[WIP] Homeworld II Ship Modding

[EAS_Intrepid]

Something different: DSUV-109 Utility Vehicle (see attachment)

I still have no real clue how to texture this tiny vessel. I alreay tried, but I did not like the outcome at all.... hm...

It is to function as a resource collector in conjunction with the Mining Carrier (which will receive a general overhaul).

 

[Majestic]

Very nice Intrepid, solid design you have there.

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

I just found an older mesh that became the basis for the Phalanx missile cruiser

Spoiler:

Must be over two and a half years old but the design lineage should be obvious.
I think I built it for Armada 2 originally.

 

[Majestic]

Looks a little like a B5 Earth ship to me. I like.

 

[Starfox1701]

Yea one of the post Civil War class of the Warlock vein.

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

Something a bit different:

This is a design I just made up. I am currently working on the textures for her (I have all the renders of the ship I need as a texture basis). A submarine-like dark grey hull pattern will go along well with the overal submarine shape design.

With some modifications this could even work with seaQuest Armada,

Spoiler:

Not too sure of the fins, but I figured they are part of the very primitive and reverse engineered FTL engines.

Now that I think of it, the Russian fighter I have presented a few pages earlier fits very nicely to this design...

Planned armament are four missile tubes and two twin-barrel turrets. It is a small ship, no larger than the Zion Star Corps' Kir'yati or Terani Space Forces' Hyperion class and definately not as powerful. Working name is "Mars" class.

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

Officials of the Terani Department of Defense were astonished when the Zion Star Corps revealed their latest combat ship class: the Defense (Hebrew: Haganah) class combat carrier.

Until then spaceborne fightercraft were only based on larger orbital military installations. The Terani fleet had experimented with a carrier design based on larger raw resource freighters but did not come to a satisfying result.

Even though the Terani and Zion nations could roughly be described as allies or at least trading partners, this new ship class would allow a flexible warfare that the Terani military could not provide.

Spoiler:

The ship is not much larger than a Terani Hyperion frigate and can hold four squadrons of F/A-16D or SA-33 fighters.

Most challenging will be setting this ship up for carrier operations.... and rescaling the fighters... again

 

[Amateur]

Very nice Intrepid. I love the arrangement of the launch bays, I imagine the fighters will twist after they launch?

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

Thank you Amateur.

Yes, indeed, the fighters will spin. I am currently finishing the last texture details. I made some subtle additions.

Spoiler:

 

[Hellkite]

Looking good my Friend

 

[Majestic]

I like how the launch bays are on the side of the ship, very nice and a great touch. The textures look great on her.

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

Hi there!

Yessss.... after a night of troubleshooting and experimenting the HW2 newby that I am managed to get the docking paths right. A few little adjustments here and there are left, but it works!

Spoiler:

I plan on adding a second launch path, which would half the time the fighters need to start. I think it has been done in the BSG mod.

Eye candy:
A sortie of two SA-33 Swordfish fighters on patrol.

Spoiler:

 

[Amateur]

Very, very nice Intrepid.

 

[Starfox1701]

Very, very nice

 

[thunderfoot]

Actually, Intrepid, in the BSG Half Race Mod, I cheated. I made the build times very small because it was impossible to make more than one build/launch point on the same ship.

 

[Majestic]

I really like the SA-33 Swordfish design.

 

[dinosaurJR]

This looks awesome - really solid designs and well executed too. I do have one small piece of advice though; when working with a game that allows a lot of detail (like HW2) it really pays to do higher resolution textures on the bigger ships. The fighters and smaller ships look amazing, but the bigger ship (the carrier) has a little "fuzziness" to the texture.

Now, please understand, I am not saying that the textures you are coming up with are bad, quite the contrary, they are very very very good, I love the color schemes and the over all designs, but it would pay to have a little more detail and maybe jump up a couple of sizes on the resolution (are you using 1024x1024?) In that case, I would use 2048x2048... or if HW modding supports multiple textures, then 2 x 1024x1024, just to make the detailing you have a little crisper.

This is, of course just my opinion, Im sorry if I offend, it really is not my intention.

PS. I also recently lost my HW2 disc... right after I finally got the BSG mod to run... it looked amazing, but now I cant play it...

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

This is, of course just my opinion, Im sorry if I offend, it really is not my intention.

HOW DARE YOU to apologize for constructive critizism?

Until now I even used 512x512 texture maps. I have an older system (Fleet Ops brings my sytem to its knees) and to me it is important that my models don't need the super-latest in NASA's computer research.
However I will definately try converting to 1024x1024.

The problem with details is: My ships usually do not have windows or the like. Most sensor erquipment is stored inside the ship or behind armored sensor domes. The ships use armor to defend against the vigors of space travel and space combat alike. Even most starship's shuttle launch bays are shielded by heavily armored bay doors...
However I am more than happy to read suggestion for further details.

Actually, Intrepid, in the BSG Half Race Mod, I cheated. I made the build times very small because it was impossible to make more than one build/launch point on the same ship.

The fun thing about HW2 is, that it features working carrier operations. No need to "build" fighters to have them "launched" like in A2. Fighters can dock and undock with carriers or space stations.

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

I have resized the texture of the carrier to 1024x 1024. It *does* look better.

Spoiler:

Two more ingame beauty-shots:


A Merkava class cruiser escorting the Carrier.

Spoiler:

Terani Armed Forces' Phalanx CCG and Hyperion DD over the Solaris Colony

Spoiler:

 

[Starfox1701]

Great stuff. LODing the texures is a great way to get most of the benies of larger resolution without cripling the graphics card from jumpstreet

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

I completly restarted texturing the Merkava cruiser.
Here's a rough early version of the new textures.

Spoiler:

It will look much better with the aztec and camouflage layers added. I am still undecided wether to use the earlier disruptive camo pattern or the newer style I applied to other Star Corps vessels. In space there is no real reason for camouflaged patterned warships, but my backstory to that is, that the Star Corps wanted to make their ships appear more aggressive.

I am mainly working on the Independent Colony fleet and I want to have a small fleet together. After that I plan on making a small "opposing force" faction to begin playtesting some ideas I have

Just an idea I just had while writing: looking at this cruiser, which does have a landing bay, I think I need a good design for a Marine boarding shuttle.

 

[thunderfoot]

Mi GAWD! She's gorgeous!

 

[Starfox1701]

Sweet

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

Thank you guys!

Spoiler:

I think I'd rather go with the darker textures and add a "disruptive pattern" like the first version of the Merkava had... Input welcomed!

EDIT: And of course she has a new landing bay for the planned boarding shuttle.

Spoiler:

 

[Amateur]

:Y

I'm speechless. It looks completely, utterly, totally awesome!

Big, big from me my friend; a great improvement

 

[Majestic]

Beautiful work Intrepid, I have always loved your designs you make some awesome navies in space.

 

[Starfox1701]

I like them both

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

Thanks for the praise, people

Finally I have completed the reworked textures for the Merkava class.

Spoiler:

Now on to a new turret design, the old one was a temporary solution anyway. Three rapid-reloading turrets with one barrel (450mm caliber) each and two 850mm torpedo tubes should be a suitable armament. Maybe I can figure out a CIWS system...

Next screen will be in-game, I promise!

 

[Dan1025]

Finally I have completed the reworked textures for the Merkava class.

Spoiler:

:Y Wow! That looks fantastic! Seriously brilliant work there EAS, well done

Looking forward to this more and more

 

[EAS_Intrepid]

YESSSSSSSSSS, I got the Merkava class in-game!

She is fully hardpointed (aside the approach/departure paths for the assault shuttles and NavLights). First weapon tests were successful, but I don't have any screens of that right now.

New and old: In the foreground the first incarnation of the Merkava, behind it the newer version.

Spoiler:

Zion Star Corps Carrier Group CG-01, One Haganah class carrier, two Kiryati frigates and the Merkava cruiser.

Spoiler:

A visit to the Terani aligned Solaris Colony

Spoiler: