Clash of Empires - The Older Mod Which Inspired the New

[Majestic]

Hello all, well I'm at it again. While Syf and I are working hard on Yesteryears I have decided that in my spare time to start work on a personal modification that I intend to release to the community. So I suppose it's not a personal mod but lets just call it that for now shall we.

There is no set release date on the modification as it's intended as a really long-term modification as I'll be doing all the work myself and it has nothing really outstanding to make it stand out from Modifications like Zero Hour, Tactical Assault, Art of War etc. It's just my take on making a TNG modification set in the Dominion war era, taking off from where the MSFC Dominion Mod and various other private mods in the past have left off.

I plan to start with the Dominion and Cardassians, those two races are who I am currently focusing on at the moment. I will no doubt then follow up with the Romulans and another race who I haven't as of yet decided to work on in parallel with the Romulans. I do however plan to make the Klingons, Federation, Breen and Sona as fully playable races along with the Dominion, Romulans and Cardassians.

I will no doubt after I get that done recide to do more races. There are many ideas out there but I must say that the Remans hold a particular interest to me to even the number of races up but thats quite a long way away at the moment.

I'll be adding the best of the best from the community including the Midnight graphics enhancement package, graphic enhancements by Fahres, A2Physics project by Thunderfoot and models by various modellers in particular Achilles. The models will be re-textured so the entire fleet will match and some kitbashed to increase the number of ships available. I'll also be converting ships from other games like SFC and BC and poly reducing them to an acceptable limit to run on the storm3d engine which A2 runs on.

Also to take a clue from Achilles I do plan to release the modification in packages, the first no doubt being the Cardassians and Dominion, whether together or seperately is undecided at this current time.

As for fleet size I can easily say it won't be nearly as large as Dan's Cardassian and Vulcan mods and not as small as Yesteryears. If I had to put a rough estimate on it I'll have to put down that there will be roughly 20-25 ships per race. I am planing on removing the concept of trading from the game, so bye bye cargo ships and trading stations. Also officer limit will be abolished for all but the most expensive and powerful units. Things will be simplified and will make A2 much more like what A1 was in terms of gameplay.

So far I haven't got much in coding done apart from installing a few enhancements. I have however completed the retexturing and mesh cleanup process on 7 Cardassian vessels, namely the Hideki, Norin, Galor, Keldon, Kalon, Korinar and Kimal. I plan on re-doing some of the stock models but only the better looking one as there are some horrid designs.

Below are two images of the Cardassian ships that have been retextured and cleaned up.

 

[Majestic]

Well I have been busy at work and have gotten some more done on the Cardassians. They are by far the most complete race as they have over half their combat ships now complete.

I plan to include the Unofficial Patch 1.2.5 so I can have the Hutet deploy it's Norins like seen in the Dominion Wars game.

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Shown in these images are the following:

• Hideki Frigate
• Kimal Destroyer
• Norin Destroyer
• Kondal Cruiser
• Korinar Cruiser
• Kalon Cruiser
• Galor Cruiser
• Keldon Cruiser
• Hutet Battleship

 

[Majestic]

More updates on the Cardassians.

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[Amateur]

Looking good - loving the fact the Hutet can deploy Norins. As if it'd need that extra fire-power

Textures are a bit light for my tastes; but I play on dark maps where only the lights are visible anyway so its no big problem

 

[Majestic]

Thanks Amateur, great to see some feedback After 25 views with only 3-4 being me when I post updates I was starting to wonder.

Yeah I'll no doubt darken the textures before I release the Cardassian race.

 

[Knight]

Looks good Majestic

Though personally i'd have the Hutet deploy some sort of cardassian fighter than a destroyer. but thats my opinion.

Still, it sounds good. And i really hope you include the Remans, theres been a distinct lack in ships for them

 

[Dan1025]

Very nice work Majestic! Those Cardassian ships look great, and nice idea with the Hutet having Norin Class ships to launch.

Keep it up, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with for the other races

 

[Aerilon]

Like I said over on GF, not so sure on the colour-scheme, but a **** nice fleet you've got yourself together. I see a few retextures of older ships too, which seem to have worked quite well.

 

[Majestic]

Thank you all.

Well in the Dominion War game, the Hutet launched Norins so thats why I did it here, to stay true to the original concept of the ship. And yes to do plan for the Norin to release the ships ingame, just makes the vessel even more deadly.

Yes the Dominion will be up next after I complete the Cardassians, I have a number of their ships and stations already complete thanks to my work on the MSFC Mod I made a year or so ago.

 

[Majestic]

I have finally decided to knock the ship/fleet list down a few, so now each race will have 15 combat ships and 2-3 non-combats.

So I only have a few Cardassians ships left to do and then get the stations done and wolla they are complete model wise.

 

[Aerilon]

Well in the Dominion War game, the Hutet launched Norins so thats why I did it here, to stay true to the original concept of the ship. And yes to do plan for the Norin to release the ships ingame, just makes the vessel even more deadly.

I didn't think it actually 'launched' them. I though it could just carry two of them, which are connected to the bottom of the head, and could detach when required.

 

[Amateur]

I didn't think it actually 'launched' them. I though it could just carry two of them, which are connected to the bottom of the head, and could detach when required.

Well a Hutet could be built with these two attached; and then separate into one without them and two Norins? I mean, with the patch project this'd be quite simple.

But then, its your mod Majestic - you call the shots.

 

[Majestic]

I didn't think it actually 'launched' them. I though it could just carry two of them, which are connected to the bottom of the head, and could detach when required.

You are right, I just call it launch as they launch from the mothership (Hutet)

Well a Hutet could be built with these two attached; and then separate into one without them and two Norins? I mean, with the patch project this'd be quite simple.

But then, its your mod Majestic - you call the shots.

Bingo, thats exactly what I plan on doing.

 

[Sqweloookle]

I love the cardassians Majestic! Very awesome, keep it up.

 

[Majestic]

Thanks Darklight.

Well I have done some more ships, Achilles sent me an old Tonga mesh he had lying around and I made some edits and textured her. I also edited and retexted one of Aad Moerman's Cardassian ships and I am in the progress of doing another. I also got the non-combat vessels out of the way. Another addition, I decided to add one more ship class the dreadnaught. Shes a massive ship and a nasty one. The Cardassians naturally get the Hutet, thus I am going to have to do another battleship. One of Aad Moerman's cardassian cruisers is going to fill that rol after I retexture it. Oh and one last thing on the Cardassians, I am considering removing the Kalon as she simply doesn't look like she fits in with the rest of the Cardassian ships I got there. She may appear in a later release as an advanced cruiser or something.

Some screenshots for you of the fleet in MS3D, click on the image for a larger view:



Now onto the releases I have finally decided on a release order and to give the project a little more meaning. Here is what I plan to do.

I plan to release the project in packs as mentioned earlier, two (2) species/races/empires per release. That equals a total of four (4) releases.

The releases go in this order:

Star Trek Armada 2: Clash of Empires - The Klingon/Cardassian War
Part 1 of the Clash of Empires modification, this version is basically just from an era from the war between the Klingons and Cardassians in the 2370's the conflict before the Dominion War. This war ultimately leads to the Dominion war due to the Cardassians joining the Dominion rather than face destruction by the Klingons.

This part includes as you may have guessed by now the Klingon and Cardassian sides only. I have yet to decide whether or not I should lock the more advanced ships out, the ones that were developed during the Dominion war. I would appreicate some opinions and suggestions on this.

Star Trek Armada 2: Clash of Empires - Outbreak of the Dominion War
Part 2 of the Clash of Empires modification, this version is from 2374 when the Dominion war just started and includes the Federation and Dominion sides supplemented with the Klingons and Cardassians from part 1 bringing the early days of the Dominion war to Armada 2.

Star Trek Armada 2: Clash of Empires - Final Days of the Dominion War
Part 3 of the Clash of Empires modification, this version is from 2376 and the last days of the Dominion War. This modification adds the Romulans and the Breen and thus completes the Dominion war era of the modification due to having all the major powers that were involved in the conflict.

*Note name is subject to change, suggestions welcomed.*

Star Trek Armada 2: Clash of Empires - Aftermath of the Dominion War
Part 4 of the Clash of Empires modification, this version introduces for the first time in Armada 2 the Remans and Sona as complete races. Supplemented by the previous 6 races from the previous parts of the Clash of Empires modification this part concludes the Clash of Empires modification bringing a full 8 races to Armada 2 and turning it into a full total conversion.

*Note name is subject to change, suggestions welcomed.*

 

[Achilles]

looking great Majestic, got a few thoughts...

I really like the idea of banning some later designs for the cardassians/klingons. a good way to show them responding to the way in future releases.

Feel free to use what you like from my works and as usual don't hesitate to ask if you need anything?

 

[Majestic]

Thanks for the imput Achilles, I may do that banning idea and so the first release will have a smaller number of ships than release 2.

Oh and for the offer I may actually take you up on that in a little while. I will send you a PM with a couple of requests, which I hope won't be too much, several will be animations for things like construction ships etc.

 

[Amateur]

I like the way this is shaping up

A possible idea for the Klingon's would be to have the advanced ships as prototypes. You already said you are using the patch project, so you could restrict them to one (or maybe two) only being allowed at any one time.

It acknowledges they exist (and may have been produced specifically for this) without making it seem like Klingon R&D is the best there is.

I'd say restrict or remove them somehow though - Klingons don't exactly go for the idea of upgrading to a newer model every few years

 

[Majestic]

Yes the Klingons are renown for using ships long past their used by date so to speak. But we must also remember the Dominion war was the first major war they have been in for centuries, as their conflict with the Federation in the 23rd century was more of a cold war than open warefare and they really only had skirmishes with the Romulans.

Also another thing to remember is that the Klingon economy was hit hard when Praxis in 2292/3 was destroyed which lead to the peace between the Empire and Federation.

Due to the new era (Cardassian war/Dominion war/Federation treaty disolved) and no doubt finally getting back on their feet their polcy of using older ship classes would have to be reviewed and they would be needed to start producing new designs to counter the other powers especially when the Dominion started to become a threat hence the Negh'Var.

But I must admit I really like your idea of prototypes, infact I may end up using that idea for the first release where all their ships are available (or the majority are) but only one or two can be built of some to keep the balance in with the Cardassians as many Cardassian designs won't be available till release two due to the Dominion assistaning them in getting the new designs working and in production.

Thanks for the idea it's something I personally wouldn't have thought of.

Well I have decided to give the Cardassians a break for the time being a start work on the Empire, they will be much easier thankfully and I already have the majority of their combat ships collected. I'll post some MS3D screenshots in due time.

 

[Majestic]

Well here are the Klingons not complete yet but getting there.

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[Amateur]

I like, I like very much

Love the way they all look like they were built with the same metals and painted with the same paint.

 

[Majestic]

That is one of my aims Amateur, to make the entire fleet look like they fit together.

 

[Lord_Trekie]

That is one of my aims Amateur, to make the entire fleet look like they fit together.

You've done a great job mate.

 

[SaoMagnifico]

I'm still a bit bummed about no TNG/DS9-era Gorn - but I am pretty sure I'll manage to have fun with full Reman and Son'a races anyhow (although a fifth release with the Gorn and the Karemma or the T-Rogorans could be cool if you had the time/energy/patience for it, no?)

The Cardassians and Klingons are both looking great, although I will second the motion to darken the Cardassian textures to more of a golden-bronze tone (just send the spoonheads to a tanning salon! ) and the idea of the races gaining access to a ship or two with every release is a really good one, I think...now, when was the Negh'Var introduced? Could always force people to play with the Qeh'Ral until at least the second release...

Oh! And I almost forgot you were taking suggestions for names for the third and fourth releases. So, you've got The Klingon/Cardassian War, Outbreak of the Dominion War...Turn of the Tide and Peripheral Players, perhaps? Turn of the Tide would refer to the Breen entry into the war that turned the tide in favor of the Dominion after a string of losses (the Second Battle of Chin'toka being Wolf 359 on steroids) and the subsequent Romulan entry that tipped the scales back in favor of the Alpha Quadrant Alliance, while Peripheral Players refers to the relatively minor role played by the Remans and the Son'a in the Dominion War (perhaps also referring to some ships added for the other sides, like maybe the Sovereign- and Norexan-class ships that didn't see wide use in the war but were supposedly present in a few conflicts offscreen, much like the Remans and Son'a themselves). Alternatively Peripheral Players could be changed to Peripheral Partners, with much the same meaning but maybe less relevance to the likes of the Sovvy. Depends on which direction you want to take it, I guess

 

[Majestic]

I have of late been actually thinking of adding the Maquis in the first release as well as they were involved in the conflict till they were wiped out.

That or make them the second release and have the Dominion in the third or something like that. Though if I do include the Maquis I will need to find another race to even them out. So suggestions on that will be welcomed but I won't be adding the Gorn as one, they are in Yesteryears and two they were never onscreen mentioned to be involved in the Dominion War unlike the Sona and Reman being mentioned in DS9, Insurrection and Nemesis.

I really do like the Turn of the Tide title and may use it thanks Sao.

 

[SaoMagnifico]

I'd say you have a few options regarding the Maquis. One would be to keep them as a map race, rather than trying to extrapolate a whole fleet for them based off the Ju'Day. The second would be to balance them out with the T-Rogorans or the Karemma (who would require similar extrapolation, but hey, you'll be doing that with the Son'a and the Remans just as Activision did it with the Romulans and Species 8472). The third option would be to consider the Maquis to be non-aligned (you could add a Ferengi or Tholian race at some point to keep from having an odd number of races, but that's obviously not a top priority). The fourth would be to combine the first and second ideas, having the Maquis as a minor Alliance-affiliated race, which you could either represent as map objects or have as buildable or warpable allies for the major Alliance races, and the Karemma or T-Rogorans as their Dominion-affiliated counterpart.

 

[Borg_Queen]

...now, when was the Negh'Var introduced? Could always force people to play with the Qeh'Ral until at least the second release...

I think the Negh'Var was introduced first in "Way Of The Warrior, part 1", which was first episode in season 4 in DS9.

This is no direct quote as I don't remember the exact quote, but it's from that episode:

"Look what just decloaked." O'Brien? (Not sure here.)
"Yes, Martok's flagship..the Negh'Var". Sisko.

 

[Majestic]

I'd say you have a few options regarding the Maquis. One would be to keep them as a map race, rather than trying to extrapolate a whole fleet for them based off the Ju'Day. The second would be to balance them out with the T-Rogorans or the Karemma (who would require similar extrapolation, but hey, you'll be doing that with the Son'a and the Remans just as Activision did it with the Romulans and Species 8472). The third option would be to consider the Maquis to be non-aligned (you could add a Ferengi or Tholian race at some point to keep from having an odd number of races, but that's obviously not a top priority). The fourth would be to combine the first and second ideas, having the Maquis as a minor Alliance-affiliated race, which you could either represent as map objects or have as buildable or warpable allies for the major Alliance races, and the Karemma or T-Rogorans as their Dominion-affiliated counterpart.

Well I would like them as a full race as I plan something special in mind for them. They also don't just have to have a fleet based off the Ju'Day either they could use older vessels from the other races as well such as retired or stolen vessels from some of the major powers. They will be a little tricky to pull off. They could even have specials that are used to capture other races ships, it could be their speciality.

As for a counterpart for them I simply got no idea yet. I don't really want to add a Dominion ally, maybe a minor Alpha quadrant race instead or perhaps down the road in the last release I could add another race such as the Hirogen or the Orions as their pirate organisation was seen in season 6 of Deep Space Nine but no ships were ever seen but they were allies to the Dominion.

I suppose all I can do is keep looking and getting suggestions from the community.

I think the Negh'Var was introduced first in "Way Of The Warrior, part 1", which was first episode in season 4 in DS9.

This is no direct quote as I don't remember the exact quote, but it's from that episode:

The Negh'var was introduced in Way of the Warrior just before the Cardassian-Klingon war.

 

[SaoMagnifico]

Out of curiosity, have you decided which ships to include for the Federation, Majestic?

 

[Majestic]

Indeed I have.

United Federation of Planets

Frigates
Miranda
Centaur

Destroyers
Sabre
Norway
Defiant

Light Cruisers
Intrepid
Steamrunner
Excelsior

Heavy Cruisers
Ambassador
Akira
Achilles

Support Vessels
Curry/Shelly
Nebula

Battleships
Galaxy
Sovereign

Dreadnaught
?
 
Non-Combat
Construction
Freighter