I would like to introduce bump mapping on the ships themselves. It's been a VERY long time coming, but I established the "piping" that was needed to make it happen. The two end points supported it (as you've seen on the planet rendering), so the shader I wrote supported it, and the newer ships (and TECHNICALLY the older ones too) supported bumpmapping, but nothing ever connected the two together. Now that's changed, as you can see.
Also to introduce form fitting shields. Originally, shielding was procedurally generated, and while that worked, the results weren't that satisfying. Now with "hand done" shields, the shields far more look like they were meant for the ship itself. All newer ships will have these shields, while the older ships will still have the procedural ones.
Original post blogged on Rank: Warmaster Dev Blog.
