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Post by Dungeon Warden on Nov 8, 2008 12:49:59 GMT -5
You can go to Blender.Org to learn more about the program and download the software. You can also see some great animation created with the program.
I haven't tried it myself, but I do have some training in 3D animation and would like to try it out sometime. Let me know how it goes.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Oct 21, 2008 18:39:05 GMT -5
It may be reversed, because I remember a few years ago someone was having a problem getting an increase to be permanent after battle. Some play testing should prove it one way or the other.
Things aren't always clearly explained in RPG Maker 2, so you just have to test things and see what happens and not assume similar things are going to do the same things. It's kind of annoying but it's nice to have options.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Oct 17, 2008 22:00:25 GMT -5
Actually if you use the Data : Target commands any stat changes will end after combat ends. It's actually difficult to make any permanent changes in combat.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Oct 2, 2008 8:46:42 GMT -5
Thanks for the belated birthday wishes.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Oct 1, 2008 11:49:56 GMT -5
Wow, this all sounds pretty ambitious. I'm sure you could do some amazing things if you just had the motivation to do it.
One tip I can offer you comes from a time management guru who suggests that you "wake up productive." That is, get ready to work from the moment you wake up. Get up, do some exercise, shower and shave, eat a good breakfast, sit down and get to work. Work on the thing that will make you the most money (or will reach your goals quicker) and don't stop for a least an hour. He has something called the 60/60/30 rule. Work for 60 minutes on the most important project, switch to another important project for 60 minutes, then take a break and catch up with e-mail and relax for 30 minutes. Then repeat the process. This will keep you productive and prevent you from over taxing your mind. If you set specific times of day to get work done you'll be less incline to waste time. Whereas having set times to relax keeps you from wanting to waste time while your working.
The biggest problem people have (I do this to) is that they don't want to sit down to a big project that will take them hours to finish, so they waste time trying to avoid it. By saying "I'm only going to work on this project for an hour" you relieve some of the stress of starting the project.
I just started this process myself and am having some success. I haven't gotten into the routine yet, but I'm hoping I'll be able to get more done by following this plan.
I wish you luck on your projects. I hope you'll be able to get started on something soon.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Sept 29, 2008 9:45:48 GMT -5
Thanks for the birthday wishes. I'll try to take it easy and enjoy the day.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Sept 23, 2008 11:52:15 GMT -5
This is what I was afraid of when The POV started to change. You have no concept of story formula and instead of learning the proper way to write you avoid formula altogether. As a result all your arguments as to why you wrote the story the way you did fall flat. Yes, your reasons are valid; however, the way to put those ideas on paper are not. There are much better ways to write this story, the most important being to pick one main character and sticking with them. It's not about all the information being in the story somewhere, it's about telling the story in the most effect way to get the point across.
You must know the rules in order to break them. Until you understand why the formulas exist and use them, you can never fully understand how to write a story and know when you can push the limits. This story is a perfect example of how an otherwise excellent writer can be his own worst enemy. If you want to be a writer, then learn to write. Once you have all the formulas memorized and know how to use them properly, then you can try to experiment with point of view, interweaving story lines, or any other strange story design concepts.
A wise man once said "if you write a truly original story no one will want to read it." This is because people have a specific way of processing information and interacting with the world. Anything that is alien to that process is hard to deal with. The formulas are really the smoothest paths to travel. They are ways to relay information that is easy to digest. Writing against formula is like asking someone to travel a rocky road or to eat something bitter. Unless you know how to show people the safest path to travel or add something sweet to the recipe, people are going to struggle with the process and most will give up when the going gets too hard.
Again I want to say you are an excellent writer. Several of the scenes in the story were very powerful and worked within the story as a whole. Ultimately, it is the lack of a proper formula that causes the story to fail. If you just want to write for your own enjoyment, then go right ahead. However, if you want other people to like what you've written you need to learn how to tell the story in a way that people can enjoy. It's your choice, but I hope you don't waste your talents trying to do things your own way.
P.S. I can't be specific with any examples because there is nothing wrong with the story details. It's the overall package that needs fixing, not any specific detail. It's writing advice that you need so that's what I've given you. Take it or leave it. It's your choice.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Sept 22, 2008 13:01:16 GMT -5
I listened to your story.
First of all, I have to say how impressed I am with your ability to write a story. The dialogue and character interactions were well written with a few emotionally powerful scenes. There seemed to be few spelling errors, if any (the conversion messes up with some words anyway, but there were a few times when a common word didn't translate and I wonder if it was because of a spelling error.)
The main problem I had was that there were too many point of view characters. I counted at least a half dozen and there may have been a few smaller parts as well. Short stories rarely have more then one point of view character. Two is usually the limit. Any more then that and the story starts to go off track as it often does here.
The whole story about Annabelle and the professor should have been it's own story. It completely interrupts the main story and the payoff at the end really doesn't justify it's existence. All the talk about mathematically formulas was boring.
The interweaving of the other stories worked for the most part, except when things seemed to happen for no reason. There is a part near the beginning when a boy attacks one of the main characters with the intent to harm her. The motivation for the attack is weak with little set up. The event itself lacked any real suspense, and the ramifications are over and done with soon after. The scene seems completely out of place in the story. You should either put it later in the story and do a bigger build toward the scene, thus making it a major climax in the story, or get rid of it all together.
Speaking of climaxes. There wasn't one. This is just a story about a bunch of stuff happening to a bunch of people and how they deal with it. There is a general theme of being trapped in your life but there is no real emotional impact. The various endings feeling forced, like you had an ending in mind but didn't know how to get to it. You just put them in to finish the story without any real connection to anything that happened before.
I don't what to go into detail here, but the way the manager deals with his problems just doesn't work. I can see the story building toward this conclusion but there is no pay off. He finally decides to take action. The end. Very disappointing.
The story of the boy and girl who want to escape their destiny and take charge of their own lives also feels rushed at the end. Things start out slowly. A bunch of stuff happens. At first the stuff is mostly bad, but then some good stuff happens. The end. There is only two ways this story could have ended. You chose the happy ending which is fine but without a climax to suggest that a bad ending is even possible the ending loses any impact. It just happens. There is a scene near the end that does throw some doubt that the ending might be happy but it lacks power. If this doubt had been running through the whole story and the climax brought all the doubt together in one big tearful scene, then it could be a powerful thing. Here, it just feels like one more low point in a story full of them.
I can see a lot of potential for a novel here, or perhaps three separate short stories. If you rework the plot to build toward a climax and put the characters into real danger you might have something here. I like the story telling in general I just feel it needs a more focused plot. Overall, I give it a B-
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Sept 19, 2008 12:43:37 GMT -5
Happy Birthday, Lost in Thought. I hope you have a great day.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Sept 15, 2008 22:00:37 GMT -5
I don't have time to read. Can you send me the text so I can convert it to an MP3? Read the words.com will convert any text file into an audio file using a variety of voices. The speech is a little robotic but is understandable. I've tried the site a few times and it works great.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Sept 7, 2008 13:36:02 GMT -5
You don't need Word to save text as an html document. Any .txt program (like notepad) will do. Just add .html (or .htm if you prefer) when you save the document and the file will be saved as an html file.
You can save files with any extension with notepad. I've created .php, .sys, .css, and other file types with notepad. Unlike other programs, notepad doesn't force you to use a particular extension when you save a file (although, it will default to .txt is you don't add one).
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Aug 26, 2008 13:50:55 GMT -5
People have abused the word cliche so much that the word itself has become cliche. You should really reserve the word for it's true meaning; that is, something a writer uses because they are not willing to put the time into coming up with something better.
Therefore, using common expressions or quotes instead coming up with your own is cliche; as is using a simple character description, like dumb blonde, in place of a more descriptive one. Just to be clear, it's okay to have a blonde header girl with a low IQ in your story just as long as there is more to her character than that.
What you are asking about is a troupe, a concept or idea that is commonly found in literature. Many genres are built out of tropes and are expected. People are disappointed if the tropes aren't there.
For example, High fantasy is based on the heroes story where a relatively unknown person with special abilities goes on a long journey the eventually helps save the world. The classic example is Hercules' Journey. A modern example is Star Wars IV: a new Hope. In both cases the hero was born with special abilities but until they met a trainer and started exploring the world (the universe in Luke's case) they has no idea they were special. Both ended up confronting the powers that be and changed their worlds for the better. Note that Luke didn't save the universe at the end of A New Hope, but his actions turned the tide of battle so that the rebellion actual had a chance of defeating the empire.
It really depends on the journey. Use the tropes for a framework to work within but change things up so that it's not always the same. Remember, it's not important that the hero directly save the world as long as he has some part in restoring the balance.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Aug 22, 2008 15:42:02 GMT -5
I look forward to seeing the game. I'm not the kind of person that would alter someones game unless it was broken. There was a guy a few years ago that never play tested his games and I needed the password just to play the game. It was very broken.
Anyway, you can be sure that I won't do anything to cheat. As long as you have fully play tested the game I won't change anything until I've finished playing through the whole game.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Aug 19, 2008 13:50:59 GMT -5
Read Script 274 : Deploy. Yes, I said read it, this is one of the few scripts that has notes - long notes (you need to open the note command to read it all).
This is the script that deals with moving vehicles to other maps when you warp or teleport. This stuff should have been in the manual.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Aug 8, 2008 11:20:02 GMT -5
Welcome back, Chigoo
Looks like you made some changes to the DBS. Interesting start for your game. You'll need to work on having enemies more toward the player, or else have a reason for the player to want to attack the enemies. Maybe the enemies can be blocking pathways so they need to be killed to move onward.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 25, 2008 23:24:48 GMT -5
mercenaryx, I really don't understand what you are trying to prove. If you want to make your own battle system then just do it. Why are you asking other people how to do it? No one knows how because it's your battle system.
You can use the default battle system as a frame for your own game. All the scripts dealing with characters is in the character data base. Everything dealing with enemies is in the enemy database, and the rest of the scripts are in game settings (all under the ADV tabs).
Making your own battle system is a long difficult process, so unless you really understand what you are doing (and your questions suggest you don't) then don't even bother. Just make your game as interesting and fun to play as possible and don't worry about the battle system.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 23, 2008 13:46:55 GMT -5
Unfortunately it's not playable yet and the guy who was working on it had to leave for a few weeks. He said he'd try to get a playable version finished before school starts in September, so hopefully we'll be able to play it in an other month or two.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 23, 2008 13:43:18 GMT -5
If you just want to change the battle system so that you attack as soon as you select a command, that's a whole different thing.
What I did was put the battle commands in the Trait script for each character. Then a battle menu would open up on their turn instead of at the beginning of the round.
Look at the trait flag and Action variables in my FAQ for more details of how to do something like this.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 23, 2008 13:31:17 GMT -5
Party: Possessions: Items (or Party: Possessions: Money) Note that the default script checks to see if the party already has 99 of an item in the bag (the maximum allowed). Also, you must activate the bag in order for this to work (no big deal but sometimes people don't want the player to have the bag until later in the game). The default script also gives the item to the party members first but if you always have a bag that's not needed. I put all the party receives an item commands into it's own script so that if the party gets an item from anywhere, I just call that script to see who gets it. The chest script really only needs a script that checks if the item has been taken and what that item is. The rest of the script can be called from other scripts (one that checks if the party can take the item and one that opens/ closes the chest. However, every chest will need a separate script to keep the chest open if the item has been taken.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 21, 2008 21:53:19 GMT -5
Someone over at the RPGMaker Pavilion created a tactical battle system using RPG Maker 2. I though you'd all like to see the video. I'm quite impressed at how fast he was able to put this test system together (about three weeks). TBS Video
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 21, 2008 21:48:05 GMT -5
I hope you are having a great birthday.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 21, 2008 21:45:10 GMT -5
Are you sure you're ready to make your own battle script? I mean this is really something you need to work on after you understand the scripting system well enough that you don't need to ask anyone how to do it. I don't mind helping with specific problems, but your questions are too general to really answer. My advice is to study the preset battle scripts and figure out how they work. Your basic system isn't too different from the existing battle scripts so you should start by modifying them to fit into your concept. That said, I recently said much the same thing to a newcomer to the Pavilion (another RPG Maker website) when he asked how he could go about making a tactical battle system. He really surprised me (and everyone else) by actually succeeding. Check out his video here. I look forward to seeing what you can do.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 21, 2008 21:26:43 GMT -5
I'm not sure you can. There are an option to make one of the vertical movement commands work based on current position instead of absolute position but I think that's in the party movement and not in event movement.
Have the event that moves the elevator check if the party moves toward it. If so, it checks the elevators height (Z axes) and if the elevator is low enough it stops the elevator.
Have the content script run when the party touches the elevator. The script will move the party onto it and then move the party and elevator up to the next level (using the method mentioned in my previous post). Since the Elevator needs to be at a certain height for this to work, there shouldn't be a noticeable delay in the movement (the elevator needs to move slowly enough that the party can get on it anyway).
The Script will move the party off the elevator before ending. Have the action script set to start moving the elevator down from it's maximum height and the elevator will continue without a noticeable delay.
I'm not sure how well this will work but it seems possible.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 18, 2008 18:43:18 GMT -5
If you write one script that moves the player and another that moves the block and then a third script that applies them together that might work. The secret is to delay the block by a few frames (Wait 2F) so that the party is basically floating above the block as they both move up and down the elevator shaft. As long as the block and party don't touch each other until the block stops it should work fine. Use an overhead camera to hide the fact that the party is not standing on the block.
Note: if there is more then one character in the party, you might want to use the Gather command to group them together before moving them.
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Post by Dungeon Warden on Jul 15, 2008 8:48:06 GMT -5
That reminds me of the time I wanted to move an event from a down stairs room to upstairs. I have to check the location of the bed and multiply by 16 in order to get the position right. You might need to do the same thing.
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