Stahlins Sudden Guide 4
for Sudden Strike Resource War Single Player Mapping
With examples for RWM 8.0, RCM 2.7, WWM 0.5, MWM 2, RWG 0.8,
AXPRM 2, PWM 2.0, LRM 5.1, WZ 2, CWC and VP 1.2 Mod,
but usable with whole SuSt 1 + 2 family
( best
viewed with
1024 x 768 or bigger )
Sudden Strike Resource War
Single Player Map
A new version with
further Mods and many little corrections. Sudden Strike,
Sudden
Strike 2, Resource War, RWM, RCM, WWM, MWM, PWM,
LRM, Warzone, CWC, Vietnam Project or another
mod, they are
all similar.
Sometimes in the forum Sudden-Strike-Maps.de there are questions how to create a SP map. There have been some tutorials over the years, like that from Irrlaeufer for MP Maps and the guide for SSRW from Gareth. But what i have made here i havent seen. It is useable for all Sudden Strike mods, but sometimes little changes, especially at the units, may be required. Not for all Mods the example "Four Nations" is fully converted. Please dou changes if necessary.
In this Version there are Maps for RCM 2.7, RWM 8.0, MWM 2, RWG 0.8, PWM 2, LRM 5.1, WZ 2, CWC, VP 1.2 and WWM 0.5 included.
In Switcher you can start Map-Editor directly. But not always works correctly.
For Map-testing choose Map with "Select Map". Then you can start each further test directly with "Bootstrap".
Lets start from the beginning. Create a new map. Or copy "Map.253" and/or "Map.254" to your MAPS.SRC folder.
And a new mission. Best both always together.
Lets start with an airport. With terrain asphalt we create 3 places for hangars and in a distance one for liftoff.
Over that we put the yellow airfield territory. Number isnt important now.
But
now the airfield number becomes important. Hangars and liftoff points
are
placed. On the lower left and in the squares you see the 3.
The landingpoint goes to the end of the rollfield. The small squares are turned as shown.
Now hangars and rollfield become connected with asphalt and territory.
Building the hangars.
With Unit/add new "Fieseler Storches" are set. For the groups it is the best to have a scheme. Helps to keep overview. I use A for player, J for enemy, 0 for simple troops, 9 for officers. Dont forget morale, experience and lives.
IN and Crew are selected. Again IN or Crw ends it.
OK and the fieseler storches can be turned with the . and , keys. Then we set 3 of them on the red hangar points (show with F5). As they belong to player they appear green in the table on the lower right.
Now a street.
A piece is marked for load/save. Be careful when scrolling out of window. Here is one main bug who can lead to crash. First scroll with the scrollbars, then mark more. Only mark connected areas like rectangles, otherwise you maybe cannot load it later.
And save.
Load and place with alt+control+leftmousebutton. Can save much time.
The street goes to the hangars.
Now the gates for reinforcement are placed. On the lower left A-Z (at SSRW, in other versions less). Left mouse sets entering point, right click direction.
Another gate for the train.
And one for the ship.
The red flag must be in the middle of the railway.
Again with block save/load the railway is builded across the whole map.
Now with terrain water a channel for the ship.
Streets and railway get bridges.
Now set locations. We need them for scripting.
In the table we see on the black numbers which locations are in use. Click on the number jumps to location.
Station and location is placed.
Now an enemy camp.
For that russian infantry is used.
They are standing in line.
In front an officer is placed with group J9.
With edit existing mark all and choose enemy on the lower left (easy to forget). Now they are red in the table, allies are yellow, neutral blue.
The german camp must be guarded too.
They belong to player and appear green in table.
The most important parts of the map are ready now. Save again. Now we begin scripting.
First victory condition.
Here it is.
Now we make life easy and simply copy that.
and paste it.
The upper i change a little.
and so i have created a looser condition.
Now we could save and generate a singleplayer mission. The map is playable, it is possible to win or loose.
Now something for optical structure, it doesnt affect game.
It becomes moved.
Now we get reinforcement on the map. Open a new trigger and click on reinforcements. Or in menu MISSIONS.
Here we can edit reinforcements. Group A1. Moral and experience shpuld be at least 50. Otherwise they do a lot of nonsens. Lives should be at least 1 because otherwise they may die quickly. With IN and CRW passengers can be edited.
As passengers 14 ss soldiers.
Crew is already preselected and no need to change.
Add and it appears in the right window. Type in name on bottom and OK. Now the train.
Its always the same. Dont forget EXP and lives.
The wagon gets 16 ss soldiers.
And some of these wagons appended at the train.
Now the ship. Here i have forgotten morale, can be changed later.
We borrow from americans. Replace crew with germans.
Put in 20 ss soldiers.
The 3 reinforcements are ready. Check in overview if there are 0 units somewhere. With the scores it is possible to create balance. Dont forget OK. And saving.
Now we get them on map. First truck 1.
The script is again copied and altered.
Truck 2
Now the train.
And the ship.
Ready.
Save and generate sp mission to test.
Dir is: YourSSRW Dir>\MAPS\SINGLE
Start the Game and load your mission.
The Fieseler Storch can be started manually.
He spies the russian camp.
Meanwhile ss has left wagons and attacks.
But thats not enough. There must be something special. So we change the location at the station a little.
Then we need 2 messages.
And with two clever scripts we mark the station as in german hand or not.
Cell C_8 is a flag. Is station conquered it is 1, else 0. We need that so that the message is displayed only once every time the station is conquered. Otherwise it would be displayed again and again forever.
The scripts now look like that.
When saving and testing we see its relatively quite on map. Sudden Strike AI is lazy. If we want something going on we must create it ourself.
For that now our special construction comes. 60 triggers will be switched in random order. In the triggers we could put everything we want. This here is only a demonstration of the method. Can be altered after your ideas.
First we need some further houses, locations and markers according to the game plan. BTW: in SSRW we now have an undo! With alt+control+Z we can undo, and this with over 100 steps! You can use the symbols beneath the disc symbol, too.
Now i set some location 33 on places where player will pass.
Location 33 is used to produce a random value. SSRW has no random function and till now i have no better idea how to create one.
New in this version to increase C_33 from the beginning continously from 1 to 60.
Then for each party a small value is added or subtracted, so that C_33 always has another value. even if the player don't move.
Because C_33 would grow eternally we must limit that.
Then we produce an irregular timer.
If one of the three timers is elapsed our random value goes to the triggervariable.
Be careful with this window. Easy to make mistake. Dont mismatch variable and number. Click on variable.
We can begin to create the 60 triggers which will be executed randomly. "exclude this condition" is replaced by setting C_30 to 0 again in each trigger. That way we can use each trigger as often as we want without continual execution.
Copy the trigger 9 times.
Then alter them.
Nr. 3
Nr. 4
All 10 ready.
Now copy 10 for enemy.
Triggers become altered.
10 enemy triggers ready.
Save again. Rest of triggers i fill with howitzers.
Set in map.
Trigger 21 becomes altered.
Copied 9 times.
Copies become altered.
Better use a system to not become confused. Here i use for location triggernr minus 20.
The last howitzer.
The first 30 triggers are ready. Then we create 30 more, 60 total. To find a special trigger later, we can add a comment to the end of title line, what happens in this trigger.
Save again and test. Testing is most time, 90% of development. Because you need to test every possibility if you want to test good. Always keep the last working version as backup. Sometimes it is very hard to find mistakes, then you may want to reach back to your backup.
Now a few tanks.
To show something with the blocked fields. If tanks would drive now, the fence would be destroyed. That would look like some idiot tank drivers.
So i set blocked fields. The red are not changeable
At diagonal touching fields like on the corner infantry can pass. Infantry needs 1 field, vehicles 2.
Part 2, from now on MAP.253 ("(S) WWM 0.5 Four Nations" is described. I have added further Houses, Gates, Zones, Marker and Units. In big empty areas i have drawn with Terrain to achieve a realistic impression and to use not to much Objects. Because the number of Objects and Units is limited.
Left
in the West the german Camp, right in East the enemy Russians, in North
neutal Americans, in South the allied Italians, in North the industrial
area, In West Houses.
Cows added. Party Neutral, Behaviour: "Move randomly in area". Be careful, some are declared Enemy. But they are killed soon.
The Scripts are changed to have better Reinforcements. More Scripts were added. At the Station a Message was required when the empty Station was conquered. At the Camps, Airfield and Locations it is now reversed. They are not empty and an action is required when they are lost. It is the reverse program logic. The Questionmarks dont disturb, the most important is visible with "Language=2", mentioned in the beginning.
The random construction contains 60 items now. The Titles were made more speaking. Helps to have Overview.
If the small Tower in North is conquered, the Aviation Traffic is stopped
If lost, Aviation is activated with C_51 = 0.
For Aviation a second random construction is inserted.
It begins like before, with the Timers.
Allied and neutral Units arriving in Player Camp shall be delivered to Player. They must have Groups C0 or H0 like in Script.
We have placed the Fieseler Storches in the new style before. In SSRW there is another too, the old style. These both are completely different and should be strictly separated. They cant be mixed. In the old style the planes are added in the menu MISSIONS/PLAYER and brought on the map by script.
In this menu we select the bombers for the player. With the directionlines on the lower left side we choose the flight direction for the whole nation.
In this window we only use Plr 1-4 on the upper left and the planes area. Player 1 is player, 2=enemy, 3=ally, and 4=neutral. Name and nation is ignored. Color and team is not necessary to change. Color is for the points in the minimap. Team can be sometimes useful to change. If there are planes defined for all 4 parties and its wanted that party 4 behaves like ally and can throw bombs and becomes shot (neutrals cant). Then select for party 4 team 3.
We choose transport to send paratroopers.
At paradrop the troop to send is chosen. How much possible depends on the type of plane. Mostly 20-30. Must try. Dont forget group and experience. With experience under 50 they do a lot of nonsense.
Now it goes on with enemy paratroopers.
Delay can be left at 0. Time can be controlled by script.
Now the allied italian fighters.
And neutral spies.
The commands to appear we insert in the random structure script. Normally we would put a "exclude this condition" before to execute it only once. The old entry we erase. The enemy bombs the station (zone 8) and disappears.
At 21 i add enemy paratroopers landing on bridge (zone 2).
At 22 i add a route. That could be done separetely too.
For that markers must be set. The route leads over the airport. 19 is action point.
Here 19.
And the script goes in 22. The plane flies on the route, acts according to its type at marker 19 and disappears. If there would be an airport number it would try to land.
With "add planes to player" and "add flights to player" the numbers we have selected in player window before could be raised.
In the window MISSIONS/GROUPS type in the group, then UPDATE. Now EDIT.
Here you can make many adjustements (see CDV original - file „SS2 Map Editor.doc“ Useful to read. For the russian officer i choose:
Then below the zone he should guard.
You see it in the overview.
Here you see the zone the officer should guard.
Models of Behavior from the original manual (In the window "Group Properties" there are even more detailed options).
Each group of units in a mission has a model of behavior, which influences the way all computer units (AI-controlled) act. Five values are used to describe a group's behavior. These are: AI_BEHAVIOR, AI_LOC1, AI_LOC2, AI_GRP1 and AI_GRP2.
AI_BEHAVIOR saves the actual actions,
dependent on behavior models and their options. Each model of behavior
has a list of options you can enable or disable.+
AI_LOC1
and AI_LOC2 save the numbers of two
places which are particularly important to the group. How these values
are generated depends on the behavior model, i.e. if a certain behavior
has been set, the units will move to one of these locations.
AI_GRP1 and AI_GRP2 save the numbers of
certain unit groups, e.g. if another group is to be followed or
supported.
Here
is a list of all available models and their descriptions. The options
for each of these models are not described in detail here, as they tend
to be self-explanatory. Only potentially uncertain cases are mentioned
here.
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
None |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Not
used |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
No special actions. The units maintain position and will only attack if the enemy comes into view. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Infantry - Guard zone |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Guarded zones |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
The
infantry moves to the specified locations and guards them. In
addition to infantry, this group can hold AT guns, howitzers, MGs,
mortars and jeeps. The
infantry will use this equipment and never attempt to give it up. Guns
of other groups are only used if they happen to be in the specified
zone, and only if the appropriate option was set previously. If the "Don't move to
new zone"
option has
been enabled, crews will leave their guns when the infantry leaves a
zone (its position), either because this behavior has been set or
because AI_LOCx has changed. If the "Don't leave" option has also been
enabled, the crew will continue to maintain its position. If
neither "Don't drag to new zone" nor "Don't move to new zone" have been
enabled, the crew waits for a truck for about 15 seconds and then drags
the gun by hand. If only "Don't drag to new zone" is enabled, the crew
will leave the gun. If "Don't move to new zone" has also been enabled,
the crew will continue to maintain its position. All
of these settings refer ONLY to
guns of other groups. All except the "Don't leave" option are
ignored for all guns belonging to the group itself. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Infantry - Pursue |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Guarded zones |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Pursued groups |
Description: |
The same as "Guard zone". If units belonging to
AI_GRP1 or AI_GRP2 come into view, they will be attacked. All "Move to
zone only if ..." options are used only in connection with moving to
AI_LOC1 and AI_LOC2. Guns are never dragged and only used if they are
nearby. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Infantry - Crew
howitzer |
AI_LOC1 |
Guarded zone |
AI_LOC2 |
Howitzers' vision
range |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
The same as "Guard zone", except that only AI_LOC1
is guarded, AI_LOC2 describes the vision range of the howitzers. Jeeps
are not used. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Tanks - Guard zone |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Guarded zone |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
Tanks remain in the
specified locations and guard them. Only tanks and armored units (gun
carriages and APCs) are allowed. |
|
**************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Trucks - Support |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Rest zones |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Groups to follow
and provide support for |
Description: |
Transport
vehicles support the players units and those of his allies by
pulling/dragging artillery. Infantry
units inside the transports are immediately unloaded. If the "Move to zone
only if there are no support units" option is enabled, the
unit will move to the specified location, provided there are no guns to
be moved. If this option is not enabled, the unit will follow AI_GRP1
and AI_GRP2. If "Support only the
selected groups" is
enabled, only AI_GRP1 and AI_GRP2 will be supported; if the option is
disabled, the players own units and those of his allies will be
supported. Once the gun has been
hitched up, the truck will obey the commands of the gun crew and thus
adapt to their behavior, until the gun is uncoupled. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Trucks - Move to
zone |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Target zones (uses
closest point) |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
Transport vehicles move
straight to the specified zone. If there are infantry units in the
transports, they are immediately unloaded on arrival. (The trucks
transport infantry units.) |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Trucks - Transport
Infantry |
AI_LOC1 |
Transport's departure |
AI_LOC2 |
Transport's arrival |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
Transport vehicles move
to AI_LOC1, wait until they are at least 70% full and move to AI_LOC2,
unload the units and repeat the process. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Supply Trucks -
Repair |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Locations of
repair jobs |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
Supply
trucks will repair units. If "Repair objects" is enabled, the truck
will also repair bridges, but only at AI_LOC2 and only if the bridge
has a marker. Trucks will also repair railroad tracks and airfields in
AI_LOC1 and AI_LOC2. If "Repair only
inside zone" is
enabled, only units at AI_LOC1 or AI_LOC2 will be repaired. If this
option is disabled, all the players own units and those of his allies
are repaired. If
there is nothing to repair, the truck will move to AI_LOC1. In order to construct
pontoon bridges with this behavior selected, enable the "Build pontoon
bridges"
option. The
location of pontoon bridges should be AI_LOC2 and should have a marker. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Missile launchers
- Move to location |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Target locations
(uses closest location) |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
If "Hold fire" is enabled, you should
use scripts in order to fire. If it is disabled, missile launchers will
attack autonomously, targeting groups of enemies. |
|
**************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Planes - Move to
location |
AI_LOC1,
AI_LOC2 |
Target locations
(uses closest location) |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
Planes
will take off and move to the specified location to carry out their
mission (scouting, bombardment, dropping paratroopers). For
bombers, the first two flags are the other way around, i.e. "Bomb only if
there are no friendly troops there" and "Bomb only if
there are enemy troops there". Transport
planes will wait until they are at least 70% full before they lift off. |
|
*************************************************************** |
AI_BEHAVIOR |
Trains - Guard zone |
AI_LOC1 |
Guarded zone |
KI_LOC2 |
Location for
repairing tracks |
AI_GRP1,
AI_GRP2 |
Not
used |
Description: |
Trains repair tracks at
AI_LOC2 (only if "Repair track" is enabled), then move to
AI_LOC1 and guard it. |
Now insert something in MISSIONS/OBJECTIVES.
This field works a little strange. You need to write over the right border if you want to have a continuous text. With enter a paragraph is inserted. That looks strange in the middle of a sentence.
Thats how it should look so that it works correctly in game.
Dont ask for sense in this text... it is only for demonstration purpose.
At last the settings. For SP you can leave everyting as is. Only the weather can be useful to change. Rain and fog is changed. Fog can be used on dark maps as night.
Now i generate the SP map in ~\MAPS\SINGLE
Choose „MISSION/BUILD AS SINGLE MISSION“
If you want to view this map copy MAP.254 to <Your Maps.src Dir>\
Yours Stahlin