Forts Modder Showcase: TCM Reloaded by General_Miau

This Month's Spotlight: Tanya's Commander Mod Reloaded

(by General_Miau)

View on Steam

Tanya’s Commander Mod Reloaded builds on years of experimentation, balancing, and wonderfully strange ideas from one of the Forts Workshop ’s better-known mod series.

Featuring reworked commanders, an expanded technology system, improved visuals, and a huge mix of weapons, materials, and devices, TCMR gives players even more ways to approach both small and large scale battles.

A chat with General_Miau:

Hey, I’m General_Miau or for which I’m probably better known as General Tanya-chan. I’ve been playing and modding Forts for about 8 years now, maybe you’ve been recognizing even some of the maps I’ve made as well, like Ice Wall. I also started streaming for fun as a VTuber, mainly playing the newest version of Tanya’s Mod of course. Even though my health isn’t that great anymore, I’m still alive and kicking and intent to continue modding in Forts. >3<

Q: Tanya’s Mod originally became one of the most recognisable projects on the Forts Workshop. Looking back, what do you think helped it connect with so many players?

Honestly, I’m not sure, I mostly made the mod for myself so I could play with it, which is still mostly true to this day. It started with me wanting to make certain weapons more viable in 4v4 matches, like mortars and rockets, which slowly turned into adding new additional weapons and reworking the commanders. I’m glad that people liked my mod though. Who doesn’t like seeing when someone appreciates what you create? :D

Q: What led you to develop Tanya’s Commander Mod (Reloaded) as a separate project from Tanya’s Mod?

Well since I’ve created the original Tanya’s Mod there have been many additions to the modding tools (I’d like to think many were added because I’ve bothered BeeMan so much in the past). As a result, the original mod was quite messy, with a lot of workarounds, and a little bit overblown by then.

The next version was Tanya’s Commander Mod, which focused more on the commander side while still adding some new weapons. That was also when the super neat official forts sprite construction kit came out, that allowed me to make much nicer looking weapons with some diligent editing but lack of artistic skill. And it even has High Seas support (as an extra mod).

That brings us to the current version: Tanya’s Commander Mod Reloaded. The commanders are simpler but still awesomemified, many new and old weapons have much better sprites in general (there are probably more to come too), a new colourful technology system, and of course, High Seas and the New Firebird DLC are fully supported now without needing an extra mod.

Q: For players familiar with the original mod, what does Reloaded allow you to revisit, improve, or approach differently?

The focus on making commanders more awesome is still there, as well as making every weapon more viable for larger matches while still maintaining a good balance for smaller ones. You’ll find a lot of similar weapons, like the Flamethrower, Railgun, Nebelwefer, Gatlinggun, of course the mighty Atom Cannon and more (such as Materials and Devices).

The new coloured technology system might be a bit intimidating at first glance, but becomes pretty accessible after just a few matches, and more importantly, it allows me to add more awesome weapons, without making any technology overblown in the future.

Q: Your mods draw from a huge mix of influences, including military history, anime, science fiction, ninjas, railguns, and even bouncy penguins. What subjects are you most interested in outside of modding?

I do like anime and good music, my mod name is even based on Tanya Degurechaff from Youjo Senki, which you definitely should watch. If you want to know more, come and visit my Discord channel. ;3

Q: Your mods include superweapons, heavily customised commanders, and a large number of weapons and materials with different strengths and weaknesses. How do you approach balancing so many interconnected systems?

Nowadays, most of it comes initially from simple math (for example using the values of a vanilla weapon as a template), then it still has to feel good on both ends (attacking and defending) and of course a lot of playstesting (though having experience does help a lot).

Q: Tanya’s Mod has inspired a lot of newer creators, and many modders have also used it as a technical reference when learning how Forts modding works. How does it feel knowing your work has helped other people start creating?

It’s nice to see that Forts already has over 4000 mods by now, and to this day I don’t know how to code, not every game has such easy access to modding and great DEVs as well. :p

Q: Are there mods (from Forts or other games) that have influenced the way you think about modding or game design?

I am really stubborn, so… probably not? XD

(Though I do like nice games with good art, music and story, such as OneShot or SANABI, which are one of my favourites, or some nice strategy-based games like Forts or Backpack Battles, metroidvanias are cool too, like the Castlevania games or Monster Sanctuary.)

Q: How has your approach to modding changed since you first began working on Tanya’s Mod?

I like to keep things clean (code wise as well) and much simpler now, the original Tanya’s Mod had many cool interactions, that well… required too much effort or were too complicated for the average player, which probably isn’t fun for them.

Condensed TCMR Resources:

View on Steam YouTube | Twitch | Workshop | General_Miau's Discord

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Steam post image(Check out the new #mod-wall-of-fame channel, under the 'Announcements' category, where we'll archive each feature and prominent Forts Modders.)

To be featured in the Forts Modder Showcase you need to:

• Have been awarded the Modder Medal

• Answer a Q&A and collaborate in good-faith

• Provide gifs/clips or images that best showcase your creations

To start things off, we're featuring a few selected mods that have made a big impact on the community. In the future, we'll open the floor for modders to reach out and put their creations forward!

A Note from the Team:

The modding scene is one of the best parts of this community. Every map, every mechanic, every idea adds something new to Forts, and we're beyond grateful for the passion you all bring to the game. For that reason, we urge you all to help us celebrate every small victory so that we can all benefit from our shared passion for Forts for many more years to come!

Cheers, EWG