Need help with ability modding.

Ability Icon keeps disappearing...

from Sins Forums

So...I have recently started tuning the game for my peronal needs and ran into a pretty strange problem. I already got used to the fact that if you make even a single mistake while modifying files the game wont even launch, but that thing that I keep getting is rather diffirent.

I have made some vast modifications to the Eradica class titan, the main of which would be the Purification ability, which I modified to work like the Ankylon's Furious Defence. I never made any new files, just modified the existing ones. I made the ability look like this:

TXT
entityType "Ability"
buffInstantActionType "ApplyBuffToSelf"
instantActionTriggerType "AlwaysPerform"
buffType "BuffPurificationSelf"
effectInfo
    effectAttachInfo
        attachType "Ability"
        abilityIndex 0
    smallEffectName "TitanAbility_Cherubim_Purification_Activate"
    mediumEffectName "TitanAbility_Cherubim_Purification_Activate"
    largeEffectName "TitanAbility_Cherubim_Purification_Activate"
    soundID "EFFECT_PURIFICATION"
needsToFaceTarget FALSE
canCollideWithTarget TRUE
moveThruTarget FALSE
isUltimateAbility FALSE
maxNumLevels 4
levelSourceType "TitanUpgradeLevel"
sourcePropertyType "AbilityALevel"
aiUseTime "OnlyWhenHullDamageExceeds"
onlyAutoCastWhenTargetHullDamageExceedsAmount
    Level:0 540.000000
    Level:1 1035.000000
    Level:2 1585.000000
    Level:3 2100.000000
aiUseTargetCondition "Any"
isAutoCastAvailable TRUE
isAutoCastOnByDefault TRUE
pickRandomPlanetToExploreForAutoCastTarget FALSE
ignoreNonCombatShipsForAutoCastTarget TRUE
onlyAutoCastWhenDamageTakenExceedsPerc 0.000000
useCostType "AntiMatter"
antiMatterCost
    Level:0 100.000000
    Level:1 90.000000
    Level:2 80.000000
    Level:3 60.000000
cooldownTime
    Level:0 90.000000
    Level:1 90.000000
    Level:2 90.000000
    Level:3 90.000000
orderAcknowledgementType "ONATTACKORDERISSUED"
researchPrerequisites
    NumResearchPrerequisites 0
    RequiredFactionNameID ""
    RequiredCompletedResearchSubjects 0
nameStringID "IDS_ABILITY_PURIFICATION_NAME"
descStringID "IDS_ABILITY_PURIFICATION_DESCRIPTION"
hudIcon "HUDICON_ABILITY_PURIFICATION"
smallHudIcon "HUDICON_ABILITY_PURIFICATION"
infoCardIcon ""

I also modified the buff of this ability to work as I intended. It works, perfectly works...well...almost =)

I can choose the ability, and it, once used, does exactly what was intended - buffs the titan with hull regen for 60 seconds, but the problem is, there is no interface button for it! In the menu, where you choose the abilities once your titan gets a level. there is a button with all the descriptions and modifications. But once the ability is chosen, it doesnt appear on the ability tab. And the strangest part is that when I move the mouse over the place where the button should be, it shows that the button is there - it shows the infocard with the ability's description. But still, not even a sign of an icon...besides, in the infocard there is only information about how much hull per second and damage output the titan gets for the duration, everything else is covered with "String missing" stuff.

I checked, doublechecked...even quadriplechecked everything I know regarding strings, connected to this ability and everything is not diffirent from the original file...

Whats more, when I switched back the initial file (I left the modified buff to see what happens) the hud icon was back and shiny, but the ability, of course, wasnt working as intended...instead of buffing itself, the titan targeted friendly units and only then buffed itself...pretty much the initial purification ability, minus the destruction of friendly ships -_-...

While checking the stuff I got a lingering impression that theese lines below were the culprits that were stealing the hud icon..

entityType "Ability"
buffInstantActionType "ApplyBuffToSelf"
instantActionTriggerType "AlwaysPerform"
buffType "BuffPurificationSelf"

But I can nither confirm that those lines are the culprits nor I have any sane adeas what to do to make it work...

I am at a loss and in urgent need of advice =(

modding
2,943 views 6 replies
Reply #1 from Sins Forums Top

Never seen that before. I'd just retry it from scratch, maybe using the Hoshikos repair bots buff as a base instead of furious defense, that's a simpler file and can be unscaled easily.

Reply #2 from Sins Forums Top

Unfortunately, that didnt work... =(... Although, maybee, I should try to make the whole file look like the Hoshiko droid repair? But would that mean that I would have to manualy press the button and click on the titan to make the ability work? I want this ability to work loke that - I press the button and the titan gets the buff. Not that I press the button, point at the titan and only then it gets the buff...

What I dont get completely is - why is the hud icon missing? I mean, what link is there between the icon and the effect of the ability? At the bottom of the file there are clear lines that determine what icon the ability will have, so what is causing the icon to disappear? I never changed any line that could involve the icon...

Although...that line from before...

entityType "Ability"
buffInstantActionType "ApplyBuffToSelf"
instantActionTriggerType "AlwaysPerform"
buffType "BuffPurificationSelf"

Can it be that when I changed the buffinstActionType from "ApplyTargetBuffToSelf" to "ApplyBuffToSelf" it caused all the mess? Then, is the ability Icon directly connected to the type of the buff and changing the type causes the game to go on a rampage with a chaisaw? =O

I guess I'll have to erase the modified files and start from the scratch...

Ashes of the Singularity II
Reply #3 from Sins Forums Top

look like a button conflict.

Change LogOutput FALSE to TRUE in your rebellion.user.setting, and play again, then check the debug file.

Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top

It worked! I remade the ability from scratch and it worked...But I am at a loss, I didnt change anything. Remade the file exacty the same way I did the first time, but, unlike the first time, now it worked...Although I did change LogOutput to True...dear god...logical connections between files in this game terrifies me...

Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top

use the dev.exe its hideously simple and it finds problems instantly.

 

I just pasted your code into a file and started the dev.exe

 

Text FileArchive missing Label.

File: C:\Users\Jon\Documents\My Games\Ironclad Games\Sins of a Solar Empire Rebellion\Mods-Rebellion v1.04 Dev\TitanWeapons\GameInfo\AbilityPurification.entity
Label: onlyAutoCastWhenTotalHullDamageExceedsAmount
Line Number:21
Line Contents:onlyAutoCastWhenTargetHullDamageExceedsAmount

 

whenTargethull

whenTotalhull

 your "target" doesn't exist http://code.google.com/p/soaseplugin/wiki/RebellionaiUseTime

 

 

the dev........  Is sooo simple  just click it and the game loads up as normal, and in less than 2 seconds I have found the issue.

Reply #6 from Sins Forums Top

Yeah, it is simple indeed =)

Too bad it took me so much time to realize there was such a useful tool...

but better late han never! Helped me solve several problems already. Still stange things occur...sometimes I start the game with modified files and dev.exe gives me strange errors, like missing strings or targets...I redo the files exactly the same way I did and ta-da, it launches fine...I even made two exactly same copies of the file and used them separately...one gave error, the secondo one didnt...although they were the same...

It makes detecting problems realy hard -_-