NPC Support (Savage) - Revision history

Rob: /* Calculating the XP */

2009-02-14T01:30:34Z

Calculating the XP

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:30, 14 February 2009
Line 249:		Line 249:

	<pre>		<pre>
	<eval index="7" phase="Final" priority="~~1000~~" name="calc acFinalXP"><![CDATA[		<eval index="7" phase="Final" priority="2000" name="calc acFinalXP">
			<after name="Calc resLeft"/><![CDATA[
	~if this is not an NPC, our final XP tally is given by the resource		~if this is not an NPC, our final XP tally is given by the resource
	if (hero.tagis[Hero.NPC] = 0) then		if (hero.tagis[Hero.NPC] = 0) then
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	~determine our minimum XP level based on the number of attribute increases		~determine our minimum XP level based on the number of attribute increases
			~Note: If attributes are unused, set them to zero for safe use below.
	var attribs as number		var attribs as number
	var minxp as number		var minxp as number
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	if (attribs <= 0) then		if (attribs <= 0) then
	minxp = 0		minxp = 0
			attribs = 0
	elseif (attribs <= 4) then		elseif (attribs <= 4) then
	minxp = (attribs - 1) * 20 + 5		minxp = (attribs - 1) * 20 + 5
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	~if our total xp equals or exceeds our minimum xp, setup appropriately		~if our total xp equals or exceeds our minimum xp, setup appropriately
			~Note: Handle the special case of a mundane NPC that is less than a normal PC.
	if (xp >= minxp) then		if (xp >= minxp) then
	field[acFinalXP].value = xp		field[acFinalXP].value = xp
			field[acExtraAdv].value = 0
			elseif (xp < 0) then
			field[acFinalXP].value = 0
	field[acExtraAdv].value = 0		field[acExtraAdv].value = 0
	else		else

Rob: /* Calculating the XP */

2009-02-14T01:04:17Z

Calculating the XP

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:04, 14 February 2009
Line 279:		Line 279:
	var level as number		var level as number
	var attr as number		var attr as number
	level = eachpick.field[trtFinal].value		level = eachpick.field[trtFinal].value - 1
	attr = eachpick.linkage[attribute].field[trtFinal].value		attr = eachpick.linkage[attribute].field[trtFinal].value - 1
	if (level <= attr) then		if (level <= attr) then
	advances += level / 2		advances += level / 2
Line 292:		Line 292:
	~Note: If fewer than the allotted number of starting skill slots are		~Note: If fewer than the allotted number of starting skill slots are
	~ allocated, we must not grant a refund, so limit to the minimum.		~ allocated, we must not grant a refund, so limit to the minimum.
	advances -= minimum(#resmax[resSkill],hero.child[resSkill].field[resSpent].value)		advances -= minimum(#resmax[resSkill],hero.child[resSkill].field[resSpent].value) / 2

	~round the total upwards in case we've got a half-slot for a skill used		~round the total upwards in case we've got a half-slot for a skill used

Rob: /* Calculating the XP */

2009-02-04T12:44:38Z

Calculating the XP

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:44, 4 February 2009
Line 251:		Line 251:
	<eval index="7" phase="Final" priority="1000" name="calc acFinalXP"><![CDATA[		<eval index="7" phase="Final" priority="1000" name="calc acFinalXP"><![CDATA[
	~if this is not an NPC, our final XP tally is given by the resource		~if this is not an NPC, our final XP tally is given by the resource
	if (~~field~~[~~acIsNPC~~]~~.value~~ = 0) then		if (hero.tagis[Hero.NPC] = 0) then
	field[acFinalXP].value = #resmax[resXP]		field[acFinalXP].value = #resmax[resXP]
	done		done

Rob: /* Testing Everything */

2009-01-30T10:46:23Z

Testing Everything

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:46, 30 January 2009
Line 410:		Line 410:

	<pre>		<pre>
			~report any unspent advances
			~Note: We have to handle NPCs and non-NPCs differently.
			var unused as number
			if (hero.tagis[Hero.NPC] = 0) then
			unused = #resleft[resAdvance]
			else
			unused = herofield[acExtraAdv].value
			endif
			if (unused > 0) then
			@text &= "; " & unused & " Advance(s)"
			endif
	</pre>		</pre>

Rob at 10:32, 30 January 2009

2009-01-30T10:32:39Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:32, 30 January 2009
Line 391:		Line 391:

	</thing>		</thing>
			</pre>

			===Testing Everything===

			We can now go through everything and test how it all works. There don't appear to be any problems until we print out a character sheet for an NPC. We get an error that we're trying to access the non-live pick "resAdvance". That's the resource that we assigned the ContainerReq test, so somewhere our code is assuming that the "resAdvance" pick can be accessed all the time.

			If we do a quick search for "resAdvance" within the data files associated with character sheet output, we can spot the problem pretty quickly. In the "oHeroInfo" portal on the first page, any unused advances are being reported. Since the pick is non-live for NPCs, the error is reported. We can easily add a test to ensure that we only append advances when the "resAdvance" pick is live. The revised code should look like below.

			<pre>
			if (hero.childlives[resAdvance] <> 0) then
			if (#resleft[resAdvance] > 0) then
			@text &= "; " & #resleft[resAdvance] & " Advance(s)"
			endif
			endif
			</pre>

			But wait a minute. This is a golden opportunity for us to include an indication of unused advances for NPCs as well. We have the "acExtraAdv" variable to tell us if there are any extra advances, so we might as well use it here. We'll change the code to use this alternate field for NPCs, which results in the following revised code.

			<pre>
	</pre>		</pre>

Rob: /* Creating NPCs as the Default */

2009-01-30T03:52:47Z

Creating NPCs as the Default

← Older revision		Revision as of 03:52, 30 January 2009
Line 392:		Line 392:
	</thing>		</thing>
	</pre>		</pre>

	~~===Creating NPCs as the Default===~~

	~~new source to control~~
	~~Eval script that sets the value of the fields at the very beginning~~

Rob: /* Reporting Inconsistencies */

2009-01-30T03:28:51Z

Reporting Inconsistencies

@@ Line 363: / Line 363: @@
 ===Reporting Inconsistencies===
-new thing for validation reporting
+When we calculated the XP for NPCs, we identified a potential problem that needs to be reported to users as a validation error. If a character takes multiple attribute increases, it's possible that not enough other advances will be taken to fill in the gaps. We have this state already recorded in a field, so all we need to do is test is somewhere.
 ===Creating NPCs as the Default===

Rob: /* Integrating the XP */

2009-01-30T03:24:14Z

Integrating the XP

@@ Line 324: / Line 324: @@
 ===Integrating the XP===
-revise acRank field calculation
+The final XP tally is now stored in the new "acFinalXP" field, but nothing is using it. We need to switch all the appropriate places over to use the new field. All references to the XP should be using the "resXP" resource within our data files, so we should be able to do a search through the files to identify uses of "resXP". We can then assess which ones need to be revised to use the new field.
-Eval script to generate "recap" summary for allies
-XP shown on Journal tab
+The first instance we need to change is in the Calculate script for the "acRank" field of the "Actor" component. In addition to changing the field reference, we also need to modify the timing of the script. The new Eval script we defined to calculate the XP is assigned a priority of 1000. Since this script relies on that value, we need to make sure it occurs after the value is in place. For safety, we'll also add a timing dependency on the other script so that any future timing changes will be verified by the compiler. This results in a new Calculate script similar to the following.
-XP shown on Basics tab
-XP shown on character sheet (main character + allies)
+<pre>
 ===Reporting Inconsistencies===

Rob at 02:59, 30 January 2009

2009-01-30T02:59:06Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:59, 30 January 2009
Line 321:		Line 321:
	]]></eval>		]]></eval>
	</pre>		</pre>

			===Integrating the XP===

			revise acRank field calculation
			Eval script to generate "recap" summary for allies
			XP shown on Journal tab
			XP shown on Basics tab
			XP shown on character sheet (main character + allies)

	===Reporting Inconsistencies===		===Reporting Inconsistencies===

	~~===Integrating the XP===~~		new thing for validation reporting

	===Creating NPCs as the Default===		===Creating NPCs as the Default===

Rob: /* Calculating the XP */

2009-01-30T02:21:42Z

Calculating the XP

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:21, 30 January 2009
Line 210:		Line 210:

	===Calculating the XP===		===Calculating the XP===

			The next thing we need to do is actually calculate the estimated XP for our NPC. Before we can do that, we need to define a new field where we can store the XP. We currently use the "resXP" resource to track the XP, but that won't work for our calculated value. So we define a new field that will be assigned the proper value, depending on whether we have an NPC or not. We'll add a Finalize script to the field that will prefix the value with "~" if we have an NPC. This will provide an reminder to the user that the value is an optimistic estimation and should be treated as such. The resulting field should look like the following.

			<pre>
			<field
			id="acFinalXP"
			name="Final XP Cost"
			type="derived"
			maxfinal="10">
			<finalize><![CDATA[
			~if the character is an NPC, indicate the value is an approprixation
			if (hero.tagis[Hero.NPC] <> 0) then
			@text = "~" & @text
			endif
			]]></finalize>
			</field>
			</pre>

			With our field in place, we can define a new Eval script where we can do all the necessary calculations for the final XP total. At the start of the script, we'll handle the special case of a non-NPC character. For a normal character, the total XP tally is given within the "resXP" resource, so we'll pull it from there and be done.

			For an NPC, there are two different factors that we need to consider. The first is the number of attribute increases. The second is the total number of advancements for the character, spanning attributes, edges, and skills.

			The number of attribute increases will dictate the minimum XP level for the character. This is because only one attribute increase is allowed for each rank. If a character takes 3 attribute increases and no other advances, then it must still be a Veteran rank character and have the minimum necessary XP for that rank. It also means that the character will have extra unused advances that need to be chosen. If we have unused advances, we'll definitely want to report it to the user, so we might as well define a new field right now to store that value. This new field should look like the following.

			<pre>
			<field
			id="acExtraAdv"
			name="Unused Advancements"
			type="derived">
			</field>
			</pre>

			Returning to our calculation, we next calculate the total number of advances for the character. The attributes and edges are easy, since they count one apiece. Skills are where things get interesting. Since we're using an optimistic algorithm, we can iterate through each skill and determine how many advances it requires by comparing it the die type of the skill to the die type of the linked attribute. Each increment that is less than or equal to the attribute costs a half-advance (since two such skills can be raised as a single advance), while the others cost a full advance each.

			Once we have the total number of advances for skills incorporated, we must adjust out the free advances we get as part of character creation. We can finally calculate the total number of XP based on the number of advances. As a last step, we then compare the minimum XP against the actual XP to determine if there are any unused advances and the final XP total to use for the character.

			Putting all of this together yields the Eval script shown below. After the script is invoked, the two new fields will contain the proper values for the character.

			<pre>
			<eval index="7" phase="Final" priority="1000" name="calc acFinalXP"><![CDATA[
			~if this is not an NPC, our final XP tally is given by the resource
			if (field[acIsNPC].value = 0) then
			field[acFinalXP].value = #resmax[resXP]
			done
			endif

			~determine our minimum XP level based on the number of attribute increases
			var attribs as number
			var minxp as number
			attribs = -#resleft[resAttrib]
			if (attribs <= 0) then
			minxp = 0
			elseif (attribs <= 4) then
			minxp = (attribs - 1) * 20 + 5
			else
			minxp = 80 + (attribs - 5) * 20 + 10
			endif

			~determine the number of advances due to attributes and edges
			var edges as number
			var advances as number
			edges = -#resleft[resEdge]
			advances = attribs + edges

			~go through all skills and add in the number of advances needed for each
			~Note: We compare the skill to the linked attribute and tally based on that.
			foreach pick in hero where "component.Skill"
			var level as number
			var attr as number
			level = eachpick.field[trtFinal].value
			attr = eachpick.linkage[attribute].field[trtFinal].value
			if (level <= attr) then
			advances += level / 2
			else
			advances += attr / 2
			advances += (level - attr)
			endif
			nexteach

			~subtract out the maximum number of skill slots allowed at creation
			~Note: If fewer than the allotted number of starting skill slots are
			~ allocated, we must not grant a refund, so limit to the minimum.
			advances -= minimum(#resmax[resSkill],hero.child[resSkill].field[resSpent].value)

			~round the total upwards in case we've got a half-slot for a skill used
			advances = round(advances,0,1)

			~calculate the total number of XP necessary for all of the advances
			var xp as number
			if (advances <= 16) then
			xp = advances * 5
			else
			xp = 80 + (advances - 16) * 10
			endif

			~if our total xp equals or exceeds our minimum xp, setup appropriately
			if (xp >= minxp) then
			field[acFinalXP].value = xp
			field[acExtraAdv].value = 0
			else
			field[acFinalXP].value = minxp
			if (minxp <= 80) then
			field[acExtraAdv].value = (minxp - xp) / 5
			elseif (xp >= 80) then
			field[acExtraAdv].value = (minxp - xp) / 10
			else
			field[acExtraAdv].value = (80 - xp) / 5 + (minxp - 80) / 10
			endif
			endif
			]]></eval>
			</pre>

	===Reporting Inconsistencies===		===Reporting Inconsistencies===