Editing the RND layer won't work
 

L.S.

I've been trying to find a lone liner for some time now and since i never saw one, i figured i'll make some adjustments to the RND layer. Via the editor i found the liners, updated them to make them appear more often, and tried to save the new layer. But that didn't work. The editor seems to fail saving without a *player* sub unit. Do I need to put that in too?

Kinda lost here, so all help is appreciated,

I'm using stock SH3 1.4b + GW1.1 + SH3 commander,

regards,
Garrincha

PS I tried the search feature on the forum but couldn't find the answers i need.

Hi Garrincha,

don't do so. Have a look to the menu bar: click 'File' -> 'Save as random layer' -> navigate and point to your 'Campaign_RND.mis' which is currently loaded in MissionEditor -> confirm overwriting the already existing file -> done;)

Greetings to NL,
SSB

Great, gave it a try and it did actually save! i'm going out there now, trying to bag my tweaked liner...

thanks, the dutch will remember (well, some at least), and when i figure out how to post screenies, i will let people know!

cheers,
garrincha

Hi Dutchman,

upload your screenies to 'ImageShack' [mark 'resize image?' either to '320 x 240' or '640 x 480'], save the URL you'll get and insert it into your posts.

ImageShack

Greetz, http://www.click-smilies.de/sammlung...l/Fool/mat.gif
SSB

file not found :huh:

Campaign making
 

Can anybody explain on how to make a Campaign?

regards
admin www.subclub.info

SH3 and SH4 both come with a Career Campaign.

If one would like to enhance it what files are required to work with in the mission editor? Or what is required to start fresh on a new Career Campaign?

Is it possible or not?

If any of the mod developers here can drop a line it would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

I posted instructions on this in the wpl forums about 3 months ago.....its quite easy, just very time consuming.....:up:

depending on how much free time you have, it could take anywhere from 3 to 6 months to write one from scratch. I have learned a few shortcuts to make it easier, but the campaigns I've wrote took me about 30 hours a week for 4 months.

From scratch
Ouch

If you have instructions I will only add a couple of tips

When using the mission editor make sure all new ships are added to your install first
Tis a lot easier than changing entries over after

I have always used multiple back ups
If the last one saved is no good for whatever reason then I can rollback one

Saves a world of hurt

Any questions ask away
Someone will help

I appreciate your reply on how to and I do understand you mentioned that at wpl 3 months ago. :) However you did not mention to Clay the shortcut patterns to make it easier. The wpl (Sub Club) appreciates your hard work you put in however it would be appreciated if you can send Clay an email explaining the shortcuts and how its all done.As you know Hornet I'm a straight stat mission writer and not into Campaign hardcore activities....:) never was and never will be just too much voodoo with that.

I sent Clay a copy of this post and it would be appreciated if you can send him a message back explaining how this Campaign miracle works......:)

Thank you Hornet and all the best in your future endeavors.

Dont worry about the ouch. When is the new patch coming out!

Flick,

Give me a few days while I gather my thoughts on how to explain them. I have to figure out how to list them out from topic to topic so it doesn't confuse. ( So its not skipping around ) But basically with these shortcuts you can get the time down to about 4 months, otherwise, it would take twice that long. My advice to Clay would be to gather up those postings I made in the wpl forums and read over them again. That way once I list out these shortcuts it will make a little more since to him. :hmm:

Hornet

Thank you Hornet.

Sorry for the delay guys, I've been a bit layed up lately. Just bought a new house, three bedrooms and an extra room upstairs. Well me and the wifey decided to put the computer upstairs last thursday. Well after talking to the dsl guys I got my 4 MG connection and the computer was rocking hot....So I wanted to go down the stairs and tell the wife to come up and look how much faster 4 Mgs is compared to our previous 1.5.....well about half way down the stairs I missed a step and surf boarded on my arse all the way down the stairs.....:damn: :damn:

Lucky I didn't break something, but just now getting to where i can sit still long enough to post something.

First thing you have to decide is what kind of campaign your going to write:

There are several options limited only by your imagination. But these are some of the options I thought of when I first started writing campaigns>

Go with the standard game campaigns:

Good idea, but a little boring and after you have played it a while, its fairly repetitive. Its of course much easier since the files are already written for you.


Go with the standard game campaign but alter it to your liking:

This is the (middle ground ) if you will and probably your best bet. Simply open up the SCR and RND files within your editor and look at the files themselves. Compared to the SH2 days, this is much more visual and no code writing is needed. Just drop in the ships and put in the sailing data and so forth. Its just like writing a multiplayer mission, only you have much more flexibility with the campaigns. The SCR file is of course scripted. It will appear no matter what happens. The RND file is random elements in the campaign that will happen, but more randomly. You can set this yourself. If your a (newbee) to writing campaigns, its better to start with something already written and then just add to it. It will give you examples to look at and see how the makers of the game set up the ships and groups.

1. Hint: Look over all kinds of things in here. Things such as minefields, sub nets, ship groups, single shipping. Pay attention to the sail times, when they disappear, and in the case of mines, their depths.....look over everything in the standard files, then start building on it however you wish. ( most important ) - Make sure your groups don't collide in the ocean. They do, and you'll get a backlog of ships at patches in the middle of the ocean. Check their courses and ETA's at various locations, make sure they don't overlap with other ships or convoys. This is one of the most time consuming things in making a campaign. You don't want convoys colliding at mid ocean, its unrealistic and gooffy to look at. It also has a cascading effect throughout the entire campaign.

2. Hint: There is a way to create convoys and set their distances quickly. Right click on the commadore of the convoy you put in and click arrange group. This will alllow you quickly to set the distance of the ships appart from one another.

3. Hint: If you want to make duplicate ships quickly in the campaign files:
Hit control "c", then control "v". this will place an exact duplicate of the ship and then you can alter it quickkly.

4. Hint: If you place a convoy in the wrong place or other group of ships,. Simple drag the convoy commadore to the correct place and click "arrange group" after right clicking, then arrange the ships and they will move to the NEW spot on the map.

5. Hint: BACK-UP, BACK-UP, BACK-UP. I can't say that enough. It will really piss you off to put in a 70 ship convoy and have a squirrel get on the transformer outside your house and blow a fuse. Then you will blow a fuse after you have lost your data//////:88) :88) I usually back up ever time I do 5 new things in the files. Ships, aircraft, or whatever....


Create an ALL NEW campaign......

This is my favorite. More time consuming cause I don't have anything to start with. You really have to know what you are doing to try this. Cause when you open the mission editor, your basically starting with a "blank" ocean. I like it because I can make it historical and use only actual convoys that sailed. I can do anything I want, but this is the long version to the same goal. The last campaign I wrote took me almost 9 months to do this way. But I think was well worth it....The same hints apply above, however you have to be well versed in how to place ships and aircraft, how to do waypoints and pay particular attention to whether the ships are 'delete on last waypoint" or not and when....

Either way you go, even with the hints, your looking at a 6 month job for the newbie at doing this, even with altering the standard campaign to your liking....It takes me a little less cause I'm practiced at it....

The creating your own, will take much longer. :|\\ but you'll get better satisfaction from it.

Hint: Make sure to have your messages in the campaign corrispond to the events in the campaign. The messages_en file is where you add messages in the campaign. Pay attention to how they are arranged and in what order, notice they are time sensitive. And in chronological order....keep to that. But make sure they match the other layers in the campaign so your not giving our false information to yourself in the campaign.

Hope this helps....

Thank you very much Hornet and sorry to hear about your surf ride on the stairs.:)

I had a few a those on the back steps of the balcony in winter...... :ping: :)

Passing the info to CTU_Clay and again thanks for getting back greatly appreciated.

Congrats on your new home.

Cheers,

Thanks Hornet.
I have all your "campaign making" type files you have posted at WPL, and this latest one here in this thread now. They are all helping and I sincerely Thank You again.

My latest question in mind is regarding using SH3-GWX, SH3 Commander, and any changes to make GWX work with any new campaign scripted file.

...if you create a new campaign with the SH3-GWX Installed and with SH3-GWX Mission Editor. Will it work with SH3 Commander patched for GWX?

Clay

If doing a whole campaign you might seriously consider this application:

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=113918

It is my understanding that the 2 systems are pretty close to each other. If the Automated Campaign Editor works with SH3, it is amazingly powerful.

tater

Thank you tater.:)

Let me know if you want any scripting samples.

You can literally turn this lose on the entire campaign folder, and change the whole thing.

Lurker did some early experiments, had it delete all the group contents in the stock campaign, repopulate them based on complex rules by month/year, assign cargoes to the ships, change the waypoint speeds randomly in a range of values, add loops here and there... paste it in, let it work, boom, new camapign.

Obviously you can make your own content first as well.

It also allows things like zig zagging groups. Pretty much all traffic dangerous waters zig-zagged, hard to believe the capability isn't organic to either SH3 or SH4. Not having ZZs is like not having destroyers, lol.

tater

CTU_Clay might be interested and take you up on your offer.:up:

Thanks again,