So Coxxon, how have you spent 2015?

[Shadow Knight]

No wall of text this time, those recent screenshots look a hell of a lot better than the previous ones. There's a lot more definition to the buildings and units: even if it isn't as "detailed" as before and they look more like they're part of the environment. Still not sold on the Forge, but that's just a personal beef I have with the design. Execution-wise it (and everything else) is pretty much flawless.

The ISDF buildings look purposeful and a slight tad menacing. The scion buildings look a lot more defined than before - there's definite curves and edges rather than the shot just looking like a mess of colours.

I wasn't expecting such a turnaround, but now I'm legitimately impressed. Well done.

[coxxon]

Thanks everyone!

I think those screens show just how much of a difference there can be depending on the graphic options one has turned on and off, and how different MP looks over SP/IA considering how teamcolors really darken the objects, plus lighting settings by the map makers; considering how little I actually did to the textures recently.

On the progress front, I spent a good amount of time reworking the Mire trees … again. I hate making trees. But now they are back to looking more like the originals, but with branches rather than a single canopy piece. Guess I need to make a map sometime using the old ones I made. I especially miss my spiderweb tree …

I’ve also updated the missions, deathmatch, and multiplayer preview config files to show my new models, so that’s taken care of.

Don’t know if I’ll do it or not, but I’ve never liked the branching conflicting realities created by the ISDF/Scion campaign.
I have some ideas on how to simply attach the Scion one to the end of the ISDF. The hard part would be changing the ISDF mission where you choose so that you no longer have a choice. But I’ll just have to look at that one to see what can be done. Otherwise, it would be nice to have all the missions listed as a single coherent story, and not have to go through separate pilot logins to get to them.

[General BlackDragon]

IF u want to "fix" the BZ2 storyline u might as well re-write the whole thing, cause it's like a bad C scifi movie u see on TV.

[MrTwosheds]

reworking the Mire trees … again.

It another of those textures that just does not upscale well, that I keep returning to, never happy with the result.

Such sacrilege about the story line! it may be like a bad C scifi movie but its our bad C scifi movie!
I have often wished for more single player missions for stock rather than mods, May I suggest a continuation of what happened after Cook destroyed one of the two core's... Or what happened after the alchemator was fired. The ISDF plot is probably easier as Braddock, Manson and human Shaby have the best reusable lines and voice overs are always the hard bit.

[General BlackDragon]

The ISDF plot is crap, and is not the "real" storyline. It's widely accepted that the player chose the "good" ending, and became Scion and had lots of babies with Shabyev.

[MrTwosheds]

Going with the Isdf plot leaves you with the option to become scion again.

[DeusExCeteri]

You mean for the first time, not again.

Also you'd be the mindless Scion slave of Braddock if you did. Well, you're his mindless slave either way, so who cares.

Good choice???

IF u want to "fix" the BZ2 storyline u might as well re-write the whole thing, cause it's like a bad C scifi movie u see on TV.

*Ahem*

• August, 1991, Gorbachev had just dissolved the USSR's central committee, the world thought it was a sign of hope, of change for the better. Not a week afterwards, Gobachev, as well as his closest officers, vanished while on a flight to talks in the Ukraine, the world watched with baited breath as Russia began to collapse under it's own strain, now leaderless and without government. Militant groups roamed the streets, riots broke out in Moscow, the nation was ablaze, a spark was all it took. Before the month was over, some looter or spy or traitorous official leaked the documents that spelt it all out, the truth of the cold war was set free. Every news station in every country across the world was reporting it, that the USA, USSR, and China had waged war across the solar system in the 70s, that the space race was a lie, the true history of the Greek people, the untold power of Biometal...
  
  The fire was lit, and it wasn't long before it began to spread. Terrorist organizations across the middle east had managed to smuggle Biometal weapons out of Russia. I remember seeing the Czars and Golems on TV, crazed men chanting praises to Allah, it was almost as unreal as what followed it. The United States stepped in almost immediately, without hesitation, Uncle Sam had decided that the time to act was now. To protect the people, they brought back the NSDF, waging war for the first time on Earth itself.
  
  The conflict seemed to drag on for years, no matter how much ground the NSDF gained, the terrorists seemed to have no limit of their own weapons and soldiers. Eventually, elections came, and one candidate stood out above the rest. Proposing an alliance between nations, more spending on weaponry, and reactivation of a military space program to stop the terrorist threat, Armond Braddock won by a landslide. Within three years, the ISDF had beaten back the middle eastern threat, and despite hundreds of thousands of lives lost in the fighting, the war was declared to be won.
  
  The use of Biometal weapons didn't end there, however, and the nations that had joined the ISDF now found themselves unable to leave. President Braddock declared that threats still existed, threats from above, that the Furies the NSDF and CCA had fought were not truly defeated. Sabre tanks were rolling through the streets of cities, gun towers erected to stand constant watch over the people, the world was under his thumb and as the ISDF continued to spread further and further out into space, colonizing worlds, humanity began to feel more and more trapped.
  
  It's been twenty years now, there hasn't been another election, the New Regime stands ever vigilant in protection of humanity... in enslavement of humanity. There's no hope for us here now, the world belongs to Braddock and his ISDF, those of us who can have made plans to escape, old rumours tell of a gateway on Ganymede that would take us beyond his grasp, to a new home, to a chance to start over.
  
  We only hope that we make it, more and more freedom fighters like us are captured every day, taken in for something Braddock calls "Project Pedigree". We've managed to steal a few old Dropships and a Recycler from an old NSDF warehouse, it's the best we can hope to do. There's no time left to waste, we leave tonight for Ganymede, and we aren't coming back.

[MrTwosheds]

"You mean for the first time, not again."
I meant the changing races (body) part does not work well the other way round. You would have to use a cutting torch to get those metal flares off.

[coxxon]

Well, nope, I’m not trying to rewrite the entire storyline. Yeah, the plot needed some more revision, but I figure like a lot of the game, Pandi didn’t have time. Though I have had minor fantasies about reworking the whole thing, but I don’t want to have to do that at this time.

What I’m hoping to do is remove the choice in the Fanning the Fire mission (I’ve already looked at the dll code). The player then finishes up the ISDF campaign, and with a little transition text, and occasional re-editing of mission briefings/debriefings text, the player would move straight into the Scion missions. Basically John regrets the Core attack, has a change of heart, and takes himself and Burns over to the Scions. Yes, this leaves his character becoming Scion, but it’s the smoothest way to resolve the two different realities. From a story standpoint, both the ISDF and Scion exist at the end. And more importantly the player doesn’t have to have additional pilot logins to access both sets of missions, and all 25 missions are a single, more coherent (not perfect) story.

[Ded10c]

We all know how thoroughly you've played BZ2's campaign, GBD

[DeusExCeteri]

From a story standpoint, both the ISDF and Scion exist at the end. And more importantly the player doesn’t have to have additional pilot logins to access both sets of missions, and all 25 missions are a single, more coherent (not perfect) story.

Okay but...

Shabayev is kinda a little bit dead in one and not the other? Certainly, it's possible, the original Core is not critical to the formation of a new one, I'm just the kind of person to prefer "all the way or not at all" with revising a storyline like this one.

*shrug*

[coxxon]

Shabayev is kinda a little bit dead in one and not the other? Certainly, it's possible, the original Core is not critical to the formation of a new one, I'm just the kind of person to prefer "all the way or not at all" with revising a storyline like this one.
*shrug*

Shab doesn't die in my revised dll. More realistically, if you shoot her, she should run away. That was another thing I didn't like about that specific mission. You just sit there and have John murder his friend or potential love interest, and the she (the bot tank) just sits there and does absolutely nothing. I paid good money (twice) for that mess - yeesh. I figure since I'm messing with that specific mission, I would try to do a little something about it.

[Red Devil]

whut? Shabby is died? when did that happen?

[DeusExCeteri]

In the ISDF ending that nobody ever plays because it's the "bad" ending and only happens if the player intentionally decides to be ignorant to Braddock's obvious intentions and kill Shabayev.

Still working on the story I wrote above, will probably make a separate post for it as I develop it further. I guess anyone with ideas in regards to it can PM me, so we don't clutter up Coxxon's mod topic here.

[coxxon]

Shabayev LIVES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Okay got a little too excited there, buT I gOt MY FIRST TRUE BZ2 DLL TO WORK!!!!!!!
Okay, calming down again.
I changed around 6 lines in the isdf14 mission dll to make it so that:
1 - If you shoot Shabayev, she runs away rather than having to be murderized as was the only option before.
2 - This is the BIGGER part - If the player goes with her, the mission now is considered a failure. Delivering Burns to the ISDF is the only successful mission resolution now.
3 - This removes the biggest stumbling block to adding the Scion campaign to the ISDF campaign.
4 - I still have to go through the brief/debrief files, but I should be able to bring a little more consistency to what happens to several of the characters and maintain a single campaign.
5 - This should also allow players to replay any campaign mission from a single pilot login. While it may not be a big issue for most players, it drove me nuts during testing to have to check stuff in the later missions by switching to the correct pilot which often didn't happen on the first try.

And again, since this mod is still WIP, any or all of the above might change.