Matrix Games Forums

Is it just me, or is there a speed brake on my ship keeping it from accelerating past a certain speed? For a realism addict like me who does most of his spaceship flying in orbiter, this just kills it for me. Is there a way to mod the game to make the physics even more realistic?

Sadly, nope; the ships are limited to a top speed of around 2.0 KM/s.  This is one of the handwaves the game makes, which also bugs me (in light of such things as Frontier: First Encounters and such, which also have true Newtonian combat).

It is possible to mod though, which I'm doing. I'm removing the speed caps from all ships and weapons in a gameplay mod I'm currently working on. I'll also be tweaking ships, weapons and sensors here and there. Maybe at most adding a few varients of the same ships with differing capabilities and specialties.

Please let me know if/when that mod is finished.  With the speed limitation, it just isn't playable (I am big into Orbiter, so I am no stranger to newtonian physics).

I'm honestly not sure when, or even if it will ever be done. Its just a little mini-mod I'm working on for my own enjoyment. You're welcome to try it. I'm actually making it with multiplayer in mind, so it'd be great to have more people to play it with and to get feedback from.

Here's my current change log. PM me if you're interested.

Koala's Mini-Mod

Beta v0.1
- Removed speed caps from all ships and missiles (The speed cap is still in place, but set at half of light speed.. Good luck getting there.)
- Added SWACS (Spaceborne Warning and Control System) craft for both Alliance and Marakan sides.
- Changed number of starship probes from 4 to 10
- Made anti-ship missiles targetable by PDS systems
- Made beam weapons able to target any space craft
- Increased anti-ship missile damage
- Increased range for all Torpedos to 200km
- Increased range for Mk7 Interceptor to 100km
- Added Avenger projectile cannon (beta)
- Added Tomahawk Cruise Missile
- Added Fighter Probes to attack craft for employment of weapons beyond sensor range
- Added Blockade Laser Mines using XRay lasers
- Decreased the active cross section for mines to make them harder to detect
- Added Fusion Bombs
- Added A-62B Intruder Medium Attack Bomber
- Added Probe Drones (UAV.. Or, more appropriately, USV that can be given waypoints and RTB for use again)

- Added Hornet fighter for testing of new concepts and weapons
- Added Fashter class DD for testing of new concepts and weapons

Known Issues
- Avenger cannon drains ammo when switching to EMCON 2/1.
- Probe Drones can be used for detection, but not targeting, as regular probes can

In the works
- Tweaking sensor settings
- Tweaking weapon ranges and damages
- Fighter Probes launched from hardpoints