Battlescape development

[Daiky]

Let's keep suggestions for the suggestion forums

More importantly: For the next milestone I'm currently working on the reaction fire functionality. Which is not really AI, it just is a formula that defines when a unit should reaction fire.

But nevertheless a very interesting feature, because it will -for the first time in openxcom history- allow aliens to automatically open fire on x-com soldiers (and vice versa)

Other stuff to expect very soon (next milestone):
- The sectoid "test aliens" will now be equipped with plasma pistols. (otherwise they can't attack - duh)
- A first draft of a score/loose/win screen will be implemented

- minor enhancements like: better line of sight (multiple raycasting between units instead of just 1 line), because it was possible to hide behind objects where in the original you could not hide behind, unit stops walking when new alien spotted, camera follows bullet when it goes out of the screen,...

Without the real AI implemented you already could play a very nice hot-seat battlescape game Or if, like myself, you don't find any volounteer, play both x-com and alien side :p

[Daiky]

Large unit pathfinding works 90%, large unit drawing works 50%... but still a long long way to go...

[michal]

Great work Nice to see you back in action

[Daiky]

Well, action is a big word I'm doing a few things from time to time, especially the more fun stuff, leaving boring things for last :p

Hehe, do you remember these?

[SupSuper]

Well, action is a big word I'm doing a few things from time to time, especially the more fun stuff, leaving boring things for last :p

Yeah boring stuff is my job.

Hehe, do you remember these?

I remember them but not very fondly. Nice work.

[Daiky]

Thanks. I have to cheat a bit to get tanks on the screen however, I don't think people will get to see them in the next beta without cheating. Because at the alien side they only appear on terror missions. On the soldier side you can't equip the craft with HWPs yet.
But I think people will have plenty of other things to play with.

I'm planning to implement the medikit, motion scanner and proximity grenade this month, so if all goes well, the battlescape 0.4 is ready before end of year, as promised.

I'm hoping to get a 0.4 beta sneakpreview video on youtube around christmas.

[hsbckb]

I have to cheat a bit to get tanks on the screen however, I don't think people will get to see them in the next beta without cheating. Because at the alien side they only appear on terror missions. On the soldier side you can't equip the craft with HWPs yet.
But I think people will have plenty of other things to play with.

Daiky, I suggest to provide a save game file with HWPs and Cybetdisk in the battlescape. Other members can try and test the large unit easier.

[Daiky]

That can be arranged.

[Yankes]

or maybe you get free tank in every mission? (aliens too get one :>)

[Daiky]

Actually equipping a tank in the skyranger is not that hard, it's just an item, like equipment you add to the skyranger. The item gets converted into a unit at battlescape start.
But there are two special things going on:
- A tank uses up unit slots.
- A tank's ammo is not visible as equipment, however behind the scenes the required amount of ammo is transferred in the skyranger automatically together with the tank.

Giving a free tank is what I already do now for my tests. You just need to take care you don't put more than 10 soldiers in the skyranger, otherwise you get soldiers spawned outside the skyranger due to lack of space inside.

[Daiky]

- class Alien is renamed to GenUnit - which stands for generated unit. Soldiers are units that exist on the geoscape, generated units are created on the battlescape. Those are Aliens, but also Civilians, and also the x-com HWPs. Thus the namechange of the class was needed.

- The medi-kit screen will be developed by gchevallerau

- For people that can not wait to test vehicles in the intermediate build, I will commit some code this week that gives you a free tank/cannon in any mission.

[hsbckb]

- For people that can not wait to test vehicles in the intermediate build, I will commit some code this week that gives you a free tank/cannon in any mission.

This free tank/cannon will be my Christmas Present. Thank You 

How about enemy side i.e. Cyberdisk?

[gchevallereau]

I have found a little regression introduced by large unit support. When startting a mission the battlescape crash during initialization. It doesn't happen when in debug mode(using the graph button). I'm not sure of the best way to fix it, I have just added this:

Code: [Select]

if (part < 0)
{
part = 0;
}

in Map.cpp line 437. After this, no more crash and large unit seems to wrok without any problems

[Daiky]

Thanks. I don't think I tested large units on normal missions yet, only in debug mode. So I should do some more testing. Also there is still things I have to implement: large units should not get fatal wounds, no morale losses, no stun damage... no inventory view, it's "dead body" is not right yet...

[Yankes]

Reaper arent biological? you can fear them and probably stun.