Mod reboot: EDF Chronicles: Generations Past
Posted: 06 Dec 2005, 02:00
Hello everyone.
The EDF Chronicles is in no way a widely popular or widely known mod, simply because it never reached any stage of completion. However, it attempts to introduce some interesting new strategies, so I decided to resurrect this mod from its grave in TAU Boneyards.
The key sides are The Earth Defence Force, or EDF, and The Drones.
There may or may not be other races introduced.
The EDF are the defence fleet of the New Earth government. It was formed to keep control of population in the far reaches of colonized space, and confront any threats, real or fabricated, as ordered by higher command.
The Drones are remnants of an ancient civilization, highly capable machines controlled by one robotic being. Their true origins are unknown, just as those of their creators. A colony mission on a planet in a remote star system encountered them, and was destroyed, mistakedly assuming their friendliness. A patrol sent to investigate found nothing, yet after their return, the Drones started appearing all over colonized worlds.
The EDF are currently undergoing revision by their author, The Legacy, so there may be details that no longer exist, or those I don't know of.
I wish there could be beautiful screenshots I could show you, but with the latest bugs in s3o model format, the creation of units is going slow.
I can only describe the main races with words.
The EDF are similar to the present armed forces. Their early armies consist of infantrymen and armored vehicles, that get stronger and stronger (30 infantry types), but later into the game the main attack force of the EDF are the aircraft. Starting with a static base and having only infantry for protection, the EDF may seem vulnerable, but almost every one of their buildings posesses a certain defensive ability, from point defences to cloaking devices, making their base a hell to assault. At the latest game stages, the EDF can call upon the supporting fleet orbiting the planet, getting access to the fleet's corvettes and cruisers, as well as superheavy tanks dropped by the fleet's dropships.
The Drones are a very mobile attack force. Starting with only a basic builder, and having no real commander on the field, the Drones are very hard to find and exterminate, much like the insects that they take the shape of. There is no preference or any particular attack pattern in Drone attacks, their armed forces are comprised of both aircraft and ground units, similar in sizes and power. In effect, the Drones can always choose only one direction of attack, either ground or air, while keeping maximum attack power. Even though their attack units increase with size over the 6 tech levels, the main power of the Drones are the Drones themselves, small spheroid units each serving a particular role, and performing exquisitely in their area. While a giant 6-legged weapons platform may rain destruction and spread panic, it fades in comparison to the combination of power and small size of the Drones.
As soon as I get some screenshots to show these races in action, I will post them. Comments welcome.
The EDF Chronicles is in no way a widely popular or widely known mod, simply because it never reached any stage of completion. However, it attempts to introduce some interesting new strategies, so I decided to resurrect this mod from its grave in TAU Boneyards.
The key sides are The Earth Defence Force, or EDF, and The Drones.
There may or may not be other races introduced.
The EDF are the defence fleet of the New Earth government. It was formed to keep control of population in the far reaches of colonized space, and confront any threats, real or fabricated, as ordered by higher command.
The Drones are remnants of an ancient civilization, highly capable machines controlled by one robotic being. Their true origins are unknown, just as those of their creators. A colony mission on a planet in a remote star system encountered them, and was destroyed, mistakedly assuming their friendliness. A patrol sent to investigate found nothing, yet after their return, the Drones started appearing all over colonized worlds.
The EDF are currently undergoing revision by their author, The Legacy, so there may be details that no longer exist, or those I don't know of.
I wish there could be beautiful screenshots I could show you, but with the latest bugs in s3o model format, the creation of units is going slow.
I can only describe the main races with words.
The EDF are similar to the present armed forces. Their early armies consist of infantrymen and armored vehicles, that get stronger and stronger (30 infantry types), but later into the game the main attack force of the EDF are the aircraft. Starting with a static base and having only infantry for protection, the EDF may seem vulnerable, but almost every one of their buildings posesses a certain defensive ability, from point defences to cloaking devices, making their base a hell to assault. At the latest game stages, the EDF can call upon the supporting fleet orbiting the planet, getting access to the fleet's corvettes and cruisers, as well as superheavy tanks dropped by the fleet's dropships.
The Drones are a very mobile attack force. Starting with only a basic builder, and having no real commander on the field, the Drones are very hard to find and exterminate, much like the insects that they take the shape of. There is no preference or any particular attack pattern in Drone attacks, their armed forces are comprised of both aircraft and ground units, similar in sizes and power. In effect, the Drones can always choose only one direction of attack, either ground or air, while keeping maximum attack power. Even though their attack units increase with size over the 6 tech levels, the main power of the Drones are the Drones themselves, small spheroid units each serving a particular role, and performing exquisitely in their area. While a giant 6-legged weapons platform may rain destruction and spread panic, it fades in comparison to the combination of power and small size of the Drones.
As soon as I get some screenshots to show these races in action, I will post them. Comments welcome.