Amazing work!

[cevk]

I apologize if some of this post is out of place; it's 2 AM and I am having trouble making words make sense outside of my head.

As a 40K and FPS player, I was overjoyed to find this project.

I have some experience as a programmer (Primarily C), though I have never attempted anything on the scale of what has been done here.  The most ambitious thing I have ever written was a MUD, and the amount of work that went into something as simple as that makes my head swim when I think about how to do what you have done with Exterminatus.

I would like to help with the project, but unfortunately, having only experience with programming (and I assume you're using C++, not C), and no experience with modelling, or skinning, and the only map-making experience I have relegated to DOOM many years ago... well, I understand that you would not go sharing your source code with anyone.  Also, I'm not sure exactly what I could do in a programming capacity to help you.

Anyway, the question I wanted to ask, and what I was thinking of attempting, is this:  How much of the Class Selection for Tyranids and Marines is hard-coded, and how much is scripted?

I was playing the game after I found it, and I was thinking that with the Points accumulated while playing that are used to select which class one spawns as, that it would be possible to implement a system where a basic class, such as Tactical Marine, Veteran, Devastator, etc, would be picked, and then specific wargear options could be purchased similar to Counterstrike, and similar to how one selects a squad in the tabletop and then, on top of the base cost of the marines, must purchase their wargear as additional costs.

For example, a tactical marine would have no wargear options -- they are the base, and you don't get to make choices.  Spawning as a veteran costs more points, and comes with a basic choice of wargear: bolt pistol and chainsword and grenades, for example, but excess points could be used to purchase better wargear, such as upgrading the bolt pistol to a plasma pistol, the chainsword to a power sword. The Devastator could choose between a Heavy Bolter and a Plasma Cannon or (since HL2 already has an excellent missile launcher), a Missile Launcher or a Lascannon.

Tyranids, also, would have a choice of biomorphs based upon what class they have picked -- carnifexes could purchase Crushing Claws, which would be slower firing, but more damaging, melee weapons, maybe with an AoE knockback effect, etc.

Balance, I think, would be made easier in that the prices of the weapons themselves, over the base cost of the class, could be increased or decreased, along with their power, range, rate of fire, etc, to even them out.

So, now that I've said all that, the big thing is, how much of that is feasible through scripting?  Would implementing, or attempting to implement, such a system be possible through server-side scripting, or would it require actual alteration to the source code to effect?  Because if it's possible through scripting, instead of source code modification, I'm be very interested in attempting it.

I look forward to a response. You've done an amazing job here.

[Typheron]

Hi there, glad you are liking what you see thus far!

Any and all help would be welcome, were a small team with Chromeangel doing the lions share of the work. Any help with the coding there would be super, although you would have to talk to him directly on what's going on code wise.

The wargear idea is one we have had ourselves and would like to implement at some point, were mostly limited by the team size again. Too much to do and not enough people working on it to get anywhere fast.

Its entirely possible to code that, although i don't know the man hours required (if chrome starts crying at any point, its rated in months) but Rival Species 1 had that very system in place, buy a class and then get basic wargear or upgrade.

I dare say chrome will be along shortly to make some comments too.

[ChromeAngel]

EX is written in C++ based on the Source SDK that valve publishes.  Unlike say Gmod for example I have not added an interface to a scripting language.  The only way anyone outside the EX team can  modify the behaviour of EX is through the use of server side plug-ins (whos functionality is strictly limited without knowing the internal workings of the game/mod being played).

The team and and class menus are based on a common menu class, so it would be fairly easy to add a wargear/biomods menu.  Re-structuring the code that store information about the player classes, their costs and wargear todrive the new menu would not be too traumatic.   On top of the coding side of it you'd want some images of the wargear to go on the buttons and some additional translated text to inform the player about their selection.

Without C++ and learning your way around the Source SDK (or at least the Client side VGUI bits) there is not much that can be done to help i'm afraid.

[Typheron]

Theres always mapping, which is a standby for anyone who wants to help but is lacking in specific skills.

More maps are always good, and its fairly easy to pick up, the hard bit is actually figuring out a layout.

If you want to help with that, i can help set you up and offer advice.