Topic: MISSION MAP MAKING CHALLENGE!!!

[NuclearWessels]

OK - the thing I REALLY hate about mission scripting is fiddling with the maps.  By the time you've created 30 or 40 and edited them a couple of dozen times each the creative factor really starts sagging.

So - here's my chance to be a lazy sod your chance to be creative and have a lasting impact on the missions that you and everyone else runs over and over! ....  make me a map to stick in one of the patrol missions!

You don't need any special tools, just cut and paste the map example down below and change any characters you want!

If you want to post a whole suite of maps (covering all sorts of terrain/planet/base combinations) that'd be even better!

Here are the restrictions:

(1) You have to stick to the map format PRECISELY -- the API is really picky, and even a single character out of place can cause the mission not to run.  So I'll do a superficial eyeball of the map for any gross errors, but if I stick your map in and the mission no longer appears I'm just going to turf the map (well, I'll post a note here saying it didn't work, and you can eyeball it to look for the possible problem, it's not like I'm going to delete it from the thread )

(2) You can paste your map directly in this thread, but to allow people to clearly see your map layout you need to use the teletype format (the typewriter button, or tt tags:

Code: [Select]

[tt] [/tt]

(3) Anyone that's interested can point out flaws in the maps or make suggestions for improvements, whoever posted the map is free to decide what they want to incorporate from the feedback by editing their post.

(4) There are a ton of missions, and a ton of terrain possibilities, so I can probably use all the maps that meet the criteria.

I'll post the map format criteria in just a second...

[NuclearWessels]

Map Format Requirements

• The map dimensions and overall structure must be exactly as shown below
• The type of hex you want it to appear in must be listed after the // on the first line
• All the editing of the actual map must be inside the | and _ boundaries
• The letters G,H,I represent the starting positions of the three players on the drafter's team
• The letters W,X,Y represent the starting positions of the three opposition players
• The letter Z represents the starting position of any extra pirates/convoys/monsters in the mission
• Lowercase letters indicate the point the teams are facing toward, i.e. player G faces towards g
• Each dot (.) on the map represents an area of open space with dimensions about 10x10 in the actual mission
• Special symbols represent the possible terrain types, I'll post a list below

Terrain symbols:

         Starting Positions         Ending Positions         Planets         
         Start1 --> G            End1 --> g               Earth --> 1
         Start2 --> H            End2 --> h               Ringed Earth --> 2
         Start3 --> I            End3 --> i               Mars --> 3
         Start4 --> J            End4 --> j               Jupiter --> 4
         Start5 --> K            End5 --> k               Organia --> 5
         Start6 --> L            End6 --> l               Saturn --> 6
         Start7 --> M            End7 --> m               Night City --> 7
         Start8 --> N            End8 --> n               Fire --> 8
         Start9 --> O            End9 --> o               Ice --> 9
         Start10 --> P            End10 --> p               Gas --> 0
         Start11 --> Q            End11 --> q               
         Start12 --> R            End12 --> r               
         Start13 --> S            End13 --> s               
         Start14 --> T            End14 --> t               
         Start15 --> U            End15 --> u               
         Start16 --> V            End16 --> v               
         Start17 --> W            End17 --> w               
         Start18 --> X            End18 --> x               
         Start19 --> Y            End19 --> y               
         Start20 --> Z            End20 --> z               

         Celestial Bodies         Asteroids               Black Holes
         Moon --> @               SmallAsteroid --> [         SmallBlackHole --> :
         Sun1 --> (               LargeAsteroid --> ]         LargeBlackHole --> ,
         Sun2 --> )               IceAsteroid --> *         
         Sun3 --> !
         
         Nebulas                  Dust Clouds               Other
         Nebula1 --> &            LightDustCloud --> <      WormHole --> %
         Nebula2 --> ?            HeavyDustCloud --> >      Fissure --> $
                                                                                                                Ion Storm --> {



Notes:
(1) if a nebula symbol appears anywhere on the map then the whole map is a nebula
(2) planets and suns take up more than the single space their symbol goes in, so don't position player start positions too close to one


Map Example

So this example shows a map that's dimensions 300x300, with a black hole in a cluster of dust clouds, the two teams a little north and south of the cloud, and a potential pirate location off to the west.  All the rest is empty space.

   "// Blackhole terrain, no planet, no base",
   " +____1____2____3____4____5____6+",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "1|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |.............wxy.......I.H....|",
   "2|........................G.....|",
   " |.....................<........|",
   " |....................>...<.....|",
   " |...................<.B>.......|",
   " |....................>.>.......|",
   "3|....................<...<.....|",
   " |.............Z.z..............|",
   " |.........................W.X..|",
   " |..........................Y...|",
   " |..............................|",
   "4|.............ghi..............|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "5|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "6|..............................|",
   " +------------------------------+",
   "      1    2    3    4    5    6",

[NuclearWessels]

So PUHHLEEEAAAAASSSEEEE fire away - I'd really appreciate the ideas!

many thanks!
dave

[Lepton]

   "// The Suicide Pit",
   " +____1____2____3____4____5____6+",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "1|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |.............wxy..............|",
   "2|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "3|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |.........................W.X..|",
   " |..........................Y...|",
   " |..............................|",
   "4|.............ghi..............|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |...........!!!!!..............|",
   "5|...........!GHI!..............|",
   " |...........!!!!!..............|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "6|..............................|",
   " +------------------------------+",
   "      1    2    3    4    5    6",

[NuclearWessels]

LOL - that's my Hexx mission 

OK, I reserve the right not to use a map if it's TOOOO mean to the players
(and I used to think I was the evil one )

dave

[KAT Chuut-Ritt]

Map Format Requirements

• The map dimensions and overall structure must be exactly as shown below
• The type of hex you want it to appear in must be listed after the // on the first line
• All the editing of the actual map must be inside the | and _ boundaries
• The letters G,H,I represent the starting positions of the three players on the drafter's team
• The letters W,X,Y represent the starting positions of the three opposition players
• The letter Z represents the starting position of any extra pirates/convoys/monsters in the mission
• Lowercase letters indicate the point the teams are facing toward, i.e. player G faces towards g
• Each dot (.) on the map represents an area of open space with dimensions about 20x20 in the actual mission
• Special symbols represent the possible terrain types, I'll post a list below

Terrain symbols:

         Starting Positions         Ending Positions         Planets         
         Start1 --> G            End1 --> g               Earth --> 1
         Start2 --> H            End2 --> h               Ringed Earth --> 2
         Start3 --> I            End3 --> i               Mars --> 3
         Start4 --> J            End4 --> j               Jupiter --> 4
         Start5 --> K            End5 --> k               Organia --> 5
         Start6 --> L            End6 --> l               Saturn --> 6
         Start7 --> M            End7 --> m               Night City --> 7
         Start8 --> N            End8 --> n               Fire --> 8
         Start9 --> O            End9 --> o               Ice --> 9
         Start10 --> P            End10 --> p               Gas --> 0
         Start11 --> Q            End11 --> q               
         Start12 --> R            End12 --> r               
         Start13 --> S            End13 --> s               
         Start14 --> T            End14 --> t               
         Start15 --> U            End15 --> u               
         Start16 --> V            End16 --> v               
         Start17 --> W            End17 --> w               
         Start18 --> X            End18 --> x               
         Start19 --> Y            End19 --> y               
         Start20 --> Z            End20 --> z               

         Celestial Bodies         Asteroids               Black Holes
         Moon --> @               SmallAsteroid --> [         SmallBlackHole --> :
         Sun1 --> (               LargeAsteroid --> ]         LargeBlackHole --> ,
         Sun2 --> )               IceAsteroid --> *         
         Sun3 --> !
         
         Nebulas                  Dust Clouds               Other
         Nebula1 --> &            LightDustCloud --> <      WormHole --> %
         Nebula2 --> ?            HeavyDustCloud --> >      Fissure --> $



Notes:
(1) if a nebula symbol appears anywhere on the map then the whole map is a nebula
(2) planets and suns take up more than the single space their symbol goes in, so don't position player start positions too close to one


Map Example

So this example shows a map that's dimensions 600x600, with a black hole in a cluster of dust clouds, the two teams a little north and south of the cloud, and a potential pirate location off to the west.  All the rest is empty space.

   "// Blackhole terrain, no planet, no base",
   " +____1____2____3____4____5____6+",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "1|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |.............wxy.......I.H....|",
   "2|........................G.....|",
   " |.....................<........|",
   " |....................>...<.....|",
   " |...................<.B>.......|",
   " |....................>.>.......|",
   "3|....................<...<.....|",
   " |.............Z.z..............|",
   " |.........................W.X..|",
   " |..........................Y...|",
   " |..............................|",
   "4|.............ghi..............|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "5|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "6|..............................|",
   " +------------------------------+",
   "      1    2    3    4    5    6",

Do you honestly expect a real human being of the non-Geek variety to understand this?

How about a color coded map with nice icons to place instead?

[SSCF-LeRoy]

Make every other dot a large asteroid and call it "J'inn's Worst Nightmare"

[Dizzy]

Planet 2 and 6 will not ever be present in an sgo shiplist. So dont use these planets on maps plz. They were removed because they cause mission problems. DONT use them.

[NuclearWessels]

Do you honestly expect a real human being of the non-Geek variety to understand this?

How about a color coded map with nice icons to place instead?

LOL - tell me about it!  Now you know why I dread map editing more than any other aspect of scripting 

But this is the format Taldren gave us in the api, so this is the one we're stuck with.

dave

[NuclearWessels]

Planet 2 and 6 will not ever be present in an sgo shiplist. So dont use these planets on maps plz. They were removed because they cause mission problems. DONT use them.

The ones that are places as map terrain are different Diz - they aren't armed, they aren't attackable, they can't attack -- effectively they're just big rocks you need to avoid running into.  (The shiplist planets have to be generated by a different part of the script, those are the 2's and 6's we have to avoid.)

dave

[Julin Eurthyr]

Before I take a stab at this:

There's no way to do, for example, a map which is only 1/2 nebula (i'm thinking of an entering the Mutara scenerio)

How many rocks show up per rock symbol inserted?  If I were to do a 3x3 area of contiguous asteroids, would it be 9 rocks in a grid-ish pattern or an area of the map essentially unpassable because there's 20-27+ rocks there?

What's the code for ion storm?

[NuclearWessels]

No, sadly there's no way to make part of a map a nebula.

It's one rock per asteroid symbol .. it's worth noting that if you put several of them side by side you'll get the cases where the AI Jinn's itself.   (Sorry Jinn, unjust or not, the term stuck )

I added the ion storm symbol to the list, it's {
(though reportedly some graphics cards have difficulty displaying them???)

dave

[Capt_Bearslayer_XC]

Have fun hiding in the corners on this one....

   " +____1____2____3____4____5____6+",
   " |***>><<................<<>>***|",
   " |**>><<..................<<>>**|",
   " |*>><<....................<<>>*|",
   " |>><<......................<<>>|",
   "1|<<<........................<<<|",
   " |.......X.............Y........|",
   " |.......x.............y........|",
   " |.............W................|",
   " |.............w................|",
   "2|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "3|.Z............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "4|..............................|",
   " |..............g...............|",
   " |..............G...............|",
   " |.........h.........i..........|",
   " |.........H.........I..........|",
   "5|..............................|",
   " |<<<........................<<<|",
   " |>><<......................<<>>|",
   " |*>><<....................<<>>*|",
   " |**>><<..................<<>>**|",
   "6|***>><<................<<>>***|",
   " +------------------------------+",
   "      1    2    3    4    5    6",

[Capt_Bearslayer_XC]

   "//To kill a "pirate"
   " +____1____2____3____4____5____6+",
   " |.........X....W....Y..........|",
   " |.........x....w....y..........|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "1|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "2|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "3|,z............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "4|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   "5|..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |..............................|",
   " |.........h....g....i..........|",
   "6|.........H....G....I..........|",
   " +------------------------------+",
   "      1    2    3    4    5    6",


Note the large black hole right next to the 'extra' enemy

[Dizzy]

Bear, ED is being serious.

[Capt_Bearslayer_XC]

Bear, ED is being serious.

I take it we will be seeing some of your maps soon then? 

[Dizzy]

Bear, ED is being serious.

I take it we will be seeing some of your maps soon then? 

Oh, you'd have me do everything now wouldn't you! I just hope we dont see any of your maps, Bear, at least not the one where your starting points are so far off that combat wouldnt take place for at least 10 minutes.

It's a bad idea to have map development setup anywhere outside a closed group.

[Capt_Bearslayer_XC]

... at least not the one where your starting points are so far off that combat wouldnt take place for at least 10 minutes.

Sorry, but I have no idea of the scale on the maps....

I take it the 'no corners' one is better off for the seperation of the ships?

[Riskyllama]

... at least not the one where your starting points are so far off that combat wouldnt take place for at least 10 minutes.

Sorry, but I have no idea of the scale on the maps....

I take it the 'no corners' one is better off for the seperation of the ships?

# Each dot (.) on the map represents an area of open space with dimensions about 10x10 in the actual mission

[Dizzy]

I take it the 'no corners' one is better off for the seperation of the ships?

I dont know what u r talking about, but the corners map u did, well, I'd be happy sticking a sun in the 4 corners and calling it a bright sunny square day. Don't need all that other stuff there.