Group AI question

[colorblind]

I want to make a group AI that alerts the player whenever an enemy unit enter LOS / radar. I wondered if I could use the function

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virtual void EnemyEnterRadar(int enemy)=0;

in /trunk/rts/ExternalAI/IGlobalAI.h for that, even though it belongs to the global AI class and not to the group AI class.

If that isn't allowed, I'll probably have to use

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virtual int GetEnemyUnitsInRadarAndLos(int *units)=0;

in /trunk/rts/ExternalAI/IAICallback.h, but that'd be some more work (and I'm not too so how to go about it).

Some help and pointers would be appreciated, and flames about this group AI most defenitely not.

[AF]

You couldnt use functions formt eh globalAI itnerface in a groupAI

Your best bet is keep a map of all units you know about as in map<int,bool> having a true for in LOs and false for nto in LOS

Then you'd issue an entered alert whenever you changed from false -> true and a left alert on true ->false

However this is all problematic as in any game after so long you'll have a lto of alerts.

Also a group fo 5 units entering LOS at the same time will issue 5 alerts.


And the alerts arent to good if you cant press f3 to centre on them.

These can be avoided using the marker stuff that was added recently but then you have to delete those markers, and your allies cna see them and to delete them you end up deleting any nearby markers or lines the AI has drawn, even markers and lines the player put down.

[colorblind]

I don't think it will generate a whole lot of messages, as you can just do a check like

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if(lastLOSentertime > minTime){
    do message
}

and

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if(lastLOSenterdistance > minDistance) {
    do message
}

You just have to set minTime and minDistance to appropriate values.
But can you explain how you can put the information about enemy units into an array a bit more? Looking at /trunk/rts/ExternalAI/IGroupAI.h there are no such functions avaible, and isn't that the only header file you can include for a group AI?

[AF]

well, pseudocode::

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update(){
get all the enemy units in LOS and Radar

vector<int> last;
vector<int> temp
for every enemy unit{
    add to temp vector<>
    check if it's in the map<>
        ifnot add it set the value tot rue and issue an alert!
    if it is in the map
        if map[unit] == false
            add an alert
            set equal to true
        
}
iterate through last{
    if in last but not in temp
        set map[unit] == false
}
clear last vector and fill it with temp vector<>
}

[colorblind]

Ok, I get that, but what exact function would you call to iterate through every enemy unit?

[AF]

erm

vector<int> container;

//do stuff to fill container with values

if(contianer.empty() == false){
for(vector<int>::iterator i = container.begin(); i != container.end() ++i){
char c[20];
sprintf(c,"%i",*i);
print(c);
}
}

would iterate through the vector container printing out the values.

Go read up on stl.

You may also find ti useful to look at the source for my groupAI's and XE8.

[colorblind]

It seems like I haven't made myself clear. I don't want to know how to iterate through a container, I would like to know how you'd fill them with enemyunits data.

I.E., how do you obtain the enemyunits data using a group AI?

[AF]

In exactly the same way you would in a globalAI

int* enemies = new int[1000];
int number_of_enemies = cb->gtenemyunits(enemies);
//do stuff

delete [] enemies;