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Gemini Sector Frontier Expands With Discovery of Test Bed System Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

If you've been following LOAF's Wing Commander Privateer exploration lately, you've read about how the game's code refers to a Test Bed System that the Origin developers used while making the game. It's not linked from anywhere in the Gemini Sector, but it's still a "real" place that exists since it's pictured in the manual. To our knowledge, no players have managed to find it, until now! Rylex has accomplished an amazing feat by hex editing his way on over. There's not actually a whole lot to do - enemies spawn, but there are no asteroids or landing bases. But it's pretty incredible to be able to fly around in a previously undiscovered star system after nearly three decades. You can read up on the process and jump to the Test Best System yourself with these instructions!

So as you might know, it's possible in Righteous Fire to fly directly to Eden from the beginning of the game. Just go to Rikel and use the hidden jump point that I mentioned before. You can land on Gaea Retro base, but you can't visit the temple.

But now the interesting thing: You can use the jump point back to Valhalla. But as the jump nav point 4 is not yet visible, you don't get to the position of the jump point but to the coordinates 0,0,0 right to the center of the map. And there is no jump point, so you can't get back. Now I've played with the sector data. Even though there are casts and sphere IDs, you can easily change a nav point target. Just use the sector number in the JUMPTYPEJUMP block and change it. The game seems to look in the target sector, if there is a jump point that leads to the sector you are coming from and puts you there. If the target sector has no connection to the sector you are coming from, then you get to coordinated 0,0,0 and no jump point is there.

That being said, I've tried out Perry Nav 1 and changed it to all 68 err.... 69 .... yes, 69 ... sectors as target. In the systems, that are connected to Perry, you get to the specified jump point. In the sectors, that are not connected you get to 0,0,0. So that means, there is no jump connection from Perry to another system. Even not to Rikel... there's just the text "JMPRIKE" ... even if you use the reserved Cast ID 4 for Rikel ... it does not work.

Anyway, I've changed Nav point 1 in Perry to target system ID hex 45 (=69) ... and oops... I've reached the TestBed. The image shows the modified GAME.GOG file opened with an hex editor. I changed "2f" to "45". The positions 24 and 1d underneath show other system target IDs. 45 = TestBed.

Arrow Zooms Off To New Home Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Klavs has completed his custom mega sized Arrow! This work of art was a special order for Arrow aficionado Rylex, and it certainly pushed the envelope for Klavs' modeling skills. Instead of one fully 3D printed design, this ship was built in larger pieces that were assembled together. It even got LED lights in the cockpit and engines. Painting the sleek bird proved to be a challenge, but nothing can stop a dedicated Wingnut on a mission. Let Klavs know what you think at the CIC Forums!
Photography is obviously not my main skill :) But it's packed and ready to go! Maybe Rylex can post some better pics when it arrives!

Ultimate Arrow Model Under Construction Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Klavs has pioneered some fantastic models that can be 3D printed in sizes as large as 4-6 inches. This is already much larger than the 1-2 inch miniature designs that were the only ships possible a few years ago, and anything much bigger gets exponentially more expensive. The limits of technology, cost or imagination has never stopped a dedicated Wingnut however, and Arrow aficionado Rylex wanted to push the envelope even further! The result is this one-of-a-kind F-27. Klavs describes the details below, but it has to be seen to be believed!
Hey guys, Rylex has very graciously and bravely trusted me to produce a 1/72 Armada Style F-27 Arrow for him. The model will have lighted engines and cockpit, a full set of custom decals, as well as a complete cockpit.

Right now the model is just shy of 10 inches and there are more detailed parts coming along. I've been sanding down the already pretty smooth exterior and prepping the model for its base coat.

I've designed the cockpit insert so that it can hopefully provide both red cockpit lighting, and back lighting to the (Arena era) instrument panel. Wiring things today, and the engines light up great so far! Really happy with the little pilot, too. You should be able to see things better once I get things painted, right now it just looks like wonder woman's jet!

The Little Excalibur That Could Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Rylex meant to send us a fancy wallpaper for the CIC Birthday Party a week ago, but wound up in the hospital instead. Despite a torn muscle that has restricted the use of his right arm, he's managed to finish this pretty artwork and send it in. This is a revised version of his scene that's a bit less busy. One of his original draft designs is available through the alternate 1024 link below.

Best wishes to the CIC and here are the presents. I'm proud to announce the wallpaper called "Hope"...

I hope I could give a little credit to the CIC and to Wing Commander. And I even hope when I get back to IRC again that I could do some space combat against some of you with the new multiplayer patch. Once I was unbeaten in Armada when I played it with my friends. I would like to try to fight against others in the world. ;)

WC3 Special Effects Secret Revealed Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Rylex took a closer look at Plywood Fiend's original music video and noticed something a little odd that no doubt most people have never noticed. In the scene where Thrakhath kills Blair, he lifts Blair off of the ground. A closer inspection of the video reveals what appears to be a human hand giving Thrakhath a helping.. erm.. hand. That sneaky hand may be helping lift Blair up, or it may be preventing Blair from delivering a swift kick to the groin to the Prince. If you think you know what that hand is doing, click the Discuss link below and let us know!

Now Hades Knows What It Says Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Wing Commander has always been exceptionally popular in Germany, moreso than in many other English speaking countries (thus German translations of many games, books and so on). Shagrath and Rylex quickly translated the advertisement from yesterday. Laserschwert and Malar also noticed that there were some typos and the ad was probably not made by a native German speaker.

Top text: Last year ORIGIN set a new standard in the world of pc games... And now they want to do it again

Top-right-corner text: WING COMMANDER II
Wing Commander lets you feel playing a cinematic movie. There's no game that can be compared to it. (PC Player)
This is definitely a candidate for game of the year. Wing Commander is one of the most exciting games ever released. (Ace)

Bottom text:
o Completely new graphics - programmed with the newest 3D techniques
o Dynamic Intelligence - the better you fly, the better your opponents will fly
o Totally new adventures - new space ships, equipment and much more
o Steady replay - watch your moves from spectator perspective
o Digital speech - each character has their own voice
o An experience just like Cinema - you're the star in this story!

Sounds like a great game!

Rylex Makes New Wallpaper Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Wow, people sure have been hard at work since we launched our new Wallpapers section. Rylex is no exception, so he has sent us his latest work.. and here it is! Rylex asks that this isn't modified in any way and that it only be used for personal use.

Prophecy Posters In Stock Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Following our update earlier in the week about Mark Vearrier's Prophecy poster auction, Rylex mailed us about another option. It seems that Germany produced its own version of the Prophecy poster. It's lacking the credits from the limited edition US version, but it'd still look great. Luckily for us, Close Up Posters seems to have them in stock. The site is based in Germany, but they will ship just about anyway providing you have a credit card that they will accept. You can find the product page here.

Battle Stations Team Still Upbeat Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Although it's been a little quiet for a couple weeks, the team from WC Battle Stations is still working hard on their project. Recent efforts have gone towards end level bosses and some basic story elements. They've also added a staff member.

I will like to announce that Alex "Rylex" Grober will be helping us with the creation of the Video Scenes for WCB.
Rampage is also looking for a good Rapier model to integrate into the project. Let him know if you can help.

Another Neat Windows XP DOS Games Emulator Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Rylex has been experimenting with a DOS emulator for Windows XP entitled Abandon Loader. While MyJemm exists to help people play Privateer and Armada in Windows 9x, Windows XP users have been trying a variety of different methods with varying degrees of success. A program we mentioned earlier, VDMSound, is also linked from the Abandon Loader page. In conjunction, the two should help you get some of the older games running smoothly again.

I've found another great tool called "Abandon Loader" that is able to play old WC-games even in Windows XP and even with joystick and sound. I've been able to play WC1 with sound and joystick support! (and yeah this tool even allows you to slow your system down for older games) This is a tool that allows you to play nearly all old DOS-games under Windows XP. It requires some time to find your way how it works but I think you definitely should take a look at this one! You'll need the normal package, and please install the VDM-Sound BEFORE (!!!) the Abandon Loader. I hope this helps you bit ;-)
You can grab Abandon Loader here. If you have any problems, head on over to Crius.net for help. And if this version doesn't support certain games such as Privateer, the next version is expected to have enhanced memory fixes.

Post-Party Prize Recovery Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

We're still recovering from the exhaustive final hours leading up to our party, but everything went quite well. It seems our highest concurrent #Wingnut count was about 77 people, and we had a lot of people come earlier/later because of school and other obligations for a total of over a hundred guests. Don't worry if you couldn't make it, you can stop by our irc channel any time to say hello, and next year we hope to have an even bigger turnout. Because things were a little crazy at the actual event, we need to do some checking up on prizes. Here's what people won.

  • Starlancer - Tainen & Jetlag
  • Earth & Beyond - robert1
  • Autographed Descent & Confed Patch - Stormin & GryphonGuitar
  • Blair Action Figure - Twigboy
  • Kilrathi Action Figure - mav23
  • Action Stations Novel - NewCommanderOnDaBlock
  • End Run Novel - Natanya
  • Fleet Action Novel - Quarto
  • Heart of the Tiger Novel - originalTHP
  • WCA Divx & Movie Card - TheFraix & Bob
  • Movie Press Kit - Wedge009
  • Movie Poster - Delance
  • Movie DVD - Mustang
  • Movie Soundtrack - Omega280 & TrashCan
  • Movie Shirt - Darkpetzi & fms52
  • Prophecy Advance - Worf
  • Game Boy Advance & Prophecy - Meson, Starkey, ChanceKell & Filler
  • Kilrathi Saga - Rylex
Let me know if there's someone I missed. If you have not done so already, the winners above should email me their names and addresses to ChrisReid@wcnews.com. Thanks to BlackLance.org for donating the autographed Descent novels and Confederation patches. The party was a ton of fun, and a bunch of us had a great Wing Commander Zone Subspace game afterwards. We'll be posting pictures of that soon. Don't be shy, drop by #Wingnut any time. Any trivia winners who missed the earlier update should also send me their addresses for their CIC Pens. Here are the top rankings for Game Four again.
  1. Wedge009
  2. Death
  3. Haesslich
  4. PeteyG
  5. Viper61
  6. Phoenix
  7. Bob
  8. Black Joker
  9. cff
  10. Apollyon

Two Flavors of Dralthi for Your Desktop Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Rylex is back again and has an eerie Dralthi wallpaper for everyone. His original had a shadow cast across a Dralthi in the rocks, and we've asked him to provide a brighter version as well. Both are available here for you to compare and pick the one you'd like. They're in 1280x1024 resolution but scale well.

Unknown Enemy Status Report Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Pedro sends us this progress report:

Unknown Enemy has now reached the point where it has commenced a closed beta test including the first six missions of the game. In the past few months, many tasks have been accomplished in order to make this possible.

Firstly, the voiceovers have been completed, as has the dynamic mission music. An example of the work done by our composer Michael "Needaham" Mahadeen can be found at http://unknownenemy.solsector.net/downloads/musicsample.zip

The simulator missions have also been completed, and all the missions up to and including 6 have been cleared of all known bugs. A number of pieces of FMV by Hadrian and Rylex have been completed.

All this means that a final release is getting closer (though it is still difficult to set a date). We will soon be getting feedback on the game as it stands now, and will make any neccessary additions and alterations as quickly and efficently as possible. Apart from that, we still have a few more missions and in-game cutscenes to complete, as well as getting the remaining FMV pieces from Hadrian & Rylex.

We have also recently opened up a UE forum.

Furthermore, we have made a second wallpaper available.

Finally, having obtained a new model of the Dauntless, we have released the old model.

Over the past three months, UE has had regular weekly updates on our website. This will most likely continue right until the release. For the latest UE news and screenshots, visit us at http://unknownenemy.solsector.net/news.html

Something to Scim Through Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Rylex is back... with a special movie just for y'all! It's a nifty little scene of a Scimitar flying off into the starset... which you can download here (1 meg). Rylex reports that although he won't continue the Final Conflict project, we can look for future high detail animations at Rylex.De in the coming months!

Final Not The Last Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

As the saying goes, you can't keep a good man down -- Rylex is back to the WC community and has brought a new Final Conflict homepage with him! You can find the site located as part of rylex.de -- it features "unreleased and secret" videos!

Hidden Movies Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Thomas Schmidt reports that the recently cancelled Wing Commander: Final Conflict 3D movie may not be so recently cancelled afterall -- he says that the web site has relocated here and that you can find a previously un-seen Final Conflict movie segment here. Very interesting...

Final Goodbyes Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Rylex asked that I post this, regarding his cancellation of the Final Conflict 3D movie project.
Hi to everybody out there,

It has happened... I will leave the community very soon. My last work will be finishing some screens for Pedro with Unknown Enemy. And if Phoenix has any problems with his movie "Wing Commander REBEL ASSAULT", I will try to help a bit. I'll also offer him my AMD Athlon system for rendering...

Anyway... Final Conflict is canceled. I'm really sorry about this, because it was a very interesting project. But I can't do it anymore because of school and work and some other personal problems (girlfriend) ... I was asked if I would provide my Final Conflict Data to a Homepage. Well - I won't do that because I want to keep the scenes and Models for my own. My whole Movie-Directory including Pedros projects and my models has over 450 MB - a bit too large in my opinion... I want to say here that Final Conflict will be canceled and NOT be continued... but ... I know myself... it might be possible that I'm interested again in a few years (when I got more time)... but I don't want to say anything more about this. The offical version is that I'm leaving the community. Who knows what might happen in a few years... - but please don't wait for my return...

I want to thank a few people by the way:

Thanks to:
Phoenix... for helping me with my movie and supporting me with software
WildCat... for offering me a Website for Final Conflict
LOAF... for updating the CIC
Pedro... for giving me some interesting work with Unknown Enemy
Hadrian... for helping me with Lasers and engines...
Everybody out there who helped me finding Plugins and giving me hints for the movie

----------
I really would like to stay, but the problems are to big to continue working. It's really hard for me to write this mail, but everything has an ending... ...as I said - don't wait for my return...

I'm sure Wing Commander will live on in the future. And I wish you all luck with your projects... just look ahead.

Best wishes for the future,

Alex (also known as "Rylex")

Final Conflict One-Ups 3D Animation, Switches to 4D Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Update ID

Rylex of Final Conflict fame sent us the following status report.
I've got some news to my WC-movie "Final Conflict". Because I had very much problems creating the perfect ship-engine under 3D-Studio Max 3, I will now change my working program. Thanks to Pheonix (who is producing a WC-Movie as well) I will continue working with Cinema4D. Only for special scenes I'll use 3D Studio Max. Cinema4D is easier to handle and renders the movies much more fast. Please be patient - the "Final Conflict" page will be updated when I start working with Cinema4D. New ship-engines will be no problem then. OK - now you know the facts.

The movie (means Scene1 and Scene2 which I already rendered) has to be re-designed completly - and that might take a while... - I'll create a new Scene1 and Scene2 with Cinema4D (which should be faster).


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