@delphi, on Oct 18 2010, 05:43 PM, said in EVN - Delphi:

Don't worry, both versions are in the same game, and not at different eras. Just like the Honda Civic, you can see one from 1992 on the road right next to one from 2010.

I know the added meat between the engine struts changes the look somewhat, but it was necessary unless I wanted it to look exactly like the old Gammadon but turned backward. It genuinely does look and behave like a completely different ship.

Yeah, you're right--while it feels weird to look at the newer Gammadon, I could always buy the older one if I don't like the former.

@darthkev, on Oct 18 2010, 06:19 PM, said in EVN - Delphi:

Agreed. I'm also not seeing the Monolith look-alike bit. So they both have somewhat rectangular shapes, the patterning and placement of the NDC emblem is still very different. Even if the emblem goes away along with the rest of the running lights when the ship is disabled, there's still the ship's own hull patterning.

The "rectangular shapes" part is the problem with me. I've grown so used to seeing Delphi's dynamic ship designs that seeing rectangular ships kinda doesn't sit with me too well. But then again, I can always avoid buying the Monolith if I don't like it.

@delphi, on Oct 19 2010, 12:45 AM, said in EVN - Delphi:

Oh, I'll also have a new laptop arriving sometime within the next 2 days. It'll be a big bump up from my little 2006 MacBook Pro @ 2.0 GHz. With 2.66 GHz of speed, 4 GB of RAM, and 512 MB of VRAM, it'll absolutely tear through render times, like a chainsword through a heretic. Of course, it'll also mean that now I can take Fallout 3 with me on the road.

Close-up of a 2010 MacBook Pro's main board

<Plays said heretics. Death to the False Steve Jobs?

I quite like the modern Gammadon, though if I were to register a complaint, I'd say having the NDC triangle that far forwards looks quite unbalanced. If anything the ship as a whole looks a little forward heavy, but balance wouldn't be an NDC thing, I guess.

@templar98921, on Oct 18 2010, 11:58 PM, said in EVN - Delphi:

I quite like the modern Gammadon, though if I were to register a complaint, I'd say having the NDC triangle that far forwards looks quite unbalanced. If anything the ship as a whole looks a little forward heavy, but balance wouldn't be an NDC thing, I guess.

I actually agree with you. I'm going to re-render it as soon as I have some time to sit down and get it done. I'll probably move the crest further back.

Well this is... frustrating. Don't worry, the project has had nothing bad come of it. I'll just preface with that.

Suffice it to say, I ordered a nice shiny new laptop for approximately $2600, and now that same configuration is only worth $2400, because they bumped up the processor specification while keeping the price point the same. I can certainly send it back and redo the order, but I really need the computer for school and it's going to be one big massive hassle. Otherwise I'm out $200 for absolutely no good reason.

Sorry, I know it's off-topic, but ARGH!

Aww, that sucks. But, such is the risk when buying a new computer. It's an investment.

Not really. An investment is something that should grow in value (though it might lose in the short term.) Houses and stocks are investments. Computers, cars, and boats are holes you throw money into, never to return to you. Sorry to hear that, Delphi!

Almost the same thing happened to me when I ordered my MacBook Pro last year. I had placed an order for the 2.9 GHz model (which was the top of the line then), and when I checked my email the next morning, what did I see but "Introducing the New Macbook Pro, now with a 3.06GHz processor!" My situation was slightly different because my order hadn't shipped yet, but needless to say I was on the phone with customer service right away.

What I'm trying to say is I feel your pain.

@krugeruwsp, on Oct 21 2010, 06:22 AM, said in EVN - Delphi:

Not really. An investment is something that should grow in value (though it might lose in the short term.) Houses and stocks are investments. Computers, cars, and boats are holes you throw money into, never to return to you. Sorry to hear that, Delphi!

I disagree. In terms of a computer, there are various actions you cannot do without one, many can earn you money. By buying a computer, you gain the ability to perform those actions, thereby earning money. Eventually, you could make more money than you spent on the computer. For example, internet services. For another, word processing. In the case of the latter, that saves time and money. Without a computer, you'd have to write everything by hand. A perfect example is the reason Delphi bought his new computer: it's required for his class. Plenty of classes require students to own computers. Without that computer, students can't complete the course and can't get their degree (at that particular school).

It might not be as big an investment as other things, but you do get a return on the purchase of a computer.

Yes, and the same could be said about food. Eating grants me the opportunity to go out and earn money instead of dying. It's still an expense, not an investment. Investments return hard profit, not just the opportunity. If Delphi turned around and sold his new toy to some kid for a considerable sum more than he paid, that would be an investment. Anyways, let's quit cluttering up his thread so he'll post some more amazing works of art.

Sorry this is pretty off topic from everything going on in this thread but I just finished reading the whole thing. I've been playing EV for a few years now and working an unannounced (and to stay that way for a while) TC for a few months. I just wanted to use my first post after lurking these forums for about a year to say that you're doing some amazing stuff Delphi! I love your graphical style, it's something I haven't seen much of, and its really inspiring me to break away from my programming background and devote much more time to graphics. It also kept me up till 5:30 AM reading this thread
Just wanted to chime in and say best of luck, and that I can't wait to try something playable!!
--Murph

Woah, both versions of the Gammadon look so sick.
I like how front heavy it looks in the modern variant. Makes me think of a hulking beast of a bulldog.
I do agree with the idea of moving the crest back some though.

I can't just leave you guys without an update from time to time. I'm extraordinarily busy with school projects (some requiring up to 30+ hours of extra time per week), but I want to make sure you know that I'm still getting things done between assignments. I've thrown together two variants of the same cruiser, which will feature in the post-war universe, as humanity pushes forward into the Centaurus arm of the galaxy and attempts to police the rising Pariah Combine that has begun to block shipments between star clusters and strangle the lifelines of the newly-restructured Nova Defence Coalition.

The Sigma Class is a ferocious demon of monstrous energy output, featuring a newly-developed Graviton Core. Its metrics for weapons output are nearly on par with the Alexander Class Dominant before it, though the Sigma is only in the Heavy Cruiser category. Built as a joint venture between the Nova Defence Coalition and the now-defunct Enclave Engineering Consortium, the Sigma is designed with the foremost concern of combating the rising number of Pariah ships springing up across all of voidspace.

The upper version is the scientific variant, featuring an absolutely massive upper sensor array complete with physical shielding that gives it powerful missile defence. The science version features the same cannon housings as the military one, though the total weapon power output is reduced slightly in favor of defensive systems and exploration equipment. The military one is an offensive power-house, with a strong combination of artillery and turreted weapons.

I don't care what variant the Sigma is: I do NOT want to mess with either version.

Render shots nao.

Yay! Something built expressly for tearing apart Pariah ships! I'm gonna have fun with that monster. And yes, I do have an unnatural urge to crush Pariah ships. I do not know why, I just do.

Is it weird that the bottom one reminds me of the Enterprise from the side?

Now, just so you don't all go getting carried away: remember that the Sigma is a late-game ship. It doesn't start showing up in-system or in the shipyard until the NDC and the Enclave declare peace and craft the vessel together. The game is broken into three major chapters, altogether spanning several decades. The NDC-Enclave War is only the beginning of an epic tale of events that will ultimately reshape the very nature of the cosmos, and along the course of which humanity will experience great gain and near-crippling loss at the hands of an unfathomable force.

Of course, me being the jerk that I am, I am pitting you head-to-head with this said unfathomable force in the final chapter.

Your enemies change between each chapter. In the first, you fight the Enclave (or the NDC, if you switch), in the second you'll wage war against both the Pariah Combine and the Shen'or Aliens, and in the third you'll stand almost completely alone against an almost-ethereal force that nobody quite understands.

The Sigma shows up at the end of Chapter 1.

So it's their first joint project after decades of warfare? Will both Sigma variants boast a feature that will make it stand out from the rest of the ships?

QUOTE (Jalisurr @ Nov 9 2010, 05:31 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Is it weird that the bottom one reminds me of the Enterprise from the side?

I hope not, I was thinking the same thing

QUOTE (Jalisurr @ Nov 8 2010, 09:31 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Is it weird that the bottom one reminds me of the Enterprise from the side?

Which one? There were 7 different ships by the name Enterprise seen in Star Trek, with more possible that weren't seen (one episode of Star Trek: Enterprise had Captain Archer transported into the future on board the Enterprise-J, a two-mile-long Universe Class). I'm not even counting the mirror universe ships.

Though I assume you mean NCC-1701 or NCC-1701-A, Constitution and Constitution Refit vessels respectively. The former was seen in the original series and the latter was seen in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.

QUOTE (Delphi @ Nov 8 2010, 10:38 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Now, just so you don't all go getting carried away: remember that the Sigma is a late-game ship.

Oh I know that. But that won't stop me from having fun with it once it shows up.

Most Trek ships follow the same basic Federation design: a saucer section of some sort, an engineering hull, and outboard nacelles for the engines.