AI behaving strangely

[curtsibling]

My plan was to firstly create a Dictator v3 for MGE.
This would be more of a heavy update than a full scen.

Then looking at the events of the last few days, I am feeling more and more excited by the prospect of a major ToT scenario team effort !

I was definitely into doing a ToT 'Test of Dictator' scenario...But I am seriouslt into doing multiviews for animations.

It matters not how long the developments takes, the fact that this project will attract attention to ToT, adn CIV2 in general is the big aspect...

CIV3 lacks events and real scenario support.
We could best CIV3 and create perhaps the definitive CIV experince!

I say we make a choice on what era to make this for...
WW2 is the favourite, but we should be unified in our idea.

A poll on the subject perhaps?

[curtsibling]

Also, with a global WW2 ToT scenario, we could spawn any manner of tactical scenarios from it, using the same units...

Or do we have to create new ones for each scen?

[Mercator]

Originally posted by techumseh
Merc - how about this? If the ToT format is more sophisticated, has more frames, and is more flexible than the Civ3 format, then does it follow that Civ3 sprites could be somehow converted directly into the ToT format ?

Nope. As you probably noticed with the Panther conversion you did, Civ3 graphics are larger. I don't think it's really possible to automate any cropping/resizing involved.

But using Animation Shop, PSP and its scripts and batch renaming could alleviate the job.

Originally posted by fairline
Mercator will probably correct this but its my understanding that if you use the reduced frame static sprite you effectively have a view for each direction you move the unit - the combat view will be identical to the movement view.

Exactly. If you only use the 5-view static sprite, units will be exactly that: static.

Note that you can just as easily make the different views look completely different. Since you can also control facing direction in civ2, this can be helpful for "terrain units".

E.g. If you'd convert Favoured Flight's ROTK scenario to ToT, you could reduce 5 different mountain units to 5 different facing directions of one and the same unit. That will open up some more unit slots, so you can have even more units. This only works with units that can't be attacked, though, or the mountains would change when facing an attacker.

I would imagine that the full-on 100+ frame jobs can have their own combat animations; IIRC the stock MPS sprites fidget when they don't move, and have attack and death sequences. Been a while since I used 'em.

Yep, units have 4 different animations: idle, move, attack and die.

But only the active unit uses the animations, the other units always use the static sprite (or bitmap image). The only exception to this rule is units dying.

[Heresson]

I explain my comment in the next 4 paragraphs of the same post.

Ups.

The maps are the same size as MGE.

But I do not have MGE. Are MGE maps bigger than FW?

There is the possibility of having up to 4 maps (with restrictions).

You mean, 4 maps in one game?
mmmm?

so you're not restricted to the Civ2 palette.

That's a big plus. Civ2 palette can be really annoying.
By the way, Have I ever mentioned (surely, but on a forum?) that I noticed one specific colour (kind of greyish blue) changes when used in a city icon of a city that revolts? It becomes much more vivid. I think. It is a long time since I've noticed it.

"sprite" is simply a fancy name for image or icon, and for computer game (animated) graphics in particular.
A "frame" is one image in an animation/movie.

Thank You

[Mercator]

Originally posted by Heresson
But I do not have MGE. Are MGE maps bigger than FW?

They can be more than 3 times larger... To be precise, the FW max is 10,922, the MGE/ToT max is 32,767.

Thank You

I really should finally e-mail you, shouldn't I? Damn me.

[techumseh]

If no one else has a WWII project they would prefer, I could dust off my Global War project. Is anyone interested in that?

[fairline]

Originally posted by curtsibling
Also, with a global WW2 ToT scenario, we could spawn any manner of tactical scenarios from it, using the same units...

Or do we have to create new ones for each scen?

Just thinking aloud here, but how about using Tech's Global War scenario with 5-frame animations that can be subsequently used for Dictator 3, or, if you really want to go for it Curt, use the 100-framers for Dictator.

From what Mercator says above I was incorrect when I said the 100+ frame animations are unique to a slot - they are in fact fully interchangeable. Naturally the 10-frame Static sprites are also interchangeable with each other.

From a personal point of view I would prefer having a bash at a scenario conversion, or a scenario thats part-finished and use the 10-framers. Perhaps the ultimate goal if that is successful would be to tackle some of the multi-frame graphics for Dictator 3. What do you guys think? Are we all up for this?

[Heresson]

Originally posted by Mercator


They can be more than 3 times larger... To be precise, the FW max is 10,922, the MGE/ToT max is 32,767.

Thank You

I really should finally e-mail you, shouldn't I? Damn me.

Right. But I can't open my mailbox since a wekek and won't be able to do that for several more days, so there's nothing to it.

[Palaiologos]

Amazing!

I found at last what was the trouble with fortify bug!

It is seemingly an AI strategy glitch.The AI civ in question(Romans) simply had too many cities and too few units.So the AI "instictively" took a defensive stance and fortified everything that could be fortified-including cavalry and catapults.After all its cities had garissons hell was unleashed-it throwed everything it had at me and i was supposed to be on the offensive!

Cool stuff!

P.S It is a strange feeling to be out of subject in your own thread, isn't it?

[techumseh]

Yeah, you thread re-jacker!

[techumseh]

A Flying Fort:

[Heresson]

Interesting