Distant Stars Mod Blog


Feedback of any kind is always welcome. Ideas, balance changes, and bug reporting of any kind is always useful!

Version 1.00 Released!

Make sure to ask for permission before republishing any part of this mod to the public!

Downloads

Rebellion Logo

1.05 + DLC Compatible:

0.12 ALPHA Release:
Full Download:
http://distantstars.mmobase.com/rebellion/Distant_Stars_(R)_ALPHA_0.13_[45189661].7z

Full Download MIRROR:
http://www.moddb.com/downloads/distant-stars-rebellion-alpha-013

MD5: 69486D2FCD3F35E46E6F5EF8C9F1634A

Diplomacy Logo

1.34 Compatible:

1.01 Release:
Full Download:
http://distantstars.mmobase.com/diplomacy/Distant_Stars_(D)_1.01_[45685832].7z

 

Entrenchment Logo

1.051 Compatible:

Beta 0.9951 Release:
Full Download:
http://distantstars.mmobase.com/entrenchment/DS_Entrenchment_Beta_0.9951_[36672852].7z

SoaSE Logo

1.14 - 1.181 Compatible:

Version 1.01:
Full Download:
http://distantstars.mmobase.com/soase/Distant_Stars_v1.01_[453701567].7z

Make sure to ask for permission before republishing any part of this mod to the public!

Multiplayer Games:
We've setup a thread for everyone to organise their multiplayer games in and also setup example times and dates for most people to meet up and start games. These are what we hope to be the main times for people to be around and want to play games together.

The times are:
4pm EST (9pm GMT) Saturdays & Sundays
9pm EST (2am GMT)
Saturdays & Sundays

If you want to organise other games please go ahead using the same topic to consolidate all the information in one place and hopefully get more games together within our community. These games are for PvP, PvAI & PvPvAIso come along and we'll get some games going!

Screenshots:
We've setup a thread so you can all post your screenshots to share with us the Distant Stars team and its players. Im sure we're all intrigued to see what kinds of battles and events you've all been having on the mod aswell.

Lore:
We know some of you guys love to role play whilst using Distant Stars, and here's a topic for you guys to post all of your role playing stories, character profiles and anything else you can imagine.

Maps:
Some of you avid map makers out there have produced some great maps but never really had them recognised because they've got lost. Well here's a topic for you to post a link to the download (we can even provide mirrors if necessary) a screenshot or two of the map for us all the preview and if enough people like it we'll even include the map in with the actual mod!

Please visit our website and for more information, change logs, downloads, and to report bugs. Our website can be found here: http://distantstars.mmobase.com

Bug Reporting

If you want to report a bug please use the Bug Report feature on our website:
http://distantstars.mmobase.com/?m=reportabug

Please include as much information as possible, if you have an error log feel free to post it on these forums and we'll take it from there. If you can reproduce the error please include the error log (read below to find out how to enable error logs) and include as much detail on how to reproduce the problem.

To enable logging:
Windows Vista/Windows 7:
C:\Documents and Settings\<Your Windows Username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Ironclad Games\Sins of a Solar Empire\Setting
or
Windows XP:
C:\Documents and settings\<Your Windows Username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Ironclad Games\Sins of a Solar Empire\Setting

Open the user.setting file (using Notepad, Wordpad or any text editor) and scroll down to the bottom 7 lines from the bottom is the line:
LogOutput FALSE
Change FALSE to TRUE
LogOutput TRUE

and from then on any Log files will be saved to the debug folder:
Windows Vista/Windows 7:
C:\Documents and Settings\<Your Windows Username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Ironclad Games\Sins of a Solar Empire\Debug
or
Windows XP:
C:\Documents and settings\<Your Windows Username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Ironclad Games\Sins of a Solar Empire\Debug

If you get these log files to us (you can just paste them in to a forum post) we can hopefully get your issues sorted.

Frequently Asked Questions

All files are compressed using 7Zip to shrink the download filesize. To extract these files you must use WinRAR or 7Zip.
Any Patches should overwrite the original install directory, either by extracting over the original folder, or cut/copy & pasting over the existing file/folder structure.

1) My game keeps crashing, is there anything I can do to stop it?
i) Are you running the game on maximum (highest) settings? if so, lower them to High or Medium, there is a known issue with the game using up too much memory, there is nothing we can do about this, also no matter how powerful your pc is, it is affected by this issue no matter the pc it is not above this crashing issue, it is a game problem not a hardware one, so quite simply lower your settings. If you still have an issue with crashing see point two.
ii) Give us as detailed information as possible about the crash, what was happening at the time of the crash, what races, ships, abilities were involved. If you can supply a Debug Log (see above for more information about logging) and post a bug report on our website.

2) The loading screens and portrait pictures dont appear properly, whats wrong?
i) This is an issue with ATI based graphics cards (rarely affects Nvidia based cards) we're looking in to the issue.

3) Why dont you support converting Distant Stars in to TXT format?
i) Quite simply many things can go wrong with converting your mod to TXT, we cant help you with something you've probably broken yourself.

4) Can I mod Distant Stars for myself?
i) Yes you can however please do not distribute our mod or our mod that you have edited to the public. You must ask for permission to do so, we will regrettably stop distributing our mod to all if users abuse our work.

5) Your mod is in BIN format I can't edit the files, what can I do?
i) You can convert the mod to TXT format however we wont offer any support to versions of the mod that have been converted to TXT.

6) Why is Distant Stars distributed in BIN format?
i) Mods load faster in BIN format and are less likely to have issues in this format.

7) I'm having trouble installing the MOD, do you have any more instructions?
i) Carbon was kind enough to do some more advanced instructions out here.

8) Is there any way to make new maps for Distant Stars using GalaxyForge?
i) Within the Distant Stars Extras folder there is a folder called Galaxy Forge, Copy and Paste this folder (or its contents) over your original Galaxy Forge folder (or its contents) replacing any files if it asks you to. When you start Galaxy Forge next you'll be able to use all of our planets.

Or, the DIY approach (without custom icons):

ii) The GalaxyForge supplied by the devs will still work with our Mod, however to be able to access all of our planetary bonuses, templates, planet types and stars you will need to take our GalaxyScenarioDef.galaxyScenarioDef (found in the GameInfo folder of the mod) and place it in to your GalaxyForge folder, overwriting the original GalaxyScenarioDef.galaxyScenarioDef (if you still wish to make maps for the original game keep a backup of the original file). This will allow you to use all of the Galaxy changes included in our mod.

Note: Any maps made for Distant Stars will not work with other Mods. See #8.2 for DIY instructions for map making or take the appropriate files from Entrenchment, they're cross-client compatible.

Some statistics...

Since August 2009 to February 2011 we have had over...

400,000 Unique visits to the website
12,000GB (12TB) of data transferred from our website

That equates to over 60,000 Unique downloads of the entire mod, excluding the excess of 20,000 Patches downloaded. 

Thanks to everyone that has supported us this far and making our mod as popular as it is!

dyMRNwSFh9gw

Comments (Page 483)
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on May 10, 2012

Once had a 10 bad downloads in a row. I blame Great Britain (site of the server the mod is stored at).

 

10 in a row...?  Whoa-- that's insane. 

Alright well this'll be my 5th time.  And its always the same problems.  A.)  I can enable the mod but cannot hit Apply Changes as doing so freezes my game completely.  And B.)  I can play without hitting the Apply Changes, but half the planets have no phase lanes and the ones missing the phase lanes are in all the SAME planets on the same maps every single time.   

 

Again the checksum always matches and I don't have a "folder in a folder" issue so....  Is this just a bad dl or is it something else?  Would a bad dl always show the same problems each time?  I'd love to play this mod but this is getting kinda ridiculous. lol

on May 10, 2012

Rebellion.

Steam.  No thanks.  I can just mod the changes in myself.

on May 10, 2012

Ehecatl123

Quoting Ryat, reply 7208Once had a 10 bad downloads in a row. I blame Great Britain (site of the server the mod is stored at).

 

10 in a row...?  Whoa-- that's insane. 

Alright well this'll be my 5th time.  And its always the same problems.  A.)  I can enable the mod but cannot hit Apply Changes as doing so freezes my game completely.  And B.)  I can play without hitting the Apply Changes, but half the planets have no phase lanes and the ones missing the phase lanes are in all the SAME planets on the same maps every single time.   

 

Again the checksum always matches and I don't have a "folder in a folder" issue so....  Is this just a bad dl or is it something else?  Would a bad dl always show the same problems each time?  I'd love to play this mod but this is getting kinda ridiculous. lol

Are you the one with Diplomacy v 1.00? Because our mod is made for the latest at 1.34.

1.34 Compatible: <----------

1.00 Release:
Full Download:
http://distantstars.mmobase.com/diplomacy/Distant_Stars_(D)_1.00_[45685027].7z

 

on May 10, 2012

And the efficiency pack requires you to download the 1.00 mod and then place its files over top the original mod folders. Don't forget that.

As for the Kols, it's nice and good thinking they work out that well, but history and game mechanics don't speak to that. And you can never really be sure what you'll run into.

Okay, let's assume we go pure cap. Not a good idea except against an okay AI. If we do it though, I look at it this way. I have about 3 fleets, each broken into two groups. Group one is three Kols and three Dunovs. The Dunovs support the Kols and the Kols stop anything that makes a rush. Group two is three Sovas, two Marzas, and an Akkan. The Akkan moves into the middle ranks and gives everyone a range boost while the Sovas launch strikecraft. The Marzas hang back and just wait for the enemy to come to me, assuming I allow them to. 

The Sovas cut down the approaching forces and lay down missiles for close combat. Kols take the brunt while Dunovs keep em hardy. Akkan can knock down one or two, but is there for passive support. The Marzas are gold, cause two take down almost everything, even many heavy cruisers. So once the area is saturated with the little buggers, they lose their support. Boom, done. The enemy has very few cruisers and caps are usually outmatched by the well rounded fleet.

Now, this is assuming I don't use cruisers, which is not how I play anymore, so I'm modifying my gameplay a hair.

Two issues here. One is strikecraft. The second is the UberFleet of Doom.

Normally I don't use flak burst. I have gardas. Lotsa lotsa gardas. I'll save my AM for shielding. Strikecraft are chewed up by Gardas and my fighters/gunships.

The UberFleet of Doom is easy. Aside from being the type to fortify frontline worlds, I also have three fleets of 11, 11 and 10 caps. One fleet is taking on the UberFleet and I will gladly drag them toward an Akkan enhanced Argonev. Meanwhile, the other two fleets are chewing apart the enemy empire like there's no tomorrow. After all, mobility is a great asset and fortifications are monuments to the stupidity of man.

on May 12, 2012

Stant123
His long post

Best pro TEC fleet diversity post ever.

Personally, I'm more of an Advent player but I fool around with either of the other two occasionally(know thy enemy and such ). I'm heavy defensive, usually don't take a planet before I've got a heavy constructor waiting one jump away to make it unable to be lost through bombardment(haha at the Novalith ) and then stack up that hp, weapons, and pulse ability, accompanied by plenty of homing mines and defensive structures. It's costly, but you will have a bad time trying to take them.

Down to fleets I'm big on enemy manipulation =3, I'll have 1-2 carriers, but that's about it, usually filled with some fighters/gunships, while my motherships hold onto the EWS bombers. The rest of my fleet is usually the "support/planet killers" for the shut downs and the fleet wide buffs, with my motherships covering shields, my battleships forcing you to focus fire on them while my battlecruisers make it hurt really bad to attack those battleships =3

On the cooldown side of those abilities though, I use my mothership's damage propagation abilities while my subjigators lock down your frigates, my guardians make my shields into one very large one, the battlecruisers slow your hits and reduce the damage you dole out(even more) while my battleships tear away your antimatter, my battlecruisers take what ships i see that might actually pose a threat and make them mine. All this time my smaller craft are hitting you nice and steady throughout the battle that you are becoming less and less able to get away from(unless you use armistice......damn you armistice, damn you.......)

on May 13, 2012

If you are good enough at micro managing and don't have any more pressing targets for the ability (or a surplus in Radiances) you can make sure the level 6+ Akkans aren't able to use armistice with detonate antimatter. First the disabled abilities will have to be kept up constantly, but once the enemy ships fall below 150 AM the disabled passive regeneration from your gunships should be sufficient to keep them there and if not, detonate antimatter will.

I guess it comes down to the old question of wether you want to minimize your losses, or maximize the enemies losses more.

on May 14, 2012

I have a suggestion for a new planet type. It is called a loose urban planet. It is in between terran and urban planets. It has 6 population upgrades, 2 artifact upgraes, 3 tactical upgrades, 3 logic upgrades, and 3 emergency upgrades. It has both metal and crystal asteroids but leans closer to crystal. It only requires 1 stage to get out of underdevelopment tax loss. It has the map of a terran planet except all the land masses are completely urbanized. It has a bluish grey atmosphere color, can have the bonuses paradise and urban planets can have, and the common bonus for every planet of this type is local trade center, every bonus type (population growth rate, trade, and tax) are halved for all planet sizes. got anywhere I can make it more specific about the planet?

on May 14, 2012

Sigh...  Stant.   I was not challenging you.  It was simply a fun idea.  It's hellishly funny to see another player's response to you suddenly appearing with 32 Kols.  I'm not saying it's the most effective of strategies (in fact it's very ineffective)  but it was very very fun.  He had a fleet that was nearly completely composed of ships meant to destroy heavy cruisers and LRM's cause i'd been using those the entire time up to that point.  (and in my opinion he wasn't very good, just got lucky with much better planets than I did).  It was a lot of fun.  That's not saying that it was particularly effective.  He was just waaaaaay too focused on fighters (he had close to 1200 strikecraft squads).

Against any other fleet i would've lost.  It's just that I knew what he was making and planned accordingly and trollingly.

Is that a word?  Oh well, it is now...

on May 14, 2012

It sounds nice RHEmpire300 but none of us are graphics artist (well Draakjacht does the 2D work but no 3D work) but merely code monkeys.

on May 14, 2012

AseOfSpadez
Sigh... Stant. I was not challenging you.

I was being sarcastic.  Please note the winking smiley with the tongue sticking out immediately following the comment.

on May 14, 2012

Hope I'm not stirring anything here, but aren't planets just a sphere with a texture wrapped around it?

 

on May 14, 2012

True, wasn't sure you could do something like that.

on May 15, 2012

Draakjacht
but aren't planets just a sphere with a texture wrapped around it?

Yes, all just straight 2d work and fairly easy at that.  Not sure what you have at your disposal, but if I was doing it in photoshop, I'd make the urban planet -cl the bottom layer, plop the terran planet -cl on a layer on top of that and just use an eraser tool to get rid of the continents revealing the urbanness that is below it.  Then I'd flatten the image and save it if it looked good, or shift things around on the bottom layer before flattening it out until it did look good.

For the -da half of the image, it'd probably be the same thing but with maybe a little bit of alpha work for the lights, but I'm not sure on that one.  Even if there is, it's not really all that hard to click in a few dozen dots where you want the lights.

on May 15, 2012

Well, I could use an eraser tool, feathering to leave some natural landscape, such as mountains, or I could use an overlay and see how that works. Still have to define the area with a mask, but no harder than using an eraser tool. As for the alphas, I'm sure the urban will give me the prototype and I can just wipe away what I don't need. If it doesn't convert over, then I guess I have to go from scratch, but you're right in that I would make a few dots and connecting lines, then feather the lot of them.

So the hardest part is probably just figuring out what software to convert files with. Haven't torn open one of these models before. Will be fun.

on May 15, 2012

I'm sure this question was asked already, but search is useless on this forum for finding anything but a main topic and I may have skipped over the stated answer when posted.

I know some of you DS guys are opposed to Rebellion requiring Steam, but for the guys who aren't, any plans for a Rebellion version when that's finally released in June?

EDIT: Just looked at the main topic.  D'oh!

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