Woot ! Great work Paul, I'll give it a go as soon a I can
You can sort of install it in the basic edition by overwriting the data folder directly, but it won't make the faction playable or useable in a scenario, also it will likely cause issues if you've overwritten any existing file to include your faction. And of course removing the mod can prove problematic.
Generated maps will automatically give them their own territory. New games in existing maps will give them a capital square in a random unoccupied system. I had intended to make a custom map to go along with the mod, but found the map generator a bit tedious to work with. Maybe in the future.
I think you can edit existing maps and put them in your mod file structure. The game should use the 'updated' map when the mod is active instead of the default one.
1. Modifying files that are already in the mod folder is slightly bugged, as it saves them to the core files instead of the mod folder but then reads from the mod folder (so your changes don't appear to take affect, but you just have to move the file).
True. In fact the editor doesn't understand the mod structure and it may have edited other files in the data folder at random (well probably not random, but still) instead. Noticed that when you told me about the faulty bonus ship. Changing its faction changed the faction of some other human ship instead. I am correcting that for 1.05. Meanwhile, it's easier to do your changes in the data folder, and once done, move everything into the mod sub-folder.
I can't get animations working in the mod folder because it won't pick up the anims folders. Not sure if I'm somehow missing the proper folder structure (tried putting them in sprites like the core files are setup, and just directly in the mod's folder) or if it's just bugged. Works fine when put in the core game folders.
I recall there was some kind of problem with putting animations into the mod folder and that I had not the time to deal with it before 1.0. I will see what I can do about it, but except if it's trivial (it probably isn't, otherwise that would be already done) it won't be in 1.05.
The map editor is a bit difficult to use. Do you intend to make it more user friendly? Like maybe a paint mode where you can draw empty sectors, or a faction change mode where you can draw a new faction without changing the contents, or a way to add whole random solar systems at a time? Maybe even be able to grab and move sectors and solar systems. I understand that these features would require a significant rewrite, but it would make creating maps oh so much easier (for you and for us since you use this editor too, haha).
The day I announce a map pack coming soon will likely be the day the editor will be updated
But seriously, yeah it is annoying to use. You have no idea how long it took to design Imperium and Hive-world. Especially the first one, at this time I really had no other option than to make sectors one at a time. So, yes I will replace the map editor by something more user friendly when I get the time to do so, but it's going to take a while as it's a big chunk of code that need to be replaced completely, not just updated.
That said, you can already "paint" empty sectors directly. In "Draw Mode" there's "add sector" in which you can keep the left mouse button pressed and move the mouse around to add sectors. You can even set the faction and solar system for what you draw with the "solar ID" and "Faction" drop downs.
The display lags until you release the button, but it does work. Same goes for changing existing sectors' faction and solar system or both with "set faction", "solar system ID" and "change system/faction".
Do you plan to expose the event system to modding? Making scripted additions to mod factions - like the SPQR's changing stance and war declaration, and the AI Core events - would be interesting.
see below
Do you intend to expose any part of the AI to players? On a code level by making the stuff external to the game app (even if editing them requires editing and compiling a source file using a third party compiler); on a setting level of changing settings in the editor (such as being able to change the priority on building certain factories for factions, or target priority of AI modules, etc), or even more in-depth in-game settings for the player's empire automation.
Well, I'd love to, that's for sure. Some parts of the game definitively could be. Ship AI modules especially (not just yours, but most of the AI ships too) are relatively self contained, structured the same way and use commands/queries from a list available to all ships. It means that opening it to LUA, or any other method, shouldn't be that difficult. The faction layer AI, possibly, once it gets its much deserved rewrite (it is planned), but that will likely be more similar to a bunch a variables to alter at your leisure than proper coding. The event system, however, not so much in its current state, I would need to open the whole game structure for modding, and I wouldn't have a clue where to start.
As you imagine, it would be very time consuming, especially as I've never done that before. I made programs for years, I have been modding all kinds of games for even longer, but paradoxically, beside opening the data (as it is in UG), I've never tried integrating a script system or opening my own code for plugins. I do want to try, likely starting with ship AI modules as it seems to be the easiest (and also because it could save me time in the long run) and then maybe expending toward whatever will feel the more convenient after that. Don't hold your breath, though, it's not gonna happen for quite a while (let's face it, it's not something I can reasonably do until I can make a living out of gamedev).
-edit- Oh and the mod is not savegame compatible. Adding a new faction borks the faction list and causes some weirdness and errors when you load a save. These errors even carry over to new games, so if you try loading a save you must exit and reopen the game to get things working right.
Uhm, I'll add some warning message when this kind of situation occurs. Can't do much more, save and game's data structures don't like being changed mid game.
Cheers,
EsKa.
). Pretty sure I won't get rich any time soon, though, even if the