Upgrading weapons

[ssuser]

The APC guys won't hit everything in the outpost as the GTs are too far away for them to see if you eject them in the back... best to save the APC if more company shows up while you are blowing up everything else with a tank... 

I looked at the mission code for that first Venus mission... it looks like you have to do some things in a certain order for the Scout script to play out just right, otherwise, it won't happen. There's some unused code in there too... apparently the devs intended for you to find a test range and get into it with an experimental CCA tank (remember the wierd CCA tank that fires purple MAG balls? It was used in Bridges IA map.)

Flash, let us know if you need help on the last Venus mission... I remember figuring out how to beat that gave me a huge headache... 

[bb1]

Oh- the one with the navdrop reticle and fully charged mags? That weapon was pure evil.

Also, is there anything in the code for the map with Colorado base to allow eldrige APCs to deploy? I want to know if I was imagining things or not.

[ssuser]

Hmm, not that I can see. Are you sure you didn't just hit the "R" button early on and just play the initial wav file over again?

There is some code that will cause extra attacks on you if you try to get to the Colorado base early on.

[bb1]

I hate that so bad. I hacked a ship to fly uber speed and kill the golem in one hit and that recy still dies. So linear.

[Rocket]

actually i was able to drive and save the colorado with my grizzly...

and of course the script killed it afterward 

[ssuser]

Yeah, there is not much flexibility in the game scripts, they will chug along even when you try to play "out of the box" mostly, this is to "bulletproof" the missions and keep them from hanging when the player tries something strange.

One hangup I found - on the second Mars mission (at the volcano) the CCA recycler is off the map, but not TOO far off. I had a really souped up Scout available with a huge radar scan and some REALLY long range heatseeker missiles, and just for fun I put it in the recycler odf and used it to blow up the entire off-the-map CCA base. The CO then said, "General, Grizzly One has destroyed the CCA recycler!" After that nothing happened - the bombers never showed and the mission never ended, lol.

[Vid]

There's a lot of touchy things in that game.

Remember that one mission where the golems show up on venus? After the Golem killed the recy on a certain run through, I was going to attack the CCA base... only for 2 APCs to spawn tasked to the gun towers. Collins came on saying how Eldrige's APCs were joining the attack and targetting the gun towers... even though the Colorado is dead...

I'm not sure if leftover bad code from another build got triggered somehow, but on my looks through the ZFS I could not find the voiceovers I heard that time in the mission. Maybe I was hallucinating while playing BZ, but I'm pretty sure it was real.

That would be quite strange...

As for the radar array mission, I usually meet up with the two tanks at the nav point, he says look at the camera, I do..   Then we have two fighters which I kill.  Then I go to front entrance and get shot at by the two gun towers.... once I'm hit I get another voice over about the "front door being locked up tight".  A little after that came the Razor1 reporting, I've worked my way up to a cliff where I think we can eject into the base from here.  He ejected... but I rather like to keep my grizzly which I switched with back at the nav and therefore I just had my tank climb the wall.

[bb1]

Yeah, there is not much flexibility in the game scripts, they will chug along even when you try to play "out of the box" mostly, this is to "bulletproof" the missions and keep them from hanging when the player tries something strange.

One hangup I found - on the second Mars mission (at the volcano) the CCA recycler is off the map, but not TOO far off. I had a really souped up Scout available with a huge radar scan and some REALLY long range heatseeker missiles, and just for fun I put it in the recycler odf and used it to blow up the entire off-the-map CCA base. The CO then said, "General, Grizzly One has destroyed the CCA recycler!" After that nothing happened - the bombers never showed and the mission never ended, lol.

I love little snippets like that. Easter eggs I guess.

[Avatar]

Even in the stock mission you can just send your AI in to wipe out that base...  it's only defended by what? four Turrets?

The Mars volcano mission was about the most touchy, right behind identifying the starport buildings...   there was always a turret lost in the ravines that hung the mission up.  I also found that even if you go to the volcano and then run like a dog the CCA just go and sit in the crater.  After that you can toast them easily...

***

I looked at the mission code for that first Venus mission...

*blink* *blink*

You can read the mission scripts?  I think I need to fire Dx, with real fire maybe... 

Obviously this interests me, as I strive to make the BZC missions as close to the originals as I can...   I thought they were part of the engine?

In an unusual burst of greed I have to ask if there's any way to get an outline of the mission scripts?  To see if I have things nailed as well as I hope I do...

-Av-

[bb1]

Anything you do with those mission scripts probably surpasses the bolt and nail the original had.

I for one would like Eldrige to be a condition, but still the assets don't exist for it to survive and you aren't really supposed to know about the golems showing up...

I could probably hack a VO into saying "Eldrige will send apcs to fight the CCA base"

[bigbadbogie]

Hush!!

If GBD hears you, he will crush us all like a... crushy thing.

You must not make anything in BZC different to the original!!

[Dx]

Obviously this interests me, as I strive to make the BZC missions as close to the originals as I can...   I thought they were part of the engine?

In an unusual burst of greed I have to ask if there's any way to get an outline of the mission scripts? 
-Av-

Yes they are compiled as part of the engine in the misn****.cpp files.
I didn't want to outline the missions cause it would take too long but i decided on recording all the single player missions so i can go back and look at the tricks that was used. Will help me a lot when i try and make new missions.
Besides, i fixed several bugs while going through the recordings.

[ssuser]

Anything you do with those mission scripts probably surpasses the bolt and nail the original had.

I for one would like Eldrige to be a condition, but still the assets don't exist for it to survive and you aren't really supposed to know about the golems showing up...

I could probably hack a VO into saying "Eldrige will send apcs to fight the CCA base"

The golems are already on the map when you start, in fact there is code to deal with them if you run over by the CCA base and meet up with them early on, try it, when you get close Simmons will say, " I'm picking up something BIG on your radar, Commander!"

That mission is actually kind of wishy washy, as only 3 Golems will come at you during the whole mission, and the rest of the CCA attacks leave something to be desired also. Be nice to have more Walkers rolling in on you. One thing that would be good is to have survivors from the Colorado come running back to help you out with reinforcements. As it is, the Colorado is just a team 3 recycler that you watch get blown up via a nav beacon. Sometimes a pilot will eject from it and if you go over there later you can watch as one of your "own" pilots tries to take you down with a plasma rifle. maybe he is upset that no one came to get him when the Colorado blew up, lol.

[Dx]

Ya one thing i was thinking of doing is setting trigers all over the map, no matter where you go, you'll come under attack. I like missions that let you use the whole map not just the path you're told to take.

[Nielk1]

Maybe you could make the mission scripts compile to DLL and make BZE load the DLLs? Then make a quick base so ppl can make their own mission scripts and compile them.