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Version 1d adds one new map to the pack, and it is the largest and most elaborately made one so far. Download TA Zero Map Pack 1d here, and visit the official discussion thread. Here is a little Christmas present for you! Version Alpha 4d of Total Annihilation Zero! Unlike the previous releases, Alpha 4d does not expand the game with new units, but rather focuses on finalizing the current content and fixing old mistakes. Most notably, this includes a complete overhaul of all weapon sound effects, new water and lava splash animations, reworking parts of oldest unit models, and over 200 balance adjustments. The main theme of these balance changes is trying to slightly shift focus away from the heaviest units of each tier, and allowing players to field tier 2 light units a little bit faster, without changing the overall cost of getting a single tier 2 heavy hitter by much. Another sweeping change then is that weapon ranges of most units have been reduced, primarily to fit them within sight ranges.
In addition to the usual mod content, ddraw fix version 10 (made by ajh2794) is included in the Alpha 4d download in a separate folder. While it is still work-in-progress, it should result in increased frame rates for all users, and should allow people who have previously needed to use the hotfix to play without any issues. The old hotfix is still included as a backup option. Download TA Zero Alpha 4d here, and visit the official discussion thread.
New version of Total Annihilation Zero Map Pack is finally here! Long time in the making, Version 1c adds several new maps to the pack, remakes two of the oldest maps, and overhauls the rest. These maps make use of a wide variety of new map features, including lava eruptions and other animated pieces, and exotic crystal formations that can be reclaimed several times. Several mistakes on the oldest maps have been fixed, and some purely visual map features have been adjusted so that wreckage will not magically disappear when units are destroyed on top of them.
Download TA Zero Map Pack 1c here, and visit the official discussion thread.
Version Alpha 4c of Total Annihilation Zero is now here with an assortment of new units, improvements, adjustments, and bug fixes! Alpha 4c adds several fundamental units to the game that had been missing so far. Each faction can now build their own dedicated transport aircraft specifically set up to be used for aggressive drops to the enemy flanks. While construction aircraft have been able to do this, they are too costly and slow to build in large numbers and not properly set up for the task anyway. In addition, GoK finally has access to their construction submarine and floating shield nodes, while Arm and Core can each build their own floating perimeter defences.
Alpha 4c carries on with the weapon effect overhaul by reworking all weapon projectile models. Not only do these new models have improved appearance, they also fix a variety of glitches related to some previously undocumented quirks of TA engine. Speaking of the engine, there are a couple improvements to it once again. Target locking bug has been fixed, and all unguided weapons should now correctly aim at the sweetspot locations of targeted enemy units. Download TA Zero Alpha 4c here, and visit the official discussion thread. The hotfix, for those who need it, is included within TA Zero Alpha 4c patch archive in a separate folder. The hotfix for Alpha 4 should not be used with Alpha 4c.
After a long time of slow development and silently releasing test builds on the forums, version Alpha 4b of Total Annihilation Zero is finally here! During this time the changelog has grown to a gigantic size. Taking a close look at the version history and unit guides of Arm, Core, and GoK is now truly recommended. On top of several years worth of balancing adjustments and new units for all factions, Alpha 4b also delivers a complete overhaul of all unit scripts and weapon firing animations. Complex units should no longer run risk of dropping any parts of their script when moving, firing, and taking hits all at the same time, commanders and field engineers now handle much better in combat situations, and there is a wide variety of other improvements to scripts and animations all around. Sparks fly and fireballs animate smoothly when cannons fire, missile launchers have jets of flame shooting out from the rear, plasma cannons have crackling halos when they fire, railguns shoot out shockwaves, energy weapons emit pulses and leave trails of sparks, and distort cannons cause brief vortexes when hurling away their otherworldly projectiles. Laying down suppressive fire on the enemy forces has never been as satisfying!
Alpha 4b also brings some fixes and improvements to the venerable TA engine. Several old issues, such as reclaim sound looping and self repair of units that are under construction, have been fixed, and the old self repair code has been upgraded to support a wide range of values. As result, all construction units now have reasonable self repair rates and all Core units now have atleast rudimentary self repair ability as their factional specialty.
In addition to expanded ground warfare, the first tier 2 air units are here! Every faction can now build their own tier 2 air factory and gunship.
Download TA Zero Alpha 4b here, and visit the official discussion thread. The hotfix, for those who need it, is included within TA Zero Alpha 4b patch archive in a separate folder. The hotfix for Alpha 4 should not be used with Alpha 4b. Unit guides of Arm, Core, and GoK have all been updated and improved in preparation for upcoming Alpha 4b release! In addition to showing all the new units, the statistics of each unit have been expanded. Due to developments done on .exe hacking front, and subsequent changes to TA Zero, self repair rates of various units could be customized, and all Core units now have atleast rudimentary self repair ability as a special feature of their faction. Recharge rates of the void shields of all GoK units are also shown now. There is now also a small section at the start of each unit guide dedicated to the special features of the faction.
There were all kinds of grand plans for TA mods previously; installers, autoupdates, mod switching launcher, improvements to the engine, uncounted new features for modders to use and so on. Some of all that has actually happened, some is being worked on, but overall the TA modding community has been in disarray ever since N72 disappeared and took the community patch project with him. TA Zero was hurt the most because until then N72 had been making all the buildpics, doing a lot of technical work, building and upholding this website, and written newsposts and various text files. Although slowly and randomly, TA Zero has still been progressing in relative silence over the last years. Alpha 4b patch release has been essentially ready for a while now, new test builds being available on the forum every here and then. There's also a handy thread that summarizes all the new stuff you should get. The changelog has hundreds of lines, including many new units, some bug fixes and a crazy amount of balance adjustments, so everyone still playing Zero should go and grab the latest Alpha 4b test build files; just unzip into your TA Zero folder and replace old Alpha 4 files.
This is the big one! Sixteen years to the week that Total Annihilation was originally released, version Alpha 4 of Total Annihilation Zero arrives not only with T2 ground units but also with a brand new feature called the megamap, an interactive fullscreen map that lets you build and fight better than ever before. Furthermore, TA Zero has now fully adopted the TA Unofficial Patch framework and has moved to a new installer system. We have also decided to integrate the TA Zero Map Pack into the mod itself, so now all TA Zero maps are included with the main download.
So what else is new in Alpha 4? First of all, there's a host of game adjustments and fixes as usual, which you can read about in detail at the Version History page. Secondly, because TA Zero is now fully based on the TA Unofficial Patch (it was partially based on it before), it now benefits from all of the same great features introduced by the Patch, which you can also read about in the version history as well as at the updated Features page. Playing online is now easier than ever thanks to hassle-free multiplayer support via GameRanger. Simply set the "…\TA Zero\TotalA.exe" file as your Total Annihilation location in GameRanger's options menu and you're ready to play. Not only that, but TA Zero now automatically records all multiplayer games, which you can rewatch anytime using the included Replayer. Check out the Features page for more information.
A new duelling map called Brimstone Steppes has been added to the growing repoirtaire of TA Zero maps. Layed out in an east-to-west format and featuring multiple routes and spectacular rains of fire, this is a perfect battleground for short, but intense matches. Click the thumbnail below to view a larger sized preview.
Are you ready for battle? Download TA Zero Alpha 4 Here!Don't forget to visit the official discussion thread. Last but certainly not least, behold the megamap! Left is zoomed in, right is zoomed out. Cool, huh?
UPDATE: It has been discovered that the game might not launch when using certain graphics cards, usually AMD/ATI (with any OS), or when using Windows 8 (with any graphics card). We will release an update when the issue is fully resolved. Until then, you can install this preliminary hotfix (unzip to your TA Zero folder) and post your results. This fix should allow your game to launch, but you may encounter unsatisfactory frame rates or hangs on the megamap (if it hangs, just roll the mouse wheel up and wait for the game to zoom back in). However, the regular game view should be fine. Please DO NOT install this fix if you are not affected by the game launch crashing issue (most Nvidia users on Windows 7 or earlier) as it may break your game. Perhaps the most bizarre GoK unit around, T2 Support Hovercraft features an exotic set of weapon systems intended for area denial and crowd control, and a powerful void shield to protect its rather vulnerable hull. Its primary weapon is a heavy photon cannon that is extremely effective against lightly armored targets. Photon cannon projectiles have a large blast radius and will explode at range if they miss their target. Anyhow, while impressive in its own right, it is the special weapon system that really makes this unit. For a significant energy cost, T2 Support Hovercraft can use its dimensional splicer to channel a wide area damage-over-time effect that lasts for 10 seconds. Any light T1 units trying to pass through the area will most likely be destroyed, and even heaviest T2 units will have to watch out since dimensional splicer does damage relative to target size and durability.
The Arm T2 Flak Turret houses arrays of cannons identical to their mobile T2 anti-air unit, but is capable of continuous fire with no need for reloading breaks. It is extremely effective at softening up gunship or bomber swarms, but will require T1 anti-air units to pick out any scattered or fast aerial targets with their guided missiles. Compared to the T2 Pulse Kbot, Core T2 Pulse Turret is heavily armored, doubles rate of fire with a second array of pulse cannons, and also features a small radar. Akin to the Arm equivalent, it is intended to support T1 anti-air units rather than replace them. While primarily intended as anti-air units, both turrets are capable of attacking ground targets and may come in handy as a backup crowd control solution against hordes of lighter T1 units.
Exceptional in many ways, the GoK T2 Anti-Air Stasis Device is purely a support unit, unable to do any damage to enemy aircraft itself. Instead of a weapon in any conventional sense, its odd looking turret houses a stasis field projector, which is so far the only paralyzer weapon that can affect aircraft. It cannot aim at ground units, so this unit will have its own very specific niche. The stasis field projector has a somewhat slow fire rate, requires energy to fire, and has limited range, but it practically never misses, and can disable multiple targets for a couple seconds with each blast.
While GoK's T2 mobile ground anti-air unit is alike those of the Arm and the Core in its functionality, GoK actually has two T2 anti-air structures, neither of which bears much resemblance to the turrets of the other factions. The T2 Photon Torpedo Silo is basically an immobile Harbinger on steroids, capable of firing bursts of enhanced photon torpedos from a multitude of vertical launchers. The enhanced photon torpedos do a lot of damage and have some blast radius, but are slower than the standard ones and burn out quickly, limiting their ability to hit fast targets. The T2 Photon Torpedo Silo is exceptionally well armored for a GoK unit, and has an adequate void shield on top of that. Anyhow, its relatively short weapon range, inability to attack targets next to itself, and negilible sight range limit it to a supporting role.
Core's T2 Artillery Cannon is the most expensive T2 unit made thus far, and for good reasons. It features four large cannons that fire artillery shells specifically designed for taking out enemy buildings over a rather long distance. These have larger than usual blast radius, and high damage bonus to structures, but have reduced penetration and damage. Unlike other artillery and medium range cannons, this one does not need energy to fire, and can sustain a relentless barrage of shots on its own. As always with Core's fixed turrets, the T2 Artillery Cannon is rather durable and heavily armored, but does not have a plasma shield as the T2 Medium Range Plasma Cannon does.
Unlike the other factions, Arm will not have an artillery turret at T2, but instead will use the T2 Tactical Missile Silo for any longer ranged base busting. It can build and launch missiles with both standard and EMP warheads, and can have one of each prepared at a time. While it takes a couple minutes and plenty of energy to get missiles built, and the silo will have to be protected with other units, a well placed tactical nuclear strike will still be very much worth the effort. The missiles have a large blast radius and do a lot of damage to large targets, so it is entirely possible to destroy a cluster of T1 factories with a single hit.
Core T2 Pulse Kbot is armed with a rapid-firing area-effective pulse cannon which is primarily intended as an anti-air weapon, but performs quite well against hordes of light units. The pulse cannon is particularly effective against groups of gunships, but cannot reliably hit lone strafing fighters or reconnaissance aircraft. With its all-terrain spider tank chassis it is able to get into good positions, and perhaps also avoid enemy defences to launch a surprise attack from an unexpected angle. Anyhow, it is not as heavily armored as most of Core's T2 units. Much similar to Core's equivalent unit, the GoK T2 Starcannon Runnerpod has weaponry designed to mercilessly destroy enemy gunship hordes with salvo after salvo of area-effective projectiles. It is a surprisingly capable and versatile unit due to its combination of mobility, moderately good armor, and powerful shield. It is not the cheapest unit around though.
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