Carribbean Pirates Scenario

[Aeon221]

Statement of Purpose: I intend to create a small, fast loading, RPG format scenario of the Golden Age of Piracy. I also intend to use the creation of this scenario as the basis for an in-depth tutorial in modding/scenario creation. We will cover all of the major topics of modding (such as map making, coding events, and adding units and technologies) in what is intended to be a reader friendly, transparent manner. All explanatory posts will be referenced in the Help Topics section. Questions, comments, ideas, and assistance are welcomed and encouraged!

Currently Working On:

• Finishing the map (Now have a working map of the Caribbean made up entirely of water and grass... problem was my .py interface)
• Finishing the mindmap (you'll see)

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Help Topics (Ask questions so that I know what to put here! This is supposed to be a learning experience!)

• How to make a BMP map with GIMP

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Objectives:

1. To provide future newbie modders with a code base and a step-by-step process from which they can work
2. A cityless game of Civ!
3. The gameplay is RPG in the extreme
4. The scenario involves a huge number of triggers and scripted events
5. The scenario is playable for lower end machines
6. The graphical additions are minor (mostly skin changes, and resizes, if that)
7. I learn some stuff about coding... heh
8. All of this gets done fastish

I am looking both for help and for interested parties.

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Questions

• Do you think that making all player ships able to upgrade to all other player ships is possible?
  
  *For instance, if a player 'upgrades' their Caravel to Galleon, would it be possible for them to 'upgrade' their Galleon back to a Caravel?​

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Requests (Generic)

• I NEED someone with the power of code
• Scripted events ideas
• A good, compelling story that is not stolen from another game
• Victory conditions which are involved with/related to the story

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Requests (Code) (More coming, stay tuned!)

• How does one code a unit to provide a random amount of cash when killed?
• How does one code an allied city to allow "promotions", "purchases", and the like with said cash using only buttons (no negotiating)
• I need a very creative coder to help with the implementation of weather along these lines

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Information

• List of Ships (Thank you Paasky!)

BMP screenshot of map (Prelim Draft)

I am using Rhye's Tutorial/Scenario Builder and Rhye's BMP to WBS Converter. I still have to add a lot of terrain features (much of which I may do in WBS editor), but consider this the base of the map.

 

[Kentharu]

you could mod the experience point system to gain more experience faster, and also make more lvls (not sure how many there are)
perhaps you could have the diplomacy screan as the dialoge and face so and so forth...
change the capture city things to that you can capture a cty for 1 turn with a ship, in order to get units (ships only) no resistance and what not
im no pro, in fact im just start (like a few weeks ago) and i don't know if any of this is possible but try... or just ignore me i don't mind

 

[Aeon221]

How to make a BMP map with GIMP (Freeware Image Editing Program)

1. Find a map online of the terrain of your choosing
   
2. Open a new file in GIMP and paste image into this file
   
3. Click on the stamp looking icor that has the 'roll over' title Paint using Patterns or Image Regions
   
4. Click on the red box that has the 'roll over' title Selection Editor
   
   Location: Check in the area between the brush types and the brush options in about the middle of the GIMP interface​
5. Click on (for example) the water part of the map
   
   Note: You will notice crawling area selection boxes around all parts of your image of the color of the area you selected​
   Note: Yes, the Selection Editor screen is supposed to be black and white​
6. Click on the paint can icon that has the 'roll over' title Fill with a Color or Pattern
   
7. Check the colors listed in Rhye's Tutorial and find the appropriate color
   
8. Double click on the black box with the 'roll over' title Foreground and Background Colors
   
9. Set the variables to the same as the color listed in Rhye's Tutorial
   
   Note: Repeat this step with the white box directly underneath the black box​
10. Click on one of the areas surrounded by the crawling text. It, and all other areas selected, will change to that color.
    
11. Repeat steps as needed in order to ensure that all areas are properly colored
    
12. Save the completed mess as a .BMP file
    
13. Dance with joy! You just finished part one!

Comment: Unlike with previous editions of Civilizations, anyone with a good image manipulation program (like GIMP) and an image can make a highly detailed game map. The map I used is a direct translation of an actual map which I have used GIMP to make into a map usable for a game. I chose something unambitious for a learning experience, but I could now very well use something as detailed as a USGS Topographical map for a scenario. Talk about moddability!

 

[Aeon221]

@Kentharu: Eh, I really really hope I do not have to use your capture for one turn idea. Although your solution does allow exactly what I want, it is a fairly brute force. When you consider the options we have available with coding, it is most likely not necessary to get that... nasty. Thank you for the idea!

I definitely intend to make more levels and to modify the number of points gained for experience (if possible). Hopefully there is some way of modifying how much exp is gained for specific kills

eg: a Frigate is worth more exp than a Fishing Boat, regardless of the strength of the units.

PS: People will generally not ignore an attempt at help, silly ;p

 

[userqwerty]

i think a map encompassing more of th caribean is appropriate. ala Sid Meyer's Pirates!

In fact both Pirates! and Civ IV use the same graphics engine

i would suggest all of carribean and the east coast of mexico and texas and that. granted those areas were realtively tamer, yet you could profit

also you need to set up a weather system

 

[Aeon221]

@userqwerty: Although I could include more of the Gulf of Mexico, I do not intend to.

I want to keep the map very small so that the player does not spend egregious amounts of time traversing it.

While there will be plenty to explore (and hopefully incentives to do so), it seemed pointless to add a massive blob of the Gulf. Not as much stuff per unit of space as the Carribbean Sea itself.

Also, I want to keep load times at a minimum. Thats a rule I learned from Rhye and I do not intend to break it here.

Finally, I'm just not as interested in that area, and that matters too ;p

As to weather, I posted some ideas for that on another thread. I will bring them onto this one, as you make a very good point. What would a Pirate game be without weather?!

 

[Aeon221]

Weather Code Request

Another simplifier would be to simply make the "improvement" something called 'Inclement Weather'. It could just be some soupy looking cloud things over a tile, and would represent a generic meteorological malus. You could also order the game to simply pick, say, four tiles at random out of every 10x10 tile group on the map every turn (or, more simply, every few turns) to recieve said malus.

 

[Paasky]

If you have c3c, check this out for ideas:
http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=115519

 

[Aeon221]

@Paasky: Thank you very much for the reference to your work! My C3C is dead (RIP) or I would dl, play it, and never work on this again ;p

However, as is it does serve as a VERY USEFUL ship list! Thanks again!

 

[Aeon221]

List of Ships (14) (Linked to Wikipedia Articles for Reference Purposes)

• Barque
• Brigantine
• Canoe
• Caravel
• Carrack
• East Indiaman
• Fluyt
• Frigate
• Galleon (various configurations will be possible)
• Lugger
• Man-o-War
• Ship of the Line
• Sloop
• Sloop of War
  

 

[Aeon221]

Figured out some tricks (by messing with the palettes and GIMP) to prevent the ubiquitous problem of shaded pixels found when resizing a .bmp file.

Decided that GIMP is the single greatest contribution to mankind in this decade.

Decided to declare a major in Computer Science... fudging Civ forcing me into it ;p

hopefully class will teach me enough to mod cIV!

Uploaded a mountainified version of the .bmp map

 

[Corn Shucker]

Decided that GIMP is the single greatest contribution to mankind in this decade.

I definitely agree...

 

[Aeon221]

I have completed the other maps (had I known it was going to be as quick as it was, I would have done it last night...) and am now slogging through the mess that is figuring out the current program... dear lord this is agony!!!

EDIT: No success with merging the various .BMPs into a WBS map that actually works... will try more on the weekend... after I write a brief paper and do some homework.

If anyone is reading this and feels the urge to post a reason why I cannot get the maps to merge properly (just getting mountains) (using Rhye's program, referenced in first post) despite having all 3 necessary python related programs, properly sized maps, starting locs (gonna try changing this again...) and pretty darn much everything else right... except for something! BAH!

 

[Aeon221]

Finally figured out the issues (left this in a wastebin for a bit, basically...) and am back on track. Expect some updates and actual stuff. Yay!