38 replies to this topic

[RVMECH]

Ok now you have an object list that will define the tanks available from the enemy.....ok three gla are playing and it disguises as which one??? and sends it where????? You'll need to find a way to define the aquired enemy which is aquired at frame number 0 and incorporate that into the script events also.

devils advocate

[RVMECH]

That has always worked...problem is once the prereq is back the AI builds its own tanks....then disguises as itself....not good.
But good work anyway.

[thudo]

Well, two spines to be precise..

Anyway I don't know what you are all having a problem with- the bomb truck disguises in ZH!

I scripted a bit and told the AI to build the bomb truck immediately when it has an arms dealer (took off the palace prerequisite in an ini override). Then I told it to use commandbutton ability Disguise On Enemy Sighted, on the nearest 'Tanks'. I've set its state to normal and started the game - the AI built the bomb truck and I sent two scorpions to it - once it saw them it changed housecolors and model, only it didnt attack because I didn't make that condition in the On Enemy Sighted script.

Maybe the "normal" state is the turning point here?


EDIT: I tested it again just to be sure I wasn't hallucinating and it still works..  :w00t0:

Okie okay... wait wait... :w00t0: :tocol:

Yer getting me excited here..

Some guy told me on another forum to use the "On Enemy Sighted" about 3 weeks ago but we figured why would it work?

Yer telling me that if you put the script:

Team '<This Team>' use Ability 'Command_DisguiseAsVehicle' on nearest object of type 'Tanks' in the ENEMY SIGHTED behaviour tab and set its INITIAL STATE as NORMAL that it'll disguise?

If so, do you hear that "trademark" disguise sound?

When you say two scorpions came near to it and the BombTruck auto-disguised to look like one of them WERE THOSE SCORPIONS ON AN OPPOSITE TEAM? Did those "enemy" scorps try to attack it?

Sorry.. I could go on and on but W00T! We may, just may have a workaround.

If so, I can test it pretty easily. I would want to see the BombTruck look like, say, a Paladin or Gattling Tank! Then ensure the AI cannot attack it as it'll be considered one of its own UNTIL it loses its disguise due to base defenses or Cloak Detection. One step at a time..

Damn.. I'm Busting guy! :w00t0: BUSTING!! Yippee!!

[RVMECH]

Here is the problem. The script fires when the enemy is sighted. Now if the enemy tank is the closest then it will work..sort of (if the enemy is another ai big deal).
Ifthe closest tank belongs to the ai then it will disguise itself as its own tank. I explained this way back when to Thudo. I never used it because it only works 10% of the time..which is lame. But keep cracking you may find a work around yet.

[Mithril]

Yeah it'll at least work 10% of the time - thats something! So what about other team commands - such as the regular way of using the commandbutton ability on an enemy object - will that not work?

So it is actually the "On Enemy Sighted" thing that makes it work?

[thudo]

Yeah it'll at least work 10% of the time - thats something! So what about other team commands - such as the regular way of using the commandbutton ability on an enemy object - will that not work?

So it is actually the "On Enemy Sighted" thing that makes it work?

I don't get it: how can it disguise as its own when the script calls for "enemy of type 'tank' " ? Its suppose to be mimicing the enemy and the script has nothing to do with comparing its own units to become its own units. Plus.. the site range for the Disguiser is massive although I think we could perhaps increase the Line-Of-Sight for the Bombtruck.

Hey.. at least we have a workaround now. Now its time to tweak it to ensure it copies and mimics the enemy tanks and NOT its own based on how close it is to any particular tank.

[RVMECH]

It fires because the EVENT to fire it is seeing an enemy tank. the ACTION is too disguise as the NEAREST tank. Never confude the event with the action. But I think if you guys keep at it you will eventually get something to work..even it means spawning a clone. hang in there.

[thudo]

It fires because the EVENT to fire it is seeing an enemy tank. the ACTION is too disguise as the NEAREST tank. Never confude the event with the action. But I think if you guys keep at it you will eventually get something to work..even it means spawning a clone. hang in there.

I'll be testing this tomorrow morning early. I have some ideas and at least we found it can at least disguise at all. Damn... crazy bloody script.

[Mithril]

Yeah I hadnt expected it to work in the first go at ALL - I was just about closing the game again when that thing flashed yellow and disguised...


After you analysis, I'll attempt to resolve any problems..

[thudo]

Deezire had given me this sequence of scripts to try out although at the time the BombTruck simply couldn't disguise at all..

I still think we need an Enemy ObjectList defined for the BombTruck to compare the list to the enemy it faces. That is the proverbial "golden egg"..

Here are Deezire's script ideas:

IF
Team <ThisTeam> Has Been Created
AND
Team <ThisTeam> Has One Or More Members
THEN
Run Subroutine <DisguiseMeAsAVehicleUSA>
Run Subroutine <DisguiseMeAsAVehicleGLA>
Run Subroutine <DisguiseMeAsAVehicleChina>
Team <ThisTeam> Executes Script <TheNormalBombTruckAttackScript> Sequentially

USA Subroutine;-

IF
Player <ThisPlayersEnemy> Has Greater Than Or Equal To 1 Unit Of Type USAVehicleHumvee
THEN
Team <ThisTeam> Use Command Button Ability <Disguise> On Nearest Object Of Type <USAVehicleHumvee>

[thudo]

That timer idea is brilliant - we may get to a compromise between "The bomb truck finds an enemy" and "The bomb truck is being attacked".

Hmm just had a quick look and .. uhm.. would this work?

**IF**
(Unit)BombTruck sees a(n) <AnyObjectList> belonging to Player <This Player's Enemy>

and THEN use the disguise ability on nearest object with kindof VEHICLE. Then only problem may be that the Unit scripts mostly work with singleplayer maps - or so I have experienced, the garrison folders and tech building capture reference to Unit scripts but I don't know if the game will understand a BombTruck as a Unit since its actually a team.

Another, probably more possible way may be to set the bomb truck team to attack the enemy for two seconds or so, and then tell it to Use Commandbutton ability on named enemy. From my old C++ days there was a this pointer which pointed to the object at hand - my hopes with this theory are that when the bomb truck teams are set to attack the this pointer should point to a specific unit - and keep that value until we tell it to use the commandbutton ability.

Just two quick thoughts - you'll get the better ideas I'm sure!

Yea but the key is: How to create a Custom ObjectList for the BombTruck to compare to?

The key script is still:

Team '<This Team>' use Ability 'Command_DisguiseAsVehicle' on nearest object of type 'Tanks'.

We can't escape this.. I don't think. The greatest challenge is the part of that script: "on nearest object of type" which is always grabbing his own units UNLESS this script is activated with enemy ground vehicles around which is tactically dumb as I would never do such a thing. I usually disguise the trucks in my base when I can see an enemy unit near or on the other side of the map then either use the SneakAttack Tunnel or simply run them along side the edge the map without the player knowing, get them into position and BAM!!!! Half his base is a smoldering pile of OWNAGE!

So.. how do we get the Bombtruck to look at the ENEMY'S UNITS and not his own without the need to compare his own local ones? The script makes sense the way it is: it was just impossible to get it to activate until you got it working. Now the hard part is done.. we just need an Enemy ObjectList.. or, of course, another alternative.

[Mithril]

Now that is strange - since there is no real difference..

This is what I've got :

I've made the first GLA attack wave have one bomb truck - taking off the prerequisite with the INI and increased its priority just in case. Then the team has this On Enemy Sighted script:

**IF**
True.

**THEN**
Team <This Team> use Ability 'Command_DisguiseAsVehicle' on nearest object of type 'Tanks'

and the On Create script is a guard base one - which probably doesnt really matter. If you want to take a closer look at my scripts I'll load it up at the FTP and give ya access.

[thudo]

Now that is strange - since there is no real difference..

This is what I've got :

I've made the first GLA attack wave have one bomb truck - taking off the prerequisite with the INI and increased its priority just in case. Then the team has this On Enemy Sighted script:

**IF**
True.

**THEN**
Team <This Team> use Ability 'Command_DisguiseAsVehicle' on nearest object of type 'Tanks'

and the On Create script is a guard base one - which probably doesnt really matter. If you want to take a closer look at my scripts I'll load it up at the FTP and give ya access.

Hmm.. try making the BOMB TRUCK in the On Create:

*** IF ***
True.
*** THEN ***
Team '<This Team>' begins hunting.


This will force the BombTruck to leave its base and go out. Make sure it meets up with some 'tanks' although I wonder that because it is mobile the Disguise option doesn't work when it moving and when you disguise it infront of the enemy.

So.. what you've done is make the AI your enemy (I used GLA Demo General btw) and then had his Bombtruck stay in his base, then you drove some scorpions to his base and as you approached the Bomb Truck disguised? I have the GLA Demo General as my ally and I watch him send his BombTruck out to my CHina enemy below.

I don't get the fact it runs the On Enemy Sighted script when it runs the On Create one right off after being built from the ArmsDealer. Wierd. I can tell he runs the On Enemy one because he upgrades to High Explosive bomb almost immediately. Bloody weird.

[thudo]

Okie I found out a dumb thing: when you open yer .scb in WB and click on the back menu, EDIT/TEAMS and then proceed to edit the teams then click OK, back the scripts, export.. guess frick'n what?!? DOESN'T SAY THE TEAM INFO! BAHHH!!

Anyway.. didn't lose anything anyway as it was all about the BombTruck and Overlord garrisoning today so it was merely "playtime in scriptland"!

Okie.. back to testing..

[Mithril]

So.. what you've done is make the AI your enemy (I used GLA Demo General btw) and then had his Bombtruck stay in his base, then you drove some scorpions to his base and as you approached the Bomb Truck disguised?

Yep, I sent two scorps next to it and it flashed yellow a bit and then became an unattackable scorpion.

That on create thingy is soo strange its scary. It's seeing an enemy but there is none! Hallucinations. Anyway just to be sure I've tested putting the disguise script in the On Create behavior and it still works.... only you have to have a 'Tank' nearby! Damn logic. We'll get this working, however, I've been thinking about using the "Set to hunt using commandbutton ability" thingy (which needs a CommandbuttonHuntUpdate in the BombTruck's INI) but then again this is an ACTION isnt it? Not an EVENT

[Mithril]

Yeah but its kinda has the air of impossibility doesn it? Anyways now you have a platform and your blue brain can work on it. Hmm.. an enemy's object list..its easy to use another player's SCRIPTS but not da object list..

I'll think of a way - unless you are faster than me!

[thudo]

Yeah but its kinda has the air of impossibility doesn it? Anyways now you have a platform and your blue brain can work on it. Hmm.. an enemy's object list..its easy to use another player's SCRIPTS but not da object list..

I'll think of a way - unless you are faster than me!

I'd like to have other people maybe test this out as well (its hard enough I have other resposibilities outside of the ZH AI project) since its such a specific project like the Overlord Bunker Garrisioning issue.

I can get the BombTruck out in just over a minute since the game starts due to the prequiste hack in the GLA Vehicle.ini so if anyone else fiddles with it with the specific tast to get it to Disguise as its enemy preferably in their base first, then send it across disguised as one of its enemy's vehicles/tanks then that would be super-idle.

As it is now.. its possible and were close to something now then we've ever been! Hell.. at least it changes now! THATS A MASSIVE DEVELOPMENT!

Just my pulsating blue brain sometimes needs a twinkie!

[Mithril]

Hmm good point. I've been keeping an eye out for code testers but was unable to find any. There just don't seem to be any scripters about that are determined to help us out... .. Anyway are there any in the Den forums? You've been there longer than me..

I'll look into this again maybe tomorrow (damn you and MD are in the incorrect timezone! ) and then I'll post it here again... Lets see

[thudo]

Hmm good point. I've been keeping an eye out for code testers but was unable to find any. There just don't seem to be any scripters about that are determined to help us out... .. Anyway are there any in the Den forums? You've been there longer than me..

I'll look into this again maybe tomorrow (damn you and MD are in the incorrect timezone! ) and then I'll post it here again... Lets see

Yea Yea.. being -7 Hours from you kinda blowz. N. American Eastern SeaBoard vs. Central Northern Germany can righeously blow. Hell.. an hour to go for Dinner! Yum! :drool:

I've already tried to recruit people to do some testing on many many sites before I advertised on Deezire and, well, the rest is SAGE scripting history! Deezire was the checkpoint for my project! I still wish I started this whole thing back in Oct-Nov last year.. Grrr! Would have had more people still interested and the issues with EA would have not yet surfaced until post v1.01.

Anyway.. onward!

[Mithril]

Hmm I wonder if DZ would join the team once its all up and running. Would be a great addition. Anyway its 22:43 here which may be quite strange for you.. good night