Feedback on Distant Worlds AAR (from Kushan)

Started by bayonetbrant, July 17, 2014, 10:52:56 AM

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bayonetbrant



We've got a new AAR that'll be running on the front page!

Space 4Xer extraordinaire Kushan is going to be walking us through his current Distant Worlds campaign.

Episode 1 is up today.  Tell us what you think!


click to enlarge
The key to surviving this site is to not say something which ends up as someone's tag line - Steelgrave

"their citizens (all of them counted as such) glorified their mythology of 'rights'...and lost track of their duties. No nation, so constituted, can endure." Robert Heinlein, Starship Troopers

Martok

"Like we need an excuse to drink to anything..." - Banzai_Cat
"I like to think of it not as an excuse but more like Pavlovian Response." - Sir Slash

"At our ages, they all look like jailbait." - mirth

"If we had lines here that would have crossed all of them. For the 1,077,986th time." - Gusington

"Government is so expensive that it should at least be entertaining." - airboy

"As long as there's bacon, everything will be all right." - Toonces

Boggit

@Kushan :)

Do you have any more info on the mods used, how to find them, and why you chose them etc. I love mods in games, but I like to learn a little more before I grab them. Any info is appreciated. O0
The most shocking fact about war is that its victims and its instruments are individual human beings, and that these individual beings are condemned by the monstrous conventions of politics to murder or be murdered in quarrels not their own. Aldous Huxley

Foul Temptress! (Mirth replying to Gus) ;)

On a good day, our legislature has the prestige of a drunk urinating on a wall at 4am and getting most of it on his shoe. On a good day  ::) Steelgrave

It's kind of silly to investigate whether or not a Clinton is lying. That's sort of like investigating why the sky is blue. Banzai_Cat

Kushan

My original goal for choosing the mods I used was to show off as many mods as possible and add more variety but still keep a vanilla feel to the game. I had to do some copying pasting to merge the various mods together. I started by using Distant Worlds Extended, and merged the other mods into it. One of the thing I'd really like to see in Distant Worlds 2 is a modular system similar to the Elder Scrolls series, where all the changes to the various files would be made automatically and remove the need to merge mods manually.

All the mods I use can be found on the Distant Worlds modding forum at Matrix: http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tt.asp?forumid=795

Distant Worlds Extended by Haree78 For every vanilla theme game I play, this mod is a requirement. The new races Haree's added fit seamlessly into the existing ones. I originally started using it to replace the existing race images since I really don't like the vanilla ones, but the new races have grown on me over time.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3141149

DW:U BalanceMod (Hyper Drive Speed Only) by Locarnus This mod makes a lot of balance changes but I chose to only use the hyper drive speed because I didn't like the 200 additional research projects it adds. I don't mind modders adding new projects, but 200 seems over the top IMO.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3624576

HD Environment Mod by nek Used this because HD planet textures are never a bad thing, if your system can handle them.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3626917

More Governments by dwaine

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3626244

More and Rebalanced Wonders (Rebalanced Wonders Only) by dwaine I've always thought that wonders in DW where over powered. The reason I didn't use the new wonders was because I didn't know what sort of overall balance effect they would have when I started. Reducing the existing ones seemed like a better idea then getting half way in a realizing I lost because one faction built all the wonders.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3630680

Royal navy and IJN Ship Names by Shark7 and USN Ship names by Kushan I really hate the numbered ship naming for escorts, frigates, and destroyers.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=2467645
http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=2467645
http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=2683826

Ship Sets from Prothean Cycle Mod by Tyrador and Kalthaniell Replaced some of the ship names, mainly for the insectoid races, that I don't like.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3152095

If there is any other question you have I would be happy to answer them.
PanzersEast: Have to think to myself.... will I play the first one by the Winter Sale?  Probably not, then I should remove Dragonfall
PanzersEast: but that is thinking too logically.... and Steam Sales are about ignoring Logic

---
Twitch Channel
YouTube Channel
Twitter - @KushanGaming
Discord Chat
Command Northern Inferno Let's Play

Boggit

Wow! Thanks Kushan, that is really helpful. O0
The most shocking fact about war is that its victims and its instruments are individual human beings, and that these individual beings are condemned by the monstrous conventions of politics to murder or be murdered in quarrels not their own. Aldous Huxley

Foul Temptress! (Mirth replying to Gus) ;)

On a good day, our legislature has the prestige of a drunk urinating on a wall at 4am and getting most of it on his shoe. On a good day  ::) Steelgrave

It's kind of silly to investigate whether or not a Clinton is lying. That's sort of like investigating why the sky is blue. Banzai_Cat

Kushan

PanzersEast: Have to think to myself.... will I play the first one by the Winter Sale?  Probably not, then I should remove Dragonfall
PanzersEast: but that is thinking too logically.... and Steam Sales are about ignoring Logic

---
Twitch Channel
YouTube Channel
Twitter - @KushanGaming
Discord Chat
Command Northern Inferno Let's Play

bayonetbrant

The key to surviving this site is to not say something which ends up as someone's tag line - Steelgrave

"their citizens (all of them counted as such) glorified their mythology of 'rights'...and lost track of their duties. No nation, so constituted, can endure." Robert Heinlein, Starship Troopers

Boggit

This AAR is really helping my game. My last attempt ended dismally with my home planet taken over, after I picked a fight with the wrong pirates. I usually play in the age of pirates as a challenge, and it usually is!

I'm planning on moving on from vanilla, and starting with Haree's mod and extending from there. Does that make sense to you, or will I be better off doing it differently? Also are the mods free standing in a mods folder or whatever, so if I go back to vanilla I don't have to reinstall again?

Thanks! :)
The most shocking fact about war is that its victims and its instruments are individual human beings, and that these individual beings are condemned by the monstrous conventions of politics to murder or be murdered in quarrels not their own. Aldous Huxley

Foul Temptress! (Mirth replying to Gus) ;)

On a good day, our legislature has the prestige of a drunk urinating on a wall at 4am and getting most of it on his shoe. On a good day  ::) Steelgrave

It's kind of silly to investigate whether or not a Clinton is lying. That's sort of like investigating why the sky is blue. Banzai_Cat

Martok

Kudos to your AI manager on colonizing that Ugnari world!  Every now and then, it does know what it's doing (and/or gets lucky).  :P 
"Like we need an excuse to drink to anything..." - Banzai_Cat
"I like to think of it not as an excuse but more like Pavlovian Response." - Sir Slash

"At our ages, they all look like jailbait." - mirth

"If we had lines here that would have crossed all of them. For the 1,077,986th time." - Gusington

"Government is so expensive that it should at least be entertaining." - airboy

"As long as there's bacon, everything will be all right." - Toonces

Kushan

Quote from: Boggit on August 28, 2014, 12:18:07 PM
This AAR is really helping my game. My last attempt ended dismally with my home planet taken over, after I picked a fight with the wrong pirates. I usually play in the age of pirates as a challenge, and it usually is!

Happy to hear that its useful. Hopefully I wont be providing an example of what not to do.

Quote from: Boggit on August 28, 2014, 12:18:07 PM
I'm planning on moving on from vanilla, and starting with Haree's mod and extending from there. Does that make sense to you, or will I be better off doing it differently? Also are the mods free standing in a mods folder or whatever, so if I go back to vanilla I don't have to reinstall again?

I would definitely start of with Haree's extended mod. I hear the AI Improvement mod (which comes with a patch for Haree's mod) is also really good. I'm tempted to use it myself, but I will need to merge it into my custom theme for this play through and do some testing on my own to see if it breaks anything. I'm sure it conflicts with some of the research changes I made.

If your looking for something outside the Distant World vanilla setting, the Star Trek Picard Era mod is great. I wish they would go further in overhauling the game, rather then trying to have a balance mix of vanilla and Star Trek. But it does provide an excellent base for one to make your own personal changes. I'm in the process of (trying) to redo the tech tree to be completely ST and either rename or remove the vanilla technologies and components.

All of the mods designed for Universe should be self contained in its own folder under the customization folder in the game directory. So you can freely switch between Haree's Extended Mod, Star Trek, etc. Just be aware that some of the older mods that predate Universe are still around, and some of them do overwrite vanilla files. One example is the GEM (graphic Enhancement Mod) which overhauls the UI icons. For those mods all you should need to do is create a new theme folder (or into your custom theme) and install them in there, making sure that it mirrors the vanilla file structure. As far as I know, all the old Pre-Universe mods should be able to be used without overwriting vanilla files if you set them up this way.

Quote from: Martok on August 28, 2014, 01:20:06 PM
Kudos to your AI manager on colonizing that Ugnari world!  Every now and then, it does know what it's doing (and/or gets lucky).  :P 

Since I tend to micromanage everything I never really noticed until recently just how far the automation has come since the original release.
PanzersEast: Have to think to myself.... will I play the first one by the Winter Sale?  Probably not, then I should remove Dragonfall
PanzersEast: but that is thinking too logically.... and Steam Sales are about ignoring Logic

---
Twitch Channel
YouTube Channel
Twitter - @KushanGaming
Discord Chat
Command Northern Inferno Let's Play

Boggit

Thanks Kushan. As ever you advice is valued... and useful. O0
The most shocking fact about war is that its victims and its instruments are individual human beings, and that these individual beings are condemned by the monstrous conventions of politics to murder or be murdered in quarrels not their own. Aldous Huxley

Foul Temptress! (Mirth replying to Gus) ;)

On a good day, our legislature has the prestige of a drunk urinating on a wall at 4am and getting most of it on his shoe. On a good day  ::) Steelgrave

It's kind of silly to investigate whether or not a Clinton is lying. That's sort of like investigating why the sky is blue. Banzai_Cat

Kushan

I've decided not to merge the AI improvement mod into my custom AAR theme. While really tempting I don;t want to risk breaking my game.

I think my biggest gripe with the game is the diplomacy system. I had to order the Visareen to leave my territory multiple times before they finally left for good.
PanzersEast: Have to think to myself.... will I play the first one by the Winter Sale?  Probably not, then I should remove Dragonfall
PanzersEast: but that is thinking too logically.... and Steam Sales are about ignoring Logic

---
Twitch Channel
YouTube Channel
Twitter - @KushanGaming
Discord Chat
Command Northern Inferno Let's Play

bayonetbrant

Quote from: Kushan on October 09, 2014, 11:32:45 PMI think my biggest gripe with the game is the diplomacy system. I had to order the Visareen to leave my territory multiple times before they finally left for good.

sounds like my brother when I was growing up...  pretty sure he was an alien too
The key to surviving this site is to not say something which ends up as someone's tag line - Steelgrave

"their citizens (all of them counted as such) glorified their mythology of 'rights'...and lost track of their duties. No nation, so constituted, can endure." Robert Heinlein, Starship Troopers

Martok

Quote from: Kushan on October 09, 2014, 11:32:45 PM
I think my biggest gripe with the game is the diplomacy system. I had to order the Visareen to leave my territory multiple times before they finally left for good.
Could it be because the Visareen don't like you?  Or do you think it's just the AI being obtuse? 

"Like we need an excuse to drink to anything..." - Banzai_Cat
"I like to think of it not as an excuse but more like Pavlovian Response." - Sir Slash

"At our ages, they all look like jailbait." - mirth

"If we had lines here that would have crossed all of them. For the 1,077,986th time." - Gusington

"Government is so expensive that it should at least be entertaining." - airboy

"As long as there's bacon, everything will be all right." - Toonces

RooksBailey

Now that the days are getting darker and colder, I suddenly find myself in the mood for a good space game (what can I say but that I am a man of feasts and seasons?  :) ).  Reading your AAR has reminded me of what a great game DW is.  I am so glad to see that it has been warmly received by the Steam community.  I really need to pick up my copy of DWU soon! 

Looking forward to part six of your AAR!  O0
"As I understand from your communication, Mr. Engle, you're on the brink of self-destruction. May I shake your hand? A brilliant idea! I speak as one who has destroyed himself a score of times.  I am, Mr. Engle, a veteran corpse. We are all corpses here! This rendezvous is one of the musical graveyards of the town. Caters to zombies hopping around with dead hearts and price tags for souls." - Angels Over Broadway