ColdSpiral

These designs are amazing. Your detail work is particularly striking - fine without being fiddly, bold enough to be distinct. I also really like the way you've built around negative space, especially in the Corvid, instead of it being a solid mass. It helps tie the ships together, too; they visibly have different roles but they still seem to share something.

So I've just had a save go from great to bad to worse in the space of two minutes, explicitly due to the Escort Me behaviour. It turns out that Escort AI will turn aggressive toward any ship that fires a weapon in the direction of the ship being escorted. This includes player-owned ships, such as a harmless salvage craft that was dismantling a wreck nearby. It was destroyed by my wingman before I could command it to go passive. I was still collecting the turrets and systems from the wreck when a faction invasion occurred. I got caught in the crossfire, and though my shields held up I suddenly found that I had declared1 for the invading side. That same wingman had turned on the defenders for firing in my direction. I have spent hours dragging my rep with that faction up from Bad to Friendly, and now we're sworn enemies. 1Also those dialog popups - and the ones during bandit ambushes - are incredibly annoying, wrenching control away when steering, especially in the heat of battle. Can't they appear in the chat log instead?

I can't find a mention of it on the forum, but I assume this is a bug - AI freighters don't respect player docked status at stations. It's happened a few times now that if I'm docked for some time - so usually at a research station - I'll suddenly have an AI freighter ram me into the station as it attempts to park at the dock I'm using... This damages my ship, destroys the dock (I now have to go searching for a new research station because when it happened just now the station only had one dock left :-\), and lowers my rep. The jerks.

Thanks! I wish I could. With the current fighter system its hangars can handle a cadre of 4-6 mining fighters (due to their size), but I've not found any that are efficient enough to be worthwhile - you get a tiny percentage of the asteroid's resources, half as much as a quality mining laser. And I'm not in a position to squander resources for speed and convenience. :-\ Looking forward to future versions where it's planned that a) we can design our own fighters somehow, and b) we can dock two ships together. At that point, I'll definitely be making miniature Harvesters that detach from an expanded Stargazer to chew up asteroids and wrecks for me. :D

No worries! Glad to help.

These are fantastic. I'm a fan of the modularity and the consistency of components; it really ties your ships together as an identifiable fleet. The detail work - numbers, antennae, etc. - is amazing. And in those details I'm inspired particularly by your subtle use of asymmetry - it's really effective. Your lore is making for an interesting read so far, and I'm looking forward to seeing where this themed fleet takes it. :D

Hi Maxavian, If you open the block menu in build mode, you can paste your groups in the bottom section with the default prefabs and they'll stay there between ships. Just select an empty slot and paste as usual.

Thanks MrVorgra, I was wondering where those gifs came from, and was here to write a post about linking images. Glad to see you beat me to it. To add, there's a way of making the thumbnail a click-through to the full image, so my 2nd picture is typed as: [#url=http://imgur.com/Nm0XErN][#img]http://i.imgur.com/Nm0XErNl.jpg[/img][/url] (ignore the #hashes) My addition - Turrets! For my first handful of screens I tried desperately to find a part of the screen to put my cursor so that my turrets would be on a good angle and you could see more than just the back of them. Okay if you want an action shot, but not great for display. By accident I discovered that if you target the ship itself the turrets will return to their default positions. Nice and tidy.

I love your glass™ story. Thank you both! ;D I'm enjoying putting the lore together; though if CSF Industries is beginning to look somewhat dysfunctional I confess to more than a little channelling of my mentor, good ol' Cave Johnson. Hi ceeagedee, and anyone else interested, I've taken Trecares' advice and created material-tier versions of the latest CSF Stargazer incarnation. Also edited the glows & paintjob to material-appropriate colours. I've made sure the materials & colours have applied and that they don't crash the game, but haven't test-driven them for balance. Could be terrible. For the Naonite and Titanium versions I've just quickly switched the hangars for cargo bays. Might want to stick a thruster or angle blocks on there. For the Titanium version I've also replaced any shield blocks with integrity fields, so hopefully it's a little less fragile. You can find them zipped up and attached! :) CSF_Stargazer_Tiers.zip

Keep material-based tech unlocks: From reading this post by koonschi about introducing hangar blocks as early as Titanium tier: I understand this, but I'd like to beg you to reconsider, due to my experience so far with the game. When I had an Iron ship, I was chafing at the limits of my solar panels until I scrounged enough Titanium to build a generator. When I had a Titanium ship, I started encountering shielded Xsotan, and I started going out of my depth to gather Naonite for my own shield. When I had a Naonite ship, I'd entered a warzone and began to see AIs using carriers in sector invasions. This motivated me to go out of my way to gather Trinium so I could build my own hangar. Now that I've got a Trinium ship... there's nothing like that to look forward to. Just material upgrades. Sure, they'll be better, but they won't be new. My suggestion is that, rather than rolling all these tech blocks down to be almost immediately available, introduce a new tech with its own gameplay elements in each material tier. Just like the way the weapon variety increases. It's an excellent extra initiative to drive the player forward. This was the impression I got reading KS update 9. Perhaps Xanion can unlock cloaking or coolant1 blocks, Ogonite adds spinal weapon mount blocks2 or internal factories (maybe for fighter replenishment?), and Avorion introduces some otherworldly and bizarre feature you've wanted to include but couldn't justify. 1Coolant blocks: I think I've seen it requested here before, but a block similar to the turret lock block which slows overheat / boosts cooldown of a turret built on it, at the cost of energy (So I can fire that cannon more than once per battle :D). 2Spinal / Broadside weapons: Spinal-mounted weapons have definitely been a common request, but I think I've worked out an interesting implementation of them. Simply put, a spinal-mount block is a block with a single active face (rotatable) and a minimum effective size, into which a player mounts a turret (still counting toward ship limits). The back and side of the spinal-mount block are low-durability, encouraging the player to build the ship around it. The front requires clearance to work, similar to a hangar. The weapon is immobile but certain stats (damage, range, energy/cooldown requirements!) are amped up considerably by the scale of the block, turning the turret into a massive, slow-firing, long-range cannon. Broadside blocks exist in my mind because I really enjoyed the combat in Rebel Galaxy. They work in a similar manner to spinal-mount blocks, with a little more complexity behind the scenes. Instead of a single barrel, a broadside block's active face is divided by surface area into a row of barrels along its longest axis, much like a thruster. Some slight mobility along one axis could be possible, allowing the broadside to aim higher or lower, for example. A turret inserted into a broadside block will still have its stats boosted by the block's volume, but then also divided across the number of barrels (a far more aesthetic suggestion would be to link the turret to x barrel blocks, so they could be embellished with gun emplacements, like the sweet 40K ships made by Shieldmate and Zajc, but that would require some sort of wiring/linking system like that in Starbound or Gunpoint and I appreciate the complexity involved there). This can function as a devastating cannon for that classic spaceboat feel, a defensive measure - mount an auto-fire chaingun in there and you've got a Battlestar-style wall of flak, or something else entirely - like a vertical-firing broadside mounted with seeker rockets for a missile swarm... In-use colour palette: I've recently discovered that I can drag colour swatches into the hotbar. This is a handy feature, but it's not perfect, particularly as it resets between sessions. When I'm building, I'm using the hotbar for blocks or prefabs, so I'd rather not clutter it with colours. I also copy/paste a lot - need a light green wedge? There's one - copy, scale, place. So when I need to colour a new part... I have no idea what I've been using. What I'd really like is a little window that has swatches for the different colours currently in use on the ship (advanced feature: drag one colour -e.g. Eternal Salmon - onto one in the palette - Infinity Cyan - to repaint all Infinity Cyan blocks with Eternal Salmon.) Material-based hangar lighting The blue of the hangar looks nice on my blue-white Trinium ship, but it clashes a little with other colour schemes. Would it be possible to change the colour of the field depending on the material of the hangar? Repost: Ship-to-ship docking mechanics: I posted this in the Design Fighters suggestion thread; it was relevant to koonschi's response but not much to the direction of the thread, so I'll move it here for tidiness. There are a bunch of concepts that I'm looking forward to trying out when ship-to-ship docking is introduced - modular ships, detachable salvage pods, hyperspace frames... But I've got some questions regarding what it will allow: Will docked ships remain "on" - potentially linking turret / engine / thruster control, power, shield coverage, cargo space, etc. of docked ships? This allows for modular ship components - undocking a cargo pod and connecting an industrial-sized self-powered shield generator in its place, without having to delete/rebuild modules when needed. Will the docking feature utilise the existing dock block / a new single-surface block to set a dock point, requiring contact between a corresponding block on each ship, or just lock the docking ships together when in range? If it's the former, I'd like to suggest... Being able to set orientation when docked - maybe have a polarised docking block - the top of the texture always connects to the top of its pair. Short-range tractor to dock neatly with an uncaptained ship - e.g. pressing F at 0.02km aligns and pulls the two docks together, rather than just locking them in place "near enough" Commanding an AI follower to connect to a specific dock Thanks for reading. ;D

-=CSF INTERNAL EYES ONLY CLASSIFICATION ZERO HARPY=- LAB 8 - Project #BFF Status: Testing Phase Gamma. Despite recent slowdowns in pirate activity, Harvester captains have been expressing concern about completing their salvage and mining tasks in "unsafe environments". An initiative to address this is underway, but without significant advances in AI this remains a distant option. Until such a time, R&D Lab 8 is proud to present the results of Project #BFF: The Bruiser Gunship. Despite its light frame, the Bruiser is equipped with hefty shield generators and ample power supply. Gratuitous thruster placement grants the Bruiser excellent agility in tight spots. Five weapon hardpoints - Three top-mounted, two underslung. This prototype is equipped with a combination of plasma, laser, rocket, and anti-fighter chaingun turrets, for flexibility in combat. We don't fully know what these glowy bits do, but the techs tell us they're essential. We're considering putting some glass™ over them. Bruiser Prototype full statistics. Initial testing... All is well. -=END DOCUMENT=- Bruiser.xml

Lego is a fine inspiration, though! I've always wanted to be a spaceship, so I spend a lot of time staring at art and concepts of them. :P I guess I've gotten a feel for the shapes. If it's any consolation, I'm terrible at basically everything else. ;D Thanks! Go on, throw some blocks on there. There's always an undo button! I had that bug too. Happens on & off with all my ships. Stargazer's undergoing a refit, so will update once she's in a presentable condition. But something else might be on the way...

Wow, that's really sleek. I dig the industrial look of the front bay; those hazard stripes are perfect.

Thanks! I have a feeling I've got a lot of mining to get through before I start building on a larger scale - we built Proteus in Creative mode simply so I could show my partner the ship editor without any other hassle; I enjoy working with the material limitations & interruptions of a playthrough. There's something in the character of a ship that's been expanded and upgraded over time that I just can't seem to replicate in a single build session. However, I do have some big plans for A-W / Stargazer and possibly even Harvester down the line... I didn't, so I took some for you! I've only got the most recent versions, though. Proteus: Stargazer: Harvester: Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying them! I'd love to see any modifications you make along the way.

ADDENDUM: CSF Industries is excited to announce that breakthroughs made during the development of the Harvester* have lead to the construction of an all-new, at-least-twice-as-shiny, high-tech bridge module for the Stargazer. This seemed too important to wait for the next newsletter. Further, weapon hardpoints have been added for tidiness' sake, and some of the subsystems have been rearranged into a more useful configuration. *we discovered glass. Revolutionary. Edit - new version uploaded with holos on the underside capped off properly... Stargazer2.7z

Thanks everyone for the kind words, it means a lot! As spokesman for CSF Industries, it is my sad duty to inform you that, after my last entry, the Abstract Wrangling was lost in a vicious battle with an alien fleet after taking out a host of pirates. She fought nobly but the odds were just too far stacked against her. For insurance purposes we at CSF are obliged to very emphatically inform you that yes, there were asteroids present where said damage took place, but that any catastrophic hull damage was entirely -entirely- caused by weapons fire; it is ludicrous to suggest that, in the heat of battle, the Abstract Wrangling may have encountered said asteroid field whilst moving sideways at high speed. Utterly impossible. Despite this misfortune, here at CSF Industries we pride ourselves on moving onward and upward. The effectiveness of the A-W and a successful blueprint retrieval operation have, coupled with new innovations in spaceship science, led to the development and production of a second generation prototype exploration corvette: The CSFI Stargazer. With the discovery and rapid acquisition of a field of sustainable* Trinium sources, the Stargazer builds upon the strengths of her predecessor; sporting an improved shield, more efficient energy generation, and eye-catching blue lighting. The most significant upgrade, however, is the addition of a pair of fighter bays to the Stargazer's hull, allowing the vessel to field a cadre of up to 22 fighter craft to fulfil any number of support roles. *That'd be a salvage laser. The Xsotan might be coming from somewhere, but there's apparently no end to them. On the topic of support roles, it is my pleasure to introduce to you the newest entry to the CSF Industries line of spacecraft: The Harvester. With pirate and Xsotan raids seemingly becoming more frequent interruptions to the Stargazer's mission of discovery, research, and testing - increasingly the testing of newly discovered and interesting varieties of devastating weaponry upon said raids - the sectors around our favourite research and manufacturing facilities are becoming increasingly crowded with wreckage. Thus, aided by a command patch by Nexus, CSF Industries have constructed a small and durable salvage vessel out of excess Naonite, with the exclusive purpose of autonomously tearing up wreckage and collecting the spoils. A modest cargo bay allows for the storage of any trade goods found in the wrecks of freighters, and an internal shield generator should keep Harvesters safe from occasional enemy fire.* *Harvester is not a combat vessel and has not been tested in significant hostile conditions. Thanks once again for subscribing to the CSF Indistries newsletter. Blueprints of vessels mentioned have been uploaded for your enjoyment. Stargazer.xml Harvester.xml

I'm excited about designing fighters but I just can't stop thinking about this. Such potential. In fact, I went off-topic about it, so I've moved the rest of my post elsewhere.

Oh that's amazing. I really love this. Picking up a fantastic Homeworld vibe from it. Your detail work is incredible, and I'm looking forward to seeing more of your builds.

Hi lazerious, I'm glad you like them! ;D A video's not really a possibility for me, in part because I put the ships together so gradually - I don't just sit and build something in one shot, so it'd be cutting all over the place... Thankfully Avorion's autosave system is pretty robust so I've got saved copies of most of the steps (and some besides), which you're welcome to check out. They're attached below. ColdSpiral_AW__Proteus.7z

Awesome! :D I really like what you do with the angle pieces - they make the ships look sleek and dynamic. The way you've built similar elements works well to link them together - they look convincing and consistent!

Thanks, koonschi! Thanks Kane! To tell you the truth, mine all start out as boxes and get their shape as they grow. There's never really a plan. It's all about finding an interesting feature and building on it. Here's how the Abstract Wrangling got where it is:

Thanks, I appreciate it! ;D I find that building a little lore - contemplating who made the ships: a DIY explorer, a corporation, military, etc.; giving them little quirks and histories - guides my design a bit. It imparts them with a bit of character so they aren't just an object. Working on the jury-rigged Proteus variants soon. The thing about A-W's faulty scanner actually happened... turns out it was a bug. :P

I've been having a great time with Avorion so far, but have spotted a couple of oddities. Thought it'd be best to just keep them together. Sorry if I've repeated anything someone else has reported; there are a lot of threads. In build mode, the transform tool doesn't undo properly. I can transform a hull into a glow block, for example, and then undo and it'll say it's a hull but it'll keep the appearance of a glow block. Usually undoing another step, deleting the block and then undoing, placing something else, or exiting build mode will revert the block's appearance. Similarly, I can't get the paint tool to undo at all. My scanner is picking up green blips in both populated & empty space, but when I get to the sector it's empty. No asteroids, wrecks, pirates, stations, wormholes, etc.. Nothing. Nothing listed on the map. Sometimes this happens at the end of a gate with no corresponding return gate, though I read that's normal. It'd be cool if you could telegraph that it's one-way. Maybe a pulse travelling down it on the map? On occasion, deleting a turret in build mode doesn't remove it from the Ship Menu. If I replace the turret with another, it doesn't override the old one. Sometimes I have to put the old one back and delete it again. This doesn't happen reliably enough to test whether grouping affects this or not. Shops seem broken. I found a resource trader on friendly terms that sold nothing and offered no prices for anything. I've had equipment merchants fail to buy or sell anything after an initial transaction until I left the sector and returned. In these situations, the buy/sell button just doesn't work. Since auto-turrets were introduced I find my aiming circles (for any turret) are making micro-adjustments, flicking a couple of mm out of the centre and then travelling back in. This happens mostly when travelling and occasionally when stationary. Auto-turret commands are reset to manual control upon entering a new sector or loading a saved game. Some turret icons are vertically offset a little in the hud, so you can see the bottom of the glow on the top of the image. In the Ship Systems Menu, the middle row of slots is obscured by the ship preview. Regardless of slot, power availability etc., my Shield Booster and Turret Control System icons are greyed out. They seem to be working, though. I can't tell what this means. Savegame here. Hope these help; let me know if you need any further information.

The second craft is a joint effort - designed and built by my partner, with finer details tweaked by me. Creative mode, Titanium tier. Largely inspired by the Earth Alliance ships from Babylon 5. The Proteus range of freighters are a sturdy cargo ship found across the galaxy. With core functions grouped into the front of the ship, the Proteus is capable of functioning when disconnected from its cargo pods. A variety of configurable booster modules are available to provide an extra kick when ferrying important cargo. This modular design gives the Proteus the flexibility to adapt to a virtually limitless number of roles and transport all manner of goods between systems. Rumours even suggest that heavily-modified models of Proteus have been seen serving as makeshift gunships and carriers in civilian militias and scrapyard raider fleets... Proteus.xml

Hi all. Really enjoying Avorion so far, and the ship editor is just magnificent. So glad I took the leap for the Kickstarter. Thought I'd share a couple of the ships that I've been working on. First off, the Abstract Wrangling. My first proper playthrough's ship. Long-range exploration craft and, as a prototype, the only one of its kind. Being progressively upgraded from Titanium to the increasingly available Naonite, the A-W is beginning to shed the dense layers of heavy armour in favour of an exotically modified shield generator. When a supply of Trinium is secured the lower bridge will be relocated to make space beneath the bow for a small fighter bay. Its malfunctioning Deep-Range scanner means that every new sector is a leap into the unknown... but this is the price we pay for adventure. Abstract_Wrangling.xml