Is it possible to simply model the second star as a very closely orbiting "planet" in the innermost position?
[MOD] Honorverse: Star Kingdom of Manticore
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Is it possible to simply model the second star as a very closely orbiting "planet" in the innermost position?
B-but that is what I did?..
Technically, the way I did it both stars orbit not each other, but the system center. However, since systems are static anyway, that does not matter much.
It is, but then you won't be able to properly model planets orbiting it.
*Goes to look at picture again*
Okay, I missed that the stars were orbiting the system center. They should be closer together, though, and the planets should be orbiting both stars, not only one, if we're going for proper binary star modelling. Planets wouldn't orbit one or the other, unless it was a VERY erratic binary star system. The stars will pull on each other and the planets with varying, but predictable, strengths. That would create a less regular orbit, but surviving planets would be well outside the star orbital radius. I don't think Stellaris can model that, so probably just jam both stars in the center somewhere, and make the planets orbit those.
Ah, right. I forgot that Manticore A and B are many AU apart, and so fit the second or third model in the graphic. Hicpotboy and I were incorrectly thinking of close-approach binary stars, as in the first model in the graphic. Looks like yours is the happiest compromise as far as Manticore is concerned.
Well, in Honorverse books planets do orbit each star separately. You can check The Honorverse Campanion, for example.
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I was thinking a bit about the modding for the Honorverse last week, though I probably won't have enough time for it.
One of the important features of that universe is of course the various forms of interstellar travel:
- Wormhole junctions allow instantaneous travel between two or more fixed (far apart) star systems, but are very rare and thus strategically valuable. This would be best represented in the game by very rare, but long hyperlanes, with hyperlane travel times massively decreased.
- Then there is the much slower hyperspace travel, which is possible basically from anywhere to everywhere. This can be perfectly represented by warp in the game.
- Finally there are the gravity waves, which work similar to hyperspace, but much faster and only in limited directions. They could also be represented by hyperlanes, but I don't think we could have both these and wormhole junctions in the game at the same time. I feel they are a lot less important than the first two though, so they could be left out.
The problem of course is that typical spaceships in the Honorverse can use all of these methods at will.
So I tried to mod in a spaceship that could use several FTL methods. I actually succeeded in adding a further FTL component to corvettes, so that they would have both a hyperdrive and a warp drive.
Unfortunately though they can only use the one that was added last to the template. So I don't think it's possible for them to switch from one method to the other.
But maybe somebody else can figure out another way? Or Paradox will allow it in a future patch.
Anyway I'll attach my files, if you want to have a look at it. (Start the game as a warp civilisation.)
One of the important features of that universe is of course the various forms of interstellar travel:
- Wormhole junctions allow instantaneous travel between two or more fixed (far apart) star systems, but are very rare and thus strategically valuable. This would be best represented in the game by very rare, but long hyperlanes, with hyperlane travel times massively decreased.
- Then there is the much slower hyperspace travel, which is possible basically from anywhere to everywhere. This can be perfectly represented by warp in the game.
- Finally there are the gravity waves, which work similar to hyperspace, but much faster and only in limited directions. They could also be represented by hyperlanes, but I don't think we could have both these and wormhole junctions in the game at the same time. I feel they are a lot less important than the first two though, so they could be left out.
The problem of course is that typical spaceships in the Honorverse can use all of these methods at will.
So I tried to mod in a spaceship that could use several FTL methods. I actually succeeded in adding a further FTL component to corvettes, so that they would have both a hyperdrive and a warp drive.
Unfortunately though they can only use the one that was added last to the template. So I don't think it's possible for them to switch from one method to the other.
But maybe somebody else can figure out another way? Or Paradox will allow it in a future patch.
Anyway I'll attach my files, if you want to have a look at it. (Start the game as a warp civilisation.)
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I've also been thinking as to how Honorverse would be represented in Stellaris and how FTL could be tweaked to fit.
-Warp with unlimited range seems like the best way to represent the "standard" hyperspace travel. There are just too many comparisons that fit, but in my opinion the most important one is that warp needs to be near the systems edge to work. The hyperlimit is a very important tactical consideration in Honorverse.
-The wormhole junctions could be shown with hyperlanes. I imagine that a blank system could act as the terminus/junction. This would allow you to hold down the 'system' with frontier outposts or just proximity to colonies. Anyway cranking up the speed of hyperlanes can make the travel instantaneous and match that in the novels.
-When considering gravity waves I noticed that there are nebula in Stellaris, the tool-tip says that they limit the speed of FTL travel. I haven't noticed this myself but I imagine that the degree to which FTL travel is affected could be modified. Then you could 'paint' them where the gravity waves should be. If they are limited to only slowing FLT travel paint them everywhere and the grav waves would be were the nebula are not.
You still need to figure out how to ensure that a ship can use two FTL methods but 2 is better than 3.
-Warp with unlimited range seems like the best way to represent the "standard" hyperspace travel. There are just too many comparisons that fit, but in my opinion the most important one is that warp needs to be near the systems edge to work. The hyperlimit is a very important tactical consideration in Honorverse.
-The wormhole junctions could be shown with hyperlanes. I imagine that a blank system could act as the terminus/junction. This would allow you to hold down the 'system' with frontier outposts or just proximity to colonies. Anyway cranking up the speed of hyperlanes can make the travel instantaneous and match that in the novels.
-When considering gravity waves I noticed that there are nebula in Stellaris, the tool-tip says that they limit the speed of FTL travel. I haven't noticed this myself but I imagine that the degree to which FTL travel is affected could be modified. Then you could 'paint' them where the gravity waves should be. If they are limited to only slowing FLT travel paint them everywhere and the grav waves would be were the nebula are not.
You still need to figure out how to ensure that a ship can use two FTL methods but 2 is better than 3.
...Huh. I hadn't realized that. Alright, ignore what I've said, my bad.
Knew someone will do this the moment i seen Star Kingdom in Blorg stream - God Speed and Best of Luck with it!
P.S. Hilariously enough, the system image on the first page is the closest to reality - both A and B are noticeably smaller than Sol in system size. Yes, I just dug up trough Wiki, Companion linked above (kudos, by the way, for the link) and some quiz stuff
P.S. Hilariously enough, the system image on the first page is the closest to reality - both A and B are noticeably smaller than Sol in system size. Yes, I just dug up trough Wiki, Companion linked above (kudos, by the way, for the link) and some quiz stuff
Huh, I made a small Honorverse mod myself, just making ships less agile, raising missile range and making lasers shortrange and deadly. Should've checked for the forums sooner.
actually i think laser warheads would just be along in the the missile tech family (unless you mean visually). vanilla basic missiles are just contact nukes.
Not sure if this mod ist still beeing worked on, but i started playing with it and some other mods on and it 'feels' right at the moment. At least if you are not aiming for a total conversion.
Allthough i like the idea of a custom government i'm not sure if the Star Kingdom / Empire you created is the right one. Manticore is more like a democracy with a monarchical head of state. I know that the queen is powerfull but as the negotiations with haven at the end of the first Manticore/Haven war showed, the prime minister is actually head of government. Not sure how to integrate a voting system and a ruler dynasty in this game though and i guess it is a very good compromise. Just feels strange to see a -10 happyness modifier on your homeworld pop because there are no elections.
Allthough i like the idea of a custom government i'm not sure if the Star Kingdom / Empire you created is the right one. Manticore is more like a democracy with a monarchical head of state. I know that the queen is powerfull but as the negotiations with haven at the end of the first Manticore/Haven war showed, the prime minister is actually head of government. Not sure how to integrate a voting system and a ruler dynasty in this game though and i guess it is a very good compromise. Just feels strange to see a -10 happyness modifier on your homeworld pop because there are no elections.
I am still working on the mod, but I kinda put it on the back burner, since I am not that satisfied with Stellaris and it's features at the moment. It severely lacks on trade and combat fronts, and I feel these are needed to recreate Manticore properly.
So I just write some events and stuff to be released en masse sometime in the uncertain future.
Plus the new releases in the past month (HOI4, Warhammer, Overwatch) eat all of my time.
So I just write some events and stuff to be released en masse sometime in the uncertain future.
Plus the new releases in the past month (HOI4, Warhammer, Overwatch) eat all of my time.
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After playing with this mod for a few hours today I wanted to post my thoughts and feelings about where it is currently. I greatly enjoy it but I think it may need thinking/tweaking on several parts:
1) The Manticore Binary Star. Stellaris clearly has a rough time with binary systems and you've done a good job representing the system. I'm just not certain that this dual system is better than two separate systems placed very close to one another. My reasoning for this is twofold. Part one is that in the books defending (or attacking) the Manticore Binary system always left the commander with a difficult choice A or B? There has always been this dilemma as if you go after Manticore A anything around Manticore B is effectively out of the fight and vice versa. With the current system a defender can easily cover Manticore, Sphinx and Gryphon without worry and any attackers need only attack the "single" system. The stars are between 650 and 827 light minutes from one another (depending on their orbits) that is a significant distance and may be better represented by two systems. My second point is that the current setup appears to be restricted from including asteroid belts. This may be a limitation of the workaround you used to generate the system but considering how critical the Unicorn belt in Manticore B is to the Star Kingdom's industrial efforts it feels weird not having it represented in game.
2) Manticore, Sphinx, and Gryphon. At the moment the way these 3 systems are represented doesn't exactly fit. For starters all 3 planets are far too large. We know roughly how big Earth is in Stellaris terms and using this as a base we can more accurately portray the worlds of the Star Kingdom. In game Earth is 16 tiles. Manticore is stated as being slightly larger than Earth with a radius of 6496km. When compared to Earth's 6371km radius we can see how closely sized these planets are. Rather than the 23 tiles Manticore currently has 16 would seem more apt. Sphinx is a little bit larger with a radius of 6953km or about 9% larger (if I did the math right). So between 17 - 18 tiles feels right or Sphinx. Gryphon has a 5936km radius making it 6% smaller, bringing it in at about 15 - 16 tiles depending on how you decide to round.
But It isn't just the size these 3 planets also need modifiers to fit their unique circumstances. Manticore has come across as the most habitable of the 3 worlds and also serves as the primary source of food for the Star Kingdom, making the "Lush" (+10% habitability, +20% food) modifier fit well. Sphinx obviously has "Heavy Gravity" (+15% build cost) and should also have stone age primitives (treecats). An argument could also be made for Sphinx having "Natural Beauty" (+5% habitability, +15% happiness) but that may be because we view it through the lens of someone who was born there and loves the planet dearly. Gryphon sucks as a planet to live on. It easily qualifies for "Hazardous Weather" (-10% habitability, -5% happiness, +20% energy credits) and I would argue that it qualifies for "Bleak" (-5% habitability, -10% food) due to Gryphon's slight hydrosphere. Parts of Gryphon's continental interiors are nearly Martian in their aridness.
3)Yeltsin System. For starters the second planet in the system, Cecitiel, is missing. We go straight from Simiel to Anael. Not sure if this was intentional and it is an inconsequential uninhabitable piece of rock regardless but I thought I'd mention it all the same. Similar to the planets in the Manticore System, Grayson is too large. It has a radius of 6242km. Using similar methods to above that should place Grayson at around 15 - 16 tiles. As for modifiers "Mineral Rich" (+25% minerals) or "Ultra Rich" (+50% minerals) makes sense to me and when considering human habitation "Bleak" (-5% habitability, -10% food) certainly could also be included. Regardless to accurately portray Grayson Stellaris needs a poisonous / toxic planetary modifier.
4) Basilisk System. For starters Medusa definitely needs bronze age primitives, although they could be knocked down to stone age primitives for gameplay reasons. Despite having a few city states it sounds like a large portion of the population is nomadic so it wouldn't be too large a stretch. Information on Medusa itself is not as concrete as I could find for the other other planets. As such I have no qualms about the size or any of the modifiers. One thing I could find is that it has a gravity .85 that of Earth's. Whether this qualifies Medusa for "Low Gravity" (-15% build costs) is more than I can say but considering Sphinx has 1.35 Earth's gravity and is High Graviry I'd say it is plausible. Also despite the fact that Medusa is the only planet mentioned in the Basilisk system I imagine that there are other uninhabitable worlds in the system, it looks a bit sparse now and could use filling out in the future.
I do have one large gripe though, and that is Basilisk's proximity to Manticore. The system is 210 Light Years from Manticore and I don't think it is the best choice for a system in close proximity to Manticore. A good substitution may be the Clearaway system. This system is very close to Manticore and in its single mention in The Short Victorious War suggests it holds a Manticoran Military Base. The Talisman System is similarly placed and has even less information about it. Both systems are close to Manticore (as close as Yeltsin it seems) and information on what is in the system is so sparse that you could use them as nearby colonization planets for the Star Kingdom. This could eliminate the weird sensation of having Basilisk far closer than it actually is and if you wished you could free up Yeltsin for a Protectorate of Grayson mod at a later date. Furthermore one can argue that Manticore doesn't need to have scripted inhabitable worlds spawn nearby due to the ammount of real estate they have due to Sphinx and Gryphon.
5) Star Kingdom Government. I understand what you're trying to do here. None of the vanilla government types fit exactly. Unfortunately the Star Kingdom government is aristocratic and doesn't allow voting. This means every single one of your fanatic individualist pops takes a -10% happiness hit. Ouch. I'm not certain how you can get around this but reexamining the Governing Ethics of Manticore may be in order. Personally I never thought that militarist fit exactly as the primary purpose of their military was to protect the merchant marine. The only reason their military was so much larger/better than most of the galaxy (with a few notable exceptions) was due to the need to protect the wormhole junction and the expanded trade fleet that accompanied it. Aside from that Manticore was content to stay at home and play with their own stuff rather than expand military, like say the Andermani Empire. One could argue that Materialist (due for their desire to trade) or Pacifist (due to their desire to be left alone) would fit better that Militarist, either way it opens up more Government types that may fit better. I'd personally argue for Pacifist as this makes them applicable for the Federation Builder Ai, which Manticore certainly was when forming the Manticorian Alliance to stand up to Haven. The problem is that Manticore is a very diverse society so pinning down exactly what Ethos they are it tricky and the problem is made worse by the fact that we see Manticore mainly through Military eyes during a time of war. Regardless there isn't really a 'right' ethos, Manticore is too complex to fit into Stellaris' current political setup, I think that is true of many of Weber's worlds in the Honorverse.
Anyway those are my thoughts/comments/suggestions. Take them as you will. I know you're still working on this and what we see now may not be exactly what you had in mind for the finished product. Thanks for making this mod and I look forward to more in the future.
1) The Manticore Binary Star. Stellaris clearly has a rough time with binary systems and you've done a good job representing the system. I'm just not certain that this dual system is better than two separate systems placed very close to one another. My reasoning for this is twofold. Part one is that in the books defending (or attacking) the Manticore Binary system always left the commander with a difficult choice A or B? There has always been this dilemma as if you go after Manticore A anything around Manticore B is effectively out of the fight and vice versa. With the current system a defender can easily cover Manticore, Sphinx and Gryphon without worry and any attackers need only attack the "single" system. The stars are between 650 and 827 light minutes from one another (depending on their orbits) that is a significant distance and may be better represented by two systems. My second point is that the current setup appears to be restricted from including asteroid belts. This may be a limitation of the workaround you used to generate the system but considering how critical the Unicorn belt in Manticore B is to the Star Kingdom's industrial efforts it feels weird not having it represented in game.
2) Manticore, Sphinx, and Gryphon. At the moment the way these 3 systems are represented doesn't exactly fit. For starters all 3 planets are far too large. We know roughly how big Earth is in Stellaris terms and using this as a base we can more accurately portray the worlds of the Star Kingdom. In game Earth is 16 tiles. Manticore is stated as being slightly larger than Earth with a radius of 6496km. When compared to Earth's 6371km radius we can see how closely sized these planets are. Rather than the 23 tiles Manticore currently has 16 would seem more apt. Sphinx is a little bit larger with a radius of 6953km or about 9% larger (if I did the math right). So between 17 - 18 tiles feels right or Sphinx. Gryphon has a 5936km radius making it 6% smaller, bringing it in at about 15 - 16 tiles depending on how you decide to round.
But It isn't just the size these 3 planets also need modifiers to fit their unique circumstances. Manticore has come across as the most habitable of the 3 worlds and also serves as the primary source of food for the Star Kingdom, making the "Lush" (+10% habitability, +20% food) modifier fit well. Sphinx obviously has "Heavy Gravity" (+15% build cost) and should also have stone age primitives (treecats). An argument could also be made for Sphinx having "Natural Beauty" (+5% habitability, +15% happiness) but that may be because we view it through the lens of someone who was born there and loves the planet dearly. Gryphon sucks as a planet to live on. It easily qualifies for "Hazardous Weather" (-10% habitability, -5% happiness, +20% energy credits) and I would argue that it qualifies for "Bleak" (-5% habitability, -10% food) due to Gryphon's slight hydrosphere. Parts of Gryphon's continental interiors are nearly Martian in their aridness.
3)Yeltsin System. For starters the second planet in the system, Cecitiel, is missing. We go straight from Simiel to Anael. Not sure if this was intentional and it is an inconsequential uninhabitable piece of rock regardless but I thought I'd mention it all the same. Similar to the planets in the Manticore System, Grayson is too large. It has a radius of 6242km. Using similar methods to above that should place Grayson at around 15 - 16 tiles. As for modifiers "Mineral Rich" (+25% minerals) or "Ultra Rich" (+50% minerals) makes sense to me and when considering human habitation "Bleak" (-5% habitability, -10% food) certainly could also be included. Regardless to accurately portray Grayson Stellaris needs a poisonous / toxic planetary modifier.
4) Basilisk System. For starters Medusa definitely needs bronze age primitives, although they could be knocked down to stone age primitives for gameplay reasons. Despite having a few city states it sounds like a large portion of the population is nomadic so it wouldn't be too large a stretch. Information on Medusa itself is not as concrete as I could find for the other other planets. As such I have no qualms about the size or any of the modifiers. One thing I could find is that it has a gravity .85 that of Earth's. Whether this qualifies Medusa for "Low Gravity" (-15% build costs) is more than I can say but considering Sphinx has 1.35 Earth's gravity and is High Graviry I'd say it is plausible. Also despite the fact that Medusa is the only planet mentioned in the Basilisk system I imagine that there are other uninhabitable worlds in the system, it looks a bit sparse now and could use filling out in the future.
I do have one large gripe though, and that is Basilisk's proximity to Manticore. The system is 210 Light Years from Manticore and I don't think it is the best choice for a system in close proximity to Manticore. A good substitution may be the Clearaway system. This system is very close to Manticore and in its single mention in The Short Victorious War suggests it holds a Manticoran Military Base. The Talisman System is similarly placed and has even less information about it. Both systems are close to Manticore (as close as Yeltsin it seems) and information on what is in the system is so sparse that you could use them as nearby colonization planets for the Star Kingdom. This could eliminate the weird sensation of having Basilisk far closer than it actually is and if you wished you could free up Yeltsin for a Protectorate of Grayson mod at a later date. Furthermore one can argue that Manticore doesn't need to have scripted inhabitable worlds spawn nearby due to the ammount of real estate they have due to Sphinx and Gryphon.
5) Star Kingdom Government. I understand what you're trying to do here. None of the vanilla government types fit exactly. Unfortunately the Star Kingdom government is aristocratic and doesn't allow voting. This means every single one of your fanatic individualist pops takes a -10% happiness hit. Ouch. I'm not certain how you can get around this but reexamining the Governing Ethics of Manticore may be in order. Personally I never thought that militarist fit exactly as the primary purpose of their military was to protect the merchant marine. The only reason their military was so much larger/better than most of the galaxy (with a few notable exceptions) was due to the need to protect the wormhole junction and the expanded trade fleet that accompanied it. Aside from that Manticore was content to stay at home and play with their own stuff rather than expand military, like say the Andermani Empire. One could argue that Materialist (due for their desire to trade) or Pacifist (due to their desire to be left alone) would fit better that Militarist, either way it opens up more Government types that may fit better. I'd personally argue for Pacifist as this makes them applicable for the Federation Builder Ai, which Manticore certainly was when forming the Manticorian Alliance to stand up to Haven. The problem is that Manticore is a very diverse society so pinning down exactly what Ethos they are it tricky and the problem is made worse by the fact that we see Manticore mainly through Military eyes during a time of war. Regardless there isn't really a 'right' ethos, Manticore is too complex to fit into Stellaris' current political setup, I think that is true of many of Weber's worlds in the Honorverse.
Anyway those are my thoughts/comments/suggestions. Take them as you will. I know you're still working on this and what we see now may not be exactly what you had in mind for the finished product. Thanks for making this mod and I look forward to more in the future.
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Thank you for your feedback! Your points are absolutely fair, and I feel that I should address them:
1) and proximity part of 4).
At this moment, I do not want the make a total conversion and pre-generated Honorverse galaxy. That means that for generating Yeltsin and Basilisk (and potentially other systems, including Manticore B if we go by the two star solution) I use the same method that is used for default Sol and Deneb systems, i.e. generating a "child" system at the certain min to max distance. However, as far as I can tell, there is a major flaw to this method - it does not actually create a star system, it just picks a star system within the range stated and changes it to the "child" one. Therefore, if there is no applicable system in range, the "child" system will not be created.
I actually tried doing Manticore Binary as two extremely close system at first using this method, but chances that your starting system will have another one really close are slim, so it worked like 1 in 20 tries. I found not solid way to actually create a new star system at the moment. If there is one, I'll seriously consider remaking Manticore.
Also 1)
Regarding asteroid belts: Yes, I absolutely recognize their importance for Manticore, but I am indeed limited by the way the system is setup. Binary I created is a workaround, where the central "sun" is empty, it is orbited by two "planets-stars", and those are orbited by the "moon-planets". This method, however, has certain problems. There is no way to add asteroid belts to planets and moons to moons. However, I thought about adding several single mineral-rich asteroid to orbit "planets-stars" to emulate asteroid belts, and I may do so in the future.
1), 2), 3) Planets sizes and modifiers.
I absolutely agree with you, and some of these are already addressed in my WIP update. I wanted to create systems first and add detalization later. Some of it is already present (like alien pets in Sphinx, although it may not be fair to describe treecats as such).
As for Cecitiel, I have no idea where it went. I remember adding it with other planets, but I may have deleted it by accident. This will be fixed for the next update.
5)
Government and ethics are the biggest problem with Manticore at this moment. I also believe that they are a big problem with the modding as a whole. Stellaris HEAVILY relies on existing governments and even more on ethics for the handling of events and policies, and most of those do not have "default" response. You can see the example in the first page of the thread with "Birth of space piracy" event. That means that adding new ethoses is a huge pain in the ass at the moment, and requires a lot of work with existing events.
As for the -10%, this is a stupid oversight on my part and I'll try to mitigate it as soon as possible.
Anyway, reworking Manticore government is high priority, but at this moment I'm just not exactly sure how to proceed with it.
Thanks a lot for your well thought and formulated feedback, I really appreciate it.
1) and proximity part of 4).
At this moment, I do not want the make a total conversion and pre-generated Honorverse galaxy. That means that for generating Yeltsin and Basilisk (and potentially other systems, including Manticore B if we go by the two star solution) I use the same method that is used for default Sol and Deneb systems, i.e. generating a "child" system at the certain min to max distance. However, as far as I can tell, there is a major flaw to this method - it does not actually create a star system, it just picks a star system within the range stated and changes it to the "child" one. Therefore, if there is no applicable system in range, the "child" system will not be created.
I actually tried doing Manticore Binary as two extremely close system at first using this method, but chances that your starting system will have another one really close are slim, so it worked like 1 in 20 tries. I found not solid way to actually create a new star system at the moment. If there is one, I'll seriously consider remaking Manticore.
Also 1)
Regarding asteroid belts: Yes, I absolutely recognize their importance for Manticore, but I am indeed limited by the way the system is setup. Binary I created is a workaround, where the central "sun" is empty, it is orbited by two "planets-stars", and those are orbited by the "moon-planets". This method, however, has certain problems. There is no way to add asteroid belts to planets and moons to moons. However, I thought about adding several single mineral-rich asteroid to orbit "planets-stars" to emulate asteroid belts, and I may do so in the future.
1), 2), 3) Planets sizes and modifiers.
I absolutely agree with you, and some of these are already addressed in my WIP update. I wanted to create systems first and add detalization later. Some of it is already present (like alien pets in Sphinx, although it may not be fair to describe treecats as such).
As for Cecitiel, I have no idea where it went. I remember adding it with other planets, but I may have deleted it by accident. This will be fixed for the next update.
5)
Government and ethics are the biggest problem with Manticore at this moment. I also believe that they are a big problem with the modding as a whole. Stellaris HEAVILY relies on existing governments and even more on ethics for the handling of events and policies, and most of those do not have "default" response. You can see the example in the first page of the thread with "Birth of space piracy" event. That means that adding new ethoses is a huge pain in the ass at the moment, and requires a lot of work with existing events.
As for the -10%, this is a stupid oversight on my part and I'll try to mitigate it as soon as possible.
Anyway, reworking Manticore government is high priority, but at this moment I'm just not exactly sure how to proceed with it.
Thanks a lot for your well thought and formulated feedback, I really appreciate it.
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Nice to see this is still alive.
My thoughts:
1) The solution with the binary system works for me. I tried creating two system very close to ech other and didn't have any succes either. Looks like Stellaris is not supporting it right now so the solution you choose, ivanbell, works for me. Creating the asterois belts as single asteroids seems to be a good workaround.
2) Planetsize: Your planets are indeed a bit too large, but Orajm is a bit off as well i think. If you increase the radius by 9% for Sphinx in regards to earth radius, the surface increases by about 33%. so a size 22 Planet should fit best for sphinx. I modified you mod for my game a bit reducing planet sizes and adding modifiers. I'm not at my gaming PC right now, but i gave Sphinx High Gravity and a self written Treecat modifier increasing happiness and society-research. For the last part i got inspired by the hostile wildlife modifier from the core game. This modifier is unique to Sphinx and cannot spawn on other planets. For Gryphon i would go with size 16 and the Wild Storms modifier.
3) I didn't modify the system and totaly overlooked the missing planet but i changed Grayson a bit. I put many tile blockers on the planet, leaving only 4 tiles unblocked to colonize. The rest is blocked by toxic kelp and Noxios swamps so you have to invest to clear the land first before you can use it. I thought that fits rather nicely. Then i wrote another planetmodifier called toxic environment reducing habitability greatly and happiness a bit but including a 50% increase for minerals. To simulate the need for domes or filters i added a 10% increase to build costs to it. This modifier could spawn on other planets but only rarely. That way you have a nice mineral planet but have to invest upfront.
4)I know that basilisk is actually farther away but since we don't have something like the wormhole junction in game and no way to modell it i'm fine with it beeing so close. But it does look empty and could use a handfull of planets or moons. Regarding the other systems: I guess it depends on this going to be a complete overhaul or just a nice "flavour" mod. But in both cases, the closest systems could be included but it don't think they are essential.
5)Finding the right ethos and government really is a problem. I have no problem with the militarist ethos since as far as i see it, the Navy or other branches of military is well established in the star kingdom and held in high regard. Manticore may not be militaristic in a conquering way but has a large navy with a strong military tradition. You could argue for other ethics just as easily, but from the game point of view i guess militaristic fits best. Materialist may be a good fit as well, but since there is no way to really trade in this game and you get nothing for trying i would, at this time, not consider it. If there is ever a civilian trade system included in a future dlc that would change.
Fanatic individualism certainly does and i would keep that one in any case. The government you created for this mod looks great as well but has the problem with the happiness modifier. Maybe to balnce it off against it just include a flat +10% happiness for both the star kingdom and the star empire just to offest that. I don't see a way to modell the 'real' govenrment system of Manticore in this game since there is nothing like a constitutional monarchy which is a bit strange, as we have something like that on earth. A ruler dynasty with slight modifiers plus a elected prime minister would be great and i bet there will be new government types in futere dlcs.
My thoughts:
1) The solution with the binary system works for me. I tried creating two system very close to ech other and didn't have any succes either. Looks like Stellaris is not supporting it right now so the solution you choose, ivanbell, works for me. Creating the asterois belts as single asteroids seems to be a good workaround.
2) Planetsize: Your planets are indeed a bit too large, but Orajm is a bit off as well i think. If you increase the radius by 9% for Sphinx in regards to earth radius, the surface increases by about 33%. so a size 22 Planet should fit best for sphinx. I modified you mod for my game a bit reducing planet sizes and adding modifiers. I'm not at my gaming PC right now, but i gave Sphinx High Gravity and a self written Treecat modifier increasing happiness and society-research. For the last part i got inspired by the hostile wildlife modifier from the core game. This modifier is unique to Sphinx and cannot spawn on other planets. For Gryphon i would go with size 16 and the Wild Storms modifier.
3) I didn't modify the system and totaly overlooked the missing planet but i changed Grayson a bit. I put many tile blockers on the planet, leaving only 4 tiles unblocked to colonize. The rest is blocked by toxic kelp and Noxios swamps so you have to invest to clear the land first before you can use it. I thought that fits rather nicely. Then i wrote another planetmodifier called toxic environment reducing habitability greatly and happiness a bit but including a 50% increase for minerals. To simulate the need for domes or filters i added a 10% increase to build costs to it. This modifier could spawn on other planets but only rarely. That way you have a nice mineral planet but have to invest upfront.
4)I know that basilisk is actually farther away but since we don't have something like the wormhole junction in game and no way to modell it i'm fine with it beeing so close. But it does look empty and could use a handfull of planets or moons. Regarding the other systems: I guess it depends on this going to be a complete overhaul or just a nice "flavour" mod. But in both cases, the closest systems could be included but it don't think they are essential.
5)Finding the right ethos and government really is a problem. I have no problem with the militarist ethos since as far as i see it, the Navy or other branches of military is well established in the star kingdom and held in high regard. Manticore may not be militaristic in a conquering way but has a large navy with a strong military tradition. You could argue for other ethics just as easily, but from the game point of view i guess militaristic fits best. Materialist may be a good fit as well, but since there is no way to really trade in this game and you get nothing for trying i would, at this time, not consider it. If there is ever a civilian trade system included in a future dlc that would change.
Fanatic individualism certainly does and i would keep that one in any case. The government you created for this mod looks great as well but has the problem with the happiness modifier. Maybe to balnce it off against it just include a flat +10% happiness for both the star kingdom and the star empire just to offest that. I don't see a way to modell the 'real' govenrment system of Manticore in this game since there is nothing like a constitutional monarchy which is a bit strange, as we have something like that on earth. A ruler dynasty with slight modifiers plus a elected prime minister would be great and i bet there will be new government types in futere dlcs.
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