what kind of things do you need to know or learn in order to make gameplay modifications like seen in this project? i have no editing experience or knowledge of programming but i would like to know where and what to look for in order to do things like the stuff seen in this project.

Well the source code is in C, so I'd advise learning that first.. (one can do amusing things to the korax mod with only a little knowledge of C) <!-- s:wink: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_wink.gif" alt=":wink:" title="Wink" /><!-- s:wink: --> If you're going to work using C, you will probably want to check out DevC++ or Visual Studio C++

Doom and Hexen sources are in C, as for Vavoom (Korax Arena's engine, and, hopefully engine for next projects as well), it allows to write game logic using so called VavoomC which is a version of C++.

[quote="jonc2006":2smch9rk]what kind of things do you need to know or learn in order to make gameplay modifications like seen in this project? i have no editing experience or knowledge of programming but i would like to know where and what to look for in order to do things like the stuff seen in this project. First off, don't listen to Crimson Wizard. He is a professional and so can't place himself in the shoes of a first-time beginner. <!-- s:wink: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_wink.gif" alt=":wink:" title="Wink" /><!-- s:wink: --> You see, I'm in a similar situation as you: I can barely grasp the C language, but already I have been able to accomplish quite a few impressive tricks with just the standard Hexen programming language (ACS). How good are your skills with ACS? Because the best advice I recommend in the meantime is to start adding scripts to your maps. There is a "Hexen spec" file which, while not beginner-friendly, gives a lot of great tips on how to use ACS. Compared to nothing it's extremely powerful, and I've been able to accomplish all my effects with my own personal mod with limited knowledge of C and the like. Baby steps, my friend, baby steps. Besides, you'd be surprised what you can do with just your imagination, even with limited resources. <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) --> And you know we are always here to answer any specific questions you have along your quest. <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) -->

I'm no professional. I learned everything from "24hours" books. The best thing I found to do was to produce my own little games, slowly becoming more adventurous until I had enough knowledge about games programming to actually get decent stuff done. Of course, I'm not a dev, so my opinion is only of limited use. But I think my way works alright. But yeah, little steps are best.. Never heard of hexen's programming language, though.

The Hexen developers created ACS as a diet-C so their mappers can design scripts in an easy yet flexible manner. This code is responsible for all the things in Hexen that Heretic didn't have, like walls changing their texture, one switch being able to do more than one thing, earthquakes, puzzle pieces, you name it. Unlike in Heretic, where such a language didn't exist and events were limited to the tags. But anyway, all Hexen wadmaking programs have support for ACS, because it's so fundamental to the game.

With little ACS and mapping knowledge I was able to make a killer map where Korax would periodically do some sort of special attacks, in the RPG-like fashion.

Heh, in my long-time-ago-abandoned mod Korax prayed for mercy, crying something like "I do not want to die!" and "Don't hit me, I am good" and finally dies from an infarct... <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt=":D" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

My suggestion to anyone wanting to start modding games, would be to start with something small, making maps is a nice start, you'll begin to gather knowledge on how certain aspects of the game work, and when you can master mapping, then try starting with ACS scripts, which can be very powerful if used correctly, then get to something else, like changing behavior of the enemies, etc. And last, but not least, if you are stuck with something, always ask on the forums around the community, there are a lot of people who know of these things and are willing to help you out to complete your task <!-- s;) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_wink.gif" alt=";)" title="Wink" /><!-- s;) -->, good luck to anyone starting on this! <!-- s8) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_cool.gif" alt="8)" title="Cool" /><!-- s8) -->

ok thanks for the replies. ive never done level building/editing but i am determined to give it a go, and once i get the hang of it ill try doing gameplay alterations. are there any skills i should have or know before giving map making a try? like would it be helpful to know programming like python or C?

Map design itself does not require any knowledge in programming language, ofcourse. You just need to know geometry <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) --> . Well, and have good imagination and abstract thinking, probably. However, if you are going to write map scripts (e.g. for Hexen) - that is small programs that control map behavior, making it more alive and interactive, - than perhaps you should learn at least programming basics - simply to know what are variables, operations, functions. I would recommend to get at least a basic knowledge of C or Pascal. As for Python, I don't know it, so I cannot say whether it is good for beginners.

Python is a good language for beginners. It has a nice, clean and easy to understand syntax. And, your standart hello world program doesn't have to be 4-5 lines long like in C.

[quote="TheCount":3qtm6hsa]And, your standart hello world program doesn't have to be 4-5 lines long like in C. Well, C wasn't designed that way to be effective with single phrase output program <!-- s;) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_wink.gif" alt=";)" title="Wink" /><!-- s;) -->