[Kyle]

You were the one asking for more freedom when setting the skills and parameters, are you regretting that already You CAN re-distribute the parameters at the game start, you'll get the "Decrease" option once you've chosen a class. Once you actually decreased a parameter you'll have some points to spend and you'll get the "Increase" dialog option as well. And distributing Skill point s already done in the character creation screen, no need to make one similar to the Parameter start system.

Trust me, I'm more than happy that (thus far) you're pursuing my admonitions to give the Player as much freedom as possible when fashioning their characters. My main concern is causing too much confusion, and I'm just trying to conceptualize the easiest path to getting there. Having some attributes adjustable on one screen and then another without being able to see what classes are available, nor see what the consequences of choosing a class may bring, well, to me that's confusing. And confusion generates frustration, and the one thing that I would love to see happen is people go, "Wow! What an awesome and easy to use mod! Let me tell my buddies..."

Alright, so as I earlier presumed, engine limitations are handicapping the class selection and generation system. So, what if we deliberately "lock down" the avatar selection process like this (if this is doable)...

Pick your avatar's appearance. Change the avatar's name if it's so desired, and then make it so NONE of the Parameters and Skills can be changed on THAT screen. In fact, I'd set ALL of the numbers for Parameters and Skills to 0 so that there's no mistaking that adjusting these attributes on this screen is impossible. Have a statement that says something like, "After selecting your avatar's appearance and name, proceed in-game to select its class, and then establish its Parameters and Skills by opening up the Inventory screen, and right-clicking on the Kill Book."

Now, if something like that can be established, there's no confusion.

Then, when the Kill Book is right-clicked on, I'd have an option that says, "Generate Characteristics."

The first set of menu options could be entitled, "Select Class." The classes would have their Parameters/Skill-sets displayed, and I'd also supply an option whereby the Player could look up the definition as to what those Parameters/Skills effect. I feel that this is important, because I was quite shocked to read that Energy determines how long a character can hold his/her weapon in a readied position. I wouldn't have been able to just deduce that on my own. Nor would I have been able to figure out that Reaction has to do with responding/recovering from being shocked. Initially, I thought that it had something to do with how quickly one can direct one's weapon towards a different target. Guessing at what does what increases confusion and thus frustration. I prefer to be proactive on this matter design-wise, and avoid negativity whenever possible.

After the class is selected, the new menu option could be entitled "Set Parameters." And again, I'd supply an option to see what the Parameters/Skills impact.

And then the last menu option would be made available, "Set Skills," and also supply a definitions option.

Since I don't know how all the parameters and skills actually affect the gameplay, I only suspect, writing this might make me a liar And I think that if the player has to figure that out for himself, playing this game many times might actually be more fun. But with your help we could create a FAQ so that the player can check what the attributes does and how this new system works. Since I'm the one behind the code, I already know too much and you'll be better at figuring out what questions a new player might have about it.

I've spent the last 12 years of my life being a teacher, so it's innate in me to avoid confusion whenever possible. So I'm sorry if I sound like a broken record on these kinds of design issues! I certainly understand your concern with not knowing "for sure" what every Parameter/Skill does/doesn't do, but even if we give the "textbook definition" of what they are in-game, along with a Disclaimer in the F.A.Q., I still feel that this would provide a more satisfying experience to the players. I'm also basing my conviction on this because of my decades' worth of role playing experience, and without exception, EVERY friend who ever played a random-centered game such as D&D first, immediately loved the crystal clear immediacy and control of GURPS. Sure, through no fault of our own, we might not be able to give a "crystal clear" view of all that there is to know, but if we give them a "frosted glass" access, I'm confident that they'll be happier with it and the knowledge that there's a degree of mystery to it will most likely bring them back for more replays.

And I'd be happy to write a F.A.Q. for the good of the mod and the community.

I think I've mentioned this before, I haven't changed or disabled the old system. One can still train the attributes as before, but with this system one can increase some values that were hard or impossible to train before. The main goal of the BSM is to increase the fun, to me that means more time fighting and less time doing all the other "boring" stuff, like running around on the map with a full backpack

I must have overlooked the fact that the old system is still intact. I think that this design decision of yours is even more brilliant than before.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kyle View Post
Why aren’t boonie hats, berets, head wraps, etc., available in the game?
I guess you'd have to ask the devs, oh wait, you can't Deadhead and the HLA guys made some berets and new headgear, and from what he told me it's a process that requires a lot of time and skill. Altering all the merc head models, editing their AZP archives and a whole lot more. Since I'm only one guy with limited time and no skill in creating/altering 3d objects, I haven't bothered with it.

Wow. Reading about all of the horror getting something like cloth-hats in sure makes it clear that such feats should be left at the very bottom of the To Do list. What irritates me is when games are marketed with features that aren't supplied in-game. I mean, the very cover of the game's package shows a boonie hat wearer. It's trivial in the Grand Scheme of things, but nevertheless, it still gets under my skin a bit.

Have you tried the alternative WEAPONINFO_ALT file? Just backup the old WEAPONINFO file, rename the WEAPONINFO_ALT to WEAPONINFO and start a new game. That file uses the work of Incapacitator and is more "realistic" than the vanilla one. But it also make the game so much harder...

Ahh, that's VERY GOOD to know! That's definitely a point that should be detailed in a F.A.Q. I've already backed up/overwritten the original file with the alternative one.

We would only have to have a few perks available, and the player will only get one. If there was a way to lock the activation of said perks to the keybord, it would make the use of them mush easier. I know there's a way to check for keyboard input, but afaik it only works in the dialog screen.

The idea of this is intriguing to me. Perhaps the best way to go about this is to supply in the character creation process one last menu option that displays itself after the Skills have been set, something that could be entitled "Perk Selection." I'd offer at least a few choices per class type (some of these could be shared between classes), if not all of them, and the Player could select only one. I'd also supply an option that could be entitled, "None selected," so that if a Player wants to skip something that seems a little too fantastical they can avoid it altogether. Kind of like being able to skip over the science fiction aspect of Jagged Alliance 2. I really applaud the game designers' decision to make this an option for the players.

What makes this all the more tempting to me is that it would sure entice players to play through the game again with a different Perk in effect. Perhaps a new Perk selection could be earned at Level 7, then another at Level 14, and then another at 28, and so on with the doubling. A cap could be put on the maximum number that's attainable, perhaps 3? These Perks, if they're not properly balanced with negatives, could get enormously powerful in combination within a short matter of time. Perhaps it's best to just limit it to one choice, as the consequences for it game-balance wise would certainly be more manageable. For that matter, each of these Perks could scale-upwards at level 7/14/28... Hmm...much to think about!

I've incorporated both Outsourced mod and Merc Consultant into the BSM source and I've added the option to disable the new class system in the former. To make it fair for those who play with the class system disabled I've increased the preset parameters with an additional 50 points. I'll upload the next version later tonight, now I need a nap, crap and eat

Sounds great. I hope you had a great poop after your nap. Personally, I'd do the poopin' first as it'll ensure a more restful rest.

Alright, time to test Beta v.4!