Allies (Savage) - Revision history

Rob: /* Recap Summary */

2009-01-29T21:05:36Z

Recap Summary

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:05, 29 January 2009
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	var rankvalue as number		var rankvalue as number
	var ranktext as string		var ranktext as string
	rankvalue = ~~herofield~~[acRank].value		rankvalue = field[acRank].value
	call RankName		call RankName
	recap &= ranktext & " (" & #resmax[resXP] & " XP)"		recap &= ranktext & " (" & #resmax[resXP] & " XP)"

Rob at 20:47, 28 January 2009

2009-01-28T20:47:43Z

Show changes

Rob: /* Status Tracking */

2009-01-28T09:55:56Z

Status Tracking

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:55, 28 January 2009
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	====Status Tracking====		====Status Tracking====

			At the very bottom of each ally, we're going to allows users to easily track the status of the ally during play. We'll include tracking for the ally's health, power points (if applicable), and ammunition (if applicable). The health tracking will depend on whether the character is a wildcard or not. For power points, we'll simply show a series of boxes, up to the total number of power points possessed by the character. The ammo will use the simplified mechanism outlined in the rulebook, which presents four levels.

			The resulting Label script for synthesizing all the tracking information is shown below.

	<pre>		<pre>
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	var i as number		var i as number
	var j as number		var j as number
			var limit as number
			limit = #trkmax[trkPower] / 5
	@text &= "{font wingdings 2}"		@text &= "{font wingdings 2}"
	for i = 1 to 5		for i = 1 to limit
	for j = 1 to 4		for j = 1 to 4
	@text &= chr(163)		@text &= chr(163)

Rob: /* Character Details */

2009-01-28T09:49:41Z

Character Details

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:49, 28 January 2009
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	====Character Details====		====Character Details====

			The core details for the character are rather extensive. We need to show the basics like the name and rank, as well as the attributes, derived traits, abilities, and skills. To ensure that the ally is highly usable during play, we also need to include arcane powers, weapon details, armor, and gear.

			The output format is very simple and compact. Each category of information is identified by an indicator in bold. The actual information follows in plain text. Each new category starts on a new line so that everything is cleanly organized and easy for the user to access whatever information he wants.

			At the very top of the details section, we include any notes that the user assigned to the ally. Since our script starts with the "actor" pick of the ally as its initial context, we need to access the anchor pick that attaches the minion. Once we have the anchor pick, we can then access the appropriate field to include in our output.

			The complete script to synthesize all the character details is shown below.

	<pre>		<pre>

Rob: /* Showing the Title */

2009-01-28T09:33:50Z

Showing the Title

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:33, 28 January 2009
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	====Showing the Title====		====Showing the Title====

			The "title" portal must show a suitable name for ally. Each minion has a name, and that name is initialized to the name of the anchor pick for the minion. Consequently, if the user has not changed the actor's name, the two will match. If the name has been changed, we want to designate the nature of the minion in parentheses after that name. If the name has not been changed, we need to omit the nature, else we'll end up duplicating the default name twice (e.g. "Ally (Ally)").

			We'll start with the name of the actor. If the name differs from the default name (accessed via the "miniontext" target reference), then we'll append the nature. This results in the Label script shown below.

	<pre>		<pre>

Rob: /* The Ally Template */

2009-01-28T09:28:06Z

The Ally Template

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:28, 28 January 2009
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	====The Ally Template====		====The Ally Template====

			The template itself will consist of four pieces that will each be handled by a separate portal. At the top of each ally, we'll display a title that looks like a standard title above a table. Beneath the title, we'll output all of the details for the character, including traits, abilities, and gear. At the bottom, we'll present a convenient place for tracking health and other status for the character. Between the details and tracking sections, we'll insert a solid line as a separator.

			The overall template will look like the one shown below. This template omits the contents of the Label scripts that will be employed for three of the portals. Those contents will be discussed in the following sections.

	<pre>		<pre>
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	<position><![CDATA[		<position><![CDATA[
			~our name spans the entire width and is limited to a single line in height
	portal[name].width = width		portal[name].width = width
	portal[name].~~height~~ = ~~portal[name].fontheight~~		portal[name].lineheight = 1

			~position the details beneath the name, spanning the full width
	perform portal[details].alignrel[ttob,name,10]		perform portal[details].alignrel[ttob,name,10]
	portal[details].width = width		portal[details].width = width
	portal[details].~~height = portal[details].textheight~~		perform portal[details].autoheight

			~position the line beneath the details, spanning the full width; we set the
			~height to double the border size so that no contents are visible and we
			~end up with simply a solid horizontal line
	perform portal[line].alignrel[ttob,details,8]		perform portal[line].alignrel[ttob,details,8]
	portal[line].width = width		portal[line].width = width
	portal[line].height = portal[line].bordersize * 2		portal[line].height = portal[line].bordersize * 2

			~position the tracking beneath the line, spanning the full width
	perform portal[tracking].alignrel[ttob,line,5]		perform portal[tracking].alignrel[ttob,line,5]
	portal[tracking].width = width		portal[tracking].width = width
	portal[tracking].~~height = portal[tracking].textheight~~		perform portal[tracking].autoheight

			~our final height is the bottom of the template contents
	height = portal[tracking].bottom		height = portal[tracking].bottom
	]]></position>		]]></position>

Rob: /* Printing Allies */

2009-01-28T09:16:40Z

Printing Allies

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:16, 28 January 2009
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	We'll add allies after everything else is output for the character. We can define a new table of allies and integrate it easily into the layout for the second sheet. In addition to printing all the basic details for each ally, we also need to include a separate space to track damage, power points, and ammo for each ally.		We'll add allies after everything else is output for the character. We can define a new table of allies and integrate it easily into the layout for the second sheet. In addition to printing all the basic details for each ally, we also need to include a separate space to track damage, power points, and ammo for each ally.

			====The Table Portal====

	Our table portal is a little bit different from the ones we normally define. We need our table to list all minions of the character. This can be done by operating on all picks in the "Ally" component, just like we did in the table on the tab. However, there is a better solution. We can instead specify that we want to list all minions via the "showpicks" attribute. This establishes the "actor" pick for the actual minion as the context for each item in the table, and that means that we can use the "hero" context readily within Label scripts in the template's portals.		Our table portal is a little bit different from the ones we normally define. We need our table to list all minions of the character. This can be done by operating on all picks in the "Ally" component, just like we did in the table on the tab. However, there is a better solution. We can instead specify that we want to list all minions via the "showpicks" attribute. This establishes the "actor" pick for the actual minion as the context for each item in the table, and that means that we can use the "hero" context readily within Label scripts in the template's portals.
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	</portal>		</portal>
	</pre>		</pre>

			====Layout Integration====

	Integrating our new portal into the layout is trivial. We simply add a new "portalref" for the portal and then add a suitable "autoplace" of the portal within the Position script. The revised layout looks like the following.		Integrating our new portal into the layout is trivial. We simply add a new "portalref" for the portal and then add a suitable "autoplace" of the portal within the Position script. The revised layout looks like the following.
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	</pre>		</pre>

			====The Ally Template====


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	</pre>		</pre>

			====Showing the Title====


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	</pre>		</pre>

			====Character Details====


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	</pre>		</pre>

			====Status Tracking====

Rob: /* Printing Allies */

2009-01-28T09:14:04Z

Printing Allies

Show changes

Rob: /* Printing Allies */

2009-01-28T09:09:42Z

Printing Allies

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:09, 28 January 2009
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	===Printing Allies===		===Printing Allies===

			Allies are now working nicely. Each ally can be printed out on a separate character sheet, just like a normal character. However, it would be much more convenient to print a compact representation of each ally with the main character. We don't have room for allies on the first page of the character sheet, but we should be able to add them without any problem on the second page.

			We'll add allies after everything else is output for the character. We can define a new table of allies and integrate it easily into the layout for the second sheet. In addition to printing all the basic details for each ally, we also need to include a separate space to track damage, power points, and ammo for each ally.

			Our table portal is a little bit different from the ones we normally define. We need our table to list all minions of the character. This can be done by operating on all picks in the "Ally" component, just like we did in the table on the tab. However, there is a better solution. We can instead specify that we want to list all minions via the "showpicks" attribute. This establishes the "actor" pick for the actual minion as the context for each item in the table, and that means that we can use the "hero" context readily within Label scripts in the template's portals.

			For the sort set, we'll use the pre-defined "_ActorSeq_" sequence, which outputs the minions in an appropriate order for the character. Since our minions will not all be the same height, we need to specify that our height varies. Lastly, we don't want a header above the table. Instead, we'll draw our own header above each item in the table so that each minion looks like its own entry to the user. Consequently, we want to insert a gap between each item in the table, so we specify the "showgapy" attribute.

			The net result of all of this is a table portal that looks like the following.

			<pre>
			<portal
			id="oAlly"
			style="outNormal">
			<output_table
			component="Ally"
			showtemplate="oAllyPick"
			showpicks="minion"
			showsortset="_ActorSeq_"
			varyheight="yes"
			showgapy="25">
			</output_table>
			</portal>
			</pre>

Rob: /* Recap Summary */

2009-01-28T06:28:17Z

Recap Summary

@@ Line 273: / Line 273: @@
 Showing the name of each ally and a few summary notes is of limited use. What would be ideal is if we could actually show a detailed summary of each ally, much like the contents of a statblock. We could easily show this summary beneath the current information for each ally. However, we need to have the summary available.
-We could generate the summary on-the-fly via a Label script. However, we may also want to show the recap else where, such as within the mouse-info for the ally. In order to make sure we can have access to the recap from various places, we need to synthesize it into a field. This field can be added to the "Actor" component and generated via the script.
+We could generate the summary on-the-fly via a Label script. However, we may also want to show the recap else where. For example, within the mouse-info for the ally. In order to make sure we can have access to the recap from various places, we need to synthesize the results into a field. This field can be added to the "Actor" component and generated via an Eval script.
 ===Refinements===