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The first editor is the Actor editor. Go ahead and select that one
now. The editor will load blank with nothing in it. Click on the
Load button and navigate back to the Origmiss folder and open the
Actor folder from there. For this demonstration we will load actor
file: m01_eli_ak47_1.atr.
Here is what it looks like in IGOR:
Here is what it looks like in Notepad:
Notice the differences and
similarities between the two? When you finally finish your
modification in the IGOR actor editor and save the file, it is saved
with the .atr suffix that the game engine interprets. It loads the
information stored between the brackets that you can see in notepad.
Now for a brief explanation of the variables that are stored in the
fields.
Face:
Tells the engine which face image to load. All of the images are .rsb
(red storm bitmap) files. You need a plug-in for Photoshop to view
them. To change the look of the actor or when creating your own,
click on the ellipsis button to load a face image.
Blink:
Tells the engine which face image to load. This one should have its
eyes closed. The ellipsis button works the same as above. I would
recommend choosing the same named image with "_blink" at the end of
the name for a smooth transition during runtime.
LOD 1:
LOD = Level of Detail
Tells the engine which model to load. This is where the close-up
model (high-poly) model goes.
LOD 2, 3, & 4:
Tells the engine which model to load at a predetermined distance
prior to the model being exported in 3ds Max using the Level Editor
plug-ins. These are the lower poly models that are switched out
since you can't see the detail and it saves on memory during run
time.
Name:
A cute name is always appropriate for your actor file. Note that
this is not the name that appears in the actors palette. If it is a
player actor then it is the name that appears in the roster whether
it is a specialist or not. You can actually leave it blank for the
enemy. RSE has input a bland name in there for reference.
Class:
Again, this really only matters for SP. It seems that all of the
enemy (RSE) are in the demolitions class which just happens to be
the first choice in the drop down menu. Depending on the
micromanagement level of your development team, you could assign
your enemy actors to other classes which I will explain in just a
couple of seconds.
Armor:
Here is where you assign the armor value for the actor file. None,
Light, Medium, and Heavy are the options. This variable is used with
the Combat Model Editor and the Gun Editor to figure the chance for
a round to penetrate and wound/kill the target.
Kit Path:
This is where you tell the game engine the directory to look for
this actor's kit. If you leave it blank it defaults to the equip
folder in it's mod directory. Blank is sufficient for an enemy
actor, but you will want to map it for a player actor. Load a player
actor to see the path. The specialists are even more directory
specific.
Model Scale Multipliers:
This has three fields. X, Y, & Z. These are the same coordinates
that are used in 3ds Max for creating a 3D model. X is horizontal, Y
is vertical, and Z is depth. The value here should be left at 1.00.
If you really want midgets or giants running around in your game
world, you can either increase or decrease the size of this actor
model by changing the numbers in these fields. I would recommend not
doing this but if you do, make sure the value that you input is the
same for each field. This way your model will be scaled
proportionally.
Load, Save, & Close:
The Load button opens the actor folder for the default mod. The Save
button brings up the save dialog for the default mod. The Close
button closes the Actor Editor.
Stats:
Weapon, Stealth, Stamina, & Leadership are the four stats that you
can change for an actor file. Increasing or decreasing these stats
are a quick way to adjust the skill levels of your opponents. Refer
to the documentation that came with Ghost Recon for more information
regarding these.
Attached Models:
This is where you select a model to attach to a specific body point
on this actor. For those interested in specifics related to attached
models, I highly recommend that you pay a visit to
Piggyson's
Website for model and character tutorials.
Optional Desert Models:
These fields are where you enter the file path for this particular
actor that has an optional desert model. The only place that I have
seen this to date is in Bajabravo's SabreTeams Mod. I believe that
it allows you to create optional models for characters when Desert
Siege is active. It only makes sense since models have to be
exported with their texture's applied to them. Their Ghost Recon
skins and models would be replaced by these models.
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