I have a suspicion this simply means adding a custom hardpoint to the ship and also adding it to the shiparch.ini

Not sure if that will work but if anyone knows it'd be nice to find out, and if nothing else when I get a chance I will test it out.

ww2jacob:

Just to give you a hint:

Be careful, make copies of any files you open up before you open them, just in case you corrupt them accidentally!

You need to get HardCMP and UTF Editor (available from here, just do a bit to go find them) and use them to open up the ship's *.cmp file so you can see the name of the ship's hardpoints and where they are located. You will also notice they have direction values and sometimes swing values.

To see how hardpoints are used, you need to get an .ini editor (I use TinyFish, also available from here) (or a text editor because many of the .ini files are already converted into text) and open up the file shiparch.ini, look in it for the nickname of the ship you're looking at (hint - this will not always be clear, but it will be easy to find it by searching in the editor for the same name as the .cmp file you opened). Then under the block of settings for that ship you will find the hardpoints and you will see what weapon they can mount. The proof of this is of course in playing the game itself.

If you want to get into changing these (modding) then you do need to do a lot of reading and take some risks - we all did!

Roleplay: - the art of self-deceipt!

well i think he means the hardpoint type and not just create new hardpoints on a model

You can make any hardpoint you like, a shield can be Doodlebanger - as long as you create the correct link in the shiparch.ini to let the game know it's a shield mount .

It's that simple.

How do some work like new items though? I utilise "bugs" with shields to create power boosters, capacitors and other stuff. Negative power drain means it "gives" power back - making our power boosters. Shields without any recharge etc, but with a capacity = shield capacitors. Shields with no capacity/power usage - but a regen rate = shield regenerators. It was possible to do the same with many other items, like a thruster booster - but obviously the extra mount could actually mount another thruster instead - so being abused.

How to make them specific to one type of mount? Simply put, there are 30 types of shield mounts - freighter, fighter, heavy fighter. Each goes to lvl 10. Now our ships only have one type - a universal mount type to all ships - one of those three. The other two were created into other mounts, utilising their "class" definitions cleverly and some dll strings being changed to fool the user.

You can actually mount guns onto shield mounts, and at one point I considered doing so - BUT it would require losing some of my shield boosters etc.

Edited by - Chips on 4/19/2006 3:27:06 PM

or instead of calling them boosters you can call them powerplants,use the reactor models from equipment/hardware and remove regen from the internal power

Yes, which we also did.

Just bear in mind that if every mod copies everything they find good from other mods, effectively Freelancer modding is dead. There will be no uniqueness to any mods, as they will all feature exactly the same stuff - making it remarkably boring. If we are going to do that, we may as well all just club together to make one massive mod and leave it at that.

ok again... difference between hardpoints and hardpoint types


hardpoints = HpMount, HpShield01, HpWhatever....

hardpoint types = hp_special_gun_1 or hp_special_shield

to create hardpoints you dont need to be that clever... you need utf or hardcmp or whatever

to create hardpoints types is the problem because those are hardcoded... and exactly those hardpoint types... that is needed in my eyes

Thanks for the replies.

From what I understand, I think that Chip's method for Evoultions was that he removed the whole Light Fighter Shield, Heavy Fighter Shield, Freighter Shield, in favor of just one, then used the other two sets of mounts to create generators and remnamed everything in the DLLs.

Am I getting it here, Chips?

That's what i said

i see, how can y modificate a ship in a mod? like making all class 10? so it can mount more powerfull weapons? what do i need for it? program, editors??

If you are running mods, then you should have installed the SDK over the game ini files. In which case, they are all decoded and you can just view them in notepad.
All of the details for mounting things on to ships is in ships/shiparch.ini. You'll need to know the nickname of the ship you want to work on, you can download the database by SuBXeRo here
Taken from SDK Eagle
shield_link = cv_fighter6_shield01, HpMount, HpShield01
hp_type = hp_gun_special_10 , HpWeapon01, HpWeapon02, HpWeapon03, HpWeapon04<--The bold is the class
hp_type = hp_gun_special_9, HpWeapon01, HpWeapon02, HpWeapon03, HpWeapon04, HpWeapon05, HpWeapon06 <--The bold is the mounts
..
hp_type = hp_gun_special_1, HpWeapon01, HpWeapon02, HpWeapon03, HpWeapon04, HpWeapon05, HpWeapon06
hp_type = hp_elite_shield_special_10, HpShield01
..
hp_type = hp_elite_shield_special_1, HpShield01
hp_type = hp_thruster, HpThruster01
hp_type = hp_mine_dropper, HpMine01
hp_type = hp_countermeasure_dropper, HpCM01
hp_type = hp_turret_special_10, HpTurret01
..
hp_type = hp_turret_special_1, HpTurret01
hp_type = hp_torpedo_special_1, HpTorpedo01
hp_type = hp_torpedo_special_2, HpTorpedo01

Thats easy, open Fleelancer/data/shiparch/ and locate the ship you want. It lists the guns and level.

hp_type = hp_gun_special_10, HpWeapon01, HpWeapon02, HpWeapon03, HpWeapon04, HpWeapon05


Hp_type is the gun/torpedo ect.
hp_gun_special_1-10 is the differnt levels it can be, simple change one of them to 10 and the ship can handle level 10 guns.

HpWeapon01-05 is how many gun hard points you have, ie how many guns tou cna load on the ship.

Note*** When you open Microsoft game/Freelancer/ and get to the Data folder, right click on it, and uncheck the "Read Only" box, close and go on. If you don't, you can't save our changes.

Drat mace beat me to it.

Edited by - Finalday on 9/2/2006 7:09:33 PM

is there a list of all the hardpoint types available for use in the game?
trying to find out what hardpoints are used for what equipment
mostly just looking for it to help inspire ideas for a mod so far

basically the number of hardpoint types is unlimited

some are hardcoded and directly integrated into the game - like the HpMount
others can be created freely