SC2Mapster

Ah, correct, the mover has a Timeout field - no idea how I missed that. Thanks.

I might write a tutorial on how to make some more advanced missile behavior, using movers and motion phases, since there doesn't seem to be many around. Also, the published methods of making missiles travel past the target point are far more complicated than the way you would do it with Movers.

The one thing I'm still trying to work out is how to make a missile destroy when it reaches the edge of the map in the DE. I think it can be done with actor events?

I can't get missiles to survive longer than 30 seconds. Create a missile, give it a nice slow speed or change the mover so it won't impact, and they won't last longer than 30 seconds. Or just change the MS on an existing missile, for instance, marauders punisher grenades.

Seems like a bit of a shortcoming considering how powerful missile and missile movers are.

Is anybody else experiencing a problem where the arrangement of the items, as stacks are applied, get randomized?

@ZealNaga: Go

It might also be possible with triggers on the cargo, perhaps. I'll have another look for the ally flag on the load/unload, I tried to find it before and couldn't. Not a great deal of point, though, if I can't find the ability to share entrances.

The only way I could think of was a complicated and messy way with triggers, which duplicated the unit, when it entered, to all the allied networks, and when exiting destroyed the copies. Would need to work out how to share the load/unload commands between players (unless it's an order on the unit itself?), as well.

I'll post back if I work it out.

Is it possible?

I don't think it is, and google has given me nothing, but thought I would post here to see if anyone has tackled this.

I would like, if possible, to have nydus worms spawned by different players all usable by all allied players, so I could enter with one players worm and exit at another players worm, as long as they are allied.

Looked through the abilities and flags, but I can't see anything which could let me do it sadly. I imagine it would be somewhere in the Load/Unload abilities?

I have absolutely no idea how to make the worms share cargo space, though.

@Kueken531: Go

Never intended for it to work that way, it would work with 54 armor = 54%. Obviously the proper formula would be nice but it's still a reasonably elegant way of doing it. It would just mean you would have to change your armor application mechanics, which seem simpler than having the above to me.

Just a quick post to say awesome work, and I really appreciate the effort you have gone to.

Thanks :)

@Vertal: Go

Care to share?

I'm giving this library a shot, but a quick note:

You can't use, as far as I am aware, custom script calls to library functions. The reason seems to be the prefix when the library is imported is not set-able in any fashion, for instance:
libNakV_gf_lib_voteResetGlobals();
will cause a syntax error, as my editor prefixed it with "lib1", so the function is
lib1_gf_lib_voteResetGlobals();

These are everywhere, even where there is no real reason to use them - like

For each integer var from [custom script: lib_varname -1]

I'm currently replacing the custom scripts with normal GUI function calls.

Another problem I've noticed: With the use of global variables, any attempt to have more than 1 vote running concurrently would break it, or at least, produce undefined behavior. Added a check to make sure vote wasn't already running inside of voteCreate.

Edit: Ok, after fixing rather a lot of errors with this library, I have something ready sans-testing, will post for others when I've tested it.

I'm currently trying to do a similar system, except I'm doing it in a different fashion.

My way is by using the Armor Reduction field of every damaging effect. Armor Reduction sets how much damage reduction 1 point of armor gives - obviously for weapon effects this is by default 1, and spells default 0 - but if you go through and set them all to be, say, 1% of the effect damage, it will equate to the same as %DR using Damage Response. I will then modify/add triggers so that whenever a effect's damage is changed (hero +weapon damage from leveling/items or ups) the armor reduction value will be changed to match.

Thoughts?

@AgoutiByte: Go

OK, I have a working method of doing option 1 (that is, an energy cost for an on-attack effect/cast, with no cast without energy). Posting for any others who are trying to do the same thing.

After trying many,many different ways of doing it, the simplest that I could find was the following (in this example, adding an energy cost for marauder's slow effect).

First, how the stock marauder works: The attack actor contains a link to an Effect Set, called Marauder - Punisher Grenades (Set). This set contains the effect to deal damage as well as the slow effect on the target.

First off add a new effect set, which I called Punisher Grenades (Apply Slow Set). This set contains the slow effect itself and the effect to apply the energy usage to the casting unit, as well as a validator making sure there is enough energy to cast.

The actual slow effect is the same as before, it's just placed inside this new set instead of the old one. The effect to apply the energy usage is done by a Modify Unit effect, with energy -25, and Target - Impact Unit set to Caster

Of course you have to remove the validator checking for slow being researched as well :)

The only real problem with this is that the energy is taken from the caster on impact, rather than on launch... however applying it on launch is more tricky. I believe it is possible by something like the following: Before launch (in the attack actor), apply a dummy buff (or maybe flag of some description?) to the caster and remove energy On impact, have a validator checking for the buff on the caster, if so apply slow and remove buff.

I think there is some way to do the above method - with a dummy buff on the caster that gets removed by the impact effect - to do the auto-cast attack modifier method. The autocast would be a attack augment, which would cast the buff. Still not perfect, though.

Quote from RileyStarcraft: Go

Augments are basically "hooks" which are triggered when an order to use a different ability is given, as such they're always linked to the order being given and not the ability being executed.

Would like to suggest this is incorrect. Augment abilities will continue to cast while the hooked order is active, for instance: Zealot charge is a Augment on Attack, with validators setting a maximum and minimum range. If you remove the minimum range validator (and it is left on auto-cast) charge will activate over and over while the Zealot is left attacking a single target, with no orders given.

However it is still not useful for an on-attack effect, as an Augment to Attack will not cast when the unit strikes but rather while the unit is attacking (hence why zealots will charge from a distance before they strike).

Just to summarize the above, as I know people don't like huge walls of text:

I have a -energy ability, which is attached to the attack of a unit by modifying the attack actor to have a effect set which includes the normal damage, and a switch to apply the damage from the ability.

This is all working correctly, however I want each attack while the ability is active to cost mana, and if the unit runs out of mana, the ability is turned off.

The problem is you can only assign a cost to behaviors, not to effects, especially since the effect is being applied to the target.

If you need an example at home, being able to add an energy cost to the slow effect on upgraded marauders (so it costs energy for them to fire their upgraded shot) would be easily transferable.

I would like better more complicated stuff but I'll be happy if I can just do the above :)

Alternatively if possible I'd like to be able to have an effect which is autocastable, and is cast every time the unit attacks (as an attack modifier that deals vitals damage) and costs energy to do so.

Hi everyone,

Been poking around in the data editor for a few days straight now trying to get the effect I want. I have a unit with a level-able spell which causes energy burn in addition to normal attack damage. I am able to get this to work as a effect set (in addition to the normal damage) with a validator & switch for apply the correct effect for each level, however, I want there to be a energy cost with every shot (i.e. cast).

I also want it to work closer to the DotA style, (with a mana cost per shot) and as a cast & click/autocast ability, if possible, however if this is a bit to tricky happy enough just to get the mana cost working. Would still like to learn how to do it both ways, though.

So, there are 2 ways I would be happy for this to work:

1. For any of you who play Heroes of Newerth (I can't think of the DotA equiv, been far too long), the idea is for it to be exactly the same as Arachna's web shot.

You can click on the ability, then click on the target, and it will fire 1 normal attack with the spell effect as well (so auto attack damage plus burn).

You can right click autocast, in which case it will cast (and use energy) with every attack. If the unit runs out of energy, obviously, the ability will not cast.

So just to quickly go over it again, the following is the expected behaviour for this way: I click the ability button, click on the target, it fires 1 'boosted' shot, which causes normal attack damage and energy burn, as well as consuming say 15 energy to cast. The unit then goes back to normal, unboosted attacking (or whatever order was queued). I right click the ability every auto attack shot is boosted, causing both normal damage and energy burn, as well as consuming energy with each shot. If the unit isn't attacking, the ability does not cast. If the unit runs out of energy, the autocast stays active but the ability itself does not case until there is enough energy to cast.

2. Alternatively, I'd also be happy with a variation on the way it works currently - the toggle-able ability applies a buff to the unit with an initial energy cost (say, 100), which in turn applies the energy burn with every shot . The important part of this, though, is that while the ability is active each shot must have an energy cost associated with it (say, 15), and if the unit runs out of energy then the buff is removed.

I'd really like to learn how to do both of the above, but I'm a lot closer to learning option 2 than option 1.

Right, so now that big block of text is out of the way, I'll try to explain how I've been trying to do it.

Before I started hunting through sc2mapster, I was trying to do it (option 2) through effects and validators, basically something like

Actor: Unit attack
.Normal damage
.Validator: Check for energy, a level of ability active
..Effect: Energy cost to caster
..Energy burn set (validator & effect for each level)
...Effect: Energy burn to target

and the ability itself applies the buff and has the energy cost to initially apply it. I really, really don't like this way of doing it though, especially as I couldn't get it to work properly.

The energy cost effect was through having Target - Impact Unit + set to Caster and an minus to energy. Seems a dodgy way to do it though... also seemed like there was multiple other ways of doing it, perhaps with a Cost setting somewhere?

The above kinda barely almost worked, but not quite - I couldn't get the validator to work properly, god those things are confusing.

So, without a serious bit of guru magic I would have no idea how to do option 1, so trying to get just option 2 working (e.g. add an energy cost per attack) I've been following the following threads (hur hur) http://forums.sc2mapster.com/development/data/9851-ability-autocast/#p3 http://forums.sc2mapster.com/development/map-development/2562-critical-strike-issue-and-item-activation-issue/#p6 http://forums.sc2mapster.com/development/data/12123-trying-to-make-a-crit-with-new-effect-chance-feature/#p8

which all seem to be a variation on the same solution (provided by RileyStarcraft, bless his cotton socks), e.g., have the ability apply a de-buff to the target, with 1 charge, which on damage (using Damage Response) causes the energy burn. Some people have said that Damage response can be applied on strike as well as struck, but I can't find how that would work. Seems a little over complicated? Should I be able to add a cost to the effect in the attack actor?

However at this point my half-baked understanding of how to work with the data editor is kind of biting me... I'm really not sure how I would go about implementing this in the way that I would like? I can't help but feel there are other ways to go about this, I just can't seem to find them. Something near where I am working with the attack actor?

So assuming the above is the best/only way to do it, I need some help understanding the best way to go about it.
-Energy cost to caster on attack
-Doing the upgrade system in a neater fashion,
-Disabling/toggling the ability when the unit runs out of mana.

At this point just trying to get help adding an energy cost per attack to get option 2 working, unless some clever soul can explain how I would go about getting option 1.

Thanks in advanced everyone :)