So I've been playing around with the editor for awhile and I'm starting to notice some stuff I'm missing (or have yet to find a good solution for). Feel free to post things you feel is missing, the more the merrier? I will keep the first post updated with the requested features.
General
Be able to change the mouse pointer (I need this one for selecting at which angle a unit is to be attacked).
Track mouse movement on the screen (Same as the pointer)
Map localization in one file where you define fields like enUs, enDe etc
When returning the UnitType, it gets returned as Text rather than String which imo is a pain since I can convert from String -> Text but not the other way around. - Solution: Use Convert gamelink to string instead since unittype is language specific whilst gamelink isnt.
Edit: 8/9/2010 Updated with more suggestions. Also linked to posts that are a lil longer in order to save space in this post.
When returning the UnitType, it gets returned as Text rather than String which imo is a pain since I can convert from String -> Text but not the other way around. - Convert gamelink to string
It gets returned as a gamelink, which is a string with a fancy name for GUI users.
Also, there is a function called "Convert Gamelink to String".
On a side note, we do really need a text2string converting function, since literally, all text variables are is string with formatting tags. Would be helpful for encrypting bank files to a user's name, among other things.
How about the most important thing you guys are totally passing up? When you are in the editor you appear online to people in the game... how about a way to chat to people that are in the game that try chatting to you while you are in the editor. >.> Think outside the (terrain) box...
There are some basic-sounding things that would greatly improve usability for entry-level mappers, but more importantly, speed up the process for vets:
Ability to add more class attributes like Armored, Biological, Heroic, etc., because Validators just suck.
Ability to browse all assets without needing to add dependencies, OR let us individually remove them from the data browser:
The game WILL load them anyways
Why slow down the editor/mapping because you need to scroll through a MILLION SS_QueenSpitsOnStetmansCat or MissileTychusPantscrap or SOpZeratulBeltBuckle or CreatPersistantValerianStillLookLikeArthas?
This would mean you can use the Civilian model (everyone uses it anyways) for a guy named Tucker and not have to scroll through hundreds of Tal'Darim, Tarsonis, Tech, Traffic, and Tosh entries before you can pick a unit for his actor.
A feature that i would like so much that i'd spontnously combust out of warming joy would be simply this:
an advanced mirroring system.
I thought up something that might work:
You enable the 'mirroring system' and it automatically creates a line to be mirrored against, that will run through the middle of the map. you can select if you want point- or linesymmetry and how many mirrored areas you want (for example you could make a triangularly mirrored map by selecting 3 in an "area" box, or maybe even 4 or 5 side mirrored maps. you can select the line in a way too, and thenrotate it to eventually make a diagonal mirrored map.
if it's not clear i can make pictures. ^^
i think it would drastically reduce the time to make a balanced melee map, and make it much easier to create balanced 3 or 5 player maps, encouraging players to choose these uncommon player amounts.
Mod bug: Library triggers included via a mod which run on map initialization should always execute, even if nothing in the mod's library is directly referenced by the map.
Various String -> Misc. conversions: There are several types that are effectively strings (ex: File - Image). However, going from String other way is not possible without "tricking" the editor. There are several use cases where one might want to go the other direction: for example, any icon retrieved via the Catalog actions will be returned as a String, but cannot be displayed in the UI unless it's an Image. For those that are impatient, to trick the editor simply change the variable holding the Catalog value to File - Icon [i]after you've assigned the variable[/i]. There's currently little (no?) type-checking in the editor.
Fix "Allow Multiple" for function parameters - it currently does nothing, but should mimic actions like Arithmetic - Integer (Multiple).
Fix "Set Unit Progress 100%" bug (if you do this to a training unit, the unit gets cancelled). Current work-around: set to 99% and hope the initial build time was small enough that 1% won't hurt too much.
A guaranteed way to tell if an ability is able to be used and is not waiting to be researched (checking if the ability is not "Disabled" only works part of the time).
A guaranteed way to tell if an ability is able to be used and is not waiting to be researched (checking if the ability is not "Disabled" only works part of the time).
Sorry, meant from a trigger (i.e. you give me ability X such as Burrow, I tell you if the player's unit can actually use it). It's been a couple of months since I looked at the problem, but as I recall there wasn't a way to do it.
Edit: Unless of course there's a way for triggers to create validators as well as read their state.
Edit: Unless of course there's a way for triggers to create validators as well as read their state.
Yes, quite a few ways. For example make an Apply Behavior effect that applies a dummy behavior, add your validator to the effect, then use a trigger to create the effect and then test if the unit has the behavior.
Certainly a validator check from triggers would be useful but the reason it doesn't exist is that validators execute in the context of an effect chain and if you run from one a trigger there's no context.
Anyway I'm not saying they shouldn't add more conditions to the trigger system, just that if you happened to be stuck on that particular problem there are workarounds available.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
So I've been playing around with the editor for awhile and I'm starting to notice some stuff I'm missing (or have yet to find a good solution for). Feel free to post things you feel is missing, the more the merrier? I will keep the first post updated with the requested features.
Edit: 8/9/2010 Updated with more suggestions. Also linked to posts that are a lil longer in order to save space in this post.
"Unit gains Behaviour"
God only knows why this isn't in the editor.
I'll love to have some options to localize a map to multiple languages in one file. Just a tab in each text field with Default, EnUS, etc.
It gets returned as a gamelink, which is a string with a fancy name for GUI users.
Also, there is a function called "Convert Gamelink to String".
On a side note, we do really need a text2string converting function, since literally, all text variables are is string with formatting tags. Would be helpful for encrypting bank files to a user's name, among other things.
@fernsauce: Go
How about the most important thing you guys are totally passing up? When you are in the editor you appear online to people in the game... how about a way to chat to people that are in the game that try chatting to you while you are in the editor. >.> Think outside the (terrain) box...
There are some basic-sounding things that would greatly improve usability for entry-level mappers, but more importantly, speed up the process for vets:
A feature that i would like so much that i'd spontnously combust out of warming joy would be simply this:
an advanced mirroring system.
I thought up something that might work:
You enable the 'mirroring system' and it automatically creates a line to be mirrored against, that will run through the middle of the map. you can select if you want point- or linesymmetry and how many mirrored areas you want (for example you could make a triangularly mirrored map by selecting 3 in an "area" box, or maybe even 4 or 5 side mirrored maps. you can select the line in a way too, and thenrotate it to eventually make a diagonal mirrored map.
if it's not clear i can make pictures. ^^
i think it would drastically reduce the time to make a balanced melee map, and make it much easier to create balanced 3 or 5 player maps, encouraging players to choose these uncommon player amounts.
Oh where to begin...
Use a validator.
Sorry, meant from a trigger (i.e. you give me ability X such as Burrow, I tell you if the player's unit can actually use it). It's been a couple of months since I looked at the problem, but as I recall there wasn't a way to do it.
Edit: Unless of course there's a way for triggers to create validators as well as read their state.
Yes, quite a few ways. For example make an Apply Behavior effect that applies a dummy behavior, add your validator to the effect, then use a trigger to create the effect and then test if the unit has the behavior.
Certainly a validator check from triggers would be useful but the reason it doesn't exist is that validators execute in the context of an effect chain and if you run from one a trigger there's no context.
Anyway I'm not saying they shouldn't add more conditions to the trigger system, just that if you happened to be stuck on that particular problem there are workarounds available.