How to use a Jump Gate''s gcs_refer_system?

Tue Dec 06, 2005 11:01 am by Moonhead

Hi,

To avoid having the NPCs say "We're heading to <...silence...>" I thought I'd use a gcs_refer_system for an existing system for my added jump gate:

[Object
nickname = Li02_to_Xl02
ids_name = 469012
pos = -6550, 0, -76600
rotate = 0, -175.96, 0
Archetype = jumpgate
msg_id_prefix = gcs_refer_system_Li03 <---------------- Colorado System
ids_info = 66145
jump_effect = jump_effect_bretonia
reputation = li_p_grp
behavior = NOTHING
difficulty_level = 3
goto = Xl02, Xl02_to_Li02, gate_tunnel_bretonia
loadout = jumpgate_li_01
pilot = pilot_solar_hard

So, I was hoping to hear the NPCs say "Looks like we're not the only ones going to the Colorado System", which would make kinda sense, as my Dakota System is between California and Colorado. In Colorado, I could add a gcs_refer_system_Li02 to the Dakota JG, to have them saying they're heading for California.

Alas, it doesn't work. There's the familiar silent gap...

The gcs_refer_system in Universe.ini does eliminate the silent gap, but then the custom System will be called the same (wrong) name, from whatever Jump gate it is accessed, which makes it harder to make it logical: this way, there will always be NPCs seeming to be flying in the opposite direction as they are mentioning)...

So, I want each Jump Gate to have its own gcs_refer_system, and the Jump Gate ini code seems to suggest this should be possible... Does anyone have an idea how to use this properly, or how (if?) it could be done?

Thanks in advance!

Mon Dec 19, 2005 5:31 am by AuGuR

I believe with the gcs_refer... part is referencing 2 things at once, being the text that shows up on the screen when landing at a base or going in a system and the sound byte for the base itself. Though I'm not sure if it's being directed by the entry in universe.ini or the systems's ini.

To get a sound byte in for a custom base tho, you'll have to do a few things. From what I've researched so far are that the audio clips for the stations' names are in a UTF file, and have something like a CRC number/sequence as it's name.

The audio clip itself should actually be created as an .aif (old PCM audio format), 22khz and rename it to <name>.wav and imported into a UTF file. I can't remember where, but there's some file in the Data/Audio folder that references the sequences found in the sound UTF files.

----------------------------------------
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RUN AUG RUN!!!
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Edited by - AuGuR on 12/19/2005 5:38:35 AM

Mon Dec 19, 2005 5:50 am by Cold_Void

it needs to be imported to each of the voices,pilot_f01.utf etc

Mon Dec 19, 2005 7:03 am by Moonhead

The point is (or, at least my point is) that the gcs_refer_system line added to each individual Jump Gate section (in any Star System file) doesn't seem to do anything... The voice reference the NPCs use is just the one that Universe.ini assigned to the target Star System. So when the NPCs are at a Jump Gate leading to Leeds, you can't have them say "we're heading for the New London system" UNLESS you want to have them say that at ALL the jump gates leading to Leeds... which I don't. I want to have them referring to California when they are at the JG leading from Colorado to Dakota, and referring to Colorado when they are at the JG leading from California to Dakota.

It'll very probably be possible to add new voice references (I believe Bejaymac posted he succesfully did that) but it's A LOT of work for a small result. I especially don't want to delve into this CRC crap (why the hell did they use that anyway??)

So I rather use workarounds... It's only too bad my idea (see first post) won't work, because the makeup of a Jump Gate section suggests it would work... Kinda sucks! Maybe I should try and see if it works iif i just delete the gcs_refer from Universe.ini...

If not, the least bad option (not counting making a new sound file) would be to have them referring to a system somewhere on the other side of Sirius...At least you won't get the impression they're flying in the wrong direction, and no weird silent gap.

Btw, with Sound Forge you can use mp3 compression (56 kbps) while saving the file as a 22kHz .wav file. Works okay for me.

Mon Dec 19, 2005 1:36 pm by Bejaymac

Moonhead you won't get it to work without making new voices as I think its the "goto = Xl02" that FL takes the voice reference from ie the universe.ini entry.

Adding new voices is relatively simple, it took me about 1.5 hours to figure out what needed to go where, but it took me 2.5 bloody days to make the voice. Sifting through the files in rvp101 trying to find the correct words and or letters to have the bartender say "a Liberty Security Force base". Needless to say I won't be doing that again anytime soon, even my female bartenders been halted because of the nightmare of making voices for her to work right.

Rebalance 3.5 Dev. Team
rebalance.blue-ion.net

Tue Dec 20, 2005 2:36 am by Shadow_Dragon

hey i just began modding in freelancer and learned all of it myself but i'm stuck on 1 thing and that is the jumpgate thingie i can get the jumpgate appear in my desired system infocards are also no prob but i can't seem to get it to complete the jump do you guys know what i could be doing wrong? please let me know

Tue Dec 20, 2005 2:37 am by Shadow_Dragon

you can also mail me at [email protected]

Tue Dec 20, 2005 3:36 pm by Moonhead

Bejaymac wrote:

Moonhead you won't get it to work without making new voices as I think its the "goto = Xl02" that FL takes the voice reference from ie the universe.ini entry.

Well, if I'd wanted the NPCs refer to a new system, then I would indeed have to create a new sound byte, containing the name of that new system. But my idea was to use existing names in an acceptable way.

Like, if the NPCs at the Texas Jump Gate in NY would be saying "we're heading to the Hudson system", that would make kinda sense, as you could go from NY to Hudson by going through Texas. Vice Versa, the NPCs at the Texas JG in Hudson would be saying "we're going to the New York system". Now, looking at the setup of a jump gate in a Star System ini, you would guess that would be easy: put a
msg_id_prefix = gcs_refer_system_Iw02 to the Texas JG in New York and a
msg_id_prefix = gcs_refer_system_Li01 to the Texas JG in Hudson. (Of course it's kinda bullkrap to do this for Texas, but that's just an easy example.)

Would be okay to me, except that it don't work >

The game seems to ignore these msg_id_prefix = gcs_refer_system_.... lines and just uses the references in Universe.ini, which means there can only be 1 single referer for each Star System, regardless through what gate you enter.

Well nevermind... I will now use names of not-too-close stock FL Star Systems, so that the NPCs seem to be on a long journey. For the bases, I use names that sound more or less like it. Not really satisfying, but better than a silent gap. Like "Battleship Essex" for "Battelship Kansas". Both not really satisfying, but better than a silent gap.

So, yeah making new voices is an option, but, as you say, quite an elaborate job, for a small (in my opinion) result. I like sound editting, even if it would take a couple of days (if I would be doing that, better work on a whole buncha names at once), but I'd hate to go through the utf sound files and especially delve into this CRC thing....

(If there are any incredibly intelligent people with way too much free time reading this, here's an idea: rewrite the whole game engine and get rid of all the different encryption things it now uses. Or, recreate the edittor that the guys from Digital Anvil must have been using to build the game contents

)

Tue Dec 20, 2005 3:43 pm by Moonhead

hey i just began modding in freelancer and learned all of it myself but i'm stuck on 1 thing and that is the jumpgate thingie i can get the jumpgate appear in my desired system infocards are also no prob but i can't seem to get it to complete the jump do you guys know what i could be doing wrong? please let me know

I assume you did indeed create a target jump hole in another Star System, right (if not, that's the problem

)

If you got stuck in an endless jump tunnel, than the Star System the player is travelling to, is probably not mentioned (correctly) in Universe.ini

So, re-check the codes of both Jump Gates, and the relevant entry in Universe.ini. If you can't find it, post the codes and we'll have a look...

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