== Blood Mod Project ==

[slazer777]

descr_particle.txt

type blood
action advance
action age_to_limit
action expand, 0.5
action accel_simple, 0, -9.81, 0
action max_particles, 500
renderer quad_fade, 0, 0.9, 1
renderer_class blended
anim 1, 0, do_not_loop
texture data/battlefield/#blood.tga
texture_frame 0,1, 1,1, 1,0, 0,0


Well apparently there is blood in the game but not being used??. Trying to figure out how the events are triggered. Hopefully will have a working blood mod by the end of today.. Anyone mess around with the particle systems?
I was thinking about having it trigger the blood particles in the descr_sounds_weapons.txt file. However from what I
have seen I will have to create a custom effect file

custom effect file descr_blood_splatter_effect.txt

effect blood_splatter
{
type blood
{

texture data/battlefield/#blood.tga
}
}

effect_set blood_splatter_set
{
lod 1000
{
blood_splatter
}
}
//Add to descr_effects_final.txt

/// In descr_sounds_weapons.txt
weapon_type knife

death_hit flesh
event volume 0 mindist 2 priority 180

folder data/sounds/SFX/Individual/Melee/Death_Hits
Death_Hit_01
Death_Hit_02
Death_Hit_03
Death_Hit_04
Death_Hit_05
Death_Hit_06
Death_Hit_07
Death_Hit_08
Death_Hit_09
effect blood_splatter_set
end

[God-Emperor of Mankind]

Oh god yes please do.

[Gaius Julius]

That would be excellent. I ran across the blood tga before, and wondered what it was for. If you do figure it out, would I be able to include it in my realism mod??

[MAsta_KFC]

OOh please do!! Rome needs blood and gore, LOTS of blood and gore!!

[ShellShock]

I've had a good look at this and I can't work it out. I think it is going to be difficult to find an event to tie the blood particle action to. Possibly the events are hard coded, and there isn't one for when a man is hit. The descr_sounds_weapons.txt file looks like it is just for sound events, not particle events.

I did play with setting the dust particle values to the same as blood - so instead of dust billowing up I get a red mist. This proves the blood particles work, but I can't figure out how to tie this into the combat.

Good luck!

[slazer777]

Ok I am going to make some assumptions on how particles are called.

Particles are based off of defined effects.

for example :

effect small_arrow_trail
{
type ribbon
{
blah blah blah (effect values defined)....
texture data/textures/slingshot_trail.tga
}
}
effect_set small_arrow_trail_set
{
lod 1000
{
small_arrow_trail
}
}

the type above says ribbon (assumption is this is a hard coded type) .
ok so now we have an effect and effect_set and a type.
effect = small_arrow_trail
effect_set = small_arrow_trail_set
type = ribbon

Now the questions we are left asking is what can we do with it?
well this effect is attached to projectiles.

projectile stone

effect small_arrow_trail_set
damage 0
radius 0.1
mass 0.05
min_angle -60
max_angle 70
velocity 60
display
model data/models_missile/sling_stone.cas, max

ok so whenever a projectile of this type is called/instantiated it plays out that effect.
the projectile type is attached to a units ranged weapon type

example.

type barb slinger briton
dictionary barb_slinger_briton ; Slingers
category infantry
class missile
voice_type Light_1
soldier barb_slinger, 40, 0, 0.9
attributes sea_faring, hide_improved_forest
formation 1.6, 2, 3.2, 4, 3, square
stat_health 1, 0
stat_pri 4, 2, stone, 80, 40, missile, archery, blunt, none, 25 ,1
^
|

so all we have to do is use the already defined type blood create an effect and effect_set. And just call the effect when
we want it. The only part now is to determine when and where to call this effect. I was thinking unit sounds because they are actually tied to an event such as the unit dieing or getting hit.

[MAsta_KFC]

Yes, tieing it into the sounds sounds like a good idea, since you can have the blood effect triggered at the same time as the death sound is triggered.

[Spirix]

Awesome we need someone to put blood in the game. Somehow it does not look right after you win a bsttle and the people are dead on the ground and there is no blood.

[PRBoricua]

Originally posted by Gaius Julius@Oct 3 2004, 10:51 AM
That would be excellent. I ran across the blood tga before, and wondered what it was for. If you do figure it out, would I be able to include it in my realism mod??

Is this mod out yet, or still being worked on. I see the seven page thread here but no link. Just making sure I didn't miss anything cool.

[Spino]

I think blood splattering effects going off as soldiers are getting hit would look silly (and really put additional stress on your systems) but good luck getting it to work.

I can just envision giant churning blood clouds as masses of infantry clash with each other or worse, are charged from behind by heavy cavalry. It would look like something out of a Monty Python sketch! "It's just a flesh wound!" :devil

On the other hand I could definitely go for pools of blood on the ground, great big puddles of it... :cry

[ShellShock]

Originally posted by slazer777@Oct 3 2004, 05:21 PM
so all we have to do is use the already defined type blood create an effect and effect_set. And just call the effect when
we want it. The only part now is to determine when and where to call this effect. I was thinking unit sounds because they are actually tied to an event such as the unit dieing or getting hit.

I think this is where it all falls down - as far as I can see the unit sounds (or any of the sounds) do not link to graphical effects (which makes sense), so I can't see how we can associate the two (e.g., weapon hit sound to blood effect).

I've looked for existing associations between known particle effects (e.g., dust) and events, and haven't found anything, not even in the RomeTW.exe or the PAK files, which makes me think it may be hard coded, or there is some hidden link that only CA know about. I assume they had the blood effect in there at some point, and took it out, and we can see the remnants.

Please prove me wrong.

[Spirix]

Originally posted by Spino@Oct 3 2004, 02:14 PM
I think blood splattering effects going off as soldiers are getting hit would look silly (and really put additional stress on your systems) but good luck getting it to work.

I can just envision giant churning blood clouds as masses of infantry clash with each other or worse, are charged from behind by heavy cavalry. It would look like something out of a Monty Python sketch! "It's just a flesh wound!" :devil

On the other hand I could definitely go for pools of blood on the ground, great big puddles of it... :cry

Yes I nerver thought about how it would affect the lag. Yea hes right it would really lag if you had all of those men spewing out blood. Mabe just a few units at a time it should happen to. And not that much blood coming out would be good.

[totalwar junkie]

well, lets see it before we judge if its going to look silly or lag, for all you know it might not lag much and it might look cool.

[H_man]

Maybe if you go to the effects file and add the blood effect and then type something in that will make it tie in to the sound fx.

[Bruticus the Steadfast]

I think a blood mod would be just great.

[ximan]

Just ask the people who did Merciless. Btw, if you can get this to work, this will be the best mod ever!

[nowonmai]

Originally posted by totalwar junkie@Oct 3 2004, 03:43 PM
well, lets see it before we judge if its going to look silly or lag, for all you know it might not lag much and it might look cool.

doubt it, will react exactly like dust being kicked up and stuff, those are similar particles.

[H_man]

Is it possible to take water particles and make it into blood?

[totalwar junkie]

Originally posted by nowonmai@Oct 3 2004, 05:51 PM
doubt it, will react exactly like dust being kicked up and stuff, those are similar particles.

well some us can handle the dust just fine.

[God-Emperor of Mankind]

I get no slow-downs with dust so bring on the mod