Announcing Project Ironfist, new HoMM II mod

[Darmani]

Dancing peasants and stability improvements: Ironfist 1.2.1 released

Over at Ironfist HQ, we’ve been working hard on a fairly….explosive….new creature. Still, we thought we’d share an early treat with you by releasing a new version of Ironfist!

We’ve done various minor stability tweaks, fixed the infamous “Dancing Peasants” bug fixed a minor bug in Sorrow’s End, and made some additional improvements to The Last Stand, (courtesy of one of our fans, “The Unknown Hero”). All this adds up to one solid Ironfist 1.2.1 release. Enjoy!

[Darmani]

Fear it: The Cyber Behemoth

You’ve waited….and now it’s here.

The Cyborgs have been busy upgrading the various creatures they find in order to help defeat the evil warlocks. They captured the most powerful creatures they could control, and built them into their ultimate weapon.

The Cyber Behemoths are augmented giants, subdued by magical means, and fitted with cranial implants. Their rocket boots give them a fearsome stomp, but their true power lies in the plasma cannon on the back. Twice per battle, they can fire an explosive charge, burning all enemies in a large radius.

Do you want to build awesome creatures like this one? The Ironfist team is on the prowl for new blood, and is actively hunting for rockstar programmers. Is this you? E-mail homm2ironfist@gmail.com and find out.cb9_fight1

[Panda Tar]

Cool

[Pol]

This look good Darmani!

How you did the animation, what program you used?

[Darmani]

You'll have to ask the artist, Denis. I can tell you he used Photoshop.

[cjlee]

OK, I didn't want to say anything at first, but it seems no one asked.

But what are the tier levels of these creatures?

Whenever you intro new things you have to be very concerned about the balance. I personally think the Cyber Behemoths should be at least level 5. They seem overpowered enough to be level 6/ top tier.

[Darmani]

We are of course playtesting and refining our design continually. We are quite prepared to tweak or even throw away a creature if we decide doing so would be best for the game.

Anyway, as for the Cyber Behemoth: They are Level 6, very expensive, and grow slowly.

[Darmani]

Subdued and controlled by magical means, the Cyber Behemoths are cyclopes that have been augmented with cranial implants and cybernetic attachments. With their plasma cannon on their back and their jump powered by rocket boots, the Cyber Behemoths form the ultimate menace in the Cyborg army.

You have waited. And you have been rewarded. For today, we release our new version of Ironfist, and with it, the fearsome Cyber Behemoth. Their powerful 5×5 explosive attack can be the end of many an opponent…but be careful, for you only have two shots.

Play it in our new map “Behemoth Path,” and see how one Cyber Behemoth, commanded by a lone knight with some strategic maneuvering, can take on overwhelming armies, and reclaim your family heirloom from the dragon hoard.

Behold, Ironfist 1.3.0. Download it now.



Music

HoMM II was the first game ever to feature operatic vocals, and features an excellent score by famed video game composer Paul Romero. For many years, versions of HoMM II such as the GOG.com version could only play the choppy MIDI versions. Ironfist had been similar, until now. We are pleased to announce that Ironfist now has full support for CD music, and will work out of the box with CD music when installed on top of the GOG.com version.

Oh, and did I mention there will be more music? We’ve recruited a very talented composer, and look forward to releasing some of his work.


For the Mapmakers

We’ve made some improvements to the Ironfist map editor, of which the most notable is the undo button. In the original Heroes II editor, you can only undo one step; now, in the Ironfist editor, you can undo many. Making a mistake is now much less of a big deal.

We’ve also implemented a major overhaul of the scripting system. Adding your own abilities and quests is easier than ever thanks to new features such as callbacks, modules, and deep binding. Details of the overhaul are given here, and examples are given in the introduction to scripting.

Team Openings

Ironfist is recruiting a new programmer. Do you want to turn your C++ skills into new features for one of the best PC strategy games ever? This role may be for you.

We are also looking for players willing to volunteer as testers for our new maps.

Contact homm2ironfist@gmail.com if interested in either position.

And More

From a significantly improved loading time and stability improvements, to lots of new scripting functions to use in your maps, we’ve made quite a few smaller changes to Ironfist. See the full list in the release notes.

Things to Come

Though things have been quiet on the outside here at Ironfist HQ, on the inside, we’ve been busier than ever. New maps, creatures, and features are arriving like clockwork as the new Cyborg faction comes to fruition. Although this release just contains the first of the new Cyborg creatures, we have finished the artwork for all 6 of them, and are rapidly finishing the coding and sounds for the last few. There is more to come.



Happy gaming,

Jimmy “Darmani” Koppel

Executive Producer, Project Ironfist

[Darmani]

Shocking! The Cyber Kobold Spearman



In their short time on Enroth , the Cyborgs have been busy turning the local creatures into an army. You’ve seen the Behemoth; now meet the Kobold.

Although individually weak, kobolds make an attractive addition to any army because of their loyalty and sheer speed of breeding. The Cyber Kobolds have been enhanced, with half of their cranium changed to metal and armor fused to their chest. Their strength has been enhanced, and tests show that, with a thrust of their spear, they can easily pierce a plate of steel. Within the hilt of their spear lies an energy source, which gives their spear a lightning that can strike two enemies in a row.

The Cyber Kobold Spearman. Coming soon to a Cyborg army near you!

[Panda Tar]

[Pol]

Yes, it's nice, isn't it? H2 is the only game when the code was almost completely reverse engineered. Not H3 or H4 but H2. This is just a beauty.

Now, it's strange that Ironfist mod have some faction idea resemblance with Umbramancer mod, they have some ..similarity.

[Roticet]

Where can this be downloaded? Or is the mod still being built?

[Pol]

Mod is still being actively developed. Look here:

http://ironfi.st/download/
http://heroes2.forumactif.com/

[Roticet]

Man Pol, you are amazing. Thanks for the help again. First WOG and now this, with such quick and precise answers. Again, I will check it out when I get home from work. Seriously, thanks.

[evanisdead]

We have the ability to modify the game's source code

I have a question! I remember reading that the source code for Heroes I/II was lost, how'd you get access to it? Is it the source code you're modifying, or just the binary data?

[Pol]

We have the ability to modify the game's source code

I have a question! I remember reading that the source code for Heroes I/II was lost, how'd you get access to it? Is it the source code you're modifying, or just the binary data?

>>

I've been working on this for a long time. It took a year to sufficiently reverse engineer the game, and months more to develop the tools needed to make major modifications easily. But now the groundwork is done, and the game development is in full swing.

The source code for Heroes II is lost, unlike for Heroes III. And they used reverse engeneering to examine the program.

[evanisdead]

The source code for Heroes II is lost, unlike for Heroes III. And they used reverse engeneering to examine the program.

Ohh, very interesting! It sure requires a lot of skills to do that, I'm impressed. Will the source code every be made public?

Another quick question: Where can I find the palette used in HoMM II? I'd love to make my own art in HoMM II's style!

[Pol]

The source code for Heroes II is lost, unlike for Heroes III. And they used reverse engeneering to examine the program.

Ohh, very interesting! It sure requires a lot of skills to do that, I'm impressed. Will the source code every be made public?

Another quick question: Where can I find the palette used in HoMM II? I'd love to make my own art in HoMM II's style!

I would recommend to ask here.

[evanisdead]

The source code for Heroes II is lost, unlike for Heroes III. And they used reverse engeneering to examine the program.

Ohh, very interesting! It sure requires a lot of skills to do that, I'm impressed. Will the source code every be made public?

Another quick question: Where can I find the palette used in HoMM II? I'd love to make my own art in HoMM II's style!

I would recommend to ask here.

Thanks, will do!

[Darmani]

It’s been quiet in Enroth since the war. But there have been rumors something is afoot. Strange castles have been popping up. Some say that it’s the doing of ghosts come to revive the Ancient ruins lying around. Some say they’ve been sent by the gods to combat evil. Peasants report sightings of a metal man — some kind of visitor, from another world, or another time.

One thing is agreed: the few who have gazed upon these castles speak of them as a marvel, of a harmony between iron and nature, and long to return.

Today, the world takes its first gaze upon this marvel: The Ironfist Team is pleased to announce the completion of the Cyborg Castle.

Stay tuned.