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How to create and use SECTINFO

 
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Oxyde
Dominating!


Joined: 01 Feb 2012
Location: France (67) Host: Zero Dawn

PostPosted: Sat Apr 06, 2019 11:16 pm    Post subject: How to create and use SECTINFO Reply with quote

With the release ZDaemon 1.08.06 a few years back, a feature called SECTINFO, along with the client command SITREP and chat variables %L, %H and %A, was added in order to help promote teamplay and allow for easy to read information on screen.

In order to generate a SECTINFO lump and make extensive use of these features, the tools needed are listed below.

What is SECTINFO?
SECTINFO is a text format lump to be added in any wad that allows to define a name for each and every sector in any level.
Additionally, for team play game modes, SECTINFO allows to define the boundaries of each team, allowing for ZDaemon's scoring system to determine weither kills occur offensively or defensively.

How do I build a SECTINFO for my wad?
Making a SECTINFO lump is surprisingly easy, and takes only little to no knowledge of Doom editing!
Sector definitions use sector numbers, instead of sector tags. This makes tracking extremely easy and less taxing on the author's end. Any lump should follow the standard formatting as shown below.
Code:
[map01]
names = {
   "Area name #01" = { sectors, numbers, go, here },
   "Area name #02" = { some, more, numbers, there },
}


Should many sector numbers follow up each others, you can use hyphens to link them together. This prevents you from having to write down every single number individually, and allows for mass production. See this example:
Code:
   "Laboratory" = { 17-28, 35-43 },


Should your level be a team play oriented one, you will find it useful to be able to define the boundaries of each base. To do so, start your lump in a similar approach to sector definition, except your are not using quotation marks this time around. Base definitions follow the same order that the client variable "team" does, which means:
  • Base0 is the Red team
  • Base1 is the Blue team
  • Base2 is the Green team
  • Base3 is the White team
Code:
[map09]

base0 = { 0-136 }
base1 = { 137-292 }


In case a sector is defined twice in the same level, instead of crashing, ZDaemon will ignore the rest of the lump, allowing you to easily fix the error. Once you are done writing, simply import the file into your wad and name it SECTINFO. ZDaemon will automatically read it on start, no further action is required.

See a full scale live example of the famous map "Frozen" by AlexMax from the ZDCTFMP pack.
Code:
//-----------------------------------------
// ZDaemon Community SECTINFO Project - ZDCTFMP Series
// MAP09 (Frozen) of ZDCTFMP.wad, by Oxyde (updated 28/05/08)
//-----------------------------------------

[map09]

base0 = { 0-136 }
base1 = { 137-292 }

names =  {
      "Red Base" = { 0, 1, 4, 8, 9, 10-22, 23-27, 28-30, 32-35, 48, 49, 73, 81, 82, 92, 111, 129, 130 },
      "Red Hangar/Base Crate Intersection" = { 2, 64 },
      "Red Hangar" = { 39, 40-47, 50-56, 59-63, 67, 68 },
      "Red Base Stairs" = { 6, 36-38, 65, 66, 69, 70-72, 74, 77-80 },
      "Red Heliport" = { 5, 83-90, 93, 94, 106-108, 112, 113 },
      "Red Rocket Launcher" = { 124, 125 },
      "Red Right Entrance" = { 115-123, 133 },
      "Red Backzone Stairs" = { 95-103, 131 },
      "Red Snowfield" = { 109, 135 },
      "Red Middle cave" = { 132 },
      "Middle Cave" = { 273, 274 },
      "BFG Pillar" = { 276, 277 },
      "Blue Base" = { 137, 138, 140-144, 146-149, 152, 154, 155, 160-165, 167-179, 186, 188, 224-227, 270, 271 },
      "Blue Hangar/Base Crate Intersection" = { 145, 209 },
      "Blue Hangar" = { 150, 151, 157, 158, 187, 189, 190-202, 205-208 },
      "Blue Base Stairs" = { 166, 180-185, 210-212, 217-221  },
      "Blue Heliport" = { 222, 223, 228-237, 239, 242, 243, 255 },
      "Blue Rocket Launcher" = { 240, 241 },
      "Blue Right Entrance" = { 159, 214, 259-266 },
      "Blue Backzone Stairs" = { 213, 238, 244-251 },
      "Blue Snowfield" = { 153, 156 },
      "Blue Middle Cave" = { 252 },
}


Using the GZDoom Builder Plugin
In order to make use of the (GZ)Doom Builder Plugin, you must first install "SectInfo.dll" and place it within the \Plugins\ folder of the GZDB installation directory. The folder structure is identical for all versions of DB2 and it's forks. You can perform this operation while Builder is running, but the program should be restarted for the Plugin to be available.
Now to start working with the plugin, launch the software and open any map.
  1. Select the sectors you want to start defining in "Sectors" mode, then click on "Mode" and select "SectInfo". A small window will appear:
  2. Type the name you wish to give to the sectors you selected in the "Name of area" field.
  3. In the "File" field, click on the "..." icon and locate the text file you just created.
  4. For the first definition of your map, make sure you select "New File".
  5. Then, input the level number you are working on.
  6. Finish by clicking "Write" !
  7. You can now go and check the file you created in order to make sure it's been written properly. Should there be an error, try and repeat previous steps.
  8. Now, click on "Done" to close the window.
  9. Repeat the selection process mentionned in step #1.
  10. Now, select "Append to existing" and make sure it says selected for each subsequent addition to your lump.
  11. When you reach the final definition, simply check "Last Entry" and click "Write" which automatically will close the definitions list.
You are now free to import your definition into your wad using any lump editor you like.

With your lump now ready, you can move on to the next fun part, using SITREP!

What is SITREP?
The SITREP (short for Situation Report) variable is a command to allow for detailed display of information on the player's screen. You can view things like location, health and armor and active voice chat.

Can I customize SITREP?
You can change easily the way SITREP is displayed on your screen, and what it does show you or not.

Change information displayed
  • Press the "Esc" key
  • Go to "Options"
  • Select "Display Options"
  • Drop down to "SITREP" and change it to whatever you want it to display on the screen.
    • Alternatively, you can use the console command "sitrep" and use values ranging from 0 to 7:
      • 0 - Disabled
      • 1 - Health & Armor + Location + Active Voice chat
      • 2 - Health & Armor + Location
      • 3 - Health & Armor + Active Voice chat
      • 4 - Location + Active Voice chat
      • 5 - Health & Armor only
      • 6 - Location only
      • 7 - Active Voice chat only
Change the display font
  • Press the "Esc" key
  • Go to "Options"
  • Select "Display Options"
  • Chose "Fonts"
  • Highlight the "SITREP" line and change it to whatever you want it to be.
    • Alternatively, you can use the console command "fopt_sitrep" and use values ranging from 0 to 34:
      • 0 - Classic Console font
      • 1 - Classic Small font
      • 2 - Classic Large font
      • 4 to 10 - Trebuchet font - Size 1 to 8
      • 11 to 18 - Chicago font - Size 1 to 8
      • 19 to 26 - Virtue font - Size 1 to 8
      • 27 to 34 - Trebuchet Cyrillic font - Size 1 to 8
Change the background
The SITREP background is tied to your scoreboard background. This means tweaking the display for optimized SITREP looks might not make your scoreboard ideal to read.
  • Press the "Esc" key
  • Go to "Options"
  • Select "Display Options"
  • Chose "Scoreboard"
  • "Shaded score bgd." let's you toggle the shaded background.
  • "Score bgd. brightness" will make the background either black or white.
  • "Score bgd. opacity" speaks for itself.
    • Alternatively, you can use the following console commands to change these settings:
      • "scorebdg" - 0 or 1
      • "bgdbrightness" - 0 to 255
      • "bgdfade" - 0 to 31
Change the position
SITREP is designed with left aligned text and the list expands upwards, which means moving SITREP is likely to break it's formatting and readability. Tweak these at your own risk.
  • Open your console and the following console commands:
    • sitrep_xofs - Default at 0 - Move horizontally
    • sitrep_yofs - Default at 0 - Move vertically


Last edited by Oxyde on Sun Apr 07, 2019 6:24 pm; edited 1 time in total
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