F-25 2.0 released

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Originally posted by Alien 5672:
**Ladies and gentlemen, our hero!

**

Go for it, everybody.

For smaller, split files:
ftp://capella.learni...public-ftp/f25/

For the whole thing in one package: (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/games/evo/addons.html")www.ambrosiasw.com/games/evo/addons.html(/url)

Special thanks to gmiller and Alan for their awesome help...

_bomb

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N/M about the e-mail. 🙂

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"Six by nine. Forty-two." "That's it. That's all there is."-Douglas Adams
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For as long as I can remember, I've had memories.- Colin Mochrie, Who's Line is it Anyway?
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I have just downloaded f-25 2.0 and a fresh version of EVO 1.0.2. Where do I place the
plugins, and how do I use the Pilot Builder? (There are no instructions in the documentation).

I am assuming that they all (F-25 Data 1, F-25 Data 2, F-25 Graphics, F-25 Titles Patch, F-25 Titles_1, F-25 Titles_2, and Pilot Builder) go into the EV Plug-Ins folder. When I start with a new pilot I get the original shuttle starting in Sol.

Thanks.

Can anybody help me on the mission where you defeat the Regenates near F-25 (now Aenecia)? Every time I try it those DARN Crescent Fighters get on my and all the Crescent Warships launch their SAD moudles at me and I'm dead before long. I fly a Crescent Warship. Can anybody help me?

God bless,

UE Patriot

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"Turn me over, I'm done on this side."- St. Lawerence at his martyrdom
"The glory of God is man fully alive"- St. Iraeneus
Voinian lovers are ignorant of the UE marines taking over Borb Station.
(url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/vftp/show.pl?product=evo&category;=plugins&display;=date&file;=ReignOfTheUE.Bin")Reign of the UE(/url): Get it today!

I've been playing EVO since it came out and i'm pretty dissapointed
that i don't know how to use the pilot builder.
I put all the plug-ins in the folder but i keep on getting the basic
beggining ship and money.

Any help on this topic would be appreciated.
Thank You

" I Think Therefor I am" Rene Descartes

Quote

Originally posted by Bomb:
**I finally got the damn thing uploaded.. Here is the description text that should have been with it on Ambrosia's site, if it had worked. I'm currently hosting the files at geocities, so let me know if there are any problems, especially with the big Titles file.. The plug is split into four files because geocities has an upload limit of 5 megs, and the plug is nearly 9. The other splits are because AOL itself has an upload limit of something like 3.5 megs.

F-25 v.2.0: Completely re-written and re-done from the bottom up, F-25: The Last Empire follows the same basic story of exploration into the Ji Nebula, but that's where the similarities with the previous versions end. With this new scenario come 235 completely new missions, uniform 2-D graphics, a revamped galaxy, multiple endings and decision points for the player. Early on, the player must choose with whom they will side in the dangerous new galaxy, and all that follows is a direct consequence of this decision. Collect the evidence, explore their territory and judge once and for all who shall overcome their enemies and rise above the rest to echo in immortality as the Last Empire. And then, your journey begins....

www.geocities.com/bombcat_12000/F-25_Data.sit

www.geocities.com/bombcat_12000/F-25_Graphics_Builder.sit

www.geocities.com/bombcat_12000/F-25_Titles.sit

www.geocities.com/bombcat_12000/F-25_Titles_Patch.sit

Peace...

_bomb

(This message has been edited by Bomb (edited 06-03-2001).)**

I loved your last plug-in and i think it's great you came out with a new one.
I've played ev/evo sionce the beggining and i'm dissapointed to say i nedd some help.
I put all the plug-ins into the folder but i don't know how to use the pilot builder.
I keep on getting the basic ship and money.

Any help would be great.
Thank You for your time.

" I think therefor i am" Rene Descaretes

Quote

Originally posted by Greek Monster:
**I loved your last plug-in and i think it's great you came out with a new one.
I've played ev/evo sionce the beggining and i'm dissapointed to say i nedd some help.
I put all the plug-ins into the folder but i don't know how to use the pilot builder.
I keep on getting the basic ship and money.

Any help would be great.
Thank You for your time.

" I think therefor i am" Rene Descaretes**

Im not shure about F-25 ver.2, but in ver.1 you had to finish the basic EVO missions including exploration of Ji Nebula to get to F-25 original missions (unless you used the custom pilot which was in plug-in package). So its only my guess that the story is the same here. Downloading it myself right now.
Weepul, you did the graphics?!!! Can`t wait to see it.

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Quote

Originally posted by Greek Monster:
**I loved your last plug-in and i think it's great you came out with a new one.
I've played ev/evo sionce the beggining and i'm dissapointed to say i nedd some help.
I put all the plug-ins into the folder but i don't know how to use the pilot builder.
I keep on getting the basic ship and money.

Any help would be great.
Thank You for your time.

" I think therefor i am" Rene Descaretes**

For the record, here is how the Pilot Builder works and what it does. This is taken from the amended version of the Read-Me.

The Pilot Builder:
1. Q. How does it work?

A. Very simply. Start a new pilot, land on Earth. Accept the mission that tells you it will build a pilot and give you 10,000,000 credits. Then, land again on earth to complete it. Next step, go to Station Pybin in Southern Miranu Space and begin the game!

2. Q. What does it do, in the simplest sense?

A. It makes the Ji Nebula visible, gives you tons of credits and sets a few things in motion.

3. Q. What does it do, in the complicated sense?

A. It sets several visbits to appear for the various Ji Nebula systems to appear so the player won't have to go through and do all of the missions. It sets the following bits: 388,134,158, and 159. It also should make several UE vessels available for purchase, though you really don't need them.

_bom

Bomb,

Thanks for the info on how to start. However, I suspect there is an extra point that needs to be added. When I land at the very beginning with a new pilot I get the UE cargo run mission when I go into the bar - this seems to override any pilot builder mission. I can't check it now (away from my home computer) but I imagine you have to accept that mission and then go to the bar again? (After taking off and landing?) Is that correct? Perhaps you could incorporate full start up instructions in your read me including this potential wrinkle...

John

...and one thing more. I have checked out my previous question (at home now) and you do need to accept the UE mission before the pilot builder shows up (in case anyone else was wondering). Anyway, I can now see a rather fragmented view of the universe with a lot of unexplored systems suddenly appearing - this seems like a bug. So, first, did I download the latest version? I downloaded from the Ambrosia addons site - does that contain the latest version? Second, does this have any effect on gamepplay other than the aesthetic?

Thanks for your work,

John

Quote

Originally posted by John:
**...and one thing more. I have checked out my previous question (at home now) and you do need to accept the UE mission before the pilot builder shows up (in case anyone else was wondering). Anyway, I can now see a rather fragmented view of the universe with a lot of unexplored systems suddenly appearing - this seems like a bug. So, first, did I download the latest version? I downloaded from the Ambrosia addons site - does that contain the latest version? Second, does this have any effect on gamepplay other than the aesthetic?

Thanks for your work,

John**

First off, to answer your question, the UE mission only blocks the builder one from popping up. If you accept it, you can abort it right after you get the pilot builder mission. Second- the latest version is v.2.0 and if any systems appear like that, it must be the pilot or EVO. There is no reason for this to happen, and it only occured in earlier versions. With the builder, there are no problems with systems appearing.

_bomb

Thanks.

Hmmm.... I have EVO 1.0.2 I started a new pilot with the pilot builder in the plug-ins folder and nothing else. I landed and took the mission to set up the pilot. I take off and then quit. I put all of F-25 into the folder and take out the builder. When I do this large portions of the new galaxy become visible (although many bits are disconnected). So on that basis its not the pilot and its not EVO because I have the latest version...

I think I tried it with everything in the folder at the beginning and the same thing happened (hence my trying them separately).

Has this happened to anyone else or am I just special?

Any thoughts on how to solve this problem would be appreciated.

John

Nevermind my old post-I tried V 2.0 again and it worked fine. I do have another question though-I'm stuck on the mission where you have to defeat the Zidagar ships in Hrekka. Any hints on how to beat them would be nice-my poor little arada doesn't have enough shields to stand up to the zidagar fighters, nor enough speed w/o afterburner to run from them.
:frown:

Anyways, some help would be appreciated 🙂 .

(This message has been edited by Slider (edited 07-14-2001).)

Is it just me or are the beginning missions in this plugin VERY HARD?

I mean, you have to kill about 10 Crescent warships(well, ok, I actually just run away, and it completes the mission anyway) And then there are all those Zidaras. I mean, I'm in a crescent warship, with all the shield enhancers, but they still kick my butt! I can't even kill all the fighters without dying. Those Zachit escourt do nothing - by the time they jump in, there's already about 20 Zidagar fighters on my tail.

The 10 mill isn't enough to buy a really really tough ship (UE cruiser) and outfit it properly, which seems to me to be the only way to defeat those ships.

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"Give a man a fire and you keep him warm for a night, but set him on fire and you keep him warm for the rest of his life" - Sergent Colon

<>

Well... having worked out how to start it all properly I am now in the position to offer some answers.

When you try to take F-25 back from the renegades I got trashed so many times by the cresecent fighters (who seem to have super afterburners with added kick). My final solution was to load up with dispersal rockets. When I jumped into the system I turned tail and ran - that put all the fighters into a fairly tight arc. I then turned around and started firing the rockets as fast as possible while letting rip with my turret as well. I managed to survive long enough and then the Zachit took care of the warships.

I tried the same with the Zidagar - it seemed to work.

I didn't manage to work out how to protect the Councilman on arrival other than by running away (i.e. land as soon as I go into orbit). Is this a cheat or the actual solution?

And finally, for those of you who are as mentally challeneged as me, the idiots guide to starting up F-25 with the pilot builder (I reckon that if it took me so long to work out there might be others who made the same mistakes and appreciate the guidance):

1. Put all the F-25 files into the plug-ins folder including the pilot builder.
2. Start a new pilot and land on Earth
3. Go to the bar and accept the UE cargo run.
4. Go to the bar again and accept the builder mission
5. Cancel the UE cargo run mission (I don't know if you need to do this or what happens if you try to complete it but the Read Me warned against doing any UE mission so I didn't want to risk it...)
6. Take off from earth and land again (as per instructions)
7. Make your way to Station Pybin and enjoy

NB You also have to accept the Miranu diplomatic relations mission in Mira at some stage in order to get to the F-25 mission. Once again - just cancel it after you get the F-25 mission.

John

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Originally posted by scaryfish:
**Is it just me or are the beginning missions in this plugin VERY HARD?
**

It's not just you. The missions seem to be tuned to the type of ship you would have after completing the UE and Nebula mission strings. Hence the initial $10M mission.

My strategy was to tap the afterburners just enough to monty-python the swarming fighters with turrets (upgraded Lazira had enough fuel, speed, and power for this).

Quote

**
I mean, you have to kill about 10 Crescent warships(well, ok, I actually just run away, and it completes the mission anyway) And then there are all those Zidaras. I mean, I'm in a crescent warship, with all the shield enhancers, but they still kick my butt! I can't even kill all the fighters without dying. Those Zachit escourt do nothing - by the time they jump in, there's already about 20 Zidagar fighters on my tail.
**

There seems to be a government alliance bug with this mission. I lose my standing with the Zachit and Miranu if I defend myself from the Zidagar in Hrekka.
Maybe _bomb is using the regular Zidigar govt instead of creating an unallied psycho Zidagar govt?

**

Quote

The 10 mill isn't enough to buy a really really tough ship (UE cruiser) and outfit it properly, which seems to me to be the only way to defeat those ships.

**

Quote

Originally posted by scaryfish:
**Is it just me or are the beginning missions in this plugin VERY HARD?

I mean, you have to kill about 10 Crescent warships(well, ok, I actually just run away, and it completes the mission anyway) And then there are all those Zidaras. I mean, I'm in a crescent warship, with all the shield enhancers, but they still kick my butt! I can't even kill all the fighters without dying. Those Zachit escourt do nothing - by the time they jump in, there's already about 20 Zidagar fighters on my tail.

The 10 mill isn't enough to buy a really really tough ship (UE cruiser) and outfit it properly, which seems to me to be the only way to defeat those ships.

**

If that is the case with the Zachit (and it seems more often than not that it is) just bring them to Renegade space to get killed, or try to take over a planet. That'll wipe them out. Either that, or wait until I get another bug fix assembled.
Beating the Zidagar is easy, if you know how to do it. I did it many times by wiping the fighters out via 8 defense pods (for a total of about 80 or so) then blew away the capital ships one by one either with fighters or missiles. There's nothing like defense pods as energy mines against little ships..

I'm definitely not going to do another version over one small bug, but if I get a few more issues to work out I'll do it. As for the 10 mil, I didn't exactly want the player to be able to jump immediately to the best ship available only because you'll make plenty of money later on and will almost certainly want to upgrade to a ship in the neighboring galaxy. That said- I'm open to suggestions. Do people just want more money to start off with..?

_bomb

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Originally posted by Slider:
**Nevermind my old post-I tried V 2.0 again and it worked fine. I do have another question though-I'm stuck on the mission where you have to defeat the Zidagar ships in Hrekka. Any hints on how to beat them would be nice-my poor little arada doesn't have enough shields to stand up to the zidagar fighters, nor enough speed w/o afterburner to run from them.
😞

Anyways, some help would be appreciated 🙂 .

(This message has been edited by Slider (edited 07-14-2001).)**

A real cheap way to do it is to bribe most of his counterparts away then take the Zidagar down one by one. Slow, expensive, but you get the money back later on...

_bomb

Quote

Originally posted by Magellan:
**Yep, the cruiser was my choice when starting the 1.4 version of F-25.

There seems to be a government alliance bug with this mission. I lose my standing with the Zachit and Miranu if I defend myself from the Zidagar in Hrekka.
Maybe _bomb is using the regular Zidigar govt instead of creating an unallied psycho Zidagar govt?

And there are no money-making missions available if you are starting from scratch. 😞 You could spend a few days doing the Munb-Himgro run. Suggestion to _bomb: add some (lucrative) trade and escort missions to supply the new F-25 colony.**

The Zidagar don't have any alliances, actually. I think in this case the Zachit are playing the police, which shouldn't happen because they're assigned to protect you. (type -11) Of course, from what I just said, any experienced plug-in maker should realize that I've decieved the player into thinking he has to do more than he really does. In short, there is no actual requirement to kill all of the Zidagar. You need only kill any you can. The real mission requirement is to observe the Zachit following you. You can all proceed to go insane and kill me.. 😉

As for lucrative trade missions, I'll definitely consider it.. After all, as you said, the new colony would need new supplies. Good idea. Ok. For a new patch coming out at some point in the future, I have the following issues to address:

Starting credits
Cargo Missions

I've been away for a while. Let me know if I'm missing anything else.

_bomb

Quote

Originally posted by Bomb:
**Go to Munb and be quiet. Don't scream "bad bug" either when it's your own fault for not reading the mission text. It really, really pisses me off, as anyone who knows me can attest to.

_bomb**

I got caught in the same situation and others on the boards have also commented on it. Where you see no convoy on the second mission and can never successfully complete it.

The mission text says of the second mission says "Escort the convoy of Miranu vessels safely to F-25 past North Tip Station." in the short description and "As you again grab a table and sit down, the scientist drinks down his ale in one swallow, and turns to you. "<PN>, if the colony on F-25 is ever to work, we'll need to establish a firm route through which all of our shipments can pass. This way, the Renegades shall not hold such considerable power over us regarding these matters. But we will not be pushed aside. <PN>, it's widely known that you are the best pilot of your species, and if anyone, you would be able to safely escort our vessels past North Tip Station to F-25." Somewhat smuggly, you agree. He nods. "Good. We'll leave in a few hours." at the bar....

NO MENTION of EQUIPMENT or MUNB there, Rentering the bar you get no continuance of the mission information. If it's not a bug it's a bad gap in the storyline, bad writeing and a major pain.

I'm gonna start again with a clean pilot but I don't see how I'm doing anything wrong. I have EVO 1.02 and a clean copy of F-25 2.0 DL'd from the ambrosia plug ins page...