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New Dock and Jumgate Fee MOD

The general place to discuss MOD''ing Freelancer!

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 3:07 pm

New Dock and Jumgate Fee MOD

In my pernisishes persuit of making a real Dynamic Economy, i come across an idea and works great.

Until I can get my new resource goods.dll working fully to 'randomize' goods prices, I came up with the fact that all the docking gates and jumpgates are scripted in to an extent. You can add the action command Act_Account= -500 and that is how the game adds money or subtracts from your account 500 (never goes below zero).

Why not charge a "Unique" docking fee for each planet and base. Also a special toll fee to use the JumpGates?

Even if the goods prices are static variables for now, this would make trading a bit more fun; longer hauls would cost more, certain 'bargain cheese' planets and bases could charge a high docking fee price.

Makes having that large hauling freighter capacity more worth it. Goods price may have to be tweaked some. Comments?

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 3:14 pm

Great idea! *can't say more*

I love freighters, I love mining. No, I'm not weird, just insane.

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 4:19 pm


You can add the action command Act_Account= -500


Where do you add this command? To what file (to be specific)?

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 7:33 pm

the command is Act_AdjAcct = -500; this will subtract 500 credits from account.

Used in scripts under [Trigger

Must have a trigger to set it off, it is an action.

[Trigger

nickname = start
Act_AdjAcct = -100


This curious form 'nickname= start' is auto starting. Triggers lead to actions which normally point to, among other things, more nicknames.

But what is the original nickname to get the triggers to fire in the fiirst place?
Well, nickname = start is one that needs no reference to auto start.

This was pulled from the Mission folders scripts.

An example of making a fee is by re-define with a script for bar use. Example is when Trent for a mission script is required to meet Juni in the bar. I just remove the movie.thn and all dialog when he walks into bar, then slap this Act_AdjAcct = -100 making his money account drop by 100 credits for bar use.

Yes, this is not ideal, but i am getting there. Pretty much make each base and planet a "MISSION" type with its own little 'script' behavior. The EXE keeps flipping through all of them over and over. Of course, I removed the whole story for now.

Docking with planet and landing will trigger scripts. Look at how they do it during the opening intro to game placing Trent onto Manhatten. There are overide commands that are powerful but not used much at all; but they still work anywhere.

I can also define use a zone to trigger a script such as Act_AdjAcct = -200 when near enough to a jumpgate to trigger it by system "Mission" type script.

More progress is needed to figure out the best way to twist these missions (must also modify the DLL that calls them to include what and when , where ) in conjunction with adding ability of New Resource to define them and the EXE will use them.

OT
Should I just go play X-tension? Maybe X2 when it comes out...why did they not make Freelancer into the real Privateer it seemed that they were going to do? Leave it to MicroBrain to dumb it down and throw it out the door for the common average person; dumbed down game. make a buck.

How hard could it have been to make this a REAL successor to Privateer? The game could have been SO much more. Alot of basic stuff is hard coded and trying to work around it is extremly frustrating. This game will not be around for long if not modded well. It is fun to play for a while but the simplicity gets boring. I am trying to make more fun Random Missions, Zone scripts in space, ....MOD all over.

Can we ask MicroBrain if we can use open source code to re write it into the game polish it needs? We can then call it Fan made MOD patch to make it more fun. Of course, that is not legal. So what? It is for my personal use, you still need a copy to patch to play MOD.

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 7:43 pm

I am with you so far. BUt.. the triggers work during SP compaign only. At least that's been my experience. I have tried to define triggers in ROOMS files but to no avail. They seem to use behaviors.. Haven't tried to play with scripts but it seems that they only control animation sequences (cameras, movement) and not really the gameplay.

have you had any luck to actually implement trigger after SP compaign?

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 8:07 pm

Yes, I am trying to get this to work in SP since easier to develope, then I can export to MP.

That is the trick. I am making the WHOLE universe ONE big looping SP campaign that repeats itself over and over. Thus triggers work ALL the time. I am not even using the story at all (gets in the way) for development.

The new SP campaign for this Universe MOD (makes for alot of stuff, like random cargo run missions, Bounty hunting missions, Faction Wars pilot captures, smuggling offers, docking fees, etc.) is everything behavior specifc script (complete re-write!) chasing its tail around. Runs the new base specific behavior missions scripts defined by the new resource over and over, never ending. Alot of solars bases etc to write! Hundreds...

All actions in Universe have triggers, zones, stuff like that with self ending; then it moves on to the 'next' 'mission' script ready to fire as you 'trigger' new events to take place in this wrapper never ending Universe.

I am going to just start with the Liberty system to reduce the scripting nightmare for testing. Also you are right about the animation files, you can not do much there; but in a 'scripted faux pas universe', you can make things happen in rooms, using the command from the 'real ' missions.

Edited by - Xerx on 22-03-2003 20:10:28

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 9:25 pm

Do you realize you just discovered a way to make the FL universe a way more living one? We could add way more then just that. Just imagine it. We won't need the source code if you know how to work this out properly.

I love freighters, I love mining. No, I'm not weird, just insane.

Post Sat Mar 22, 2003 10:50 pm

Great ideas and I'm with you up until the "export to MP" part.
How would you do that? I just don't see it.

Post Sun Mar 23, 2003 1:06 am

My God, Do you work for the IRS?
This sounds just like something the Democrats would come up with...

Tax this Tax that, user fee here user fee there.

Well in the spirt of our founding Fathers, Tax your self.

Hehe..

Post Sun Mar 23, 2003 2:16 am

All I can say is....good luck :p

Post Sun Mar 23, 2003 7:49 am

Yes, very good progress. I do not know right now how to export this into MP, i have not even tried yet.

SUCCESS! Using a giant ONE UNIVIRSE "MISSION" script does work. I just used the first one, added in stuff to get going and now I can do anything I want. I on purpose placed Freeport 7 back in Omicron Major system so you can see it for fun, and scripted in a Solar jump hole to get there.

I found another important universal command IntState = TRUE. This causes the TRIGGER nickname right before it ending in * _int to fire automatically self trigger.

All my Solars [OBJECT have ZONES defined (for action to occur) or you can use command like when approaching Pittsburg planet Docking Ring Cnd_distance = inside, player Li01_02base dock, 800, MSG. Message will pop-up.

I get exact commands posted later but when you get close you will get a pop up message when inside 800 Km (placeholder for now is must dock with pittsburg from M1a thn). I will change that to notify you instead voice "dock permited" with text changed to FEE amount to land at planet. All customizable for every solar you want to add! Then use Act_AdjAcct = -100 for the docking fee.

This is a self running giant "mission" script! allows you to do alot of things. Each trigger set off an action, then command END (forgot what it was) once action complete. The last action I put you back to 'main' script forever repeating.

Let me get an example basic Universe script for Liberty system with only a few featured enabled and added so you can see what I mean. it opens up alot of possiblities. The first one is a docking fee for landing on Manhattan and Pittsburg planets' docking ring also. Watch for the generic 'message' placeholder play, I did not get the info card pop up message txt changed yet, but you will see money taken from account, after landing.

This also will allow for custom made Job Offers in Bars, that are more lucrative. You can accept or decline them. Now you can add Cargo/Smuggling Runs with scripted in Pirate or Police attacks along with normal patrols, Bounty Hunter missions, etc. Untill I can get a random mission generator up and running, I use some static ones for place holder examples.

I aslo do this for a Simulated Economy with goods price flluctations each time game is restarted. One way I thought do this while EXE is RUNNING is when going into the Traders room; since this is a script, it triggers the command global like the Act_adjHealth = .3 to make that first Prisoner ship under attack Danau4 whatever in the first regular mission you must save. I can command also a global for goods prices to temperarly adjust prices. Even triger and change txt for news.dll to say Prices on Manahatan are high, or low right now.

Post Sun Mar 23, 2003 8:15 am

It sounds like the tax that Privateer 2 used for gate travel. If your going to do that then how do you up the money the character starts out with. 500 credits doesn't do anything. Also I'd only tax jumping from one faction to another. Liberty to bretonia for instance.

Post Sun Mar 23, 2003 8:31 am

This is a really cool idea! The idea of charging a fee to use jumpgates/docking rings is cool! I wonder if it is possible to script it so those prices change depending on status? For example, if you are on good terms with the Liberty house, then the fee is only 500 (or some other fairly small number), but if you are on bad terms with them, then the price could go much higher? Any comments/feedback on this would be great!

Post Sun Mar 23, 2003 6:22 pm

This brings a tear to my eye. I love it!!!! Can't wait to imlement this into my server. Now all I'm waiting for is PC cargo missions runs, dynamic trading, and a way to ease up the number of hostiles spawing in every system so I can mine an area and not be attacked every two minutes!!

THANK YOU!

Post Sun Mar 23, 2003 7:48 pm

I agree with coxpwr... inter-govermental jumps should exact a fee, but in-government jumps shouldn't, in my opinion. As for docking... I'd suggest only on the planets, and the further from the capital planet of said government, the lower the fee... also, astronomically high fees for docking with border world planets, and minimal fee for planets that are being terraformed... no commerce, hence no need... and pirate faction planets shouldn't carry a fee. One thing I'd like to see is bribery in flight. Instead of pirates hitting you up for your cargo, they expect money and will attack if not paid off... oh, and bribing them in space affects thier faction's alleigance to you.... improving it for being their "little b**ch"... I'd love to see escort missions, and cargo runs... and have the mission cargo take up space in your hold so you can't run other things... the more the pay, the more cargo space it'd take up...

Edited by - Manic on 23-03-2003 19:48:59

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