[TEC] New Unit Types

tater · 08-15-07, 11:12 AM

In my continuing search for a way to make beach defense recon missions, I decided that making a "ship" coastal defense unit was the best choice (since the game will "lock" ships only). Second best would be an invisible ship. Anchor it in front of coast defenses, and you take a picture by locking the invisible ship.

So far, so good.

The problem? If you make an invisible ship or a coastal gun "ship" it must be set to a ship unit type---the new invisible/coastal gun unit will then show up at sea whenever a "GENERIC" call is made for that type. This is BAD. The invisible small coastal craft are no big deal, they don't show up anymore on radar/sonar, but it'd still pose a hazard, you might run into one. The coastal gun at sea... that's a problem, lol.

So I thought, can I just add a new type to Names.cfg as a definition, then use it to make new types.

You can.

I made a test class of ship, "Super Battleship" (Type16) and modded Yamato to be Type=16 instead of Type=11. She works fine. Only issue is that she doesn't show up in the recognition manual as a warship (I didn't check merchants, need to do that). (she certainly fired all her guns at me when I surfaced, lol)

Regardless of how the invisible ship thing turns out, this is very useful.

If it is possible to make a ship not appear in the rec manual, that alone is cool. Yamato was unknown for a while, no data at all. Akizuki was classed as DD UNK-1 by ONI. Very sketchy data.

Things we can do assuming this works with further testing:

1. Possibly make units not appear in the rec manual.

2. Subdivide classes to limit GENERIC pulls in a more controleld way:
Ie: Yamato becomes a Super BB, abd generic BB pulls no longer include Yamato. Yamato can then be a random pull where needed from "Super BB." The gunboats could become a new type, and we'd never see them at sea, ever, only puttering around chinese islands and ports...

3. Merchants might be "BP-cloned" into a new class or two in addition to their normal Types. I could see a "Fast Merchants" type. You could make random fast traffic where all ships can make at least 15 knots (or 19, whatever). We could isolate the huge liners from other transports to make the huge ones rare, and the other more common.

4. Maybe I can make a "special unit" type for things like invisble ships.

tater · 08-15-07, 11:40 AM

It's not in the rec manual at all. This is fine, actually, a really good feature.

This means Yamato could become an unknown type. You want to shoot? Pick what BB looks closest, and guestimate.

It also means that "BP-clones" won't clog up the rec manual with multiple images of the same ship. Since the dimensions are the same, you can tell the TDC it's a Large modern composite and it will hit, even if it's cloned to be a "fast" type for specialized convoys.

sneekyzeke · 08-15-07, 11:56 AM

You, Sir, are a studified modder man.

tater · 08-15-07, 01:14 PM

It's an exciting new find to ME, but I'm sure I'll soon hear "it was done many times in GWX before."

The plus side of not having a clue is that I'm not afraid to try really stupid stuff to see if it works (I even told a boat it was a torpedo plane inthe hopes I could make it shoot torpedos... which gives me a new idea)

None the less, I imagine there are a few of us here because of the PTO who don't know from SH3.

tater

Bando · 08-15-07, 01:19 PM

Well Tater, all this does not sound stupid to me. It's all way beyond me. I'm a bit in awe right now to see what you can come up with. This is appriciated by many, and certainly by me. You're doing something outstanding here.

LukeFF · 08-15-07, 05:19 PM

Sounds great, tater. I'd take the "super battleship" concept one step further and add it to the fleet CVs. It wasn't like the Japanese carrier force was constantly at sea, and seeing more than one Taiho is a bit of an immersion breaker.

08-15-07, 11:12 AM	#1
tater Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: New Mexico, USA Posts: 9,023 Downloads: 8 Uploads: 2	[TEC] New Unit Types In my continuing search for a way to make beach defense recon missions, I decided that making a "ship" coastal defense unit was the best choice (since the game will "lock" ships only). Second best would be an invisible ship. Anchor it in front of coast defenses, and you take a picture by locking the invisible ship. So far, so good. The problem? If you make an invisible ship or a coastal gun "ship" it must be set to a ship unit type---the new invisible/coastal gun unit will then show up at sea whenever a "GENERIC" call is made for that type. This is BAD. The invisible small coastal craft are no big deal, they don't show up anymore on radar/sonar, but it'd still pose a hazard, you might run into one. The coastal gun at sea... that's a problem, lol. So I thought, can I just add a new type to Names.cfg as a definition, then use it to make new types. You can. I made a test class of ship, "Super Battleship" (Type16) and modded Yamato to be Type=16 instead of Type=11. She works fine. Only issue is that she doesn't show up in the recognition manual as a warship (I didn't check merchants, need to do that). (she certainly fired all her guns at me when I surfaced, lol) Regardless of how the invisible ship thing turns out, this is very useful. If it is possible to make a ship not appear in the rec manual, that alone is cool. Yamato was unknown for a while, no data at all. Akizuki was classed as DD UNK-1 by ONI. Very sketchy data. Things we can do assuming this works with further testing: 1. Possibly make units not appear in the rec manual. 2. Subdivide classes to limit GENERIC pulls in a more controleld way: Ie: Yamato becomes a Super BB, abd generic BB pulls no longer include Yamato. Yamato can then be a random pull where needed from "Super BB." The gunboats could become a new type, and we'd never see them at sea, ever, only puttering around chinese islands and ports... 3. Merchants might be "BP-cloned" into a new class or two in addition to their normal Types. I could see a "Fast Merchants" type. You could make random fast traffic where all ships can make at least 15 knots (or 19, whatever). We could isolate the huge liners from other transports to make the huge ones rare, and the other more common. 4. Maybe I can make a "special unit" type for things like invisble ships.

08-15-07, 01:19 PM	#5
Bando Commodore Join Date: May 2007 Location: Where you don't see me Posts: 607 Downloads: 23 Uploads: 0	Well Tater, all this does not sound stupid to me. It's all way beyond me. I'm a bit in awe right now to see what you can come up with. This is appriciated by many, and certainly by me. You're doing something outstanding here. __________________ Regards, Bando

08-15-07, 11:40 AM	#2
tater Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: New Mexico, USA Posts: 9,023 Downloads: 8 Uploads: 2	It's not in the rec manual at all. This is fine, actually, a really good feature. This means Yamato could become an unknown type. You want to shoot? Pick what BB looks closest, and guestimate. It also means that "BP-clones" won't clog up the rec manual with multiple images of the same ship. Since the dimensions are the same, you can tell the TDC it's a Large modern composite and it will hit, even if it's cloned to be a "fast" type for specialized convoys.

08-15-07, 11:56 AM	#3
sneekyzeke Electrician's Mate Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: The Sweet State, Georgia Posts: 134 Downloads: 44 Uploads: 0	You, Sir, are a studified modder man.

08-15-07, 01:14 PM	#4
tater Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: New Mexico, USA Posts: 9,023 Downloads: 8 Uploads: 2	It's an exciting new find to ME, but I'm sure I'll soon hear "it was done many times in GWX before." The plus side of not having a clue is that I'm not afraid to try really stupid stuff to see if it works (I even told a boat it was a torpedo plane inthe hopes I could make it shoot torpedos... which gives me a new idea) None the less, I imagine there are a few of us here because of the PTO who don't know from SH3. tater

08-15-07, 05:19 PM	#6
LukeFF Silent Hunter Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Riverside, California Posts: 3,610 Downloads: 41 Uploads: 5	Sounds great, tater. I'd take the "super battleship" concept one step further and add it to the fleet CVs. It wasn't like the Japanese carrier force was constantly at sea, and seeing more than one Taiho is a bit of an immersion breaker.