Forums » Suggestions

Mission editor - Simple mission text replacement syntax

Oct 06, 2006 Ion link
One of the very first things I want to try with the mission editor is creating a tad more personal and dramatic missions (The dying half-elf looks you in the eye, and manages to croak out a last few words before the arrows protruding from his chests ends his life. "You must reach the gate before them!" You solemny reply "sorry, mate, wrong setting...")

All of the mission descriptions so far have been very formal, like mass-communicative notes on a digital board available for just about anyone. Which is exactly what they are, so that's how it should be. However, for more personal and unique missions, it would be wonderful to have a few simple script variables that would allow us sub-mission types to personalize the mission text, along these lines:

* An expression that gets the character's name, and displays it.
* One that does the same with the ship's name, if that ever is implemented
* One for displaying the station name, one for system and sector names, one for faction, if the mission is available from several factions, and so forth.

This would allow us to create missions with descriptions like: "The man beside you at the bar suddenly leans drunkenly towards you, and whispers in your ear: 'Are you Ion, of the Blushing Virgin? Good. I've recently come across a large shipment of genuine old-earth tequila, which I've hidden away in an empty sector here in Dau. I need someone to get those crates for me, and transport them to the nearest Tunguska station. I hear they 'ave one nasty party planned... But beware, should LeberMac Enterprises catch word of this, you'll find yourself encased in carbonite before you'll even touch those bottles, little less steal away one or two for yerself...".

In a text like this, all names would have been written with variables, so that it would have read "Are you %n, of the %s? Good. I've recently..." and so forth.

This idea is, of course, ripped from Escape Velocity (like just about any other ideas for VO that ever come to mind, except those few that are ripped from EVE or Terminus), which features a simple system just like this one. But perhaps we can swallow our pride just this once... ;-)
Oct 06, 2006 stewhites link
yes, i've been trying to use the variables listed like "player" and "sector_1" in text fields, with no success, is it something im missing i wonder?

Edit, now i've seen Incarnates tutorial, problem solved, it WAS something i was missing [variable] ;)