Questions to modders, what would you like?

[Ford_Prefect]

What can you currently not mod, that you would like to mod?

I already know we would like to mod units and the music, but what else?

[Buster's Uncle]

We've discussed the movies, haven't we?  Not very much doable there.

[Yitzi]

I've got a fairly sizeable list...this is, not coincidentally, the list of things planned for the next few stages of .exe modding.

[Mart]

Is your list publishable? I mean in a form, that you could post it, or attach as txt file.

I do not remember, if extending limit of number of techs was already discussed? We have 89 techs, can we have more slots?

[Yitzi]

Is your list publishable? I mean in a form, that you could post it, or attach as txt file.

Ok, here are my notes:

Reorganize RULES variables.
----
Add "nearest base ecodamage to prevent worm capture" variable.  Rather than flat cap, have as roll out of set
  variable.
Spore launchers/artillery fighting.
Retool changed to 10 categories.
Sixth drone rules flag (Lal's talents multiplied by psych multipliers.)
Options re. creche effect on homed-unit morale penalties.  (Halve round down, halve round up, no effect.)
Make "attack along road" work properly.
----
More crawler stuff: Base-to-base crawler amount
Base-to-base comes off the top (confirm bug)
Base-to-base checked at beginning of turn before actual base effects (confirm bug)
Max crawlers benefitting a base by population (numerator/denominator are bytes; denominator 0 means no maximum)
Base-to-base convoy efficiency factor (flag). With positive EFFIC, first EFFIC/(4+EFFIC) of base's production is
  exempt, and beyond that applies penalty equal to ((EFFIC+4)/8)*{portion over exemption spent}^2;
  penalty counts as part of amount spent, and portion is taken out of total (including exemption.)
  Equivalently, portion is taken out of not-exempt amount, and penalty is equal to
  2/(EFFIC+4)*{portion of over-exemption spent}^2.  (Express this way.)
  If EFFIC is negative, total output is multiplied by (EFFIC+4)/4, and then same penalty as before (first form,
  no exemption).
  Equivalently, first subtract penalty of {portion spent}^2/2, and then multiply by (EFFIC+4)/4.
  So end up expressing as:
    -Penalty of {portion spent^2}/2.
    -If positive EFFIC, get exemption of EFFIC/(4+EFFIC); calculate portion spent out of remainder.  Also
      divides penalty by (EFFIC+4)/4.
    -If negative EFFIC, after subtracting penalty multiply by (EFFIC+4)/4.
Convoys can't help build projects (flag)
(Also add room for alternate convoy system, before max crawlers benefitting base)
----
SE changing cost proportional to total population.
Pop cost to convoys, pop cost to pods (1 nibble each)
GROWTH to pop boom, GROWTH granted by cloning vats (nibble/nibble)
Alternate resonance rules (if cost below psi, use value or psi, whichever is worse; if above, use whichever
  is better.  Res vs. res of same category always resolves as psi.)
----
New resource flags: mine bonus (but not base increase with rocky) doubled w/ maglev, condenser does not replace
  mine/solar/mirror/etc, monolith counts as fungus if better.
Improved resource control:landmarks,Aqua/Therm/Subsea,Tree Farm,Hybrid Forest,CentPres(w/ Voice built),
   Temple(w/ Voice built),CentPres(w/ Voice owned),Temple(w/ Voice owned),Manifold Harmonics (5 entries, for
   +0/+1/+2/+3/+4), base solar.
VoP effect on ecodamage:
  Multiplier/divisor to base chance, by status with owner of VoP (self/pact/treaty/truce/vendetta/destroyed).
    2 bytes each (add new function for BYTE/BYTE), so 3 dwords total.
  Prob threshold for actual pop: Constant, plus numerator/denominator times ecodamage chance plus constant
    times PLANET.  (Uses same roll; can give higher chance of pop than ecodamage.) 
    Does not affect global warming.  4 bytes=1 dword.
  Prob threshold for worms.  Can have worms without ecodamage; cannot have worms without pop. 
    As before; 1 dword.
  Base number of blooms per turn.  Modified by MAPROOT.  Bloom does not affect warming or produce worms, occurs
    in random spot (if base or fungus, cancel.  Same notification rules as forest spreading.)  1 byte.
----
Probe team flags (infiltration costs energy, techsteal costs energy, can subvert multiple units, subverting
  units in bases like subverting units); cost for infiltration/techsteal is target_energy*distance_to_HQ/32.
Infiltration duration; if not infinite (-1), Empath Guild doubles duration as well as creating infiltration on
  completion.
Spaceport.
Base population cap.
Difficulty effects (splitting and aggressiveness cap).
{1.5 not before here}
----
Alternate convoy system (actually carries); alphax value is max cargo at reactor 1; 0 means standard system.
  Also uses max unload speed as word in same place as max crawlers benefitting base.
----
Scenario graphics bug
New rules for aliens and VoP and ascension/ecodamage.

1.5 refers to my plan for a big balance mod.  SMAC compatibility would probably come right before the alternate convoy system.

I do not remember, if extending limit of number of techs was already discussed? We have 89 techs, can we have more slots?

It'd take quite a bit of work, but it would probably be doable.

[Dio]

What about adding rules that apply a bonus to weapons or armor with regards to their offensemodes and defensemodes? You can see what I am talking about by searching in the alpha or alphax file for OFFENSEMODES or DEFENSEMODES.

[Yitzi]

What about adding rules that apply a bonus to weapons or armor with regards to their offensemodes and defensemodes? You can see what I am talking about by searching in the alpha or alphax file for OFFENSEMODES or DEFENSEMODES.

Not on the current list because I don't think it would add very much to the game...it's a possibility for the future, though.

[ete]

Something I'd really like to see for modding would be the ability to create faction-specific default units (either a field in alphax default units which says only factions with this text name can use it, or a way to add it directly to the faction text). That opens up all sorts of very cool ideas for faction customization, like giving modules/abilities to chassis that could otherwise not use them for a faction. Probe planes come to mind as a fun idea. Also moving things like the cult's late start to a variable would be nice. A lot of Yitzi's ideas sound like they'd be very fun to play around with too .

[Mart]

As I noticed, infantry bonus against bases is "attached" to number of unit move points not its chassis. In a mod I changed infantry move points and the bonus was lost.
So an additional change may be this:
- make infantry vs. base bonus dependent on chassis type

[Yitzi]

As I noticed, infantry bonus against bases is "attached" to number of unit move points not its chassis. In a mod I changed infantry move points and the bonus was lost.
So an additional change may be this:
- make infantry vs. base bonus dependent on chassis type

You mean the number?  Probably a poor idea; while it would allow it to be given to a different number of moves, it would also mean you couldn't have two infantry chassis that both get the bonus.

What might make sense for a future option, though, would be to have it go by whichever chassis has the fewest movement points, even if that's more than 1.

[Mart]

You mean the number?  Probably a poor idea; while it would allow it to be given to a different number of moves, it would also mean you couldn't have two infantry chassis that both get the bonus.

What might make sense for a future option, though, would be to have it go by whichever chassis has the fewest movement points, even if that's more than 1.

Yes, that's true. How about a parameter of move points, that give that bonus?
Some time ago I was thinking of chassis having 0 move points. They would be platforms without their own engines.
In this case you would avoid a case when only such 0-move point platform would get it.

[Yitzi]

Yes, that's true. How about a parameter of move points, that give that bonus?
Some time ago I was thinking of chassis having 0 move points. They would be platforms without their own engines.
In this case you would avoid a case when only such 0-move point platform would get it.

Seems a good approach; it would be the maximum move points to be considered infantry (meaning bonus attacking base, no ECM effect, can't withdraw, etc.)

[Impaler]

I've always wanted to see the exponent of Tech cost progression changed.

Currently Tech costs scale at Number-of-Techs-Known to the power of 2.  Allowing a fractional exponent in a similar manor to the numerator/denominator in several other factors would be excellent in allowing us to control the general pace of tech progress through the game.  (I find it too slow early game and too fast late game).

Alpha.txt example

Technology Exponent Numerator:  200
Technology Exponent Denominator: 100

This would give the original behavior of ^2, but I could do a cubic function by going 300/100, or a flatter curve could be generated with a numerator <200.  Of all the possible ways to bend the arch of the whole late-game this is by far the most powerful one and should be a fairly simple one to implement as it just needs to replace one line of code in which Cost = TechCount * TechCount is replaced with Cost = math.pow(TechCount, (TechNumerator / TechDenominator))

[Nexii]

Impaler: Check out this thread, tech curve was/is being discussed here.

http://alphacentauri2.info/index.php?topic=8430.0

The formula is more complex than that as Yitzi pointed out, but it's generally linear right now. 

[Yitzi]

This would give the original behavior of ^2, but I could do a cubic function by going 300/100, or a flatter curve could be generated with a numerator <200.  Of all the possible ways to bend the arch of the whole late-game this is by far the most powerful one and should be a fairly simple one to implement as it just needs to replace one line of code in which Cost = TechCount * TechCount is replaced with Cost = math.pow(TechCount, (TechNumerator / TechDenominator))

In assembly modding, there is no math library.  I'd have to either find it in the program and call that, or if (as I suspect is the case) it isn't called in the program I'd have to copy it from some other program and then call it.  And in any case the cost formula is more complicated than TechCount*TechCount.