Enhanced Goody System (Unit only Goodies and Protected Goodies) [IMPLEMENTED]

[raystuttgart]

Ok, I know you are always sitting on a rocket.

Well, ... when I see toys, I want to play with them.

Let us use the barbarians camp and cave. That is fine for me.

Great.

But...hm, with the natives camp...as I said, I do not like to see tepees all over the map.

Well, if you can create something more neutral for all regions, that would of course be great.
I just hope Kathy will not be angry at me for having wasted her time.

But maybe we can limit this kind of camp for some latitudes?

Not really, because I would have to implement a completely new sub-feature of the Goody-System.
Too much effort for a single GoodyHut.

 

[raystuttgart]

By the way:

If we do not find suitable graphics for "Hostile Native Village" that match all regions, we can also leave it out.
Then we would simply just have "Raider's camp" and "Animal Cave".

Because with "Hostile Native Village" we would probably also have similar "immersion issues" with the standard graphics of "Hostile Natives".
(The "Hostile Natives" it would spawn might also not match all regions ...)

We do not necessarily need all 3 variants of "Protected Goodies".

 

[XSamatan]

Graphics is not my department (or interest) yet in my opinion these hostile native camps do not have to represent the regular native settlements but are smaller, often temporary sites of living.
Therefore no reason to have them comply with latitude or terrain - they will be destroyed anyway.

Regards
XSamatan

 

[raystuttgart]

So ok, the basic setup for "Animal Cave" and "Raider's Camp" has been implemented.
@Schmiddie has of course improved the graphics.

Meaning that the Goodies are generated already and give appropriate rewards like they are supposed to.
The DLL game logic is still not complete yet though. (Basics have already been implemented though.)

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First I still need to implement a nice spawning logic of the "Protectors" of those goodies that works for all these cases:
(I have a concept for it, but it is not yet fully implemented.)

• Protected Goodies placed manually (ingame)
  
• Protected Goodies already placed in Scenario Map
• Protected Goodies generated by Randomized Maps
  
• Protected Goodies generated by MapScripts

And of course the Goody Protector (until we might additionally add a Game Option for further spawning) shall be spawned only once.

Second [DONE] AI logic

It is actually a pretty simple AI logic: "Stay where you are and fortify."
Otherwise these stupid animals keep running away from their cave ...

Third [DONE] Inculded in AI logic:

The Human Player founds a city next to one of these "Protected Goody" it will of course trigger and remove the Goody.
Meaning the "Goody Protector" has no "Goody to protect" anymore.
Then the "Protectors" need to switch back to their normal AI behaviour.

-----

Summary:

The feature is actually a bit more tricky than I first expected.
However it is of course also not that much work or that difficult.

I am still pretty sure it will a nice litte addition.
And of course I am having fun with my new toys ...

-----

It is all not that difficult, but I will probably need a bit of time to finish and finetune all Details.
This evening I will also relax a bit with some Movies.

Screenshots:
(Again, it is not yet finished.)

Spoiler :

 

[raystuttgart]

Ok, AI code is fully done now and working nicely.
(The Protectors nicely guard their "Protected Goodies")

• Protectors will nicely fortify and guard the "Protected Goody" (when placed on it or if accidently stumbling into one that is unprotected)
  
• Protector will also continue normal AI logic if Goody does not exist anymore (either as e.g. Wild Animal or e.g. as Revolting Unit)

@devolution
Thanks for our AI discussion, it was really useful.
(As discussed there is no new UnitAI - I just adapted the existing default UnitAIs of the corresponding Units the feature uses.)

----

The Spawning System is not yet perfect though.
(Will take care of it tomorrow.)

Spoiler :

 

[Sarin]

Just a little thing, it's "lair", not "layer", and Raiders' camp, not Raider's camp (unless it's inhabited and owned by a single individual only).

 

[raystuttgart]

Just a little thing, it's "lair", not "layer", and Raiders' camp, not Raider's camp ...

Thanks, it is corrected now.

 

[raystuttgart]

Edit:

I will completely leave out the "Additional Continuous Spawning" (as Game Option) for the "Protected Goodies".
(I will also make no game option for it.)

I will also give it just 1 "Protecting Hostile" - more is really not needed.
A Scout - especially an AI Scout - can not reasonably handle more.
The risk (of losing the Scout) would also be unreasonably higher than the potential reward of the Goody (e.g. the Gold you get).

Reason:

We already have "Wild Animals" (continuously spawned) and "Revolting Slaves" (spawned by Revolts).
No we have "Protected Goodies" as well that have Hostiles defending these specific Goody Huts.
And we might additionally get "Pirate Nation" in a later release.

We can not spawn more "Barbarians" than that without damaging gameplay and balance.
That would be simply too much, and not feel immersive anymore.

Summary:

The "Protected Goodies" will simply get spawned a Protector (one single time), that stays on it and guards it.
If the Protector is beaten the Goody is yours.

Simple and easy to understand feature with no risk of messing with gameplay and balancing or causing unwanted side effects.

 

[<Nexus>]

Will these goodies spawn only on start of the game or can more spawn later even on tiles that are discovered. I think it would be cool.

 

[ConjurerDragon]

Perhaps a stupid question, but - when we now have two type of goodies on land and sea, one type that will give only units and one that gives only gold,
what would happen if I would steer a ship without a cargo hold for units over the goody icon on sea that gives only units? Wasted it while on land it could never go to waste?

 

[raystuttgart]

Will these goodies spawn only on start of the game or can more spawn later even on tiles that are discovered.

The goodies will only be generated at the beginning of the game.
They will not be generated in the middle of the game (e.g. on already discovered plots).

At least that is how it works now.
I am not really sure it would make the game more fun if they would also be regenerated in the middle of the game.

What would happen if I would steer a ship without a cargo hold for units over the goody icon on sea that gives only units?

That has been considered.
If the Ship has no Cargo Holds, it could either discover another Ship or get a little Gold.

 

[ConjurerDragon]

...

At least that is how it works now.
I am not really sure it would make the game more fun if they would also be regenerated in the middle of the game.

I suspect he does not mean randomly regenerated but created by things that happen, e.g. ship sunk by storm --> shipwrek, ship sunk by privateers --> raft with survivors, mutiny on the bounty --> sidbeboat with Kapitän Bligh..., ship sunk by THE KRAKEN (or other more mundane wildlife)--> a few barrels with gold on the water...

That has been considered.
If the Ship has no Cargo Holds, it could either discover another Ship or get a little Gold.

Great - I hate to waste anything ^^

 

[raystuttgart]

@ConjurerDragon

I suspect he does not mean randomly regenerated but created by things that happen, e.g. ship sunk by storm --> shipwrek, ship sunk by privateers --> raft with survivors, mutiny on the bounty --> sidbeboat with Kapitän Bligh..., ship sunk by THE KRAKEN (or other more mundane wildlife)--> a few barrels with gold on the water...

Considering immersion I agree.

But just just imagine how often we would need to loop over the plots and check where a "Goody" could be replaced again - if it would really be triggered by speficic actions.
(It would completely destroy performance ...)

And also, for most players it would not be that much fun to explore the map several times.
(Most likely almost nobody would care and gameplay benefit would be extremely low.)

And the next thing: This all needs a lot of time and effort - to handle all these cases
(I also chose quite carefully for what I invest my time. The rest of the team does as well.)

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It is pretty simple - currently no new Goodies are created after the game has started - by nothing.
(Unless the Player places them manually using WorldBuilder.)

They are just created during MapGeneration or they were already manually placed by MapsCreators in ScenarioMaps.
(Something like generating additional Goodies during the course of the game is a completely new enhancement of its own and has never been promissed in this thread.)

Main reasons against it: Performance and effort.
(It is still just a game and sometimes we need to simplify a bit.)

----

That is however just the current status.
Who knows what we will do in a later release.

As you know, everything step by step.

 

[raystuttgart]

It is alive !!!
"Protected Goodies" are now part of WTP as well.

Full DLL implementation has been finished and tested - it is working as designed and expected.
(Incl. Spawning System and AI logic and Special Case Handling to avoid "unimmersiveness" and Colopedia text displays and ...)

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Edit:

The only thing that is still open is the "Hostile Native Village".
(The DLL-logic already exists but the graphics do not yet.)

But @Schmiddie is working on the graphics.
(It will be a piece of cake to implement it in XML, once we have those graphics.)

 

[Schmiddie]

Finally all new Goody graphics have been implemented. Would be great to have some effect sounds for it (e.g. wardrums when camps are active). I have some in mind but I'm currently struggling with the implementation.

 

[raystuttgart]

Finally all new Goody graphics have been implemented.

Was just going to post the Screenshot with the new "Hostile Native Village" you created.

Spoiler :

Would be great to have some effect sounds for it (e.g. wardrums when camps are active). I have some in mind but I'm currently struggling with the implementation.

That would indeed completely "perfect it even more".

 

[raystuttgart]

Summary:

The Enhancement of the GoodySystem (as it was planned) is fully done - now I am going to relax a bit.
Enough modding again for this weekend ... modding will need to wait a bit until the next one.

If we also get some great "atmospheric sounds" for the Shipwreck / Camp Fire / Animal Cave / Raider's Camp / Hostile Village that would be awesome of course.
I did not even think about such perfection first ...

We have achieved a great little feature that diversifies gameplay and thus makes it more interesting.
Exploration has become more interesting to my opinion.

It was also extremely fun to create it.

@Schmiddie
Thanks for the speed supply of graphics.

@devolution
Thanks for your great input during the AI discussion.

 

[Schmiddie]

As I mentioned - this is from the original Civ 4.

 

[<Nexus>]

If we also get some great "atmospheric sounds" for the Shipwreck / Camp Fire / Animal Cave / Raider's Camp / Hostile Village that would be awesome of course.

Need some help?

 

[Schmiddie]

Yes, of course. Could not figure out today how I can implement sound via .kfm, i.e. when activated. Have some wardrums for the camps in mind - I have the sound, but struggle with implementation. Help highly appreciated! Is there a tutorial? I assume I need to understand the entries in the kfm a little better.