Quick Modding/Hacking Answers Thread

How do I add custom music to my mod?

Check out this guide I wrote on how to replace .org files.

 

Check out this guide I wrote on how to replace .org files.

Thanks, but now I have another issue.
I want lightning to appear in my intro. How can I make it show up during the cut-scene? Whenever I try creating it into it, it shows up during the "Studio Pixel Presents" screen, and it's unviewable. How can this be fixed? (I use Cave Editor, btw)

 

I have a question regarding the stage.tbl file, what does it do?

 

I have a question regarding the stage.tbl file, what does it do?

The original freeware version of CS contains a section that contains mapdata with supplementary information for every map in the game. It makes it difficult to add or remove maps (without CE, BL or SW - though SW doesn't handle this well) since adding or removing maps shifts the offsets in the EXE following the mapdata, which will screw with things and break the executable.

stage.tbl is what CS+ uses instead. By externalizing the mapdata into a separate file, it makes it much easier to add or remove maps since there are no offsets in the executable that will be screwed up. So it's basically the mapdata section in the freeware's executable, but in a separate file.

 

I want lightning to appear in my intro. How can I make it show up during the cut-scene? Whenever I try creating it into it, it shows up during the "Studio Pixel Presents" screen, and it's unviewable. How can this be fixed? (I use Cave Editor, btw)

So you have the lightning striking, but it happens too early? Have you tried using a <WAI command so that the lightning doesn't strike until after you've seen the room? Or is something else causing the problem?

stage.tbl is what CS+ uses instead. By externalizing the mapdata into a separate file, it makes it much easier to add or remove maps since there are no offsets in the executable that will be screwed up.

Indeed, and at first I thought this would be beneficial. Ironically, though, adding new maps in CS+ doesn't work at all for some reason.

 

I have a couple things my mod needs that I don't know how to add.
1st: How can I add Lightning to the intro cut scene? I put it in there, and it shows up, but only during the "Studio Pixel Presents" Screen. How can I change this so it shows up during the cut scene?
2nd: How do I create a custom title screen?
3rd: Can a Dragon Zombie be a boss in Egg Corridor, or is it not possible? Everytime I add one, the graphics are messed up, and he shows up as Igor...

I may have more, but these things are important right now. Can somebody please help me with this?

 

So you have the lightning striking, but it happens too early? Have you tried using a <WAI command so that the lightning doesn't strike until after you've seen the room? Or is something else causing the problem?

I tried that. Whenever I add a <WAI, it either doesn't show up, or it does absolutely nothing...

 

I tried that. Whenever I add a <WAI, it either doesn't show up, or it does absolutely nothing...

That's weird. Could you describe in more detail what exactly happens? How long of a <WAI command are you using? I'm assuming that you're editing map number 072. Could you perhaps paste your script here?

2nd: How do I create a custom title screen?

I'm a little bit confused about your question about editing the title screen since it sounds like you're already customizing it. Do you mean customizing the main menu? If so, then part of that is just an image in the game's data filder, another part of it can be edited with Resource Hacker, and other things require assembly hacking.

3rd: Can a Dragon Zombie be a boss in Egg Corridor, or is it not possible? Everytime I add one, the graphics are messed up, and he shows up as Igor...

That's probably happening because you have the wrong NPC spritesheet configured. Unfortunately, you can't have every NPC ever on one map, you have to place them selectively. For a dragon zombie to show up right, you need to put "Eggs2" in NPC Tileset slot 1 for your map.

 

That's weird. Could you describe in more detail what exactly happens? How long of a <WAI command are you using? I'm assuming that you're editing map number 072. Could you perhaps paste your script here?

I'm a little bit confused about your question about editing the title screen since it sounds like you're already customizing it. Do you mean customizing the main menu? If so, then part of that is just an image in the game's data filder, another part of it can be edited with Resource Hacker, and other things require assembly hacking.

That's probably happening because you have the wrong NPC spritesheet configured. Unfortunately, you can't have every NPC ever on one map, you have to place them selectively. For a dragon zombie to show up right, you need to put "Eggs2" in NPC Tileset slot 1 for your map.

Basically, the sound and lightning plays during the "Studio Pixel Presents" Screen, and I can't figure out how to make it occur during the cut-scene, AFTER the "Studio Pixel Presents" screen
Also, about the title thing, where can I find it on the resource hacker?
And, thanks for letting me know about the NPC thing, (That helps a lot) but now I'm wondering about making it a boss, with it's own special HP and such.

 

Basically, the sound and lightning plays during the "Studio Pixel Presents" Screen

Do you perhaps mean the short moment "studio pixel presents" is shown on the screen?
I'd say that takes about 5 seconds, so i'd say try putting a <WAI0250 in front of the sounds/lightning.
Of course, nothing happens during the time the game <WAIts, so if you want something to happen during that time, you'd have to coordinate your <WAIs more.

 

How would one edit tilesets?

 

How would one edit tilesets?

Use any image editor that isn't Paint. Or do you mean editing tile types?

 

Where do i find them? (the tiles)

 

Where do i find them?

They can be found at (mod folder)\data\stage\prt(name).bmp

 

Thanks guys

 

So, I figured some of my stuff out. (Thanks!)
However, I came to an issue.
How do I make the walls close in at the start point like they do at the end of the good ending, when you beat Ballos? I want to have the walls close in after discovering a secret, but I don't know how.

 

There are two ways of doing this that I can think of:

1. The same way Pixel did in the Seal Chamber- with an invisible death wall entity. Place an entity of the type "invisible death trap wall" on the top left and right corners map, or what ever region you want the walls to enclose from. For the one on the left, set the entity flags to 0x1000 by ticking option 2. When you execute the part of the script that is supposed to make the walls start closing in, use an <ANP command on both entities to make them do animation number 10. Make sure that the one on the left side has 0002 as its last parameter instead of 0000, since it closes in the opposite direction. So your script would look something like "<ANP0410:0010:0000<ANP0411:0010:0002". While this is easier to implement than the second technique, it's a lot less custom because it looks like each step in the animation goes at specific timed intervals, and it looks like it always has to replace the tiles with tile 109 on the tileset.

2. The other way is to use lots of <CMP commands. When you're ready for the next step to execute, just put in all those <CMP commands that change the map tiles to the ones you specify. This is more tedious to do, but you can more easily control the timing of the walls closing in and directly choose which tile you want the map to change to. To see an example of this technique being used on a smaller scale, look at event #0402 in map #064 in the original game, the Throne Room. This is the part where the platforms appear for you to ascend to the King's Table after defeating Misery.

 

How do I release my mod?

 

So every I type anything in the Cave Editor's Script Editor, it's VERY slow. Like 20 characters behind me. CE works fine on all my other machines, but it types VERY slow on my laptop (Which I am currently using to mod). If someone could help, that would be amazing. Typing works EXTREMELY fast everywhere outside of CE, and it seems nothing is draining my CPU usage when using it. Anyone know how to fix this?

AFAIK this can be pretty situational, here are some things that might be handy to know;
1: How large is the script you are writing?
2: Are there any other things in your mod of considerable size?
3: Do you have anything noteworthy running?
4: CPU usage might not be high, but what about disk usage?
5: What are your system's specs, if you don't mind sharing them?

 

4: CPU usage might not be high, but what about disk usage?

the editor itself wouldn't grind I/O just while typing so that isn't a factor in this case.

CE woefully re-highlights the entire document on every edit as far as i'm aware. It gives consistent results in a very naiive way but unfortunately not performant as you might guess. The more TSC you have, the longer it takes.

BL is a bit different in that it only scans the whole thing on load, and then does -3/+3 lines on an edit. Which is also naiive, but doesn't take too long. The downside of my approach is that it's wrong all the time but I don't really care.