HW2: Pirates Mod
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
HW2: Pirates Mod (or simply the Pirates Mod) is a multiplayer modification for the popular real-time strategy computer game Homeworld 2. The mod expands depth of play of Homeworld 2 by adding a well-balanced third playable race (the pirates), two new gamemodes, several new multiplayer maps, and new sound effects. The most current release is v0.3 as of 2/10/2006.
Contents |
[edit] Mod Description
The Pirates Mod adds a third race to play as or against in multiplayer and skirmish games with a focus on strategic, well-balanced gameplay. A cunning faction known simply as "the Pirates", their sleek strike craft and quick capital ships strike fear into any opponent. The Pirates Mod features all new ship designs for the pirates fleet, new sound effects, new voice sfx, new multiplayer maps, and new gametypes including Capture the Megalith and Trader's Hell modes, and a fully functional Pirate AI for a new challenge. The mod also implements minor universal gameplay changes, game balance tweeks, and adds additional ships to the existing Hiigaran and Vaygr navies.
[edit] Strategy Guide
(In progress, please contribute!). Refer to the HW2: Pirates Mod Strategy Guide for community-submitted analyses of every aspect of the mod.
[edit] The Pirates
[edit] Backstory
In progress
[edit] The Pirate Fleet
The pirate fleet is faster and more heavily armored than comparable hiigaran and vaygr ships. This is balanced by an increase in cost and a decrease in raw firepower. The cost increase is to simulate the pirate "do more with less" philosophy. Most ships have a very specific role within the pirate fleet, and most are not powerful enough to stand toe-to-toe with enemy ships of the same class. The pirates rely more on stealth, hit-and-run strikes, comandeering enemy vessels, and sheer cunning to win their battles.
Frigates are the backbone of any pirate fleet, although fighters provide a quick and powerful punch to any hit-and-run attack. Pirate corvettes are used mainly as anti-strike craft support for the frigates. Although the pirate destroyers are smaller in size than the hiigaran and vaygr destroyers, the pirate battleship is the largest combat ship in any fleet (non-progenitor, that is). Without battleships, the artillery frigate is the best direct answer the pirates have against enemy capital ships, although a cunning player would be better of disabling, capturing, or avoiding engagements with enemy capital ships.
[edit] Fighters
- Interceptor (6 ships per squadron) - Basic fighter squadron. Fastest combat ship in any fleet, although poorer at dogfighting than their vaygr and hiigaran counterparts. Their paper thin armor makes them flying caskets against corvettes and anti-fighter weaponry.
- Light Bomber (5 ships per squadron) - Fast, anti-subsystem fighter squadron. Can attack frigates and capital ships, but less effectively than hiigaran or vaygr bombers.
- Strike Fighter (5 ships per squadron) - Heavy fighter squadron. Tougher and slower than interceptors. Good against corvettes. Can be upgraded to fire EMP bombs, which easily disable enemy frigates and destroyers.
[edit] Corvettes
- Multi-Gun Corvette (3 ships per squadron) - Heavy anti-fighter corvette squadron. Very effective against enemy fighters, especially bombers. Moderately effective against enemy corvettes.
- Neutralizer Corvette - ECM corvette that reduces weapon accuracy and damage of nearby enemy ships (like an 'anti-command' corvette)
- Mobilizer Corvette - Builds hyperspace buoys, which can form hyperspace gates for free. Can cloak, allowing it to drop buoys behind enemy lines.
[edit] Frigates
- Boarding Frigate - Basic capture frigate. More heavily armored than Hiigaran and Vaygr marine frigates.
- Strike Frigate - Standard, multi-role attack frigate. Good against corvettes and frigates. Deadly in numbers.
- Artillery Frigate - Anti-capital frigate armed with long-range artillery missiles. Very effective against groups of frigates. Enemy battlecruisers are easy targets for the artillery missiles, especially if their engines are disabled.
- Harpoon Frigate - Frigate armed with a long-range disabling tractor beam. Useful in conjunction with boarding frigates to commandeer enemy frigates and capital ships. An individual frigate can disable an enemy frigate, a group can overwhelm a destroyer.
- Interdictor Frigate – Non-combat frigate equipped with a grav well generator for ‘trapping’ enemy ships trying to escape via hyperspace, or defending against offensive enemy hyperspace jumps.
[edit] Capital Ships
- Heavy Carrier (Bataraia's Hammer) - Mobile production facility with 3 production slots, 2 module slots, and 1 sensor slot (nearly identical to hiigaran carrier). Can build destroyers with advanced manufacturing research.
- Battle Carrier (Strength of Libertatia) - Similar to Heavy Carrier, but with additional speed and armor. Can build weapon subsytems to make it a formidable opponent.
- Light Carrier - Fast, well-armed carrier with 1 production facility and 1 sensor slot. Armed with two dual rapid-fire turrets and multiple small missile launchers. Should be close to any battle, ready to provide support for nearby strikes. Can cloak.
- Light Destroyer - Basic capital ship. Jack-of-all-trades, but master of none. Faster, but less firepower than hiigaran or vaygr destroyers. Armed with four heavy fast-tracking turrets a two dual torpedo launchers.
- Raider Destroyer - Slightly larger than light destroyer, but faster with lighter armor. Armed with EMP torpedoes for disabling enemy frigates and resourcers. Has intrinsic hyperspace ability. Good for quick and heavy hit-and-run raids.
- Battleship - Largest non-Progenitor/Bentusi ship in any fleet. Its heavy weaponry more than make up for its lack of manuverability. High top speed for a ship of its size, but poor accelearation and turn speed. Firepower can be upgraded with heavy ion cannon turrets or flak cannons.
- Pirate Base - Large manufacturing base able to build capital and utility class ships.
[edit] Utility
- Resource Collector - Basic resourcer that harvests asteroids for conversion into RUs. Cannot collect salvage or repair.
- Salvage Collector - Harvests horribly, but is very fast and sneaky, making it great for collecting salvage, even in the middle of a battle. Has intrinsic repair ability.
- Hyperspace Buoy' - Can link to form hyperspace networks at no cost. Has intrinsic sensor distortion ability, making it difficult for enemy patrols to detect.
[edit] Subsystems
- Reverse Engineering Module - Basic research module (but with a cooler name).
- Accelerated Manufacturing Module - Increases ship build speed by 30%.
- Hyperspace Module - Allows the ship to hyperspace. Can be built on Heavy Carriers and Battle Carriers only. All other ships must hyperspace via a linked hyperspace buoy.
- Cloak Module - Allows the ship to disappear for a short length of time.
- Weapon Control Tower - Allows Battle Carriers to build weapon subsystems.
[edit] Multiplayer Gametypes
[edit] Deathmatch (DM)
Standard gametype where the last fleet standing wins. Unlike the Hiigaran and Vaygr races who start the match with a Mothership, a carrier, and six resource collectors, the Pirates start the match with a Heavy Carrier (Bataraia's Hammer), a Battle Carrier (Strength of Libertatia), six resource collectors, one salvage collector, and no motherhship.
[edit] Trader's Hell (TH)
Expansion of the deathmatch gametype where random, neutral shipping fleets cross the map at random intervals. The freighters in the convoy may be captured for extra resources. The convoys may or may not be escorted by fighters, corvettes, and frigates.
[edit] Capture the Megalith (CTM)
Another expansion of the deathmatch gametype. Each CTM map has one or two megaliths on the map which may be captured to provide a significant resource boost to the owner. Capturing the metaliths is not a necessary winning condition.
[edit] Universal Changes
In Progress
[edit] The Mod Team
- Homer Jr. - Mod leader, game design, scripter, sound fx,
- Fearing - Modeler, texturer
- Thunderbolt - Modeler, texturer
- Sybos - Voice fx
Other significant contributors include Evillejedi, Bones v2.0, Greggy, DarthVaygr, Tefeari, Mikail, Cleron, thesamonthemoon
