First mod starting point...

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 6:50 am

So as I've mentioned, I think I'm going to try digging in on a super basic mod after all these years.
To keep everything in one place for my simple and easily distracted mind, here's what's been discussed in the Mortegro thread:
-------------------------------
Upon mentioning my interest in trying something simple, Dominus suggested the following -
"I think to get started you will need to make a "movie script" first:
- at what point of the storyline will this new plot begin (e.g. which flags need to have been set, which npcs you need etc)
- what is about to happen in the script?
- which NPCs will you need? Which are going to be new?
- dialogs need to be written
- do you need a new area?

After you figured these things out then you need mainly Exult snapshot, Exult Studio snapshot, Exult Tools snapshot. For graphics you will need Gimp or photoshop, I'd recommend Gimp."
---------------------------------
My thoughts then were -
"I think if I were to toy with anything, I'd probably start with something more simple like I had mentioned in another thread... maybe just try and come up with some fun new equipment ideas and make them. From there see if I can find a good place to dump them and add some dialogue or a character giving hints on where it is. Just something simple to start off.
I'll install Tool and Studio this week and see what I can figure out. Gimp overwhelms me a bit, so I may see if I can just do the images in paint since to start I would likely just be changing the colours of pre-existing items.
I know this isn't something everyone else may care about.. but if I follow through, and maybe even SUCCEED, I may become helpful with other things. I give it a 27% chance."
-------------------------------

At present I am going to keep it ULTRA simple.
1) I am going to try and figure out how to 'clone' a magic weapon and then just change the image (just adjusting some colours so it is recognizably different) and properties of it. **If I can't even figure this out, the rest of the steps are pointless**
2) Add an NPC with some basic dialog about being waylaid by some rogue mages or something and having his weapon stolen. For now I will keep it ultra simple and he will just give you the coordinates or general location in which it happened. (can expand on this and make it a more involved quest at a later date)
2.5) Figure out how to give this NPC a unique portrait and HOW to include the text.
3) Drop some eggs that spawn the rogues when the appropriate location is approached.
4) Have the item either be hidden in the area or alternately just found on the corpse of one of the enemies.

Simple for now and it's probably a good way to learn the ropes.

I've done some reading on Exult Studio and I already feel like this is doable. I figure the first thing I will do is just play around with the program and see how things are set up. Reading is nice, but playing around with it a bit will be much better.

Still to figure out.. I don't know ANYTHING about Exult Tools. Will try and find the documentation on that tomorrow.
I'm really hoping the new images won't be incredibly complicated since it will just (for now) be toying around with the colours and stats of some pre-existing weapon.
If I am understanding correctly, a shape includes images from multiple angles and what not. Does the shape for a weapon include its paper-doll appearance? I'm sure I'll discover this tomorrow when I start digging around...

Any boats I've clearly missed already? Any advice?

Time is something I have in spades right now, but attention and focus are not my strong points hahah. Wish me luck...

I'd be interested in creating some new enemies in the future, too. Maybe get some mimics in the game.. or maybe something more practical for the purpose of the quest. Left over minotaurs from Mondain's reign that had slipped through the cracks (not unsimilar to the balrog of Morgoth in Moria).
Or maybe the giant centipedes mentioned in the U7 booklet that aren't actually in the game... or the suddenly missing Ettins...

But I am getting WAY ahead of myself. Simple first. And less writing so people actually read it...

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 7:28 am

- for dialogs and such you will need to write usecode, good example of usecode is in the BG Keyring, SI Fixes or SF Island mods. Download Exult source and then look into the content subfolders

- you really need the Gimp. Especially with the shp file format plugin from our download page. I don't think Paint will give you the right control over pallettes and such.

Thanks for starting a new topic for this

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 6:17 pm

Hmm. I'll go one step at a time and start on the item creation then. Should be doable, though. I think.

Can you give me an idea of what Exult Tools is for? I have looked through the documentation for the other stuff, but can't find it for Tools. I want to keep it simple while I start so I don't get overwhelmed.. so if I can make do with just Studio, I think I'll just do that for now. And Gimp, clearly.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 6:24 pm

According to the documentation,
"Next, you need to have the latest Exult snapshot and the SDL mixer installed properly onto your computer and working correctly. "

Is that this on the download page?
Libraries
SDL 1.2.x

I'm not sure what the SDL is, but if it's needed for Studio, why is it not a part of it?
See? Really new here...

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 7:29 pm

Forget that step, as it says if you can run BG or SI, everything is good (Studio docs are not up to date and need a lot of polish - SDL-mixer has been eliminated from Exult some time ago (it's just a dependency library/dll).

Exult Tools is just a collection of tools that are needed when you go modding.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 7:45 pm

Just looking through pre-existing armour to see how everything is set up. It's starting to make a bit of sense, but this will clearly be more difficult than I expected.

I see that the Silver Seed gear has "Usecode events" checked. Is it safe to assume that means that upon equipping them, some code is run that sets things like + to Dexterity or something that states that a light source is being carried? I notice all the regular magic gear's properties are built into Studio... like def points, damage, bonuses like poison, protected from swamps.

I guess I'll have to figure out how the usecode side of things works. Oof.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 8:02 pm

Oh okay. So I would use Tools if I ever managed to create something worthwhile that people wanted to try out?

Is there a quick way to clone an item in Studio?

I also don't see where the image information for paperdolls are... but I probably don't need to worry about that just yet.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Mon Jan 27, 2014 10:58 pm

About 5 hours later and I am still pretty clueless.
I am thinking there must be a way to copy a whole shape and keep all it's properties, no? For now I am trying to just change the graphics for, say, a magic sword but want to maintain the original item as well. I am creating a new shape... and managed to get the frames in*, but there are levels I am still not understanding so I thought working from a copy might be a good start...

Also.. installed Gimp... the Gimp 2.x plugin fails to install successfully whenever I try (even after adjusting the path which assumes the folder is 'Gimp 2.0' when the default was simply 'Gimp 2'). Any ideas?

Post by **Malignant Manor** » Tue Jan 28, 2014 8:19 pm

Paperdoll info is in the flx file for each game. You can use ES to edit the data or manually do it by following the examples in the paperdol_info.txt files.

The default Gimp folder was "GIMP-2.0" until they changed it. You probably need to run the installer as an admin or install it to gimp's plugin folder in the user folder. If you mean it won't launch from Exult Studio, you need to edit the cfg. Unfortunately, the current Gimp version is importing as pngs instead of shapes. You will have to manually extract them to edit them as shapes or download Gimp 2.6.12.

Code: Select all

  
  C:\Program Files\GIMP 2\bin\gimp-2.8.exe

I am thinking there must be a way to copy a whole shape and keep all it's properties, no?

There isn't one that I know of. You can run more than one instance of ES so you can at least see the options you need.

I see that the Silver Seed gear has "Usecode events" checked. Is it safe to assume that means that upon equipping them, some code is run that sets things like + to Dexterity or something that states that a light source is being carried?

It tells the engine to call usecode when the item is readied or unreadied with those event types.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 5:39 am

After writing a lengthy explanation of my issues with the plug-in, I think I've discovered the problem. After searching my computer for the txt file, it appears they were extracting to -

Users/NAME/AppData/Local/VirtualStore/Program Files...

What the t00t? It appears that's where DosBox installed to as well...
[I am definitely the admin account, I double checked]

To circumvent this, I just extracted to my desktop and moved the files manually. I was under the impression it was an installed and not an extractor, so I hadn't realized that was an option until I was able to find and read the txt file.

Now to try editing some shapes!

I'm maybe in for a lot more work than I thought. I'll read through the paperdoll stuff when I figure out the shapes. Looks like that and the usecode stuff are going to be tougher than I thought.. but I am sure I can manage if you guys don't mind me being mildly annoying with questions. I apologize in advance.

Thanks for the idea on more than one instance of ES!!! That should do the trick on that part!

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 6:27 am

SO EXCITING!
For a start I just copied all the shape info for the magic sword and added paralysis as a flag... I also edited all the shape frames to make the blade black. I figured the black blade and paralysis would be clear indicators that what I had created was working.
Turns out I can get the blade in the game.. the black coloured blade appears in the game and I am able to pick it up and equip it (though it still appears as a magic blade in the paperdoll.. but one thing at a time..). For some reason, however, the blade is not visible in my hands when equipped and the attack frames are also not visible. All 5 frames appear in the shape, however.
Any suggestions?

Is there also an advisable way to save these things?
I just said Save All.
I guess I'll have to look through this as well?
http://exult.info/newgame.txt
Right now I am just looking to add something simple that I can maybe eventually let people try.. but it wouldn't be a whole new game, just a mod on U7:BG. Simply adding a weapon and new NPC or something.
Is there a guide for the New Mod.. option? I can't find anything in the main documentation.

Paulon · Post by **Paulon** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 6:41 am

Nifty idea. It sounds like the Sword of Stonestrike from UW2.

Post by **Malignant Manor** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 3:44 pm

For some reason, however, the blade is not visible in my hands when equipped and the attack frames are also not visible.

You can check the In-hand offset in the Object tab. Each frame has a different offset. Also make sure you have the correct Origin. Origin is one of the reason's you should use shp files since Gimp doesn't handle the offsets nicely when using pngs.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 4:55 pm

It worked! I didn't notice that the x,y were changing when the frames were changed (though it only makes sense that they would).
Thanks, Manor!

This is very exciting. Now to figure out how to undo all the mess I've made and single my work out into a mod. There must be a cleaner way to do this.

Then paper doll frames. Then NPC creation. Then to figure out an idea that will actually be worth checking out to other people.

Paulon: I have never played any of the Underworld games actually, but after looking it up, you're very right..
I think I'll aim for something that is a bit less over-powering when I decide what the weapon is going to actually be... but there is no doubt that testing this guy out has been fun! Hmmm...

I love you, Exult Team!

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 5:37 pm

This was a great thread on creating new paperdolls:
http://exult.info/forum/viewtopic.php?p=443538#p443538

Having troubles finding info on editing for weapons and the like, though.

Paperdoll info is in the flx file for each game. You can use ES to edit the data or manually do it by following the examples in the paperdol_info.txt files.

I found the txt file, but didn't really know what to do with it. Is the flx file you are talking about the combos.flx? I'm just not finding any shapes for the pre-existing items (namely the magic sword for now)... so I'm not sure where to export from.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 6:00 pm

Also.. is there a way to make sure I'm using the appropriate colour pallet in Gimp?

Crowley · Post by **Crowley** » Fri Jan 31, 2014 2:41 am

The way I got the palette I work with is I exported a graphic from the game as .png, opened it in Gimp and saved the palette that image uses.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Fri Jan 31, 2014 3:22 am

Much appreciated! I'll give that a try! I'm new to Gimp, but it has been pretty easy to figure out so far.

Now to figure out the not-so-easy stuff...

dale in a van somewhere · Tue Feb 04, 2014 5:54 pm

So I have managed to create and insert paper doll graphics in SI but am still not understanding it in BG. I was foiled in my hope that they referenced the same files.
I know it is tedious dealing with people who seem out of their element, but I'd love any help or suggestions if anyone has the time.

Also curious as to how weapons like the fire sword are animated when they don't seem to have multiple frames for it. I don't really want to animate my item, but I was curious anyway.

Sorry to be a pest.. I have lots of time to kill and this has been a fun way to stay occupied.

Post by **Dominus** » Tue Feb 04, 2014 7:27 pm

animation, some palette thing, I guess.
BG and paperdoll might be a bit difficult, maybe look up if Marzo did anything in the BG Keyring mod like that. As the SI style paperdoll is only in Bg if SI is there, that might be the clue

Post by **Malignant Manor** » Tue Feb 04, 2014 10:05 pm

I wrote a bit about palettes here.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Wed Feb 05, 2014 7:55 am

"As the SI style paperdoll is only in Bg if SI is there, that might be the clue

"

If I am understanding that correctly, the thought was that they MAY be connected somehow? Hmmm. I wonder, then.
What I had previously tried was adding the shape to SI (so it was object 170 which is the first empty 'slot').. when I add that as the paper doll shape in the 'Obj Paperdoll' tab, it appears in the game as a sparkly blue dress. [Interestingly enough, for the belt slot it appears to be a male version, and as a weapon it is the female version. I love that whoever made that included a male sprite for the dress!]
So in short.. not really sure how to proceed if I am going to do a paperdoll version, but I suppose I can worry about that later.. or maybe even just test the mod in SI for now (though I'd rather do BG for sure).

I'll have to fully read through that palette info for sure. I am still struggling with getting a full 'U7 palette'. SO far I am doing as suggested and just importing images (shapes) and using the palettes for that image. Not sure how I would get those glowing colours from there, but I will try and wrap my head around it a bit better tomorrow. Don't really plan on using any blinking colours anyway, but I'd rather understand it than not understand it. Big thanks for the link!

If the paperdoll is a bust, I'll start working on NPC creation. I've already worked on some of the dialogue, but not really sure where to start in so far as implementing it yet. Or any of the NPC stuff, for that matter.

Dale · Post by **Dale** » Wed Feb 05, 2014 8:19 am

re: paperdolls
I think I found what I was looking for in that link I had posted above:
http://exult.info/forum/viewtopic.php?p=443538#p443538

Looks like making a paperdol.vga (one l?) is the solution. Will try that out tomorrow.

I love this...

Post by **Dominus** » Wed Feb 05, 2014 8:21 am

you know, when you sorted all this out and aren't burnt out by then, I think a tutorial would be nice

it's all over with bits and pieces here and there but as you see no one can give you the whole view right away

dale in a van in Iowa? · Wed Feb 05, 2014 5:34 pm

Yeah... it has been a mildly frustrating battle digging from place to place for info... but it is definitely coming together. The paper doll thing worked like a charm! Very easy, too. Great explanation from Marzo!

Anyone got some info on NPC creation?
I think this part is going to break me. The use code stuff sounds like it will be a trial.
That and I need to figure out how to edit use code so weapons can affect stats.

I'll also have to figure out how to clean and package this all up.

dale in a van in Iowa? · Wed Feb 05, 2014 6:48 pm

Added paper doll note for those that are curious:

Though the are clearly stored elsewhere, the paper doll shape numbers are already used for existing items. Example: if you make the first shape in your new paperdol.vga file 50, it will overwrite the data for the hammer.. meaning that if you end up equiping a hammer, the paper doll would display your new item instead. Because I don't know how high the 'spoken for' numbers go, I just made my first shape at 500

agentorangeguy · Post by **agentorangeguy** » Thu Feb 06, 2014 12:36 pm

That would be a good idea, making a tutorial for these things.

dale in a van in Arkansas · Thu Feb 06, 2014 8:22 pm

Well I clearly lack the background to do that... but if someone helps me with the NPC stuff, I can try and compile it into something easier to work with and read if I am able to figure it out.

dale in a van in Texas · Fri Feb 07, 2014 6:57 pm

It's tough getting worthwhile internet access... but I wanted to get started on the NPC business. Any suggestions on where to start? I reckon making it in Studio wonlaptopsoo complicated.. but getting stated on the dialog tree in the usecode will be tough.

I am trying to view the keyring mod use code... but I am not sure how to open it. Opening it with notepad is a mess. I can look through the docks when i am back on my laptop but it is tough on the phone.
Also... does it need to be compiled like a programming language?

Post by **Dominus** » Fri Feb 07, 2014 7:06 pm

Look at the SF island usecode, it's probably easier. And, important, look at the uncompiled one (in our source code - the *.uc files).
You need to compile uc files with ucc.exe (from exult tools).

dale in a van in Texas · Fri Feb 07, 2014 7:50 pm

Cool. Actually just looking at the ucc documentation right now.

What is SF island. I am drawing a blank.

Will download ucc when i can get my laptop on the nets.

Some of the documentation is really quite good. Just a bit overwhelming when you are coming in with nothing ad there is so much of it. Maybe I WILL write a 'getting started' document. Might be helpful for anxious freaks who get overwhelmed quickly like me. Even if it's just step by step suggestions on what to toy around with to help get your feet wet.

Post by **Dominus** » Fri Feb 07, 2014 8:07 pm

SF island is a patch that lives in our sourcecode, about an island on which you can meet some members of the Exult team

You need to download our source code and look at the things in the content subfolder to understand a bit more about usecode

dale in a van in Texas · Fri Feb 07, 2014 8:24 pm

I haven't seen this. I'll see if I can figure it out.
Big thanks for the direction! I reckon figuring it out shouldn' be too difficult once I've had a look at some examples.

So download the source code for Exult as well as the ucc tool.

dale in a van in Texas · Fri Feb 07, 2014 8:39 pm

Paulon: I've given it some thought and i am going to look into timelines on this Sword of S tonestrike. If I can make it fit, I think I'll try to work that into the story. Thanks for pointing it out.
That said, I am going to nerf it a bit.. paralysis and high attack, but with a dexterity penalty and slow swing speeds. I'll have to figure out the use code to do the drop in dexterity, but when equipped on a secondary character, the penalty won't be a big deal... especially since they would still be offering great support by immobilizing enemies.
Just a thought.

dale in a van in Texas · Fri Feb 07, 2014 10:14 pm

Dominus FAQ joke.. amazing.

A lot of the code is confusing.. but I should be able to figure it out. The speech parts look easy enough, but the batch of code at thr start loses me a bit.. is it just assessing party size and members? With the ... oh! It shows how to use eggs! Cool.

This is doable!
For now can you tell me how to view the existing NPC s in Studio? I just want to look over how the island denizens are stored through studio.I want to see how lines like
Amy 0x568 from the code work and are called.

Post by **Dominus** » Fri Feb 07, 2014 10:39 pm

I'm really really rusty or I would be of better help

BUT, when you make a new NPC you assign a usecode number to it, in the case of the SF Island, Dr. Code is assigned 0x564, Dominik 0x565, etc.
When you doubleclick an NPC in Exult when in Map Edit mode you should see his usecode number.

Same for eggs, in the usecode.uc file you see the number for the egg

Code: Select all

void new_island_egg1 object#(0x741) ()

so when you place an egg with Exult Studio you can assign it the object number 0x741 and it will behave as written in the usecode.uc file (which of course you need to compile with ucc first to be useable by Exult

)

ah, brings back fond memories when looking at that usecode

dale in a van in Texas · Sat Feb 08, 2014 9:07 pm

This should all be doable. As I've said I have a background in programming. . So the if else and variable stuff is easy. I'm writing up the rest of the script right now and when I have better sitting conditions I'll try some coding. As the SF island code is separate, is it safe to assume you don't need to include it into the main U7 usrcode?

My now lost laptop cable may also slow this down.

dale in a van in Texas · Mon Feb 10, 2014 6:25 pm

So I am working on a test character ( inserted successfully) and am now fiddling with some basic dialogue. I am editing the island .uc file and I want to see if anyone can help me compile. I even tested compiling the SF island .uc and it bounced back with a pile of warnings..
I should be okay with the code I hope... but any suggestions on compiling would be great.
thanks again for the patience.

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 7:46 pm

Ucc.exe usecode.uc
That should be it, I think

dale in a van in Texas · Mon Feb 10, 2014 7:48 pm

So if it helps narrow down the issue at all, here is what I have been trying.
I copy the usecode.uc file to ...\Exult\Tools\tools\ and then open the same folder in command prompt and type
ucc -o usecode usecode.uc
And then it spits out all the warnings.

dale in a van in Texas · Mon Feb 10, 2014 7:52 pm

Oh you beat to it. Thanks.

Okay.. tried that and I still get the errors even with SF island uc.

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 8:49 pm

what warnings does it spit out? because that is working for me without any problem with the unaltered Island patch usecode.uc file-

dale in a van in Texas · Mon Feb 10, 2014 9:26 pm

I get 7 warnings. .. some examples:

Usecode.uc:5: Warning: you should prepend 'void' for functions that do not return a value.

Usecode:uc:5: Warning: treating function 'new_island_egg0' as being an 'object#' function.

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 9:44 pm

your usecode.uc file is *NOT* the one from the Island patch.
the new_island_egg0 function is not at line 5 but at line 41 in the original file.
I do not get any errors when compiling the island usecode.uc, neither on Mac nor in a Windows XP VM.

dale in a van in Texas · Mon Feb 10, 2014 10:04 pm

Not in the one I have. I just re-extracted it just incase and I get the same errors.

I download the patch.zip file right from the site. I believe from one of the document pages. Did I just do all the coding based on an obsolete file? I remember thinking it might be old because of the more complicated than necessary explanatiom on using the patch. You'te going to tell me i should have got it elsewhere aren't you...

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 10:14 pm

Yes, some days ago I wrote:

SF island is a patch that lives in our sourcecode, about an island on which you can meet some members of the Exult team
You need to download our source code and look at the things in the content subfolder to understand a bit more about usecode

I didn't even remember that we had released this patch years ago for download

You probably didn't lose too much by looking at the old one, but Marzo updated the usecode file to be compatible with current ucc a couple of times.

dale somewhere in Louisiana · Tue Feb 11, 2014 12:34 am

Oh jeez. Sorry. I saw that but when i also saw the self-contained patch I figured it was safe.The amount of work I did in the old ucc is pretty minimal anyway.
As always.. thanks for the help.
when I am back to having a desktop, maybe I SHOULD write up a "how to get started" if you think it would be helpful. Even just break down my learning process in a better organized thread.

You going to wipe out that link?

dale somewhere in Louisiana · Tue Feb 11, 2014 3:24 am

Wow is that source easier to follow. SO much cleaner. I'm impressed!

That said... while I no longer get any errors when compiling, I don't know where the output is going.
what I have been doing is dumping the usecode.uc file to where ucc.exe is so it will execute. .. but while i get no errors, i don't see the compiled file anywhere.

Any ideas? Complete explanation for dummies?
I can't even get the new version of the patch to work... though that may just be because I don't seem to see a non .uc usecode file. Aaaand i'm clearly missing something that i should probably know by now. The old one I just had to dump in a folder called patch... but this one has many subfolders.

Sorry..

Post by **Dominus** » Tue Feb 11, 2014 6:37 am

Yes, the one in the source code is not ready made, the individual graphic files, etc, are not made into vga files. I'll see about making a compiled download of that.

As for compiling the usecode, the compiled usecode should be where the usecode.uc file is. If you just do "ucc usecode.uc" you end up with a usecode.uco file which you can just rename. Or you use the -o switch so you can determine path and filename of the output.

dale somewhere in Louisiana · Tue Feb 11, 2014 4:01 pm

Igxxkb xxx giigxxhijxdjpohsish
I kept searching Program Files (86x)\Exult\Tools\tools\ (where the ucc is) and could not find the compiled file. Went back 2 directories and searched.. still nothing. As a last ditch, I searched the entire C: and sure enough.. it was in
C:\Users\Dale\App Data\Local\Virtual Store\Program Files (86x)\Exult\Tools\tools\
Same place the Gimp add-on kept apparently trying to install to. Lesson should have been learned the first time.