VisGroups: Part VI
The other 'bug' is related to the practice of taking an existing map file and deciding to make VisGroups with it where no VisGroups exist. Not that this is a bad idea, but there is a right way and a wrong way to go about it. The wrong way is the easiest - the right way is a long, tedious process that can leave your nerves frazzled...
OK, what I did here was take the Filter Control and Enable it so that only the first floor and all its objects would be visible. Then I chose Edit/Select All and selected everything on the first floor. Then I chose Edit/Copy (or CTRL-C) and copied the first floor to the Clipboard.
So far, nothing is wrong and won't BE wrong unless I paste the first floor and its contents somewhere else...
File/New to open a new map. Then Edit/Paste (or CTRL-V) and voila! We have a glorious little prefab! Wonderful - - - isn't it?
Here's a snippet of the .map file for the new level.
Here's another:
What we have here are two entities that have NO attributes! That is, other than the Origin tag which Worldcraft generates when it exports the file, they should have NO additional attributes!!! Period!!
Here's how they should look:
But look what happened. These entities took on the same attributes as the func_door and the trigger_teleport!
What we did was tell Worldcraft that ALL these entities were the same - so give ALL of them the same attributes.
As I said before, some of the blame falls on Worldcraft, but then some also falls on the designer who didn't check his code before copying. I have even seen brushes (yes, brushes!) with attributes like like 'height 255' and 'light 300'. All this and more can happen when you use VisGroups improperly, so be WARNED!
For a full comparison, open the vgbad.map file and the vgexmp.map file in a text editor and compare the entities' code. You'll see what I mean. Will it compile? Yes. It will - but later on, as the level progresses, you may notice strange things happening when you playtest it.
I have found trigger-multiples targeting lights, doors, platforms and god only knows what else when all they were supposed to do was give a simple message to the player. Remember - all QBSP has to work with is the code contained in the .map file - if it's messed up...
GarbageIN=GarbageOUT
Another way this can happen is the odious habit of copying entities and reassigning them. For example, you create a brush and make a func_door out of it. Then, geegollywillikers! you need some lights. Well, just copy that func_door! It's an entity already - all you have to do is tell Worldcraft it's a LIGHT now - right?
TURN OFF SMARTEDIT AND TAKE A LOOK, PAL!!
You'll end up with a light entity that has a lip of -4, a speed of 100 and sounds like Stone grating across a floor!
Don't mix and copy entities! If you want to make lights - then make LIGHTS! If all the lights are going to be 300 bright in a room, then, by all means, make one, turn off SmartEdit and look at its propetities. If it looks OK, then you can copy it with no problem at all.
I've done this (making lights out of doors) and know what I'm talking about here. No lazier person ever stood in shoe leather than your old pal Imaginos - king of the shortcut artists! ;)
And speaking of shortcuts...
A new utility called The Quake Map Validator has popped up on the scene since I started doing this tutorial. Remember me saying that you'd have to worm your way through a map file with a text editor to correct all those bad entity attributes? Well, weep no more. I tried this wonderful little program by Andrew Smith and - like magic (well, almost) - it fixed up everything. This is a must-have for any level designer's toolbox.
That's about it, Kiddies. If you want to see some other aspect of Worldcraft explored in this fashion, feel free to write and tell me about it. My email address is imaginos@tyler.net
If you're into source code - that is the .rmf and .map files of levels created by myself or sk-realistik, visit the Clan SinTheTiK website and check out the Files and Worldcraft sections.
And for the latest in Worldcraft editing information, be sure to check out The Forge, Chris Bokitch's Official Worldcraft Editing Page.
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