Newbie DarkRadiant Questions

[Sotha]

How can I control player movement, paralyse him for few seconds, then force him to move from a current position to specific point? Or even go to sleep/ wake up animation?

 

Make a special AI that has no head. Glue a camera on the head position.

Teleport the AI into the player position, teleport the player somewhere nearby, activate the camera and have a conversation to control the AI.

In the end, remove the AI, disable camera and teleport the player back.

 

Remember, that the player must be around: you only hear what the player hears, i.e. you do not hear through the camera.

This is what it looks like:

http://forums.thedar...on-camera-ride/

[ERH+]

Can I find somewhere a camera movement script from this article? :

http://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Cutscenes_Part_2:_Splines_and_Camera_Movement

link to "snitch.zip" is dead.

[grayman]

Can I find somewhere a camera movement script from this article? :

http://wiki.thedarkm...Camera_Movement

link to "snitch.zip" is dead.

 

Sorry, didn't know the link died.

 

You can get the file here.

[SteveL]

Can I add an empty spawnarg in DR? I mean, if I need the value for a given spawnarg to be the empty string "", is there a way to do that in DR? If I try it in the entity inspector, DR deletes the spawnarg. I'll try it by editing the .map file but it would be good to do it in the editor.

[grayman]

Can I add an empty spawnarg in DR? I mean, if I need the value for a given spawnarg to be the empty string "", is there a way to do that in DR? If I try it in the entity inspector, DR deletes the spawnarg. I'll try it by editing the .map file but it would be good to do it in the editor.

 

DR deletes it?

 

I just added this spawnarg and it stayed put:

 

"junk" ""

[SteveL]

I left the box empty, on the assumption that if I entered quotes they'd end up as part of the captured string. I just tried entering "" in the box, and it looks like it does work* but unfortunately it doesn't stop the CollisionModelManager loading the inherited model.

 

I'm having a go at Springheel's challenge for hiding a ring in a prefab boot. I reckon I'm within reach of that virtual cookie, but I'm having trouble suppressing inherited clip models. Ack, I don't need to do I? I can just create a generic moveable and add the visual model.

 

*EDIT: Ack! Don't do this! The map will load ok in TDM but DR will refuse to load it until you fix the """" in the map file in a text editor!

Edited May 7, 2014 by SteveL

[grayman]

Sorry, didn't know the link died.

 

You can get the file here.

 

The wiki link has been fixed.

[Digi]

I'm going to be bringing the newb hardcore here for a while. Here's my next question:

 

It concerns Textures. There are none in the texture tab in DR, and I haven't been able to upload them for use. I've tried moving the pk4 tecture files around, tried unzipping them and moving them around, in my default TDM folder, in the fms folder, the "darkmod" folder I have in the fms folder, tried dragging the files individually into the editor, or opening them separately. Nothing. The editor itself doesn't seem hard to manipulate. It's the backend logistics that have been stupidly frustrating.

 

Anyway, thanks for any help.

[RJFerret]

It sounds like your Game preferences setting has been lost (it isn't retained well, every time I open prefs, I have to replace it).

 

Assuming you return your texture PK4 back to where it was originally installed, the Engine Path should be the parent directory of where the "darkmod" folder is, and the mod is "darkmod". IE, the engine path should not include the complete path, but the parent of it.

 

(This all presumes textures aren't showing up in your Media tab, the Texture tab itself doesn't get populated until you use stuff or load stuff.)

[Digi]

Good deal. I figured it out now (at least I think so...textures are showing up in Media now). The disconnect was that TDM folder, when installed, was named "The Dark Mod" and DR was looking for just 'darkmod'. So to get it to shut up, I created a new "darkmod" folder inside the game folder, and there was nothing useful in it. Your response helped me Troubleshoot it though, so thanks.

 

Now hopefully I can get past another 3-4 steps before my next crippling problem. :-)

Edited May 8, 2014 by Digi

[Obsttorte]

Can I add an empty spawnarg in DR? I mean, if I need the value for a given spawnarg to be the empty string "", is there a way to do that in DR? If I try it in the entity inspector, DR deletes the spawnarg. I'll try it by editing the .map file but it would be good to do it in the editor.

Non defined Spawnargs always hold an empty string. So if you try to acces them as strings you always get "" (without quotation marks), and if you try to access them as numbers, you get zero.

[SteveL]

It sounds like your Game preferences setting has been lost (it isn't retained well, every time I open prefs, I have to replace it).

I remember you discussing this in earlier posts RJF, but it doesn't happen to me so it too could be a local settings thing. I have 2 tdm installations and 3 DR installations plus a lot of test maps so I'm always popping open this dialog to check where DR is looking. I don't lose any settings. If you try removing your DR config files one a time you might be able to make the problem go away.

 

These settings come up a lot in newbie questions. I found them confusing too. I'm thinking we should take this discussion to the DR forum and think about how they should work. greebo mentioned that creating a TDM profile for the path settings would be worthwhile. Perhaps engine path should point to the tdm folder itself, whatever it happens be called.

 

Non defined Spawnargs always hold an empty string. So if you try to acces them as strings you always get "" (without quotation marks), and if you try to access them as numbers, you get zero.

What I was trying to do was override an inherited spawnarg with a null value, so that a model with a clip model in a separate file would generate an automatic clipmodel instead, which I could suppress with the noclipmodel spawnarg. There's no dummy value recognised by the code. Only if the spawnarg returns the empty string does the game fall back on auto generation. And I wanted to do this without using any new def or cm files so that I could make prefab that'll work right now.

It was doomed to failure. The game won't load an idMover without a clipmodel.

[RJFerret]

I remember you discussing this in earlier posts RJF, but it doesn't happen to me so it too could be a local settings thing.

 

Yes, I learned of the issue/work-around digging in the forums myself, and it does seem to only affect some of us (space in the directory name perhaps?), but since I never go into prefs except when this question/issue pops up, it doesn't affect me. I'm just motivated to get the info out to those who need it readily, hence my always replying if nobody beats me to it when it gets asked. :-)

[Obsttorte]

What I was trying to do was override an inherited spawnarg with a null value, so that a model with a clip model in a separate file would generate an automatic clipmodel instead, which I could suppress with the noclipmodel spawnarg.

A def file would look like this

entityDef somenamehere
{
 "inherit"  "name_of_the_moveable"
 "clipmodel"  ""
}

Save this in a text file in a folder called def and rename the ending of the file to def.

[Goldwell]

Is there any reason why visportals attached to doors are opening (turning green) whenever I look at them?

 

I have checked to make sure the room is sealed but it still does it.

[grayman]

Possibilities:

 

1. There's a path from you to the back of the door. At the moment when the door goes from red to green, check the perimeters of your view to see if another visportal's edge has appeared. Let's call it portal "B". If, as you shift portal B on and off the screen, the door portal toggles back and forth from red to green, then there's a path from you, through portal B, to the back of the door.

 

2. The portal doesn't touch the door.

 

3. The door has the "transparent" spawnarg set to "1".

 

4. TDM is in one of its "I don't care what you think this portal is supposed to do, I'm going to make it do something different" moods.

[SteveL]

If there's no leak then the door isn't working a switch on the VP for some reason. A few other things you could check:

Has the door got a "transparent" spawnarg?

Is the door closed? If it starts open then the open and closed states might be switched. Something blocking it would also mess it up.

Is the door touching the VP face?

Is the door the normal class, atdm:mover_door I think?

Edit: crossed with grayman

[Moonbo]

Also, make sure that the door is actually a door mover entity and not just a FS model. I once spent an hour looking for internal leaks before I realized that I just hadn't swapped out my placeholder door model for an actual door.

[Goldwell]

Cool thanks for your help everyone!

 

Seems like most of the problems were that somehow the back was being reached by the outside. And strangely one portal had to be resized to fit within the frame of the door. No other portals needed that but as long as it works whatever!

[RJFerret]

And strangely one portal had to be resized to fit within the frame of the door.

 

I've found it best to have it fit within rather than be embedded, the latter leads to unusual troubles it seems.

[Melan]

Is there a non-complicated way to make the AI drop equippable swords when they die/get KO-ed instead of moveables? Or would it be too complicated?

[Sotha]

I don't think it is difficult.

 

There is a KO and death_script spawrnargs for the AI. Make a script file for your mission with "dropsword" script. Give this dropsword for the death/ko_script on the AI.

 

In the script you just need to sys.spawn a shortsword, teleport it into the location of the AI, and activate physics for it.

 

There should be examples in the LQD.pk4 how to use death_scripts. All the revenants have it. the script does also similar things you are interested in, IE spawning stuff and teleporting it to the AI.

[Melan]

Thanks!

[ERH+]

I have nodraw atdm:froblock, atdm:mover_lock_handle with model. On start both lock and lockhandle are not frobable, and handle is hidden. What I want to do, is to make an object to become visible, move like lock_handle, but be removed (or hidden) when lock is opened.

But teleporting handle makes nothing happening, and attaching invisible func_static to handle makes BOTH handle and func_static invisible when func_static should be switched to visible. They turn visible if I use lockpick on them, but after I open lock, script not only remove func_static, but also a handle and any object binded to it. Help?

[Moonbo]

I think you'll have to use a script for that. First put the handle in the proper place and give it the spawnargs "frobable 0" and "hide 1" (this will make it invisible and non-frobable). Then when the player does whatever he's supposed to do, trigger a script similar to:

 

$handle.show(); //makes the previously handle visible

sys.wait(.5); //waits half a second for dramatic effect

$handle.activate($player1); //activates the handle which will cause it to move

sys.wait(.5); //waits half a second for dramatic effect

$handle.hide(); //re-hides the handle