid too much space consumption you could come up with a single one slot item called internal double heat sinks sinking 30 heat. That's as close as it gets probably. However I feel sticking to the original concept is advisable due to power creep concerns. One thing that's different from the original TT is the +++ equipment. Combining lasers dealing 20-40 percent more damage with engine double heat sinks seems like a recipe for OPness

well...i have made it so that it is a one off...wont bee in the opfor etc.
basically going to use as ancestral mek for a career mode/rpg as the bouny hunter and his crew.
when and if that mek gets cored..thats it..no more for rest of that career.
and while that is alot of HS...the lore/fluff states it could fire all three ppc wihout overheating.
once i get it to where i can see it in mech lab i will adjust it so it cannot alpha (3ppc + 6ml) and jump without maxing heat.

i have got all the files made..just cannot get past main menu with them.

 

[ronhatch]

Combining lasers dealing 20-40 percent more damage with engine double heat sinks seems like a recipe for OPness

Well, seeing as how the original Battletech OP mistake was allowing mechs to have twice as much heat sink capacity built-in without using any extra space or weight whatsoever just by saying "I'm using double heat sinks"... yeah, add another thing on top of that which also comes without any tradeoffs and you're far into OP territory.

If only the engine capacity had been based on number of critical slots instead of tonnage, which type of heat sink to use would have been a much tougher decision. (Of course, since I mess around with the construction rules anyway I can just house rule it.)

 

[unclecid]

Thanks to everyone for help and advice.
got it working....in desert/martian it can fire all 3 ppcs once...then has to play the cool down game.
it is a beast of a mech but it has heat issues especially if using the JJ.
even in polar/tundra you have to pay attention and cannot go hog wild.
it is a one-off i have it set so that it will not appear in shops or in the opfor.
also have it working as a selectable mech in the advanced settings/difficulty mod.
cannot wait to give it a go in career mode and see how long it survives.