.com.unity Forums - Question to the other Mod Makers out there...

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Tampa_Gamer:
Baron - thanks for the input, a couple of follow-up questions to your post:

(1) So the "DefaultDesignTypes" file in the \Data folder is just for us to modify OUR different design types?

(2) If you changed the name to "Repair Base" do you then place calls to (A) "Repair Base" in your "AI_Construction_Vehicles" file, or do you place a call to (B) "Space Yard Base"? If it is (B), then how would the AI differentiate between the different "Space Yard Base" designs in the design file?

Thanks<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

1) Apparently, yes. This is not so surprising if you think about it. The AI has to "think" in predetermined ways, it cannot necessarily look at a ship and judge what it's good for like a human can. So, the actual definition of the ship has to tell the AI what it is for somehow. Colony types are also apparently hard coded in the game, although I have been able to alter those in the AI files without error Messages. Dunno if that means the AI can understand what I've done or just means that there is no error message for the problems I've caused. http://www.shrapnelgames.com/ubb/images/icons/icon7.gif

2) Apparently it picks and chooses for itself among the various "names" of a given design type. For my first changes to the AI files, I designed 'regular' weapons platforms with primarily direct-fire weapons and 'missile' platforms with primarily missile weapons but did not alter the vehicle construction file. One type was still called Weapons Platform, the other was called Missile Platform. Yet it has been consistently building both types for a long time now through many revisions. It's not predictable that there will be exactly as many of each type on a given world, so I don't know how it chooses. Sometimes a given AI race will build almost all one type, or almost all the other, or a nearly balanced mix. <shrug>