Palace Wars Mod

[Dunenewt]

It didn't work with the Atreides Air Drone either. ???

[Adrian_Messecar]

This is what I used in the Artini.txt and Rules.txt files for testing the Ordos Plasma Saucer model:

[ORSaucer]

Xaf = "OR_PlasmaSaucer"

Icon = "iconsAT_Drone.tga"

IconGrey = "iconsgrey_AT_Drone.tga"

SideBarType = "Units"

ClipSphere = 110

[ORSaucer]

// Copied attribs from ATOrni

Score = 2

House = Atreides

StormDamage=10 //only damages is never picked up

PrimaryBuilding = ATHanger //only built in ATFactory

UnitGroup = FromHanger

Terrain = Rock, Sand, NBRock, Ramp

Cost = 1500

BuildTime = 499

Size = 3

//TurretAttach = ATADPGun

HeightOffset = 8

Speed = 18 //10 //7.0 //game coord per update

TurnRate = 0.05 //radians per update

Armour = Aircraft

Health = 1800

CanFly = TRUE

//Circles = TRUE

//ADF = TRUE

Ornithoptor = TRUE

Resource = ATHelipad

TurretAttach = ATOrnithopterGun

//SoundSelected = PilotSelected

//SoundOrdered = PilotOrdered

ExplosionType = AerialExplosion

Debris = DebrisMedium

TechLevel = 6

//Starportable = TRUE //order from starport (if atreides)

//ReinforcementValue = 8

//UpgradedPrimaryRequired = TRUE

DamageEffect = MediumDamageFX

ChaosEffect = MediumChaosFX

HawkEffect = MediumHawkFX

//HitSlowDownAmount = 50 // Percent (100 = complete stop)

//HitSlowDownDuration = 100 // ticks

ViewRange = 15  //was 4, 8

AiAir = TRUE

ExcludeFromSkirmishLose = TRUE

GetsHeightAdvantage = FALSE

AIThreat = 60

MissileTrail=7

MissileTrailSize=9

MissileTrailWiggleFreq = 10

MissileTrailWiggleScale=10

MissileTrailLength = 18

MissileTrailDelta = 0.9

//Holdback = TRUE

Unstealthrange = 10

RangeIndicator = 12

RangeMask = 1

// LEVEL 1 ----------------------------------

VeterancyLevel = 10 // Score required

ExtraDamage = 25 // 50% more damage - applied to all weapons

ExtraArmour = 50 // Takes 50% less damage

// LEVEL 2 ----------------------------------

VeterancyLevel = 24

ExtraRange = 20 // 50% further range

CanSelfRepair = 1 // Should have 0.5?

// LEVEL 3 ----------------------------------

VeterancyLevel = 48

ExtraDamage = 50

[Dunenewt]

Ok, thankyou I'll try that.  One thing, the textures are not saved with RLE compression, that could be a reason...?

[Dunenewt]

Ok. it works now :)

[Dunenewt]

Jules or Adrian, how do you get rid of the smoke effects on buildings?

[Dunenewt]

People, I bring to you the Corrino Surveyor (check attachment).

[lowzeewee]

COOL! How you made it?

[Dunenewt]

Adrian made the model as an Ordos Flying Saucer, and I re-textured it for my mod.

[Inoculator9]

Take a brighter pic, can't tell what the heck it looks like :P

[Dunenewt]

Good point lol. I used Apol's mini patch and zoomed right in but I've got too much black!

[Dunenewt]

Adrian, I could need some assistance in giving a building Turret Data.  Do you think you could help?

[Adrian_Messecar]

I could try to help, but it probably won't work.  Anyway, what did you have in mind?

Copying the turret and/or gun data from one Xbf file to another is possible, but that is not enough to make it shoot.  It has to have instructions in the FXData section controlling the shooting, but no one has figured out how the FXData section works.  Copying the entire FXData section from a unit that shoots to one that doesn't worked in a couple of cases (GUNiap and TLFlyer using ATADP FXData), but in most cases, the FXData section of one Xbf is not compatible with another Xbf.

[Dunenewt]

Ok. I was thinking about making a repair pad by using this model (see attachment) and putting in a weapon which does negative damage.[attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[JulesG]

:D

Sorry for the delay in getting the modified ordos turret to you, I kept forgetting to bring it into work. So instead I rebuilt it from the ICW model (that I have stored at work).

The two zip files are the models and the ordos middle&legparts texture.[attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[Adrian_Messecar]

What's the name of the Xbf file for that repair pad so I can check the Xbf file.

[JulesG]

Jules or Adrian, how do you get rid of the smoke effects on buildings?

The first part of an xbf header lists the animated special effect textures, eg smoke, gas exhausts, flame effects, flashing lights etc. These can be altered, however the default for all copies of the same building/unit even if the various "copies" are different is the first type of that building found in the Artini file (HK then AT then OR).

The next part of the xbf header has lots of funny numbers and words and includes the strings that trigger unit sounds (movement, gun noise etc). It is in here that the animation special effects are called: a phrase "fire" or "flame" can trigger the fire coming out of chimneys or flames appearing in the H2 damage model. A phrase "ign" in the flameturret triggers the little flame on the spout of the gun barrel. A phrase 16E4DFC0#151 >>0 (from the flameturret) is the trigger for the turret to fire out the special effect (in this case flames). A phrase "smokey" or "smoke01" is a trigger for the smoke to come out of the only chimney (smokey), or out of the first chimney (smoke01, while smoke02 would be the second chimney and so on).

The way to stop these is to change the trigger, eg "smokeno" stops the smoke, 16E4DFC0#no1 >>0 stops the flame, "HKquietspray" without a reference in the SFX files means that the turret has fewer firing sounds...

The last part of the xbf header lists the textures used to "paint" the model. This is the area that we most understand, and usually change. ;)

[JulesG]

Ok. I was thinking about making a repair pad by using this model (see attachment) and putting in a weapon which does negative damage.

I looked at this model, the main problem is that there is no HC version which means that the building can not be sold once built. (The HC construction model also allows the deconstruction of a model when it is sold).

[JulesG]

Copying the entire FXData section from a unit that shoots to one that doesn't worked in a couple of cases (GUNiap and TLFlyer using ATADP FXData), but in most cases, the FXData section of one Xbf is not compatible with another Xbf.

The header has to be simple, so for example I was able to substitute the header of a ordeviator with that of a SMquad. (Both have dual weapons that have a rotation axis in the same position of the model). At the time this was the only way I knew how to get rid of the green gas emission effects. (Now I would switch it off in the header!).

When I tried to change the deviator header for the orlasertank header, I got a single rotating weapon, plus the model did loop the loops (part of the explosion sfx!) as it drove along!

[JulesG]

However, don't move rotating parts off from their axis of rotation, because they will still rotate around the original axis (unless you take the mesh into MilkShape3d and reanimate it).

Been there done that... The hover tank in ICW based on a projector tank has the turret moved from the front to the middle of the body. If you then give it a rotating turret definition in Rules, it rotates about the END of the barrel!

I believe that certain of the frames (ones with dots?) are rotation and firing points which you can move if you can work out which is which. (I found I had a model where the flash animation of the "gun" was appearing in mid-air miles away from the graphical barrel of the gun, I had to move all the frames bar one across and up to line the flash up with the barrel).

[Apollyon]

Perhaps that would've been better compiled into one post?

[Cyborg]

It seems like he separated the posts because of quote linking.

[Apollyon]

I know, but you should still post in one post.

[Cyborg]

Yes. I copy quotes to notepad...

[JulesG]

I know, but you should still post in one post.

Have I broken some rule of the forum? If so should not the moderator for this section be telling me off?

I thought separate posts would make the three topic questions I have answered/commented on easier to understand. Perhaps not...

[Cyborg]

The rules say you aren't allowed to make double posts. Triple posts makes you a villain :P