Creating or Altering Game Events

[Es Arkajae]

I am curious as to which folders one would have to alter to say change the Marius Event so that it always kicks in at 240BC, that is altering the date of an already existing event. How would one change the files to make the Marius event kick in at this date?

Also would it be possible to create new events such as earthquakes, plagues etc.

I've looked but things are a bit over the place and I could find no thread directly dealing with this question and the forum search function is next to useless.

The former question is the more important here though. Any help would certainly be appreciated.

[Lord Dazed & Confused]

I don't think you can change the Marius event it's hard coded but I could be wrong.

[Es Arkajae]

I certainly hope you are.

I had to wait until 202BC the other night for the thing to kick in, I ended up quitting in disgust. Its not much fun for me playing when half the cities on the map are huge sized epic walled monsters with no chance of changing cultures.

The avenue I'm looking at is that the Marius Event apparently has a secondary kick in ability. That is if the requirements for triggering the event haven't been met then when a certain date comes along it gets activated automatically by the comp anyway. I'm hoping to chnage that event so as to give Marius an artificial kick start.

[Lord Dazed & Confused]

Wouldn't it just be easier to have Marius troops from the start ? just edit out the and marian reforms in the export_descr_buildings text.

[Epistolary Richard]

The Marian Reforms criteria are hard coded so they can't be changed. That doesn't mean, however, that we can't do anything to influence when they take place, have a look here for some ideas.

[Es Arkajae]

Hmm looks like I've got some tinkering to do then.

Though an idea I had reading that link you provided Richard, do you guys think using the 'change date' cheat perhaps would be a way of tackling the problem without any extensive editing?

One could build an imperial palace in a province with 'Italy' resource, then use the code to change the date to 220 BC and then once the reforms have been triggered, save, quit, reload and use the 'change date' code again to turn it back to the original year?

[Epistolary Richard]

Why not just change the date at the beginning? Change the start date in descr_strat to -320, then use the date command to skip it forwards to -270 when the game starts. Then as soon as you build an imperial palace in Italy and the 'random element' is achieved, you'll have the reforms.

[Es Arkajae]

Or yes I could do that...

I'm off to try it now.

[Es Arkajae]

Hmm, I can't get the 'date' cheat to work, I must not be doing something right.

What is the actual correct method for entering it as I'm at wits end on how to get it to do what its supposed to and the sites I've looked up all seem to be conflicting.

Bloody hell I must sound like a newb

[Epistolary Richard]

Read this for an introduction to scripting, but instead of using this:

script
	console_command add_money 1000
	campaign_wait 5
	console_command add_money 1000
end_script

Use this instead:

script
console_command date -270
end_script

Change the start year in descr_strat to -320 and then launch the game. When you're in it, run the script by pressing F1 - click on request advice - click on show me how. The date should then change so you know it's worked.

Once you're confident it's working how you want it to, you can incorporate this into your game so that it runs automatically at start up.

Keep the start date as -320 in descr-strat but add two lines right at the very bottom of the file:

script
descr_script.txt

then create a new text file in your campaign folder called descr_script and copy the following into it.

console_command date -270
end_script

Then launch the game, the loading screen will show a date of 320BC, but as soon as you go into the game the date will appear as 270BC.

[player1]

Why not just change the date at the beginning? Change the start date in descr_strat to -320, then use the date command to skip it forwards to -270 when the game starts. Then as soon as you build an imperial palace in Italy and the 'random element' is achieved, you'll have the reforms.

Also, not to forget that game events as well as some other triggers (like some turn triggers in ancillaries.txt), need to be moved 100 turns later, since game considers 320BC to be turn one (although it jumps to 270 at the begging of the game).

[Epistolary Richard]

Yes, you're quite right. Do turns appear anywhere else?

Here's an updated descr_events, copy and paste this into the file in the campaign folder.

; historical events and when they occur

event	eruption_at_etna
date	109 winter
position	104, 49

event	plague_in_macedonia
date	114 winter
position	138, 67

event	stoic_philosophy
date	114 summer

event	hand_pump_invented
date	114 winter

event	carthage_clear_glass
date	134 summer

event	archimedes_screw
date	144 winter

event	greek_logic
date	154 summer

event	star_catalogue
date	164 winter

event	plague_in_alexandria
date	164 summer
position	178, 19

event	earthquake_in_pontus
date	184 summer

event	concrete_invented
date	194 winter

event	eruption_at_vesuvius
date	199 summer
position	103, 65

event	philosophy_banned
date	203 winter

event	astrolabe_invented
date	214 summer

event	lex_aebutia
date	214 winter

event	roman_stoicism
date	220 summer

event	lex_papira
date	220 winter

event	plague_in_italy
date	244 summer
position	96, 82

event	plague_in_italy
date	244 summer
position	95, 71

event	plague_in_italy
date	244 summer
position	102, 68

event	plague_in_italy
date	244 summer
position	114, 63

event	vestral_virgin_struck_down
date	250 winter

event	de_rerum_natura
date	266 winter

event	plague_in_asia_minor
date	273 summer
position	192, 68

event	plague_in_asia_minor
date	273 summer
position	190, 80

event	plague_in_asia_minor
date	273 summer
position	200, 55

event	lex_pompeia
date	275 winter

event	new_religion
date	294 summer

event	plague_in_italy
date	204 winter
position	96, 82

event	plague_in_italy
date	244 summer
position	95, 71

event	plague_in_italy
date	244 summer
position	102, 68

event	plague_in_italy
date	244 summer
position	114, 63

event	de_materia_medica
date	314 summer

event	julian_calendar
date	318 winter

event	earthquake_in_iberia
date	358 summer

event	the_aeneid
date	369 winter

event	lex_adulteriis_coercendis
date	371 summer

event	trouble_in_judea
date	384 winter

event	lex_fufia_caninia
date	386 summer

[Es Arkajae]

Edit: Something funky is happening with the boards, my post isn't showing up properly for me so I hope you guys can actually read it, when you quote a post it seems you can see the whole post so if this post looks short maybe you can try that

Aye I'd wondered about that thanks player.

As for the scripting though, sorry to say no go, I just can't get it to work, I tried the scripting thing with the F1 key deal, no success the 'show me how' button never lit up so I couldn't press it.

I tried the other one with the script command put at the very end of the descr_strat file and the .txt file placed in the 'imperial_campaign' file and no go either.

Somethings going wrong somewhere and its likely my fault.

I'm very interested in the automatic function you mentioned Richard as it seems to involve a lot less tinkering.

Heres what I did in descr_strat

-----

; start of regions section

script
descr_script.txt

-----

I then placed in the 'imperial_campaign' folder (in the 'campaign' folder just crashed the game) a txt file which I named 'descr_script', with this in it

-----
console_command date -270
end_script

-----

The game loaded fine, the loading screen said 320BC but when the strategic map showed up the date in the lower right hand corner was also 320 BC, so I assume I fouled up somewhere along the line I was under the impression that it would show 270BC??

By the way I appreciate this help guys.

[knoddy]

ok i want a different thing i dont want the reforms to kick in at all but since they r hardcoding i was wondering how to do this. as far as i can tell the trigger in v1.2 is an imperial palace by a roman faction in a province with the hidden rescource italy, does this mean that if i dont put the hidden resource into the game at all the reforms cannot happen please let me know
cheers knoddy

[player1]

I think you are right.
If you remove hidden italy there should not be any reforms.

Although after removing italy from txt files, I also think that map.rwm file needs to be deleted (Data\world\maps folder), so that game could form a new one, without italy resource (don't take this for granted I just read it in some tutorial).

[Epistolary Richard]

Yes, if you change anything to do with the map, including hidden resource placement, you need to delete the map.rwm file, otherwise the changes won't take affect.

Es Arkajae
The board doesn't like pointy-brackets that point left, just delete them from what you're posting.

[Es Arkajae]

Done, odd that.

[Epistolary Richard]

Yes, sorry when I said the campaign folder I just meant whichever campaign folder you were using (imperial/provincial etc.)

I was under the impression that it would show 270BC??

Yes, so was I. Can you replace your descr_script text with this instead:

script
console_command add_money 1
console_command date -270
end_script

This should show us whether there's something wrong with the command or whether the file is being accessed at all.