Question on modding crawlers???

Capt Dizle · April 1, 2002, 17:54

How can I modify the game so as to increase the base cost of crawlers?

AnnC · April 1, 2002, 18:08

If you want more expensive crawlers, the easiest thing to do is use the Design Workshop to create a more costly model. For example, you can add armor or a special ability.

If you really want to increase the base cost, edit alpha.txt and modify the following line:

Supply Crawler, Infantry, Supply, Scout, 10, 0, 0, IndAuto, -1, 000000000000000000000000

Change "10,0,0" to "10,5,0" or whatever. Then check to see if the cost amounts to the number of rows you want it to be.

Capt Dizle · April 1, 2002, 18:52

AnnC,

Thanks. I did edit to 10, X, 0 but for whatever reason it didn't seem to work. I kept getting three rows on infantry crawlers, although the cost was higher in the workshop.

Speeder crawler cost increased correctly. Since supply is inserted in a weapon slot I fear that no modifier is being used for infantry chasis. Or maybe I am doing something wrong.

Thanks for the help. I will keep trying.

jt

AnnC · April 1, 2002, 21:49

Did you start a new game after editing alpha.txt? As I recall, changes to alpha.txt don't affect games in progress.

Capt Dizle · April 1, 2002, 22:46

No, I did not start a new game. But changes do affect games in progress. Still, it is likley that it only affects parts of games in progress, rather than the whole.

And the infantry supply crawler is a predesigned unit. I will have to try it out on a new game.

Blake · April 1, 2002, 22:54

The problem is that the unit cost forumla means even quite expensive weapons on an infantry chassis are cheap.

You would have to make the crawler module really quite expensive to see a change in infantry crawler cost.

Heres another way you can do it:

Go to the supply transport in #WEAPONS

Supply Transport, Supply, 0,10, 8, -1, IndAuto,
Change the cost to something really high...
Supply Transport, Supply, 0,10, 99, -1, IndAuto,

This will make crawlers designed in the workshop effectively unbuildable.

Go to supply crawler in #UNITS
Supply Crawler, Infantry, Supply, Scout, 10, 0, 0, IndAuto, -1, 000000000000000000000000

Change the cost
Supply Crawler, Infantry, Supply, Scout, 10, 5, 0, IndAuto, -1, 000000000000000000000000

(thats for cost 5 rows)
You might also want to add rover and foil variations:

Rover Crawler, Rover, Supply, Scout, 10, 5, 0, Fusion, -1, 000000000000000000000000

Trawler, Foil, Supply, Scout, 10, 5, 0, Docinit, -1, 000000000000000000000000

(In this example being available at Fusion and Doctrine Initiative)

Remember to update the unit count number
#UNITS
16

This method has the advantage of eliminating the crawler upgrade exploit to a certain degree, and also the AI will use any crawlers you define.

AnnC · April 2, 2002, 13:25

Blake, if a player makes the changes you describe, do they affect games in progress? Or do you have to start a new game in order for the changes to take effect?

Blake · April 2, 2002, 17:37

I'm not sure, I've never tried that. (I've never actually modded crawlers - I got the technique I described from a mod, Harsh Planet, IIRC).

AnnC · April 2, 2002, 17:50

I experimented with alpha.txt changes and an in-progress single-player game today, and I found that if I change the Supply Transport line under #WEAPONS to:

Supply Transport, Supply, 0,10, 16, -1, IndAuto,

then the Design Workshop calculates the cost of the standard Supply Crawler at 5 rows. But unfortunately, the production menu still thinks that Supply Crawlers cost 3 rows.

When I get time, I'll start a new game with my modified alpha.txt and see if Supply Crawlers' cost is the same in the Design Workshop and the Production Menu.

AnnC · April 2, 2002, 22:55

I created a new single-player game with alpha.txt modified as described in my previous post. And Supply Crawler cost was consistent in the Production Menu and the Design Workshop. In this case, Suppy Crawlers cost 5 rows.

Capt Dizle · April 5, 2002, 02:18

I can't duplicate that. No matter what I put in that field I get 3 rows. On speeder designs I get the expected result. I don't see what I am doing wrong.

AnnC · April 5, 2002, 02:24

It only works if you start a new game with the modified alpha.txt. If you load an in-progress game that was created with the default alpha.txt, your standard Supply Crawlers will cost 3 rows no matter what changes were subsequently made to alpha.txt.

Capt Dizle · April 5, 2002, 03:04

I see what I was doing wrong now. I created a folder in the smac/scenario file and insert copies of alpha.text and the faction text files. I did all of my editing there.

To start a test game I simply generated it normally, toggled scenario and edited it as I liked. I then saved it as a scenario and then moved it into the smac/scenario folder that contains my modified files.

I would then start by selecting play scenario and all of my modifications appeared to be working. Except crawler changes.

The reason this is happening is explained right in the alpha text, the crawler is a predesigned unit, created when the game is created (but not revealed to the player until the requistite tech is discovered) and based on the way I was doing it the crawler production boxes must have been stored in the save game file.

So some things in alpha can be edited as a game is in progress and others can't.

When you start a scenario it reads data from the alpha.txt in the scenario directory, but predesigned units (and possibly other stuff) is already in the game file and is not generated as if you were creating a game.

Blah, I have to redo my scenario.

Ann was correct as usual.