Shyguy

Patience is a virtue! But alas, I lack it myself sometimes. I currently have about 4 beta testers still trudging through this thing. But after getting messages from 2 that they would be delayed due to various problems, I am releasing it as is. I will still continue to refine it, with their help, but as of now, it has been sent to Spidweb to be posted. I'm not sure how long it takes to get listed these days, but I might be persuaded to send it out personally upon request. Let me know, along with your email address, and be able to accept a file of about 1.5 megs. I can split this up if needed. Also, there is no graphics file for Macs, so you'll need to convert yourself.

Has anyone tried ConTEXT? I've been using it and I like it. You can get it at http://www.fixedsys.com/context I believe it's just for Windows, though.

It's a shame we have to deal with obnoxious, pompous a***s on these forums who love to make themselves sound so superior to the rest of us peons who don't know as much as they do and are just trying to be helpful. Overwhelming... Color coding is typically used in many coding based text editors and makes code easier to read and debug. Of course, we all know that the best programmers wouldn't need to rely on such a crutch.

The message says you "open the door" only when you don't have a pick.

I was hoping no one would come up with that solution. My scripting skills are still at the remedial stage. I think Mr. Vogel should have done it right in the first place.

I used the lockbox.txt script that shipped with the editor to lock a chest. But when the player unlocks it, the default message that comes up refers to it as unlocking a "door". It appears this is hard coded into the "run_pick_lock" call that is part of the script. Is there any easy way to chage this, or even better, has anyone written a better script???

It doesn't work when you put it in LOAD_SCEN_STATE. The message comes up that it's been loaded, but it doesn't work. And "print_num() and print_nums()" always worked, even before the patch. They work even without putting in turn_on_debug_mode. Also, as stated above, ghost mode is always on and can't be turned off.

I've got it to work. But it doesn't seem to work too well if you put it in the Scenario Script. I got it to work when I put it in the START_SCEN_STATE; But this only seems to work when you load the scenario from the beginning. If you save your progress and load it up from that saved point, it may not work. You may have to put it in every Town Script and Outdoor Script. Though I'm not sure yet. I haven't experimented enough with it.

As a general rule, if you want to get anything to work, look how it's done in the scenarios that came with the game. Then you can copy the scripts into yours and edit them as needed. There's an NPC in VotDT named Bruning (I think) who will join the party. I think he lives in Sweetwater. Check out his dialog and the creature script. This should answer your questions. This is the only way I've been able to learn how to do things, as the docs are pretty worthless. Well, not worthless, but not very thorough. Each time I read them to see how to do something, they always seem to leave out something.

Putting their name on the first question field does not work, as it is suggested in the docs. You need to put these in the town script(not town dialog script)... set_name(13,"Commander Terrance"); set_char_dialogue_pic(13,1907,0); The first sets character 13's name and the second will put in a pic. 1907 is the graphic sheet, O is the icon.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

That's pretty much what I suspected as well. I think BoE worked the same way. Though it would be nice to be able to set the amount of Item Lore needed to identify each item.

What determines the amount of Item Lore the party needs to identify an item when creating a new custom item? (Or any of the default items, for that matter)

I've found that if you add 1 to the line number and then divide by 2, you get the correct line. Take the example above... It says "error on line 33." Add 1, which equals 34. Divide by 2. This equals 17! This isn't always the case, but it's worked out like this several times for me.

"Adventurer's Club 8: The Fellowship of the Adventurers". "Adventurer's Club 9: The Two Adventurer's Clubs". "Adventurer's Club 10: Return of the..." No wait, That one's already been done.

How 'bout fixing debug mode.

No one in their right mind would plan to design such a scenario! Rest assured, AC3 is the biggest game I will ever make. And it has close to 140 towns and dungeons! Although... My initial post isn't that far from the truth. I'll just say that my next project will be something very close to what I described. It just won't be contained in one game.

My first project for BoA will be a huge, massive, epic-sized, grandiose, umm, thingy, that will be at least five times the size of AC3 and will feature a world filled with thousands of npc's, each so detailed and fleshed out that you can spend hours just speaking to each one. The capital city alone will take up about 20 64x64 towns and make Zenith look like a small rural village. I have discovered a way to beat the 200 town limit, so I can have close to 500 towns and dungeons and I have already begun to redesign ALL the graphics for the game. The main goal will be to search the world, looking for a main quest. You will have to be extremely thorough and explore every nook and cranny in order to find it. But once you do, things will REALLY get good. I expect to have it finished, sometime in September of 2008. Anyone interested in beta testing, let me know.

Can't seem to get this to work. Has anyone been able to use debug mode and if so, where do you place the call?

I prefer to think of the inhabitants of AC2 as emotionally challenged.

Clever article. Game players truly love Bob. He wasn't in AC1 and AC2 and many players weren't too happy about that and became confused(though I suppose there were many Boblings). How, then, does one make an enjoyable scenario without Bob?

I was not jumping down anyone's throat, either, Creator. The first sentence actually agrees with what he has stated. I was just pointing out that his opinion may not be shared with the majority of players and he should be more careful about how he represents the BoE community. I suppose using BOLD CAPITALIZED LETTERS made it seem like I was shouting, but I was just trying to stress these words. And as you're very well aware of our different views on this subject, I thought I would just use this opportunity to open up this subject to more debate. I was not attacking Drakefyre in any way. I'm sure his article was well intended, and it is quite well written. But his fairly neutral stance took a biased turn when he spoke of the style of designing I most enjoy. I just wanted to point out that this shouldn't have been done in a "How To" article. I'm not saying my games are shining examples of how to do this style the right way. They're not. Of course there are flaws, some quite substantial. But he shouldn't condemn this style. State that it is difficult and not recommneded, perhaps... But don't flat out say it's "not suited to the BoE/BoA medium".

This is a good article. Of course, (and you knew I'd object) I don't fully agree with one part of it. "The second type of open-ended scenario is, in my opinion, not suited to the Blades of Exile/Blades of Avernum medium. It's far too hard to create a whole world in this system, and we generally like to focus our attention on small parts of worlds, backwards frontier settlements, isolated valleys, et cetera. It's a giant undertaking when you attempt a scenario of this sort, and it's generally not as fun to play. A scenario does not need to be as big as a commercial game because very few players want to spend that much time in a world that you create with a driving story keeping you there." This entire paragraph is strictly one person's opinion... namely yours. I have had dozens and dozens of emails from many players who have never posted a thing on these forums, raving about how they enjoy the Adventurer's Club games. And the size is one of the features they most enjoyed. I had one person express saddness that he had come to the end of the game, begging me to tell him if there were any more things to do that that he might have missed. And many emails asking me when the next installment is coming up. I would say that this type of scenario is definately the hardest type to make, and many people DON'T have the time to play through such a game. But there are also plenty of those that DO have the time and like their games "the bigger, the better." So don't put down this type of design just because YOU don't like it. Yes, you DID state in the beginning of the paragraph that this was "your opinion", and that's about the only thing I agree with.

Boy oh boy, do we have some passionate people in this community. And good thing, too! I just thought I'd add my two cents, although there isn't much to say that hasn't been said already. Jeff Vogel has created some excellent games that I and many others have thoroughly enjoyed playing. But I didn't consider these games to be about "beating up monsters". They were about using your skill and imagination as a gameplayer to overcome obstacles and solve problems using the tools you were given in creative ways. Even if the task at hand was as simple as "How am I going to get past that group of Gremlins without losing all my food?" Yes, these games are very combat heavy and the plot usually becomes secondary. But there is a difference between Jeff's epic games and the community designed scenarios. As designers, we have to come up with something that isn't just more of the same. I don't want to play Exile and Avernum over and over again, and neither do the players who buy BoA. That is why PLOT is more important than combat. (Not more than making a fun game, as TM has been quoted. I think TM meant when coming up with an idea, the plot needs to be thought out first before the other elements are added.) There needs to be a good reason to play a scenario. We know there is going to be combat. That's what the BoE and BoA engines where desinged to do. But what compels us to want to hack our way through one group of monsters after another? For me, it's too find out what happens next. Yes, I like challenging combat. I get a sense of accomplishment when I've won a particularly difficult fight. But I need a reward. And a "Big Stick of Damage +10" is just not enough. Yes, I know that the other side of the argument is that you can have the greatest plot ever written, but if the gameplay stinks and combat is boring and tedious, or so insanely difficult, then no one will ever want to play it. So of course, good gameplay is essential for designing a good game. BUT, it doesn't necessarily have to include combat at all. And on the other hand, to make an rpg game that had no plot whatsoever, but was so compelling due to other elements...That would probably be the toughest game of all to design.

I have tons of notes on paper including lists of SDFs, names of all NPCs and their locations, lists of where all services are and prices, custom graphic sheets, lists of special items, special class items, detailed maps, timelines of history and events that have occured, and solutions to the harder puzzles (so I don't forget). Of course, my scenarios are typically on the HUGE side, so most designers probably don't need all this.