Editor for custom factions

[Y]

Hey Guys!

Have you already thought about playing a game where each player custom his own faction before fighting?

I am doing an editor to create easily a faction from scratch:



So, with this editor, you can create your own faction. You press a button, it generates the xml need directly, and in the game files you can change the 3D models, images, sounds, and it's good!

I have one concern (but not least)... balancing.

I would need math functions that give the price of all the buildings / units / technologies from a faction.

Impossible?

What do you think of this project? Some have already tried?

[Y]

About balancing, I think we should not forget about the meta-game:
if the system offers a winning strategy, some players would create specific strategies against these strategies, making them obsolete.

[-Archmage-]

Looks interesting. 

I wouldn't worry about balance in your tool, it'd be very tricky and then would probably still require a decent amount of human editing..

I would worry mainly about incorporating all of MG's XML additional XML features though.

[Y]

Like what? Custom particle effects? Can you be more specific please?

For attack we can imagine a tool for adding different kinds of attack to a unit, like CloseCombat / RangeAttack / FireBall ... for example !


The picture is an example

[Y]

Now it looks like this:



Cost is HP*sight*buildTime 
Numbers in parenthesis are starting number of this unit/building.

I'm writing a generator for that kind of basic faction!

[Coldfusionstorm]

This is a exelent idea!, As a modding tool alone this would rocketblast increase mod speed!, Such a tool would be really nice!

[Y]

Hi !

I finished the first iteration (the first because it does not support yet air units, different type of attack, upgrades etc ...). Also, it is not stand-alone, it must be installed in an Eclipse Modeling Tools.

I can easily create a faction like in the picture (click on "create a building" create a blue square, I can change its name, its attributes, etc ...), and with a right click on my faction it generates the directory to paste into techs folder.
Regarding animations, I can indicate for each unit to use the animations of an existing unit in Megapack (I have a script that will search all the values of a techs folder). So I can easily make a prototype, before creating specific animations.

I agree that it can rocketblast increase creating mods!

But what do you think about the idea that instead of several people each develop a mod, each develop only a faction and duels each other!?

[Coldfusionstorm]

Hi !

I finished the first iteration (the first because it does not support yet air units, different type of attack, upgrades etc ...). Also, it is not stand-alone, it must be installed in an Eclipse Modeling Tools.

I can easily create a faction like in the picture (click on "create a building" create a blue square, I can change its name, its attributes, etc ...), and with a right click on my faction it generates the directory to paste into techs folder.
Regarding animations, I can indicate for each unit to use the animations of an existing unit in Megapack (I have a script that will search all the values of a techs folder). So I can easily make a prototype, before creating specific animations.

I agree that it can rocketblast increase creating mods!

But what do you think about the idea that instead of several people each develop a mod, each develop only a faction and duels each other!?

I have toyed with the idea myself, and i think it has potential. However execution is important.
i think what you have right now is awesome and id like to try it out!.

Perhaps a "lite" version wich can be implemented into gameplay would be like having points you can use for different things.

so total point 100.
swordman -2 point.
firearchers -4 point
Upgrade doubble armor -5 Point.
5 exstra health -1 point

there could be lot's more.

I like the idea of creating custom factions for a single game creating your own unique style of fighting

[Y]

Coldfusionstorm, I send you by email a beta version of my tool

Currently for the cost, if your unit/building have twice the speed/attack/range etc... of the reference unit/building (tech swordman, tech barrack, tech worker), it cost twice its price!

But yeah, anything is possible!
We can imagine a pool of points to buy buildings, units, hp/attack/range bonus etc...
or a price that depends on unit attributes and other units/buildings...

[Coldfusionstorm]

Coldfusionstorm, I send you by email a beta version of my tool

Currently for the cost, if your unit/building have twice the speed/attack/range etc... of the reference unit/building (tech swordman, tech barrack, tech worker), it cost twice its price!

But yeah, anything is possible!
We can imagine a pool of points to buy buildings, units, hp/attack/range bonus etc...
or a price that depends on unit attributes and other units/buildings...

very awesome, im looking at the readme now! :=), IL BE BACK!.... With feedback

[Coldfusionstorm]

Just a little update for other people! , my and Y have tested his tool and so far it's very awesome .

[-Archmage-]

This sounds really promising, and I'm ready to be done working with XML.  But, what about the models?? I think I'm the only active 3D artist on the forums right now.. 

Also, are upgrades being handled? And what about particles?

A lot of the new MG XML stuff is in the docs.
https://docs.megaglest.org/XML/Faction
https://docs.megaglest.org/XML/Skills
https://docs.megaglest.org/XML/Unit

[Y]

Hi Archmage,

Currently, for each unit/building, you must select an unit animation. I provide all unit animations from megapack techtree.
So for prototyping you can use existing 3D models.
It is a script, so I can do the same for every mod, I can extract all unit animations of another techtree.

Otherwise, currently:
- particles
- upgrades
- air units
- splash attack
- armor/attack type
are not handled yet!

But it is planned for the next version.

I think in two weeks

[titi]

Will this be open source ? If yes, can you put it on github ?

[Y]

Yes, I think it will become open source, but only when I will have a nice release, according to users feedback.

It is already on git, but on bitbucket (private repo).

I advanced on v1, if I have time this weekend I would make a first release
Currently I can:
- create resources
- create armor/attack type
- create air unit
- no attacking/building unit or building like in v0.9, just units who can build/produce units
- have upgrades

I will add reference to existing particles, and improve the UI this weekend.

[thdgaming]

Hey, I read about your project and I am interested in. Where can I download the program ?