Alien Tank designs ideas and proposals

[TrashMan]

I'm a contributor, not one of the original devs. Wouldn't that be your choice?

[DarkRain]

Modelling isn't my area of expertise, but what would be wrong with having two tags one for the turret an other for the barrel (characters have three tags -- head and right/left weapons) both attached to the body and have both rotating in sync, ok maybe overcomplicated, so I shut up.

[Anderty]

I'll make that first page last one. It's cool and easy to make.

[Sandro]

Somehow missed this topic earlier, so will clarify things now.
1) Current code already supports unlimited tag chaining, so you can chain hull->turret->gun with a few bits of code.
2) Tags are not limited to head/heft/right; actually, there are max 16 tags per (sub)model with arbitrary names.
3) Animations for submodels are not supported for now, that's true; not sure about how much work is required to implement them
4) Turret tag rotation is a no-brainer to implement, but will also require support in networking code.

[Snowblind]

Just a thought, a legged 4x4 model will probably look pretty silly and will be a pain to model. Like a lot of games with the moon-walking sliding legs thing, going across the ground, I'm sure you've seen it. A tracked or wheeled robot drone is ok. Wheels and treads are still efficient and able compared to legs, even in the future. Treads can be covered with a skirt and easy to model.

Maybe the the alien tank is just a big sphere, it rolls around, opens up into a shooting platform when it stops and shoots when it needs to shoot. Or it just has two or three wheels, with a turret. Or maybe It's a just a wide, squat, meat-based humanoid cyborg life-form on two legs.

The game universe might not have 'antigravity' or anything, but maybe a VTOL drone with anti-matter fueled rockets keeping it level and hovering. Like an unmanned, green miniature version of the alien spacecraft, for mining asteroids or whatever, but it's just a recon drone with a plasma cutter on it, the aliens use it as a combat weapon out of desperation in the late game.

I get with sci-fi stuff, people try to think of something more interesting then a box with treads and a turret on it, but the walk'n mecha-legged thing is getting even more trite. A tank with legs and a turret is just awful.

[Sims]

My thoughts about the alien tank.

It should be big and slow. It should look similar like ships. after all it is not organic.  The canon can be Plasma or Particle. The Tank can use some sort of Tracks ... Bloodspider has legs. Hovernet uses hover . No rotating turret .... That's it.

Sims

[Sims]

Some more ...

[krilain]

(...) after all it is not organic.(...)

First, it is a nice model here you made. I would also congratulate the artworks made by hand in the last pages. Ok, but just a notice. The aliens need to be organic in order to receive orders (psi-orders in fact) and behave as a team. So if you design a 100% mechanical tank that doesn't make too much sense, it is less efficient than if it was at least driven by an alien organic unit, or at the very least an alien brain included somewhere in the tank.

That doesn't necessarily change your design, but I suppose that if you agreed with me you would show partly the alien organic part driving the tank.

[Anarch Cassius]

We don't know for a fact you can't make a mechanical psi-receiver. And at least one alien type is cybernetic with an organic brain and mechanical body already.

It could go either way. I'm pretty sure Bloodspiders are fully automated and once psi-warfare goes in there may be some advantage to autonomous robots that can't be psi-hacked.

[Sims]

First, it is a nice model here you made. I would also congratulate the artworks made by hand in the last pages. Ok, but just a notice. The aliens need to be organic in order to receive orders (psi-orders in fact) and behave as a team. So if you design a 100% mechanical tank that doesn't make too much sense, it is less efficient than if it was at least driven by an alien organic unit, or at the very least an alien brain included somewhere in the tank.

That doesn't necessarily change your design, but I suppose that if you agreed with me you would show partly the alien organic part driving the tank.

Thank's. I think the  Breeder is half-organic. So i thought the tank is made not organic. But i's not necessary .... Below description in Proposals

Alien tank

    Role: The purpose of this unit would be to be very tough and heavily armed. It's an enemy to attack from cover, because a direct engagement would result in almost certain death. It should be a 2x2 unit, so it can't enter confined spaces. It should also be mechanical. Mode of movement could be tracked, wheeled or legged, whatever works. Think ground-based, alien UGV.

[krilain]

We don't know for a fact you can't make a mechanical psi-receiver. And at least one alien type is cybernetic with an organic brain and mechanical body already.

It could go either way. I'm pretty sure Bloodspiders are fully automated and once psi-warfare goes in there may be some advantage to autonomous robots that can't be psi-hacked.

You are absolutely right that aliens may have some non psi stuff, they cant be only organics. But I was thinking about how all that stuff is finally controled. Above all, mind control sounds to me very secure.

In my opinion whereas a captured alien is in one sense unactivated totally, it wouldn't be the case for a mechanized unit. Even with a broken mechanized unit the phallanx may be able to study very far such an unit and so to counter it easier than if it was partly linked to a psi and autopsy feature. And what to say about the potential re-use ? At least it is food for thought.

Thank's. I think the  Breeder is half-organic. So i thought the tank is made not organic. But i's not necessary .... Below description in Proposals

Alien tank

    Role: The purpose of this unit would be to be very tough and heavily armed. It's an enemy to attack from cover, because a direct engagement would result in almost certain death. It should be a 2x2 unit, so it can't enter confined spaces. It should also be mechanical. Mode of movement could be tracked, wheeled or legged, whatever works. Think ground-based, alien UGV.

This is the description proposal I had in mind. You may follow it or not, it is up to you. I made my own interpretation but you may have other planes.

My purpose was only to question you so that you dont forget an element that would make you think at the end that you would have prefered finally to add such or such thing in your model. The crucial detail you know

[Sims]

I agree that the Tank must be controlled somehow. It can have "a Brain" somewhere under the Armor ...

[krilain]

I agree that the Tank must be controlled somehow. It can have "a Brain" somewhere under the Armor ...

Can I ask you if you use Google-sketchup as 3D editor? It is to know if it is able to handle md2.

I opened the model directory of my 2.4 and faced this tank model below (I 'm also working on a tank idea). Will it be discontinued? It is pretty close in the general idea of what proposed just above.

To anyone who wishes to explore the UFOAI models in order to see how it work or for any reason, I use personnally Misfit3D as a fast md2 viewer. It asks a very short learning time (just play with the view menu in general) and can also play animations. It's GNU.

[Sims]

Hi,

I use Solid Works and Blender, Gimp. Guys i need some help on the Textures. You can see my Inspiration of the tank. But i am not that god on making the textures itself. I can use some ideas or direction how to texturize the tank.

Thanx

[krilain]

Difficult to tell you a lot of things. You will probably need first to choose a material orientation. Do you want your tank to look metal, plastic, organic?

Then for the job you already have done in the last pic provided, you have obviously a grain issue. I mean this texture is not scaled correctly according to the surface involved. At least it is my opinion.

Finally I will would personally try first to make it fully metalic. Blue metal for instance. Try this for instance : http://www.ipad2wallpaper.net/wp-content/Wallpapers/Blue_Metal_Holes_Pattern.jpg. It is surely not free licence but you can always get an idea. In general try many materials, ideas will come from this.

Once you get the general texure, you can add or paint the other details, like the green parts.