[eliex]

 
 So far, from my posts, I must speculate only what people think of me: reputation of a whiny, insufferable interrogator?

 Sorry, but I just really want to know the answers to two questions:

1. How do you make the messages occur, say like in training, in the little blue boxes? I don't think that the FRED2 helps says anything about it . . .

2.  And can you even, like with the events editor make a ship make new orders?
Can I do this: When a certain set of fighters are destroyed or escaped and then a transport undocks with a science vessel, can that ever happen without me just disabling the transport then repairing it a little.

Thanks

[karajorma]

As long as you've done the walkthrough that comes with FRED and made some attempt to figure out the answer for yourself no one is ever going to complain about you questioning us. So don't worry about it too much. We all had to learn somewhere.

1) That's done via the training-message SEXP. It doesn't live in the change section with the other message SEXPs but in the training section with all the SEXPs that were created just for the TSM missions.

2) Yes. New orders can be easily given via the ai-goals options. To do what you mentioned is fairly easy.

when
-is-destroyed-or-departed-delay
--Enemy Fighters
--0
-add-ai-goal
--transport
---ai-undock
---89

On occasion you'll find you may need to clear all current goals before a ship will start to obey new ones. Especially if you're dealing with a ship that may have received contradictory orders from the player (Player orders have a priority of 100 IIRC and thus always are higher priority than AI orders given in FRED which max out at 89)

[eliex]

 
 Awesome, thanks a lot again kara.

 Sorry, but I've got another set of questions: What is the average reading speed of Freespace players, say especially when they are distracted because they are in a dogfight (fighters only). I just want to make sure that my SEXP timers are working just O-KAY.

 I've got this part in a mission when it tests the player's thinking: When Gamma 1 scans the cargo, the phrase appears, "Hen apples, text energetically"
then a pirate fighter turns up and he is asked the password, so he says HATE. When Gamma 1 scans another cargo (several missions later) he gets another phrase and he is caught by pirate but then they think that he is a new recruit when is gives the right password. The player is supposed to type out the password or else he self-destructs within 15 seconds.

Do you think it's too elaborate or should I think of a new idea?

[karajorma]

My advice is not to make the player self destruct. It sounds like railroading to me. Having the player get involved in a difficult fight with the pirates cause he got the wrong password is believable. Having him self destruct isn't.

Secondly I'd make it a numeric password. The keys 1-4 do nothing in the SP game by default where as typing HATE would result in the player changing his target three times and possibly accelerating into the cargo container!

[eliex]

 Haha . . . Good point.

 Ya, I forgot to mention that the particular point of the mission <don't get bored!>

 - (Assuming that the player got the password correctly, <now a numerical code: 3141, CADA> the pirates who surround the player asks him/her whether he is a new recruit.
- Gamma 2 quickly says that they got lost
- pirate A says that well, do you want us to guide you back to base?
- gamma 5 starts talking but gets interrupted by GTVA forces pouring in and making the pirates flee, NOT destroyed.

 At debriefing the player's wing gets a choice whether they want to infiltriate the Araides pirate gang.

Instead of making the player self-destruct, should I put maybe two leviathan cruisers with the pirates when they surround the player?
I think that self-destruct is good, well, I have a high opinion of general player's Freespace piloting skills, so they'll just fight it out.
ULTRA-AAAF beams should wipe out the player if he gets it wrong?

With the debriefing editor, like, is it possible to totally delete all the other possible debriefing texts if the player totally screws up the entire mission? Or is it more complex SEXP work?

[karajorma]

Complex SEXP work. Of course you can just make an event called "Player has screwed it all up" and check that it's false in every other debriefing stage.

[Vidmaster]

Hey guys, I also have to ask something.

I searched all over the place but I cannot figure out, how to set the speed of a ship to a specific value or at least push it forward. Tried it with "set-x-speed and so on", point of view checked true and speed in x and y direction work, but z doesn't propell the ship forward.

Kara? Somebody? PPPLLLEAASSEEE?

[FUBAR-BDHR]

Well there are a couple of ways.  Easiest is the velocity setting in the ships editor under initial status.  You can also set it using the cap-waypoint-speed sexp in the event editor.

[TrashMan]

Wouldn't that give it only a one-time speed boost and that it should drop back to default. IIRC, cap-waypoint-speed can't make hte ship go faster than normal

[eliex]

 Cheers kara, thanks again!! 

[Vidmaster]

But FURBAR, IS: Velocity Setting only works when the ship arrives on the battlefield AND only if it's there from the beginning and Capship-waypoint just limits the speed of a capship.

I need something that can be triggered by an event AND accelerates the ship immediately !

[TrashMan]

As far as I know, there is no such SEXP...YET.

This looks like a job for *dramatic pause* THE CODE WIZZARDS!!!

[eliex]

 Guess you're sick of me keeping asking Q's, but (just for the last time) cause i don't want to start another topic on another board because a simple question but you know mods right? 

When in Fred2 Open you can use mods that other people have made for their campaigns, i was just wondering whether you can just use the ships just like that - you don't need to ask for permission?

I just want to play safe. 
Thanks!

[karajorma]

In general it's considered good form to ask. Most mods will have a readme saying that you can use the mods without asking if that's what the creator wished.

[TrashMan]

 Guess you're sick of me keeping asking Q's, but (just for the last time) cause i don't want to start another topic on another board because a simple question but you know mods right? 

When in Fred2 Open you can use mods that other people have made for their campaigns, i was just wondering whether you can just use the ships just like that - you don't need to ask for permission?

I just want to play safe. 
Thanks!

No, you're not irritating at all. 
The only way to learn is to ask, and the more experienced modders are here to lend the hand. The community needs fresh blood to grow, so don't hesitate to ask questions. They will be answered

[Vidmaster]

As far as I know, there is no such SEXP...YET.

frell 

[eliex]

 Thanks . . . your words hearten me . . .
Cheers for all the assistance so far . . .

Guess my question supply is used up - chat again some other time!! 

[karajorma]

I searched all over the place but I cannot figure out, how to set the speed of a ship to a specific value or at least push it forward. Tried it with "set-x-speed and so on", point of view checked true and speed in x and y direction work, but z doesn't propell the ship forward.

That sounds suspiciously like a bug to me.

Make me a test mission that shows it works in x and y but not in z and I'll look into it.

[Vidmaster]

  there you go 

EDIT: oh, it's a TBP mission

[attachment deleted by admin]

[karajorma]

Okay. I tested it. It seems that when the SEXP should push me in the z direction I get pushed in x and y instead. Definitely seems odd to me. I'll build myself a proper test mission and investigate further.