Talk:Mapping/Random map assembly

Map extentions

Goals

There are two main goals I could think of.

1. Extending an existing map theme would give the opportunity to use a different material file. The initial idea was to use this for the downed UFOs. Those look so bright and shiny right now - one could think they are fresh out of the car wash. But furthermore a different material file could even be used to give the theme a very different look by using the material system.

2. Dropship and UFO tiles are similar (even identical in some cases) in a lot of maps. So using "blueprints" for these tiles would result in less tiles to be maintained and a lowered size for the installer.

3. Have #1 and #2 combined.

Needs

For goal #1 this seems easy. A "Child".ump would only extent his parent. The child refers to the existing definitions and tiles in the original map. This already works fine. But we cannot use the drop or ufo cvar right now (see bug #3446). This needs to be solved.

A child of the +africa map would simply look like this. It refers to the +africa map, reads the tile definitions from africa.ump and the map files from the +africa map, but could use a different material file.

// *********************************
// Africa Crash
// *********************************

extends africa

// map assemblies ---------------------------------------------------

assembly medium_crash
{
size "10 8"
title "_Africa"
multiplayer africa/af_mp_team2
africa/af_empty6		"0 30"
...
tileset rock_a			"0 1"
*rm_drop africa/af_craft_drop_firebird	"1 1"
*rm_ufo africa/af_craft_ufo_harvester	"1 1"
}

For #2 we use the blueprint tiles for dropships and UFOs. Again, this is expected to work once the issue about the cvar usage is solved.

// *********************************
// Africa
// *********************************

base africa/af_
extends blueprint
...
// map assemblies ---------------------------------------------------

assembly medium
{
size "10 8"
title "_Africa"
multiplayer +mp_team2
+empty6		"0 30"
...
tileset rock_a		"0 1"
*rm_drop blueprint/af_craft_drop_firebird	"1 1"
*rm_ufo blueprint/af_craft_ufo_harvester	"1 1"
}

Goal #3 seems more difficult, because it means (taken from the above examples) that #1 refers to an .ump which again refers to another one, bilding a chain which our current system seems unable to process.

FAQ

General

• What is the minimum size of a map ?

256x256

This is a tile of size 1

tile +s11
{
3 3

0      c      0
a      +c     a
0      c      0
}

• What assembly-theme is used when no parameter is given ?

a random one

• How can you specify the exact layout of a map, using parts ?

use a min of 1 and a max of 1

assembly recreational
{
size "6 6"
[...]
+s11 "1 1"
[...]
}

Tilesets

• There is a cap at eight tiles per tileset, isn't it? ShipIt 09:04, 11 April 2012 (SAST)

From looking at the code: yes there's a hardcoded limit of eight. --DarkRain 20:19, 11 April 2012 (SAST)

• Is it possible to use a tile more than one time in one tileset? ShipIt 09:04, 11 April 2012 (SAST)

Didn't see any check in the code to avoid it, so I'd say yes it's possible. --DarkRain 20:19, 11 April 2012 (SAST)

• Also, what happens to the tiles within the tileset? If I have three tiles in a tileset, will they form a line, using the same conditions as the overall map? Is it some kind of 'map in a map'? ShipIt 09:04, 11 April 2012 (SAST)

The algo will choose random tiles form the tileset. --DarkRain 20:19, 11 April 2012 (SAST)

Proposed page layout

Below is what I propose to be the new layout for this page. I believe this will make it easier to write a document which is easier to understand and eventually makes clear how to use random map assembly.

General

TODO: write the explanation of random map assembly is and what it's scope (possibilities and limitations) are.

ump-format

TODO: In plain English, write an outline of ump file sections (I guess these include the tiles and assemblies). This should include short descriptions of what each section means.

TODO: Write detailed explanations for each ump file section like below:

tile section

Example:

// a map comment

base villaged/vil_

tile +s01
{
    4 5

    0  0  c 0
    0  a +c a
    0  a +a a
    b +b +a a
    0  a  a 0
}

• TODO: explain what the text after "base" means
  • this is the base pathname for all tiles - if a tile has a + in its name, the name will be appended to the base
• TODO: explain what "s01" means
  • s01 is the tile name - e.g. the map with the filename Template:Path - Template:Path must not be give, because all maps are searched in this directory - Template:Path is the base (see above). So you only have to give the +s01 to define a complete tilename. This is needed because some of the buffers are limited because they are send over the net (yes, you can play random maps over the network) - so the shorter the name, the better.
• TODO: explain what the first two numbers mean
  • this is the tile definition size - e.g. 4 cols, 5 rows
• TODO: explain what the matrix of numbers/characters mean
  • the outer numbers of this matrix are the needed tiles for the adjacent tiles - you can use letters from a-z to define different tile types
• TODO: explain the meaning of all valid characters/numbers
• TODO: explain what the '+' means in the matrix
• TODO: explain what a "demand-field" is

assembly section

Example:

assembly residential
{
	size "6 6"
	+s01 "1 2"
	+s02 "0 2"
	fix +s03 "0 2"
	+drop "1 1"
}

• TODO: explain what residential means
  • residential is the theme name - you can define several themes in one ump file - e.g. you want some map where you must have an ufo - and another one where you don't want an ufo - define assemblies for this task
• TODO: explain what +s01 "1 2" does
  • +s01 is again the tilename (see above) - "1 2" means, that this tile must be at least 1 times in this map - but at the most 2 times
• TODO: explain what "size" means
  • size is the size of the assembly in game - in this case - 6x6 means 1536x1536 (remember, one tile is at least 256x256 units in the mapeditor). A size of 6x6 would also lead to a square size (walkable actor squares) of 48x48 (because a unit has the size 32x32 in the mapeditor)
• TODO: explain what '+' means
  • extend the tilename with the base definition (see above)
• TODO: explain what "fix" means
• TODO: explain what "+drop" means

ump in action

Full example.ump file:

TODO: repeat all of the example sections here to show the _full_ .ump file

TODO: show how to play the .ump file in the game

TODO: show a File:Screenshot jpg of what this assembled map looks like in-game