Events question - appear/disappear

[Athene_Airheart]

Hello all.

I apologize in advance if this question has already been asked, but I have searched the forums somewhat and checked the newbie help. Even a link to a previous posting will help. I do not have a manual for the game because when I bought it on Amazon it did not come with one. It is, however, a legitimate copy of the game.

Anyway, my question is this:

I want to make an event where you walk over an area of terrain and it triggers a shaft of light to appear over a sword in a stone. When I tried to create the event, I was given the option to display object, but when I went to select which object to display there was nothing. Do I have to create an unattached object, ie one that has not been placed in the field, first to get this to work? Or is there another hint someone can give me?

Thanks in advance. I'm having fun with the game but probably will try RPG Maker 2 next.

[Ωbright]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

Welcome to the board!

Make sure that you use the 'hero stone' object model type, NOT the 'shared' object model type with the 'hero stone' selected. If you do it correctly, there should be 20 different swords to choose from. Just use the 'Display>Decorative Display - ON' event code.

[Perversion]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

I don't think it's possible to have a shaft of light appear over the sword/stone as you described. There ARE events for rings of light in RPGM3 (two of them, in fact), but I'm not sure you can place an event (the sword and stone) inside of another event (the ring of light). It wouldn't hurt to try if it allows you to place the triggering event for the shaft of light far enough away from the sword and stone event where it still shines on it; if you are able to do this, the easiest thing to do would be to place both events, make an invisible auto event at the very beginning of your game turning display off for the light, and then when you approach it later in the game, place another invisible event, this time a touch event, right in front of the sword and stone, and when you come in contact with it, use the command code to turn the display on for the ring of light.

Unfortunately, this would only be able to be used in an area where there is only one path to the stone, or maybe two if you wanted to make multiple invisible events turning on the display. In other words, if you wanted to place this in the middle of your field map, you're pretty much SOL, as there is no way to control from which direction the player approaches it, and he or she might not even come in contact with the touch event, thus not even turning the light on.

I'm not sure of your skill/experience level with the game, so if anything I just typed does not make any sense, feel free to post again, and I or someone else can explain it to you.

[Wavelength]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

Welcome to the Pav, Athene!!

As to the "rings of light" idea, yes, you can place one event inside another. I recommend making both of them events, and at least one MUST be an event. I think you need to change at least one of them to Invisible Event Model, move the other one inside it, and then hcange the Invisible model into the proper model. Use Display On for that--not Decorative Display.

The good news for you is that most of what you learn in the manual, you can learn by messing around with the editor for a little while. This kind of stuff, for example, isn't in there.

[Athene_Airheart]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

Thanks for all the help. I figured out how to link an invisible event to a display event and the weather change, like I wanted, and the path to the area is narrow so the player is forced to walk into it. Here's what I did, and here's what happened. I'm not at the PS2 now so I'm going on memory.

I made a mode for touch > event display > shaft of light. This appears around the hero stone when you walk into the event. The display for the shaft of light is set for off so it's invisible when you walk into the area.

It works, but not for long enough. When you touch the event the shaft of light turns on, and then off again. Not quite what I needed, considering the loading time!

I know that you can set something to be on if a variable equals a certain number. But I can't find anywhere how to get an event to raise the variable. I checked in the different event codes like control, party, display, etc, and I tried in the modes that talk about variables, but all I get are things like "if variable = 0, then" and so on. I can't find anywhere how to change the variable! But I'm further along than I was.

[Perversion]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

It's actually a pleasure answering your questions, as you seem to be a bit more knowledgeable and advanced with the software than most newbies. Under Property Control in the event menu, you can choose to either add or subtract a given amount from a variable, or you can modify it to a completely different value.

As for why the display comes on, and then right back off again. make sure in the original event that turned the display off, you changed to another mode, or turned display off for that (probably invisible auto) event as well. That would be the only reason I could see the display turning back off again, but if that was the case, you'd probably also run into an event loop. Maybe someone has a better answer as to why the display turns back off.

Anyway, welcome, and if you need help or have questions, stick around. People are generally happy to help someone who seems to have a modicum of intelligence.

[JPS]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

EDIT:What Perv said

[Athene_Airheart]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

I'll check in the lists again. When I looked in the Property Control, I didn't find the option but maybe I'm just missing something obvious.

Thanks for the compliment... I've been using the software less than a week, but since I work chat, phone, and email tech support, I am especially careful to try and not act like a silly newbie! Anyway, this sofware seems like a lot of fun.

[Athene_Airheart]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

Okay, I tried the suggestions. I made sure there were not extra modes at all that could cause the light to turn off again. I found the variable changing codes, but that didn't help. I've tried many things actually. I can get the weather to change with the invisible event, and I can get the background music to turn off, but I cannot get the light to turn on for more than about a second or two.

I have the light set to auto-off, otherwise it will be on all the time. I even tried setting it to "if variable=1, then display on." I tried that both with internal variables and with shared variables, always using variable 1 for testing purposes. Of course, in that case I set invisible event to increase internal variable by 1, and also tried modify to 1 to avoid looping. I tried it with and without 'event ending.' I even tried setting the light event to say "if variable is less than 1, then display off," additionally, in case there was any doubt!

Problem: the light stays off. The only way I can get it to turn on is setting the invisible event to turn it on, but then it only does it for a short time and it turns off. I checked and rechecked that there was nothing extra. Another thing I tried was having mode 1 of the light set to 'display off-light' and mode 2 be 'display on-light' and having the invisible event do an event transition to mode 2 of light. That didn't work either.

I'm using this little event chain to teach myself about the program so it's not absolutely neccessary--but it should be possible. Think it might be a glitch in their programming?

[Wavelength]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

That's weird... offhand, I'd have to hazard the guess that the "Display Off" code is running again at some point, perhaps because you set the variable/mode-number back to its original state at some point in the code?

If you're more interested in getting the effect that you want than actually figuring out what's happening here (which should be OK since you seem to have a fine grasp of variables and modes), I'd recommend doing away with using variables for the "light should be on" thing and just using a Display On (Light Shaft) line where you would have otherwise changed the variable that turned it on. Try putting the "Display Off" code somewhere else in an earlier event, perhaps in an Auto Event that runs once at the start of your game and then changes its own mode so that it never runs again.

[Athene_Airheart]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

Okay, I'll try that. I've tried it with and without variables and it's really making me tear my hair out! I even checked during playtesting, and yep, the correct variable was at the correct value. Even if I can't get this to work, I've learned a bunch.

[Pagerron]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

I have the light set to auto-off, otherwise it will be on all the time.

I believe the problem is that the event code of the light itself is turning it off.
When you touch the invisible event, it turns the shaft of light on, but then since the code of the shaft of light is telling it to automatically turn itself off, it does.

Try this:

Make a separate event, call it Light Off
Set to Auto
in its event code
-turn off the shaft of light
-turn off Light Off event

Also, have the shaft of light event set to Touch with nothing in the event code.

That way, as soon as you enter the screen, the auto event will turn off the Shaft of Light event and also turn itself off. Then when you touch the invisible event later, the shaft of light will turn on and stay on.

Or try this:

Light Shaft Event (with two modes)

Mode 1
Set to AUTO
Event Code:
Display Off - Light Shaft Event
Modify Mode of Light Shaft Event to Mode 2

Mode 2
Set to TOUCH
Event Code:
BLANK

Once you enter the screen, the light shaft event will turn itself off and go to mode 2 (with the display remaining off)

Once the invisible touch event triggers the light shaft event to come back on, it will stay on.

Both of these methods should work well for you.

[Sabram]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

That wouldnt work, since you have the Display Off code first. Display off makes the event non-functional or usable.

[Pagerron]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

No, Sabram, it works fine.

Even if a "Display off" is in a line of event code, the commands after it WILL run until the end of the event coding. Seriously, just try it out. I've tested it out and it works fine.

With a "movement" or a "warp" command that is a different story.

You can turn an event off and on in its own line of event code. I have done it in my Daniel's Quest III game. You walk up to an NPC that says various things, disappears, then reappears to tell you more info, all in the same line of code in that NPC's event coding. Of course, the event/character must first be "on" to be triggered at all.

EDIT: Tested it out again, and it works just great.

[JPS]

Re: Events question - appear/disappear

Yeah if theres two people in the entire pavilion that knows what they're talking about on RM3, its Page and Perv, those two are flat out gods when it comes to RM3, Ive never seen either of them give bad advice.