HoW AI Scripts ~Last Updated 18 Jan 2004~ - Page 5

Dundee Slaytern · 01-20-2004, 11:28 AM

Tighter categorisation of codeblocks underway. Some restructuring to streamline the scripts even further and hopefully reduce the AI Cycle. If all goes well... I might be able to squeeze in spell-targetting for ThirdNearest and FourthNearest without exceeding 200KB for any of the spellcasting scripts.

Priority of Lower Resistance is going to be lowered and given a category of its' own. Spellcasters will choose to target more vulnerable targets first before choosing to cast Lower Resistance.

Codeblocks handling countermeasures versus Spellcasters are going to be modified so that they ignore Crypt Things.

----

Bugs Being Fixed

1) Slow and Suffocate are being modified to ignore hostiles that have the Ring of Free Action (monsters use FREEACT.itm to be precise).

2) Domination will ignore Slimes and Revenants.

3) Chromatic Orb will ignore Slimes.

Dundee Slaytern · 01-20-2004, 11:22 PM

I THINK I may have figured out a way to improve the targetting system to cater from NearestEnemy to TenthNearestEnemy without severely bloating the AI Script.

Plans are underway to merge all the spellcaster scripts into one universal Spellcaster Script. It will be appropriate for all ranged spellcasters or pure ranged units. This will combine the following scripts...

IWD_Archer
IWD_Bard
IWD_C-R
IWD_Mage

... into one.

Having an universal script will enable debugging and editing of codeblock behaviour to be easier and less repetitive.

Note that the Chinese New Year is here, so I might skip this Sunday for the update, and postpone it to next Sunday instead. Apologies to anybody who was hoping for changes this Sunday.

motub · 01-23-2004, 08:06 AM

Just downloaded the scripts, and am very much looking forward to using them. I can certainly see from this thread how much work you've put into them, and they look killer!

When they're all completed to your specs, don't suppose you want to move on to IWD2

? It could use some good scripts even more than IWD/HoW.

Dundee Slaytern · 02-02-2004, 09:16 AM

Just a little note that I am still working on the Universal Ranged Script.

Continue() seems to be flawed in the IWD engine, so I am sticking to the standard individual codeblock method. It's bulky, but at least it is reliable.

Although it was a nightmare restructing the script... hence the unfortunate delay.

Due to the unfortunate unreliability of Continue(), intelligent targetting from Nearest to TenthNearest is not realistic in terms of filesize... so I had to compromise by settling for Nearest to FourthNearest.

The final filesize will still be more than half a MB... but short of making the script more stupid or reducing the intelligent targetting, there is little else I can do about it.

NobleNick · 02-02-2004, 10:39 AM

Dundee,

I am not currently using scripts (I enjoy micromanaging); but still come view this thread every week or two to see if I can learn anything new (which I usually do).

--------------------
What's a party,
without a song?
Bards ROCK!
Party On!!

NobleNick · 02-02-2004, 12:24 PM

Dundee,

Summons: I virtually always use summons defensively --> as meat shields, choke point blockers and distractions for the enemy. In the final IWD battle I used them as speed bumps and traffic cones to funnel the enemy where I wanted them, or at least slow them down in getting to where they wanted to go. It was great fun!

My favorite summons is the only one I typically don't use defensively (although now that I am in ToTLM their offensive capability is waning): The Bard's Berserkers. I got the Bardic Horn of Valhalla early on, before Dragon's Eye; and these guys rocked for virtually the entire IWD game. (The "horn" was definitely, far and away, my best purchase.)

(Slight DE1 spoiler coming) ...

~
~
~
~
~
~

The nicest characteristic of the berserkers is their innate longevity. Their most challenging trait is their lack of direct controllability. My most memorable use of them was in the first level of Dragon's Eye. I detailed this encounter in an old post. The short story is: I summoned them immediately upon entering DE1. With proper support and by using main party members to lure lizards to where the berserkers could see them, I was able to use the berserkers to slice through the entire first level, except for the spider's alcove and the lizard king's chamber. It seemed like between the main party and the berserkers SOMEONE was getting a critical hit on a lizard-guy every round! The screen was almost non-stop critical-hit-rocking-and-lots-of-lizard-parts-flying for a solid 45 minutes, as I teased the berserkers further and further into the cave. The last berserker went down almost simultaneously with the last of what must have been something on the order of 70 lizard men. Wow! That was over a year ago, and is still the most memorable encounter I've had in IWD/HoW/TotLM.

--------------------
What's a party,
without a song?
Bards ROCK!
Party On!!

Dundee Slaytern · 02-04-2004, 11:03 PM

Egads! Reading through the manual again, I came to realise that one round in IWD equates to seven seconds, not six like the BG series! Had to... you guessed it, edit the script. Weeee, I make it sound so simple. [img]tongue.gif[/img]

It explains the time discrepancy problems I had been facing throughout the project.

I then discovered that the following was not valid,

Class(Myself,MAGE_ALL)

Apparently... MAGE_ALL (and their ilk) only applies to enemies, but not the party. Why? I do not know why, but because of that, I had to retinker the way the script tries to determine your class. It had to be specific. If you are a multiclassed Fighter/Thief, you were considered a FIGHTER_THIEF, not FIGHTER_ALL, not THIEF_ALL, FIGHTER_THIEF... ...

It pains me to know it took me two days to discover this and find a way to rectify it. I was this close to splitting up the script again.

Currently, the file stands at 507KB. Filesize reduction at this point would be wishful thinking. Intelligent targetting now caters from Nearest to FourthNearest.

I just need to run a few more tests to make sure it works smoothly and I will release it. Then I will take a break before cracking on an universal melee script.

Dundee Slaytern · 02-07-2004, 09:57 AM

ARGH!

/me gnaws on his shin

Apparently... See("X") where X is the .cre filename, does not work properly. It compiles properly in Near Infinity, but fails to work on the field.

This means more edits... ...

GRRRR... it's going to be a major PAIN to try and see how to make the script decide smartly so that the character does not waste time on casting Globe of Invulnerability when he/she sees Revenants... ...

/me gnaws on self somemore

Dundee Slaytern · 02-08-2004, 06:42 AM

Hmmmm... some more technical problems. Funny how the problems appear only after you finish compiling the files.

This time the problem appears to be just some format issues in the .baf file. Nothing Wordpad can't fix.

I'm going to be busy tomorrow, so it might take another two days. Hopefully this time, I will have succeeded in ironing out all the bugs.

On the bright side... I will know what to do, and what not to do with the universal melee script. [img]tongue.gif[/img]

icelus · 04-05-2004, 01:22 PM

Hey, Dundee... any updates/progress on these scripts?

04-05-2004, 01:22 PM	#50
icelus Manshoon Join Date: February 28, 2003 Location: Albuquerque Age: 45 Posts: 214	Hey, Dundee... any updates/progress on these scripts? __________________ [url]\"http://modlist.pocketplane.net\" target=\"_blank\">Infinity Engine Modlist</a> - Comprehensive, Interactive, and Up-to-date!<br />[url]\"http://www.pocketplane.net\" target=\"_blank\">Pocket Plane Group</a> and [url]\"http://www.gibberlings3.net\" target=\"_blank\">The Gibberlings Three</a> - your sources for quality IE mods

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01-20-2004, 11:28 AM	#41
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	Tighter categorisation of codeblocks underway. Some restructuring to streamline the scripts even further and hopefully reduce the AI Cycle. If all goes well... I might be able to squeeze in spell-targetting for ThirdNearest and FourthNearest without exceeding 200KB for any of the spellcasting scripts. Priority of Lower Resistance is going to be lowered and given a category of its' own. Spellcasters will choose to target more vulnerable targets first before choosing to cast Lower Resistance. Codeblocks handling countermeasures versus Spellcasters are going to be modified so that they ignore Crypt Things. ---- Bugs Being Fixed 1) Slow and Suffocate are being modified to ignore hostiles that have the Ring of Free Action (monsters use FREEACT.itm to be precise). 2) Domination will ignore Slimes and Revenants. 3) Chromatic Orb will ignore Slimes.

01-20-2004, 11:22 PM	#42
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	I THINK I may have figured out a way to improve the targetting system to cater from NearestEnemy to TenthNearestEnemy without severely bloating the AI Script. Plans are underway to merge all the spellcaster scripts into one universal Spellcaster Script. It will be appropriate for all ranged spellcasters or pure ranged units. This will combine the following scripts... IWD_Archer IWD_Bard IWD_C-R IWD_Mage ... into one. Having an universal script will enable debugging and editing of codeblock behaviour to be easier and less repetitive. Note that the Chinese New Year is here, so I might skip this Sunday for the update, and postpone it to next Sunday instead. Apologies to anybody who was hoping for changes this Sunday.

01-23-2004, 08:06 AM	#43
motub The Magister Join Date: March 14, 2003 Location: Netherlands Age: 61 Posts: 107	Just downloaded the scripts, and am very much looking forward to using them. I can certainly see from this thread how much work you've put into them, and they look killer! When they're all completed to your specs, don't suppose you want to move on to IWD2 ? It could use some good scripts even more than IWD/HoW.

02-02-2004, 09:16 AM	#44
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	Just a little note that I am still working on the Universal Ranged Script. Continue() seems to be flawed in the IWD engine, so I am sticking to the standard individual codeblock method. It's bulky, but at least it is reliable. Although it was a nightmare restructing the script... hence the unfortunate delay. Due to the unfortunate unreliability of Continue(), intelligent targetting from Nearest to TenthNearest is not realistic in terms of filesize... so I had to compromise by settling for Nearest to FourthNearest. The final filesize will still be more than half a MB... but short of making the script more stupid or reducing the intelligent targetting, there is little else I can do about it.

02-02-2004, 10:39 AM	#45
NobleNick Quintesson Join Date: February 5, 2002 Location: Huntsville, AL, USA Age: 63 Posts: 1,045	Dundee, I am not currently using scripts (I enjoy micromanaging); but still come view this thread every week or two to see if I can learn anything new (which I usually do). -------------------- What's a party, without a song? Bards ROCK! Party On!!

02-02-2004, 12:24 PM	#46
NobleNick Quintesson Join Date: February 5, 2002 Location: Huntsville, AL, USA Age: 63 Posts: 1,045	Dundee, Summons: I virtually always use summons defensively --> as meat shields, choke point blockers and distractions for the enemy. In the final IWD battle I used them as speed bumps and traffic cones to funnel the enemy where I wanted them, or at least slow them down in getting to where they wanted to go. It was great fun! My favorite summons is the only one I typically don't use defensively (although now that I am in ToTLM their offensive capability is waning): The Bard's Berserkers. I got the Bardic Horn of Valhalla early on, before Dragon's Eye; and these guys rocked for virtually the entire IWD game. (The "horn" was definitely, far and away, my best purchase.) (Slight DE1 spoiler coming) ... ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The nicest characteristic of the berserkers is their innate longevity. Their most challenging trait is their lack of direct controllability. My most memorable use of them was in the first level of Dragon's Eye. I detailed this encounter in an old post. The short story is: I summoned them immediately upon entering DE1. With proper support and by using main party members to lure lizards to where the berserkers could see them, I was able to use the berserkers to slice through the entire first level, except for the spider's alcove and the lizard king's chamber. It seemed like between the main party and the berserkers SOMEONE was getting a critical hit on a lizard-guy every round! The screen was almost non-stop critical-hit-rocking-and-lots-of-lizard-parts-flying for a solid 45 minutes, as I teased the berserkers further and further into the cave. The last berserker went down almost simultaneously with the last of what must have been something on the order of 70 lizard men. Wow! That was over a year ago, and is still the most memorable encounter I've had in IWD/HoW/TotLM. -------------------- What's a party, without a song? Bards ROCK! Party On!!

02-04-2004, 11:03 PM	#47
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	Egads! Reading through the manual again, I came to realise that one round in IWD equates to seven seconds, not six like the BG series! Had to... you guessed it, edit the script. Weeee, I make it sound so simple. [img]tongue.gif[/img] It explains the time discrepancy problems I had been facing throughout the project. I then discovered that the following was not valid, Class(Myself,MAGE_ALL) Apparently... MAGE_ALL (and their ilk) only applies to enemies, but not the party. Why? I do not know why, but because of that, I had to retinker the way the script tries to determine your class. It had to be specific. If you are a multiclassed Fighter/Thief, you were considered a FIGHTER_THIEF, not FIGHTER_ALL, not THIEF_ALL, FIGHTER_THIEF... ... It pains me to know it took me two days to discover this and find a way to rectify it. I was this close to splitting up the script again. Currently, the file stands at 507KB. Filesize reduction at this point would be wishful thinking. Intelligent targetting now caters from Nearest to FourthNearest. I just need to run a few more tests to make sure it works smoothly and I will release it. Then I will take a break before cracking on an universal melee script.

02-07-2004, 09:57 AM	#48
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	ARGH! /me gnaws on his shin Apparently... See("X") where X is the .cre filename, does not work properly. It compiles properly in Near Infinity, but fails to work on the field. This means more edits... ... GRRRR... it's going to be a major PAIN to try and see how to make the script decide smartly so that the character does not waste time on casting Globe of Invulnerability when he/she sees Revenants... ... /me gnaws on self somemore

02-08-2004, 06:42 AM	#49
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	Hmmmm... some more technical problems. Funny how the problems appear only after you finish compiling the files. This time the problem appears to be just some format issues in the .baf file. Nothing Wordpad can't fix. I'm going to be busy tomorrow, so it might take another two days. Hopefully this time, I will have succeeded in ironing out all the bugs. On the bright side... I will know what to do, and what not to do with the universal melee script. [img]tongue.gif[/img]

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