XML Help SGEAW, please

Hello Anyone who can help

I have been messing about in the XML files of SG EAW (not TPC), to fix a few things that were bugging me, and I thought for fun, why not make it so the Ori beam was a one-hit kill weapon for hataks (yes overpowered, just for fun). I've been trying, and it seems one or two places say it doesn't work, because weapons can only target and damage hardpoints.
I was wondering if anyone knew any way around this, I was trying to explore a few avenues but with little success:

1. the hypervelocity gun gets around this, but I couldn't figure out how. Someone said it makes all hitpoints take damage, but I couldnt find how that works.

2. the eclipse superlaser gets around this, I was trying to make it a normal weapon and give it to ori with ori beam effect, but couldn't figure out how to rip off super laser code to normal weapon code (rather than special ability).

3. I found the sheet of lua commands, and unitobject.Take_Damage(int x) should make the whole ship take damage rather than harpoint, but I have no way how to make the ori beam use that command (base game lua files are compiled, and nothing to do with weapon firing in the SG EAW or TPC lua files that I can see).

4. Using an area-of-effect blast, such as in the arcturus_maximus_primus mod, doesnt work, as hardpoints on the same ship dont take damage, rather ships around it. I could make a blast which hits a ship and kills one hardpoint, destrying all ships around it but leaving the ship with the destroyed hardpoint intact. This look silly. Also, the way this mod gets round the issue is by disabling all hardpoints so they arent targetable, but I dont want to have to do that as for most things hardpoints are great.

5. It seems the zann consortium space station weapon and capital ship weapon get past it by not targeting hardpoints, but hitting a random place on the ship, but I could see of no way to make the ori weapon not hit a hardpoint.



So yeah, any ideas of how I could do this?

Hi Locutus,
Thanks so much the in-depth reply, here is what I found when I tried things:

1. I tried to implement that code (set category to DEFAULT), but there were 2 problems:
this line was nowhere to be found in any other file (inc FOC XML's), you sure it exists as a tag? :And this wasn't in any of the EAW files (I don't know what this does, I saw some stuff about frames when looking at eclipse super laser code):Also, I have always taken the following line to mean that it will damage the hard points you aim at if yes, and damage randoms ones if no, is that correct?
also why isno? or does it not matter?


2, 3 & 5:
I have been perusing the lua files, but at the moment they don't mean a lot to me. The trouble is at the moment, I have no idea what the context is of writing the lua files, e.g. how do I make sure the code runs when it needs to, where do I put it in relation to all the other lua, etc.
I am giving the tutorial made by Imperial a read (which looks great, thanks or writing it!), but currently it is still above my head. (it isn't that I haven't done programming before, I've done some C for my degree course, and have done a bit of tweaking with lua for the garrysmod addon "Carters Addon Pack", I just am lacking context for how the engine works and interfaces with the lua I think [there also aren't loads of examples doing what I want to do]).

So, I will be looking into that and may get somewhere, if I do I will post it here.
(as for the method when I do learn more, I think what you said is best, apply an effect when hit by an Ori beam once, and then use Take_Damage. I am surprised there is not some function which gets the current target of the AI or the player. If such a function doesn't exist, how does the code know which ship the player is aiming at?)


(If anyone else who sees this thinks of an easy way to fix that I haven't found, please post here.)

Also, Locutus, I have just looked at the modding tool collection link in your signature, and I would like to thank you for that, it is incredibly useful (currently using notepad++ for everything, which seems to work great atm). Also very useful to now have all the source files (I installed map editor before, but didn't use it much so uninstalled, but never realized it had source code).

I am giving the tutorial made by Imperial a read (which looks great, thanks or writing it!)

You are welcome, thanks for liking it, Im really happy anyone is able to appreciate it ^^

and have done a bit of tweaking with lua for the garrysmod addon "Carters Addon Pack"

Cool I love Carters Addon Pack!

I just am lacking context for how the engine works and interfaces with the lua I think [there also aren't loads of examples doing what I want to do]

You may want to have a look at ultimate eaw's repository how lua is used to influence the game:
ultimate-empire-at-war.com/svn/trunk/Data/Scripts/
Going to add this hint to my tutorial as well.

Or look in the script directory of our mod in .\Stargate\Data\Scripts\GameObject, which contains more of my code. I use it quite different to the vanilla game creators.

but never realized it had source code

I didn't noticed it as well when I started modding some years ago.

Also, I have always taken the following line to mean that it will damage the hard points you aim at if yes, and damage randoms ones if no, is that correct?

I guess so.

And why is <Projectile_Does_Shield_Damage>No</Projectile_Does_Shield_Damage>, or does it not matter?

If no the particle can evade the shields and do direct damage to the Hull/Hardpoints, if yes it does damage to the shields instead.

<Projectile_Acceleration_Per_Frame>0.0</Projectile_Acceleration_Per_Frame>

I guess this is just another value for projectile speed.