---

This code is client side.

---

Do you mean server side? If client side is what you meant, how does that affect how the SP game plays. Are suddenly certain ships going to be seen, before they uncloak?

Sir S

I hope you mean server side, cause trying to persuade those who want to cloak/do cloak to use a mod to stop them from cloaking......erm...well - it might be tricky

hehe, yeh, server side is better, and i'd be happy to test it

What was FL2 and is now ...............*suspense and drum roll* .................... FL: Fallen Universe!!!!

No, no. I mean client side in that it is the CLIENT that nullifies the effect of cloaking... ENTIRELY. Well, theoretically.

You see, it appears that the way the game is built, the local graphics subsystem is told whether or not you can see the bugger, and thus whether or not to draw him on the screen.

So if someone were to use a cloak and meets someone else using this *theoretical* mod, they'd be in for a real nasty surprise.

Remember, this is the only logical way. The local game *MUST* know where he is, otherwise the game wouldn't know where to draw the origin of any weapons fire. Therefore, if it knows where he is, it is then responsible for the decision whether or not to draw him on the screen, or by how much percentage.


As for the two-hit kill gun, a check could be written in like this :

If hit_damage > 1000
IGNORE.
else
damage me.
endif

That would be a very small amount of code and could easily be worked in somewhere - there's ****loads of redundant code in there and even more of *unused* code, probably cauterized extras due to having to rush the game out the door. Similar to Pirates of the Caribbean/Seadogs 2, for those who are familiar with that title. Rushed out the door, LOTS of annoying hints here and there for so much more.

But... um, that, of course, could be abused too, so it would have to be strongly encrypted with, dunno, armadillo, asprotect or something. Something hard.

This is all assuming that the cloaking PKers problem hasn't been dealt with already. Has it?

kinda yeah, kinda

I have seen what looks like redundant commands and stuff in some dll files, but have never really experimented, as i don't really know how these files work or anything else to be honest

As you mighta guessed, i am a total ini editing guy, and that is about the extent of my knowledge in the modding....much like 95% of poeple here!. I know nothing about programming or stuff along those lines, and as you might imagine, someone appearing who can edit the files i cannot has got me really interested. If i could understand how you knew what was what etc, and how you did it....or if i could learn within a few months, then i would hop on - but for now i am a complete noob! I have tried several editors, and they don't seem to work, neither did the PE Explorer either! So i can look at them, but not edit even now

Edited by - Chips on 4/1/2004 12:00:09 PM

If you know anything (any editors) that translates dlls into Java or C format, I can easily add it in. I haven't learned assembler yet.

Interesting...found mission messages in the OfferBribeResources.dll. This could be fun .

"A scratch? Your wing is off!"
"No it isn't"
"Then what's that then?"
"I've had worse"

Edited by - Laserblast on 4/1/2004 6:00:30 PM

Edited by - Laserblast on 4/1/2004 6:04:30 PM

Chips, in order to learn about exe modding/hacking/whatever, it helps ALOT to have a grasp of the fundamental basics of programming. At the very least you should have experience in complex scripting, for example with Baldur's Gate, Lionheart, or anything that uses procedures, loops, conditional jumps... etc.

If you're a beginner programmer but you've already 'clicked', you should be okay.

Now, at first, assembler looks freakin' scary. However, if you decide to try, bear in mind that for your purposes you do not need to know the finer details, just the basics - enough to get a gist of how the instructions are *flowing*, not necessary all the details of what they're doing.

To start learning, get yourself some tutorials on *CRACKING* - that is, after all, what this exercise is about. Its just a case of applying the rules to a different target.

Now, as to the difficulty of assembler language. Do you know of the game X-Tension? And the sequel to it, X2: The Threat? Well, I'm the author of XTPatch and X2Patch, respectively.

Version one was released three days after I started learning about assembler under windows.

But again, keep in mind that I have an extensive background with computers.

Getting this back on topic, this is not worth the effort. A few months ago, maybe, but the damage done is done, more or less.

That's what I needed to know, its what I suspected. Thanks, wassup.

I so want to click this topic like I clikc all the other cloaking topics but this one seems to have a different angle than the rest.

I know a bit assembler, though from a completely different approach (microcontroller programming). I can imagine that disassembilg the code of object oriented languages can be a PAIN.
anyway, i havent tried something like this on FL yet, but i would have a few things that maybe u could look up and do a favor for manymany modders here.

There are a few (obviously) harcoded caps in the game.
One of those are radar ranges for spotting/targeting players.
that 5k cap, or the 10k for grouped persons.
that would be awesome if it could be customized.
player ships behind that distance are also not displayed though the ship itself would be (for example as a system object - think of battleships, they are popping up at 5k for players but work at the given value as objects).

or something that allows items to be equipped/unequipped during flight, not only on bases. I guess that something like a equippable_in_flight = true/false flag somewhere, but to be honest i dont know.

Stinger: LOL, when I first posted this topic, I had this image of you sitting in front of your 'puter with your chin propped in your hand, looking bored, then suddenly sitting up straight when you saw the word 'cloak' in a new post.

LordFjord:

Dunno about the radar ranges, seems a hard one that but I'll have a look nonetheless. If I can find something to latch onto and monitor with the debugger, it may be doable.

As for the equipment thing, funny you should mention that. Thing is, before my comp died last year, I *KNOW* I had already cracked that one and was happily switching weapons as I beamed them in. I'd also sold my engines. I miss that, so I'll have to give that another go as well.

That alone would be already awesome

Thats good news that u already made that once. i wish i had more time to dig deeper into some decompiling.

---------------------------------
Excelcia Mod Team Leader
www.excelcia.org/forum