Map Scripting

AppleApe

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Jun 5, 2010
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I have heard that there is a way to create one's own map?

How is it done?

Any insight is appreciated :)
"AppleApe" 

 
hey,

yes there are many ways to create your own maps.

read this tutorial

If you have more questions, post it!  :upside
 
Not at all about 75% of all new "Maps" could have or were created with nothing more than a basic fext editor.
Maps consist of 2 parts......
The hard landscape
The Text script  that dose everything else.
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As a MAC owner you are limited to using existing  XYZ.lnd files but there are hundreds of  these so just use one that suits your perpose.
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The script file is by  far the most important and places  everything  on that landscape  houses trees people everything!
Tools you need.
Basic text editor, that's it.
But a good mapping list will make things  a lot easier. I think Kays has one  a bit out of date but has over 95% of the commands.
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Grem's  Mac Mapping Tutorial.....stage 1
Play the pre-installed skirmish map Two gods, not all the way through but enough to get the feel of the map.
Now load the script (found in your Scripts\playgrounds folder) into your text editor.
Find  the line with PLAYER INFLUENCE change  the 1.0000 to 9.9999. It's  near the top of the list.
Now save  as say My Map 1.txt to the same folder.
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Next time you  start B&W and go to Skirmish your map  will be listed and be playable.
The new map will be exactly the  same but with infinite God reach. 
Enjoy.
You are now in the realm of B&W mappers.
Stage 2
Add a toy ball near your temple.
Now look at the Temple co-ordinates guess the offset(plus or minus 5-10 could be good) and place the ball using  your mapping  list as a guide to the syntax.
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I hope this helps get you going.


 
Could I alter any map say land three?
What about changing the opposing creature like lethis could have a polar bear?
 
Anything is possible but first learn to walk before you.... Try  to run.
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Edit Skirmish maps  first then  once you  are confident  you know  what you are doing. Then you could  edit the main game files.
 
Thanks for the tips Gremxula. I too am using OSX so I might as well give this a try sometime.  :)
 
Just recently I tried changing the player infulence 1.0000 to 9.9999.
It worked great. The only problem is the opposing God's influence is maxed out also.
I am also unable to add the MegaBlast miracle to the main Celtic village near your temple in Skirmish...
And do you know the code for a Beach Ball Teddy Bear and Dice.....
I was however successful in making the basic heal miracle a heal miracle increase!  :grin2
And if I just knew the line I would make that leopard a Brown Bear or an Ogre...
This might be an advanced question, but what about creating Silver Scroll challenges?
It would seem once done they would go into the quests folder.
And is there a way to maybe code in a God that could be your ally like Khazar?
Plus can you make Gods talk like Lethis?
 
If only I could delete that last post :angry :sorry (it took off before I was ready)......
As if two posts in a row isn't enough here's another....  :bomb
Is there a way to turn land one into a skirmish?
If it goes into skirmish I'd like to make a creature centered map...
I was wondering if I developed a perfect creature mind for the oppsing Rhino or Gorilla creature.
And what if I want to add a little tiny independent (i.e don't need to feed) friendly Mandrill...
And you know that ravine where you find the first gate stone, well I would like to line up a row of Dices &
Beach Balls Teddy Bears and an opposing God segregated by Singing Stones.
Insight is appreciated  :)
"AppleApe"
 
As for altering quests, you'll have to contact Kratzean when he is on, as I am relatively certain he is the only one that is still fairly active and that has done anything like that. I basically assume that if there is something that seems like it can be done but I don't know how, that Kratzean does, and I am relatively certain he did something similar in his Atlantis Mod, though being without CI I cannot open it and see. :rolleyes

I'm not sure about making skirmish gods have voices, but you can alter the voices and sound in the game by alternately changing/adding to the sound files of the game (for which you need something that can open, edit and save the files, I don't remember the format but Audacity and Amarok work for nearly anything--I'm not sure if Audacity works for Mac, but I'm pretty sure Amarok does) and changing the calls to that file in the scripts, the latter of which I don't know how to do, but suspect that Kratzean could help with, too.

Know, though, that the most that most people do is make their own .lnd files and skirmish maps; Changes to the main quest maps always detracts from the story for me, including, except perhaps on Land 4 which is terrible for your alignment if you are good, Cache's cheats. There was something a while back called BW Eruption, which hasn't worked for me (and from the reviews of it I deemed that it wasn't worth the bother) that added a quest to the game (from what I can tell), and there are numerous mods from Kratzean such as the colourchanger and the Atlantis Mod (in which I know from his YouTube video Kratzean included new miracles), and the only special tools I know of for changing the deeper mechanics and not just basic things in the script are the CHL programs.

All of the things in your last post sound possible. To turn Land 1 into a skirmish, I believe all you would need to do is copy the script "Land1" to the Playgrounds folder, and make sure that your citadel is already built and not in the process or your game will end as soon as it begins. Kilroy's Training Ground map includes similar features to what you describe (I presume that the wall of stones blocking the enemy creature was Kilroy-inspired?), which may help you out.

I do not know of any reason that you can't make new .lnd files in Mac, but then, I threw down my last Mac in disgust two years ago and have never managed to get too into them. If you could explain to me, Grem, why this is so, perhaps I can look into a way of circumventing it? ???
 
Alppleape......
First off.....The main lands are just the same as the  basic skirmish but with  added challenge files.
I don't see any reason  that  you could not  make a skirmish map from one of the main game files.

The removal of the gate and replacing with a row of singing stones is  a boring but easy task, you can  even choose the  God they belong  to and the power (I think I posted that info here somewhere). Toys and other stuff is easier.

Okapidragon ..... I am sure you mean well but check your facts first....... The  creation of .LND files is now  not possible on a modern PC.......Vista or W7.........The run.time exe' s are just not  available.
I would be glad if you had newer info..
O
 
Gremxula, my dear friend, I appreciate you at least acknowledging my question, but if you insist on taking offense at every single thing I do on this forum, I must in turn insist you at least PM me, as at this rate between you and that other guy quibbling with me, Pat and Kays will soon be compelled to lock every single thread currently active, which I can guarantee will be far worse for the fora than any amount of snarkiness or overposting. The reason I specifically asked YOU is because YOU seemed to know what you were talking about (as you still do), and because I have not heard of that problem, and therefore had nothing to go off of; I asked you for the facts, which is why I did not check them, as that, sir, would be redundant and waste either your or my time.

Thank you also for giving me that information; As you may be aware, I am of the more oldschool practical set of computer users than the posh or stylish, and tend to use XP, or, in a pinch, Debian. I can now look into the problem and see i I can find a way to circumvent it, as I said, as I flatly refuse to believe that something is impossible and not merely extremely difficult. :D
 
Actually I spend more time with my  Huge Wolf or Strong Tiger in Creature Isle than with my very first
creature (an Ape) in land 4, and your telling me that land 4 makes my temple get all
spiky and infested with bats? :devil
And yes the Singing Stone barrier was Kilroy inspired....  :yes
And is a citadel a village center?
Does changing the opposing creature mind or body need special software?
And for some detail I was thinking of making that Norse village an Egyption one.
Your temple where Creature Guide taught you how to fight and a Greek village nearby.
And for the opposition I was thinking of his temple being  in the hermit's quarry and a Celtic village down where you found the lost brother & maybe a Japanese village by the throwing stones as for where the Aztec village was, maybe a Japanese village.
And maybe down by the singing stones there could be some interesting supplies
like in Crazy Creature World .
And how might I code in a miracle dispenser for instance Flock of Doves or MegaBlast Miracle Extreme?
What if I want to leave the Gate there?
Plus what is the code for those toys? :upside
Could you please tell me the code for a Singing Stone or Crying Stone?
And what about a basic rock (Brown & Gray)?
"AppleApe"
 
A citadel is your temple. You ca have more than one (though you cannot build them in-game), but if you have less than one (even if you have one being built) and there is no challenge file associated (as in the main story line), you will lose immediately.

You should be able to swap an enemy's creaturemind file in the script.

All of that sounds possible. There is an "Alternate Land 1" file or some similar name that is quite like that, actually, sans the opposition and moved temple.

CREATE_SPELL_DISPENSER(<some-variables-here>) and I don't remember the others. There is an HTML reference around here somewhere, though my copy was on my flash drive I misplaced last week and have yet to find, and BW Express Map Editor has the guide built-in, but I'm not sure about compatibility. These references have the full list of map script commands and object lists. I'll look for the HTML.
 
Guess the only point in having multiple temples is, aside from fun, is if things got ugly, while the enemy god is busy destroying one temple, it might buy you enough time to regain your village?
This is a side track question, but I wouldn't start a new topic for it:
What happens if your temple gets destroyed?
I've heard that is a way to alter the creature mind without doing it through the creature body on a map?
Do I have to use that temple changer program to alter my temple in skirmish?
And what about the opposing citadel, I was thinking maybe it being a red stone or wood temple.
Oh and there's another guy who plays Black & White & Creature Isle on OSX Tiger and I'm trying to make my map fit his playing style so I'm going to ask your opinion: If what you liked to was to follow your creature around, what, aside from toys, animals & a buddy (i.e for your creature) would you like to see for your creature? :upside
Oh, plus his alignment is :angel and his creature (A Tiger) has the same.
"AppleApe"
 
Okapidragon....First let me say that in no way  I have no vendetta for you.... sometimes  I just translate what I am thinking  without  thinking  about how it sounds  to you in your  culture. I don't really mean to  attack you  it just comes out that way sometimes due to thought process /language differences.
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Appleape..... Changing the Temple is purely cosmetic you really should  look to the basics first. As my Grandfather used to say "All lipstick and no knickers"............meaning  get the basics right first.
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I Hope you and  xKatz have  a wonderful  time, Mac'ing it together.
 
I will have something to report very soon...
Hopefully questions not problem's.  :)
 
Grem, drop it. Language differences aside, you comment on everything I do. PM me or just drop it already.

AppleApe, as for the good-alignment creature map, you might also want decorative paths (which are useless in god mode but aesthetically appealing to have your creature run along) by setting torches incrementally along either side of where you want the path to be, adding an evil creature (but harmless!! Make sure it can fight but does not know serious destructive miracles or to eat people) to fight can also help--Fighting evil creatures makes your creature good. And you might also want some convenient miracle dispensers for things like food, water and healing, as well as maybe some creature miracles. Other than that, the toys and friendly creature are about it.
 
Okapidragon......L look at your new thread, look at the dates and times ask Kays to check if you want the fact is I replied to that thread before even looking here.
If anything I have said is  totally false  then tell me in open forum no sneaky  PM's lets have it out in the open. I have tried to be diplomatic...but if you want a war ...... I am  up for it.
One of us should start a new thread to have this petty squabble in, it may amuse the  other  people  here and boost ratings.
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AppleApe.....Sorry about that. If you have the  Latest xxx.html there a  a couple of undocumented  item.s  you can do  that are not listed.
 
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