Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2007 8:23 pm Post subject: Lazy World-Builders Want a Tool
My GMs are lazy and evidently accustomed to building towns in RunUO. I had been using InsideUO + .create [item #] to build and decorate my town, but my GMs, to whom the task has been entrusted, are bitching that its a hassle and they want an in-game solution. (Evidently RUO has an in-game menu where all the items are categorized or something... I dunno...) I've looked at DOH but was unimpressed, and dont think my GMs will be any more taken with it.
Does anyone have an existing script/script-set for an in-game item creation / placement tool? I've written a dozen tools for my shard already, but this one is just too time consuming for my tastes. Much obliged...
We've been using CentrED (http://www.aksdb.de/CentrED/) to create our map lately and if you ask me it's one of the best possible choices for a world builder.
No need to run the game, just start a server for them and it all becomes so simple...
Couple Qs, since you use it:
-It looks like it edits the server side files. Since I need to distribute new statics/map files to my users, I've been doing terrain editing and Freezing in World Editor, then converting the MULs to POL files. Do we have a way to go from POL files back to MULs?
um, okay, well I guess I only had one question. Looks like a nice program....
OH! So this changes the user's local files... that is actually less useful. I have multiple world-building GMs, and if they are only editing their local files, thats no good. They'll get out of sync instantly, and overwrite each other's work.
Changes need to affect the server.
As it is now:
They add items in the world using .create item# retrieving the item #s from InsideUO, then at the end of the week, I move them all to the statics file. This process is fine, EXCEPT that they bitch about having to use InsideUO instead of some in-game gump menu thing.
If anyone has any in-game item creation tools or utilities, I think thats that kind of thing I'm looking for.
CentrED changes the map and static files on the CentrED server, not your client. Everyone logs in to a central map / statics editor and it makes changes to the single set of files on the CentrED server.
That means of course you need to distribute that set of file to the server and to all players. It works for other map sizes too (eg Ilshenar).
However, the CentrED world editor is no better than using insideuo to create buildings etc. I doubt they will find worldbuilding any easier in CentrED than using .create or Dundee's Other Hand. It doesn't have zoom in/out or other nice editor features although it looks like they are adding features to it still.
The search for a really good worldbuilder tool continues. CentrED could one day develop into that tool, but it's not for that right now.
