645 replies to this topic

[Moosh]

It seems as if the enemy is disconnecting from the ffc occasionally and very briefly causing the phantom hitbox. This only started when I replaced the Ghost_Transform() functions with setting Ghost_Data...

[Saffith]

Try this out, see if it tells you anything helpful.

Code

CODE

ffc script Circlementus{
    void run(){
        Waitframes(5);
        if(Screen->State[ST_ENEMYNORETURN]==false){
        int tics=0;
        npc n;
        n=Ghost_InitCreate(this, 177);
        Ghost_Transform(this, n, 888, 8, 2, 2);
            int destx;
            int desty;
            int angle;
            while(n->isValid()){
                destx=Link->X-8+VectorX(60, angle);
                desty=Link->Y-8+VectorY(60, angle);
                angle++;
                if(this->X+8>Link->X) Ghost_Data=888;
                if(this->X+8<Link->X) Ghost_Data=889;
                Ghost_MoveAtAngle(Angle(this->X, this->Y, destx, desty), 0.5, 0);
                if(tics==240){
                    Ghost_StartFlashing();
                    for(int i=-2; i<=2; i++){
                        eweapon e=FireAimedEWeapon(EW_FIREBALL, this->X+8, this->Y, DegtoRad(i*15), 150, 2, -1, SFX_FIREBALL, EWF_SHADOW|EWF_UNBLOCKABLE);
                        SetEWeaponLifespan(e, EWL_TIMER, 60);
                        SetEWeaponDeathEffect(e, EWD_AIM_AT_LINK, 30+i*10);
                    }
                }
                if(tics==240)tics=0;
                if(tics<240)tics++;
                UpdateEWeapons();
                DebugWaitframe(this, n);
            }
            for(int i=0; i<=Screen->NumEWeapons(); i++){
                eweapon e=Screen->LoadEWeapon(i);
                e->X=-900;
            }
            Ghost_Explode(this, n);
        }
    }
    
    bool DebugWaitframe(ffc this, npc n)
    {
        int format[]="X: %d - Y: %d - X offset: %d - Y offset: %d";
        int buf[100];
        
        sprintf(buf, format, n->X, n->Y, n->HitXOffset, n->HitYOffset);
        TraceS(buf);
        Screen->DrawString(6, 0, 0, FONT_Z3SMALL, 1, 0, TF_NORMAL, buf, 128);
        
        Screen->Rectangle(6, n->X+n->HitXOffset, n->Y+n->HitYOffset,
                          n->X+n->HitXOffset+n->HitWidth,
                          n->Y+n->HitYOffset+n->HitHeight,
                          Rand(4), 1, 0, 0, 0, false, 128);
        
        return Ghost_Waitframe(this, n, true, false);
    }
}

[Moosh]

Try this out, see if it tells you anything helpful.

Code

CODE

ffc script Circlementus{
    void run(){
        Waitframes(5);
        if(Screen->State[ST_ENEMYNORETURN]==false){
        int tics=0;
        npc n;
        n=Ghost_InitCreate(this, 177);
        Ghost_Transform(this, n, 888, 8, 2, 2);
            int destx;
            int desty;
            int angle;
            while(n->isValid()){
                destx=Link->X-8+VectorX(60, angle);
                desty=Link->Y-8+VectorY(60, angle);
                angle++;
                if(this->X+8>Link->X) Ghost_Data=888;
                if(this->X+8<Link->X) Ghost_Data=889;
                Ghost_MoveAtAngle(Angle(this->X, this->Y, destx, desty), 0.5, 0);
                if(tics==240){
                    Ghost_StartFlashing();
                    for(int i=-2; i<=2; i++){
                        eweapon e=FireAimedEWeapon(EW_FIREBALL, this->X+8, this->Y, DegtoRad(i*15), 150, 2, -1, SFX_FIREBALL, EWF_SHADOW|EWF_UNBLOCKABLE);
                        SetEWeaponLifespan(e, EWL_TIMER, 60);
                        SetEWeaponDeathEffect(e, EWD_AIM_AT_LINK, 30+i*10);
                    }
                }
                if(tics==240)tics=0;
                if(tics<240)tics++;
                UpdateEWeapons();
                DebugWaitframe(this, n);
            }
            for(int i=0; i<=Screen->NumEWeapons(); i++){
                eweapon e=Screen->LoadEWeapon(i);
                e->X=-900;
            }
            Ghost_Explode(this, n);
        }
    }
    
    bool DebugWaitframe(ffc this, npc n)
    {
        int format[]="X: %d - Y: %d - X offset: %d - Y offset: %d";
        int buf[100];
        
        sprintf(buf, format, n->X, n->Y, n->HitXOffset, n->HitYOffset);
        TraceS(buf);
        Screen->DrawString(6, 0, 0, FONT_Z3SMALL, 1, 0, TF_NORMAL, buf, 128);
        
        Screen->Rectangle(6, n->X+n->HitXOffset, n->Y+n->HitYOffset,
                          n->X+n->HitXOffset+n->HitWidth,
                          n->Y+n->HitYOffset+n->HitHeight,
                          Rand(4), 1, 0, 0, 0, false, 128);
        
        return Ghost_Waitframe(this, n, true, false);
    }
}

The plot thickens...The hitbox never moves but Link still gets hurt by some invisible entity...

Edit: Well this is embarrassing. I've isolated the cause of the hitbox problem. It was a duplicate of the boss enemy that I still had onscreen from a previous version of the script.

OK, so I think I've found a bug. I think I killed a boss offscreen and Zelda Classic didn't like that at all and crashed.
The message I got when I checked allegro.log was:
Invalid value (0) passed to 'Screen->LoadItem'
Pasted about a few hundred times.

Not sure if this is a bug with ghost.zh, my script, or RC3 in general.

Edited by Moosh, 01 May 2012 - 01:52 PM.

[Saffith]

A crash is always a bug in the game, even if it's caused by a buggy script. Can you show me what did it?

[Moosh]

Here's the WIP script that I believe caused the crash. It did it consistently when the enemy died on the very edge of the screen and I noticed that when it dies normally, it teleports up about 50 pixels before exploding.

Notchcode warning!

CODE

ffc script Avarlice{
    void run(){
        Waitframes(5);
        if(Screen->D[2]==0){
        int tics=0;
        npc n=Screen->LoadNPC(1);
        Ghost_Init(this, n, GHF_IGNORE_ALL_TERRAIN | GHF_MOVE_OFFSCREEN);
        Ghost_Transform(this, n, 896, 5, 2, 2);
            while(n->isValid()==true){
                int angle=Angle(this->X+8, this->Y+8, Link->X+8, Link->Y+8);
                tics=0;
                while(this->X>0&&this->X<224&&this->Y>0&&this->Y<144||tics<30){
                    if(Ghost_HP<40&&Ghost_CSet==5){
                        n->Defense[NPCD_SWORD]=NPCDT_NONE;
                        n->Defense[NPCD_BEAM]=NPCDT_NONE;
                        Ghost_CSet=8;
                    }
                    Ghost_MoveAtAngle(angle, 2, 0);
                    Ghost_Waitframe(this, n, true, false);
                    tics++;
                    if(Rand(1, 10*Ghost_HP)==1){
                        eweapon e=FireAimedEWeapon(EW_FIREBALL, this->X+8, this->Y+8, 0, 100, 4, 88, SFX_FIREBALL, EWF_UNBLOCKABLE | EWF_NO_COLLISION);
                        SetEWeaponLifespan(e, EWL_TIMER, 60);
                        SetEWeaponDeathEffect(e, EWD_SPAWN_NPC, 179);
                    }
                    if((tics==30||tics==60||tics==90||tics==120||tics==150)&&Ghost_CSet==8){
                        eweapon r=FireAimedEWeapon(EW_FIREBALL, this->X+8, this->Y+8, 0, 0, 4, -1, SFX_FIREBALL, EWF_UNBLOCKABLE);
                        SetEWeaponLifespan(r, EWL_TIMER, 600);
                        SetEWeaponDeathEffect(r, EWD_VANISH, 0);
                    }
                    UpdateEWeapons();
                }
                for(int i=0; i<=120; i++){
                    Ghost_Waitframe(this, n, true, false);
                    if(Ghost_HP<40&&Ghost_CSet==5){
                        n->Defense[NPCD_SWORD]=NPCDT_NONE;
                        n->Defense[NPCD_BEAM]=NPCDT_NONE;
                        Ghost_CSet=8;
                    }
                    UpdateEWeapons();
                }
                if(Ghost_HP<40&&Ghost_CSet==5){
                    n->Defense[NPCD_SWORD]=NPCDT_NONE;
                    n->Defense[NPCD_BEAM]=NPCDT_NONE;
                    Ghost_CSet=8;
                }
                UpdateEWeapons();
                Ghost_Waitframe(this, n, true, false);
            }
            Ghost_Explode(this, n);
            Screen->D[2]=1;
        }
    }
}

On closer inspection, it seems that the crash has to do with creating a new enemy at the same time as enemies->item is triggered...

Edited by Moosh, 02 May 2012 - 08:59 AM.

[Saffith]

All right, I'll see if I can find anything.

I noticed that when it dies normally, it teleports up about 50 pixels before exploding.

Replacing while(n->isValid()==true) with while(Ghost_HP>0) should fix that.

[Saffith]

In the interest of reducing boilerplate code and alleviating the difficulty of treating an npc and an ffc as a single conceptual entity, I've written a utility: ghost_zh_converter.zip

This will allow you to treat this as a pointer of type ghost, whose variables and functions are a mix of those defined in ghost.zh and those of ffcs and npcs. The converter will modify the code as necessary to compile and run in ZC.

For example:

CODE

ghost script GhostScriptDemo
{
    void run(int enemyID)
    {
        this->InitAutoGhost(enemyID);
        
        while(true)
        {
            this->MoveTowardLink(this->Step/100, 2);
            DemoWaitframe(this);
        }
    }
    
    void DemoWaitframe(ghost this)
    {
        if(this->Attributes[0]>0)
        {
            if(Link->InputA)
                this->CollDetection=false;
            else
                this->CollDetection=true;
        }
        
        this->Waitframe(true, true);
    }
}

The converter is written in JavaScript and should work in any modern browser. Paste your script, click "Convert," copy the output.

Bear in mind, this is a hastily thrown together demo, not a finished product. It's certainly usable, but I'm not prepared to guarantee it will work perfectly, even if I didn't make any mistakes in writing it. Also, it has the limitation that your ghost pointer must be named this. Any other name will be ignored.

[MoscowModder]

That converter sounds promising. I'd like to see how it works when finished.

I have a suggestion for autoghost... some scripts don't use combos in place of enemy graphics, and it's kind of a pain to go find GH_INVISIBLE_COMBO to put in the enemy's attribute 11. What if we could just put -1 there, and the autoghost global script set it to the invisible combo for us? That would be pretty easy, wouldn't it?

[Saffith]

I'll do that, yeah.


So, I haven't accounted for the no ground/jumping/flying enemy combo and flags yet, and I'm trying to decide how to do that. I'm thinking of adding GHF_FLYING_ENEMY, which will make the enemy be blocked by the flying enemy blocker; otherwise, it would be blocked by the ground or jumping enemy blockers depending on whether Ghost_Z>0. Of course, that won't affect any existing flying enemy scripts, but that's not too awful. Does anyone have a better idea?

Relatedly, does anyone see a problem with making Ghost_CanMove over pits and water true whenever Ghost_Z>0?

[Moosh]

So this probably sounds stupid, but how do I set Ghost_Data in a custom void function? I tried reinitializing the ghosted enemy, but that caused some pretty severe problems...

[Saffith]

Nothing special, just Ghost_Data=whatever;. The Ghost_Init and Ghost_Waitframe functions deal with all the special handling of the Ghost_ variables, so you can treat them like any other.

[Saffith]

Another update.

• There's now built-in support for multi-FFC enemies like Iflyte.
• It's now possible to use Screen->DrawCombo rather than making the FFC itself visible. There are three advantages to this:
  • Enemies will correctly be drawn above layers 2 and 4 rather than 1 and 3 (currently, FFCs do appear above layers 2 and 4, but that's a bug).
  • Enemies disappear when the screen is scrolling.
  • Multi-FFC enemies don't actually require multiple FFCs.
• Enemy blocking combos and flags are now respected.
  • Added GHF_FLYING_ENEMY, which controls whether ground/jumping or flying enemy blockers are checked.
  • Ghost_CanMove and Ghost_CanMovePixel now take an optional argument indicating whether the enemy is in the air; this defaults to Ghost_Z>0.
• Added flags to restrict an enemies movement to water, including or excluding shallow water.
• Added a setting to make all Z-axis movement actually use the Y axis.
• Added a setting to make enemies flicker instead of flash.
• You can now use an alternate number (-1 by default) instead of GH_INVISIBLE_COMBO to make enemies use the invisible combo.
• GHF_ flags can no longer be ORed together; they must be set individually. Unfortunate, but it can't be helped; I ran out of bits.
• Ghost_SetFlags and the init functions with a flags argument are deprecated.
• Ghost_WaitframeLight now takes ffc and npc arguments. The old version is deprecated and may not work correctly with existing scripts if DrawCombo is enabled.

[Gleeok]

I took a look at the ghostdemo. What's the deal with these variables: Ghost_X, Vx, etc. Surely those are not declared somewhere?


edit: I see what you did there now, in ghost_waitframe. ..That makes me sad.

I would also like to replace the global script with a ffc version, like "ffc script manual_ghost", or "this_screen_has_ghosted_enemies". Is this doable, or is there clean-up logic that needs to execute that would prevent this? (The main reason is I need to control which scripts on which screens will have control over object properties.)

edit2: ninja edit fail.

[Saffith]

edit: I see what you did there now, in ghost_waitframe. ..That makes me sad.

Hey, I'm the one who has to keep track of it all. The alternative is what I used to do instead: store everything in npc->Misc. Not really any better.

I would also like to replace the global script with a ffc version, like "ffc script manual_ghost", or "this_screen_has_ghosted_enemies". Is this doable, or is there clean-up logic that needs to execute that would prevent this?

Sure. This should be all you need:

CODE

ffc script AutoGhoster
{
    void run()
    {
        while(true)
        {
            AutoGhost();
            Waitframe();
        }
    }
}

The only downside is that that'll be before Waitdraw, which means you'll see the first frame of the built-in enemy's spawn animation.

[Saffith]

Quick update, because I made a mistake and potentially broke some scripts (none that I know of, though).
You can easily fix it yourself rather than download it again: add a Waitframe on line 4354.