PenUltima Online

This is only a small nuisance, but worth the thread: item.layer returns valid information only if the item is equipped or has been equipped in the past. Say, I create a sword on the ground and check it's layer using .getprop layer: "Property layer is not set or zero." If I equip it and try again, result is "Property layer is: 1". After unequipping the value is still correct, until the server is rebooted.

As far as I know this has existed for a very long time.

Even if the item is never-ever equipped layer property should tell the layer it would fit into, if any.

Interesting. I think you are wrong in one very minor detail- I think if you set the items layer, it remains set even if it was never equipped. But that is a mostly useless distinction.

What do you mean by setting layer?

Wasn't sure so I tried two ways.

1. Defining layer in itemdesc.cfg element
2. Trying to set layer in game using .setprop-command

Neither way made a correct value readable without equipping the item first. Of course layer is r/o value so it cannot be changed / trying did not refresh the value like equipping does.

Also interesting is that even though layer is objtype -even graphic- spesific value, it is saved per item, for one equipped axe didn't make axes around it to have corrected layer values. Maybe it's just me who tend to think "hard coded" values are really stored only once.

Ah, I know what my mistake was on layer- I was (strangely enough!) confusing it with Facing when I said that- specifically facing's weird overloading where it also stores the light type for an object. You are correct that layer is r/o and so ignore what I said about setting it, I was on crack.

Now that you mention it, I vaguely remember this layer issue coming up years ago.

Its not too big an issue - as the layer information can be retrieved from tiles.cfg

No it isn't, but then again, is a non-working hardly fixable feature worth keeping in the core? I don't know, but until it works, it's better to use the mentioned tiles.cfg method.

Internally the layer property seems to be used to determine if an item is equipped on a mobile.
I think the issue is - when unequipped, the layer property is not being erased.

Okay, then... Is there a reason not to switch the internal way to use .container property, as it tells for sure if item is equipped by mobile (returns a reference if it is)? That way .layer could be, if possible and there is a motivation to do so, changed to return the correct layer value every time?