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Questions about Editor in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Tuesday, June 15 2004 14:55 Profile #7
Couldn't you create new races by replacing character pics and using custom special stats or items to modify experience?
(I don't know if this is possible, but people dismissed the idea really quickly, which I've noticed tends to be a bad idea with scriptable engines like this...or anything else, really.)

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Questions about Editor in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Tuesday, June 15 2004 14:55 Profile #7
Couldn't you create new races by replacing character pics and using custom special stats or items to modify experience?
(I don't know if this is possible, but people dismissed the idea really quickly, which I've noticed tends to be a bad idea with scriptable engines like this...or anything else, really.)

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
VODT: drake fang & magic pants in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Monday, June 14 2004 12:36 Profile #14
You don't. One of the walls around that room has a secret doorway in it that you can get at from an adjacent room.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
BoA...aagh, slow! in Tech Support
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Monday, June 14 2004 06:03 Profile #7
Are you spywared or something?

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Minor bug in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Monday, June 14 2004 05:59 Profile #4
I think it's because giants and other large characters are made up of multiple pictures that the game has to put together. For some reason, when they get summoned the other half doesn't show up.
Actually, now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure in A2 those characters were part monster-pic and part terrain-pic.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
To Spidweb, Regarding Heights & Editor in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Friday, June 11 2004 05:37 Profile #2
If you read all the docs with the editor, you find the likelihood of Jeff doing any of this is approximately zero. However, he conveniently includes the source code so those who know C can do it themselves. Those of us who don't, on the other hand, are screwed.
(I assume he released the Windows code, too, though I actually don't know. But he definitely let out the Mac stuff.)

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
To Spidweb, Regarding Heights & Editor in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Friday, June 11 2004 05:37 Profile #2
If you read all the docs with the editor, you find the likelihood of Jeff doing any of this is approximately zero. However, he conveniently includes the source code so those who know C can do it themselves. Those of us who don't, on the other hand, are screwed.
(I assume he released the Windows code, too, though I actually don't know. But he definitely let out the Mac stuff.)

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Making of Avernum 1 - 3 in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Friday, June 11 2004 05:32 Profile #12
The other Avernum games are almost identical in engine to Avernum 3.

And since you apparently haven't picked this up yet, remaking the Avernum series as BoA scenarios is *illegal.*

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Making of Avernum 1 - 3 in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Friday, June 11 2004 05:32 Profile #12
The other Avernum games are almost identical in engine to Avernum 3.

And since you apparently haven't picked this up yet, remaking the Avernum series as BoA scenarios is *illegal.*

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Small Mistake with Chief Spider... in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Wednesday, June 9 2004 15:36 Profile #10
quote:
Originally written by Grey-Eyed Stranger:

Arancaytar: When you type e-mail addresses, don't type them outright. Put them something like: spidweb AT spiderwebsoftware DOT com.

This prevents spam-crawlers from finding the email and spamming Jeff.
Given that the address is at the bottom of every page on the Spiderweb site, I'd say it's a pretty moot point. :)

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
VODT: drake fang & magic pants in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Wednesday, June 9 2004 15:26 Profile #5
It's on the same level as the journal, in a closet you can actually see but can't get to past the unpassable puddles of acid. I assume the acid research is the excuse for the unpassable puddles of acid, since it mentions how unstable the spell is.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Field effect spells? in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Wednesday, June 9 2004 15:24 Profile #6
It's been that way for the whole series, though...and I don't think there was even the Cloud of Blades in the original Avernum, was there?

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Screenshots from the game.. in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Monday, May 31 2004 03:17 Profile #14
NDAs are a pretty standard required piece for people testing shareware. If you disclose the details you lose a lot of buzz because people aren't talkiing about what'll be in the game.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Screenshots from the game.. in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Friday, May 28 2004 08:23 Profile #10
The PC testers probably had to sign more or less the same NDA as the Mac ones, though. Thus, even if everyone knew every story, the testers still couldn't talk about it.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Settings you would like to see future Spiderweb games take place in in General
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Thursday, May 27 2004 08:13 Profile #28
*grrrrr*
PocketPC is bad. He should definitely do it for Palm OS. IMAGE(tongue01.gif)
But I don't think he's likely to do either. It would involve a much larger amount of work than I think he's prepared to put forth.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Article - The Moral of the Story in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Thursday, May 20 2004 14:41 Profile #31
And since the original scenarios are supposed to show what's possible with the engine, Jeff may have just been giving new designers possible topics for scenarios. You could set one when the school is closed explaining what happened, for instance.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
Article - The Moral of the Story in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Thursday, May 20 2004 14:41 Profile #31
And since the original scenarios are supposed to show what's possible with the engine, Jeff may have just been giving new designers possible topics for scenarios. You could set one when the school is closed explaining what happened, for instance.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Tuesday, May 18 2004 06:26 Profile #29
Thanks, Vent, but I do know that much programming. I'd just assumed there were different behavior models for different NPCs, whether they were external scripts or internal functions.

Kelandon: Ah. Thanks. I've never looked at BoE, so I don't really know much about its engine. *wonders what nodes are.*
*Decides he doesn't care enough to look*

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Tuesday, May 18 2004 06:26 Profile #29
Thanks, Vent, but I do know that much programming. I'd just assumed there were different behavior models for different NPCs, whether they were external scripts or internal functions.

Kelandon: Ah. Thanks. I've never looked at BoE, so I don't really know much about its engine. *wonders what nodes are.*
*Decides he doesn't care enough to look*

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Monday, May 17 2004 06:18 Profile #26
quote:
Originally written by Pronounced Kel-LAN-don:

The way you could tell the difference between monsters all having the same AI and some having custom scripts is by special movement (it runs somewhere after seeing you), messaging (it calls for help), string printing ("You have been spotted!"), or special targeting (a mung demon that targets the best spellcasters and not just anyone nearby with spell abilities). I don't remember any of these in the Avernum Trilogy anywhere, but it's been a while, so if you do remember them, be sure to mention it. I'd be interested.
Like I said, I haven't played all the way through every one, but I think there might be a Nephilim fort in A2 where people call for help. Or maybe not. Hmmmmm.....
It just surprises me that having already created a scripting language for BoE, JV wouldn't make use of it in Avernum.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Monday, May 17 2004 06:18 Profile #26
quote:
Originally written by Pronounced Kel-LAN-don:

The way you could tell the difference between monsters all having the same AI and some having custom scripts is by special movement (it runs somewhere after seeing you), messaging (it calls for help), string printing ("You have been spotted!"), or special targeting (a mung demon that targets the best spellcasters and not just anyone nearby with spell abilities). I don't remember any of these in the Avernum Trilogy anywhere, but it's been a while, so if you do remember them, be sure to mention it. I'd be interested.
Like I said, I haven't played all the way through every one, but I think there might be a Nephilim fort in A2 where people call for help. Or maybe not. Hmmmmm.....
It just surprises me that having already created a scripting language for BoE, JV wouldn't make use of it in Avernum.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Sunday, May 16 2004 16:01 Profile #21
quote:
Originally written by Pronounced Kel-LAN-don:

Because GF *did* have the text files just lying around. You have to go into GF Files and then Scripts to get to them, but they're there. A1-3 has nothing comparable.
Yeah, but Geneforge was also very open about its contents...there was even a little note about it somewhere. Avernum, on the other hand was not. By your argument Avernum clearly had no graphics files because you couldn't open up anything and see pictures. (okay, so I think there are files with 'graphics' in the name, but you get the idea).
And I really don't know about different behaviors...it depends. Archers/mages have a tendency to hang back, and sometimes they run away...but then again, sometimes they don't. Whether there are 'external' scripts (ones not in the engine) or several internal ones, or just one big complex internal one, is something I really don't have the experience to decide (and frankly I don't think anyone does. There are too many possible variations on each to tell what's what.).

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Sunday, May 16 2004 16:01 Profile #21
quote:
Originally written by Pronounced Kel-LAN-don:

Because GF *did* have the text files just lying around. You have to go into GF Files and then Scripts to get to them, but they're there. A1-3 has nothing comparable.
Yeah, but Geneforge was also very open about its contents...there was even a little note about it somewhere. Avernum, on the other hand was not. By your argument Avernum clearly had no graphics files because you couldn't open up anything and see pictures. (okay, so I think there are files with 'graphics' in the name, but you get the idea).
And I really don't know about different behaviors...it depends. Archers/mages have a tendency to hang back, and sometimes they run away...but then again, sometimes they don't. Whether there are 'external' scripts (ones not in the engine) or several internal ones, or just one big complex internal one, is something I really don't have the experience to decide (and frankly I don't think anyone does. There are too many possible variations on each to tell what's what.).

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum Editor
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Sunday, May 16 2004 11:04 Profile #19
quote:
Originally written by Pronounced Kel-LAN-don:

The Avernum Trilogy did not include any scripts with the game, whereas Geneforge did -- and you could tell by the complex behavior of characters in the game that they had custom scripts. In Avernum, ever character used the same program, something similar to basicnpc (except with less of a pathfinding algorithm). Towns didn't have their own scripts; they probably had the same nodes as in Exile. So basically, the Avernums worked very much like Exile in terms of their programming, and BoA works a lot more like Geneforge.
How do you know the Avernum games included no scripts? I mean, sure, there weren't any convenient text files lying around for users to edit, but I'd assume things like that would be shoved inside of some data file. And while I confess to not having played through the registered Avernums yet (just ordered the trilogy CD...yay!) there are certainly different kinds of fighting styles in the game. Though I suppose that it's possible those behaviors are actually coded in and each character is simply slapped with a behavior number.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00
A game programmer's point of view in Blades of Avernum
SNM
Shock Trooper
Member # 4239
 written Sunday, May 16 2004 11:04 Profile #19
quote:
Originally written by Pronounced Kel-LAN-don:

The Avernum Trilogy did not include any scripts with the game, whereas Geneforge did -- and you could tell by the complex behavior of characters in the game that they had custom scripts. In Avernum, ever character used the same program, something similar to basicnpc (except with less of a pathfinding algorithm). Towns didn't have their own scripts; they probably had the same nodes as in Exile. So basically, the Avernums worked very much like Exile in terms of their programming, and BoA works a lot more like Geneforge.
How do you know the Avernum games included no scripts? I mean, sure, there weren't any convenient text files lying around for users to edit, but I'd assume things like that would be shoved inside of some data file. And while I confess to not having played through the registered Avernums yet (just ordered the trilogy CD...yay!) there are certainly different kinds of fighting styles in the game. Though I suppose that it's possible those behaviors are actually coded in and each character is simply slapped with a behavior number.

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There are two kinds of game players...those who are newbies, and those who were.
Posts: 322 | Registered: Monday, April 12 2004 07:00

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