Spring RTS Engine

I was thinking, what about custom build anomations, afterrall perhaps a mod such as WD wuld benefit from Command and conquer generals style build animation rather than green wireframes that slowly fill.

The current build animation looks very good. I like how on buildings the wireframe starts flattened and grow up. I understand that some mods such as WD would like something else than the green nano, but I feel that there are more pressing matters.

This stuff could be easily solved by making a tag in the unit which decided if the unit should be built or build with green nano or not. Then if set to false, modders have to script their own build animations per building. I'm not saying this is easy to implement since I have no idea of that really, and as z already stated, this is not an urgent matter.

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What he said

Allowing a side or unit to define the colour of the nanolathe stream shouldnt be all that hard, I think it's just an rgb value passed to a function in one of those files with cob in the name. emitsfx() I think the functions called.

I'd like it if the model already starts textured and raises slowly like currently, later I can add model like Generals like scaffolding and fences around it...that'd be sweet.

Could you run part of the script once its been built? That way the cost can be extracted immediatly and the build animation started with dozers and cranes, then the script could hide the extra parts and start behaving normally.

Already scripts start running the moment the first bit of green nanoframe appears, and already get BUILD_PERCENT_LEFT can be use in the scripts to know how much the unit is built. Now that I rethink about it, yeah, it shouldn't be that complex and would help one or two mods to add a FBI allowing to choose between:
- Current nanolathing animation.
- Unit appears complete at once, any building animation would have to be manually scripted in the unit.
- Unit rise and fill like now, only without any green nor frame. Just it slowly appears from bottom to top, already textured.
- .... (new building animation to be coded much later)

I haven't done many builders units so don't know if it's already possible, but something to remove the stream of green nano flake on the builder side would be needed too.

what about using the buold% to determine what "frame" of a building animation to show?

The main problem with that is if a unit-in-progress is damaged before it is completed, the animations might get thrown off...

GrOuNd_ZeRo wrote:I'd like it if the model already starts textured and raises slowly like currently, later I can add model like Generals like scaffolding and fences around it...that'd be sweet.

i dont like this "coming out of ground"-animation... i prefer animations like in warcraft 2 ... (step by step) ok this would be more work because you have to model every animation-part.. but nicer²³²³²

but hum... maybe a first step for tawd would be to make the nano-particels BLACK .. for oil or something (in green it looks sooo futuristic....)

I was looking at that emitsfz, and It looks like the only reason green nanolathe comes out is because the script engine says emit particles of this colour. A unit tag to change the colour would thus be very easy to implement and I'm not sure about stoppiung ti at all but if the builder doesnt emit anythign there isnt anythign seen... I'll have to poke around more.

Just put the option in, and then let the modders decide what they want to do instead of it.

I think allow the mod maker to set intervals in construction when the structure being created is updated. Just allowing people to make animations, and then hook the animation time to the build time would be a good way, I think.

I agree

WZ:

Create()
//animation for the very beginning
while(get BUILD_PERCENT_LEFT<80)
{
//looping animation for between 0 and 20% built
}
//animation for it go past 20%
while(get BUILD_PERCENT_LEFT<50)
{
//looping animation for between 20% and 50% built
}
//animation for it go past 50%
while(get BUILD_PERCENT_LEFT<10)
{
//looping animation for between 50% and 90%
}
animation for it go past 90%
while(get BUILD_PERCENT_LEFT)
{
//looping animation for between 90% and 100%
}
//animation for when it's just finished
...
}

People are already allowed to make animations, and to set intervals in construction when the structure being created is update, and to run animation depending on how much it is built. All is needed is a FBI tag that makes the structure appears at once, fully textured, without any greenframe or unfilled face.