Originally appeared in:
Merc release 2.2
Wednesday 24 November 1993
N'atas-Ha natasha@gs118.sp.cs.cmu.edu
Kahn
Modified for ROM 2.4 in January 1996
Newt@Imperium Gothique
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Basic Idea
About This Version
MOBprogram Syntax
Linking MOBprograms
Trigger Types
Variables
Control Flow Syntax
Operators
If_checks in Control Flow
New Commands of Interest
Regarding CPU Slowdown
Loading Mobiles and Objects
Miscellaneous Information
--------------------------
Quick Reference Sheet
Examples
-----------------------------The Basic Idea---------------------------------
Ever wonder why most muds either seem dead or overcrowded? The answer
is probably partially due to the fact that the mobiles never do anything
but wait to be slaughtered. Unless someone has gone to great lengths
and added many special procedures, most mobiles have no idea you are in
the room with them and rarely listen to what you say. The typical Midgaard
mayor wanders happily along even when the populace pokes him, waves his
City Key about, unlocks his gates, or frenchs his secretary, etc. So a way to
give the mobiles a bit more spirit would be neat. Enter the MOBprograms.
TRIGGERS AND SCRIPTS
The backbone of the MOBprograms shall be called triggers from this
point on. Essentially, they are procedure calls placed in sneaky places in
the mud code which provide the context for what is going on around the
mobile. So, if something happens in the mobile's room and a trigger is
activated, then a list of commands is sent to the interpreter in the
mobile's name, thus making her/it/him do an appropriate something.
VARIABLES
Since knowing the appropriate response for every mobile to every
possible trigger is not easy, this command list shouldnt be a rigid script,
but needs to be somehow unique for the mobile and the situation. However, in
order to know the situation, a mobile needs to know more about the trigger
than that it just happened. So, we have to include some sort of variables
as well to set the context appropriately.
MOBPROGRAMS VS. SPEC_PROCS
As most implementors know, most area creators are not versed in
coding, but usually have great ideas. Therefore, whatever system is used needs
to be quite simple. This is not to demean creators in anyway. Simply, it is
useless to have a powerful system, if the only person able to write anything
is someone who finds C coding in general to be exciting and non frustrating.
If that is going to be the case, then stick to the special procedures, since
there is no bound to what a complex special procedure can accomplish. Yet,
from experience working on several muds, most admins and implementors prefer
not to be writing one shot spec_procs to satisfy the needs of their creators.
Thus, the basic idea: let mobiles react to a myriad of mud
events/situations by having them perform a list of commands which can be
tailored to the moment through a simple and unintimidating scheme usable by
any creator.
---------------------------About This Version-------------------------------
My implementation of MOBprograms owes a lot to the original MOBprogram
code by Natasha. However, having heard reports about unstability of the code
supplied, and because the code seemed unnecessarily complex to me, I decided
to rewrite the MOBprogram driver. Admittedly, I have dropped out several
features that were present in the original version, such as reacting to
several triggers at once and string comparison in if_checks. On the other
hand, the MOBprogram code has been simplified and made more stable (there
are no memory leaks), and several new if_checks and MOBcommands have been
added. The system of linking MOBprograms to mobiles has been changed to allow
procedure-like calls.
This version is an adaptation of my earlier MOBprogram system I
created for Imperium Gothique MUD. The IG system has object and room programs
as well, but I chose to omit them from this version.
-- Newt
----------------------------MOBprogram Syntax--------------------------------
The simplest way to describe any syntax is by example, so here goes.
First, define the notation: anything contained in braces {} is required,
anything in brackets [] is optional, anything in quotes "" is a case
insensitive literal, NL refers to a required new-line. The meanings of
the labels used will be described following the syntax diagram.
To use MOBprograms, you must add a #MOBPROGS section(s) to your area
file(s).
Section syntax:
#MOBPROGS
#{Vnum}
{program_command_1} NL
{program_command_2} NL
{program_command_3} NL
. . .
{program_command_N} NL
"~" NL
. . .
#0
-- Explanations
A VNUM is the MOBprogram virtual number that identifies the program the
number must be unique across area files (like mobile and object vnums).
A PROGRAM_COMMAND can be any legal mud command, or a control flow command.
NOTE 1: Any whitespaces (space, tab, newline) are NOT stripped from the
programs when loading the database (why? because I'm too damn lazy to have
implemented it). Thus, to save memory and execution time, omit all
unnecessary spaces from your MOBprogram scripts. If you must have
indentation, use TAB.
NOTE 2: MOBprograms do NOT have to be in the same area file as the mobile
definitions, since the programs are linked to the mobiles after the database
has been loaded. A MOBprogram can also be used as a subroutine (see MOB CALL
command) without having to be linked to any mobile.
-- Example
#MOBPROGS
#3001
say Hey, no loitering!
poke $n
~
#0
--------------------------Linking MOBprograms--------------------------------
Once you've written your MOBprograms, you must link the programs
to appropriate mobiles. In the #MOBILES section, for each mobile you wish to
have a MOBprogram, add lines of the following type to the end of the mobile
definition:
"M" {Keyword} {Vnum} {Argument}~ NL
--Explanations
The KEYWORD is a single word, see below for explanations.
The VNUM is the MOBprogram virtual number.
The ARGUMENT is the argument that triggers the event.
--Example
M act 3001 sits down~
In the above example, an ACT trigger is defined. When the mobile sees
someone sitting down in the room, the mobile will execute program number
3001 (defined in #MOBPROGS section).
NOTE: Several mobiles can use the same MOBprogram, i.e. MOBprograms can be
SHARED with several mobiles. The keyword and trigger argument can be different
for each mobile even if they share the same MOBprogram code.
-----------------------------Trigger Types----------------------------------
Here's a summary of triggers:
Triggers are fairly easy to add, but this basic list should hold for
most needs. Their names, argument list syntaxes, and translation into
more articulate english are given below:
ACT
Keyword : 'act'
Argument: string
The argument is a phrase, a text string. The trigger is activated
whenever the phrase is contained in the act() message.
NOTE: Most general trigger. Applies to almost every event which happens
in the mud. Anytime the function act() is called with a message
to be delivered TO_CHAR,TO_VICT,TO_ROOM,etc. the act can be
triggered. Basically this will trigger on almost everything
you'll ever want. Output of "say", "shout" and "emote" do not
trigger this event.
SPEECH
Keyword : 'speech'
Argument: string
NOTE: This is only triggered when the phrase is contained in a
message which has been said by a PC in the same room as the mob.
The PC restriction is not necessary, but makes infinite loops
between two talking mobiles impossible. It also makes it impossible
for two NPC's to stand and discuss the weather however.
RANDOM
Keyword : 'random'
Argument: number
The argument is a number betweeen 0 and 99 inclusive.
NOTE: This trigger is checked at each PULSE_MOBILE and if the argument is
greater than a percentage roll the trigger is activated. This
will happen even if there is no PC in the room with the mob,
but there must be players in the same area.
It is useful to give mobiles a bit of a personality. For instance
a janitor who stops to spit tobacco, or complain about the hours,
or wonder why there are no woman janitors on muds, or a fido which
barks or growls or pees on the curb is much more alive than one
which just sits there scavenging.
Note that this trigger is checked only when there are players in
the area. If you want this event to be triggered always, you must
set the ACT_UPDATE_ALWAYS flag of the mobile.
GREET/GREET ALL
Keyword : 'greet'
Argument: number
Again a percentage argument.
NOTE: Whenever someone enters the room with the mobile, and the mobile saw
the person enter, this is checked. Good for shopkeepers who want
to welcome customers, or for pseudo-aggressive mobiles which need to
discriminate on who they attack.
Greet trigger activates only when the mobile is not busy (fighting,
sitting, sleeping etc.). If you want to be sure to catch all players,
use grall.
Keyword : 'grall'
Argument: number
Again a percentage argument.
NOTE: Like greet, but it can be triggered even if the mobile didn't
see the arrival (i.e. sneak, invis, etc) or is busy. Most useful for
faking teleport rooms or for impassable guardians.
ENTRY
Keyword : 'entry'
Argument: number
Again a percentage argument.
NOTE: The opposite of greet trigger. Whenver the mobile itself enters a new
room, this can be triggered. Useful for looking around, or waving
or other things that real PCs do when they arrive at a crowded room.
IMPORTANT: In an entry program, the mobile can only refer to a
random pc ($r in if checks) -- there's no way to know how many PCs
exist in the room the mobile enters! Also, you must check visibility
of the target in your program.
EXIT/EXIT ALL
Keyword : 'exit'
Argument: number
Argument is the exit number (0:north, 1:east, 2:south 3:west etc.)
NOTE: The opposite of entry trigger. This is activated when PC tries to
leave a room through an exit indicated by the argument, and the
mobile sees the person leave. Useful for having a single guardian to
watch several exits. An exit trigger works better than an entry
trigger, since you can refer to a specific PC instead of a random PC.
IMPORTANT: If this event is triggered, the victim will not move
through the exit. If necessary, you must move the character yourself
in your program (see MOB TRANSFER/MOB GTRANSFER). Also, this event
is not triggered when a character flees from combat or the mobile
is not in its default position.
Keyword : 'exall'
Argument: number
Argument is the exit number (0 = north etc.)
The same as exit trigger, but it can be triggered even if the
mobile cannot see the person trying to leave the room or if
the mobile is busy.
GIVE
Keyword : 'give'
Argument: string or object vnum
The argument is either the a string containing words to be
matched against the keywords of the object, or the word "all";
e.g. argument "long sword" will match to objects "long bow" and
"small sword".
Alternatively, the argument can be the virtual number of a single
object.
NOTE: This is triggered whenever something is given to the mobile. Best
used for quests. Since the first successful trigger is the only one
of this type which is processed, having an "all" argument in the
script at the end of the MOBprogram list is essentially a default
response.
BRIBE
Keyword : 'bribe'
Argument: number
The argument is any positive integer number.
NOTE: This trigger is activated whenever money is given to the mobile.
If the amount given exceeds the number, then process the commands.
Note again, that an argument of '1' would act as a default response.
Also note that if the script is not triggered (because of too little
money having been given), the mobile still keeps the money...
ROM 2.4 NOTE: Since ROM 2.4 has two different types of currency
(gold and silver coins), for bribe trigger the amount to be given
is converted to silver coins with the rate of 1 gold = 100 silver.
Thus, the number in the argument should be the expected amount in
silver coins.
KILL
Keyword : 'kill'
Argument: number
The argument is a percent once again.
NOTE: This trigger is checked whenever a PC attacks the mobile. The check
occurs only ONCE, in the beginning of combat. Useful for summoning
assistance etc. (See MOB MLOAD).
FIGHT
Keyword : 'fight'
Argument: number
The argument is a percentage.
NOTE: Useful for giving mobiles combat attitude. It is checked every
PULSE_VIOLENCE when the mobile is fighting. Can be used to cast
spells (see MOB CAST), curse at the opponent, or whatever. Only the
first successful one will be processed to save time. Also, this
means that the mobile wont get lucky and 1. curse, cast a fireball
and 2. spit on the player, cast another fireball in the same pulse.
HIT POINT PERCENTAGE
Keyword : 'hpcnt'
Argument: number
The argument is a percentage.
NOTE: Is activated at each PULSE_VIOLENCE when the mobile is fighting. It
checks to see if the hitpoints of the mobile are below the given
percentage. Multiple hpcnt triggers should be listed in increasing
order of percent since a 40% will always be activated before a 20%
and, only the first successful trigger is performed. (See also
MOB FLEE).
DEATH
Keyword : 'death'
Argument: number
The argument is a percent once again.
NOTE: When the mobile dies, if the random percentage is less than the
argument the mobile performs the MOBprogram commands rather than the
usual death_cry() sequence. This is done before the corpse is made,
so the commands can be considered the mobiles last gasp. It could
perhaps destroy the items it was holding (see MOB REMOVE and MOB
JUNK), or create some (see MOB OLOAD), or cast a spell (see MOB
CAST) on the killer and the room, or even goto a new location (see
MOB GOTO) and die there (with a text message, the corpse would seem
to vanish) The position of the mobile is set to STANDING, and so it
can do all the normal commands, without worrying about being DEAD.
However, even if the mobile restores itself to full hitpoints, it
will still die.
This is not a way to immortal mobiles. However, the last thing this
mobile does could be to goto some vacant room, load a fresh version
of itself, drop all its items, force the new mobile to get all the
items and wear them, send the new mobile back to the character who
killed it and force the new mobile to attack that character. Along
with a text message which said the mobile restored itself, this
might be a convincing effect. (Note that your kitten could turn into
a dragon this way too).
DELAY
Keyword : 'delay'
Argument: number
The argument is a percentage chance.
NOTE: This trigger activates when the delay of a mobile (set with the
MOB DELAY command) expires. This trigger can be used to create
staged mobile behavior, for example, a guardian could see a
player entering a room, give a warning and activate a delay.
If the player is still present when the delay expires, the
guard would attack the player. (See also MOB REMEMBER).
A mobile can have several delay triggers, but every time the
delay timer expires, all the triggers are checked and the first
successful one executed.
SURRENDER
Keyword : 'surr'
Argument: number
The argument is a percentage.
NOTE: This trigger activates when the mobile is fighting and the
opponent issues a "surrender" command. When triggered, both parties
will cease fighting, and the mobile can accept the surrender
(perhaps taking all equipment from the character with MOB REMOVE).
Note that if the mobile does not accept the surrender, it must
resume fighting with MOB KILL.
If a character surrenders and the mobile does not have a surrender
trigger, or the trigger does not activate, the fight resumes
normally.
NOTE: No MOBprograms will be successful when the mobile is charmed
(since it has no self volition, it should act like it has none) to protect
mobiles which are given special powers from being implemented by a player.
------------------------------Variables------------------------------------
To make things come alive, variables are needed. These are
represented in the MOBprograms by using a dollar sign convention as in the
socials. When the mud command is processed, these variables are expanded into
the values shown below. Usually, it is best to use the short descriptions
of mobiles and the names of players when speaking them, but if you are
performing an action to someone almost always you want the name. The
title field for players is an extra that probably wont often be used.
Without further hesitation... the variables:
$i the first of the names of the mobile itself.
$I the short description of the mobile itself.
$n the name of whomever caused the trigger to happen.
$N the name and title of whomever caused the trigger to happen.
$t the name of a secondary character target (i.e A smiles at B)
$T the short description, or name and title of target (NPC vs PC)
$r the name of a random PC in the room with the mobile
$R the short description, or name and title of the random PC
$q the name of the MOBprogram target (see MOB REMEMBER)
$Q the short description of the MOBprogram target
$j he,she,it based on sex of $i.
$e he,she,it based on sex of $n.
$E he,she,it based on sex of $t.
$J he,she,it based on sex of $r.
$k him,her,it based on sex of $i.
$m him,her,it based on sex of $n.
$M him,her,it based on sex of $t.
$K him,her,it based on sex of $r.
$l his,hers,its based on sex of $i.
$s his,hers,its based on sex of $n.
$S his,hers,its based on sex of $t.
$L his,hers,its based on sex of $r.
$o the first of the names of the primary object (i.e A drops B)
$O the short description of the primary object
$p the first of the names of the secondary object (i.e A puts B in C)
$P the short description of the secondary object
Also, in if_checks, the accepted variables are the basic ones
(i,n,t,r,o,p,q). If a variable is referenced that doesnt exist, then the
value is simply left blank or replaced with "someone"/"something" in
output (i.e referring to $o when the trigger is: A kisses B)
If variable $q has not been defined, it is automatically set to the
last player that has triggered the program being executed (i.e. variable $n).
Once $q has been defined, it can be modified with MOB REMEMBER and MOB
FORGET commands in a program. Variable $q lets the mobile "remember" a player
across different programs, which can be useful. Note that $q is set
automatically only the FIRST TIME the mobile executes a program, every time
thereafter it must be set with MOB REMEMBER.
The only problem with the variables is that the secondary object and
the secondary target are passed by act() in the same location. This means that
if you reference $t in an A puts B in C situation, the result will probably
be a happy mud crash or some weird side effect, espescially if $t is used in
an if_check (i.e. if isnpc($t) in the above situation) The basic fix for this
is to change everyone who calls the act() procedure to specify a secondary
object and a secondary character. But that is a fairly comprehensive trivial
twiddle, so we left it the way it is so that, you arent forced to make all
those twiddles to use the MOBprograms.
---------------------------Control Flow Syntax------------------------------
In place of any legal mud command in a MOBprogram, one can substitute a
flow of control command. Here is the syntax for a flow of control command.
The parts between [ and ] are optional.
"if" " " {if_check_1} {argument} [ {operator} {value} ] NL
[ "or" " " {if_check_2} {argument} [ {operator} {value} ] NL ]
[ "or" " " {if_check_N} {argument} [ {operator} {value} ] NL ]
. . .
[ "and" " " {if_check_N} {argument} [ {operator} {value} ] NL ]
[ "and" " " {if_check_N} {argument} [ {operator} {value} ] NL ]
. . .
[ {program_command_1} NL ]
[ {program_command_2} NL ]
. . .
[ "break" NL ]
. . .
[ {program_command_N} NL ]
[ "else" NL ]
[ {program_command_1} NL ]
[ {program_command_2} NL ]
. . .
[ "break" NL ]
. . .
[ {program_command_N} NL ]
"endif" NL
Basically, it is: an 'if' line, followed by zero or more 'or' lines,
followed by zero of more 'and' lines ('and' and 'or' lines can be in any order)
followed by zero or more legal mud commands, which may contain a 'break' line,
possibly followed by an 'else' line , followed by zero or more legal mud
commands, which may contain a 'break' line, followed by an 'endif' line.
The only new syntax labels are all in the IF/OR/AND line:
--Explanations
An IF_CHECK is a string which describes under what context to compare things.
The ARGUMENT is the reference point from which the LHS of an expression comes.
The OPERATOR indicates how the LHS and RHS are going to be compared.
The VALUE is the RHS of the expression to be compared by the operator.
The BREAK command bails out of the entire MOBprogram regardless of the
level if nesting. (END is a synonym for BREAK).
If that looks confusing, skip to the end of the document and review the
examples. Hopefully that should clear things, otherwise you'll probably have
to give me a mail since examples are the best way I know to explain syntax.
--------------------------------Operators-----------------------------------
Most of the basic numeric operators are legal and perform the same
function as in C.
Operators: == != > < >= <=
------------------------If_Checks In Control Flow---------------------------
The provided list of if_checks and their arguments are below. They
should all be fairly obvious in what they do, but some of the more obtuse
deserve a slight explanation. Any '==' operator can be replaced with any of
the available ones described above. The argument $* refers to any of the
variables which make sense for that if_check (i.e. for an if_check which is
referencing a person the only valid variables would be $i, $n, $t, $r or $q)
A value type of string is a sequence of characters. It does not need to be
included in quotes or anything like that (i.e. if name $n fido )
There are five types of if checks:
Type 1: Keyword and value
rand num Is random percentage less than or equal to num
mobhere vnum Is a NPC with this vnum in the room
mobhere name Is a NPC with this name in the room
objhere vnum Is an object with this vnum in the room
objhere name Is an object with this name in the room
mobexists name Does NPC 'name' exist somewhere in the world
objexists name Does object 'name' exist somewhere in the world
Type 2: Keyword, comparison and value
people == integer Is the number of people in the room equal to integer
players == integer Is the number of PCs in the room equal to integer
mobs == integer Is the number of NPCs in the room equal to integer
clones == integer Is the number of NPCs in the room with the same
vnum as the NPC who activated the program equal
to integer
order == integer Is the order (of several similar NPCs) of the NPC
who activated the trigger equal to integer
hour == integer Is the hour (game time) equal to integer
Type 3: Keyword and actor
isnpc $* Is $* an NPC
ispc $* Is $* a PC
isgood $* Does $* have a good alignment
isneutral $* Does $* have a neutral alignment
isevil $* Does $* have an evil alignment
isimmort $* Is $* an immortal (level of $* > LEVEL_HERO)
ischarm $* Is $* affected by charm
isfollow $* Is $* a follower with their master in the room
isactive $* Is $*'s position > POS_SLEEPING
isdelay $* Does $* have a delayed MOBprogram pending
isvisible $* Is $* visible to NPC who activated the program
hastarget $* Does $* have a MOBprogram target in the room
istarget $* Is $* the target of NPC who activated the program
Type 4: Keyword, actor and value
affected $* 'affect' Is $* affected by 'affect'
act $* 'act' Is $*'s ACT bit 'act' set
off $* 'off' Is $*'s OFF bit 'off' set
imm $* 'imm' Is $*'s IMM bit 'imm' set
carries $* 'name' Is $* carrying object 'name'
wears $* 'name' Is $* wearing object 'name'
has $* 'type' Does $* have object of item_type 'type'
uses $* 'type' Is $* wearing object of item_type 'type'
name $* 'name' Is $*'s name 'name'
pos $* 'position' Is $*'s position 'position' (sleeping etc.)
clan $* 'name' Does $* belong to clan 'name'
race $* 'name' Is $* of race 'name'
class $* 'name' Is $*'s class 'name'
objtype $* 'type' Is $*'s item_type 'type'
Type 5: Keyword, actor, comparison and value
vnum $* == integer Is $*'s virtual number equal to integer
hpcnt $* == integer Is $*'s hitpoint percentage equal to integer
room $* == integer Is vnum of the room $* is in equal to integer
sex $* == integer Is $*'s sex equal to integer
level $* == integer Is $*'s level equal to integer
align $* == integer Is $*'s alignment equal to integer
money $* == integer Does $* have money (in silver) equal to integer
objval# $* == integer Is $*->value[#] equal to integer (# from 0-4)
NOTE: The original MERC 2.2 MOBprograms used parenthesis '(' and ')'
around variables. In this version, they are not allowed. Also,parameters
MUST BE separated with spaces (if level $n<10 is NOT valid, correct syntax
is: if level $n < 10).
------------------------New Commands Of Interest-----------------------------
1. GENERAL COMMANDS
Syntax: SURRENDER
This command can be issued in combat. If the one giving the command
is a PC and the opponent is a NPC, the NPC will be checked for
a surrender trigger. If the trigger activates, the fight will be
terminated. Otherwise the combat will resume normally. Note that
the mobile can resume the combat in the MOBprogram (see MOB KILL).
If anyone (PC or NPC) surrenders to a PC, the combat will terminate.
The PC can resume the combat with 'kill' command.
With this command, and the use of surrender trigger, non-lethal
combat can be implemented (arenas etc.).
2. DIAGNOSTIC COMMANDS
These two new commands are available to immortal players.
Syntax: MPSTAT [mobile]
Displays the triggers and MOBprogram vnums defined for the mobile.
Syntax: MPDUMP [vnum]
Displays the MOBprogram code of given vnum.
3. MOBCOMMANDS
MOBcommands are special commands that allow mobiles to perform
immortal-like actions within a MOBprogram (transferring players or loading
items, for example). Most MOBcommands them are wiz commands which have been
changed to allow for mobiles to perform the commands. In this version of
MOBprograms, players have been prevented from using these commands by adding
a separate interpreter for MOBcommands. This also speeds up (in most cases)
MOBprogram execution when MOBcommands are used. All MOBcommands are
preceded with the word 'MOB' on the command line.
Syntax: MOB ASOUND [string]
MOB ZECHO [string]
MOB GECHO [string]
ASOUND prints the text string to the rooms around the mobile in the
same manner as a death cry. This is really useful for powerful
aggressives and is also nice for wandering minstrels or mobiles like
that in concept.
ZECHO prints the string to all players in the same area with the
mobile. GECHO prints the string to all players in the game.
Syntax: MOB ECHO [string]
MOB ECHOAT [victim] [string]
MOB ECHOAROUND [victim] [string]
ECHO displays the string to everyone in the room. ECHOAT displays
the string to the victim only. ECHOAROUND displays the string to
everyone except the victim.
The three options let you tailor the message to goto victims or to do
things sneaky like having a merchant do:
mob at guard mob echoat guard rescue_please
This coupled with a guard act trigger on rescue_please to:
mob goto $n
mob echo $I has arrived.
It is an affective way of quickly bringing guards to the scene of
an attack. (Note that the merchant has to be the only one of its
kind in the game or have a unique name, otherwise the guard might
go to different mobile...).
Syntax: MOB MLOAD [vnum]
MOB OLOAD [vnum] [level] {'room'|'wear'}
MLOAD creates a mobile and places it in the same room with the
mobile.
OLOAD loads the object into the inventory of the mobile. Even if the
item is non-takable, the mobile will receive it in the inventory.
This lets a mobile distribute a quest item or load a key or something.
The optional 3rd parameter can be specified; 'room' means to load
the object to the room, 'wear' means to force the mobile to wear
the object loaded (useful for equipping mobiles on the fly).
Syntax: MOB KILL [victim]
Lets a mobile kill a player without having to murder. Lots of
MOBprograms end up with mpkill $n commands floating around. It
works on both mobiles and players.
Syntax: MOB FLEE
Causes a mobile to unconditionally flee from combat. Can be used
for example with the hit point percentage trigger to simulate
"wimpy" behavior.
Syntax: MOB REMOVE [victim] [vnum|'all']
Lets the mobile to strip an object of given vnum from the victim.
Objects removed are destroyed. If the vnum is replaced with "all",
the whole inventory of the victim is destroyed. This command is
probably most useful for extracting quest items from a player
after a quest has been completed.
Syntax: MOB JUNK [object]
Destroys the object refered to in the mobile's inventory. It prints
no message to the world and you can do things like junk all.bread or
junk all. This is nice for having janitor mobiles clean out their
inventory if they are carrying too much (have a MOBprogram trigger on
the 'full inventory')
Syntax: MOB PURGE [argument]
Destroys the argument from the room of the mobile. Without an argument
the result is the cleansing of all NPC's and items from the room with
the exception of the mobile itself. However, mppurge $i will indeed
purge the mobile, but it MUST be the last command the mobile tries to
do, otherwise the mud cant reference the acting mobile trying to do the
commands and bad things happen.
Syntax: MOB AT [location] [command]
Perfoms the command at the designated location. Very useful for doing
magic slight of hand tricks that leave players dumbfounded.. such as
metamorphing mobiles, or guard summoning, or corpse vanishing.
Syntax: MOB GOTO [location]
Moves the mobile to the room or mobile or object requested. It makes
no message of its departure or of its entrance, so these must be
supplied with echo commands if they are desired.
Syntax: MOB TRANSFER [victim|'all'] [location]
MOB GTRANSFER [victim] [location]
MOB OTRANSFER [object] [location]
Sends the victim to the destination or to the room of the mobile as a
default. if the victim is "all" then all the characters in the room
of the mobile are transfered to the destination. Good for starting
quests or things like that. There is no message given to the player
that it has been transfered and the player doesnt do a look at the
new room unless the mob forces them to.
Gtransfer works like transfer, except that the group the victim
belongs to is transferred with the victim. Otransfer transfers an
object in the room.
Syntax: MOB FORCE [victim|'all'] [command]
MOB GFORCE [victim] [command]
MOB VFORCE [vnum] [command]
Forces the victim to do the designated command. The victim is not told
that they are forced, they just do the command so usually some mpecho
message is nice. You can force players to remove belongings and give
them to you, etc. The player sees the normal command messages (such as
removing the item and giving it away in the above example) Again, if
the victim is "all" then everyone in the mobiles room does the command.
Gforce works like force except that it affects the group the victim
belongs to.
Vforce affects all mobiles with given vnum in the game world. This
is useful for, for example, purging certain type of NPCs from the
game (by forcing them to purge themselves).
Syntax: MOB CAST [spell] [victim]
Lets the mobile to cast spells. Beware, this does only crude validity
checking and does not use up any mana. All spells are available
regardless of the race or other abilities of the mobile. Casting the
spell occurs silently, but spell effects are displayed normally.
Syntax: MOB DAMAGE [victim|'all'] [min] [max] {lethal}
Causes unconditional damage to the victim. Specifying "all" as
victim causes damage to all characters in the room except the mobile.
Min and max parameters define the minimum and maximum amounts of
damage caused. By default, the damage is non-lethal, but by supplying
the optional 'lethal' parameter, the damage can kill the victim.
This command is silent, you must echo all messages yourself in the
program. Useful for implementing special attacks for mobiles.
Syntax: MOB DELAY
MOB CANCEL
MOB DELAY sets the time in PULSE_MOBILE after which the mobile's
delay trigger is activated. If the mobile has a program defined
for delay trigger, the program is executed when the timer expires.
MOB CANCEL resets the delay timer.
Syntax: MOB REMEMBER [victim]
MOB FORGET
This command enables the mobile to remember a player for future
reference in a MOBprogram. The player can subsequently be referred
as '$q' in programs activated by the mobile. MOB FORGET clears
the target. Note that if the first time the mobile runs a program,
$q is automatically set to the player who triggered the event.
Most commonly this command is used in delayed programs, where the
mobile has to remember the player who triggered the original
event, for example to continue conversation.
Syntax: MOB CALL [vnum] {victim} {target1} {target2}
This command lets you call MOBprograms from within a running one,
i.e. to call a MOBprogram subroutine. The first parameter is the
vnum of the program to execute, the second is the victim's name
(for example $n), and the third and fourth are optional object
names. All other parameters except vnum can be replaced with
word 'null' indicating ignored parameter.
MOBprograms can be called recursively, but as a safety measure,
parser allows only 5 recursions.
--------------------------Regarding CPU Slowdown-------------------------------
In the original MERC 2.2 MOBprogram documentation Nata'sha and Kahn wrote:
"We have no real idea how slow this makes a mud. However, you will
find that if you are judicious with your use of MOBprograms, you can either
do little damage, or even reduce the effort on your server! This means that
mobile polling (including the rand_progs) need only be checked when players
are around. This reduces computation of random_stuff a little, but it is
still a polling method, and subject to a basic inefficiency there. However,
aside from the rand_progs, the only additional slowdowns will be when the
mobile is responding to the situation, and you would get that from a special
procedure as well (although MOBprograms are surely not as efficient as
compiled C code)"
I have used MOBprograms extensively in my own mud without adverse
effects. This version of MOBprograms polls random triggers only when there
are players in the area, so the load is kept to minimum. I would venture
to claim that in most cases, line lag will exceed machine lag even with
ample and complex use of MOBprograms.
--------------------------Loading Mobiles and Objects--------------------------
No doubt you want to load objects and mobiles in your MOBprograms
with "mob oload" and "mob mload". There are two problems connected to this.
One is that mloaded mobiles will appear without equipment and the
other is that it is difficult to keep track of the number of created
mobiles and objects.
If you want to mobiles to appear in your area as a result of the
players' action, create a "storage room". Define resets for the mobiles
as usual (equipment etc.) and place them in the storage room. When you
need to use the mobiles, just "mob transfer" them to the location you
want. This is better than creating mobiles on the fly, since you don't have
to worry about creating too many mobiles or equipping them, area resets
take care of all that.
If you have a MOBprogram that creates new mobiles, you might want
to make the mobiles "self-destructing". This is easiest to do with a random
trigger that checks if the mobile is doing anything useful and possibly does
'mob purge $i'.
Another possibility is to use a "purgemaster". Create a storage
room with a single mobile. Attach a random trigger that does 'mob purge'
to that mobile. Now, when you need to get rid of anything, just 'mob
transfer' the mobile or item to purgemaster, and it will be destroyed
sometime later.
-------------------------Miscellaneous Information-----------------------------
There is really no limit to the number of MOBprograms a given mobile
can have. However, the length of a single command block is limited by the
value of MAX_STRING_LENGTH. In my version it was around 4k, so that is
probably about 100 lines. The indentation spaces shown in the example
above are NOT required, but do make it easier to read (and debug). HOWEVER,
all spaces and indentations are loaded into memory as a part of the
program, so you're using up memory unnecessarily. Memory usage can also be
reduced by using subroutines (see MOB CALL).
It IS possible to accidentally make mobiles which can trigger in
loops. Infinite loops have been prevented, but in case of a loop, the mobile
behavior is undefined.
The list of variables and triggers and if_checks will grow
continuously as mud creators demand the ability to do certain things. If you
have a request or if you have a new one, I don't mind hearing about them,
and if you find bugs, I shall gladly attempt to squash them for you. As
additions or fixes are made, the code will occasionally be redistributed.
However, if you want a current version, please feel free to ask. When the
code is redistributed, a file containing the change history from the original
release will be provided (when possible) to allow you to patch in the changes
with low grief.
----------------------------------Credits-----------------------------------
The reason this code was written was to enhance the playing
experience at ThePrincedom (a Merc 2.0 based world scheduled to open in
October 1993)
The original idea for this type of MOBprogram came from playing on:
WORLDS of CARNAGE, a dikumud implemented by Robbie Roberts and Aaron Buhr.
Aaron (known as Dimwit Flathead the First) was the original author from what
I have been told, and I hope he will not be totally offended and angered
by my coding and sharing a mimicked version with the world. This version
is probably not as good as the original and I do feel remorse for publishing
the idea. However, since Carnage has been down for months without a word of
information regarding its return, I am glad to let one of the best features
live on in future generations of MUDs.
There are no objections to this code being shared, since, aside from
a nuclear destruction of all the Temples of Midgaard (excepting the original
one!!), bland mobiles are the greatest bane of Dikumuds today. It would be
nice to get a message saying you are using the code just for our references.
We shant answer questions from anyone until told where they are using the
code. *grin* Since this code is not copyrighted, you of course dont have to
do anything we say, but it would be nice of you to put the mobprog help
screen into your database. and have mobinfo show up somewhere on a more
visable help screen (possibly tagged onto the bottom of credits as a see
also...)
I acknowledge all the work done by the original Diku authors as well as
those at Merc Industries and appreciate their willingness to share code.
Also, quick thanks to Wraith for doing a little beta-installation testing.
N'Atas-Ha June, 1993
natasha@gs118.sp.cs.cmu.edu
In addition to this DOC file credit section, I'd like to add
a thank you to Yaz, Mahatma, Zelda, and the rest of the 4th Realm crew for
extensively testing MOBProgram 2.1 for me. You may see MOBPrograms in
action as well as their own "flavor" of mud at marble.bu.edu 4000.
Kahn Oct 28th, 1993
MERC Industries
This driver was rewritten by me in summer '95. I also added
room and object programs (not in ROM 2.4 version). While I acknowledge the
skill and insight of the above people who conceived the original MOBprogram
idea, they should not be held responsible in any way for this release.
I can't promise I will be able to support this code in the future, use at your
own risk. However, if you're using this code, and/or have bug reports or
improvements, I'd be glad to hear from you. The revised MOBprograms can be
seen in action at Imperium Gothique, mud.pitek.fi 4000. This code may be
freely used and distributed, but some favorable publicity (such as having
my name appended to your in-game credits) would encourage me to develop
this software.
Newt@Imperium Gothique May 1995-Jan 1996
mn54196@uta.fi (am I lazy or what?)
===================CUT HERE FOR QUICK REFERENCE SHEET========================
MOBprogram quick reference to triggers/variables/ifchecks/mobcommands
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Area file format
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
#MOBILES
M {trigger} {program vnum} {argument}~
#MOBPROGS
#{program vnum}
{program code}~
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
trigger argument and what must happen to activate trigger
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
act STRING to match from act() to mobile
speech STRING to match in dialogue (say, tell) to mobile
rand PERCENT chance to check whenever a PC is in the mobiles zone
bribe INTEGER miminum amount of silver coins given to mobile
give OBJECT NAME, OBJECT VNUM or ALL to match when obj given to mobile
greet PERCENT chance to check if visible char enters mobile's room
grall PERCENT chance to check when any char enters mobile's room
entry PERCENT chance to check when mobile moves to a new room
exit EXIT NUMBER a visible char tries to exit mobile's room
exall EXIT NUMBER any char tries to exit mobile's room
kill PERCENT chance to check when the mobile begins fighting
fight PERCENT chance to check at fight_pulse if mobile is fighting
hpcnt PERCENT lower than mobile's hit/max_hit if mobile is fighting
death PERCENT chance to check after mobile has been slain
surr PERCENT chance to activate when a char surrenders to mobile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
variable mobile actor victim random target object 2nd_object
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
name $i $n $t $r $q $o $p
shrt_desc/title $I $N $T $R $Q $O $P
he/she/it $j $e $E $J $X -- --
him/her/it $l $m $M $L $Y -- --
his/hers/its $k $s $S $K $Z -- --
a/an -- -- -- -- -- -- --
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
ifcheck argument(s) meaning
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
rand num Is random percentage less than or equal to num
mobhere vnum Is a NPC with this vnum in the room
mobhere name Is a NPC with this name in the room
objhere vnum Is an object with this vnum in the room
objhere name Is an object with this name in the room
mobexists name Does NPC 'name' exist somewhere in the world
objexists name Does object 'name' exist somewhere in the world
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
people == integer Is the number of people in the room equal to integer
players == integer Is the number of PCs in the room equal to integer
mobs == integer Is the number of NPCs in the room equal to integer
clones == integer Is the number of NPCs in the room with the same
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
isnpc $* Is $* an NPC
ispc $* Is $* a PC
isgood $* Does $* have a good alignment
isneutral $* Does $* have a neutral alignment
isevil $* Does $* have an evil alignment
isimmort $* Is $* an immortal (level of $* > LEVEL_HERO)
ischarm $* Is $* affected by charm
isfollow $* Is $* a follower with their master in the room
isactive $* Is $*'s position > POS_SLEEPING
isdelay $* Does $* have a delayed MOBprogram pending
isvisible $* Is $* visible to NPC who activated the program
hastarget $* Does $* have a MOBprogram target in the room
istarget $* Is $* the target of NPC who activated the program
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
affected $* 'affect' Is $* affected by 'affect'
act $* 'act' Is $*'s ACT bit 'act' set
off $* 'off' Is $*'s OFF bit 'off' set
imm $* 'imm' Is $*'s IMM bit 'imm' set
carries $* 'name' Is $* carrying object 'name'
wears $* 'name' Is $* wearing object 'name'
has $* 'type' Does $* have object of item_type 'type'
uses $* 'type' Is $* wearing object of item_type 'type'
name $* 'name' Is $*'s name 'name'
pos $* 'position' Is $*'s position 'position' (sleeping etc.)
clan $* 'name' Does $* belong to clan 'name'
race $* 'name' Is $* of race 'name'
class $* 'name' Is $*'s class 'name'
objtype $* 'type' Is $*'s item_type 'type'
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
vnum $* == integer Is $*'s virtual number equal to integer
hpcnt $* == integer Is $*'s hitpoint percentage equal to integer
room $* == integer Is vnum of the room $* is in equal to integer
sex $* == integer Is $*'s sex equal to integer
level $* == integer Is $*'s level equal to integer
align $* == integer Is $*'s alignment equal to integer
money $* == integer Does $* have money (in silver) equal to integer
objval# $* == integer Is $*->value[#] equal to integer (# from 0-4)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
MOBcommand argument_list MOBcommand argument_list
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASOUND [text_string] ECHO [text_string]
GECHO [text_string] ZECHO [text_string]
ECHOAT [victim] [text_string] ECHOAROUND [victim] [text_string]
MLOAD [vnum] OLOAD [vnum] [level] {wear|room}
KILL [victim] FLEE
REMOVE [victim] [vnum] MOB JUNK [object]
PURGE [argument] AT [dest] [command]
GOTO [dest] TRANSFER [victim] [dest]
GTRANSFER [victim] [dest] OTRANSFER [object] [dest]
FORCE [victim] [command] GFORCE [victim] [command]
VFORCE [vnum] [command] CAST [spell] [victim]
DAMAGE [victim] [min] [max] {lethal}
DELAY CANCEL
REMEMBER [victim] FORGET
CALL [vnum] [victim] [target1] [target2]
======================END OF QUICK REFERENCE SHEET===========================
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ EXAMPLES ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In #MOBILES:
M act 1000 pokes you in the ribs.~
In #MOBPROGS:
#1000
if isnpc $n
chuckle
poke $n
break
else
if level $n <= 5
or isgood $n
tell $n I would rather you didnt poke me.
else
if level $n > 15
scream
say Ya know $n. I hate being poked!!!
if mobhere guard
mob force guard kill $n
endif
kill $n
break
endif
slap $n
shout MOMMY!!! $N is poking me.
endif
endif
~
Ok.. time to translate.. the trigger will only happen when the mobile
gets the message "... pokes you in the ..." If the offender (recall
the $n and $N refer to the char who did the poking...) is an NPC, then
the mobile merely chuckles and pokes back. If the offender was a PC
then good and low level characters get a warning, high level chars
get attacked, and midlevel chars get slapped and whined at.
Also, when attacking, the mobile will check if there are guards in the
room (if mobhere guard) and if one is found, it will be forced to
attack the player, too (mob force guard mob kill $n). Notice the
use of a MOBcommand "mob force".
Note that two of these mobiles could easily get into an infinite poke
war which slows down (or frequently crashes) the mud just a bit :(
Be very careful about things like that if you can. (i.e dont respond
to a poke with a poke, and try not to let heavily programmed robot mobiles
wander around together. More on that is given above.)
Also, it is clear that the 'order' command could get confused with the 'or'
control flow. However, this is only the case when 'order' is abbreviated to
its two letter form, and placed immediately following an 'if' line. Thus,
if you want to be that malicious in trying to break the MOBprogram code,
noone is going to stand in your way (However, the result of this would be
a bug message and a bail out from the ifcheck so things dont really break)
Another example:
This program could be used on a temple guardian mobile, whose job is to
prevent evil characters from entering the sanctuary. Let's assume
the exit to the temple is north (exit 0) and the temple antechamber is
room 2301
In #MOBILES
M exit 1001 0
In #MOBPROGS
#1001
if isgood $n
say Hail!
emote salutes $n.
if carries $n holy
mob transfer $n 2301
else
say If you wish to enter the temple, get a holy symbol.
endif
else
curse $n
say Get lost, you scum!
endif
~
How this works: The trigger is activated when the player tries to exit
north from the room. If the player is of good alignment, the guard will
greet the player. However, the guard will not let the player to the
temple unless he or she carries a holy symbol. If the player is neutral
or evil, the guard will curse and block the way.
Example of using DELAY and REMEMBER:
In #MOBILES
M greet 1002 100
M delay 1003 100
In #MOBPROGS
#1002
if isevil $n
say You infidel! Go away or face the wrath of mighty Mota!
mob remember $n
mob delay 10
break
endif
~
#1003
if hastarget $i
growl
mob echo $I screams and attacks $Q.
mob kill $q
else
mob forget
endif
~
How this works: When the player enters a room, the mobile checks if the
player is evil. If this is the case, the mobile makes the player the
target (mob remember) and sets up a delay of 10 * PULSE_MOBILE.
When the delay expires, program #1003 is activated. The mobile checks
if the target is still in the room (hastarget), and if the player hasn't
left, the mobile attacks ($q and $Q refer to the target). If the player
has left, the mobile will forget the player (mob forget).
Example of MOB CALL:
In #MOBILES:
M greet 1004 100
In #MOBPROGS:
#1004
if isgood $n
mob call 1005 $n null null
else
mob call 1006 $n null null
endif
~
#1005
mob echo Suddenly, a bright aura surrounds $I!
mob cast 'heal' $n
~
#1006
mob echoat $n $I points $l finger at you in fury!
mob echoaround $I points $l finger at $N in fury!
mob cast 'curse' $n
~
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++