NEW UNIT - Empire Class Freighter

[iambecomelife]

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d54/iambecomelife/Emp1.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d54/iambecomelife/Emp2.jpg
I'm releasing one of the ships that will be included in the Merchant Fleet Mod: the "Empire" class freighter. Technically, ships named "Empire" weren't a class but many of them tended to have the characteristics featured with this model: a split deckhouse, midships hold, small funnel, and an acoustic hammer on the bow (anti-mine protection). This ship is the exact same size as the Liberty Ship and has its engines amidships, so it doesn't need to be rezoned in order to produce accurate sinking behavior. Tonnage will be 6800-7200 GRT, and it will only be used by the UK and Canada. I would like to release a beta version tomorrow or Monday - let me know if you can help test it.

Also, does anyone have a good picture of an acoustic hammer? Most of the pics I've seen only show this part from a distance.

[Venatore]

Outstanding ! I love the textures.

[Mush Martin]

cant wait.

what does it mean they werent an actual class.?

MM

[bigboywooly]

cant wait.

what does it mean they werent an actual class.?

MM

The prefix Empire was given to a wide variety of different sized ships
Ordinarily a class of ships all exhibit the same characteristics

[Mush Martin]

I had been under the impression (assumably wrongly) that
over here in canada the empires followed more or less
a single Prefab design.???

MM

[bigboywooly]

Check this out MM

http://www.mariners-l.co.uk/EmpIndex.html

[Mush Martin]

this is what I was talking about in my new thread.

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=105532

[Jimbuna]

Check this out MM

http://www.mariners-l.co.uk/EmpIndex.html

Thanks BBW...great link....my father sailed on 5 different 'Empire' ships during the war :yep:

[mr chris]

What a beauty:sunny::sunny:
I take it that with the realease of this ship for beta testing that the final realease of your ships is not far away.
I would love to help you test this baby out but im am tied up testing out the new patch for GWX:D
Iam looking forward to see all these great ships you have spent your time on over these long months finaly in game.
Well done Iambecomelife:up::rock::arrgh!:

[Paajtor]

That looks awesome!...almost like a SH4-ship.:up:

[STEED]

Looking forward to this one. :up:

[Sailor Steve]

Oh, d-r-o-o-o-o-o-o-l!

[AG124]

@ Iambecomelife - If you need a beta tester, count me in.:up: I have been waiting to download one of your ships for years now.:doh::p

[Schultzy]

O U T S T A N D I N G ! ! ! ! :o :o :o :o :o

You really are a modder without compare! Looks beautiful!

[_Seth_]

I bow my head in the dust, mate! This is absolutely excellent!!!! :up::up:

[Venatore]

Mate,

If this is the standard of your ship skins, then you should have your entitlement to a sticky ship skin thread. :hmm:

[iambecomelife]

Bad news - this release has been delayed because of a problem with Pack3d. I can't "join" the lifeboats and funnel to the front half of the ship. In short this means that when you break this ship in two the funnel and boats flex in time with the broken stern, which looks really weird. What's really annoying is that I was able to do this several days ago and now I'm having all sorts of problems. :damn: Can anyone familiar with Pack3d help?

[iambecomelife]

Good news.:rotfl:I managed to resolve this problem by hexing in the correct parent object. Now I need to make corrections for a couple more objects, add different paint schemes (which doesn't take much time) and the beta will be just about finished.

[flintlock]

In short this means that when you break this ship in two
I'd almost feel guilty sending a fish her way, almost.

;)

[Jimbuna]

Good news.:rotfl:I managed to resolve this problem by hexing in the correct parent object. Now I need to make corrections for a couple more objects, add different paint schemes (which doesn't take much time) and the beta will be just about finished.

Glad to hear it :yep: :up:

[Konovalov]

What a fine looking ship. It will be a shame to have to sink it. :lol:

[Woof1701]

This freighter looks awesome although I'll shed more of a tear if I happen to sink a Queen Mary.

[iambecomelife]

Thanks for showing interest, people - it makes modding a lot more fun.

*AG124 and jpm1 check your PM's*

[dertien]

can this be tested ?

[AG124]

Got it.:D As I mentioned, I will complete a test very soon.:up:

[danurve]

Ship models look good, I have a question though;
Why is the flag on the Stern? If memory servs this is an in-port not underway location.

[AG124]

I've installed the ship, and she shows up perfectly in my museum.:D And what a beautiful ship she is too.:o:sunny: But she will not spawn in a single mission for me - I am sure that I am not doing something wrong, as I have made at least a hundred of these test missions for my own ships and for GWX tests.:-? I don't know what's wrong.:cry:

[iambecomelife]

I've installed the ship, and she shows up perfectly in my museum.:D And what a beautiful ship she is too.:o:sunny: But she will not spawn in a single mission for me - I am sure that I am not doing something wrong, as I have made at least a hundred of these test missions for my own ships and for GWX tests.:-? I don't know what's wrong.:cry:

When are your test missions set? The ship is not produced until January 1941. Are you able to select the ship at all from the mission builder list of vessels, or is it just not there?

[iambecomelife]

Ship models look good, I have a question though;
Why is the flag on the Stern? If memory servs this is an in-port not underway location.

Based on period illustrations I have, common practice was to have the house flag on the mainmast and national flag on the stern. :hmm: Correct me if I'm wrong, though.

I built a ship once with the flag on the mainmast, and whenever the mast was destroyed the flag remained in midair. On all my ships the flagstaffs are indestructible.

[Madox58]

I'll be the first to admit I'm ignorant of ship construction in SH3.
But, if a flag can disappear from one mast, it can surely be coded
to disappear from another can't it?
I'm not critisizing here now mind you, just asking a question.

[AG124]

When are your test missions set? The ship is not produced until January 1941. Are you able to select the ship at all from the mission builder list of vessels, or is it just not there?

There is no problem selecting the vessel from the mission editor and placing her in the mission - she just will not spawn.:-?

Although it will probably turn out that I've done something idiotic, it is not starting the mission at the wrong year (I saw that the ship was not available earlier, when I checked out the .cfg). I tried 1941, 1944, and 1945, but with no luck. The ship had 100% spawning probability, no variation in position, was stationary, and was as close to my sub as I could put her (directly forward, heading 90 degrees so that she would be broadside to me).

[DivingDuck]

Hi,

this freighter is gorgeous. Looking forward to the full package.
I built a ship once with the flag on the mainmast, and whenever the mast was destroyed the flag remained in midair. On all my ships the flagstaffs are indestructible. Did you adjust the flag node´s parent ID to match your main mast?

Regards,
DD

[bigboywooly]

AG
Did you give the ship a waypoint ?
If so did you uncheck " delete on last waypoint " ?

Or do you have a tick in the " evolve from entry date " box ?

[ichneumon]

There is no problem selecting the vessel from the mission editor and placing her in the mission - she just will not spawn.:-?

Although it will probably turn out that I've done something idiotic, it is not starting the mission at the wrong year (I saw that the ship was not available earlier, when I checked out the .cfg). I tried 1941, 1944, and 1945, but with no luck. The ship had 100% spawning probability, no variation in position, was stationary, and was as close to my sub as I could put her (directly forward, heading 90 degrees so that she would be broadside to me).

Are you using a random generated group to spawn this unit? If so random groups will not spawn within a certain distance of your sub. Try scripting it instead of using a random generated group.

[AG124]

AG
Did you give the ship a waypoint ?
If so did you uncheck " delete on last waypoint " ?

Or do you have a tick in the " evolve from entry date " box ?

- I did indeed give her one waypoint.
- I did not check delete on last waypoint.
- "Evolve from entry date" box not checked.

Also, the mission was validated as OK.

:-?

[bigboywooly]

AG
Did you give the ship a waypoint ?
If so did you uncheck " delete on last waypoint " ?

Or do you have a tick in the " evolve from entry date " box ?

- I did indeed give her one waypoint.
- I did not check delete on last waypoint.
- "Evolve from entry date" box not checked.

Also, the mission was validated as OK.

:-?

The " delete on last waypoint " is ticked by default
Uncheck it

Other than that
:o

[AG124]

The " delete on last waypoint " is ticked by default
Uncheck it

Thanks, but I know that it is checked by default - I always uncheck it every time I create a mission. This time was no exception - there must be something else wrong.:cry:

[GT182]

Beautiful ship IBL. :up: ~S!~

If you need another tester to see if it works with GWX let me know.

[Achtung Englander]

sorry guys but I seem to have missed the link to download this beauty

can someone repost it please

ta

[Schultzy]

Could be wrong, so no quoting me ;) but I think it was PM only, closed-ish beta test type affair mate. :)

I'm sure once the kinks have been ironed out, we'll be seeing it in our scopes!

I can't wait. She sure is a beauty IBL :)

[iambecomelife]

When are your test missions set? The ship is not produced until January 1941. Are you able to select the ship at all from the mission builder list of vessels, or is it just not there?

There is no problem selecting the vessel from the mission editor and placing her in the mission - she just will not spawn.:-?

Although it will probably turn out that I've done something idiotic, it is not starting the mission at the wrong year (I saw that the ship was not available earlier, when I checked out the .cfg). I tried 1941, 1944, and 1945, but with no luck. The ship had 100% spawning probability, no variation in position, was stationary, and was as close to my sub as I could put her (directly forward, heading 90 degrees so that she would be broadside to me).

You may be placing the vessel too close to your submarine - I think that within a certain distance units will not spawn.

Also, have you made sure that the date and time for the ship entry, your sub's entry, and the mission itself all correspond? This is a very common mistake I make...

I tried a test mission with the ship myself and it spawned correctly about a mile away from my sub. I used up most of the 88mm ammo on it, to little effect; after it wiped out my gun crew :damn: I submerged and finished it off with a torpedo.

[iambecomelife]

Hi,

this freighter is gorgeous. Looking forward to the full package.
I built a ship once with the flag on the mainmast, and whenever the mast was destroyed the flag remained in midair. On all my ships the flagstaffs are indestructible. Did you adjust the flag node´s parent ID to match your main mast?

Regards,
DD

I hadn't done that - instead I'd just moved the 3d location. This was in early 2006 when I didn't understand the concept of parent objects. I assume that giving the flag the mast as a parent would have caused it to break off along with the mast and disappear whenever it was blown overboard, just like liferafts & deck cargo. In any event, that ship is obsolete and I'm not releasing it.

[jpm1]

I have received the PM i haven t seen nothing except once it took me seven torpedoes to sink the boat i don t remember the settings it was a convoy of several empires

[jpm1]

The boat set loaded with freight interior and freight containers exterior set on elite it took me 8 torpedoes to sink it the boat loaded with freight interior and freight crates exterior set on elite it took me 6 torpedoes to sink it the boat loaded with freight interior and freight containers exterior set on poor it took me 6 torpedoes to sink it a C3 cargo loaded with freight interior freight containers exterior set on elite it took me 3 torpedoes to sink it same with a C3 loaded with freight with freight crates exterior

[jpm1]

The boat s magnificent with the wooden deck and the camouflage :up:

[iambecomelife]

Have you had any more problems with the number of torpedoes needed to sink it?

[jpm1]

When the boat isn t loaded with fuel or ammunitions and if you don t hit the boiler room 8/6 torpedoes too much for a boat of this tall 6 torpedoes maxi rarely i suggest 3 torpedoes 1941 4 1942 4/5 1943 4/5 torpedoes 1944 i ve maybe also seen another thing i must check i m back in few minutes ...

[jpm1]

The ship s armed in 1941 the others don t i think that you did it purposely i announce it nevertheless :)

[jpm1]

I ve just sank a T3 set on elite with a freight load it took me only 3 torpedoes to sink it i m talking about boats which sink by water sees (don t know word english) not by boiler room explosion i go back to my u-boote :)

[jpm1]

I saw something the boat was shooting at a plane (JU88) with the deck gun first time i see that the boat was set on elite don t know if this has something to do unless it is about one AA gun but i don t think so

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b264/jpm1/AA.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b264/jpm1/AA1.jpg

IXB gun
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b264/jpm1/SAA.jpg

[jpm1]

@iambecomelife : clean your PMs i canno t send you PM :hmm: .

[Woof1701]

Any news on this one yet? It's been quite a while.

[iambecomelife]

http://www.clydesite.co.uk/clydebuilt/ships/1943/EMPIRE_FALSTAFF_981.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d54/iambecomelife/Emp1.jpg

The "Empire" class freighter is now available for download.

http://dodownload.filefront.com/6907627//87f00c8dcf90042bf65130e744c71223aab674691200680def 6b41eec9ccfce01d217a79a6030c83

I reduced the number of hitpoints from the beta version to make it easier to sink - let me know if it still seems too durable. This ship comes with camoflaged skins only, since this type was built after the outbreak of the war. It is assigned to Britain and Canada, and appears around mid-1940. You may want to adjust the amount of renown you get for this ship, depending on which mod you are using. Change the RenownAwarded value in the file M35B.cfg to whatever value you want. This ship was created using Sansal's Pack3d program and tested on an installation that had NYGM installed - however, it's compatible with any version of SH3.

Thank you's to the beta testers, Sergbuto (I used at least one part from his NKGN) and everyone else who contributed.

Photo courtesy of clydesite.co.uk.

[iambecomelife]

This ship is now complete: http://dodownload.filefront.com/6907627//87f00c8dcf90042bf65130e744c71223aab674691200680def 6b41eec9ccfce01d217a79a6030c83

[Alex]

Aw yes ! :rock:
Thanks, can't wait to see that baby in front of my torp tubes. :cool:

[iambecomelife]

Thanks Alex! Enjoy.

@ the moderators: Can you merge this with the old thread or delete it? :oops:

[Alex]

:up:

BTW, are you going to release every ship separately ? :huh:

[Mush Martin]

very nice think ill grab one and dent it up a bit.:arrgh!:

[STEED]

Great stuff :cool:

[iambecomelife]

:up:

BTW, are you going to release every ship separately ? :huh:

No; most of them will be released in a main pack. However, there will be some small expansion packs with additional liners and tankers. I may also include additional skins as a separate download.

[Alex]

Hmm, ok, thanks very much for the information ! That's good to know that we'll be able to add them as a pack, and not one by one. :doh: :88)
Let's play now ! I really can't wait to see this ship. http://www.crypticmadness.com/Forum/images/Smiles/smilejump.gif :p

[Venatore]

These are by far the best textures/colouring of a ship thus far. Well done ! :up:

[Mush Martin]

Hey Life Shiva here.

I have a single mission CTD associated with this ship that I cant figure out.

Mission is River Class Frigate (type2) sea trials.

date:06/17/1943
location:eastern grandbanks.

this mission is standard sea trials mission used many times succesfully.

situation : a single commerce ship on a simple dummy course with
four river class frigates in close escort.

Normally a large tanker or Pyro ammo ship. swapouts are pretty common.

swapped in empire class and got ctd

confirmed canadian cfg correct one.
confirmed m35b in eng names cfg.
confirmed sea folder present and not nested in a second folder.
confirmed availability dates of ships and such.against mission date.
swapped out to old copy with freighter. no ctd.

?????...................:doh:hunh

[Flybywire]

I installed this mod and it casues CTD. I uninstalled it with JSGME and everything is fine. I did install it while on patrol and should you be in base before installing this ship?

Thanks

[Woof1701]

GREAT!!! Thanks a lot! I've been really looking forward to this :up:

[Mush Martin]

Mine was a single mission no port to park at

[Schultzy]

Beautiful. :)

[STEED]

Spotted a strange problem on the TDC Screen the ship is not there but you can still track it. :-?

Apart from what I call a very minor problem I still sunk the sucker. :yep:

[iambecomelife]

Hey Life Shiva here.

I have a single mission CTD associated with this ship that I cant figure out.

Mission is River Class Frigate (type2) sea trials.

date:06/17/1943
location:eastern grandbanks.

this mission is standard sea trials mission used many times succesfully.

situation : a single commerce ship on a simple dummy course with
four river class frigates in close escort.

Normally a large tanker or Pyro ammo ship. swapouts are pretty common.

swapped in empire class and got ctd

confirmed canadian cfg correct one.
confirmed m35b in eng names cfg.
confirmed sea folder present and not nested in a second folder.
confirmed availability dates of ships and such.against mission date.
swapped out to old copy with freighter. no ctd.

?????...................:doh:hunh

Did you make sure that the unit type for the commercial vessel is 102? A tanker is type 101, and i'm not entirely sure but I think a Pyro is also a class # other than 102.

[iambecomelife]

I installed this mod and it casues CTD. I uninstalled it with JSGME and everything is fine. I did install it while on patrol and should you be in base before installing this ship?

Thanks

Try installing it when SH3 is not running and then run the game. I noticed that SH3 does not pick up new units that are created while SH3.exe is active.

[Mush Martin]

Hey Life Shiva here.

I have a single mission CTD associated with this ship that I cant figure out.

Mission is River Class Frigate (type2) sea trials.

date:06/17/1943
location:eastern grandbanks.

this mission is standard sea trials mission used many times succesfully.

situation : a single commerce ship on a simple dummy course with
four river class frigates in close escort.

Normally a large tanker or Pyro ammo ship. swapouts are pretty common.

swapped in empire class and got ctd

confirmed canadian cfg correct one.
confirmed m35b in eng names cfg.
confirmed sea folder present and not nested in a second folder.
confirmed availability dates of ships and such.against mission date.
swapped out to old copy with freighter. no ctd.

?????...................:doh:hunh
Did you make sure that the unit type for the commercial vessel is 102? A tanker is type 101, and i'm not entirely sure but I think a Pyro is also a class # other than 102.

No it was a clean swap in mission editor highlight old unit / delete

select mb35 insert reset escort formation on new ship set parameters
for unit and group check mission and save.
all appears nominal to profile just a no go ?????????????????

[iambecomelife]

Hey Life Shiva here.

I have a single mission CTD associated with this ship that I cant figure out.

Mission is River Class Frigate (type2) sea trials.

date:06/17/1943
location:eastern grandbanks.

this mission is standard sea trials mission used many times succesfully.

situation : a single commerce ship on a simple dummy course with
four river class frigates in close escort.

Normally a large tanker or Pyro ammo ship. swapouts are pretty common.

swapped in empire class and got ctd

confirmed canadian cfg correct one.
confirmed m35b in eng names cfg.
confirmed sea folder present and not nested in a second folder.
confirmed availability dates of ships and such.against mission date.
swapped out to old copy with freighter. no ctd.

?????...................:doh:hunh
Did you make sure that the unit type for the commercial vessel is 102? A tanker is type 101, and i'm not entirely sure but I think a Pyro is also a class # other than 102.

No it was a clean swap in mission editor highlight old unit / delete

select mb35 insert reset escort formation on new ship set parameters
for unit and group check mission and save.
all appears nominal to profile just a no go ?????????????????

Check your PM.

Also, this is a very long shot but try cloning the unit in Pack3d to change the unique hex id (although that's probably not the reason).:hmm:

[Ocean Blue]

Hi iambecomelife :D

It's good :up:

In sight "Empire"

http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/993/m35b01zn2.jpg

And go "Empire" was obstinate !

http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/1545/m35b02vd7.jpg

And another "Empire"

http://img157.imageshack.us/img157/9325/m35b03jm3.jpg

The mods which continues evolving !

Thanks

[wojciech kucharski]

Hey Life Shiva here.

I have a single mission CTD associated with this ship that I cant figure out.

Mission is River Class Frigate (type2) sea trials.

date:06/17/1943
location:eastern grandbanks.

this mission is standard sea trials mission used many times succesfully.

situation : a single commerce ship on a simple dummy course with
four river class frigates in close escort.

Normally a large tanker or Pyro ammo ship. swapouts are pretty common.

swapped in empire class and got ctd

confirmed canadian cfg correct one.
confirmed m35b in eng names cfg.
confirmed sea folder present and not nested in a second folder.
confirmed availability dates of ships and such.against mission date.
swapped out to old copy with freighter. no ctd.

?????...................:doh:hunh
Did you make sure that the unit type for the commercial vessel is 102? A tanker is type 101, and i'm not entirely sure but I think a Pyro is also a class # other than 102.

No it was a clean swap in mission editor highlight old unit / delete

select mb35 insert reset escort formation on new ship set parameters
for unit and group check mission and save.
all appears nominal to profile just a no go ?????????????????

Check your PM.

Also, this is a very long shot but try cloning the unit in Pack3d to change the unique hex id (although that's probably not the reason).:hmm:

Hm, "Empire" in campaigns works ok.:)

[VonDos]

Found :ping: and sink :down: in campaign, in a small convoy of 3 ships near Stornoway in 07\31\1942. :know:


Great, great work! :rock: :D :arrgh!:

[bigboywooly]

You should have no problems seeing the ship in campaign as plenty of generic entries for single ships and convoys

If the ship is added to a GWX ship update ( with Iam's permission of course ) then there will also be a couple docked in the odd port now and again too

[Jimbuna]

Aint come across the bugger yet :(

[bigboywooly]

IIRC the ship doesnt exist till mid 41

:hmm:

[Mush Martin]

It Works fine in single missions too it just must have been something
I missed the first two times.

MM

[rascal101]

Does any one know if Iam will release his other merchant mods soon? I'm so tired of shooting up the stock rubber duckies. Despite the best efforts of the GWX and NYGM modders many of the stock merchants just look silly and bring down the overall graphic quality of the game and their mods. The worst offenders are the smaller merchants, they are and have always been awful!

You should have no problems seeing the ship in campaign as plenty of generic entries for single ships and convoys

If the ship is added to a GWX ship update ( with Iam's permission of course ) then there will also be a couple docked in the odd port now and again too

[bigboywooly]

We are all hoping he will

Only one man can answer that question

[Jimbuna]

Aint come across the bugger yet :(

Well I have now :yep: So here's a few pics (using the GWX update 1.03...however the Empire Class is a manual edition by me)
In convoy
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2250/empireinconvoyqk3.jpg
Listing after taking an eel
http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/8393/empirelistingwt0.jpg
http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/5273/empirelisting3nh0.jpg
The final rights
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2623/empireexplodingrr2.jpg
And her sister
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2438/empireexploding2ln4.jpg

[STEED]

A brand spanking new ship and you come along and butcher it.

[Jimbuna]

A brand spanking new ship and you come along and butcher it.

SINK EM ALL!! :arrgh!:

[STEED]

A brand spanking new ship and you come along and butcher it.

SINK EM ALL!! :arrgh!:

RIGHT ON. :rock:

[mr chris]

Great to see this ship has been realesed. Great work iambecomelife. :up:

[bigboywooly]

Already added it to a WIP GWX ship update

Room for another 50 Iambecome

:rotfl:

[mr chris]

Well if thats the case then BBW i will wait and see if many more are realeased and see if they come with a future version of GWX save me D/L them all one by one. Also if i did D/L it would have a total different damage model to all the other ships in GWX. Best to wait and see what happends along the road.

Edit: This blasted Admiral avatar looks just like my Dad.

[bigboywooly]

True mate
Depends if you can wait
:rotfl:

Currently have 19 ships and 1 aircraft in MY WIP pack
Whether they all make it is another thing but its not gonna be for a couple of months at least

[Mush Martin]

Been working with this one since I mysteriously fixed my unkown
bugaboo.?":doh:

the nice thing is that in mission tweaking Ive gotten to
change the loadout many times and the more I look at
this model the more eye catching it has become.

Great Job IABL :up::up:
MM

[Jimbuna]

Well if thats the case then BBW i will wait and see if many more are realeased and see if they come with a future version of GWX save me D/L them all one by one. Also if i did D/L it would have a total different damage model to all the other ships in GWX. Best to wait and see what happends along the road.

Edit: This blasted Admiral avatar looks just like my Dad.

Put the fecka in :D She's a beauty (check the shots on #82) and her damage model doesn't appear too dissimilar to the GWX ships. :arrgh!:

[mr chris]

True mate
Depends if you can wait
:rotfl:

Currently have 19 ships and 1 aircraft in MY WIP pack
Whether they all make it is another thing but its not gonna be for a couple of months at least

Oh i can wait mate i can be very patient guy when i want to be. I have only scraped the surface with GWX so far so im sure i can wait for as long as it takes for what ever presents we get in the big update.