Wonder if this is an issue with the Steam version. Try running the game from the files and not Steam.

ah Steam,just when you think the game can't get any better, they release an unnecessary patch that does the exact opposite and then you have to reinstall and deny the patch each time you log in.....ah "progress"

.....honestly have nothing to contribute this time.....just making the above statement

good hustle, boshimi

So for the record, before I start tearing my shit apart again trying to recreate your mini dumps, everything is working and what wasn't working was something you messed with, but is fixed now?  Am I understanding that right?

Yes.

Yes, but the options will only work for the mod you took the GSD file out of, well, the options that aren't shared.  Many mods incorporate Sins Plus and Celestial Bodies, so those options would carry over between, but other custom stuff wouldn't.

Did you also put that GSD in the top minimod's folder?  You sound like you're doing things right, but I just want to make sure you used the upper most minimod's GSD file (if it doesn't have one, then go to the next one in the list until you have one) and made the changes there and then copied it over to your forge.  If you just took it from the core game and then used flagships, for example on top of that, then your changes wouldn't show up in the game because the GSD for flagships wouldn't have those changes.

Honestly, I do want to know, I made some tweaks and silently updated all of the links a little while back.  If things got broken again, then I'd have to fix them again...  Plus now I know I need to make some changes to all of the GSD files to include envoys for forge placement (and create a couple icons for new content added), so might as well get it all done in one shot if there is a mini dump problem.

From GoaFan's 4x mod...

Improved Diplomacy and Espionage

In an attempt to make Diplomacy easier to pursue, the functions of Vanilla envoy cruisers have been given to a new entity called embassies. Embassies are built by envoy cruisers around planets owned by other player and cost no fleet supply, potentially allowing one envoy cruiser to build enough embassies to max out your relations. The embassies themselves have the former abilities of envoy cruisers, but do not have diplomatic immunity, so you should only build them on friendly planets. Also to make up for embassies being easier to deploy and maintain, the max relationship bonus per planet has been reduced to +1, so you will need to have more embassies than vanilla envoys.

To give envoy cruisers another use after building enough embassies , they have been given 3 new espionage abilities. One shared among all three is the ability to deploy a phase probe, which is basically a mine modified to spy on the gravity well it is deployed in instead of explode. Like other mines it can only be removed by scouts once set up, and are a great way to get intelligence on distracted players. They will only work in neutral or hostile gravity wells however, to prevent players from laying them in friendly gravity wells of players they intend to backstab.

The other two abilities are unique for each faction, but they are all used against enemy planets, with one lesser ability that can be used a safe distance away from the planet and one greater ability that needs to be used right next to the planet. Their effects range from simple trade penalties to completely halting population growth, and last for several minutes, though the cool downs are even longer to prevent them from being used on multiple planets. Also the diplomatic immunity ability has been mortified to prevent envoys from using other abilities while invulnerable, so its best used to allow your envoys to escape after using the abilities, not for breaking into fortified planets.

Enhanced AI

While the Sins AI is not very moddable, a few modders, most notably ZombieRus5, have discovered a few tricks that can improve their performance. A few of them have been included in this mod.

The advent homing mine squadron has been removed from advent carrier cruisers (the AI would often just build many squadrons of mines, then bring them into combat without deploying them, making carriers a dead weight on its fleet supply and economy). Instead, the carrier can deploy homing mines with an ability like the Vasari minelayer. While this means you can no longer deploy squads from across the gravity well, the ability to keep your strikecraft deployed at all times should more than make up for it.

Each faction's AI has been given certain techs it now prefers to research. The AI is quick to get research that unlocks ships or abilities, but other abilities are mostly ignored unless it has so many resources it doesn't have anything else to use them for. While the AI will still prefer to max out its available fleet supply than research, it will now get certain techs, like Phase Missiles for the Vasari or Armor for the TEC, much quicker than normal.

----

Have we ever considered creating a new frigate or cruiser to perform the espionage abilities and add that research to the diplo tree?

Have we incorporated any of the AI ideas here? Advent homing squadrons (when used by the AI) do suck after all.

That sounds fracking awesome, I may have to get Dip and try this out, instead of waiting for Rebellion...

Damn bitch, move....

ba-zing!

*chucks Thrall's hammer at Carbon* I have 4 papers to write, reciprocal teaching assignments, and  I'm goin on dates man, and I still have time to contribute/antagonize DS team while tinkering in the mod. Common Carbon, you're better than all that noise, i know you can push DS back into the schedule. Just imagine how backwards it would be if I ended up in the DS "contribution" list and had my name in there on the loading screen >.>   even weirds me out  a bit

also..I miss the rants

How many mods can claim to have this variety of mini mods?

I dont know,

Zman work has alot of mini mods if ask me. But thats only b/c he does a plug and play style to get a customized mod for your playing exeperience

Ya. I don't think anyone has more mini-mods that build on top of the main mod than my stuff now. Though I'm glad I can point at DS for their mini-mod work when people bitch about mine.

I have:

my own variation of flagships (from my previous mini-mod) for each faction in my mod including BSG.

3 different planet packages (more possible) that will also change out the random encounters and home planet textures.

A militia mini-mod for each race, besides flavor/RP it kinda ranges from really easy militia to uber hard 

My moon base addon (WIP)

My artifact addon (WIP)

Some other silly addons

Each race is basically a mini-mod too with Alliance (Pending), Archailect (Pending), Hypercorp, Rogue, Nephilim, Plague, Colonial and Cylon. TEC, Advent and Vasari are treated like mini-mods too for my extensions as well as removing them from race selection.

And the Core which is basically the one ring that unites them all.

I'm also looking at how I create a Distant Stars compatible version with my factions. It just needs to be something scripted so I don't have to do a lot of manual work each time something changes in my mod or DS.