The Broken Hourglass Monday Update

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Written by BuckGB on December 27th, 2006

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There are actually three different types of file which can be used to define a creature. The first is the "character" file, a special resource which defines objects which a console player (the person sitting at the computer) can select to start a game session with. Character files are most commonly created using the game's built-in character creation interface, although they may be tweaked or edited once generated, or constructed from scratch if truly desired.

The second is the "creaturetemplate" file. Don't be fooled by the presence of "template" in the name--these resources can be fully-defined humanoids, animals or monsters, rather than just a fragmentary template. But they do not appear in the gameworld unless specifically called by a scripting command, such as _create_creature. A creaturetemplate may be modified as it is brought into the gameworld, and may be called multiple times. For instance, a party of four guards may be created through script. Each guard may use the "guard.CREATURETEMPLATE" resource as it is created, but have a different resource name assigned to it ("guard-1" through "guard-4"), so that further script actions may act individually on the guards by unique name.

The third is the "creature" file. The crucial difference between a creaturetemplate and a creature is that a creature has attributes in Area, X, and Y--that is, it is specifically defined to appear on a game map, in a predetermined position, and will "always be there" unless it moves around or is killed. Because they appear in one place and in one place only, and are not dynamically created by script, we sometimes refer to these as "static creatures."

There are more than 100 legal attributes in a character, creature or creaturetemplate file, and we will not list them all here. They include values for all WRPG statistics and skills, sprite coloration, equipment and inventory, as well as special designations for creatures who have special meaning or behave differently than other creatures.

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