Mar. 1: Testing a New Traps Option

Trap Materials Bundles: After a little more work in the toolset and a manual server reset, I'm going to be testing out a new convenience item: bundles of trap materials. Basically, it'll be a big, 10 pound box full of pieces of traps ready to use.

Just use the box's power on a door, placeable, or the ground, and it might create a trap at that location/object (if you succeed at a Set Trap check). The scripting is then supposed to adjust the trap's detect, disarm, and save DCs automatically (basically, the better you are at Set Trap, the harder to see, disarm, or avoid your traps).

Unlike normal trap kits though, it is possible to A) try to set a trap beyond your capabilities (no "success not possible" message...even if it's not possible) and B) mess up badly (even when not in combat) and set off the trap yourself. Also, you won't be able to recover these traps (disarm, yes...recover, no).

If my testing goes as planned, I'll be adding this option for other types of traps. At first, I'm working with just spike traps for the testing, and Smitty will be the only source of these (until I'm sure they work properly).

Just another little something I wanted to add so that rogues can do more in Aenea than just sneak attack.

Edited: After testing and recoding (and some minor retesting)...scrapping the original idea.

New Plan: see newer post below

So... let's say you've got epicly sick set trap skills... you can make epic level traps?

And does the scripting for them allow for XP gain from kills made by the traps, or will they still be no-XP like default bio-traps?

There will eventually be 5 "levels" of trap bundles, based off the BioWare ones (minor, average, strong, deadly, and epic). So, yes, if this works you'll be able to buy and use epic level traps.

And since I'm the one writing the trap scripts to keep track of the trap creator, you should be able to get XP for things killed by the traps...this has to be tested though to make sure my code alteration works as it's intended.

And if it works out for the XP, I foresee some editing of all the default trap scripts to try to get them to properly "credit" the trap setter.

Woohoo! This will be very nice for rogues and rangers should it work out all as planned

Yet another reason I'm proud to call this server home! never stops with the goodness!

Amen!

Test failed. Back to toolset for me.

New plan for traps, since testing previous one revealed multiple failures with little chance of fully working as intended.

Trap Material Crates: Purchase 10 pound boxes of materials needed to construct various traps. "Use" a crate to try to put together a normal trap kit of the type matching the box (script does a Craft Trap check against the DC of the desired trap). Each crate will have an unlimited number of uses/day, but not a completely unlimited number of uses.

Smitty (and a couple of other merchants that deal with such items) will have the ability to stock up your Selected (via Select tool/feat) crate, for a price. They'll take the amount of gold you're willing to pay to stock up the crate, and each time you craft a trap kit, some of that value will be used up. In simple terms, the crate will be like a pre-paid credit card...load it up with x gp worth of "materials", and each use decreases the amount that remains. Talk to the right merchants to "pre-pay" more, and your crate can be used to make more trap kits.

For example...a crate of spike trap materials with 3000 gp worth of materials. Craft a minor spike trap kit (full gp value 7), use up 3 gp worth of materials, leaving 2997 gp in materials remaining. Take that same crate and craft a deadly spike trap kit (full gp value 4079), use up 2040 worth of materials, leaving 957 gp in materials. The name of the the crate will change to reflect the remaining value.

The default level created is "minor", unless you pick another level by using a new VC command (craft trap xxxxxx....xxxxxx will be minor, average, strong, deadly, or epic). Only the fire, frost, electrical, and sonic traps have epic versions. The VC commands and costs will be listed in the crate's description in-game. I'll be disabling the clunky workshop anvil-based trap kit crafting option.


Trap Kit Descriptions: These are getting an upgrade, describing the mechanics of each trap (save DC, save type, damage, effects, set DC, disarm DC, detect DC).

Note for those wondering about traps and saves...sticking with base mechanics. This means that traps that cause just damage (fire, spike, electrical), a reflex save means 1/2 damage (or none with evasion). For traps that do more than just damage, a failed save means getting hit with the full effect, a successful save means avoiding the "additional" effects, but still getting hit with the normal amount of damage. Damage is still subject to damage resistance/reduction.

Kit Stacking: Stack up to 10 trap kits of the same type to save on inventory and quickslot space.

Trap Scripting: Alter scripts for all default traps to (hopefully) give trap setter credit when it comes to awarding XP. I've got the scripting done for this, just waiting until I get a chance with no players on to do a manual shut-down/restart (since an updated server-side cep2_custom.hak file is involved). Should end up working for everything except poison gas traps (those don't kill directly, they just poison the victims). Oh, and direct damaging traps underwater will behave kind of like spells...electrical, cold, and sonic traps will do a little more damage, acid and fire traps will do less damage.

Trap Icon Upgrade: New icons for all trap kits.



Trap Disarm Tool: I'll be removing this, since most traps now give xp for disarming them.

Of course this new plan also involves new icons for the materials crates (so you can simply look at them to tell what kinds of traps you can make with them), a new traps.2da file, and a new baseitems.2da file...which means a new updates hak coming soon so that I can get this going in-game.

Bumping this, just because I'm updating the previous post as I work on these.

Looking forward to this very much

Will setting traps still knock ya outa stealth-mode by chance?

Again, I say wowsa!

MannyJabrielle wrote:Looking forward to this very much

Will setting traps still knock ya outa stealth-mode by chance?

Yes, since they're still trap kits. It's hard-coded into the item type, and my efforts to properly create traps purely with scripting proved futile.

New aeneahak_upates.hak file available for download from the Vault or via WorldGate.

Carpal tunnel...setting in...

Ok. Got the coding done for the trap updates. Got all the different trap material crates made. Got Smitty so that he should be able to add to the crates (be sure to have one Selected before talking to him...if you can buy from is "other" merchandise, you can get your crate filled).

Now I just have to do a manual server restart (when I copy over the new hak file), and y'all should be able to make traps to your hearts' content...after you go out and download the updated hak file.

Oh, and please refrain from laying down traps where people are going to be walking a lot. Nothing like getting killed by traps in common areas to turn off new players. Plus, if you pick up your un-tripped traps before leaving an area...you'll have them to use somewhere else.

I plan on restarting it in a few hours, when I get more than 2 minutes of free time.

Minor bug with adding value to trap materials...looks like only the 100 gp option is working at the moment.

Oh, and MJ reports electrical and holy traps not working properly, but other trap types seem to be functioning.

BOOM!

MannyJabrielle wrote:BOOM!

I take it you've been playing with fire.

Ya, expensive, but makes a nice boom.

Gotta get Angelica more trap skill. She can craft deadly traps no problem, but the epics have wowza craft DC's. Epic traps... that's gonna rock!

Altered scripts for electrical and holy traps. Holy traps will be fixed by this, electrical should be.

Fixes will go in after I do a manual server restart (since a hak file is involved).

Do we have to redownload the hak after the fix, or is the fix serverside only?

MannyJabrielle wrote:Do we have to redownload the hak after the fix, or is the fix serverside only?

Server-side.

Wow, Bram may have to take more levels in trap now!!!