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Author Topic: Ending credits modification .  (Read 3881 times)
Alvarin
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Ending credits modification .
« on: June 08, 2008, 01:14:40 am »

I've been on the Precursors site listening to some remixes . The credits remix , though i didn't really like , but one of the comments have triggered a thought - why there is actually no number of deceased crewmen shown at the end ? I know for fact this number is tracked (it may affect the crew RU cost) and i don't think that it stops being monitored once you get it permanently to "1" (didn't want to create a spoiler) , so there ought to be a number at the end of the game . It might present even more replay value , as something to aspire to . I know most players do mind their crew and don't let personnel die easilly , but nevertheless .

Bit messy conveyed idea , but i can't rephrase it better , sorry .
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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #1 on: June 08, 2008, 03:56:13 am »

You use punctuation strangely. It hurts to read.
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Novus
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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #2 on: June 08, 2008, 12:45:45 pm »

You know, I used to punctuate like that when I was 10. I don't remember why, but I think I may have misinterpreted the documentation for the word processor I was using (this would have been my manual-reading phase). In this case, though, I'd cut Alvarin some slack on the grounds that we are writing back-to-front from his point of view.

Getting back on topic:
why there is actually no number of deceased crewmen shown at the end ? I know for fact this number is tracked (it may affect the crew RU cost) and i don't think that it stops being monitored once you get it permanently to "1" (didn't want to create a spoiler) , so there ought to be a number at the end of the game . It might present even more replay value , as something to aspire to .
The idea of presenting statistics at the end of the game is actually quite interesting and can be generalised a bit. A few interesting numbers that could be shown on completing the game are:
  • Dead crew (friendly) (how should respawning Pkunk ships be counted?): total, by ship type
  • Dead crew (hostile): total, by ship type
  • Ships destroyed (friendly): total, by type
  • Ships destroyed (hostile): total, by type
  • Shots fired: total, by type
  • Shots hit: total, by type (some special weapons will require special treatment, as they're not expected to hit once and disappear (e.g. Orz Marines))
  • RU from ships destroyed (hostile): total, by type
  • Minerals collected (mass): total, by value class, by element
  • Minerals collected (RU): total, by value class, by element
  • Aliens stunned: total, by species
  • Aliens collected: total, by species
  • Biodata collected: total, by species
  • Planets visited: total, by type
  • Landings: total, by planet type
  • Battles won: total, by enemy (losing is not an option Grin)
  • Escapes from combat: total, by enemy
  • Starbase visits
  • Conversations: total, by encounter type and species
  • Rainbow worlds found
  • Melnorme info bought: total, by type
  • Purchases: by type

Now, I believe (i.e. I haven't checked) that UQM is actually keeping track of how many crew members you "buy" from the starbase, not how many die (and, for another plot-related purpose, how many are... lost in other ways).

This means that (AFAIK) none of these numbers are actually tracked by UQM, so actually getting this information is probably more trouble that it's worth (to me, at least; your priorities may vary). That said, the potential for bragging is immense ("I scored 90% hits with Torch vs Dreadnought! 1 1z t3h 1337!", "I never lost a ship!", "I killed 65535 Ur-Quan Kzer-Za and lost -150 Pkunk crewmen in the process").
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Alvarin
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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #3 on: June 08, 2008, 07:44:51 pm »

Well, I didn't intend it to be a bragging tool, rather self-improovement. All these numerals will be hard work to implement , i guess , but the bought crew is already there and can be done with relative ease.

What is the problem with my punctuation? Is it the space before the punctuation marks?
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Particleman42
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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #4 on: June 08, 2008, 08:26:56 pm »

What is the problem with my punctuation? Is it the space before the punctuation marks?

Yes.
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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #5 on: June 09, 2008, 08:56:45 pm »

I haven't dug into the source, but I'm wondering what happens if you
sell more crew than you buy.

Let's say, for argument's sake, that you buy 500 crew to replace deaths. Then you
get the penetrator and go suck hundreds of drone ships. Sell
the extra crew you've picked up. And let's say, for this example, you
sell back to the starbase, 1000 crew.

At this point, have you lost 500 crew or -500?

I don't mean for stats, but I'm curious as to how the game calculates the
number of crew you've been credited as losing.
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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #6 on: June 11, 2008, 12:07:21 am »

Everyone loves statistics.
How would you count Syreen stealing crew? I guess that would add to your crew.
What about Orz marines? I think they should be treated differently, since if it adds to your death count no one would want to use that ship in combat and risk damaging the statistics.
A useful number: Fights won count using a combat ship (not the flagship).

And of course, "time to finish game".. Anyone up for a  SC2 Speedrun? hehe


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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #7 on: June 11, 2008, 09:58:20 am »

I haven't dug into the source, but I'm wondering what happens if you
sell more crew than you buy.

Let's say, for argument's sake, that you buy 500 crew to replace deaths. Then you
get the penetrator and go suck hundreds of drone ships. Sell
the extra crew you've picked up. And let's say, for this example, you
sell back to the starbase, 1000 crew.

At this point, have you lost 500 crew or -500?
If I'm reading src/sc2code/shipyard.c right, the difference between the amount of crew you've bought and the amount you've sold is tracked. However, the number is clamped to the interval [0,32767], so putting back more crew than you've taken doesn't help. In other words, if your example starts from the beginning of the game the answer is 0, but if you've lost at least 500 men before the start of the example, the answer is -500.

Getting reinforcements from another species locks the counter to its original value of 0, at 1000 crew bought the price goes up by 2 (and decreases again if you go below 1000). Selling crew elsewhere is handled separately, by increasing the crew price by 7 at 100 sold and 22 (in total) at 250 sold.
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Re: Ending credits modification .
« Reply #8 on: June 12, 2008, 06:37:22 pm »

You use punctuation strangely. It hurts to read.
All his punctuation is used in his sig.
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