Cougar ST OXP

ship name::Cougar ST
Size (W×H×L)	51 x 12 x 63
Cargo capacity	ship cargo capacity::0 - 10 TC
Cargo bay extension	ship cargo extension::NA
Maximum speed	ship speed::0.425 LM
Manoeuvrability	Roll: 4.0 Pitch: 2.0
Energy banks	ship energy banks::5
Energy recharge rate	good (5)
Gun mounts	Three forward, one aft
Missile slots	ship missile slots::2
Shield boosters available	ship supports shield booster::Yes
Military shields available	ship supports mil shields::Yes
Hyperspace capable	ship can hyperspace::Yes
OXP or standard	{{#set:ship is standard=OXP}}OXP
Available to player	ship is player flyable::No
Base price	ship base price::NA

Overview

CaptSolo introduces to Oolite the very rare stealth ship that appeared in some versions of 8-bit Elite. It is quite agile and very fast. It is a bounty hunter and, if you happen to be scanning the stars and see it, you would be well advised not to shoot first and ask questions later. Here is an excerpt from a long ago Elite combateer who recorded his adventures:

"I was just minding my own business in some star system located in the upper part of chart 5. I do recall it was a poor agricultural, corporate state, as that is where I conducted my Thargoid hunting operations. I would jump away from the planet until I encountered them. Suddenly my ship mass locked but the scanner was clear, so I began a visual scan for the cause. After awhile I saw it! It was just a speck in space and I was mighty curious about it. Who dare be out this far and bother me? I flew toward it, aimed and fired. All of a sudden this thing comes alive, flying fast and as agile as a snake. The ship never did show on the scanner but I could see it plain as day. Her wings swept forward from the main fuselage. She sure was a beauty, and I believe to this day it would not have harmed me if I had not fired upon it first."

There is very little additional information. Is this ship connected with some secret organization? Or is she property of a wealthy hermit who, after tiring of pirates plundering his minerals, fled away only to return mysteriously with this strange craft on some private mission? There is a rumor going around that this ship was spotted but that the commander must have gone rogue. However, since this sighting came from a dubious source in some far flung anarchy, it is impossible to verify.

Difficulty Rating

1-5

Not recommended for Jamesons who have been tagged by GalCop or who frequent anarchies. Commanders who are habitually law abiding may never see the "Stealthy" Cougar. This applies also for those sneaky few who are never caught pirating. However, the "Rogue" Cougar, if it exists, is a danger to all but the most experienced commanders.

Annoyances

With Target Autolock & BGS OXP's, the players ship will acquire a temporary lock follwed by a sound when it is lost. This sound will be repeated every time the Stealthy Cougar strikes. This can be quite annoying but since encounters are so rare it should not be that bad.

Credits

Model modified from original, SimonB's Neolite Companion OXP for the Cat.
Paw decal borrowed from SimonB's Cat diffuse texture.
Main hull textures, under-wing subent gun models and texturing, and Cougar AI by the author.

Scripts

Spawn ship script by another_commander.
Cougar Ship Script by Commander McLane, originally coded for Smivs' Contractor ZZ1.

Play Testers

El Viejo and the author

Requirements

Tested with Oolite 1.76.1, but should work with versions 1.74 and onward. No dependencies.

Installation

After unzipping, move or copy the folder, "Cougar_ST.oxp" into your AddOns folder. Where that resides depends on the location of your Oolite installation.

License

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License version 3.0.