VB6 Aurora:SpaceMaster Mode

SpaceMaster Mode (or SM Mode for short) offer access to many world-building functions within the game itself, and has access to detailed information for each race. With SpaceMaster mode activated, you can give yourself free stuff, take it away, alter planets, create and delete star systems, teleport ships, manipulate your officers, and many other tasks.

This is not cheating, unless you want it to be. Aurora is a free form game that really depends on the player to give it shape. Spacemaster gives you the tools to do so. The name comes from the "Dungeon Master" of traditional role-playing games. The DM was responsible for shaping the adventure and had both the power and responsibility to alter things for the sake of the game experience. SMs don't have quite that much power, but they come close!

Activation

SM mode can be activated (or deactivated), by selecting 'Spacemaster on' Ctrl+S (or 'Spacemaster off' Ctrl+O) from the main menu bar, 'SpaceMaster' dropdown menu. It will ask you for the SM Password. The password for SM mode is always blank, unless you set one yourself during game creation.

Once active, "(SM)" would appear the 'main menu bar' title, and you'll gain access to additional functions. This page explains what things SM mode adds and their effects.

SpaceMaster functions

Economics

In the Population and Production screen you have All Research and SM Mods down at the bottom on all tabs. All Research gives all the research to the current default race that costs less than X value. X is set when you push the button. SM Mods allows the SM to directly modify all the details of a population or colony. Want free infrastructure, construction factories of population just to name a few? Add them here. It goes to the currently selected colony. Remember to save planets' edited states before switching, as Aurora doesn't remember the edited state after you switch.

• Economics>Industry tab has SM Add. Basically just creates whatever you entered in the create industrial project entries instantly from thin air. Like the create button, but instant and costs nothing.

• Economics>Shipyard tab has SM SY Mod. It lets you directly modify the details of the currently selected shipyard. Size, number of slipways, and whether it's naval or commercial.

• Economics>Research tab has "Instant" and "Instant RST". Instant gives the race the highlighted technology instantly. Instant RST gives the race all its designed (but unresearched) systems instantly.

• Economics>Environment tab has SM Set Atm. After setting the desired value for a gas like you were doing normal terraforming just hit this button to change the ATM instantly to the value you set.

• Economics>GU Training tab has Add Units. It creates a number of ground units for free. You must have a Ground Force Training Facilities to access this tab first, however, so you must SM add a GFTF first. Afterwards, you can remove it.

Class Design

In the Class Design screen you have the unlock button. As long as a class has been built the class becomes locked. The game uses the values here to determine what a ship has all the time, not just when the ship is first built. So if you change an existing class all ships of that class would 'magically' obtain the new parts for free. Unlock just allows you to edit a current design directly. Good for if you simply make a stupid little mistake that no sensible designer would miss, and already have a few ships out with the flaw. Like missing engines or no reactor on a laser ship. It can also theoretically be used to transform a tiny little scout ship into a 30000 ton behemoth for free. 'SM Mode' is just a convenient button to put you into SM mode without minimizing the screen.

Warning: It's easy to screw up a class design and introduce errors that do not become apparent immediately. Better back up your database before doing so.

Ships

• The Ships screen has Repair All and SM Refuel. Repair All repairs all damage on the selected ship without cost. SM Refuel refuels the selected ship's fuel tank.

System View

The system view screen is the screen that shows all the information on any body in any system you want. It is normally defaulted to the system you are currently in. All the SM buttons are down in the lower right.

• Create Empire: Creates a player race or NPR on the selected planet. Currently the planet needs to have an atmosphere. Oxygen is needed, however Methane may also work. If you try to use methane for the atmosphere, you will get a window asking for conformation. The screen that comes up that actually relates to creating the empire is very similar to some of the start game options.

• Create system: Creates a randomly generated system, just like if a ship went through a jump point. You would probably have to use this a few times before you find a planet with parameters you are looking for.

• Create Nebula: Works exactly like create system, except it forces the system to be a nebula type.

• HW Minerals: Can be used to guarantee all minerals with decent accessibility on the selected planet, similar to when you start a new game on Earth. Good to use right before creating an empire.

• All Minerals: Runs the random generation for minerals on all bodies in the system again replacing what was on the bodies before.

• Specify Minerals: Lets you manually place minerals and accessibility on the selected planet. Currently (v5.20) however, there is a bug that results in all areas being blank. However, you can still change minerals; it just doesn't display the current status of the planet.

• JP survey: Automatically surveys all gravity survey points in the system for the current default race.

• All SB survey: Just like JP survey, only for geo surveys of all bodies in the system.

• Star SB survey: Just like the above, only effecting the bodies orbiting the currently selected star.

• Body Survey: Instantly does a geological survey for the current default race of the currently selected body.

• No JP survey: Forces the currently selected default race to have the current system's survey points set to unsurveyed. This does not effect jump point knowledge itself.

• No SB Survey: Forces the currently selected default race to lose knowledge of all minerals in all bodies in the system.

• Update Atmos: Seems to just refresh the screen.

• Redo Comets: Runs the comet generation routine over again, removing existing comets, and forces there to be at least 1 comet generated.

• Random Ruin: Adds a random Precursor site to the selected system body. If added to an already surveyed body, you will have to survey it again to discover the ruins. Does not create any Precursor ships.

Task Groups

• If in SM mode, you may teleport the selected Task Group to any body/waypoint in any system known by the current race. It may be found in the top right of the "History / Officers / Misc" section.

• In the same section as above(History / Officers / Misc) at the bottom left, you may check on or off an option named "Select Real Star Destination for Unexplored" which allows you to select the destination star of a Task Group if it explores an unlinked Jump Point in a Real Stars game.

View race

• SM mode View Race Details window makes the race's environmental tolerances and other details editable. Works well with the economics>environment SM mode to customize a race. Remember that if you drastically change a race's tolerances you may need to SM terraform your homeworld at the environment tab of economics to keep it habitable.

Intelligence/Diplomacy

• Intelligence/Diplomacy gives you communicate and Change DR. Communicate just lets your race know the target race's language, which makes it easier to spy, helps diplomacy, and get intel from prisoners. Change DR Changes your race's view of the target race instantly. The values for various things are given in the tooltip. Change DR only effects your race's view of them. It doesn't effect their view of you.

Create Research Project

• With SM mode on, hit the "Instant" button to give the custom tech you just created to your race immediately without having to research it.

Shipping Line Information

• Add Line creates a new Shipping Line with 500 credits and no ships.

Notes

• Original post credits to Greiger from Bay12