Data File Reference

Context: HL Kit … Kit Reference 

Overview

The data file is where you'll be defining all of the top-level elements that the user will directly control. This includes visual elements like panels, layouts, templates, and portals. It also includes game system elements like things.

All data files have the ".dat" file extension and are loaded after all of the structural files have defined the framework for the game system.

This section outlines the structure and mechanics for writing a definition file.

IMPORTANT! This section utilizes critical notational conventions that should be reviewed.

IMPORTANT! Just because you can put numerous different elements in the same file does not mean you should do so. Keeping your data files small and focused will also keep them much more manageable, so break up all the information across files where appropriate. See the Skeleton data files for examples of this.

Structural Composition

The overall file structure is that of a standard XML file. The file must start with an XML version element in the form: "<?xml version="1.0"?>". Following this, the top-level XML element must be a "document" and it must have a "signature" attribute containing the explicit value "Hero Lab Data".

The following table defines the attributes for a "document" element.

signature

Text – Must be the value "Hero Lab Data".

Within the document element, every data file possesses the following child elements, appearing in the sequence given and with the names specified.

loadonce	A single "loadonce" element may appear as defined by the given link. This element allows you to conditionally exclude files from being loaded if a similar file has already been loaded.
fileinfo	A single "fileinfo" element may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies information about the data file and its author.
fileconstants	A single "fileconstants" element may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies constant information that affects the whole data file.
procedure	Zero or more "procedure" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies a collection of procedures that may be called by scripts throughout the data files.
thing	Zero or more "thing" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies various thing objects for use within the game system.
portal	Zero or more "portal" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies an assortment of portals for use within layouts.
template	Zero or more "template" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies an assortment of templates for use within layouts.
layout	Zero or more "layout" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies an assortment of layouts for use within panels, forms, and sheets.
panel	Zero or more "panel" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies a variety of panels that will be presented to the user as part of the game system.
form	Zero or more "form" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies a variety of forms that will be presented to the user as part of the game system.
sheet	Zero or more "sheet" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies a variety of sheets that will be used for printouts within dossiers.
dossier	Zero or more "dossier" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies a collection of dossiers that the user can select for character output.
hidden	Zero or more "hidden" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element identifies things that HL should remove from use within the game system.
editthing	Zero or more "editthing" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies a variety of elements that enable use of the integrated Editor for creation of things.
faq	Zero or more "faq" elements may appear as defined by the given link. This element specifies various FAQ entries that will be included within the FAQ page for the game system.

DTD

To edit data files in your XML editor, you can use the Data File DTD here.