[niffiwan]

ok - try deleting those 13 files in <ROOT>/data/tables.  Generally unless you're modding you should not have any files in data/tables, and especially never anything in <ROOT>/data/tables.

[Bossman]

Yoo, it all works perfectly now. Thanks so much, folks! From now on, the integrity of my root /data folder shall be protected! 

[AdmiralRalwood]

you should check your other \data\ folders for Bem Cavalger files, because clearly you somehow got it installed to your root folder without .vp files

EDIT: Tried the Verify Vps command line, but I can't get past the SCP load screen with that on. The vp_crcs txt file doesn't seem to have been created

You "couldn't get past the SCP load screen" because -verify_vps generates the file and then quits. With FSO 3.7.4, vp_crcs.txt should be generated in the same folder as the executable.

[Bossman]

Good call there -- The /data/ root was rotten with those files -- musta been sleepy when I extracted or something.. Buut I believe I killed them all now.

[herkie423]

I ran into a glitch on the mission where you attack the Bhall with Armageddon bombers:

When you call in a support craft and it docks with you the ETA gauge always stays at 00:00 and doesn't change to "rearming" like usual.  Plus while it's docked with you it doesn't stay in place like it normally does but you do a bunch of loops.  The only way to stop this is to use afterburners and "abort" rearming.

Thankfully while this is happening you do get rearmed but it's kind of weird.

Oh crap! It's the model's "pathing" problem or the docking point placement. It is certain that I have not tackle that issue. I will fix that in the POF editor. Thanks CT. This will be fixed in an update along with other issues posted here. I am still gathering more reported issues to tackle. I am also testing the campaign even further. Until another extensive bug hunt (this will be difficult because the bugs will become rare) is finished, I will release the update.

[herkie423]

I just got done with the mission "The Warlock".

No major technical issues but a question:  Most GTVA capships in this game have blue beams but the Warlock has green beams.  Is there an explanation for that?

Well, only the GTVA prototypes, the 7th Battlegroup, are equipped with Gravimetric beams (Blue beams) and the new pulse turrets. The Warlock and other new destroyers and cruisers (except for a few) are equipped only with the standard plasma beams (Green for Terrans and yellow beams for Vasudans) and defense turrets. It was planned in the years to come that all GTVA warships will be equipped with these weapons but not at this point in time.

[CT27]

I ran into a glitch on the mission where you attack the Bhall with Armageddon bombers:

When you call in a support craft and it docks with you the ETA gauge always stays at 00:00 and doesn't change to "rearming" like usual.  Plus while it's docked with you it doesn't stay in place like it normally does but you do a bunch of loops.  The only way to stop this is to use afterburners and "abort" rearming.

Thankfully while this is happening you do get rearmed but it's kind of weird.

Oh crap! It's the model's "pathing" problem or the docking point placement. It is certain that I have not tackle that issue. I will fix that in the POF editor. Thanks CT. This will be fixed in an update along with other issues posted here. I am still gathering more reported issues to tackle. I am also testing the campaign even further. Until another extensive bug hunt (this will be difficult because the bugs will become rare) is finished, I will release the update.

Thanks Herkie, I'll download the update when it's available. 

How's the work on getting this on the Installer going?

[CT27]

I just beat the mission "Dragon Slayer".

Overall this version of the campaign ("The Aftermath:  Reboot") is noticeably better than the first "The Aftermath"  and I want to congratulate you on a big achievement.


However, can offer a piece of (in my opinion) constructive criticism?  I can't demand you change it back, but there were a couple things I liked better about the previous version of "Dragon Slayer" vs. the one in this campaign.  The older one was better in my view.  Right now my gut reaction is that I'd graft the previous "Dragon Slayer" into this campaign if I could (with the addition of the Avenger being the new Romulan looking version to keep something of the new mission in).  I'm not saying I hated this version but I definitely liked the previous one better.

Or Herkie, I could PM you about this if you'd like.


Right now I don't know how to do spoiler tags here (I know this is a remake of a previous campaign so spoilers may not be required but it's near the end so better safe than sorry) so if someone could tell me how to do that I'd appreciate it.

[CT27]

Yesterday I completed the campaign.  Here's my overall review:

Technically it's a lot better than the previous version.  The previous one would crash sometimes (not much, but sometimes) and I don't remember this one crashing on a mission once.  I noticed some new music tracks throughout which I enjoyed...but a lot of the good ones from the previous version are here too.
Graphically, the new ships look cool (excellent work on the new Royal Sathanas Herkie).  The graphics and sound of the new blue beams were good as well.  Something good this new version did is that there are more new Shivan ships to deal with. 

It was also enjoyable experimenting with all the new weapons in this new version of the campaign.  My favorite new primary is the UD-9 Devastator (it's basically a Kayser with slightly less damage but increased range and firing rate).  In terms of new secondaries, the Widowmaker is awesome, it's basically:
-more damage than a Treb
-the range and increased subsystem/turret damage of a Stiletto II
-homing ability and firing rate of a Harpoon
...some might say it's overpowered but it's not in every mission and I had fun using it.


Another important improvement to mention is that a lot of the repetitive missions from the previous version have been changed.  In the previous version there would be some missions of what felt like 20 minutes of intercepting bomber fighter wings/repeat.  It got very tedious in some points.  In this version the time of a lot of those missions have been reduced and there's more stuff happening.

Plot wise this is fairly similar to the previous version for most of the campaign.  There's a new mini-arc in the campaign involving capturing a new type of Shivan cruiser and there's quite a bit of interesting reading in the tech room but for the most part if you played the previous version then you'll recognize this one.  In other words, not much (not nothing...just not much) has changed plot-wise...whether that's for good or bad depends on your perspective.

Overall, 'Reboot' is a major IMO technical improvement over the previous version and I'd recommend it.



Now, is there anything I liked better about the previous version ("The Aftermath") compared to this one ("The Aftermath:  Reboot") that I would change back if I could or at least ask Herkie to change back?  Actually yes there is.  What is that you may ask?  Well, it concerns a somewhat new direction the final two missions and the ending/final cutscenes took in terms of plot and who/what survived.  It made it end on slightly less an upbeat note for me which kind of went against the spirit of the campaign for me at least.  I still don't know how to post spoiler text but I'll PM a mod and ask about that.

[tomimaki]

Code: [Select]

[spoiler]some text[/spoiler]

[herkie423]

Thanks CT for that comprehensive post. It is good.

Well, with regards to the plot line I did not change anything but I added some arc to reinforce the story and to cover some plot holes. But I did swerve the story a bit close to the end... And have my reasons

[herkie423]

I just completed the mission "Sicilian Defense".


Very fun but a couple of minor glitches:

1-The Sathanas juggernauts never reach zero % in health.  They begin to explode after the display reaches 1%.  It's not a huge deal but they should be at 0% when exploding IMO.

2-Something seemed wrong with the Archangel's main gun.  It only fired about twice in the whole mission (whereas in the previous The Aftermath I remember it firing a lot more).  I don't know maybe a juggernaut got a lucky hit on the main gun and destroyed it?  Perhaps you should make the Archangel's main gun 'invulnerable'?
Although something good I noticed about this is that it didn't fire at dying Sathanas juggernauts a lot like the previous version.

One suggestions if I may:
You can select the Boreas cruisers by going C-1 like you can other fighters.  Do you think it would be possible to be able to select all the Boreases at once as a wing if you want to use all of them against one target (C-2)?

Question 1:

You know it's incredible that you noticed that. Sadly, it is deliberate. Remember when you posted a reply in the "WIP" thread that the Archangel is still firing at the juggers even in their death throes? I have taken that observation into account. I call that a "beam anomaly" check. I have inserted an SEXP command to "Beam Protect," to make it "Invulnerable" (I tried not to put it but the solution did not work), and "Beam Lock" at the Juggers when its hitpoint reaches 1. So that the Archangel will turn to another target and the juggernaut will stop firing. FREDers will see that if they edit that mission.

Question 2:

Well, when I replaced the model for the Archangel, I edited the model to adjusted the firing FOV to around 20 degrees so anything outside of that will not be targeted. Plus I adjusted the firing recharge time so it doesn't fire constantly like last time. Since most of the assets are replaced, the entire ship and weapon tables are redone painstakingly to achieve game balance. The firing rate of the Archangel's main Tachyon beam cannon actually make sense now. That big of a weapon takes a lot of energy. I read in some science article that to propagate tachyons really takes immense energy theoretically anyway...

I have taken out the "Beam Anomaly Check" SEXP from the mission. So, it is back to normal. The Juggers will register 0 hitpoints and if you did destroy those, they will be added to your tally. Apparently the Archangel's Main Cannon FOV adjustments solved the issue.

[herkie423]

I have an upcoming update which will be released next week. I can release it now but I will wait a bit longer for more suggestions.

What I have tackled so far were mission improvements like the ones made in "Torpedo Chasers" (more events), "Sicilian Defense" (read previous posts), "The Crippled Fox" (error in dialogue flow), and in many missions. I have fixed the Armageddon's pathing issue in the POF model and adjusted the Archangel's Main Cannon FOV, making a little bit wider. I also covered more grammar corrections (they have become rare and difficult to find).

[CT27]

Since I figured out how to post spoiler text recently, here's the issue I was talking about:
Herkie, can I make a suggestion on how to change something (it would involve minor/moderate change to "Dragon Slayer" and a  very minor change to the credits cutscene):

Spoilers:

Spoiler:

This 'complaint' doesn't have to do with the new design of the Avenger.  I'm fine with it looking like/being a Romulan ship.  However, I really feel it shouldn't have died or self-destructed in "Dragon Slayer".  I liked that the Avenger survived in the previous "The Aftermath" version.  It was inspiring for me to see it flying with the fleet (along with the Boreas) in the credits cutscene in the previous version.

Second only to that special fighter Richter flew, the Avenger felt like "my ship" when I was flying it.  I got really attached to it. 
^That's one of the things I liked about the previous version of "The Aftermath"... it ended on a good note and it felt conclusive.  Some people may think it ended on too good of a note but I like every once in a while having a campaign that's a little more black/white than grey and the good guys win. 
This version ended with a sequel hook which I wasn't crazy about...by that I mean I'm not a fan of sequel hooks or cliffhangers in general in media.  I've seen video games and TV shows and movies that had them and there wasn't a followup/sequel which made the ending feel unpleasant.  Of course, you've stated in the past that there may be a sequel so this may not be an issue for this particular instance.

It didn't sour me on the whole campaign, but I liked the more definitive ending of the first one.  I mean, you can still do a sequel even if a campaign has a conclusive ending and doesn't have a sequel hook.

Anyways, some reasons why I think the Avenger should survive and be part of the ending cutscene:
1-Like I said before, the player gets attached to it.  It's uplifting and satisfactory to see it in the ending.  I know war is war and ships/people die, but not everything has to be a downer.

2-It lived in the previous version.  I expected the 7th BG ships to die since they died in the previous "The Aftermath" (I wished at least one would have survived personally, like Admiral Cartwright for instance, but I'm willing to accept what you did there and won't argue for change on that particular point).  However, this time it came as something of a disappointment that you had to sacrifice it whereas it survived in the previous version.  Maybe it was meant for shock value but I found it kind of disappointing to be honest.

3-The Avenger was powerful enough to survive the Shivan ambush at the end.  This Avenger was even more powerful than the Avenger in the previous "The Aftermath".  It could fire four bolts at a time instead of three and had much more weapon energy (the previous one I could only hold down the primary button for a couple seconds whereas in this one I could hold down the primary fire button for a lot longer).  It was said in "Dragon Slayer" you had to self-destruct the Avenger to get away.  That didn't make much sense to be honest.  The capital ships that came in at the end I was easily able to destroy with the Avenger and I was never really in danger of dying.  The self-destruction felt more forced than necessary in my opinion.

4-The escape pod wouldn't have survived anyways in my opinion.  I think an explosion powerful enough to destroy several Shivan supercaps would have taken out the escape pod.

5-In other missions, you could do the unexpected.  In missions like "The Royal Fleet" and an early mission in the campaign where you're escorting a police corvette out of the system you can do what was considered 'impossible.'  In  the police mission you could destroy several squadrons of fighters even after being given the option on jump out.  In "The Royal Fleet" you could destroy several elite Dragon squadrons even though it was implied that was a near impossible feat.  I think destroying the final wave of superships in "Dragon Slayer" should have been treated like this. 

That's the main issue I had with the changes you made in "The Aftermath:  Reboot".  Herkie, if you could wait a little while before releasing your update, I have a couple minor suggestions on how this could be "fixed" in your next update (although I guess you could still release your planned update then later down the road input my suggestion in another update).
 I'm not a technical FRED expert but I have done story writing before.  Also, I hope you don't think I'm too harsh, I can't demand you make these changes.  I'm still a fan of your work and what I say will be a suggestion that I'd love if you would consider.
I have to be away from my computer for a little, I'll make my suggestion within a day or so.  Also, to soften the blow, I'll post a spoiler review of what I did like about the plot differences in "Reboot".

[CT27]

Here's my suggestion on how to change "Dragon Slayer" and the ending cutscene (not the post-credits scene, but the credits scene).  I think we could both get what we want:

Spoiler:

  The changes would actually only be in the last bit of "Dragon Slayer".  In other words, the command briefing and mission briefing would remain the same.  The change would happen after the final group of Shivan super capships warp in and Command tells you to self destruct the Avenger.

Richter would respond instead by saying (either to himself or outwardly to Command) that we (by 'we' I mean the Avenger and the two Boreas cruisers that are there) can do this and he's not giving up the ship.  The Dark Angels or Ice Queens (sorry I forgot which fighter squadron was there at the moment) say they're going to support Richter and for him to concentrate on the capital ships while they keep the fighters and bombers off his back.

The goal in the directives list would need to be changed to "destroy remaining capital ships".  After that primary objective is accomplished, the fighter squadron leader would tell you to jump out (like he did in the previous "The Aftermath" version of "Dragon Slayer") while they mopped up the enemy fighters.  That was a pretty cool sequence in the previous "Dragon Slayer" when the Avenger slowly jumped out while the music track "Liberty Shield" played.  I'm not saying you have to put that back in (the slow jump out sequence) because I want to keep my change requests minimal but it was cool and showed how the fighter crews were devoted to protecting you.

The mission debriefing could have  Command getting a little upset that you somewhat disobeyed orders.  However, they wouldn't be too upset considering you did win the engagement (success can earn forgiveness in war) and destroyed the enemy's main reserve fleet and saved an important asset.  Plus, they wouldn't want to take you out of the war so close to the end game.  Also, Richter is very popular with his fellow warriors at this point.  The debriefing would also say the Avenger was significantly damaged in the engagement and that would be the explanation why the Avenger and Boreas didn't participate in "Final Confrontation".  That would make more sense than saying we had to blow it up randomly.  Like I said in the previous post, I and others liked this ship and I really would appreciate if you'd consider making a change to let it survive the campaign.

Another main change would be that this would take out the post-mission cutscene where that blue Bhall looking ship saves Richter and Ricther is later rescued by Terrans.  In other words, the first time you would see this blue Bhall ship would  be in the post-credits scene where it would be next to that ship that looks like it's from the Ancients.

There would be no changes necessary to "Final Confrontation" but here's how the credits cutscene would be affected:

Spoiler:

Changes would be relatively minor.  In the line of capital ships that fly by all you would need to do would be to insert the Avenger and a Boreas somewhere. 
Something else I thought of regarding this credits cutscene:  Since the Vasudans helped a lot in the campaign shouldn't there be at least one Vasudan ship in this scene?  I only remember Terran ships being there, you can correct me if I'm wrong though.

The post-credits scene that hinted at a sequel could be left as is.  I have suggestions on how that could be a bit better (though I'm not a huge fan of sequel-hooks in general) if you'd like but I'd be willing to drop that particular critique if you'd consider making the "Dragon Slayer"  and credits cutscene changes.  I don't want to ask too much.  Since I don't want you to think I'm negative on the whole campaign, tomorrow I'll write up a spoiler post on what I liked about the new elements of "The Aftermath:  Reboot".  Again, while I think there's this one story element near the end that should be changed back to how it was in the original, the reboot is a much better playable campaign than your previous "The Aftermath".

I've had writing experience before.  Would you like me to write a draft of what I think "Dragon Slayer" dialogue and debriefing could be like and PM it to you?  If you'd consider this mission change I would have no problem with you using my dialogue and debriefing text in the mission.

[herkie423]

Just like you, I don't know how to post "spoiler" post so I will respond to through PM.

[CT27]

Just like you, I don't know how to post "spoiler" post so I will respond to through PM.

At the beginning of the text you want to hide you put (spoiler)  but with brackets instead of parentheses.
At the end of the text you want to hide you put (/spoiler)  but with brackets instead of parentheses.

Also, Herkie, I put another suggestion to the Avenger/"Dragon Slayer" situation in a PM earlier today.

Spoiler:

  This one takes into account your suggestions about how Richter wouldn't disobey Command and allows for the blue Bhall to still come and rescue Richter.  I kind of explained it in the PM but I'll expand a bit here:
Instead of the Avenger, Command orders the Boreas cruisers there to self-destruct and tells Richter to jump out with the Avenger.  Even though I can defeat the Shivan ambush group that prompted this order you could have Command say that there's even more ships incoming and that the explosion will take them out.  If that one captured Shivan cruiser with subspace bombs exploding could literally wipe Capella off the map, I think this would be believable too.

After you hit alt+J to jump out, the in mission cutscene would have the Avenger slowly jumping out while the Boreas cruisers and Shivan ships exploded.  The next cutscene would have the Avenger (instead of the escape pod) drifting in space and Richter would comment (instead of the green text in the upper left of the screen, this would be the blue text near the middle of the screen that happens when the player character is talking to him/herself) that somehow the blast damaged the Avenger in subspace and that he doesn't know how long he has left to live.

The blue Bhall ship would then come in and transport the Avenger (like it did to the escape pod) to Gamma Draconis.  I think this would be a good compromise because this way you would still get the appearance of the mysterious ship and people speculating on how cool Richter is for surviving like you wanted and I could get the Avenger surviving and flying in the final cutscene with the fleet like I'd wish like the previous "The Aftermath" had.  It would also lead to further speculation from GTVA people on how this ship must have been alien to survive which could tie into the sequel you've talked about in the past.  The debriefing could say it would be too damaged to fight in "The Final Confrontation" but we could buy it would be flight capable for the credits ending cutscene.  Maybe in the sequel you could have people dismantle or study this decommisioned ship to study it and try to create a uniquely "Terran" Avenger?

Like I said in the PM, I'd be willing to write a script for this new version if you'd like to see it.

[herkie423]

Thanks CT for the suggestions. I will consider those. So I will have to delay the update and redo the last two missions. I think I have an Idea. My brain is lighting up like a Christmas tree again. Oh, by the way, remember the issue with the first shivan wing in the "Torpedo Chasers" mission? You said they were hidden and I responded that it was deliberate. Well, I solved that. I wonder why I haven't thought of that before. It was just a matter changing their names to make them appear as part of a wing when, technically,  they are not. ...And with regards with the "New Weapon" mission, you said that the Garudas should be there since it was shown in a cutscene. I replaced the Ravana and Demon with two Garudas. I was worried that the game balance might be affected but, apparently, it did not so the mission is updated. Those changes are included in the update.

[CT27]

Cool.  I'll have my script/suggestions sent to you on PM by Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest.

[CT27]

I sent my PM with suggestions for script/plot changes.