Endless Moons by Tychonoir
Our Amplitude community has many passionate individuals. Some people pour their heart and soul into a long role-play session based on the Endless universe on the forums or with their local group. Others create board and card games set in the Endless universe. We have seen mods, fan art, and even music! We love it.
This month, we are returning to space to take a closer look at some of the smaller planetoids of the Endless galaxy: moons. Some of you might remember the temples of the Endless you could discover on moons in Endless Space 1. These mystical places would give you some insight into the society of the Endless, while also granting some useful gameplay bonuses.
Tychonoir’s Endless Moons mod transplants this idea into Endless Space 2 and expands on it. In addition to over a dozen unique temples you can discover as you explore the moons of the galaxy, the mod also introduces four Celestial Orbs, artificial moons constructed by the Endless. Not only can these temples be exploited for bonuses in their system, but they can also be restored and even improved!
Some temples and Celestial Orbs with their extensive lore. (Click to open full size.)
Even if the moons in your empire do not hide any Endless secrets, lunar anomalies in the Endless Moons mod offer varied effects and opportunities. Where a small moon may only offer you more space for your population at first, a volcanic moon will be a great boon to the system’s production. All of these moons can be developed to amplify their effects, or be further exploited through a number of new Star System Improvements (including unique improvements for some factions) or Planetary Specializations.
Different types of moon at different stages of development. (Click to open full size.)
I had a great time playing with the Endless Moons mod, as the new content gives plenty of reason to be excited about discovering moons. The different lunar anomalies feel distinct with their varied effects, while their development and the new moon-related Star System Improvements make them all worth grabbing. On top of that, there’s always that slim chance the unassuming moon around your new colony hides a powerful relic you can reactivate, unlocking the secrets of the Endless. A great deal of lore for these Temples and some smaller changes to the lunar anomalies round out the experience.
Download the mod from the Steam Workshop and give it a try, or read on to learn more about the man behind the mod.
Interview with Tychonoir
Please, introduce yourself to our community.
Hello, I'm Tychonoir. I currently live in Las Vegas. And as hobby I design games, both table-top and for computer. I mainly work with Unity and C#, and perhaps one day I can do it full-time professionally.
So, when did you join our community? Which of our games have you played, and which is your favorite?
If you mean when I started playing, then that would be during Endless Space 1. If you mean participation on the forums and such, then during development of Endless Space 2 in 2015.
So, I've played ES1, ES2, and Endless Legend. My favorite is ES2, with EL a very close second. I was particularly impressed with how it re-imagined what the 4X genre could look like.
Er, that last part refers to EL, if that wasn't clear.
If you started with ES1, I can take a guess what inspired you to your mod. When did you start working on Endless Moons, and what where your main inspirations?
Around the beginning of 2018.
Moons in ES2 felt a bit underwhelming, especially compared to ES1. I thought it would be nice for them to give more interesting bonuses, as well as add another aspect of discovery and exploration. This lead to the addition of different types of moons, and temples developed from that as I became more familiar with what I could do.
Inspiration came from the temples in ES1, naturally, as well as the ample lore of both games.
As a side note, my goal was to flesh them out a bit, but without substantially changing the overall gameplay. Though as I added more features, that last part might be in question a bit. Hopefully I haven't strayed too far!
I've only played half a game with your mod so far, but I don't think you strayed too far. Did you have any modding experience prior to this project?
That's good to hear!
Well, yes and no. In general, I like to tinker with stuff to see how it works. And I've made a number of mods/tweaks to games over the years for personal use. But Endless Moons is the first mod I've released publicly.
What was the biggest obstacle you faced working on this mod?
There were two main obstacles:
The first is technical. Dealing with stealth changes to the internal game architecture via updates, and the lack of many aspects of code documentation. However, support from the modding forum was absolutely invaluable in this regard. Shout out to MonAmiral, for without his support there the project could not have been completed.
The second is in direction. It can be difficult to design in a vacuum without input from others. Even after releases, feedback was minimal, so I'm grateful that the mod seems to have been received well.
I think it adds an element many ES1 players have been missing, myself included. What are you most proud of with this mod?
That all the parts seemed to fit together nicely in the end. How the added gameplay unfolds to give you new and interesting directions to develop, particularly in the early and mid game. Temples can add fun and unexpected things which can change your plans and open up new strategies without feeling game-breaking.
Do you have any particular plans for the future development of this mod?
Well, there will probably be some balance tweaks here and there. I'd like for it to continue to remain current as future DLCs are released. This means remaining compatible, but also to add relevant tweaks and temples as new gameplay mechanics are introduced.
Sounds like a reasonable goal. Do you have any other cool projects you'd like to tell us about? Or perhaps games you would recommend others try?
I have some smaller mods for ES2 in development. These address specific things while trying to remain compatible with other mods. I'm taking a look at addressing development plans and luxury balance, making anomalies more significant and placement more logical, fleet command point progression, planet specialization re-balance. In many cases, some of these things have appeared in other mods, but my goal is to be able to provide these as individual tweaks without overhauling the entire game.
When I'm not spending far too much time on ES2, I'm spending far too much time with Factorio, Kerbal Space Program, and Minecraft.
Thank you very much for taking the time for this interview.
Thank you!
