Topic: Hex Editing of Starfleet executables

[TAnimaL]

I started to giggle when I read your post Adam but realised you probably meant it in all seriousness. 

There are no pics of TR beams in action because there are no pics in SFB really. There is artwork on the covers, and in the "magazine" Captain's Log there are occasional images but no one (I know) takes these too seriously. I mean, over the years the artwork has ranged from crude sktechs to primitive computer-generated to more sophisticated art, so they're mostly filler. In fact, if I know SFB players, I'll bet there has been more than a few rules arguments that started over something in an image -  it doesn't take much to get a "rules lawyer" going.

I'm including a few pictures from covers with Andros, just to give you an idea what I'm talking about. I think your "TRs look like tractors" is as good as an approach as any. Whatever looks cool

[TAnimaL]

And usually, it was just counters on a map, unless you had some miniatures around. 

[Bernard Guignard]

Damn Seeing those SFB pictures of the minis are bring back memories 

[TAnimaL]

As promised/threatened, here are the offsets I have found for the OP exe. This is not complete but I'd rather not hold back posting this any longer. As I note in the readme, some things are handled differently in OP than they are in CE. For example, I couldn't find plasma-degradation values; you can assign ranges based on type however. And special shuttles (WW, scatterpacks, suicide, Assault) all use the same speed controller, unlike separately as in CE.

Here are CE elements I couldn't find in OP:

• Capture enabling (might not exist in OP?)
• Mines detonation, activation ranges (I haven't tested all of the possibilities yet)
• Max Range limiters on Phasers 1/2/3/4 (might not exist in OP?)
• Point Defense controls - beyond my limited abilities, might be handled differently in OP
• Photon holding as multiple of charge rate (I haven't tested all of the possibilities yet)

Here are CE elements I didn't look for yet in OP

• Fusion (std, OL,SOL) charge rate, total charge
• Hellbore charge rates
• Missile endurances
• PPD hold costs, OL max range limiter
• Tractor engagement range

I also found some interesting things about the TR Beams and the not-as-broken DroD & DroE but I'll maybe start another thread for that.

The attachment "OP_EXE_Offsets.ZIP" is just the offsets. The attachment "SFCOP_Exe_Editing.zip" contains the SFC_Editor1.3.3 program, the offsets and the .bat to load them, but you'll need to place a copy of the StarFleetOP.exe into that folder. Again, thanks to everyone else on this thread for getting it this far

EDIT: small issue found in the offsets, newer versions below

[TAnimaL]

I also did a little tweaking to the stock OP exe and placed it in the Library, called "OP_exe_SFB_Normals"


ftp://www.dynaverse.net/sfc2_op/Uploads/OP_Exe_SFB_normals.ZIP

In this exe, I changed anything I found in the stock OP exe back to "SFB standards"

-TR beams used different range bracket values in stock OP than they do in SFB. Fixed to SFB brackets (0-3, 4-5, 6-8, 9-12, 12-18 19-26)
-Proximity Photons changed back to SFB charts to stop the complaining
-Plasma speeds changed back to 32 (except Plasma-X, still 40), same as missiles. You're welcome.
-All "light" weapons for fighter (Disruptors, photons, fusions, Hellbores) changed back to standard damage, not half

This is just meant as an experiment I wanted to play around with. Please please let's not start any sort of digression about "magic" anythings.

[TarMinyatur]

Thanks for your efforts, TAnimaL.

Looks like there is an address error for the OL Fusion Beam table as viewed in the SFC_Editor. The quicktip info looks good, but the 6x6b chart isn't quite right. It has two columns full of zeroes. All the other charts look good.

I'd fix this myself, but I've forgotten how to do it. It may take me a few days to relearn this stuff.

[TAnimaL]

Thanks for the catch Tar, I found that error and fixed it, attaching new versions.

Adam, I didn't see anything in your previous notes re: point defense enable/disable, maybe this is something  easier to find in IDA? In HxD it would be impossible to discern one option point byte from another. There was one mention in your notes about P3 range lmitations but I didn't really get it, and I guess I don't really see range limitations as that important. Point defense would be nice tho.

(And if it was somewhere else in this thread, sorry, I must have missed it.  Getting close to 33 pages now!)

[TarMinyatur]

TAnimaL,

From your OP offsets.txt: "397688: 1d // Cloak range x10, added to true range // 60.0"

I don't think this offset is correct. SFC:OP should have a 50.0d modifier. The 60.0d modifier in CE's offsets is used to strengthen Community Edition's weak cloak. I could be wrong, but OP's cloak does not need a +6 range adjustment, on top of the doubled-range effect, which then gets passed to the Misery Chart (which CE lacks).

I'm looking for a 50.0d (double-precision float) value...

I found it.  .text:00438522 sub_438522

All seems ok. Cloak effect is range +1, +2, +3, +4, +5, and then range*2 +5.
Decloak is the reverse.

[Corbomite]

Tar

I know by reading a previous thread of mine circa 2003 you stated the Stealth (+ECM) in the shiplist didn't work on EAW, but does it work in OP?

Adam

No.

[TarMinyatur]

Adam, somewhere there may be a variable's value (0 or 1) that defines an empire as fighter-equipped or PF-equipped. There probably is no value (such as 2, an arbitrary enumeration) that would allow a race to carry both types of attrition units. But Taldren might possibly have coded this capability very early on, before the segregation took place. If so, it would be easy to hex-edit. But not so easy to locate.

Rod O'neal's manipulation of the shiplist may be the most practical way to get a pair of PFs on a Klingon D7C.

[[UFP]Exeter]

what is a pf?

[[UFP]Exeter]

fast,
turns sharp,
decent offense,
no defense.


a glass cannon

[Corbomite]

what is a pf?

Pseudo Fighter, Like a TNG/DS9 Runabout, Almost a mini, tiny, limited Frigate, Fast Patrol, Corvette like
Whereas a standard fighter is like the fighters seen in DS9, no shields

Hope that description helps

Adam

PF stands for Fast Patrol ship, not Pseudo Fighter. Pseudo Fighter is more of a nickname.

fast,
turns sharp,
decent offense,
no defense.


a glass cannon

Sure, one is, but you usually had twelve or more on the board in a decent sized battle involving them. And they were hard to knock off if used correctly.

[Corbomite]

Adam,

Remember that the donor ships for the Romulan carriers will not get a NSM. It's part of that hard coding I mentioned before.

[Corbomite]

With good reason. Only pirates get engine doubling. It would carry over to the transplant race for the same reason only Romulan ships originating in the Romulan part of the shiplist get a NSM.

[[UFP]Exeter]

NSM?

[Corbomite]

That reminds me; someone has to bump NSM back up to 50 pts where they belong. Whomever dropped them to 35 was just a hater  .

[TarMinyatur]

No consistency on Taldren's part...

Suicide shuttles do 25, instead of a max of 18, but they consume a t-bomb.
NSMs do 50? Is that right? I never deployed one in SFB. NSMs should only be on old-school Romulan ships, like the BH, WE, and KE. It seems wrong for a K5R or a KRC to have one of these suckers for a huge self-destruction blast.

[Corbomite]

NSM did 50 in SFC1. I was just waxing nostalgic about how much more satisfying the "Nuclear Space Mine Detonated!" message was then. They do 35 in SFB and old Rom hulls get them for free and pretty much any Rom hull can get them as optional equipment, which Taldren just ignored in favor of all ships just getting one if you want it. With the weaker cloak and double internals I agree with that free option (and the 50 pts!).

[Corbomite]

You know, I just realized that we could have had minelayers with captor mines and TBomb/dropped small mines the whole time.