Frigate possibilities for Epic and I-War

Originally posted by Jwk
i still feel it would be a little better if the cockpit was tucked in a bit more

This model was originally built for Cormorant to be used in an I-War mod. Thus, it's set up so a game-driven comsec can dock effectively with the body of the craft. But I'm also releasing this version to Epic.

However, there's still another version of this ship in the works; the poly count on this model is pretty small (367 w/comsec). EoC models can support up to 800 per section (and you can even fudge some more). After the release of this 'generic' version, expect one which armors the comsec a little more and features a primary bridge (making the comsec a secondary bridge). One which will also remove the unrealistic 'knife-edges' on the model too.

I've also got planned a very short movie (i.e., in the area of a 3-5 second movie) of the comsec launching from the frigate body for use as a cover while POG does the dirty work underneath. It might make transitions go smoother when the comsec is more protected (thus, harder for the AI to dock).

Originally posted by Sivadrake
it reminds me of some aquatic killer

Like the Terrapin, I'd selected a generic animal to model the markings and basic shape on (originally Cormorant's specs required something almost manta shaped). This time it was a Thrasher shark, but I was not able to ever get the 'tail' high enough to make the connection.

Originally posted by MajorTom
I think the ship looks fantastic-

Thanks MajorTom. Needless to say, if you ever see a ship I'm making which you could use in multiplayer games, just grab it.

Originally posted by Hot4Darmat
The ultimate word on this lies with Cormorant and Shane, though.

For Cormorant's version, he's the man in charge. For the Epic version, the Creative Writing department of the Epic Development Team would make the decision.... I think that's you.

I have no special attachment to the name of the ship; I really just enjoy building them. So whomever uses the model can just apply the name they choose.

Thanks for the feedback, guys. The release should be soon.


<font size="1"><font face="Book Antiqua"><font color="black">"Never before in the history of the world had such a mass of human beings moved and suffered together. This was no disciplined march; it was a stampede-- without order and without a goal, six million people unarmed and unprovisioned, driving headlong. It was the beginning of the rout of Civilisation... of the massacre of Mankind."
--H. G. Wells The War Of The Worlds</font id="black"></font id="Book Antiqua"> </font id="size1">

Wow! Stunning!
Shane, I love this ship. She's a beauty.
Could you maybe email me the lwo model and textures so far so I can test her in an I-War 1 script?

For a class name, I have nothing special on my mind. It seems that in the I-War universe, it's also a tradition to name the class after the first ship commissioned. In a test script, I have called the prototype "Enigma CNV-601" for a lack of further ideas, but that can be changed easily.
However, the prototype gets stolen by Indies and is re-named to "Expect Liberation", which puts up the question if the class should use the "original" Commonwealth Navy name or rather the Indie name.
Might be cool if we could agree on a specific class name so the versions for the two different games can represent the same ship class. Hammerhead? Hammer? Enigma? Barracuda? Thrasher (Shark?)? Expect Liberation?

As said, the command unit problem is tied to the I-War 1 engine, or rather, to the docking autopilot. The setting of an Indie crew getting hold of a Navy prototype almost cries for a "steal-the-ship-by-docking-your-command-unit-stealthily" kind of mission. But setting the command unit further into the hull may cause the docking autopilot to crash into the hull or "float" through it in some situations.

so long
cormorant

Do you remember the "Alabama"?
How about the name of the state you are living in Shane?
Georgia-Class Frigate?

Brilliant, Tarcoon!

I can't think of a better way to name the ship's class AND to recognize the talent and effort of its creator. I was going to go with Enigma-class, but someday someone may want to create a really different, totally stealthy ship model kind of like an EoC era slinky COSA-black-ship kind of thing (hint...hint, Shane), for which that name might be more appropriate. I think that, unless Shane has a particular antipathy toward his home state, it should bear its name.

Go for it!

--
Hot4Darmat

Guys, it really makes no difference to me what name you choose. But I appreciate the thought.

Lets throw out some ideas and vote on them (I wonder if we can do a poll on this forum... probably not, but we can always do it the old fashioned way).

Here's a couple of class names I like.

Scalpel (My favorite, but also a complete rip-off of Stephen R. Donaldson's Gap series which featured the Scalpel class cruiser Punisher.)

Scimitar (A really cool weapon, which I've always liked. )

Lance (Not crazy about the name, but the lance is the medieval weapon which most closely resembles the role of the frigate; it's large, not very agile, but fast, powerful, and deadly.)

Stiletto (Only fitting if seen from the point-of-view of capital ship sizes. To a carrier or cruiser, the frigate is a reasonable Stiletto class)

Venturer
Sabre
Champion
Paladin
Vindicator
Discipline


Now this is just what I can pull off Dictionary.com's Thesaurus in about five minutes. This forum is far more creative. Everyone send in some names you think would fit and we'll vote on them.

@Cormorant: Glad you like her. I'll bundle the thing together tonight, convert the .iff textures to .gif format, and send her your way.

<font size="1"><font face="Book Antiqua"><font color="black">"Never before in the history of the world had such a mass of human beings moved and suffered together. This was no disciplined march; it was a stampede-- without order and without a goal, six million people unarmed and unprovisioned, driving headlong. It was the beginning of the rout of Civilisation... of the massacre of Mankind."
--H. G. Wells The War Of The Worlds</font id="black"></font id="Book Antiqua"> </font id="size1">

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