Mods in 2018?

[Corsair831]

Hello, just considering getting in to X3: Albion Prelude again in July 2018; I was wondering if some kind soul would be able to point me in the direction of the best mods for the game please? I've heard of some (XRM, X3LU), but I have literally no idea what any of them do, which is the best etc etc.

What i'm looking for is something which makes it bigger, better, etc, whilst keeping the balance alive (or even improving the balance etc), but all suggestions are welcome, the more the merrier!

Thanks :)

[DrSuperEvil]

If you want mods then Licube's Universe and X Remake are the most commonly used.

LU has a wiki: http://litcube.xtimelines.net/wiki/index.php/Features

[SoulSun]

Each mod has their own charm. XRM has the vanilla feel to it and LU has the completly different feel to it.

Each are best in what they offer. XRM a "Rebalance Mod" is what it is. A rebalance of the vanilla game.

LU, Litcube's Universe is a complete overhaul. (Not to be bias, the optimization of LU is one the best feature it has to offer).

You can look in their respective forums in the modding section of the Egosoft forums to find more details.

To give you my opinion: LU offers what I lacked in the base vanilla game, fleets. You can probably do it in XRM with ADS. End game LU is probably the best time I had so far in the X series so far.

[Fedora01]

Originally posted by zanosg:

LU has no story line. You will get to the point where there is simply nothing to do and you will get there quick. Everything will be automated for you also.

There may not be a story, but there are two endgoals: destroy the opposing corporation and push the OCV back, both easier said than done.
Personally, I love LU as a whole, but the one sticking point that caused me to quit was the, in my opinion, lack of real empire logistics. Your options to supporting your empire in LU are limited to using Saturn Hubs (something I don't really care for) due to the major lack of real logistical options.

[Corsair831]

Thanks a lot guys. So from what I can tell, XRM is more like vanilla but they're expanded bits here and there and tweaked the balance, but for LU it's a complete overhaul where they've changed absolutely everything?

With that in mind, why would someone pick XRM over LU? Is LU not the more complete product?

Thanks again :)

[Fedora01]

Originally posted by Corsair831:

Thanks a lot guys. So from what I can tell, XRM is more like vanilla but they're expanded bits here and there and tweaked the balance, but for LU it's a complete overhaul where they've changed absolutely everything?

With that in mind, why would someone pick XRM over LU? Is LU not the more complete product?

Thanks again :)

LU is a complete overhaul of the game, everyting from fighting, to trading, to logistics, to mining, most everything is in some way changed from vanilla.
XRM focuses more on improving the core gameplay rather than changing it.

[Corsair831]

Thanks mate :)

Are there any advantages to simply playing Vanilla or are the mods simply superior?

[Fedora01]

Originally posted by Corsair831:

Thanks mate :)

Are there any advantages to simply playing Vanilla or are the mods simply superior?

Depends on what you like, per example: I like TC over AP and I've generally prefered vanilla over modded. To each there own

[Thunderbutt]

I think it is worth mentioning to new players that there is a wide spectrum of mods/scripts that change the game from vanilla to modified, but not all change balance, mechanics or dynamics.
So many improve interface, mechanics, AI, etc., small changes that can definitely make a change for the better.

[Dreamer]

Mayhem 2.5.0 launched today. Its an "expansion" for Litcube's, and its great.

https://www.moddb.com/mods/mayhem/downloads/mayhem-2-5-0

[Corsair831]

Aaah thanks for all the great responses, it sounds like XRM might be a little bit more what i'm looking for; a bit simpler, a bit more of a Vanilla expansion?

Thanks a lot Dreamer, would you be able to give me a really quick explanation of that please? I really don't understand the moddb page you linked (still not 100% sure what Litcube's is, hah), thanks a lot

[Kreon91 [GER]]

Originally posted by Corsair831:

Aaah thanks for all the great responses, it sounds like XRM might be a little bit more what i'm looking for; a bit simpler, a bit more of a Vanilla expansion?

Yes absolutely. XRM has the most added content and makes very little changes to the vanilla gameplay. From XRM, LU and Mayhem the term vanilla expansion only really fits for XRM. I've played and enjoyed all three mods.

LU basically keeps vanilla gameplay too, but has no story missions. It fixes a ton of bugs and the engine runs smoother than vanilla. You have roughly the same freedom like in XRM, meaning that you can also play as a single pilot doing missions. There are 2 optional endboss factions that you can only beat by building a huge shipyard empire. So you have to grow big at some point or you could loose the game, albeit this takes a very long time. LU also introduces new ways and tools to handle a big economy and fleets.

Mayhem totally rebalances the game and let's you play as a faction leader. The other factions are waging dynamic wars and you can take part and conquer sectors too. You have to build an economy from the start of the game to be able to survive and enemies will ocasionally invade your territory. There is a main story and many parts of the gameworld are randomized.
Mayhem changes gameplay the most and is considerably more difficult than LU or XRM. There is a modest time pressure and there is a reasonable chance to loose the game. You also have to make several strategic choices with long term effects and can screw up your game.

Mayhem gives you less freedom because you can't really play small (as a single pilot). For me it's the definite way to play X3 and i can't go back to LU but i wouldn't advice anyone to play it before trying out LU.
So if you want to enjoy the story plots or keep it closest to vanilla - play XRM. If you're mostly interested in the sandbox and don't care about the story missions i recommend LU for it's technical superiority. When you've "beaten" the endbosses in LU and want more X3. Then it's the time for Mayhem.

[balmora pete]

How is the balance of things in this Litcube thing? A common issue that I find when it comes to mods is balance, or lack thereof.

Do pirates and the Yaki get any attention in it?

[Jim-Bo]

I've also considered reinstalling this game as it's been one of my favorites. I know there was a mod to help with the plotting of stations. Anyone have a reccomendation for a mod that helps with anchoring stations and getting them connected?

[Fedora01]

Originally posted by Jim-Bo:

I've also considered reinstalling this game as it's been one of my favorites. I know there was a mod to help with the plotting of stations. Anyone have a reccomendation for a mod that helps with anchoring stations and getting them connected?

I believe there's already something in the bonus pack for exactly that