Ships.tbl

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FSO Git Commit: Date: 2015-05-12 SHA: 5dfbc6d292

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The ships.tbl defines all the ship classes used in FSO.

This table is one of the Modular Tables and can be extended with xxx-shp.tbm

List of Tables

General Format

• Ship.tbl is formed of several different sections.
• All sections beginning with # need #End before the next section.
  • #Default Player Ship
    • Defines the default player ship in the game and also in the FRED. If in a mission appears a ship that has not been properly included to tables then game replaces the ship with the Default Player Ship.
  • #Engine Wash Info
    • Includes all the definitions of all engine washes used in the game.

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• #Ship Templates
  • Includes entries for ship templates

• #Ship Classes
  • Includes entries for every ship and also defines their attributes that are used in the game
  • Is discussed in detail at Table Options section.
• $Player Ship Precedence
  • Player Ship Precedence is used in ship selection when a ship specified by the mission designer is not available to the player. The next ship on the list is used in its place (assuming that ship is allowed for the player)

Default Player Ship

• Defines the default ship in the game.
• Syntax: Name, name of ship model as defined in Table Options.

Engine Wash

• Defines the engines washes
• First entry must be named 'default'

$Name:

• Defines the name of the engine wash.
• Syntax: String

+nocreate

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• In Modular Tables name can be followed by line +nocreate that prevent game from creating an incomplete entry by leaving the entry unread unless it already exists (either in ship.tbl or in earlier parsed *-shp.tbm files) by the time the *-shp.tbm is read.

$Angle:

• Defines the angle from the engine where the engine wash exists
• Syntax: Float, degrees

$Radius Mult:

• Defines engine wash multiplier
• Syntax: Float

$Length:

• Defines the length of the engine wash
• Syntax: Float, meters

$Intensity:

• Defines the strength of the engine wash
• Syntax: Float, blast effect

Example

  $Name:           Default
  $Angle:          10.0
  $Radius Mult:    1.2
  $Length:         400
  $Intensity:      1.0

Ship Template Options

Warning: The ship templates feature has always caused crashes and memory issues. As of 2014/07/24, it has been removed from the codebase.

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Example of template usage Ship_Templates in which both GTB Artemis variants have been defined using a single template

$Template:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the name of template
• Syntax: String, name

+Use Template:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Another template can be used as template for the current template
• Syntax: String, name

Ships Table Options

$Name:

• Model name that is used also in game. It is also used as name for the whole ship entry.
  There are two special characters can be used in the name: # and @
  • #. It's used in the middle of the name and cannot be the first character in the $Name: string. It makes the right part of the name not being shown in the ship class info of the target window, (or beside the target brackets in FS_Open builds). It allows making different versions of a base ship while showing the same class name inside the game.
    An example from FSPort FreeSpace 1: The SF Dragon#weakened ship, used in Enter the Dragon, appears to the player just as any other SF Dragon.
  • @. It's used before the proper ship name. It is fully ignored by the game. Moreover, @WhateverShip and WhateverShip are exactly the same name and therefore they both appear as WhateverShip inside the game. It just allows the user marking ships in the table because of any modding reason.
    In the retail FS2 ships there are several ships starting by @.
• Syntax: String, name

+nocreate

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• In Modular Tables name can be followed by line +nocreate that prevent game from creating an incomplete entry by leaving the entry unread unless it already exists (either in ship.tbl or in earlier parsed *-shp.tbm files) by the time the *-shp.tbm is read.

+Use Template:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Sets the table entry to use template based on an existing table entry instead of creating totally new one
• Syntax: String, name of the template

$Alt Name:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Alternative $Name: for the ship.
• Syntax: String, Alternate $Name:

$Short name:

• Shortened model name, for FRED, Usually more descriptive than the real name.
• Syntax: String'

$Species:

• Defines species (Terran, Vasudan or Shivan). Determines many things, including the color of the engine glow, the flyby sound effects, the briefing icon and the support ship.

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• More species have been enabled, and all of these have to be defined in species_defs.tbl.

• Syntax: String, name of the species
  • Example: Terran

Technical Description

List of descriptive terms for techroom and ship selection screens. Number after the quotes refers to tstrings.tbl

+Type:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Example: XSTR("", -1)

+Maneuverability:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Example: XSTR("", -1)

+Armor:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Example: XSTR("", -1)

+Manufacturer:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Example: XSTR("", -1)

+Description:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Requires $end_multi_text after the entry
• Example:

XSTR("", -1)

$end_multi_text

+Tech Title:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines name of the ship as displayed in the tech room
• Syntax: String

+Tech Description:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Requires $end_multi_text after the entry
• Example:

XSTR("", -1)

$end_multi_text

+Length:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Example: XSTR("", -1)

+Gun Mounts:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Example: XSTR("", -1)

+Missile Banks:

• Syntax: XSTR("String", integer)
• Example: XSTR("", -1)

$Selection Effect:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines which selection effect to use when the -ship_choice_3d commandline flag is enabled or no ani can be found for the selected ship.
• Syntax: String, either "FS1", or "Off". This defaults to the FS2 effect.

$Cockpit POF file:

FS2 Open 3.6.10: *Filename of the cockpit model file

• Syntax: String.pof, model filename

+Cockpit Offset:

FS2 Open 3.6.10: *Defines the offset of the cockpit model

• Syntax: Vector, three floats, x-axis, y-axis, z-axis, respectively

$Cockpit Display:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• Defines a rectangle surface on a cockpit texture that can be updated dynamically. Multiple displays can be defined, but only one needs to be defined for each texture on the cockpit model.
• +Texture:
• The filename of the cockpit texture to be replaced.
• Syntax: String, texture filename
• +Offsets:
• (Optional) The offsets of the rectangle surface into the texture that will be drawn into.
• Syntax: Vector, two integers
• +Size:
• The size of the rectangle surface that will be drawn into.
• Syntax: Vector, two integers
• +Background:
• (Optional) Filename of the bitmap to be used as the background of this display.
• Syntax: String, texture filename
• +Foreground:
• (Optional) Filename of the bitmap to be used as the foreground of this display.
• Syntax: String, texture filename
• +Display Name:
• A name to be used as a reference handle.
• Syntax: String

$POF File:

• Filename of the model file (.pof) at data/models folder
• Syntax: String.pof, model filename

$Texture Replace:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• +old:
• Defines the texture to be replaced
  • Syntax: String, filename
• +new:
• Defines the new texture
  • Syntax: String, filename

$POF Target File:

• Optional hud targeting model
• Syntax: String.pof, model filename

$POF Target LOD:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the LOD (Level-Of-Detail) of target model used in the HUD targetbox
• Syntax: Integer

$Detail Distance:

• Defines the distance where the change between different Levels-Of-Details (LODs) occurs
• Take notice that these are base values. Model detail in Detail options, (within game press F2), applies a multiplier to these values. These multipliers default to (from left to right): 1/8, 1/4, 1, 4, and 8, and may be overridden by the $Detail Distance Multiplier
• Syntax: (Detail Distances) , list of integers (same amount as LODs), distances from the model in meters
  • Example: (0, 80, 300, 900)

$Collision LOD:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Defines an alternative LOD (Level-Of-Detail) to use for collision detection. Using this can increase performance without visible drawbacks if the LOD chosen has much simpler geometry but the shape still closely matches the base model.
• This works as follows: collision detection proceeds normally through the various model/submodel radius and bounding box checks based on LOD0, but when the game decides to perform a mesh-based collision check of a given submodel, it will use the submodel's LOD mesh instead. However, all submodels do not need to have a counterpart in the given LOD; if one is not found, the closest alternative will automatically be used instead.
• For example, if $Collision LOD: 3 is used and the submodel engine01a is checked for a hit, the game will attempt to use the mesh of engine01d instead. However, if there is no engine01d submodel, the game will find the closest alternative: it'll look for engine01c, then engine01b, and finally fall back to engine01a. Note the implications of for example the root LOD submodel (detaild, detail3, etc) including the geometry of subsystem submodels; if detail0 is checked for a collision before engine01a, and detail3 includes the engine geometry (as opposed to having it in engine01d), then the subsystem engine01a cannot be hit.
  • Syntax: Integer

$ND:

• No Dim field field was used in FreeSpace for ship lights. Use of glowmaps is preferred to the $ND entry. Only noticeable in Glide or Software mode.
• Syntax: Color, red, green, blue respectively, value from 0 to 255
  • Example: 42, 42, 224

$Enable Team Colors:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• Enables Team Colors for a ship without setting a default color setting.
• Syntax: Boolean

$Default Team:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• Specifies the default team name to be used for coloring a ship.
• None is will set the default to 'no coloring'.
• Syntax: String, name of the teams as defined in colors.tbl

$Show Damage:

• No function at all. The engine will read values, but discard them. In 3.6.10 or later, this can be left out without adverse consequences.
• Syntax: Boolean, yes or no, usually yes

$Damage Lightning Type:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Changes the damage lightning effect shown on highly damaged ships.
• Can be defined as:
  • None
  • Default

$Impact:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• +Damage Type:
  • Defines the damage type of the collision
  • Syntax: String, name of the armor as defined in armor.tbl

$Impact Spew:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Used to define the impact particle spew
• Note: You CANNOT define a different type of particle spew here; the only option possible is listed below
• +Max particles:
  • Defines the maximum number of particles spewed
  • Setting to zero causes model to generate no particles at all
  • Syntax: Integer
  • Default Value: 30

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• +Min particles:
  • Defines the minimum number of particles spewed
  • Syntax: Integer
  • Default Value: 25
• +Max Radius:
  • Defines the maximum radius of particles
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default Value: 0.5f
• +Min Radius:
  • Defines the minimum radius of particles
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default Value: 0.2f
• +Max Lifetime:
  • Defines the maximum lifetime of particles
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default Value: 0.55f
• +Min Lifetime:
  • Defines the minimum lifetime of particles
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default Value: 0.05f
• +Max Velocity:
  • Defines the maximum velocity of particles
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default Value: 12.0f
• +Min Velocity:
  • Defines the minimum velocity of particles
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default Value: 2.0f
• +Normal Variance:
  • Defines the variance of particle direction from the normal
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default Value: 1.0f

$Damage Spew:

See Impact Spew entry

• Controls the 'smoke' released on weapon impact point
• Certain default values (marked with X) gain a specific multiplier based on ship radius

If the radius is less than 20 the multiplier is 1

If the radius is larger than 40 the multipler is 1.2

Otherwise it is between 1 and 1.2

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• +Max Particles:
  • Default Value: 50 * X

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• +Min Particles:
  • Default Value: 20 * X
• +Max Radius:
  • Default Value: 1.3
• +Min Radius:
  • Default Value: 0.7
• +Max Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 1.5 * X
• +Min Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 0.7 * X
• +Max Velocity:
  • Default Value: 12.0
• +Min Velocity:
  • Default Value: 3.0
• +Normal Variance:
  • Default Value: 0.2 * X

$Collision Physics:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Parameters affecting collision physics, including landings.
• "Landing" means the ship will not take damage or shake when it touches down. Instead, the ship will reorient towards a neutral resting orientation. "Reorient" thresholds below mean that the ship will still take damage (counts as a crash) but will move towards the correct landing orientation.

+Bounce:

When this ship collides with a large ship, how many meters to instantly move it away. Default is 5.0.

+Both Small Bounce:

When this ship collides with a small ship, how many meters to instantly move it away. Default is 5.0.

+Friction:

During collisions, how much friction to apply (slowing lateral movement). Default is 0.0.

+Rotation Factor:

Affects the rotational energy of collisions. Default is 0.2.

+Landing Max Forward Vel:

Maximum velocity for which landing physics are used.

+Landing Min Forward Vel:

Minimum velocity for which landing physics are used.

+Landing Max Descent Vel:

Maximum velocity at which the ship can "hit the deck" and still be considered a landing.

+Landing Max Horizontal Vel:

Maximum sideways velocity the ship can land at.

+Landing Max Angle:

Maximum angle of attack the ship can land at (in degrees).

+Landing Min Angle:

Minimum angle of attack the ship can land at (in degrees).

+Landing Max Rotate Angle:

How many degrees the ship can be rotated relative to the landing surface in order to count as a landing.

+Reorient Max Forward Vel:

Maximum velocity for which the ship will be adjusted to the correct landing orientation.

+Reorient Min Forward Vel:

Minimum velocity for which the ship will be adjusted to the correct landing orientation.

+Reorient Max Descent Vel:

Maximum velocity at which the ship can "hit the deck" and still reorient.

+Reorient Max Horizontal Vel:

Maximum sideways velocity for reorienting.

+Reorient Max Angle:

Maximum angle of attack for reorienting to kick in (in degrees).

+Reorient Min Angle:

Minimum angle of attack for reorienting to kick in (in degrees).

+Reorient Max Rotate Angle:

How many degrees the ship can be rotated relative to the landing surface in order to be reoriented on impact.

+Reorient Speed Mult:

How quickly the reorientation takes place (when applicable)

+Landing Rest Angle:

Angle of the ship's nose relative to the plane of the landing surface when the ship is at rest. Reorient will move the ship towards this angle.

+Landing Sound:

Sound to play when landing (if it's not a landing, normal collision sound is used).

$Debris:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• +Min Lifetime:
  • Defines the minimum lifetime of the debris (Default value is a random number)
  • Syntax: Float, Seconds
• +Max Lifetime:
  • Defines the maximum lifetime of the debris
  • Syntax: Float, Seconds
• +Min Speed:
  • Defines the minimum speed of the debris
  • Syntax: Float, Meters/second
• +Max Speed:
  • Defines the maximum speed of the debris
  • Syntax: Float, Meters/second
• +Min Rotation speed:
  • Defines the minimum rotational speed of the debris (Default is (6 to 10)/Ship-radius)
  • Syntax: Float, Radians/second
• +Max Rotation speed:
  • Defines the maximum rotational speed of the debris
  • Syntax: Float, Radians/second
• +Damage Type:
  • Defines the damage type of the debris
  • Syntax: String, name of the armor as defined in armor.tbl

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• +Min Hitpoints:
  • Defines the minimum hitpoints assigned for the generated debris pieces
  • Syntax: Float
• +Max Hitpoints:
  • Defines the maximum hitpoints assigned for the generated debris pieces
  • Syntax: Float
• +Damage Multiplier:
  • Defines the collision damage multiplier for collisions against the generated debris pieces
  • Syntax: Float
• +Lightning Arc Percent:
  • Controls what percent of debris pieces will have the damage lightning effect applied to them.
  • Defaults to 50%.
  • Syntax: Float, 0-100

$Density:

• This defines how hard you hit something. If you set it very high, a collision will the lower density ship and not yours; the higher the numbers are, the harder they will hit and the farther they will be pushed. However, this doesn't apply to asteroids. When a high density fighter collides with an asteroid, the high-density fighter will receive damage, but it will also destroy the asteroid. Setting a density of 1000 on a fighter with 180 hitpoints will cause the fighter to immediately explode if it collides with, say, an asteroid. A low-density fighter will not have any effect on an asteroid, but if the fighter destroys the asteroid, the fighter will fly far away.
• Syntax: Float, usually 1

$Damp:

• Sets the natural period (1 / omega) of the dampening effects on top of the acceleration model. (See $Forward Accel:)
• In essence, affects how quickly you will accel/decel to your target velocity. Higher damp means slower acceleration and deceleration, while lower values (down to 0.0001) means faster acceleration/deceleration.
  • Specifying a value of 0.0 means there is no damping placed on top of the acceleration model, which is the most responsiveness you'll get.

• Syntax: Float

$Rotdamp:

• Shares the same principles of $Damp, but is applied to rotations directly. (there isn't a engine/thrust acceleration model for rotations)
• Syntax: Float

$Banking Constant:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines a factor for how much roll is added during a yaw. Set as 1 for full roll and 0 is no roll. Default is 0.5.
• Syntax: Float

$Max Velocity:

• Defines maximum velocities with standard energy settings on x (left/right), y (up/down), and z (forward) -axis (respectively). z -axis velocity defines the maximum forward velocity.
• The x and y velocities are considered slide veocities
• Syntax: Vector, three floats, x-axis, y-axis, z-axis, respectively, meters per second
  • Example: 0.0, 0.0, 80.0

$Player Minimum Velocity:

FS2 Open, 3.8:

• Defines minimum velocities on x (left/right), y (up/down), and z (forward) -axis (respectively). This affects the player only, the AI ignores the value.
• The x and y velocities are considered slide velocities, the minimums for them are not currently implemented.
• When gliding, if the absolute speed vector of the players ship falls below the minimum then the ships engines will re-engage and cannot be switched off again until the ships absolute vector exceeds the z-minimum.
• Syntax: Vector, three floats, x-axis, y-axis, z-axis, respectively, meters per second
  • Example: 0.0, 0.0, 40.0

$Rotation Time:

• Defines rotation times around the x, y, and z-axis. Number is seconds it takes to complete rotate a ship (360 degrees) around the given axis. X-axis is "pitch," y-axis is "yaw," and z-axis is "roll."
• Syntax: Vector, three floats, seconds per 360 degree turn around x-axis, y-axis, z-axis, respectively
  • Example: 3.0, 2.6, 5.0
  • Note: Setting to Zero will cause the model to disappear in mission.

$Rear Velocity:

• Defines rear velocity
• Syntax: Float, meters per second
  • Note: This value must be set for +Aburn_Max_Reverse_Vel: to work

$Forward Accel:

• Number of seconds needed from full stop to 63.21% of the maximum forward (z) velocity
  • We use 63.21% instead of 100% because FSO's acceleration/velocity model is based on a simplistic exponential function, rather than the more complex models seen for prop-driven, jet-driven, or rocket-driven craft.
  • The equation is a derivative of v = 1 - e^(-t / T), where T is what we define in the ship.tbl
• Syntax: Float, seconds

$Forward Decel:

• Number of seconds needed from maximum forward (z) velocity to full stop
• Syntax: Float, seconds

$Slide Accel:

• Number of seconds needed from full stop to 63.21% maximum slide velocity
• Note: this is applied to both slide (x and y) axes
  • See $Forward Accel for an explanation of the 63.21%
• Syntax: Float, seconds

$Slide Decel:

• Number of seconds needed from 63.21% maximum slide velocity to full stop
• Note: this is applied to both slide (x and y) axes
  • See $Forward Accel for an explanation of the 63.21%
• Syntax: Float, seconds

$Glide:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Allows gliding in game, i.e. turning the ship's attitude/facing without changing its current movement direction and speed.
• Syntax: Boolean, yes or no

+Dynamic Glide Cap:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• If set, game uses dynamic glide cap. The dynamic glide cap means that the maximum glide speed will follow the same rules as normal flight, including the effects of afterburner and power to engines. If set to YES, the value in +Max Glide Speed is ignored.
• Syntax: Boolean

+Max Glide Speed:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the maximum glide speed if glide has been enabled. If 0, this is set to the fastest speed the ship can go. If negative, there is no glide cap (allowing practically infinite maximum gliding speed). Defaults to 0.
• Syntax: Float

+Glide Accel Mult:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the acceleration multiplier for the gliding mode. If > 0, sets a fixed acceleration rate in glide mode depending on value. If set to 0, impossible to accelerate while in glide mode. If negative, enables glide speed ramping (acceleration in glide mode ramps in the same way as in normal flight). Defaults to 0.
• Syntax: Float

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Entry exists as a dummy entry which doesnt do anything to prevent compatibility issues

$Use Newtonian Dampening:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• If set, forces the ship to use (or not use) newtonian dampening. Basically, allows overriding the AI Profiles flag on a per-ship basis.
• Syntax: Boolean

$Autoaim FOV:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the field of view for autoaim
• Syntax: Integer

+Converging Autoaim

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines that the autoaim uses convergence

+Minimum Distance:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the minimum distance for the convergence

$Convergence:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the weapons use convergence

Note: If none of the following optional strings are added, the weapon will not converge. Don't forget to use them.

+Automatic

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines that the ship uses automatic convergence - converging distance calculated from estimated hit position (lead) of the current target.
• +Minimum Distance:
  • Defines the minimum distance for the convergence. Overrides the setting for $Autoaim FOV's minimum distance.

+Standard

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines that ship uses fixed convergence.
• +Distance:
  • Defines the converging distance from the ship

+Offset:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the offset from the ship centerpoint for the convergence
• Syntax: Vector, three floats, x-axis, y-axis, z-axis, respectively

$Warpin Type:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Allow an animation to be defined as a warpin effect.
• Can be defined as:

• Default
• BTRL or Galactica
• Homeworld
• Hyperspace

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Knossos
• Babylon5

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• BTRL was replaced with Galactica after 3.6.10

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Syntax: String

$Warpin Start Sound:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• File for playing at start of warp in effect
• Syntax: String, filename

$Warpin End Sound:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• File for playing at end of warp in effect
• Syntax: String, filename

$Warpin Speed:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Sets the speed at which the ship warps in for default warpin effect
• Sets the time that the ships warp in (not the animation itself) takes for BTRL type warpin effects
• Syntax: Float, meters per second or miiliseconds

$Warpin Time:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the effect duration
• Syntax: Float, seconds

$Warpin Decel Exp:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Only for the hyperspace warpin effect.
• Defines an exponent for the deceleration curve at the end of the warpin. Must be higher than 0; a value of 1 produces a constant velocity throughout the effect and higher values produce gradual deceleration.
• Syntax: Float
  • Default: 1.0

$Warpin Radius:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the effect radius
• Syntax: Float, meters

$Warpin Animation:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the animation used for the Homeworld warpin effect. Has no effect for other warpin types.
• Syntax: String, filename

$Warpout Type:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Allow an animation to be defined as a warpout effect.
• Can be defined as:

• Default
• BTRL or Galactica
• Homeworld
• Hyperspace

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Knossos
• Babylon5

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• BTRL was replaced with Galactica after 3.6.10

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Syntax: String

$Warpout Start Sound:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• File for playing at start of warp out effect
• Syntax: String, filename

$Warpout End Sound:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• File for playing at end of warp out effect
• Syntax: String, filename

$Warpout Engage Time:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• Defines the delay the it takes for the warp drive of the ship to engage, during which the player may still abort the warpout. Affects both the player as well as AI ships. If not defined, defaults to 3 seconds for the player and none for the AI.
• Syntax: Float, seconds

$Warpout Speed:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Sets the speed at which the ship warps out for default warpout effect
• Sets the time that the ships warp out (not the animation itself) takes for BTRL type warpout effects

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Sets the minimum speed required for the ship to warp out for hyperspace type warpout effects

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Syntax: Float, meters per second or milliseconds

$Warpout Time:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the effect duration
• Syntax: Float, seconds

$Warpout Accel Exp:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Only for the hyperspace warpin effect.
• Defines an exponent for the acceleration curve at the start of the warpout. Must be higher than 0; a value of 1 produces a constant velocity throughout the effect and higher values produce gradual acceleration.
• Syntax: Float
  • Default: 1.0

$Warpout Radius:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the effect radius
• Syntax: Float, meters

$Warpout Animation:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the animation used as the warpout effect.
• Syntax: String, filename

$Player Warpout Speed:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Sets the speed at which the player warps out from the game
• Syntax: Float

$Expl Inner Rad:

• Radius at which the full explosion damage is done
• Syntax: Float, meters

$Expl Outer Rad:

• Maximum radius at which any damage is done
• Syntax: Float, meters

$Expl Damage:

• Amount of damage done inside the inner radius
• Syntax: Float, damage

$Expl Blast:

• The intensity of the blast effect when you're within the outer radius
• Syntax: Float, blast effect

$Expl Propagates:

• This decides whether the ship explodes into debris immediately, or whether it has the many small explosions before breaking apart slowly
• Syntax: Boolean, yes or no

$Propagating Expl Radius Multiplier:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• This sets the multiplier for the ship splitting propagating explosions
• Syntax: Float, defaults to 1

$Expl Visual Rad:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• This determines the visual size of the main fireball for an exploding ship. Does not affect ships with propagating explosions.
• Syntax: Float, meters

$Base Death-Roll Time:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines the base death-roll time
• Values is modified depending on conditions when the ship died
• Syntax: Integer, milliseconds
  • Default: 3000

$Death-Roll Explosion Radius Mult:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines the multiplier for the radius of the ship surface explosions during death roll
• Syntax: Float
  • Default: 1

$Death-Roll Explosion Intensity Mult:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines the multiplier for the amount of the ship surface explosions during death roll
• Syntax: Float
  • Default: 1

$Death FX Explosion Radius Mult:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines the multiplier applied to the ship death explosions
• Syntax: Float
  • Default: 1

$Death FX Explosion Count:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines the number of explosion effect game uses when a large ship dies
• Syntax: Integer
  • Default: 6

$Ship Splitting Particles:

See Impact Spew entry

• Controls the particles released on every explosion event which happens when ship is splitting apart
• The old 'popcorn' effect

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• +Max Particles:
  • Default Value: 80
• +Min Particles:
  • Default Value: 40
• +Max Radius:
  • Default Value: Ship radius * 0.015
• +Min Radius:
  • Default Value: Ship radius * 0.005
• +Max Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 6.0 * (1 + 0.002 * Ship radius)
• +Min Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 0.5 * (1 + 0.002 * Ship radius)
• +Max Velocity:
  • Default Value: Speed of the propagating explosion
• +Min Velocity:
  • Default Value: 0.0
• +Normal Variance:
  • Default Value: 2.0

$Ship Death Particles:

See Impact Spew entry

• Controls the particles released on the moment 'non-knossos' type object dies

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• +Max Particles:
  • Default Value: 100
• +Min Particles:
  • Default Value: 50
• +Max Radius:
  • Default Value: 1.5
• +Min Radius:
  • Default Value: 0.1
• +Max Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 4.0
• +Min Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 0.5
• +Max Velocity:
  • Default Value: 20.0
• +Min Velocity:
  • Default Value: 0.0
• +Normal Variance:
  • Default Value: 2.0

$Alternate Death Particles:

See Impact Spew entry

• Controls the particles released when 'knossos' type object is dying

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• +Max Particles:
  • Default Value: 30
• +Min Particles:
  • Default Value: 15
• +Max Radius:
  • Default Value: 100.0
• +Min Radius:
  • Default Value: 30.0
• +Max Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 12.0
• +Min Lifetime:
  • Default Value: 2.0
• +Max Velocity:
  • Default Value: 350.0
• +Min Velocity:
  • Default Value: 50.0
• +Normal Variance:
  • Default Value: 2.0

$Vaporize Percent Chance:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Allows ships to sometimes explode instantly (vaporize) instead of going through a death roll first. Overrides the same flag in objecttypes.tbl.
• Syntax: Float, percent chance of vaporization

$Shockwave Damage Type:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• REQUIRES ADDITIONAL TABLE. Defines the damage type used for the ship explosions
• Syntax: String, name of the armor as defined in armor.tbl

$Shockwave Speed:

• Speed shockwave expands at, 0 means no shockwave
• Syntax: Float, meters per second

$Shockwave Count:

• Defines the number of shockwaves to spawned
• Syntax: Integer

$Shockwave Model:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the textured model used as the ship's 3D shockwave
• Syntax: String.pof, model filename

$Shockwave Name:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the name of the animation to used for the 2D shockwave
• Syntax: String, filename

$Explosion Animations:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the explosion animations used for the ship
• Syntax: Integer list

$Weapon Model Draw Distance:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Distance that external weapons are shown, ie. missiles and such.
• Syntax: Float, meters
  • Default: 200

Primary Weapons

$Allowed PBanks:

• List of allowed primary weapons in brackets (weapon name marked with quotes).
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ), names of the weapons

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Each of the primary weapon banks can optionally be given their own list of allowed weapons, in which case each bank has its own bracketed entry.
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ) ( "String" "String" )

$Allowed Dogfight PBanks:

• Primary weapons for multiplayer dogfights.
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ), names of the weapons

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Each of the primary weapon dogfight banks can optionally be given their own list of allowed weapons, in which case each bank has it's own bracketed entry.
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ) ( "String" "String" )

$Default PBanks:

• Defines default primary weapons for each of the primary weapon banks
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ), names of the weapons

$PBank Capacity:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines ammunition capacity of primary weapon banks. In brackets, different weapon banks separated by commas.
• NOTE: In order for this to work, at least one of the primary weapons in the list of default primaries must be a ballistic weapon.
• Syntax: ( Integer, Integer )

$Show Primary Models:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the use of weapon models for primary weapons. In brackets, different weapon banks may have different definitions
• Syntax: ( Boolean Boolean ), yes or no
  • Example: ( YES YES ) - Note the spaces on the insides of the brackets.

Secondary Weapons

$Allowed SBanks:

• Same for secondary weapons.
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ), names of the weapons

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Each of the secondary weapon banks can be given their own list of allowed weapons, in which case each bank has it's own bracketed entry.
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ) ( "String" "String" )

$Allowed Dogfight SBanks:

• Same for secondary weapons.
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ), names of the weapons

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Each of the secondary weapon dogfight banks can be given their own list of allowed weapons, in which case each bank has it's own bracketed entry.
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ) ( "String" "String" )

$Default SBanks:

• Defines default primary weapons for each of the primary weapon banks
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ), names of the weapons

$SBank Capacity:

• Defines ammunition capacity of secondary weapon banks. In brackets, different weapon banks separated by commas.
• Syntax: ( Integer, Integer )

$Show Secondary Models:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the use of weapon models for secondary weapons. In brackets, different weapon banks may have different definitions
• Syntax: ( Boolean Boolean )
  • Example: (YES YES)

$Ship Recoil Modifier:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Multiplies the recoil force of a weapon by this value, use a value greater than 1.0 to increase the force, use a value between 1.0 and 0.0 to decrease.
  • Syntax: Float (defaults to 1.0)

Note: It is not required to have any weapons with the "apply recoil" flag set for this to be enabled.

$Shields:

• Determines the shield strength
• Syntax: Float, total shield strength

+Auto Spread:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Defines the thickness of auto spread shields. Note that the "auto spread shields" ship flag is also needed.
• Syntax: Float, shield thickness in meters.

+Minimum Weapon Span:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Determines the minimum distance weapons must have traveled before impacting the shield (for example if fired close to or inside the shield). Does not affect whether the weapon bypasses shields, unless +Allow Bypass (see below) is set to YES. Only valid with auto spread shields.
• Syntax: Float, defaults to the shield thickness.

+Allow Bypass:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Determines whether weapons which impact on the ship's hull (see +Minimum Weapon Span above) will bypass shields. Only valid with auto spread shields.
• Syntax: Boolean
  • Default: NO

+Spread From LOD:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Causes the auto spread shields calculations to be done based off a LOD level other than LOD0. Using a lower-poly LOD will considerably speed up the shield collision detection, while being visually indistinguishable in most cases.
• Syntax: Integer, defaults to 0

$Model Point Shield Controls:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Allows remapping of the 4 shield augmentation keys when Model Point Shields are used. You should usually supply as many values as you have shield segments. The first value determines which augmentation key to use for the first shield segment, the second value determines which key to use for the second shield segment, and so on (the order being defined by the order of the shield points in the model file). If less than 4 values are given, "none" is assumed for the missing ones. Note that as there are only 4 augmentation keys, player ships with more than 4 shield segments would generally not be a good idea.
• Syntax: ( String list ), possible values "front", "left", "right", "rear" and "none"
  • Example: ( "front" "rear" ) for a ship with only two shield sections, front and rear; the left and right augmentation keys would be disabled.
  • Example: ( "left" "rear" "right" ) for a ship with only three shield sections, left, right and rear; the front augmentation key would be disabled.
  • Example: ( "front" "right" "rear" "left" ) for a ship with four shield sections but perhaps positioned in a non-standard way.

$Shield Color:

• RGB value for shield color
• Syntax: Color, red, green, blue respectively, value from 0 to 255
  • Example: 100, 100, 255

$Shield Impact Explosion:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Impact explosion animation to trigger when this ship's shields are hit. Works identically for all shield types.
• Note: The size of the explosion is defined by the weapon, see Weapons.tbl#.24Shield_Impact_Explosion_Radius:.
• Syntax: String, filename or none

$Max Shield Recharge:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Determines a maximum recharge limit of shields. When used, the combined maximum shield energy is lowered, meaning that shield energy can be moved between quadrants even with shields fully charged.
• Syntax: Float, multiplier ranging from 0.0 to 1.0, defaults to 1.0
  • Example: $Max Shield Recharge: 0.5 caps the combined shield energy to 50%, meaning that a ship with 4 shield quadrants will by default have 12.5% strength on all quadrants (instead of normal 25%), allowing it to for example augment one quadrant to 50% while dropping other quadrants to 0%.

$Power Output:

• Actually does *NOTHING* unless set to zero; in which case weapon/shield/burner energy regeneration is disabled. Checked via code inspection 2014/12/29
• Syntax: Float

$Shield Regeneration Rate:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Repair rates for shields at percent per second
• Syntax: Float, multiplier of total shield hitpoints recharged each second. (NOT A PERCENTAGE, 0.02 equals 2% recharged per second)
  • Default: 0.02
• Affected by ETS Shields value (1/3rd value recharged per sec at default ETS setting of '4')
• Affected by AI Profile Setting: $Player Shield Recharge Scale:

$Support Shield Repair Rate:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Shield repair rate when docked to a support ship
• Syntax: Float

$Weapon Regeneration Rate:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Regeneration rates for primary guns at percent per second
• Syntax: Float, multiplier of total gun energy recharged each second (NOT A PERCENTAGE, 0.04 equals 4% recharged per second)
  • Default: 0.04
• Affected by ETS Guns value (1/3rd value recharged per sec at default ETS setting of '4')
• Affected by AI Profile Setting: $Player Weapon Recharge Scale:

$Max Oclk Speed:

• Can also be $Max Overclock Speed:
• Maximum velocity with all energy diverted to engines
• Syntax: Float, meters per second

$Max Weapon Eng:

• Can also be $Max Weapon Energy:
• The maximum amount of energy you can store in your primary weapons bank.
• Syntax: Float

$Hitpoints:

• How much damage the ship can take
• Syntax: Float, hitpoints
  • Default: 100

$Hull Repair Rate:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Repair rates for hull at percent per second
• Syntax: Float, multiplier of hitpoints repaired per second, NOT A PERCENTAGE, 0.01 equals 1% recharged per second

$Support Hull Repair Rate:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Repair rate for hull when docked to a support ship
• Syntax: Float

$Subsystem Repair Rate:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Repair rates for sybsystems percent per second
• Syntax: Value, percentage of total subsystem hitpoints repaired per second

$Support Subsystem Repair Rate:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Repair rate for subsystems when docked to a support ship
• Syntax: Float

$Armor Type:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• REQUIRES ADDITIONAL TABLE. Defines armor type used for the ship
• Syntax: String, name of the armor as defined in armor.tbl

$Shield Armor Type:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• REQUIRES ADDITIONAL TABLE. Defines the armor type used for shield of the ship
• Syntax: String, name of the armor as defined in armor.tbl

$Flags:

• See below
• Syntax: ( "String" "String" ), names of the flags assigned to the ship
  • Example: ( "fighter" "in tech database" )

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• +noreplace
  • Can be used to force game to retain existing flags instead of reseting the ship flags before parsing in the new flags.

$AI Class:

• Default AI class
• Syntax: String, name of the AI class as defined in ai.tbl

$Afterburner:

• Defines if the ships has afterburner
• Syntax: Boolean, yes or no

+Aburn Max Vel:

• Syntax: Vector, three floats, x-axis, y-axis, z-axis, respectively, meters per second

+Aburn For accel:

• Defined only for the forward acceleration. In same format as $Forward Accel
• Syntax: Float, seconds

+Aburn Max Reverse Vel:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defined only for the reverse acceleration, Sets the top speed for Reverse Afterburner.
• Syntax: Float, seconds
  • NOTE: Requires $Rear Velocity: to be set in order to work.

+Aburn Rev accel:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defined only for the reverse acceleration. In same format as $Forward Accel

• Syntax: Float, seconds

+Aburn Fuel:

• Amount of afterburner fuel the ship has
• Syntax: Float, fuel

+Aburn Burn Rate:

• Rate the fuel is consumed when afterburner is engaged (in units per seconds)
• Syntax: Float, fuel units per second

+Aburn Rec Rate:

• Rate the fuel is restored.
• Syntax: Float, fuel units per second

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

$Trails:

• Allows afterburner trails to be used

+Bitmap:

• Texture used to draw the afterburner trail
• Syntax: String, filename

+Width:

• Width of afterburner trail at the beginning of it (ie. the thruster end)
• Syntax: Float, meters

+Alpha:

• Transparancy of the trail, value from 1 (non-transparent) to 0 (totally transparent)
• Syntax: Float

+Life:

• How long the trail will last
• Syntax: Float, seconds

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

+Faded Out Sections:

• Defines the number of the trail sections from the leading edge that are gradually faded away.
• Syntax: Integer

$Countermeasure Type:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the weapon used as a countermeasure. Weapon does not have to be included in the countermeasure section of the weapons.tbl, but it has to have "countermeasure" flag in that case.
• Syntax: String, name of the weapon as defined in weapons.tbl

$Countermeasures:

• Number of countermeasures that can be loaded to the ship
• Syntax: Integer

$Scan Time:

• Time it takes to scan the ship
• Syntax: Integer, milliseconds

$EngineSnd:

• Engine sound used for the ship with number referring to sounds.tbl
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$Minimum Engine Volume:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Specifies how to multiply the volume of the engine sound based on ship speed. When the ship is stationary, the engine volume will be multiplied by the given value, with the value approaching 1.0 as the ship speed approaches maximum.
• Note: Default behavior is to ramp the multiplier from 0.5 (when ship is stationary) to 1.0 (when ship is at half speed or more).
• Syntax: Float, volume multiplier, usually you'll want a value between 0.0 and 1.0

$GlideStartSnd:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used when entering glide mode, instead of the default throttle down sound.
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$GlideEndSnd:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used when exiting glide mode, instead of the default throttle up sound.
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$CockpitEngineSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for looping engine sound heard in the cockpit.
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$FullThrottleSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when setting throttle to full power.
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$ZeroThrottleSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when setting throttle to zero power
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$ThrottleUpSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when increasing throttle power by 1/3
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$ThrottleDownSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when decreasing throttle power by 1/3
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$AfterburnerSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional optional sound to be used for the looping sound heard when the afterburner is active
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$AfterburnerEngageSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the afterburner is engaged
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$AfterburnerFailedSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the activation of the afterburner failed
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$MissileTrackingSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when a aspect seeking missile of the player tries to acquire a lock
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$MissileLockedSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when a aspect seeking missile of the player has acquired a lock
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$PrimaryCycleSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the player cycles his primary weapon
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$SecondaryCycleSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the player cycles his secondary weapon
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$TargetAcquiredSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the player acquires a new target
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$PrimaryFireFailedSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the primary weapon fails to fire
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$SecondaryFireFailedSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the secondary weapon fails to fire
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$HeatSeekerLaunchWarningSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when a heat-seeker is fired at the player
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$AspectSeekerLaunchWarningSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when an aspect-seeker is fired at the player
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$MissileLockWarningSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when an aspect-seeker is locked onto the player
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$HeatSeekerProximityWarningSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when a heat-seeker is in close proximity to the player
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$AspectSeekerProximityWarningSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when an aspect-seeker is in close proximity to the player
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$MissileEvadedSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when a missile has been evaded
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$CargoScanningSnd

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Optional sound to be used for the sound heard when the cargo of an object is being scanned
• Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$Closeup_Pos:

• How the model will show at techroom and briefing screen animations (assuming a pre-rendered animation is not specified). The position of the camera relative to the model in the tech room and the target box view. If 3D ship selection is used, also affects the drawing of the ship icon in the weapon & ship selection briefing screens.
• Syntax: Vector, three floats, x, y and z values respectively

$Closeup_Zoom:

• How the model will show at techroom and briefing screen animations (assuming a pre-rendered animation is not specified). How far the camera's zoomed in, defines camera's FOV. If 3D ship selection is used, also affects the drawing of the ship icon in the weapon & ship selection briefing screens.
• Syntax: Float, radians

$Topdown Offset:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Specifies how high the camera is above the center point of a ship in topdown camera views, or 2D missions.
• Syntax: Float, meters

$Shield_Icon:

• This .ani file must be at data/hud and included to the hud.tbl.

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Reference to the hud.tbl is no longer needed.

• Syntax: Filename

$Model Icon Direction:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• The direction from which the ship should be drawn from, if $Ship_Icon is not used and the ship icon is generated from the model.
  • By default, the direction is based on whether the game thinks the ship is a small ship, a capship or an installation.
  • Syntax: String, one of "top", "bottom", "front", "back", "left" or "right"

$Ship_Icon:

• The icon used in ship selection.

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Ship model is used by default to generate the image.

• Syntax: Filename

$Ship_Anim:

• The glowing green grid animation used in ship selection.

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Ship model is used by default to generate the image.

• Syntax: String, filename

$Ship_Overhead:

• The overhead view used in the weapons loadout.

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Ship model is used by default to generate the image.

• Syntax: String, filename

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

$Briefing icon:

• Defines if the ship has its own briefing icon information which overrides the standard briefing icon image

+Regular:

• Syntax: <regular anim filename>

+Fade:

• Syntax: <fade anim filename>

+Highlight:

• Syntax: <highlight anim filename>

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

$Briefing icon with cargo:

• Defines if the ship has its own cargo briefing icon (which will only be an option if a ship icon is also specified)

+Regular:

• Syntax: <regular anim filename>

+Fade:

• Syntax: <fade anim filename>

+Highlight:

• Syntax: <highlight anim filename>

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

$Briefing wing icon:

• Defines if the ship has its own wing briefing icon (which will only be an option if a ship icon is also specified)

+Regular:

• Syntax: <regular anim filename>

+Fade:

• Syntax: <fade anim filename>

+Highlight:

• Syntax: <highlight anim filename>

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

$Briefing wing icon with cargo:

• Defines if the ship has its own wing-with-cargo briefing icon (which will only be an option if a ship icon is also specified)

+Regular:

• Syntax: <regular anim filename>

+Fade:

• Syntax: <fade anim filename>

+Highlight:

• Syntax: <highlight anim filename>

$Score:

• Points awarded for destroying the ship
• Syntax: Float

Customized Thruster Effects

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the texture of the modeled thruster effect cone
• $Thruster Normal Flame:
  • Syntax: String, filename
• Defines the texture of the modeled thruster effect cone with afterburners lit
• $Thruster Afterburner Flame:
  • Syntax: String, filename

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the primary thruster glow - the one visible only from behind
  • $Thruster Bitmap 1:
    • Defines the effect for the standard drives. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Normal: under the $Thrustglows: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster Bitmap 1a:
    • Defines the effect for the afterburner. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Afterburner: under the $Thrustglows: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster01 Radius factor:
    • Defines the radius multiplier
    • Syntax: Float
• Defines the secondary glow type-effect for thrusters - the feathery trail like haze behind the main glow
  • $Thruster Bitmap 2:
    • Defines the effect for the standard drives. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Sec_Normal: under the $ThrustAnims: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster Bitmap 2a:
    • Defines the effect for the afterburner. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Sec_Afterburn: under the $ThrustAnims: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster02 Radius factor:
    • Defines the radius multiplier
    • Syntax: Float
  • $Thruster02 Length factor:
    • Defines the length multiplier for the trail type (secondary) glowpoint thrusters
    • Replaces the older $Thruster01 Length factor:
    • Syntax: Float
• Defines the tertiary glow type-effect for thrusters - the one visible from all directions
  • NOTE: The rotation of this effect is jittered, which can look quite bad with certain types of effects.
  • $Thruster Bitmap 3:
    • Defines the effect for the standard drives. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Ter_Normal: under the $ThrustAnims: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster Bitmap 3a:
    • Defines the effect for the afterburner. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Ter_Afterburn: under the $ThrustAnims: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster03 Radius factor:
    • Defines the radius multiplier
    • Syntax: Float

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Defines the distortion effect for thrusters
  • $Thruster Bitmap Distortion:
    • Defines name of normal thruster distortion envelope animation. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Dist_Normal: under the $ThrustAnims: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster Bitmap Distortion a:
    • Defines name of afterburner thruster distortion envelope animation. Overrides Species_defs.tbl line +Dist_Afterburn: under the $ThrustAnims: entry.
    • Syntax: String, filename
  • $Thruster Distortion Radius factor:
    • Defines the radius multiplier
    • Syntax: Float
  • $Thruster Distortion Length factor:
    • Defines the length multiplier for the thruster distortion
    • Syntax: Float
  • $Thruster Distortion:
    • Defines whether the distortion effect is rendered for this ship.
    • Syntax: Bool

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• $Thruster Glow Noise Mult:
  • A multiplier for how much noise is applied to the thruster glow radius. A value of 0 causes the radius to remain perfectly steady and values higher than 1 cause the radius to fluctuate more than the default.
  • Defaults to 1.0.
  • Syntax: Float

$Thruster Particles:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines the alternative particle thruster
• $Thruster Particle Bitmap: OR $Afterburner Particle Bitmap:
  • Name of the animation used for particle thrusters, up to three can be defined for both standard thrusters and afterburners (6 in total). Afterburner particles require at least 1 existing particle thruster entry.
  • Syntax: String, filename
• $Min Radius:
  • Defines the minimum radius of new particles
  • Syntax: Float, meters
• $Max Radius:
  • Defines the maximum radius of new particles
  • Syntax: Float, meters
• $Min Created:
  • Defines the minimum amount of particles created
  • Syntax: Float
• $Max Created:
  • Defines the maximum amount of particles created
  • Syntax: Float
• $Variance:
  • Value that describes the randomness of particle generation, values close to 0 will cause particles to spew very close to the thrusters normal while values close 1 will cause some particles to be spewed even to opposite direction
  • Syntax: Float

$Stealth:

• Defines: Ship behaves as a stealth-ship: non-targettable, and not on radar.

FS2 Open 3.6.10: This field is deprecated, and mods using 3.6.8 and above should use the "stealth" flag.

$Max Decals:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines: Maximum number of weapon decals on a ship
• Syntax: Integer, maximum number of decals on ship
  • Default: 50 for anything below cruiser size, 100 for anything below superdestroyer/installation size, 300 for anything above destroyer size, 10 for everything else.

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Feature disabled. Parsing retained to maintain compatibility

$Trail:

• These are the origins of the white contrails that appear in the nebula missions. Ship may have multiple trails.

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• +ClearAll
  • Clears all existing trail data from the ship

+Offset:

• The position of the contrail's head
• Syntax: Vector, three floats, x, y and z values respectively, relative to the center point of the model

+Start Width:

• The width of the contrail's head
• Syntax: Float, meters

+End Width:

• The width of the contrail's tail
• Syntax: Float, meters

+Start Alpha:

• The opacity of the contrail's head
• Syntax: Float, value between 0 and 1

+End Alpha:

• The opacity of the contrail's tail
• Syntax: Float, value between 0 and 1

+Max Life:

• How long the contrail remains
• Syntax: Float', seconds

+Spew Time:

• Syntax: Integer

+Bitmap:

• The image to use for the contrail.
• Syntax: String, filename

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

+Faded Out Sections:

• Defines the number of the trail sections from the leading edge that are gradually faded away.

$Thruster:

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines maneuvering thrusters. Ship may have multiple $Thrusters defined.
• +Index:
  • Defines the index number of the manoeuvring thruster defined in this entry
  • Syntax: Integer
• +Used For:
  • Defines the maneuver that triggers the maneuvering thruster
  • List of maneuvers: Bank right, Bank left, Pitch up, Pitch down, Roll right, Roll left, Slide right, Slide left, Slide up, Slide down, Forward, Reverse
  • Syntax: String, String
• +Position:
  • Defines thruster location
  • Syntax: ( Float Float Float ), position from the ships center point, x, y, z axis respectively
• +Normal:
  • Defines the direction where the thruster points to
  • Syntax: ( Float Float Float ), direction of the thrusters normal, x, y, z axis respectively
• +Texture:
  • Defines the graphic that will be used for trail, rendered like beams
  • Syntax: String, filename
• +Radius:
  • Defines the radius of cylinder
  • Syntax: Float, meters
• +Length:
  • Defines the length of thruster trail
  • Syntax: Float, meters
• +StartSnd:
  • Defines the sound played when the thruster is started
  • Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl
• +LoopSnd:
  • Defines the sound played when the thruster is continuously used
  • Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl
• +StopSnd:
  • Defines the sound played when the thruster is shutting down
  • Syntax: Integer or String, name or identification number of the sound as defined in sounds.tbl

$Radar Image 2D:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the bitmap used to represent the ship on the radar screen.
• Syntax: Filename

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• $Radar Color Image 2D:
  • Defines the color bitmap used to represent the ship on the radar screen.
  • Syntax: Filename

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• $Radar Image Size:
  • Defines the size of the bitmap on the radar screen (length of the longer dimension)
  • Syntax: Integer
• $3D Radar Blip Size Multiplier:
  • Defines the multiplier used for blip size on the 3D radar.
  • Syntax: Float

$Glowpoint overrides:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Creates a point that casts light onto ships and objects with the source being a glowpoint defined in the model file.
• Syntax: ( "String:Integer" )
• String refers to name in glowpoints.tbl
• Essentially, [Name_of_glowpoint_override_in_glowpoints.tbl]:[Bank_in_POF]. If there is no override entry then the game will not generate a light. If you have multiple banks that use the same override, use a comma if they are not in order (2,4,7) and use a dash if they are in order (3-5 yields 3, 4, and 5).
  • Example: $Glowpoint overrides: ( "teal_glow_10:1" "red_glow:2,3" "white_glow_10:4" "red_glow_10:5" "green_glow_10:6")

$Ship IFF Colors:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the alternate color for the ship. Affects both the targeting brackets as well as the radar screen.
• +Seen By:
  • Defines the IFF actually viewing the object (most often 'Friendly')
  • Syntax: String, name of an IFF class.
• +When IFF Is:
  • Defines the IFF which the ship has to have for its color to be altered.
  • Syntax: String, name of an IFF class.
• +As Color:
  • Defines the new color of the ship's targeting brackets and radar blip
  • Syntax: Integer list, red, blue and green respectively

$Target Priority Groups:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines into which target priority groups the ship belongs to
• Syntax: String list, names of the targeting groups
• +Override
  • Overrides the ships existing groupings

$EMP Resistance Modifier:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the ships EMP resistance modifier:
• Syntax: Float

$Piercing Damage Draw Limit:

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines the maximum percentage of hitpoints ship has before piercing effects are enabled
• Syntax: Float
  • Example: 10, sets the limit to 10%

$Path Metadata:

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Allows definition of extra metadata
• Syntax: String, name of the path as defined in the ship POF file.
  • Example: $Path Metadata: $Bay01

+departure rvec:

When using this path to depart via fighterbay, the departing ship will rotate to align itself with this rvec (so the right side of the ship is pointing in this direction). Only affects paths used to depart via fighterbay.

+arrive speed multiplier:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Modifies the speed of ships arriving from a fighterbay using this path. See Ai_profiles.tbl#.24bay_arrive_speed_multiplier: for details.
  • Syntax: Float

+depart speed multiplier:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Modifies the speed of ships departing to a fighterbay using this path. See Ai_profiles.tbl#.24bay_depart_speed_multiplier: for details.
  • Syntax: Float

Subsystem:

Main article: Subsystem

Ships.tbl flags

"no_collide"

• Defines ship as non-collideable, ie. everything will go through it

"player_ship"

• Makes it possible for the player to fly the ship

"default_player_ship"

• Makes this ship as a default part of the loadout options in FRED

---

Ship Type

• Flags in this section are used to define the type of the ship
• Use only one ship type flag per table entry

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• New ship types can be defined in objecttypes.tbl

"repair_rearm"

• Alternate name for "support"

"support"

• Defines the ship as repair and rearm vessel and sets AI behaviour accordingly
• Only one such vessel can be defined per species

"cargo"

• Defines ship as a cargo crate and also sets the AI behaviour
• In FS1/FS2 ships that are marked with this flag cannot accept any player orders

"fighter"

• Defines ship as a fighter and also sets the AI behaviour
• In FS1/FS2 only ships flagged as fighters or bombers can accept the full set of player orders

"bomber"

• Defines ship as a bomber and also sets the AI behaviour
• In FS1/FS2 only ships flagged as fighters or bombers can accept the full set of player orders

"transport"

• Defines ship as a transport and also sets the AI behaviour

"freighter"

• Defines ship as a freighter and also sets the AI behaviour

"capital"

• Defines ship as a capital ship and also sets the AI behaviour

"supercap"

• Alternate name for "super cap"

"super cap"

• Defines ship as a super capital ship and also sets the AI behaviour

"drydock"

• Defines ship as a drydock and also sets the AI behaviour

"cruiser"

• Defines ship as a cruiser and also sets the AI behaviour

"navbuoy"

• Defines ship as a navbuoy and also sets the AI behaviour
• In FS1/FS2 ships that are marked with this flag cannot accept any player orders

"sentrygun"

• Alternate name for "sentry gun"

"sentry gun"

• Defines ship as a sentrygun and also sets the AI behaviour
• In FS1/FS2 ships that are marked with this flag cannot accept any player orders

"escapepod"

• Alternate name for "escape pod"

"escape pod"

• Defines ship as a escapepod and also sets the AI behaviour
• In FS1/FS2 ships that are marked with this flag cannot accept any player orders

"corvette"

• Defines ship as a corvette and also sets the AI behaviour

"gas miner"

• Defines ship as a gas miner and also sets the AI behaviour

"awacs"

• Defines ship as a AWACS and also sets the AI behaviour

"knossos"

• Alternate name for the "Knossos device"

"knossos device"

• Defines ship as a Knossos and also sets the AI behaviour
• In FS1/FS2 ships that are marked with this flag cannot accept any player orders

"stealth"

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Defines ship as a stealth-ship: non-targettable, and not on radar.

"no type"

• Does ???

---

"ship copy"

• Defines the ship as a copy of another model

"in tech database"

• Includes ships description to the tech database from the beginning of the campaign

"in tech database multi"

• Includes the ship to multiplayer tech database

"dont collide invisible"

• Defines invisible textures as non-collideable (For example, a hangar entrace)

"big damage"

• Limits the damage made to the ship by non-huge weapons.

"no_fred"

• Ship will not appear in FRED.

"ballistic primaries"

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Enables the ship to use ballistic primaries
• No longer needed, game handles it automatically

"flash"

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Makes a flash when a ship dies

"surface shields"

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Shots that impact the hull are applied to shields, regardless of if the ship has a shield mesh.

"show ship"

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Enable rendering the ship even when the ship is a player ship
• Will result in the player's ship model being rendered, when in cockpit mode

"generate icon"

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Creates a HUD icon from the model itself

"gun convergence"

FS2 Open 3.6.10:

• Enables ship to use the firing points' normals in defining the direction where the weapon fire

"no thruster geometry noise"

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Prevents noise from being added to the thruster effects geometry

"intrinsic no shields"

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Defines that ship has no shields by default, to allow mixing and matching shielded and unshielded craft in loadout

"no primary linking"

FS2 Open, 3.6.12:

• Bypasses linked primaries while cycling. Does not block SEXPs/scripts that might be able to lock them, only the act of cycling for players and determing whether to link or not for AI.

"no pain flash"

FS2 Open, 3.6.14:

• Prevents pain flash from being shown when ship is hit

"dynamic primary linking"

FS2 Open, 3.7:

• Allows this ship use the primary firepoint cycling code. With a key bind added in 3.6.13, you can toggle between various factorizations of primary firepoint groupings on a per-primary bank basis. So a 4-firepoint bank could cycle through all four firepoints firing together (1x4), each firepoint firing individually (4x1, all 4 firing over the timespan of the bank cooldown, so no change in damage over time, or DPS, occurs from retail behavior), or firing in pairs (2x2).

"no ets"

FS2 Open, 3.7: Sets ship class to have no ETS

"no lighting"

FS2 Open, 3.6.14: Ship will not receive lighting calculations

"auto spread shields"

FS2 Open, 3.7.2: Causes the ship's shield mesh (if any) to be ignored and a shield of a given thickness to be automatically projected around the ship's hull. Weapons will impact the ship's shields at a distance equal to the shield thickness defined in #.2BAuto_Spread:, but not before the weapon itself has travelled at least a distance equal to that. Note that impact effects normally projected onto the shield mesh will not work.

"model point shields"

FS2 Open, 3.7.2: Instead of the standard 4 shield quadrants, the ship uses an arbitrary number of shield sections which must have been defined in the model file, see Model Point Shields. If used on a player ship, you must also define #.24Model_Point_Shield_Controls: to allow the shield augmentation controls to be used.

Player Ship Precedence

• Syntax: ( "String" "String")

Example

$Player Ship Precedence: (
     "GTF Ulysses"
     "GTF Hercules"
     "GTB Medusa"
     "GTB Ursa"   )

Sample

#Default Player Ship

$Name:                       GTF Ulysses

#End


#Engine Wash Info

$Name:                       Default
$Angle:                      10.0
$Radius Mult:                1.2
$Length:                     400
$Intensity:                  1.0

#End


#Ship Classes
$Name:                       GTF Ulysses
$Short name:                 TFight
$Species:                    Terran
   +Type:                       XSTR("Space Superiority", -1)
   +Maneuverability:            XSTR("Excellent", -1)
   +Armor:                      XSTR("Light", -1
   +Manufacturer:               XSTR("Triton / Mekhu", -1)
   +Description:                XSTR( " ", -1)
   $end_multi_text
   +Tech Description:           XSTR("Descriptive text", -1)
   $end_multi_text
   +Length:                     16 m
   +Gun Mounts:                 4
   +Missile Banks:              1
$POF File:                   fighter01.pof
$Detail Distance:            (0, 80, 300, 900)
$ND:                         42 42 244
$Show Damage:                YES
$Density:                    1
$Damp:                       0.1
$Rotdamp:                    0.35
$Max Velocity:               0.0, 0.0, 70.0
$Rotation Time:              3.0, 2.6, 5.0
$Rear Velocity:              0.0
$Forward Accel:              2.0
$Forward Decel:              1.5
$Slide Accel:                0.0
$Slide Decel:                0.0
$Expl Inner Rad:             25.0
$Expl Outer Rad:             55.0
$Expl Damage:                15.0
$Expl Blast:                 1000.0
$Expl Propagates:            NO
$Shockwave Speed:            0.0
$Allowed PBanks:             ( "Subach HL-7" "Prometheus R")
$Allowed Dogfight PBanks:    ( "Subach HL-D" "Prometheus D" )
$Default PBanks:             ( "Subach HL-7" "Prometheus R" )
$Allowed SBanks:             ( "Rockeye" "Tempest" )
$Allowed Dogfight SBanks:    ( "Tempest D"  "Hornet D" )
$Default SBanks:             ( "Harpoon" )
$SBank Capacity:             ( 40 )
$Shields:                    380
$Shield Color:               100 100 255
$Power Output:               2.0
$Max Oclk Speed:             94.0
$Max Weapon Eng:             80.0
$Hitpoints:                  180
$Flags:                      (  "player_ship"
                                "default_player_ship"
                                "fighter"
                                "in tech database")
$AI Class:                   Captain
$Afterburner:                YES
   +Aburn Max Vel:              0.0, 0.0, 150.0
   +Aburn For accel:            0.7
   +Aburn Fuel:                 300.0
   +Aburn Burn Rate:            50.0
   +Aburn Rec Rate:             25.0
$Countermeasures:            25
$Scan Time:                  2000
$EngineSnd:                  128
$Closeup_Pos:                0.0, 0.0, -22
$Closeup_Zoom:               0.5
$Shield_Icon:                shield-f01
$Ship_Icon:                  iconfighter01
$Ship_Anim:                  ssfighter01
$Ship_Overhead:              loadfighter01
$Score:                      8
$Trail:
   +Offset:                     -7.75 -2.8 0.75
   +Start Width:                0.25
   +End Width:                  0.05
   +Start Alpha:                1.0
   +End Alpha:                  0.0
   +Max Life:                   1.0
   +Spew Time:                  60
   +Bitmap:                     Contrail01
$Trail:
   +Offset:                     7.75 -2.8 0.75
   +Start Width:                0.25
   +End Width:                  0.05
   +Start Alpha:                1.0
   +End Alpha:                  0.0
   +Max Life:                   1.0
   +Spew Time:                  60
   +Bitmap:                     Contrail01
$Subsystem:    communication,   10, 0
$Subsystem:    navigation,      10, 0
$Subsystem:    weapons,         20, 0
$Subsystem:    sensors,         10, 0
$Subsystem:    engines,         35, 0

#End

$Player Ship Precedence: (
      "GTF Ulysses")