Forged Alliance Forever

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T21:43:35+02:00

Note: Mesh files are ussually an .SCM extension, if i recall correctly and Animations are .SCA

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 21:43

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T22:34:21+02:00

You can look at what bones are on a mesh via the console commands. First off spawn the unit in question then press on your keyboard CTRL-SHIFT-B or CTRL-SHIFT-V. Anyways its something similar to those if not those specifically. (Maybe ALT as well, i have forgotten so much) This provides a wire mesh view of the unit and each of the bones / labels within it. Whats neat about this is that you can clearly see how a mesh is setup and also see how the units animations manipulates each bone.

OR you can open the mesh file with a text editor. Usually the first phrase shown is the master bone. This bone is often referred via LUA strings as bone "0". Normal for units such as the UEF COMMANDER it should be UEF001 (if i recall correctly), thus matching the master bone with the units designation for simplicity sake. However, this could be named anything the mesh designer wants so looking it up can be a big help.

Note: All weapon muzzles / barrels are mesh bones. Even if its just the master bone being used.

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 21:13

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T19:29:02+02:00

Ahhhh okay. My issue was the Turret_Muzzle. I had no idea what that meant and had just copied it from another unit. Changing it fixed the issue of it not firing. How do I create turrets/bones and such on models? Eventually I plan on adding my own models. For this unit I had just copied all the model/mesh/animation info from the Defense Satellite. So fixing it was as simple as checking which turret that unit used.

Statistics: Posted by Killzone — 12 Apr 2017, 19:29

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T18:38:01+02:00

The weapon bones "Turret_Muzzle" and "Turret_Barrel" may not exsist on the mesh your using. If so the weapon will drop an error in the log and not fire. Try using "0" or "-1" instead. This references the center bone of the unit, which all oher child bones attach.

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 18:38

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T18:32:39+02:00

Things to consider...

The "Typeclass" needs to be unique, otherwise it could overwrite a pre-exsisting unit. (MAC001 sounds familiar)

What do you show in your error log? (While running the game in windowed mode, press F9 to open the log window. Look for red or orange text anytime you spawn your unit or interface with it in some way)

Odds are that of the unit isnt working as planed, you may have a type-o or other such error.

The script shown defines the LUA script for the unit as an Air Entity. The blueprint should also reflect this.

The weapon name in the script should match the weapon "label" in the blueprint or it will not fire.

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 18:32

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T17:21:37+02:00

Thanks for the help. I don't know how I missed the build rate. I had it set to 1 for some reason :\ Once I changed that I was able to produce the Nukes. However, they still won't fire. I've continued to look through the code and I have no idea why.

Here's my script code, if it'll help:

Spoiler: show

*EDIT: The weapon audio plays fine, but no nuke is produced. All-in-all very strange :\

Statistics: Posted by Killzone — 12 Apr 2017, 17:21

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T09:06:03+02:00

The unit in question must have a build rate defined within it's blueprint... Look at Engineers, that have rates set showing how much they can build per second and what they are allowed to build. (look under "Economy " section of the unit blueprint)

BuildRate = 'n',

Also the bounds you have set is massive and could use reducing by a factor of 10. I suspect that your SkirtSizeX/Z of "10" is whats wrong. Try using a value of "1" and then adjusting this as you go to see what fits the mesh better.

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 09:06

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T02:57:10+02:00

Thanks so much for the help Resin. I don't know how I missed the Nuke CommandCaps :\ Thanks for all the info. I'll keep tweaking various xyz values until I find what works. Here are some screen caps. The first shows the build box being ridiculously large. The second shows the unit in high orbit. I'm still having issues where Nukes won't be built

Spoiler: show

Statistics: Posted by Killzone — 12 Apr 2017, 02:57

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T01:31:19+02:00

BTW... by having this unit setup as BuildOnLayerCaps, LAYER_Land = true,

Its possible that a land unit could target and fire on your satellite. Better to use Layer Air or Orbit and then make the satellite non-targetable. Oh and dont forget that land units may have to path around a ground units that's technically held up in the air...

Edit: Second though "Land" should work so long as the unit script says it's an Air Unit, it will behave like one. Just make sure you dont mix air / land unit properties otherwise you'll see some really strange things in game. Case in point, I set a fighter elevation to 1 and made it really fast. This produced the effect where the fighter would impact the ground, bouncing off the dirt every time the elevation changed.

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 01:31

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T01:28:12+02:00

Code:: CommandCaps = { RULEUCC_Attack = true, RULEUCC_CallTransport = false, RULEUCC_Capture = false, RULEUCC_Guard = true, RULEUCC_Move = true, RULEUCC_Nuke = false, RULEUCC_Patrol = true, RULEUCC_Pause = true, RULEUCC_Reclaim = false, RULEUCC_Repair = false, RULEUCC_RetaliateToggle = true, RULEUCC_SiloBuildNuke = true, RULEUCC_Stop = true, RULEUCC_Transport = false, },

Try " RULEUCC_Nuke = true, "

This should add the nuke button to the units UI.

As it's a manual fire weapon the below could be set to false...
" RULEUCC_Attack = false, "

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 01:28

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-12T01:14:46+02:00

Code:: Footprint = { MaxSlope = 0.25, SizeX = 1, SizeZ = 1, },

Footprint is the "required" o-grid area a unit needs to be built, this can be different then the units actual size / hitbox. Keep in mind that there are "standard" footprint sizes already defined. Choosing one footprint over another can add effects as predefined by the games lua script. (Yes this can be modded too)

Code:: Physics = { BankingSlope = 0, BuildOnLayerCaps = { LAYER_Air = false, LAYER_Land = true, LAYER_Orbit = false, LAYER_Seabed = false, LAYER_Sub = false, LAYER_Water = false, }, Elevation = 75, FuelRechargeRate = 150, FuelUseTime = 0, MaxAcceleration = 1, MaxSpeed = 10, MaxSteerForce = 100, MeshExtentsX = 5.75, MeshExtentsY = 4.5, MeshExtentsZ = 8, MinSpeedPercent = 0.85, MotionType = 'RULEUMT_Air', SkirtOffsetX = -1.5, SkirtOffsetZ = -1.5, SkirtSizeX = 10, SkirtSizeZ = 10, TurnRadius = 100, TurnRate = 20, },

BuildOnLayerCaps = which layer the unit can be built on (water / air / land ect.)

Elevation = how high above the ground the unit will be while in play. Your setting of 75 means that whatever is built is basically floating in the air, despite being built on the ground. (this isn't flying, just stuck in space) Normally this is used to offset a unit above the ground when it is uneven to prevent clipping issues. Typically small values are used to fine to the appearance of a unit or to give the illusion that a unit is hovering.

MeshExtentsX/Y/Z = the boundaries of the unit in question (x,y,z). Be aware this isn't the units Hitbox but rather just defining the mesh area. Beyond that, I'm not aware of this having an ingame purpose. It's possible that a script can be written to use the Mesh size and unit scaling to auto setup hitboxes / selection-size ect. However this all assumes that custom meshes all use the same "scale" when developing their models.

SkirtOffsetX/Y = The offset of the decal from the meshes center bone of the unit in question.

SkirtSizeX/Y/Z = the decal size that's placed under a unit, if any. (buildings have this)

SelectionSizeX/Y = The area above a unit that a mouse cursor must be over for the selection reticle to be shown.

SelectionThickness = Thickness of the selection reticle.

SizeX/Y/Z = Units hitbox. This can be either a Box or a Sphere. Keep in mind that the Sphere has only one value, its radius.

CollisionOffsetX/Y/Z = Offsets a units hitbox, which is normally centered over it's main mesh bone.

CollisionShape = Sphere / Box shape for hitbox. Changing a units scaling requires that its hitbox / selection box be rescaled as well.

Note: Unit hitboxes can be set and manipulated via scripts or via console commands for testing.

Killzone, can you provide pic's of the unit in game so i can advise?

Resin

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 12 Apr 2017, 01:14

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-11T17:14:02+02:00

Look at values that state SIZE, MESH, X-Y-Z.... some are for selection via mouse, others its hit-box and yet others its the build boundaries. Most of this is easy to figure out if you do direct comparisons between similar units and look for the differences. Also be aware that there are console commands to directly alter some values on the fly. Afterwards just respawn a unit to see the changes effect.

Statistics: Posted by Resin_Smoker — 11 Apr 2017, 17:14

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-11T16:26:21+02:00

Thanks. It just sucks having to blindly copy/paste code without really understanding what it does. So far it's been incredibly slow going. I've finally got my unit built, but I've uncovered more issues than I've solved. For whatever reason the build square is stupidly big. I've edited what I thought was the issue (footprint) but that didn't affect it at all. So there's that, then the nuke button doesn't appear on the ui at all, even though the nuke build button does. The "current nukes" count doesn't increase at all (0/3). It stays at 0, which is weird because I set it to start maxed out at 3. What's even stranger is that I've just about copied the code line-for-line with mods that do the same thing and it still won't work :\

Here's the code, if anyone is willing to look through it lol :

Spoiler: show

Code:: UnitBlueprint { Air = { BankFactor = 0, BankForward = false, CanFly = true, HoverOverAttack = true, KLift = 1, KLiftDamping = 10, KMove = 1, KMoveDamping = 10, KTurn = 1, KTurnDamping = 10, LiftFactor = 10, MaxAirspeed = 6, StartTurnDistance = 50, }, Audio = { AirUnitWaterImpact = Sound { Bank = 'Explosions', Cue = 'Expl_Water_Lrg_01', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, AmbientMove = Sound { Bank = 'XEA', Cue = 'XEA0002_Move_Loop', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, Destroyed = Sound { Bank = 'UEADestroy', Cue = 'UEA_Destroy_Med', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, Killed = Sound { Bank = 'UEADestroy', Cue = 'UEA_Destroy_Air_Killed', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, StartMove = Sound { Bank = 'XEA', Cue = 'XEA0002_Move_Start', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, StopMove = Sound { Bank = 'XEA', Cue = 'XEA0002_Move_Stop', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, Thruster = Sound { Bank = 'XEA', Cue = 'XEA0002_Move_Thruster', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, UISelection = Sound { Bank = 'Interface', Cue = 'UEF_Select_Air', LodCutoff = 'UnitMove_LodCutoff', }, }, Buffs = { Regen = { Level1 = 10, Level2 = 20, Level3 = 30, Level4 = 40, Level5 = 50, }, }, BuildIconSortPriority = 110, Categories = { 'PRODUCTSC1', 'SELECTABLE', 'UNTARGETABLE', 'BUILTBYTIER3COMMANDER', 'BUILTBYTIER3ENGINEER', 'UEF', 'MOBILE', 'AIR', 'HIGHALTAIR', 'STRATEGIC', 'NUKE', 'SILO', 'EXPERIMENTAL', 'NEEDMOBILEBUILD', 'VISIBLETORECON', 'RECLAIMABLE', 'DRAGBUILD', 'SHOWATTACKRETICLE', 'OVERLAYRADAR', 'OVERLAYSONAR', 'OVERLAYMISC', 'SORTSTRATEGIC', }, CollisionOffsetY = -0.65, Defense = { AirThreatLevel = 0, ArmorType = 'Normal', EconomyThreatLevel = 0, Health = 100, MaxHealth = 100, RegenRate = 0, SubThreatLevel = 0, SurfaceThreatLevel = 0, }, Description = 'Experimental Satelite', Display = { Mesh = { IconFadeInZoom = 130, LODs = { { LODCutoff = 500, ShaderName = 'AeonCZAR', }, { LODCutoff = 1500, ShaderName = 'Aeon', }, }, }, PlaceholderMeshName = 'UXB0000', SpawnRandomRotation = true, UniformScale = 0.05, }, Economy = { BuildCostEnergy = 1, BuildCostMass = 1, BuildRate = 1, BuildTime = 1, }, Footprint = { MaxSlope = 0.25, SizeX = 1, SizeZ = 1, }, General = { Category = 'Strategic', Classification = 'RULEUC_Weapon', CommandCaps = { RULEUCC_Attack = true, RULEUCC_CallTransport = false, RULEUCC_Capture = false, RULEUCC_Guard = true, RULEUCC_Move = true, RULEUCC_Nuke = false, RULEUCC_Patrol = true, RULEUCC_Pause = true, RULEUCC_Reclaim = false, RULEUCC_Repair = false, RULEUCC_RetaliateToggle = true, RULEUCC_SiloBuildNuke = true, RULEUCC_Stop = true, RULEUCC_Transport = false, }, FactionName = 'Uef', Icon = 'air', SelectionPriority = 5, TechLevel = 'RULEUTL_Secret', UnitName = 'Orbital MAC', UnitWeight = 1, }, Intel = { RadarRadius = 30, SonarRadius = 30, VisionRadius = 20, }, Interface = { HelpText = 'Experimental Satellite', }, LifeBarHeight = 0.075, LifeBarOffset = 1.2, LifeBarSize = 2, Physics = { BankingSlope = 0, BuildOnLayerCaps = { LAYER_Air = false, LAYER_Land = true, LAYER_Orbit = false, LAYER_Seabed = false, LAYER_Sub = false, LAYER_Water = false, }, Elevation = 75, FuelRechargeRate = 150, FuelUseTime = 0, MaxAcceleration = 1, MaxSpeed = 10, MaxSteerForce = 100, MeshExtentsX = 5.75, MeshExtentsY = 4.5, MeshExtentsZ = 8, MinSpeedPercent = 0.85, MotionType = 'RULEUMT_Air', SkirtOffsetX = -1.5, SkirtOffsetZ = -1.5, SkirtSizeX = 10, SkirtSizeZ = 10, TurnRadius = 100, TurnRate = 20, }, SelectionSizeX = 2, SelectionSizeZ = 0.8, SelectionThickness = 0.36, SizeX = 2, SizeY = 2, SizeZ = 2, StrategicIconName = 'icon_experimental_generic', StrategicIconSortPriority = 55, Veteran = { Level1 = 40, Level2 = 80, Level3 = 120, Level4 = 160, Level5 = 200, }, Weapon = { { AboveWaterTargetsOnly = true, Audio = { Fire = Sound { Bank = 'URLWeapon', Cue = 'URB2305_Missile_Cruise', LodCutoff = 'Weapon_LodCutoff', }, }, BallisticArc = 'RULEUBA_None', CollideFriendly = false, CountedProjectile = true, Damage = 0, DamageFriendly = true, DamageType = 'Normal', DisplayName = 'Nuclear Warhead', FireTargetLayerCapsTable = { Air = 'Land|Water|Seabed', Land = 'Land|Water|Seabed', Seabed = 'Land|Water|Seabed', Sub = 'Land|Water|Seabed', Water = 'Land|Water|Seabed', }, FiringTolerance = 1, ForceSingleFire = true, InitialProjectileStorage = 3, Label = 'NukeMissiles', ManualFire = 1, MaxProjectileStorage = 3, MaxRadius = 3, MuzzleChargeDelay = 5, MuzzleSalvoDelay = 0, MuzzleSalvoSize = 1, MuzzleVelocity = 10, NukeInnerRingDamage = 70000, NukeInnerRingRadius = 10, NukeInnerRingTicks = 24, NukeInnerRingTotalTime = 0, NukeOuterRingDamage = 0, NukeOuterRingRadius = 10, NukeOuterRingTicks = 20, NukeOuterRingTotalTime = 0, NukeWeapon = true, ProjectileId = '/projectiles/TIFMissileNuke01/TIFMissileNuke01_proj.bp', ProjectilesPerOnFire = 1, RackBones = { { MuzzleBones = { 'Turret_Muzzle', }, RackBone = 'Turret_Barrel', }, }, RackFireTogether = false, RackRecoilDistance = 0, RackReloadTimeout = 10, RackSalvoChargeTime = 3, RackSalvoReloadTime = 3, RackSalvoSize = 1, RackSlavedToTurret = false, RangeCategory = 'UWRC_DirectFire', RateOfFire = 1, SlavedToBody = true, SlavedToBodyArcRange = 5, TargetCheckInterval = 0.5, TargetRestrictDisallow = 'UNTARGETABLE', TurretBoneMuzzle = 'Turret_Muzzle', TurretBonePitch = 'Turret_Muzzle', TurretBoneYaw = 'Turret_Muzzle', TurretDualManipulators = false, TurretPitch = 0, TurretPitchRange = 180, TurretPitchSpeed = 360, TurretYaw = 0, TurretYawRange = 180, TurretYawSpeed = 360, Turreted = true, WeaponCategory = 'Indirect Fire', WeaponRepackTimeout = 10, WeaponUnpacks = false, }, { AboveWaterTargetsOnly = true, Damage = 3000, DamageFriendly = true, DamageRadius = 2, DamageType = 'Normal', DisplayName = 'Air Crash', DummyWeapon = true, Label = 'DeathImpact', WeaponCategory = 'Death', }, }, Wreckage = { Blueprint = '/props/DefaultWreckage/DefaultWreckage_prop.bp', EnergyMult = 0, HealthMult = 0.9, MassMult = 0.9, ReclaimTimeMultiplier = 1, WreckageLayers = { Air = false, Land = true, Seabed = false, Sub = false, Water = false, }, }, }

Statistics: Posted by Killzone — 11 Apr 2017, 16:26

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-11T09:49:14+02:00

Yeah that stuff isn't documented anywhere. I always had to look for precedents for what you are trying to do:
- a unit that does it already
- a mod that does it already
- search the vanilla code for it
- search the FAF override code for it

Somewhere I made a list of the available functions... that is handy. Doesnt give you any idea how to use them. So I got windows to searchindex all of the source code and I'd text-search through it. What also helped was to delete everything that wasn't LUA (speeds up search).

Not pretty

Statistics: Posted by nine2 — 11 Apr 2017, 09:49

Re: Mod Help/Resources

2017-04-11T07:43:26+02:00

Most of the categories should be exactly what they seems to be, the unit that is suppose to build it has that specified, for example in Aeon ACU bp:

Code:: BuildableCategory = { 'BUILTBYCOMMANDER AEON', 'BUILTBYTIER2COMMANDER AEON', 'BUILTBYTIER3COMMANDER AEON', },

then it's using restrictions for upgrades...

So as long as you have these 2 categories it should be buildable.

For the Class you might want to check this file https://github.com/FAForever/fa/blob/develop/lua/system/class.lua not all files are on git since we didn't modify them all, so for some you will need to go to your game installation.

Statistics: Posted by speed2 — 11 Apr 2017, 07:43