For some reason, the search function doesn't allow two letter words, so despite the fact that this has probably been answered already (as I've seen it done before) I can't find the topic explaining how.

How do you set an AI goal so a team follows a certain class of unit? I'm using this script to spawn a small team of units, and I want them to follow the unit class that spawns them. I've successfully spawned them and they obey their current conquest goal to the letter, but it's a pain having to use the follow command every single time, the AI never tell them to follow, and I plan to make the unit that spawns them a hero, which means I need them coded to follow anyway. There is only one of the class that spawns them on the battlefield at once. Ideally, I want them to follow whoever is spawned as that one unit of that class, be they AI or human.

Also, how do I modify that script to trigger when the character spawns rather than when they use a certain weapon? I tried something involving OnCharacterSpawn a few days ago, but my ineptitude at LUA coding defeated me.

your not going to believe this, but I was coming to GT to start a near indentical thread

no, like, really

Anyway, I am looking into this myself,because I want my 2 clones to follow their commander or captain.

I am looking into maybe trying to trick the AI into thinking you have a flag. Stand by.

still about this thread.

Probably because both ideas were spawned off of the idea I told you two days ago about those droid squads.

if you want them to follow the unit that spawned them: put it in the "OnCharacterDispenseControllableTeam"-function

im not sure how to tell them to follow one class, im not sure if that possible.

edit: the last parameter doesnt work, im not sure which function to use but because the weapon is used primarily by the player you can just put a zero as alast argument and theyll follow him.

Thanks!

By the way, if I give them a Conquest goal weighted at, say, 50, will they proceed with Conquest objectives after their 'master' dies?

EDIT: Where in the code do I put it?

you can put it under local supportteam.

about conquest: put a conquesgoal with a priority of 1 above/below the other goal

You can't tell the AI to follow a class, unless you add a new goal each time a unit of that class spawns (don't do that). What you want to do is have the AI follow the character's unit.

weapon is used primarily by the player you can just put a zero as alast argument and theyll follow him

Only in SP. The human's id is always zero in single-player, so the AI would always follow the human. If you want it to work in MP, use the character's unit.

Make sure to clean out old AI goals as the game has a max goal limit (19). Store the goal in a variable (followGoal = AddAIGoal(...)) and delete it whenever you change it (DeleteAIGoal(followGoal)). If you're always wiping out all of a team's AI goals, forget about the variable and just use ClearAIGoals(<team number>).

The AI attempts to do all AI goals. If there are 8 AI units, a Conquest goal of 75, a Follow goal of 25, and a Deathmatch goal of 100:
* 3 units doing Conquest (75 is 3/8th of the total goal count of 200)
* 1 unit doing Follow (25 is 1/8th of 200)
* 4 units doing Deathmatch (100 is half of 200 and 4 units are half of the 8 total units)
If you don't want AI units doing Conquest until after their master dies, then don't add that goal until after the master dies (and don't forget to delete/clear the follow master goal).

I sort of understand, but I'll need an example script if I'm going to get it working.

I wanted this a long time ago, so I'm really interested in how this turns out, and I'm writing up some pseudo-code right now that, once turned into actual code, should effectively make AI follow every unit that spawns as a certain class or classes.

EDIT:

kinetosimpetus wrote:I wanted this a long time ago, so I'm really interested in how this turns out, and I'm writing up some pseudo-code right now that, once turned into actual code, should effectively make AI follow every unit that spawns as a certain class or classes.

EDIT:

Hidden/Spoiler:

--AI Follow Officers -- pseudocode

local officerCount = 0

local officerUnit1
local officerUnit2
local officerUnit3
...
local officerUnit7
local officerUnit8

local followGoal1
...
local followGoal8

OnCharacterSpawn(character)

        if (character.getUnit().getUnitClass() == "rep_inf_ep2_officer") then
                addOfficer(character)
                return
        end

end

function addOfficer(character)

        if (officerCount == 0) then
                officerUnit1 = character.getUnit()
                followGoal1 = AddAIGoal(character.getTeam(), "follow", 50)
        elseif(officerCount == 2)
        ...
        end
        officerCount = officerCount+1

end

OnCharacterDeath(character)

        if (character.getUnit().getUnitClass() == "rep_inf_ep2_officer" then
                removeOfficer(character)
        end

end

function removeOfficer(character)

        If (character.getUnit() == officerUnit1) then
                DeleteAIGoal(followGoal1)
        Elseif...
        end

        officerCount = officerCount-1
        
        if followgoal1 == null then
                cleanupOfficers(1)
        End
        If followgoal2 == null then
                cleanupOfficers(2)
        end
        ...
        If followgoal7 == null then
                cleanupOfficers(7)
        end

end

function cleanupOfficers(index)

        While index is less than 8
                officerUnit<index> = officerUnit<index+1>
                Index = index + 1
        End

End

Looks interesting enough to make it into my mod. I fixed the 2 spelling errors btw. I will test asap.(That includes getting it turned into a proper script)

Here's what I have now, untested, but it munged ok.
It's a little wordy...
It could be made smaller (and better in many other ways) if it was done in a more "Object Oriented" way, but idk how to do that with lua...

is there really nothing like an array in lua? that would really shrink the code.

I think there is, but idk how to use it.

Am I the only one who doesnt care about the length of their lua? I would be willing to put that in every one of my scipts, and more, oh wait, thats right, I am off the walls crazy dedicated to modding this game

I am testing now, will edit the results in later

well it would be easier to modify and maintain if it were smaller, especially if you could have it in its own script and call it with 50 other scripts instead of making the same edits to 50 scripts if there was a bug or you just wanted to change something.


EDIT: doesn't work yet. debug log shows this...

Couldn't you have it as a seperate script that the LUA calls for, like AI heroes?

Yes, but I haven't successfully made that type of script.

Edit: It works now, kinda, the AI will follow each other.

However, I once saw a group of AI with one officer running around in circles, actually, there were 2 groups like that.

another thing, the debug output shows that the code does not run in sync, if 2 officers spawn really close together, they might both get an AIGoal even if the max is reached already (8 supposedly, if the code ran in sync) but afaik, there's no crashes right now unless it crashes when AI goals totally max out.

continuing testing...