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Heart of Storms: Resurrection

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Rommel

Hosted Project: HoS
Level 19
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w58fMVs.png

You read that right. Heart of Storms (HoS, not to be confused with Heroes of the Storm or Heart of the Swarm) is back after 9 years spent in limbo.

For those who never heard of it, the old site still works (though it barely has any info): Heart of Storms MOD
As does the forum (thought it's predictably dead): http://forum.samods.org/index.php?board=14.0

Here's the official trailer (circa 2007):
[youtube=-B88DQbnieQ]
[/youtube]

And a new screenie, just for you.

full


So, what was HoS supposed to be?
A large scale mod with all playable races heavily modified, a custom campaign, and updated graphics. Not just every unit and hero got a new model, the overall level of visuals was raised up compared to Warcraft III, with more detailed and (wherever possible) realistically animated recycled and custom models, accordingly updated textures, attention to detail and coherent, thought-out design and style for each race. Even the basic terrain elements such as trees received updated models.
HoS was following Blizzard's canon in many story and design aspects, but also introduced brand new sides of the conflict, the enigmatic Shadow Elves and the Stygians, a technologically advanced race that was supposed to be the Burning Legion's nemesis. The story was set in Warcraft II era with many missions following historical events, but eventually heroes being off to a conflict not related to the Second War.
It was probably one of the largest scale mods in Warcraft III modding history. Other projects aimed for either a story-driven campaign, or a races conversion, and few actually dared to replace most models and even voices (and HoS had some nice voice work, too), while HoS was supposed to have it all in one.
It didn't work at that time despite the amount of stuff we finished. But it was a nice, very nice try. HoS left a legacy, inspiring many other modders, and till this day I am asked about HoS.

Why did HoS die back then?
Looking back at 2000's I dread at the thought of how disorganized the work was. Surely we had some of the best modellers in the team, like Stuffkikker and Jigrael (known here as Tarrasque), and I personally made sure all models and skins are polished to the same quality level. Yet, tech work, triggers and even story suffered from inconsitences, lack of communication between team members and worse. There was also the matter of Starcraft II looming on horizon, and Warcraft III being outdated. So at some point I just lost all interest I had in HoS, though other people, and first of all Sellenisko, picked what was left behind, and at least the pack of finished models and sounds was released. It didn't include everything, though.

So how come it's revived now?
2017 is certainly a long way from 2008, and despite gaming industry in general taking huge steps ahead, classic games witness a renaissance of modding. Projects like Brutal Doom, Mental Omega and Fallout: Nevada are being released and updated. And Warcraft III had more activity in 2017 alone than Starcraft II in all 7 years of its existance, or so it seemed to me when I got back on Hive. Still, good ol' WarIII doesn't look like it's going to die anytime soon ^^
Probably two things that inspired me to wipe dust off my HoS backups were WoW: Legion and Hive's modders' work. Legion was probably the best Warcraft-themed Blizzard product in years, with many loose ends wrapped up nicely and story feeling epic and right. The Burning Legion itself was finally shown as a proper Warcraft faction, with different unit types, buildings and resources. And just as I was toying with ideas on fitting all that in an RTS environment, I come to Hive and find out its talented modellers recreating units from a 2016 game in a 2002 game... And doing a marvelous work at that...
That moment, I heard the tombstone on HoS' grave shake. Something was coming back to life down there.

So what is HoS: Resurrection going to be?
HoS: RRR. Resurrected, recycled, re-imagined. Based on the stuff we finished back in 2000's and ideas we had but never implemented, it's going to expand on initial concept, giving you what we planned originally, with additions from Warcraft universe as it developed over the years. Now with Sellenisko back as HoS modelling expert, a few old friends consulting me on tech, and Hive's best modellers (Tauer, FerSZ, HerrDave and General Frank to name a few) giving their permission for basing new HoS stuff on their creations, my first goal is to release a new playable beta, with all races implemented the way we imagined it back in 2000's.
The campaign is another story, and this is something I dare not promise yet, as it will depend on whether HoS will get a bigger team (namely with a triggerer), but I'm working on revising and rewriting the script and toying with mission concepts at the moment. HoS original campaign had its story and script finished, and terrain done for most missions, but all trigger work went to hell with JASS disabled, not to mention it wasn't stellar by today's standards, and Warcraft lore advanced a lot since then - though, in a direction that is very HoS-friendly (back in 2005 the Emerald Nightmare that we used in Shadows Elves concept was just a loose idea, now it's a coherent piece of official game... and even Stygians fit with current Titanforged races lore). But... more on them later ;)

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But HoS is gonna feel old now.
Right, modelling standards took a step ahead. But still some of the stuff in original HoS pack rivals the best modern creations, if not beating some - Archpriestess and Stygian units are some of the top notch work. And the current tradition of making models use only ingame textures won't be holding HoS back ^^

Can I still use models from HoS pack?
Sure! The integral part of the community is people using, modifying and improving other people's creations, as long credit is given.

When is it done?
When it's done! Really, it's just started.

What can I do to help?
Spread the word! And, while I can do most of the stuff myself (save for triggering that's not currently a priority), and the team has the required tech specialists at the moment, any help is welcome. Most of all, we'd need a freehand skin and icon artist at this stage of development. So don't hesitate to contact me or just write here.

Now, next stop will be a developer update with a talk on HoS races and sub-races design, some never-seen-before screenshots and never-heard-before info. And an Eredar size chart, for good measure!

Stay tuned folks.
 
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Kyrbi0

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It's unfinished & outdated, but my Heart of Storms Compendium over at Wc3C.net will need a biiiiiig update now, methinks. ; )

I gotta say, I am super-excited to see this project back on it's feet. Heart of Storms has been one of my biggest inspirations over the years, and I look forward to more news!
 
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Level 16
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Well this got me excited, I remember looking over the HOS website in the past and wishing the project or some sort of demo would be out, now I guess that wish may still come true, best of lucky to you guys, you have my full support!
 
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I think it looks good, even today!
That last screenshot works very well for me.
Subbed, let's hope it reaches beta state at least.
 
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This are some great news!
I really like some of the models from the pack. Although some models had some bugs they weren't much of a problem to fix.
I look forward to see the campaign because of the new and unique stories.
Great to see this project running up again!
Good luck finishing it. :)
 
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This looks amazing. Truly. I especially like the stygians, whose design reminds me of Silver units. However, and I hate to be a party pooper, these quotes gives the idea there will be no triggerwork involved in the creation of the new races.

The campaign is another story, and this is something I dare not promise yet, as it will depend on whether HoS will get a bigger team (namely with a triggerer)

Spread the word! And, while I can do most of the stuff myself (save for triggering that's not currently a priority)

I hope this is not the case.
 

Rommel

Hosted Project: HoS
Level 19
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The mod was never supposed to have any abilities or race mechanics involve triggers (other than basic things like limit of unique units or availability of water units on naval maps). The campaign is a different matter with its boss fights and tweaked gameplay parts, but the core races are made exclusively via Object editor. That's how it was supposed to be back then, and there is no reason to change it now. Non-triggered abilities allow enough freedom to implement what we have in mind for the playable races.
 
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Level 15
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Why comment at all if you're not gonna say anything constructive? You're entitled to your opinion, but this is a really useless thing to say imo.

Well, none of our comments were constructive, to be honest. He just expressed his opinion, like you did. Only differance was that your comment was positive, while his was negative. 2 sides of the same coin, pretty much..
 
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Well, none of our comments were constructive, to be honest. He just expressed his opinion, like you did. Only differance was that your comment was positive, while his was negative. 2 sides of the same coin, pretty much..

Difference is that giving the author some positive input might actually encourage him to work more. Telling him that he wont finish it accomplishes nothing. It's useless and demotivating.
I don't think it's fair to compare positive and negative non-constructive comments. If you're gonna comment something non-constructive, it should at least be positive. It's always nice to be appreciated for hard work, but never nice to hear that what you're doing is basically a waste of time.

So let me rephrase: if you don't have anything constructive or nice to say, don't post.
 
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Kyrbi0

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Difference is that giving the author some positive input might actually encourage him to work more. Telling him that he wont finish it accomplishes nothing. It's useless and demotivating.
I don't think it's fair to compare positive and negative non-constructive comments. If you're gonna comment something non-constructive, it should at least be positive. It's always nice to be appreciated for hard work, but never nice to hear that what you're doing is basically a waste of time.

So let me rephrase: if you don't have anything constructive or nice to say, don't post.
Personally, I'm 100% with you on this Tauer; it's always better to be constructive & positive with ones' comments than not ("if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all", etc).

However, I also realize that 'there must be opposition in all things'; specifically, projects & even people themselves often don't thrive without at least a taste of adversity & opposition. This is ignoring the 'free-speech' element of a forum existence; making something public necessarily invites comments both positive & negative.

I also cannot help but think 'what other alternative is there'? Should someone with a negative comment make his own thread about it (answer: no, that's like taking it to a whole new level, personally). Send a PM? Maybe, but it could be ignored by the sendee & then never resolved. A public announcement thread of a public forum is pretty much the place for such a comment. Honestly I'm just surprised it took this long.

~~~

I want to reiterate, this has been a bit of a 'devil's-advocacy'; I'm generally in the camp (both for myself personally & the world generally) of "positivity & constructivism"! Always say good things, keep bad things to yourself (or couch them in ameliorating language, e.g. "this looks cool, but I'm concerned about whether it's actually going to be completed, given it's track record,..." etc etc). But food for thought.
 
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That is a valid point Kyrbi0, and I agree to an extent. I am a supporter of freedom of speech, which is also why I added in my "you're entitled to your opinion" remark. In this you're absolutely right.

But
.

Freedom of speech doesn't equal freedom from criticism. Just as he's free to say what he wants, I am also free to call him out for it. And you are right when you say that we need adversity in order to grow, and this is where constructive criticism comes in. If people disagree with you and explain why in a constructive manner, this is something that's helpful for you to evolve, not just as a mod author but as a person as well. Problem is that the comment in question was not constructive in any way. It was negative for the sake of being negative. And that, to me, is just a complete waste of a comment. Because it will not help Rommel in any way.

In regards to your 'what other alternative is there' question, I think this one is easy. Either phrase it in a more constructive manner or just don't say anything. It's not necessary to say everything that pops in your mind. I'm sure everybody has thought something in real life at some point, but held their tongue because it wasn't appropriate to say it. Why should it be any different just because we're hidden behind a screen? Common courtesy should still apply. I can't force people to be polite, but I sure as hell can call them out on it when they're not.

Anyway, thank you for your well-phrased and reasoned reply :)
 
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Truly impressive, I can't believe some perfect mod can actually exist like this. Please tell me something more about this cause I'm late:
- Does this story is related to Warcraft universe?. And the Stygian race, they are like advanced Chaos race similar to Warhammer 40k?
- I can find these old resources given by Kam, but is there any change I can find the playable map, too? It is better to play them all at once to understand the whole story.

Edit: I check the trailer in Google, it is already 10 years from now. Considered this as an ancient project.

=> Maybe I can give a hand on this project?
 
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Rommel

Hosted Project: HoS
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It's certainly one's right to question the outcome, especially given that HoS was indeed abandoned once. However, while I am okay with criticism based on some logical assumptions (like Nowow's comment) and can provide answers and clarifications on such, simply stating "you won't make it" would only make me shrug. Okay, that's your opinion.

Anyway. Thanks for your support, folks! It's really appreciated, and I hope you won't be dissappointed by what's coming. A new developer update is on its way, as well as some extras that weren't originally planned.

Does this story is related to Warcraft universe?

HoS is placed in Warcraft world and follows current WoW/Chronicles canon. It does introduce factions and events that were never mentioned by Blizzard (in fact the bigger part of HoS events are that), but they don't have an impact on 'historical' events shown in earlier missions. HoS' Alliance and Horde factions are faithful to Warcraft II era (though expanded, basing off current lore), Burning Legion is generally based on concept finalized and cemented in WoW'2016, and Shadow Elves and Stygians are non-canon factions, which, however, are based off Blizzard's concepts (Old Gods/Highborne, and Titanforged, respectively). Generally, HoS does not contradict existing canon in any way, and while its story takes a direction away from story you saw in Warcraft games, you should expect a lot of familiar stuff and canon-faithful cameos if you're familiar with lore.

And the Stygian race, they are like advanced Chaos race similar to Warhammer 40k?
Stygians are a Titanforged race on the peak of Titan technology, designed to combat the Legion most effectively and resist the fel. They aren't nice guys, however.

I can find these old resources given by Kam, but is there any change I can find the playable map, too? It is better to play them all at once to understand the whole story.

HoS campaign was never finished, and triggered missions (about 1/4 of total campaign size) seem to be lost. Possiblly for the best, because the writing wasn't as good as I want it now, and overall mission quality was lacking. The terrain for most missions is done (and saved) and plot is finished, so there's a solid foundation to rebuild ipon.

A question to everyone around:
Should I release details on HoS story, characters and missions before the actual campaign release?

I'm currently working on updating and heavily rewriting HoS script, and really like how how it's coming together. However, the campaign may take a long while to finish and you've already waited way too long. Delaying further won't be too fair, and releasing spoilerless stuff would provide too little insight on the story, making the whole of it too vague and the wait for actual ingame unveiling a drag. So while I'd still keep the ending and some vital story points a secret, I think of publishing existing HoS synopsis and story online. Especially given all current info on the plot that's floating around is either scattered or heavily outdated.

Maybe I can give a hand on this project?

PM'ed you ^^
 
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I vote: Yes!

But I have to add. IF we are going to wait +2 years to see this project finished, don't even bother with it. Not trying to sound rude, I am just being realistic.
 

Kyrbi0

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But I have to add. IF we are going to wait +2 years to see this project finished, don't even bother with it. Not trying to sound rude, I am just being realistic.
Lol.

An attitude like that and mankind would still be in the caves. Things take time, bro. Not starting because finishing isn't likely soon is a poor way to manage projects, in my opinion.

*said the guy with a 10-year unfinished project*
 
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Yay, update :D

While I personally would probably not read it if it's spoilery, giving people the choice to do so is never a bad thing. People like me who'd rather go in a bit more blind can just not read it :)
However, if possible it would be nice with some spoiler-free info too. Just some introductions to the characters and factions, but without describing what actually happens in the campaign. It's been so long that I've forgotten most of it :p

I vote: Yes!

But I have to add. IF we are going to wait +2 years to see this project finished, don't even bother with it. Not trying to sound rude, I am just being realistic.

2+ years is nothing for a project this size. Hell, I've started models that I haven't released in that time frame. Totally disagree.
 

Shar Dundred

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But I have to add. IF we are going to wait +2 years to see this project finished, don't even bother with it. Not trying to sound rude, I am just being realistic.
Only because YOU don't want to wait 2 years, doesn't mean the he should just quit the project.
Your comment marks you as egoistical, greedy jerk.

There are other people who don't think like you do, you know.
 
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Well, it is my opinion, after all. I am not trying to make you agree with me, I am just saying what I think, nothing else. World would be boring place if we all shared same opinions, thoughts and ideas. No need to be rude....
 

Kyrbi0

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Well, it is my opinion, after all. I am not trying to make you agree with me, I am just saying what I think, nothing else. World would be boring place if we all shared same opinions, thoughts and ideas. No need to be rude....
That's totally fair. None of us (should have) told you not to post (re: our earlier discussion). You have a right to post, we have a right to counter-post, you have a right to counter-counter-post, etc etc ad infinitum. Moving on!
 
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Well, it is my opinion, after all. I am not trying to make you agree with me, I am just saying what I think, nothing else. World would be boring place if we all shared same opinions, thoughts and ideas. No need to be rude....

Of course you'e allowed to have your own opinion. But in my opinion this is also about common courtesy. What you said came across as rude quite frankly, and as Shar Dundred pointed out also pretty egotistical. I find it strange how you're accusing us of being rude. Rommel is doing this for free in his spare time, why should he care how long it takes? Also, the way you phrased it made it sound like you speak for everyone, and as such you can't act all offended when people disagree with you.

While everybody is allowed to post and have their own opinion, this all comes back to my earlier point: it's not necessary to blurt out everything that pops into your mind, especially not if it's rude to a person who is basically giving you stuff for free. That's just my opinion. But I don't want to railroad this thread anymore that I already have, so I'm done now.

Looking forward to any updates!
 
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Well, actually, if he is planning to work on this another 4-5 years, there might be no point, because, HiveWorkShop may not exist then :D
You never know.
 
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