4 replies to this topic

[Sir_Carnifex]

It's been awhile (a long while!) since I've been around or even done any modding, but I'm starting to look into it again. While I'm more than a little dissatisfied with the old work that I was doing (amazing how four years absences make you see things different!), I decided that since I'm still basically a newbie to the modding world that it'd be a good thing to just continue working on it and use it as a means of becoming more familiar with everything in the "toolset". Once I'm more accustomed to everything then I can focus on a more serious project.

The past couple days I was reviewing the coding I'd done and noticed a number of glaring mistakes which I can fix in time. But I had a question in particular about one thing. Currently, my mod's banters will continue going even in the Underdark. Really, it's not something I even thought about until I started playing again and noticed other NPCs don't banter too much in there. Now, is there a short way of just excluding all banters from the UD (except special ones) or would I have to specifically mark IF not "in such-and-such an area" for each and every banter trigger? Or would it be more advisable to find the variable for the drow transformation and use that instead? Even so, would that have to be applied to each and every banter individually?

Thanks for any help. I'm looking forward to giving this another go in the near future.

Edited by Sir_Carnifex, 10 August 2012 - 04:52 PM.

[cmorgan]

Global("Chapter","GLOBAL",5) // In Underdark

!Global("Chapter","GLOBAL",5) // Not In Underdark

If you are talking about regular B-file stuff, that should do it. Though I don't see many folks actually doing that, really - it seems relatively rtare that folks remember to stop stuff from playing in Underdark.

If you are talking about friendtalks and specificly triggered from script stuff, then you can do some trickery with Drow appearence, or set your own blocking global, but again the simplest way of dealing with the issue is to just ahave good old "not in chpter 5, boyo" in there.

[Sir_Carnifex]

Global("Chapter","GLOBAL",5) // In Underdark

!Global("Chapter","GLOBAL",5) // Not In Underdark

If you are talking about regular B-file stuff, that should do it. Though I don't see many folks actually doing that, really - it seems relatively rare that folks remember to stop stuff from playing in Underdark.

Huh. I saw that the banter pack (I think?) had banters stopping in the UD, so I kind of figured that was common practice. It makes sense.

In regard to the file, yes, I believe it's in the B-file, though I'd have to take another look. I've forgotten a lot in four years and it'll be some time before I pick it back up again. Thanks for the tip though. I wouldn't have occurred to me to check by chapter. I'm assuming that check has to be placed in the triggers of each individual banter?

If you are talking about friendtalks and specificly triggered from script stuff, then you can do some trickery with Drow appearence, or set your own blocking global, but again the simplest way of dealing with the issue is to just ahave good old "not in chapter 5, boyo" in there.

I had thought about drow appearance, too, and then dismissed it thinking that the player might have chosen drow as a race. And then I realized that you can't play drow in BG2! I'm am so used to working with NWN2, I was putting those available races into BG2. So, yeah, I could do that. However, I've not gotten to the point of coding friendship dialogues. I'm not sure that I would bother with that with this particular NPCs because 1)Nobody would want to befriend him 2)He's an NPC created for the purpose of just learning coding and therefore isn't anything special 3)what I have done with him is mainly joke-a-day style. Perhaps if I have enough fun getting back into modding I might try something serious eventually, and then I can work with the friendship dialogues.

Again, thanks for the help. I'm sure I'll have a lot more pesky questions.

[cmorgan]

Sir_carnifex, you will probably find that you have forgotten very little - it will come back quickly!

(On the banter packs - that's what people should be doing, definitely - or what I did, which is swap in special friendtalks and banters for play during underdark. But nt everyone goes for that model, and the forums are not filled with bug complaints about it, so I figure the luck of the bannter engine has been on the side of the unknowing )

Edited by cmorgan, 11 August 2012 - 07:19 AM.

[Sir_Carnifex]

Sir_carnifex, you will probably find that you have forgotten very little - it will come back quickly!

I hope so! I've done scripting for NWN2, so perhaps just the experience of that will help with BG2. Logic is required for both, correct? Anyway, thanks for the encouragement.

(On the banter packs - that's what people should be doing, definitely - or what I did, which is swap in special friendtalks and banters for play during underdark. But nt everyone goes for that model, and the forums are not filled with bug complaints about it, so I figure the luck of the bannter engine has been on the side of the unknowing )

I agree. I like some elements of realism even in a fantasy game.