Heart of Darkness for Nova Public Beta

Oh, you're on windows? Yeah, EVNEW thoughtfully discards some dialog resources when you edit the files. These are stored in EV Titles so I guess you should just make sure not to edit that file. But... how did you manage to use SpacePort if you're on Windows?

@starsword, on Nov 15 2007, 06:29 PM, said in Heart of Darkness for Nova Public Beta:

Okay, big problem. The map now covers the entire map dialog box...
Attachment map_bug.JPG
... meaning I can't see the lists of stellars, commodities, nav hazards, or services. The escort dialog box is similarly glitched:
Attachment esc_hail_bug.JPG
What the heck happened?

I have no idea! That's weird though. Have you been messing with the plugin files beyond your spelling corrections?

@guy, on Nov 15 2007, 10:20 PM, said in Heart of Darkness for Nova Public Beta:

Oh, you're on windows? Yeah, EVNEW thoughtfully discards some dialog resources when you edit the files. These are stored in EV Titles so I guess you should just make sure not to edit that file. But... how did you manage to use SpacePort if you're on Windows?

Was SpacePort involved with what StarSword is doing? I used SpacePort when making the conversion but I have a Mac. I then used ResEdit with Nova Tools (and later Mission Computer when I got a new computer without Classic) to make the changes like ship variants, etc...

There were customized map and escort resources included with the plugin (to allow for government borders and upgradeable escorts). If those were somehow tampered with, that could cause the problems StarSword is seeing.

StarSword: You could try re-downloading the plugin and copying the 3 DITL and 3 DLOG resources, located in the HOD_Graphics file, into your modified versions of the plugin and see if that fixes it. It would be helpful to know what you've modified though.

Oh whoops, thought that was you posting that. Never mind me :rolleyes:

This post has been edited by Guy : 15 November 2007 - 11:31 PM

@macdevil, on Nov 15 2007, 11:21 PM, said in Heart of Darkness for Nova Public Beta:

I have no idea! That's weird though. Have you been messing with the plugin files beyond your spelling corrections?
Was SpacePort involved with what StarSword is doing? I used SpacePort when making the conversion but I have a Mac. I then used ResEdit with Nova Tools (and later Mission Computer when I got a new computer without Classic) to make the changes like ship variants, etc...

There were customized map and escort resources included with the plugin (to allow for government borders and upgradeable escorts). If those were somehow tampered with, that could cause the problems StarSword is seeing.

StarSword: You could try re-downloading the plugin and copying the 3 DITL and 3 DLOG resources, located in the HOD_Graphics file, into your modified versions of the plugin and see if that fixes it. It would be helpful to know what you've modified though.

Well, I don't know about SpacePort. Technical specs: I'm using the official EVC port on a Windows, and adjusting the REZ files with EVNEW.

I have been occasionally futzing with the resources (beyond the DESC patching I mentioned), but only to increase the odds of a mission being offered. I got tired of having to jump in and out of Levo a half-dozen times to get the next Weave mission to appear, so I modified the "Available Random" field to 100, then changed it back after I got the mission.

This post has been edited by StarSword : 16 November 2007 - 08:28 AM

@starsword, on Nov 16 2007, 08:27 AM, said in Heart of Darkness for Nova Public Beta:

Well, I don't know about SpacePort. Technical specs: I'm using the official EVC port on a Windows, and adjusting the REZ files with EVNEW.

I have been occasionally futzing with the resources (beyond the DESC patching I mentioned), but only to increase the odds of a mission being offered. I got tired of having to jump in and out of Levo a half-dozen times to get the next Weave mission to appear, so I modified the "Available Random" field to 100, then changed it back after I got the mission.

Well I don't see anything you're doing that might have caused this. The only thing I can think of is that EVNEW is itself responsible, as Guy suggested. Try the fix I mentioned in my about post and see if that takes care of it.

Also, another way to make the game reevaluate the mission offer prob without jumping out of the system is to accept a generic mission from the mission computer. Abort it immediately and then take off. Land again and all new missions will be available. So, if you go to the bar, there is a probability the next mission will be there. Repeat this as needed.

Sorry it has been a few weeks since I posted in this topic. I've been completing my conversion of Realm of Prey. If you are interesting in testing the beta, check out this topic.

I will be uploading another beta for HoD in a week or two. I'm hoping this beta will be compatible with both Guy's unofficial EVC port, as well as with the official one. I'd also like to include fixes to any bugs encountered so far. If anyone has noticed a bug not listed here, please let me know.

I would like to try and have the final version of Heart of Darkness uploaded to the addons page by the first week of January.

It has been brought to my attention that there is a rather large bug that prevents you from completing the mission in the Weave string where you have to dominate Hunn'stach. I have included a small fixer plug-in. Everyone who is currently testing HoD should download it. Just put it in your plug-ins folder.

Attached File zFix.zip (3.82K)
Number of downloads: 23

So how's this coming along? I found something that might be a bug, although I would think someonw whould have found it by now. Are ship sheilds supposed to regenerate as fast as they do? I can completely recharge of shuttle's shields in less than 2 seconds, and nothing can destroy me because my sheilds recharge so fast, neither can I destroy them for the same reason. Any ideas?

Is Heart of Darkness still available? The download links are dead.

Best of luck, gentlemen, if this is still going.

Holy crap, it's StarSword! 😮

Well, I for one have heard nothing from MacDevil about this. I still have the beta, and I did a few rounds of bugfixes on it myself. As for the shuttle shields, don't worry. The shuttle always has pathetically low shields and they regenerate fast simply because there isn't much to regenerate. A sufficiently strong weapon impact will destroy a shuttle in one hit. The observation of other ships seemingly having the same ability is an illusion. As for the bugfixes, I redid the numbers on all ships explosions, and I cheaply photoshopped the explosion sprites to have varying sizes for bigger ships, and different colors for different races. If there is enough interest, I could be persuaded to upload my copy of the beta for download.

QUOTE (Geek @ Mar 15 2010, 12:16 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, I for one have heard nothing from MacDevil about this. I still have the beta, and I did a few rounds of bugfixes on it myself. As for the shuttle shields, don't worry. The shuttle always has pathetically low shields and they regenerate fast simply because there isn't much to regenerate. A sufficiently strong weapon impact will destroy a shuttle in one hit. The observation of other ships seemingly having the same ability is an illusion. As for the bugfixes, I redid the numbers on all ships explosions, and I cheaply photoshopped the explosion sprites to have varying sizes for bigger ships, and different colors for different races. If there is enough interest, I could be persuaded to upload my copy of the beta for download.

I'm interested.

Good to see Tim's old Empire series hasn't been forgotten. I remember playing each and every one of those as well as Realm of Prey. I've even been beta-testing Tim's newest installment to the Empire series, Heart and Sol.

Oops, was I supposed to say that?

Well, yes, The Lizard King has been working away at another TC. No details, but I will tell you it's sure to be fun!

Hijacking over, MacDevil, when can we expect the finished Heart of Darkness conversion? Or has that been dropped? 😞

I'd be interested in playing the beta myself; it sounds like it's pretty solid.

Allright. Later I'll upload my copy of the Beta. First, I've been playing through it and noticed some little details that need fixing, and I'll try to nail those first.

EDIT: Well now, I guess I might as well tell you all what I hope to do first:

- Fix issues with the different generic cargo runs so that missions flags and destinations work correctly on all.

- (maybe) Tweak missions so that generic shipping jobs offered in Empire/Cult space never go to Weave/Saa'rel space, or vice versa. This would be to add realism, since the Empire would probably not allow free trade to the Weave to go on for long. Corporations like Atinoda may break the rules, but they may only offer it (for a slightly ludicrous profit) to experienced merchants who can dodge the Empire successfully (perhaps I'll rewrite the Dangerous Delivery missions for this, implying that the Empire is probably the source of the pirates that chase you, whenever the missions cross government borders. In other cases, simply expensive cargo may be enough of an excuse for generic pirates to chase you down.

- Fix availability of Saa'rel variants of ships such as the Light Warship to a point in the storylines where such would make sense. It seems odd that civvies and pirates could be using Saa'rel technology that the Weave doesn't yet field.

- Fix availability of Empire warships such as the Frigate and Communications Vessel so that they only appear after you have done a few missions for the Empire. (in the case of the Communications Vessel... It probably wouldn't appear until far deeper into the Empire storyline)

- Fix odd issue with guided ordinance having a "echo" explosion when striking targets or incidental asteroids. That is, after the torpedo strikes an asteroid, a second silent explosion graphic appears a few moments after the first. Ordinance that simply decays or is intercepted by PD lack this "echo"

- Incorporate Guy's high-res asteroid fix as standard data.

----

Having said that, I'm not "Officially" taking over the beta development yet. I'm just patching it up in my spare time. If I had help, I may consider taking on more of MacDevil's forgotten betas, including Realm of Prey.

This post has been edited by Geek : 17 March 2010 - 03:33 AM

Realm of Prey is not forgotten. It's finished. You can find it on the add-ons pages.

In fact, here it is!

QUOTE (king_of_manticores @ Mar 15 2010, 12:06 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Holy crap, it's StarSword! 😮

Yeah, I'm back. I got busy with college schoolwork and EVN:UGF got sidelined. But I'm starting work on it again, and I made a decision to drop the Starcraft and Star Wars stuff. I'm still looking for graphic designers; see the details at the progress log.

By the way, Geek, did you upload the Heart of Darkness beta yet?

darthkev, nice job on Realm of Prey; I've been playing it for about a week now. Question: are there mission strings for the minor factions? (I looked through the files, but couldn't seem to find any missions besides the regular ones and the Faction and Earth mission strings.)

And does anyone know what happened to Uncle Twitchy and Starfleet Adventures?

UT threw in the towel, but SFA is still kicking. Pace is hosting it over at Arpia HQ. Here's the link if you want to check it out.

This post has been edited by krugeruwsp : 22 March 2010 - 12:13 PM

QUOTE (StarSword @ Mar 22 2010, 07:58 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<snip>

darthkev, nice job on Realm of Prey; I've been playing it for about a week now. Question: are there mission strings for the minor factions? (I looked through the files, but couldn't seem to find any missions besides the regular ones and the Faction and Earth mission strings.)

<snip>

One, I didn't make that port. MacDevil made it, I just put a link to it since few people here knew it was finished. He deserves the props for how good it is. Also, don't forget to congratulate The Lizard King for having written the original story and coding the original plug-in.

Two, to say this would be a spoiler, so I'm tagging it as such.

There are missions for the minor factions, but they're part of the storylines for the two major factions, the Earth Confederacy and the Faction. Through the Earth string, the player gets to work with the Spittal Syndicate, the Fringe Miners Guild, the Neutral Planetary Union, Aceleron Biogenics, Starbound Shipping, Maskirovka, and the Guild of Bounty Hunters. Through the Faction, the player works with basically the enemies of the above factions. DREC, Pirates, Atinoda, ConEx, and the aliens. Keep in mind, though, that the player works also with the Spittal Syndicate through the Faction's string due to the Syndicate being a two-timing bag of scum. I stress again, these are spoilers, do not read them if you want to find out about the story yourself.

This post has been edited by darthkev : 22 March 2010 - 04:37 PM