Infrequent Tips of the Every Once in a While.

[Max-Violence]

Tip #1: Back your stuff up!

Tip #2: If you have a PI set to patrol and have "Group Move" enabled, do not have any of the actors set to be sleeping. If you do, the entire patrol will gather around the napping actor and stand there.

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

Will they make their way to the sleeping actor from different parts of the map without following waypoints? Interesting, perhaps I can use that to have a mob attack a third party, using a zone and trigger to switch the target to a different PI when the mob reaches him.

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

Hmm it's been a while, but let's get this going again, shall we?

I'll start,

If you hide a level by right clicking on the elevation bar, then when you select all, or select multiple levels by holding down 'alt', the hidden levels won't be selected. Useful for when you want to make clips or change your mind about the position of a building etc and want to move it without messing up the floor tiles.

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

Preserving Death Text

I remember talking to OTB about the save and reload munchkins and OTB bemoaning the fact, that when people reload, the game defaults to the generic failure messages so you lose any witty remarks that you might of made about their performance or lack of.

One thing that never occurred to me until now is that if you set up the trigger to specify your failure notice (set death text) and simply tick the preserve box your caustic belittling remarks will continue to haunt the player no matter how many times they die and reload.

[OnTheBounce]

Would you like to simulate a radio in FoT?

I knew you did.

Here's how you do it.

Set up a Detonator entity, like the one used to set off Remote Detonator Traps in the Core Campaign. The Radio sprite from FO2 works perfectly for an image.

The rest of this is scripting. Since Remote Detonator Traps will not satisfy "X Alive At" conditions for triggers, set up as many detonator traps as you want to give the player options, then set up weak entities near the traps that you know will be killed by the trap when it goes off. Since you don't want the player to see any of this, place it somewhere out of sight, preferably underground and on black tiles that way even if there is some funky popping the player will not see either the tiles nor the entities.

In your dialogue tell the player something along the lines of, "if X happens call us on channel XX", if Y happens call us on channel YY." Alternately, you could say, "if X happens call XX who has his radio set to channel XXX, etc." So then the player can whip his radio out when the time comes and set it off on the proper channel, the proper tagged entity will be killed and you can use that to set whatever chain of events in motion that your little heart desires.

I used this in The Fall of the Hub to let the player signal a group of people that the coast was clear and they could start their run, and the choice of channels was to let them take one of two routes out of town.

Cheers,

OTB

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

In your dialogue tell the player something along the lines of, "if X happens call us on channel XX", if Y happens call us on channel YY." Alternately, you could say, "if X happens call XX who has his radio set to channel XXX, etc." So then the player can whip his radio out when the time comes and set it off on the proper channel, the proper tagged entity will be killed and you can use that to set whatever chain of events in motion that your little heart desires.

Hmm interesting, though I can see some problems with killing hidden entities. If you're doing this in a campaign and your radio entities are set to a neutral team your reputation is going to be shot to hell so you'll need to adjust for this when you reward the player at the end of the mission. If you've only got one neutral team killing hidden entities will set everyone on that team to be hostile to you so you'll need to have at least 2 neutral teams. Or triggers to turn the neutral team back to friendly.

I wonder if you could do it by using the object script state condition? Instead of having sacrifical sheep.

[OnTheBounce]

...I can see some problems with killing hidden entities. If you're doing this in a campaign and your radio entities are set to a neutral team your reputation is going to be shot to hell so you'll need to adjust for this when you reward the player at the end of the mission.

I'll log off in a minute or so and check to see how I did it.

I wonder if you could do it by using the object script state condition? Instead of having sacrifical sheep.

It's been a long time since I did this, but IIRC it didn't work. The problem w/the OSS -- assuming it works -- is that it only gives you one choice. That would come in handy if, for instance, you wanted to have the PCs signal for support, or something of that nature, but not if you're looking to give them options.

There was one thing I forgot to mention above: Detonators can be Broken, so that they require the Repair skill to be fixed, just like weapons. Yes, it's for 15HP, just like other weapons. I guess this is because they are weapons in a sense. This would make them vulnerable to hits in the appropriate arm, or you could set up a Vick-in-the-Den-minus-getting-the-parts-radio scenario...

OTB

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

It's been a long time since I did this, but IIRC it didn't work. The problem w/the OSS -- assuming it works -- is that it only gives you one choice. That would come in handy if, for instance, you wanted to have the PCs signal for support, or something of that nature, but not if you're looking to give them options.

Well no, if you've got three bombs set to go off, each killing a different entity depending on the frequency you type in, and in turn setting off three different chains of events. Then if the OSS did work you still could have the three bombs but wouldn't need the sacrifical lambs.

Edit Okay I've just tried it and the OSS doesn't work, in the case of remote traps the OSS refers to it beign activated and the bomb going off doesn't satisfy the OSS being turned off. But for the hell of it I tried a simple trigger a remote trap tagged 'trap'

Conditon
trap has less than 1 alive anywhere
Action
Give player human 100 experience points

and that worked, so you might not want roast lamb for supper after all.

[OnTheBounce]

But for the hell of it I tried a simple trigger a remote trap tagged 'trap'

Conditon
trap has less than 1 alive anywhere
Action
Give player human 100 experience points

and that worked, so you might not want roast lamb for supper after all.

I just checked what I did and guess what...I had the triggers set to respond to whether the Remote Traps were "alive" or not. There was a Raider set near the bombs, so I thought that I'd used the "sacrificial lamb" approach, but what he was there for was as a container for tagged items to be transferred to/from. He's actually set to a deactivated player index so the bombs' detonations won't affect him.

I should have remembered that the "alive" condition works for inanimate objects, I have used it for barricades before to have enemies react if/when a barricade was destroyed.

See boys and girls, here's another tip: when you haven't mapped in 7 months or so, don't go assuming you remember what you did. :oops:

OTB

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

He's actually set to a deactivated player index so the bombs' detonations won't affect him.

Don't be so sure of that, I was play testing a map once and started to engage the enemy when all of a sudden they were slaughtered by an invisible opponent. Turned out my reinforcements who had been set on a deactivated PI but were still on a friendly/my team were attacking my opponents. Deactivated entities can do some funny things sometimes.

[OnTheBounce]

Mapping a Minefield

In the core campaign's Osceolla mission the squad encounters a crazed old man who hints that there is a minefield nearby, and also mentions that he has been given a map of it. However, there is no map to be found, so any hope the player has of finding his way through it is dashed and all the old man's blithering about a "mimefield" simply serves to dish up some cheesy pop culture references and that's about it. There's no reason to talk to him ever again.

I've found a way to do just what is hinted at in Osceolla, namely to give the player a map that will let him/her negotiate a minefield.

What you will need:

• A generic entity to serve as a map. The entity will need to have a Tag Name. (There are two sprites of maps in the FO/FO2 sprite pack that I put out . The geological survey of the Bay Area, and the Raider Map found in Bishop's safe.)
• A Team that is friendly to both the player as well as the player's enemies.
• A Player Index initially set to the player's enemies' team.
• A Zone in which the mine field will be located.

Once you have all of these things you simply set up two Preserved Triggers. The first is for the player to have exactly 1 item tagged [map's tag name] in [minefield's zone]. This trigger will switch the Player Index of the mines to the team you set up for it. Then another trigger which has quantity changed to 0, which will switch the mines back to the enemy team.

This will allow the player to traverse the minefield w/o setting off the mines. Characters can actually move over mines w/o triggering them. It will also leave enemies aware of the mines' presence, which switching them to the player's team would not.

Cheers,

OTB

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

Or an even simpler way is to have a holodisk, either looking like a map or a holodisk depending on the tech level, and instead of text include a small cut out of a screen shot of the minefield activated using the image tag. Then people would know the location but would still have to be careful traversing the minefield.

[OnTheBounce]

You could do that, too, I suppose.

Of course, if you wanted to make the map rather vital to the player's mission, you could always set the difficulty on the mines to such a level that most people in the squad wouldn't even detect them till it's too late and even the sapper would have difficulty. ("I found o--" BOOM!) Then they would need the map to traverse it.

Either way, depending on the designer's intent.

OTB

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

I don't really like the idea of the mines becoming 'safe' just because you've got a map. If there was a way of making them visible, perhaps having two mines at each location, one set to be hard to find and the other set to be easy to detect or not even hidden (on a deactivated PI?). Then if the player has the map the hard mines are deactivated and the visible mines activated that way they're visible but still dangerous. Number of times I've transversed a mine field lately and blown myself up even though I'd spotted all the mines.

[OnTheBounce]

I don't really like the idea of the mines becoming 'safe' just because you've got a map.

That's the only part of it I don't like. I don't understand why they become safe, either. After all, if someone plants a mine themselves, then steps on it the mine will detonate.

I'll play w/this some more and see if I can solve it. Perhaps a neutral team will give the desired effect?

If there was a way of making them visible, perhaps having two mines at each location, one set to be hard to find and the other set to be easy to detect or not even hidden (on a deactivated PI?). Then if the player has the map the hard mines are deactivated and the visible mines activated that way they're visible but still dangerous.

I'll fiddle around w/this idea and perhaps some variations on it and see what happens. I'm pretty sure that Object Script States would simply set the mines off rather than reveal them, but I'll try that, too.

OTB

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

The OSS will do different things with different types of mine IIRC, with pressure mines such as the AT/AP mines it'll turn them off making them safe without the need to use your traps skill but it won't turn them on which is why I mentioned putting some mines on a deactivated PI.

As for mines being safe if you plant them, don't get me started I have many fond memories of playing Hidden & Dangerous 1 and having to plant mines and back away carefully (without setting them off) against the timer that would spawn the pursuing troops.

[OnTheBounce]

I tried setting the mines to a neutral team and they still follow the same rules for detection as those placed on hostile teams. So, basically this method is an either/or situation: you can have harmless mines that can be stepped on w/o fear of detonation, or you can have mines that are detectable only by standard methods.

Of course, even though "friendly" mines can be stepped on doesn't mean they can't be set off by the bane of all sappers: bursts from weapons...

OTB

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

Of course, even though "friendly" mines can be stepped on doesn't mean they can't be set off by the bane of all sappers: bursts from weapons...

Set their AC, DT/DR higher so they can't be set off by normal damage, like you do with the barricades.

Seemingly useless stuff someone might have a use for

Timers don't stop unless you stop them, not even when you go to the world map. I noticed this when I forgot to add the stop trigger and went back to the map later on and the timer was still running. Thought I'd try having a trigger in another map respond to the timer but no joy.

Maybe someone might want to use this to have time limits on getting to a mission and back? If set up in bunkers.

[requiem_for_a_starfury]

To make your slopes look better, either when you've built them from scratch or clipped them, select the slope tiles and in the level editor flag them 'do not allow shadow'. This will make them appear smoother, more like a single tile than a series of tiles. It doesn't really matter for straight slopes facing the camera but for twisty slopes like the sand dunes in the first mutant mission, or slopes away from the camera like the ramp under the overpass in the second mutant mission it's (IMHO) essential.