Stormhound what is your opnion on MOO3?

[Yolky]

Hello everyone. I havn't been here in a while and was wundering, what StormHound thought of Moo3. I loved reading his posts. I stopped playing Moo3 and after a while I love the game now after patch 1.2.5.

Just wundering what he thinks. I am surprised to still see that he is still on the forums.

Davor

[Stormhound]

Hey, everybody needs a hobby. Mine is tilting at windmills.

My opinion on MOO3...hmmm...well, it wasn't quite what I helped design, which is somewhat disappointing. Nor was it really everything I'd have wanted in a space game (but then, neither is any other game). I do still play the game occasionally, and I still can enjoy playing it, but I'm afraid I'm always going to get to wonder what might have been.

[Yolky]

Thanks for the quick reply Stormhound. I really miss the preproduction days, when everyone was chatting and having fun.

I hope all is well for you and your family and nice seeing you again. Hope to catch you all later.

Davor

[ChristopherC]

Stormhound,

Hi there! How are y'all doing

I ask you again, please, please, please make your MODs available, possibly on the MOO3.Mods site. You have said that you had been playing the game, with some MODs you had specially tailored. I am sure the game is a much more enjoyable experience with your MODs since you were instrumental in programming the game before the 'powers that be', in my opinion, ill-advisedly 'let you go'.

I still maintain that MOO3 could be a brilliant space strategy game, one of the best, with a makeover!

Live long and prosper.

Christopher C.

[Stormhound]

I thought MOO3.Mods was gone.

Anyhow, the game is more enjoyable for me, but mainly from the aspect of giving the computer a good butt-kicking when I have some free time (not often, lately).

BTW, I understand there's a fan working on some changes to the executable. Experimenting, right now, but he might be able to fix a few problems that way.

[Leonidas]

Originally posted by Stormhound
I thought MOO3.Mods was gone.

Anyhow, the game is more enjoyable for me, but mainly from the aspect of giving the computer a good butt-kicking when I have some free time (not often, lately).

BTW, I understand there's a fan working on some changes to the executable. Experimenting, right now, but he might be able to fix a few problems that way.

Good to see someone making changes for the better

[Yolky]

i can't play any computer games right now since I am not at home to play but just check email once a week. when I do get back what do Mods do you suggest to play.

Davor

[Gateway103]

Originally posted by Stormhound
I thought MOO3.Mods was gone.

Anyhow, the game is more enjoyable for me, but mainly from the aspect of giving the computer a good butt-kicking when I have some free time (not often, lately).

BTW, I understand there's a fan working on some changes to the executable. Experimenting, right now, but he might be able to fix a few problems that way.

Just to follow up on Hound's post, the Moo3 Patcher project is currently undertaken by Bhruic.

At the moment, version 0.3 of the Patcher + associated .patch files are capable of the following:

1) Fix a bug so racial bonus/penalty (Accuracy/Reflex/Toughness) actually applies in ground combat. So beware of Saurian and Harvester troops (tested and confirmed)

2) Fix a bug so AI will no auto-disband its transport TF after one turn. Result is the AI can and will invade you colony if you don't guard it well (tested and confirmed)

3) Fix a mis-naming for diplomacy statement file, supposedly improve diplomatic dialogue (some reports of success)

4) Allow users to adjust the autobuild preference to have 5-shot missile launcher to have anything from 1-shot to 10-shot, this can improve AI missile ship designs (tested and confirmed)

5) Allow users to adjust the space cost of missile tubes to either favor single-shot launchers, multiple-shot launchers, or somewhere in between (tested and confirmed)

6) Fix a bug so planet links in ground combat result sitrep will no longer cause blank screen and sometimes crashes. Instead, the links will properly link to the intended planet like all other planet links in sitrep. (tested and confirmed)

7) Upon game creation, player may select up to 30 AI empires. 30 is the maximum, as the code can only handle 32 active players, including the New Orion and the Player, leaving 30 potential spots (tested and confirmed. note: may crash game if using more than 28 AI's at startup for small clusters only, due to solar system evaluation)

8) RaceSelection tool with 3 operating modes. In Mode 1 (default), the system will choose AI empires race at startup with no duplicates if possible (i.e. 16 empires of all different race). In Mode 2, user may specify the particular races they want included (e.g. 30 Ithkuls in conjunction with #6). In Mode 3, allows hybrid use of Mode 1 & 2, so you may specify say the first 8 races, and let the game pick the rest randomly with minimal duplication. (tested and confirmed)

The above fixes/mods are individual items, and may be installed/uninstalled with the Patcher at anytime. The Patcher will only work with executable from 1.25 patch (i.e. spreadsheet mods are compatible, but .exe modifying mods may not), so make sure you patched to it.

The Patcher & Patch Pak (contain .patch files for item 1~5) may be found at www.moo3.at/patcher
the rest of the .patch files may be found via links in the first post of this thread http://www.ina-community.com/forums/...hreadid=383367 in the meantime. These will be included in a new patch pak later.

To use this, put the Patcher executable and the .patch files in same folder, execute the Patcher, and patch/unpatch the desired patches.

Future patches are still in the work by Bhruic. For up to date news, visit http://www.ina-community.com/forums/...hreadid=383367

Just an update,

-Gateway103

[ChristopherC]

Good to see some more MOO3 mods being created.

What I would like to see is better play balance, i.e. an improvement in the chances of playing human, which are at a real disadvantage against some of the alien races, however well you play, and at whatever level! There was one MOD advertised for that but it had no read-me instructions and the one time I tried it I got a crash and I couldnt get the MOD-er to post a read-me.

How I wish I was enough of a programmer to tinker with this game! It seems to me only half-finished before it was released but has the seeds of greatness in it!

Live long and prosper.

[Thoth]

ChristorpherC:

The key to Humans is diplomacy. They have hardwired bonuses to their diplomatic efforts. If you are going to be successful with humans, you'll need to brush up on Alien baby kissing. Check out the "Fish Friends and Lizard Lovers" thread on ATMOO. There are some excellent insights into how diplomacy works.

Alternatively, you could go into the spreadsheets and Mod the humans to your liking. (IIRC you'll want RaceModifiers.txt)


Stormhound: Any chance of persuading you to bring your expertise to the Unofficial Fan Patch project over at ATMOO? If it doesn't violate any agreements you might have with Atari/QS, I'm certain you would have some valueable insight for the folks who are digging through the .exe .

[ChristopherC]

Many thanks, Thoth. BTW, my favourite Egyptian God, the God of Wisodm.

I got a reply from using the Atari boards and have downloaded two MODs from the Guardian website, one is called 'More Human' and the other 'Ultimatehumanboost', which skew the racemodifiers a little more in my favour.

There is also talk of a Bud MOD on the Battlefields site but I couldnt access that. I wonder if it is available anywhere else?

I appreciate your suggestion, Thoth, about diplomacy but diplomacy in MOO3 sucks! You can forge no solid alliances. As Stormhound says, all the aliens are scheming, spineless or bullying jerks!

Nope, you gotta go deeper to win, into the spreadsheets!

Oh, btw, Stormhound, I agree with Thoth. We could really do with you posting a MOD. I am sure it would be one of the best available! Think about it, huh? Pretty please?

Live long and prosper.

[Sovereign]

Sounds like people are really putting effort into fixing MOO3.

I have a few questions though.

First, I have Bhruic's MOO3 editor (where I can modify Planet hability, mineral richness, population, ownership, starlanes, wormholes). I'm not sure what version I have, but I downloaded the editor last year.

Is there a new version of the editor available? If so, what changes or boosts are in it?
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Second question.... I'd like to know how I can change the planet sizes.

I hate all those size 2, 3, and 4 planets. Really annoying. Is there any way to change the "minimum" planet size to 5 or 6, so in my new games, there will be no size 2, 3, 4 planets in the galaxy?

Anything in Spreadsheets that I can personally change that can do this? Or do I have to download a mod for an .exe or .string thing?
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Third question..... Is there anything in Spreadsheets about planet graphics? I hate those blue, green, cyan planets with NO water or contients on them. I was wondering how I could modify the spreadsheets to make it so that ALL Martian / Terra Approxima style planets will be Earth-like in appearance with contients, seas, etc?

I want all those different Earth-like graphics (IIRC there are like 10... several with clouds, several without clouds)
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Any help here would be greatly appreciated.

[Vince278]

I thought those planetary graphics were an indicator of how close the planet was to your habitability level. (if the picture was close to being earth-like then so was the world to you)

[Sovereign]

Vince, thats not the case.

If this was the case, then every planet I terraform to Paradise would have seas, contients, clouds, etc. This would happen for every humanoid species for any MOO3 player.

But it doesn't happen. I've saw gas giant graphic planets as Paradise for Humanoids. Ditto for sea/contient planets be paradise for Etherans.

Most of the time, I'd get boring green, cyan, or 100% oceanic planets as Sweet Spot or Paradise. I think those graphics look ugly, seriously.

[Vince278]

I don't remember exactly but do the graphics change after terraforming?