New Project: Need help guys !!

[Col_VonGreenhousen]

Hey Guys,

Apologies if a couple of things in this post are a bit more map related, but i'm putting together a single/multi player mission for MOHAA that is so historically accurate I need as much help with other bits as I can get

Right, here goes, credit will go out to all you dudes when the project is finished:

1) Can reinforcements, i.e enemy units, be spawned at a particular time during the mission/game, rather than waiting for the player to trigger something?

2) Can tanks be programmed to roam around the map (or a specific area) on their own, or do you HAVE to guide them with "waypoints"?

3) Can a NPC move independantly of the player actions, on Omaha beach for example, the advancing soldiers move on as Powell gets closer to the gun emplacements, but I need to have an NPC that goes about it's business regardless of what is happening elsewhere on the map, is this possible?

4) Is it possible to script an event that only happens if, say 5 triggers are activated?

5) Is it possible to build a bridge that explodes, and script it so it has a damage value (that value printed to the screen), like the mission where you have to blow up the Tiger Tank near the church?

6) I need an NPC to trigger an alarm once the player gets to a certain location on the map and is spotted by the NPC, is this possible?

7) This is a difficult one, can a "panic" level be programmed into the enemy troops, so they fight up until such point where they are simply overwhelmed, and panic...running away in the process?

8) Can anyone offer any advice on constructing an introduction to each map, as part of each single player mission I want a full briefing to be given. Can I show a scripted movie/demo, or do I just have to stick to images and sound in the background?

Peace, and if you have guns, war.

Colonel Von-GreenHousen
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Project --> Pegasus Bridge
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[jv_map]

Yes to all, except 2) and 7).

You can script a tank to roam around, but it needs some waypoints or splinepaths to move to. For example you could make a grid of these.

Not sure what you mean with a panic level. Maybe you could just script the AI to run away after a number of seconds?

You can use cameras to make a sweet intro movie .

[Parts]

Most of what you said you can set up with thread in a script.

For example to resolve 1:

in you main thread put somewhere Thread CallBackup

Then lower down in your script

CallBackup:


// wait between 61 and 90 seconds
local.delay = randomint(30) + 60
wait local.delay

//now spawn you new AIs

End

For the panic question in 7) what you could do is spawn a set of AIs and then set up a thread that loops through the AIs checking if they are alive (IsAlive). Set up a count for how many are alive, when the count is less than a certain amount get the remaing AI to run away (i.e. run toward a point somewhere on the edge of the map)

[Col_VonGreenhousen]

cheers for the reply

with the tanks, i can probably map out a number of waypoints along the roads to the north in my map, where the germans will come from...will having lots of these waypoints have any impact on the performance of the map?

yeah, the panic level is tricky. basically i wondered whether there is any way the soldiers can become aware of how much danger they are in from the allies....and subseuqently run away. i will probably give a handful of the advancing army a run away timer.

[Col_VonGreenhousen]

hey there parts,

that AI idea is extremely cool! never thought of that!

if i need any help with that particular bit of scripting, would you be able to offer some assistance!

[Parts]

yep should be able to help ya out. Have a go and see how you get on. msn or email me if you have any problems and I'll have a look for you

Boothee@ntlworld.com

[jv_map]

Adding waypoints should not impact performance.