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
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
1.34 Compatible:
1.01 Release:Full Download:http://distantstars.mmobase.com/diplomacy/Distant_Stars_(D)_1.01_[45685832].7z
1.051 Compatible:
Beta 0.9951 Release:Full Download:http://distantstars.mmobase.com/entrenchment/DS_Entrenchment_Beta_0.9951_[36672852].7z
1.14 - 1.181 Compatible:
Version 1.01:Full Download:http://distantstars.mmobase.com/soase/Distant_Stars_v1.01_[453701567].7z
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 & Sundays9pm EST (2am GMT) Saturdays & SundaysIf 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\SettingorWindows 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 FALSEChange FALSE to TRUELogOutput 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 website12,000GB (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!
Can I add planet textures for this mod ?
Agree 100%. Keep it up. Me and Nacey ( ) are watching closely.
As in add your own or pull out to for your own use?
The answer if yes as the planet textures are from the Sins Plus mod.
So just you?
Sorry, Nacey and I talk a lot on IM about it, but no one else ever sees it. Not sure where Carbon is at. You and Draakjacht are more of a constant here so we all know your opinion.
I always thought Nacey was your alternate personality. Or would you be his alternate personality? Something like that.
Is is possible to just get the updated Celestial bodies mod instead of downloading the whole thing?
Sure, if you can find just an updated Celestial Bodies mod.
Sorry Ive MIA yet again.
On the icons, I like the notion that we are changing them to someing unique to DS.
Color wise, it might help new people to DS and such to have the colors match across the tech needed to colonize them.
Also with the overall theme...I suggest Draak when you get them ingame test them against the various skyboxes. I forsee the redish icons get lost in the red skybox, etc etc.
I also would suggest giving them a neon light feel. Brighter shade of the proper color for each planet/anomoly surrounded with a white glow to provide contrast against most of the skyboxes. Would help give them a fuller apperance, hopefully easier to see.
You can take my words as you will...yall always do.
As for possible changes in ship icons and that nature. I would like to see how a wire mesh style would look. With the neon sign aura. Kinda Tron-ish.
If we find an overall theme we like, It would be possible to redo the menus and HUD in the same style which Ive wanted to to for some time. But me and GIMP have trouble getting my ideas to actually look better than a 5 year old did them.
I sure hope the DoV or others dont think we are changing our shit now, just b/c they put did and put out a fancy vid.
who cares.
Hmm... if we have the color and shape mean the same thing, I feel like it's a bit repetitive. But let's hear a few others chime in.
I've thought about that. It's a 'good news; bad news' thing... which leads to...
I'll really have to test them. I know that the color can potentially blend in with some of the skyboxes (anyone wonder why I hate those things?), but the white edge might not be enough, especially for the horrifically light yellowish one.
Dunno if the details will mesh, but we're thinking about the same thing.
I redid a lot of the HUD a while back, but went with a decidedly dark theme. Not that it wouldn't work with this, but you're probably thinking more reflective glass and such. It's really the buttons that will make or break it anyway.
Any of these in the ballpark? You're pretty much witnessing a process here. Anyone else who wants to chime in on any of Stant's or Carbon's ideas, go nuts.
I like the first set, it appears they will show through the various skyboxes.....
With the possible exception of the blue/white skybox in this pic....
Ehhh, maybe not....
I guess that is where the real testing comes into play. Okay, I'll work on the patterns for the moment and come back to the color thing after a few more chime in.
Just had a messed up thought... why would the skyboxes be an issue? These icons appear when you zoom out. Don't the skyboxes fade away when you do that? And didn't we get rid of the swirling galaxies that could potentially cause an issue?
Damn, you know what, you're right....
I prefer the last set there, the patterns are the clearest. On the first 2 sets the inside patterns get lost in the 'glow' whereas the last set looks very clean and crisp.
I am not too good at Sins of Solar empire but I'm nooby, didn't play much, it's a great game, Don't got it since a lng time, . Should I install this? I enjoy the game as it is so far. I'm asking because since I'm new to the game, waht do you think it'd be best?
It's not that hard to learn the mod. It's an enhancement mod, so it just magnifies the difference between the three groups and adds planets, fighters, etc. With everything being an extension of the original ideas, it's not terribly overwhelming.
If you like the original game but always enjoy finding Easter Eggs, I think this will click with you pretty well. Besides, it's free and the mod menu is as simple as three clicks. How much sweeter does it get?
@ Aliksander: Go back a page and check out my last set prior to Carbon's input and let me know what you prefer. The idea is similar, but I felt at greater liberty when not fretting over the not-there skyboxes.
ok thx I'll guess I'll straight play with the mod then
The point of these mods is to alter the gameplay but not the gameplay mechanics. For example, me playing either this mod, or even the star trek mod, you would see different personality when it comes to the gameplay, however, you still have to build up your empire deal with research and diplomacy etc.
With regards to the update of DM, with other priorities in my life, the new numbers are working, however I will not be updating to the final version till I have gotten the beta version of the Rebellion and taken those new titans and the new ai (hopefully there is a newer and updated pathfinding ai) into account before releasing the final version of Dynamic movement.
I certainly agree that better pathfinding would be what makes or breaks any potential for me to use the DM mini-mod in the future. That and proper choice of what vessels utilize it.
Meanwhile, here is an image demonstrating my top choice for how to designate moons and size markers. I think it's pretty self explanatory, but anything with the circle orbiting the upper right means it's a moon. The markers to the lower right (I hope to reduce the fleet markers to allow these to be placed just on the other side of said objects) designate size, increasing with the relative mass (1=small/dwarf, 2=normal, 3=large). I do have a few other ideas, like small, round dots just above the icon and below where the faction icon would appear, but this and that can complicate them, so I'm working on the details. Let me know what you think.
Oh, and you might notice that where lines intersect on say the diamond above, it gets a little bulky. I plan to make some minor alterations once we get further along with choice of icons, colors, etc.
Next I hope to test the dot markers and put together a few of Stant's ideas so that I can get input. I just kinda pop in and out with these, so I'm not going to set any due dates.
Nice job Draak....
All in all I definitely give these icons and color choices a thumbs up! I'd play with them hands down!
Draak, your latest iteration of planet icons is beautiful. Just what the doctor ordered.
Yeah I like the one from your last post. I think they will be unique and stand out well enough.
EDIT: I dont see how you could even tweak it like i was going to suggest. So lets just forget that.
Anyhow...
Well, keep in mind that the skyboxes won't be an issue, as I noted earlier. That's good. If there was anything in my past shots that was close and you wanted to rework or if you just want to take another stab at it, I could.
As for the size icons, the markers themselves are 3 pixels wide, matching the average girth of the lines in the icons. The markers are 2 pixels apart. I can reduce it to one pixel. This is just a dry run. I still need to play with the fleet markers to see how closely I can hug them to the icon. I'll pop out another variation, probably tomorrow.
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