The Official HRAFD Progress/Troubleshoot Created 8 years ago2015-06-09 18:46:11 UTC by Half-Rats

What if you make the wall a func_illusionary and use clip brushes to block the player only?
That or place a smaller func_wall_toggle inside the func_illusionary that will block anything until the hole gets created.
Then you can switch off the func_wall_toggle and create essentially a passable wall.

Smoke and mirrors, my friend.

What kind of dimensions are we looking at? Presumably this Garg should be easily able to fit through?

It wasn't the hole, it was the incline. He was afraid of tripping apparently! Clumsy demonic fucker. And yeah, it is dependent mostly on the nodes. He even goes through when the wall isn't busted!

He even goes through when the wall isn't busted

HACKER!

Can func_monsterclips be triggered, presumably on/off? They have a name parameter.
If so, seems like that may work.

Worst case scenario, if you can't toggle them, kill them. Pretty sure killing something will remove it, regardless of what it is. Even func_ladders (Don't hold me to that without testing, but I'm pretty sure)

I've since fixed the issue! I just made the wall explode and a func_push that pushes everyone right out the exploded hole...it's very frightening. I'm pretty much on the home stretch as far as the mod is concerned. I have a few little problems in the way at the moment.

1. Trying to get the monster that come from the monstermakers to walk to a scripted_sequence as soon as they've spawned. Kind of like a waypoint. Only the first monster to spawn does it - the rest sit there with their thumbs in their asses. Is there a better way to get monsters to automatically go to a certain point in the map after they spawn from a monstermaker?

2. env_beam won't appear, even though I've followed the env_beam tutorial to the letter.

3. Monsters absolutely refuse to shut up, even whan "gagged".

1: Have one monstermaker entity and a scripted_sequence entity for each monster respectively.

2: Make sure the beam doesn't go through any solid brushes. I'm not an expert on the field, but I think that may fix it.

3: Some monsters have AI code overrides. I don't actually think the "gag" flag even work on some monsters. Worst case scenario, you may have to go with ai-less monster_generics if they are for scripts.

Oh, I have an unlimited supply of monsters that come out. I'm trying to simulate waves encroaching upon a single building that you have to hold out in, until you can board up the doors and windows. It worked, but the monsters all had to be within view of the player...but that looked silly, so I had them spawning behind debris/wreckage in the street. I want the monsters to begin walking to the building as soon as they spawn.

Yeah, I don't think that's possible in GoldSource. Might be the reason why there's only like 1 infinite monster spawner in the entire game of Half-Life. And even there they just spawn up in a dark pit and just fall down.
I guess your problem is that they share the same targetname, and therefore it won't work.
My suggestion is that you have one monstermaker entity, and one scripted_sequence for every monster you want to be alive at any given time, so when one dies, the monstermaker that created that specific monster spawns a new one, and since the preivious monster that had the same targetname is dead, the script will work. This however means that you can only have a handfull of monsters alive at the same time, but you should probably do that anyway becuase of balancing reasons.

Well, the way the architecture is set up, you push a table in front of the doorway and hide behind it. The table keeps the horde at bay, and your weapon can one hit all of them, plus you have a guy handing you armor and ammo from behind a counter. So, an infinite horde is necessary here. In They Hunger, there was a part where zombies spawned and walked immediately to a predestined point, I believe. Unless I remember incorrectly. It's in the third episode at a farm house near a lake.

It will be a true infinite horde, but if you want 50 monsters to be alive at any time, you need 50 monster makers with unique child names that can only have 1 child alive.

Alright! I'm going to try it out!

Okay, it works...but only halfway...The monstermaker never spawns another monster after the first is killed - when it is clearly set up to spawn infinitely.

UPDATE:

Working again, but only the first monsters spawned from the monstermaker run to position, the others just stay in one spot...uggh.

A possible fix would be:

Making what the monsters are hiding behind a func_illusionary with a clip brush around it...wouldn't the monsters be able to see through all of that? Please tell me yes...please god! Haha!

UPDATE 2:

It works! Now the monsters will simply just see the player upon spawning and attack, but the player will not see them in the act of spawning - such things are shameful to do in plain view of the public anyway.

Real quick, what's an effective way of teleporting monsters into a certain spot at a certain time and then having them walk to a location?

Uhh, I guess it depends on your definition on "certain". In a general case, I imagine trigger a multi_manager controlling teleporting the monster in (trigger_teleport, not monstermaker) and then a scripted_sequence.

Ah, so trigger_teleport works on monster as well as players? Good deal!

Yeah, there's a flag on the teleports that let monsters use them.

Note that what I described may be the stupid way to do it. It's been a long time since I've used monstermakers, I can't remember what they're capable of in regards to scripted_ entities.

They worked perfectly for what I was doing, but I needed a whole new multimanager to be triggered upon the monster's death that let the player advance to the next level. And, well - when the monsters are spawned in later, you don't have the same type of trigger conditions that you'd get with them being placed manually. If this doesn't work, maybe I could go with a global of some sort...

Current problems. Have a master that is supposed to be fired by a multimanager - this master keeps the monster from teleport too soon. I put the master in, it doesn't teleport at all...ever. I take it out, put a delay on the trigger...teleports when the map loads...

The setup:

At 150 seconds, a multimanager triggers the multisource, which is the master of the teleporter.

Does not happen ^

Why couldn't valve give the trigger_teleport a "Starts off" or "Starts on" flag?

UPDATE: My other multisource doesn't seem to be working correctly, either...It's supposed to be there to keep the player from turning a wheel before a certain point...and you can pretty much turn the wheel any time you choose. It's not working...despite all the names and fields being filled out properly...what the hell is going on here? I'm at wit's end.

multisources are pretty straight forward..
the wheel's master should be the multisource. trigger the multisource to 'unlock' the wheel.
example: http://twhl.info/vault.php?map=6046
run "developer 4" in the console, and then run a test so you can see when each entity gets triggered.
if something doesn't have a "master" field, you're gonna need to find another way around the problem

All of these things have master fields and masters respectively. And each of these masters have unique names, and they are tied properly with their subjects. I have everything set up properly...it's just refusing to do what it's supposed to do. It seems like nothing is doing what it ought to in this map. Mind you, I've done locked doors and keys, working steam engines that require you to light the firebox before turning the wheel in order to start - I've been there and done that as far as multisources go.

My main gripe is that the wheel isn't locked in the first place.

My other main gripe is the fact that the trigger_teleport locks up indefinitely, despite its master being triggered.

So, I guess...is there something really fucked up here? Did I overtax the system somehow?

Check the compile log for entity counts (%)

Wouldn't it just refuse to compile? I know that's not the case, however, since I've added entities after that and they worked just fine. Just this teleport master is giving me grief. Well, anyway, no matter what I did, it wouldn't work.

So, is there a way I can trigger events to take place after a monster's death if it is spawned from a monstermaker?

UPDATE: After trying everything, I decided to make the monster bust through a wall after having been spawned at the beginning of the map, and the wall busting is supposed to then trigger an aiscripted sequence that makes the creature walk up to the location and beat barney, the sequence is set to then kill target barney and trigger large amounts of env_blood (Which is white, despite having been set to red), thus removing him from the game. All of that works except the sequence, because the monster refuses to follow that sequence, once again, standing there like a jackass, doing nothing. Is it normal for scripteds and aiscripteds to be buggy and never work?

In fact, the scripted sequences NEVER seem to work if they are set to be triggered...except for the ones that barney and the scientists are assigned, A lot of times, the sequences work only when they are not named, and I merely fill the target monster field. As soon as try to trigger them, they just refuse to work.

Also, could anyone explain in better detail what the:

WaitTillSeen, WaitForScript flags? It's treated like some dirty secret. Neither seem to do fuck all.

have you tried using a monster_generic? Perhaps the AI is interfering with everything.
Check your timings
Make sure you have info_nodes
Make sure the scripted_sequence has enough room around it for the monster to actually get there.
Run everything with developer 4 so you can see (top right of screen) when things trigger and if they're being blocked by something

So, is there a way I can trigger events to take place after a monster's death if it is spawned from a monstermaker?

I don't believe so.
Though, another thought: IIRC, sequences have an "instantaneous" move to paramater. Prehaps that in place of the teleport.

Well, I hid him behind an exploding wall and it works finally. I have yet more to test out now - and I have a rather tricky door. And unfortunately, the instantaneous thing doesn't work...QQ

There's a part where I want a door to be triggered to be opened by a scientist, and then have it close behind him quickly, and then have that area not accessible to the player until after you have defeated the mini boss. The reason? There's a trigger_changelevel there, haha. I have that set up...I plan to have the initial door set to hold open only long enough for him to get through - and it can only be triggered to open by the scientist running up the ramp. I have a trigger_once set to "monsters" and "no clients"...so that should do the trick.

Next, I plan to make the door kill itself somehow and then make a new door that will be triggered after the mini boss is dead to open, and then stay open.

Testing it out now...I used a trigger_relay...The setup:

Scientist, is set to quickly run into trigger_once set to "Monsters", "No Clients". This triggers the door to open - the door is set to hold open "-1", until the scientist reaches a new trigger just beyond the threshold of the door, which closes it. When the door closes, it is set to fire a trigger_relay, which is set to kill the original door, and puts a func_wall_toggle in its place, which is sized and textured to look exactly like the func_door. When the boss is killed, the func_wall_toggle is then targeted by a multi_manager, rendering it passable and invisible, making the area accessible for the player to enter the trigger_changelevel finally. If this works, it should make it pretty tough for the player to follow the scientist and gain access to the trigger_changelevel before the proper time.

If trigger_changelevels had master fields, that would have made this 100X easier.

If this works, it might make a nice little tutorial.

If it's possible in this scene, you'd want to be careful that the player couldn't just follow immediately behind him and get through before the door closes.

Yep! That's what I'm trying to avoid with this. I have it so that even if the player follows, by the time the scientist hits the other side of the door, it is triggered to close. If someone CAN make it through, then kudos!

Enjoy your life of cheating and exploiting, you creep!

By the way, does anyone know how to properly operate a Nihilanth?

Use a CLIP brush to stop the player from going through the door, the scientist will ignore the CLIP brush and just walk through it. If you tie the CLIP brush to a func_wall_toggle, you can turn the CLIP brush off (making it disappear) when you want the player to go through.

I thought you couldn't tie clip brushes to entities, or that doing so caused problems, or something.

There are some exceptions. I did this in Uplink Extended where I tied a func_door to a CLIP brush and let it move along with a fence-gate which is also a func_door. This way you can shoot through the fence, but not walk through it.

Here is the fence gate in question:

Ohhh! From my experience, monsters don't seem to go through clip brushes, though...Gonna' run some tests.

Next problems...Heh...

Nihilanth doesn't know how to stay put when he is told to, and his AI behaves erratically, what can I do to make him stop acting a fool?

Biggest issue:

trigger_teleports DO NOT want to shut shut off...they are constantly active, even with a master to seemingly control them.

Update: Monsters do not go through clip brushes.

Update 2: Monsters can trigger_once without having to touch the trigger area. The scientist is triggering the door from literally ten feet away...DAMN!

I have one last trick up my sleeve...I'm going to test the theory soon...but first:

Since level units are basically a pixel, wouldn't that make Half-Life maps tiny in real life?

Alright, ran some tests...EASIEST FIX:

Didn't bother with the doors, just decided to make a trigger_changelevel that was floating in the air, that was triggered by a trigger_once, which had a multisource that was only fired AFTER the mini boss was dead.

This just leaves me wondering why Valve didn't have a master field for the trigger_changelevel itself. Problem solved. Just one more big one to go. Nihilanth.

Level units are not the same as pixels. Not sure if you said what you meant here but they are very different. Make a 1-unit high block and see how high it looks in-game.

For trigger_changelevel, the master-like functionality is built in. Check the "use only" flag, and give the trigger a name, and then it should only work when you target it with another entity.

Alright, everything's running smoothly, except for that Nihilanth. Anyone know how I can get him to behave properly?

I've never used monster_nihilanth before so I can't help you with that, but see if you can decompile the original map of the final boss fight to see how it is set up.

what do you mean specifically when you said "Nihilanth doesn't know how to stay put when he is told to, and his AI behaves erratically, what can I do to make him stop acting a fool?"

Be aware that he is programmed to rise above the player at all times, even to the point where he will float out of the map. He is designed only for large, vertically wide areas.

1. He rises up to the player's level in this case - before he is supposed to - even if the "WaitforScript" flag is marked - I thought I could render him invisible with an env_render to fix that...how does one go about that?

2. Sometimes he attacks, sometimes he doesn't.

3. When he dies, the game does not seem to register that he has died and the entities I have set to be triggered upon his death do not fire off.

UPDATE:

To Hell with Nihilanth...I'm going to make a brush-based final boss.

AND...I took a 64X64 block, and put a 64X64 texture on it, and it fit perfectly with no resizing.

I took a 64X64 block, and put a 64X64 texture on it, and it fit perfectly with no resizing.

I uhm... Yeah...

I think he was referring to

Since level units are basically a pixel, wouldn't that make Half-Life maps tiny in real life?

I'm still not entirely sure what he was asking there, but yes, in terms of texturing, if a texture isn't scaled, a pixel is a unit.

And yeah, I've never tried anything with the Nihilanth, and I don't know of any sources that pick apart how he's used. They may not exist.

Since level units are basically a pixel, wouldn't that make Half-Life maps tiny in real life?

Hammer units haven't actually been give an official measurement to real life. I guess you could call them 1 inch or 1 centimeter, but it just wouldn't scale right. Do what looks good in-game, not what measures to a real world unit. Btw, a texture in HL2 states that 40 in-game units are one meter, but I guess that's completely arbitrary.

What you guys are thinking about is relative to the player, but I'm speaking in a literal sense. A 128X128 pixel image is half an inch wide, and a half-inch tall. In Half-Life, that is standard wall height - since when you put an image that is 128 pixels high, it fits perfectly on a 128 unit high wall. Leading me to believe that a unit is a pixel. From Gordon's perspective, it appears that the wall is a standard 8 or 9 feet. But...

The wall is literally half an inch high in real life.

Gordon could run around on your thumb nail.

BMRF could fit easily in a small backyard.

Hot Wheels cars seriously outsize any tanks you come across.

When you print, size of course depends of course on resolution. If you make it literally 1DPI, you'll indeed be in a situation where 1 pixel = 1 inch.

Yeah, it would all depend on resolution. Pixels could be two metres squared and still be pixels.

/notactuallysureaboutthatbutwillingtosayitanyway

I thought it was common knowledge that units in hammer are equal to pixels in textures that haven't been scaled. Archie definitely did a video on texturing for hammer geometry.

Also, pretty certain that Tetsu0 used inches when making a model for goldsource and it matches perfectly with the hammer grid.

Archie definitely did a video on texturing for hammer geometry.

Here's that particular video for those who haven't seen it:
Make Sweet Game Textures - In Dev Tutorial

Real quick, CTRL+M is what I should use to rotate objects, correct?

I keep getting invalid solids for anything that is rotated, the geometry gets skewed/warped/generally fucked, even when it doesn't appear that way in Hammer. Should I use the VM tool to give the illusion of rotation?

And what's the maximum time a scripted_sentence can be? 3 minutes?

You use CTRL+M to rotate objects at precise angles, otherwise, just click the already selected object to enter rotation mode, then use the white handles to rotate the object. If you have 'Default to 15 degree rotations' ticked in the Hammer options, you can rotate at 15 degrees intervals. If you hold shift while rotating, you can rotate the object smoothly.

Also, pretty certain that Tetsu0 used inches when making a model for goldsource and it matches perfectly with the hammer grid.

I think 10 blender centimeters = 1 goldsource unit

Also, are there any game_end tutorials? Because I can't seem to get game_end to work.