New Models!

[Martes]

Since the cabin doors on the Indy had driven me a little mad, I have delved a little into the venerable AOS2.
It's not that bad, when you get used to it.

Amazingly, many settings and config files are available in text format, and the game is quite tolerable to their modifications.
For example, I got it to run in 1080p resolution, enabled camera to get lower angles and more flexible zoom, etc.

The models were ugly, though. Especially frigates.

Looking more closely, I noticed that there were, actually, 3 different texture sets from obviously different artists, while the models, actually, were tolerable... For that age, anyway. You won't guess, but the model above has a tumblehome hull.

So I began to experiment. The models and textures are impossible to edit (packed into unknown archives being themselves in unknown format), but it was possible to play with different textures for different models, and, on top of that, change masts and sails. And add ship classes. So I began testing various combinations...

And that's what I got. While not being completely accurate (don't you ever try to count the gun ports!), the models (to me, at least) give much closer impression of the ships they try to represent than in the original game.

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Unfortunately, the extensive database that went with the game turned out to be completely messed up (especially when comparing random ships to threedecks.org), so I decided to make a temporary one containing one ship per noticeable type, and alter them per scenario accordingly.

Again, I don't know if it may interest anybody beside the crazy me, but if it does, I can upload the config files here.

 

[Martes]

Continuing playing with this a bit, I found and restored (had to rearrange the masts) another merchant model that was in game files:

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And made some new combinations -
finding, after all, a use for old frigate textures:

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...and making post war scenarios a little more feasible:

 

[Martes]

Can't stop playing with that.
Really, there is so much that can be done with this game, it's unbelievable.
Just look at the views!

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There are some features I dearly miss here:
- ability to fetch-to (stop without lowering sails)
- take a (surrendered, at least) ship using boats
- use boats to turn a ship into different direction, attempt to remove from shoal and the like
- order an automatic "turn in succession" to formation

But that would have made it almost perfect

 

[Pieter Boelen]

Game looks actually pretty good, no?

 

[Martes]

Game looks actually pretty good, no?

It took some tweaking here and there (namely changing camera restriction settings and textures above, plus some mastery of the controls), but it definitely does.
The funny thing I am not even sure the authors intended it in any way.

 

[Captain Armstrong]

It does look quite good for its age! I especially like the shots of vessels close-hauled, their heel and motion seems just right

 

[Martes]

I especially like the shots of vessels close-hauled, their heel and motion seems just right

Oh, I like that, too!
It's not Whitcombe, but comes damn close at times.

I found the game very useful for a kind of tactical campaign, generating events using various options and dice rolls, then creating scenarios accordingly and playing them. I even (sorta) managed to play a cutout operation for a damaged frigate.

Xebecs cut a frigate from anchorage


French frigates boast a bunch of captured merchants, indiaman included​

 

[Captain Armstrong]

Looks like fun! Cutting out expeditions have been one of the big missing battle types from all of the age of sail games so far that I know of. And it looks like quite the successful cruise for that frigate squadron, back at Mauritius to resupply before returning to the hunt?

 

[Martes]

Cutting out expeditions have been one of the big missing battle types from all of the age of sail games so far that I know of

Can't say it was fully intended here, but I found a workaround to make it possible.
Each scenario has 3 sides: A, B and C, where C plays capturable neutral, so if you assign the frigate you intend to cut as a neutral under incidentally the same flag as side B, it becomes possible to get the ship out (captured side B ships, unfortunately, cannot be moved).

back at Mauritius to resupply

Martinique in our case, but yes.
We had an interesting exchange - the French damaged (well, damaged... outright shot off) my 64's main mast during a night action (which was so tense I didn't even bother to make pictures), so she went out of action for a while, and were unloading their damaged frigate to repair. But since all their other ships were on that very successful hunt... Something was missing when they returned.

 

[Martes]

The gallant protector: HMS Warwick (50) stands between a convoy and French armed indiaman Commerce de Martinique (40). French frigate L'Indienne (44) going about at distance.​

 

[Martes]

Some shots at better resolution.
Just sailing around.

A captured large French frigate and two ships of the line (64 and a 50-gunner) turning in succession.

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Love those hulls.
After all, with all its drawbacks, this game proves to be an excellent sailing and tactical simulator. And can quite easily provide one with illustration to almost any age of sail novel

 

[Martes]

I recompiled a list of all the model variants, which includes now separate 44, 40 and 38 variants for 24pdr and 18pdr frigates (roughly, it's same model, but combined with different textures and rigs), one older French 12pdr design looking very similar to Belle Poule, and separated all the models to 4 color variants (auto, red, white and yellow).
Historically, it looks like the British (generally) used yellow and white, French (and US) - white and red, and Spanish - red and yellow, so now it's possible to have all these in a scenario.

Comparing to contemporary images
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Also, I found another hidden feature (never underestimate the game manual).
There is a multiplayer mode in the game, that allows to assign only certain ships in a scenario to a player. And it's possible to run a multiplayer game with no external connections, making it essentially a single-player mode, where the player commands only one (or several), of his side's ships, while all others are under AI control!

 

[Martes]

End of a night battle:

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An eerie shot, made possible by a lightning bug during loading a save. It was much darker during action.

Like this​

Surrendered French 74 (the one with lowered sails in center-left), a British frigate approaching her under reduced sail, and a 64 and a 50-gun ships in circling pattern. 50-gunner has lost a main-mast, but it's absence is mostly obscured, as she's bows on to us. In the background two other French ships turning away, and a small British brig approaching.
Another French 74 sunk just minutes before.

These moments make the game look impossibly realistic.

 

[Martes]

Omg. Omg. Omg.

I managed to create a new texture for this game.

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Turns out, the game has a built-in converter of bmp to texture (.tf) as part of possibility to import custom flags.
That, unfortunately, limits the texture size to strict 256x128 pixels, but (1) it may be enough for that graphic level and (2) having the original bmp and the converted tf somebody might just rewrite the converter.

 

[Martes]

And some more:

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A high-res Augusta drawing quickly converted with some contrast and adjustment.
I think 1280px plans from NMM will fit just nicely here, without too much distortions, and I would just color them.

 

[Martes]

Testing the Agamemnon of 64 guns under sail:

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There are some details to finish, and I even can replace the stern, although the original looks more or less OK, if a bit blurry.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

Those are some BIG sails!

 

[Martes]

Those are some BIG sails!

The sails are totally standard for the ship, while the hull texture is completely new
I just wanted to see how she looks in dynamic movement, instead of calm position when in scenario editor.

And that it opens a whole new perspective on modding this long overlooked game.

 

[Martes]

And, of course, the Indefatigable

She even has a new stern, showing the raised gallery.



With the finished Agamemnon
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The models here are extremely good - you just add the right texture to the right model, and you get the ship almost as it was.

It's still far from being completely playable - no color variants, no damage textures (I wasn't able yet to devise an easy way to generate them), but it's moving. Somewhere.
I hope to replace the textures on ships that direly need replacements - namely frigates and 74-gunners, and then see what else can be done. National variants, for instance, are an option, at least for some types...

 

[Pieter Boelen]

And, of course, the Indefatigable

Your favourite!