[DOOM] Pulsating Lights?
Brian Kidby
on this group lately, but I need some help setting up pulsating
lights in a sector of a PWAD I am currently working on.
I've defined the sector (just a small portion of a hallway), my
ceiling texture is one of the TLITE textures, my light level
is 255, and my lighting type is 'Pulsates every two seconds'.
The problem is, when I make a 'walk-through' of the hallway, the
lights don't pulsate! Is there something I'm missing? I've looked
at other wads (stock E1M2, FREEDOM.WAD) and it looks like I'm
doing everything right.
One other thing: When I select "Lights Smoothly Pulsate" (or
whatever it's called. Keyword: Smoothly), the pulsation is
far from smooth. It's actually a blink.
Could someone please tell me what I'm doing wrong? I'm beginning
to think that there's a problem with my DOOM.WAD.
Thanks,
Brian
--
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Kid My thoughts and actions are strictly my own.
the...@ornews.intel.com Do not hold my employers responsible.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Joshua B. L. Fallon
>I know this may sound foreign, considering some of the threads
>on this group lately, but I need some help setting up pulsating
>lights in a sector of a PWAD I am currently working on.
>I've defined the sector (just a small portion of a hallway), my
>ceiling texture is one of the TLITE textures, my light level
>is 255, and my lighting type is 'Pulsates every two seconds'.
>The problem is, when I make a 'walk-through' of the hallway, the
>lights don't pulsate! Is there something I'm missing? I've looked
It pulsates from the level set for the sector, to the light level of the
nearest sector.
>at other wads (stock E1M2, FREEDOM.WAD) and it looks like I'm
>doing everything right.
>One other thing: When I select "Lights Smoothly Pulsate" (or
>whatever it's called. Keyword: Smoothly), the pulsation is
>far from smooth. It's actually a blink.
I think that these got reversed in Deu51. Mine does the same thing. Just
choose the other when you want a smooth pulse.
>Could someone please tell me what I'm doing wrong? I'm beginning
>to think that there's a problem with my DOOM.WAD.
>Thanks,
>Brian
Blue Skies!
Phallus
Dino
Brian writes:
>I've defined the sector (just a small portion of a hallway), my
>ceiling texture is one of the TLITE textures, my light level
>is 255, and my lighting type is 'Pulsates every two seconds'.
>
Lites pulsate from the sector they are in *up* to the neighbouring sector.
Try setting the light level to 128, neighbour 255 (or vice versa if that
still fails to work.)
-Dino.
Jered Floyd
: Brian writes:
What if you have more than one neighboring sector?
--
Jered Floyd
jjf...@vela.acs.oakland.edu
GAT d? -p+ c++++ l+ u++ e*@ m++ s/-- n--- h++ f? g- w++ t+++ r++
PGP Public key available by finger."
Brian Kidby
>Dino (S.Spros...@cs.bham.ac.uk) wrote:
>: Brian writes:
>: >I've defined the sector (just a small portion of a hallway), my
>: >ceiling texture is one of the TLITE textures, my light level
>: >is 255, and my lighting type is 'Pulsates every two seconds'.
>: >
>: Lites pulsate from the sector they are in *up* to the neighbouring sector.
>: Try setting the light level to 128, neighbour 255 (or vice versa if that
>: still fails to work.)
>What if you have more than one neighboring sector?
Just make sure *ALL* adjascent lighting levels are lower than that
of the sector in question. After I got Dino's suggestion, I tried it,
and it works! Again, A.G.D comes to my resue. (I really NEED to get
a copy of the DOOM Specs document. :) )
Brian
>--
>Jered Floyd
>jjf...@vela.acs.oakland.edu
>GAT d? -p+ c++++ l+ u++ e*@ m++ s/-- n--- h++ f? g- w++ t+++ r++
>PGP Public key available by finger."
Eddie Nguyen
here! This wad, the second installment in hopefully a series of wads,
is called TALPOIDA.WAD. It replaces e2m2 and is intended for play after
uca.wad. However, it can certainly be played as a stand-alone as well.
Talpoida is fine-tuned for single player mode, though coop and deathmatch
are supported but untested. UCA was the setup, with you running about
a construction site trying to get into the main section of the base. In
TALPOIDA, you have just gained access, and now, it's up to you to map out
the base. The following is the text file included with the wad, for your
reading pleasure! If you're interested, you can get talpoida and uca at
infant2.sphs.indiana.edu or by emailling me at
angu...@raphael.acpub.duke.edu if you don't have ftp access.
Okay! Here's the text file....
--------------
Months after the event, an excavation crew working in the destroyed
enemy Uca Base recovered a portable log recorder near the former site
of an enemy pulse laser cannon. The recorder was not badly
damaged and easily salvageable. C-Lab's data retrieval revealed
the recorder had belonged to a member of Red Squad, Register Number
RX2432-9 (MIA). Only one log entry was recorded. The following is a
transcript of the complete entry:
Moon, Deimos
Uca Crater
Operation UCA
Mission Time Elapsed 0130
"MTE 0130, Red-Nine, personal log. I think I'll drop protocol, as
the chances of my getting out of here alive and of UAC Central
hearing this entry are very remote. Red Squad touched down at
MTE 008 and we were subsequently ambushed. I can't help but feel
UAC Central knew there was a high probability of this yet sent us
just the same. Damn top brass. I'm stuck in some hellhole with no
air support or ground support. As far as I can tell, I'm the only
member of Red Squad alive. There's no possibility of help from the
terrain squad or the first Drop Squad either - I saw what remained of
them...hanging like trophies in some marble hall. The demons are
here alright. They're swarming everywhere. There's some huge
construction crater just outside the base entrance - I can only
imagine what atrocity the demons are creating.
I tried radio contact, scrambled and secure channel, with the
Gateway just a few minutes ago. I couldn't hail her; the transport
could have been shot down. If she is, I might as well just blow
my brains out right now, since I'm a dead man. I...wait....
[static]
...ok, just damn sentries. I think I triggered some sort of alarm
sneaking through the construction site and into the base. That's
the third group of troopers I've heard march by. They don't
sound too pleased, and I think it's clear they're looking for me. I
don't know how much longer my luck will hold out. If I stay up here
in this teleportation chamber any longer, someone is bound to see me.
Let me just....ugh...
[static]
...Damn it, the lights just completely died for a moment there.
I don't know what's going on, but I can hear something awfully big
powering up south of my position. It's got this chamber shaking and
flickering pretty badly. Better get moving again before some bloody
demon materializes in my face.
Besides, I've got a hunch I know what's out there, south of me. And if
the Gateway is still out there somewhere, I've got a hunch she isn't
coming to rescue my sorry ass...until I do something to make sure she
doesn't end up like that bloody mess, the Aquarius.
This is Red-nine, entry stop. I hope to hell some sorry soul gets
to hear this. And I hope to bloody hell I'm there to hear it again
as well. Over and out."
---------------
Welcome to talpoida.wad, my second wad and a continuation of the
storyline first presented in uca.wad. If you're curious as to what
the full storyline is, then I recommend getting a copy of uca. As for
TALPOIDA, it replaces e2m2 and was constructed using DEU5.1
and BSP1.0. It is fine-tuned for single player mode; multi-
player mode and deathmatch are supported though not tested. Also,
talpoida was designed to be played in succession with uca.wad; you
can certainly play it as a stand-alone, but you may find some of
the fighting situations a little tense without the weapons you
have obtained from uca.wad (of course, you could always use the
cheat codes, but where's the fun in that? :) ).
This wad, and uca.wad, can be found at infant2.sphs.indiana.edu or
by emailling me, Eddie Nguyen, at angu...@raphael.acpub.duke.edu.
I hope you enjoy it. As far as I know, uca and talpoida are
both bug-free. If you spot anything, or if you have any comments or
suggestions, please do email me. I'd love to hear from you! As in
uca, I made this wad as fair as possible while still keeping it
challenging. Of course, it will be a bit harder if you play it as a
stand-alone instead of after uca, but trust me, it's beatable both
ways. I've been able to complete it in about 25 minutes.
If you enjoyed uca and talpoida, look for the third installment of
this storyline sometime in the next month or so.
Happy Hunting!
Patrick Steele
TH>ceiling texture is one of the TLITE textures, my light level
TH>is 255, and my lighting type is 'Pulsates every two seconds'.
TH>The problem is, when I make a 'walk-through' of the hallway, the
TH>lights don't pulsate! Is there something I'm missing? I've looked
TH>at other wads (stock E1M2, FREEDOM.WAD) and it looks like I'm
TH>doing everything right.
I've noticed that the light level in the sectors next to your pulsating
one will have an effect on the pulsating. Basically, if the hallway has
sectors at either end with a very high light level, you won't get much
of a pulsating effect. Try bringing the light level of the other
sectors down and see what happens.
TH>One other thing: When I select "Lights Smoothly Pulsate" (or
TH>whatever it's called. Keyword: Smoothly), the pulsation is
TH>far from smooth. It's actually a blink.
TH>Could someone please tell me what I'm doing wrong? I'm beginning
TH>to think that there's a problem with my DOOM.WAD.
Yeah, I think some of the description in DOOM Spec 1.3 need revision.
That's where all the editor authors got their descriptions (I assume).
If you can document the specific effects of a special sector flag, let
us all know. It'll get to Matt Fell (DOOM Spec author).
patrick...@swcbbs.com
---
* OLX 2.1 TD * DOOM! Play it!
Jeff Cochran
The light level pulsates between the nearest sector in light level and
maximum brightness.
Jeff
* WCE 1.5/2239 *
Jonathan Hensey-Altfeld
=> JF> What if you have more than one neighboring sector?
=> The light level pulsates between the nearest sector in light level and
=> maximum brightness.
=> Jeff
What am I missing here? Reading the above Q/A, I have no further under-
standing of the issue; If there is a center sector with a certain light
level of 100, and three touching/neighboring sectors, each with 110 120
and 130 light levels, and the center is set to smoothly pulsate, what
will happen? How is "nearest" as mentioned above calculated by the engine?
By nearest, do you mean distance from the center of the sector? I doubt it!
By nearest, do you mean closeness in terms of light numbers? I would think
so. Will the center sector's light level of 100 be tossed out for 110, the
nearest neighbor numeric light level? Then the sector will pulsate between
110 and 255?
I am, despite my comfort with other areas of WAD building, getting limited
success with light pulsation. If I want to smoothly pulsate an area, thus
far, my smooth pulsation comes out as jerky light switchiness. Do I have to
set the pulsating sectors light level a certain way first?
Regards & Thanks in advance,
- Jonathan
Chris Hoppe
>What am I missing here? Reading the above Q/A, I have no further under-
>standing of the issue; If there is a center sector with a certain light
>level of 100, and three touching/neighboring sectors, each with 110 120
The 'neiboring' sector is determined by the adjacent sector also sharing
the lowest numbered linedef that has it's right side facing the 'pulsing'
sector. If none of the right sides are facing into this sector, it will
go for the lowest numbered linedef. (This shouldn't be construed as 'law',
but it has followed this rule in all instances in which I have used the
pulsing sector setup. Further testing could prove this as truth, or other
factors which I'm not considering may prove this wrong.)
>and 130 light levels, and the center is set to smoothly pulsate, what
>will happen? How is "nearest" as mentioned above calculated by the engine?
>By nearest, do you mean distance from the center of the sector? I doubt it!
>By nearest, do you mean closeness in terms of light numbers? I would think
No, not in terms of light level, that is irrelevant. And using light levels
that close in value will provide almost no effect, I suggest a minimum
difference of at least 50.
>so. Will the center sector's light level of 100 be tossed out for 110, the
>nearest neighbor numeric light level? Then the sector will pulsate between
>110 and 255?
>I am, despite my comfort with other areas of WAD building, getting limited
>success with light pulsation. If I want to smoothly pulsate an area, thus
>far, my smooth pulsation comes out as jerky light switchiness. Do I have to
>set the pulsating sectors light level a certain way first?
Just make sure you have the sector set to use a linedef tag that is unused
elsewhere (Id used 99 and 999 for this purpose, I suspect any non used number
will work, but I haven't deviated from the above two.)
>Regards & Thanks in advance,
Anytime.
Jonathan Hensey-Altfeld
=> jona...@inference.com (Jonathan Hensey-Altfeld) writes:
=> >I am, despite my comfort with other areas of WAD building, getting limited
=> >success with light pulsation. If I want to smoothly pulsate an area, thus
=> >far, my smooth pulsation comes out as jerky light switchiness. Do I have to
=> >set the pulsating sectors light level a certain way first?
=>
=> Just make sure you have the sector set to use a linedef tag that is unused
=> elsewhere (Id used 99 and 999 for this purpose, I suspect any non used number
=> will work, but I haven't deviated from the above two.)
!!! Whoops. You've caught me embarassed; I didn't know that to make a room's
light smoothly pulsate, I would need to set the sector tag... Argh. OK, Chris,
embarass me again. Where can I find this -- in a tutorial, or some doc? I seem
to have missed it. As to those who have tested 9-to-5.wad and are waiting for me
to finish it up; I was waiting for DEU 5.2, and right after it was released, I
had a hell-week at work. I'm hoping to finish up tonight or this weekend.
C-ya doomers later...
__o o__ o__ o__ o__ There's one
_ \<,_ _.>/ _ _.>/ _ _.>/ _ _.>/ _ in every
(_)/ (_) (_) \(_) (_) \(_) (_) \(_) (_) \(_) crowd....
Jonathan
Chris Hoppe
>=> >I am, despite my comfort with other areas of WAD building, getting limited
>=> >success with light pulsation. If I want to smoothly pulsate an area, thus
>=> >far, my smooth pulsation comes out as jerky light switchiness. Do I have to
>=> >set the pulsating sectors light level a certain way first?
>=>
>=> Just make sure you have the sector set to use a linedef tag that is unused
>=> elsewhere (Id used 99 and 999 for this purpose, I suspect any non used number
>=> will work, but I haven't deviated from the above two.)
>!!! Whoops. You've caught me embarassed; I didn't know that to make a room's
>light smoothly pulsate, I would need to set the sector tag... Argh. OK, Chris,
>embarass me again. Where can I find this -- in a tutorial, or some doc? I seem
>to have missed it. As to those who have tested 9-to-5.wad and are waiting for me
Actually, I found it the good old fasioned way :) By looking at Id's
original levels :) :) Something _ALL_ of you wad creators might want to
try.
For a time I was considering putting together a wad-creation-faq thing,
however, since I've seen at least three people state they are already doing
just this on the doom-editing mailing list, I'll just continue to answer
questions here as I catch them. Consulting is more of my thing anyway. :)
Good luck to all you .WAD creators! (I can't wait to play all of your levels,
this lets me ease up on making mine :D )
One quick thing I'd just like to say to _ALL_ of you out there. I've seen
the level of quality in .WADs jump quickly, and have seen some pretty
amazing things, and I thank you all for sharing your creations with us,
and I've been happy to share my efforts with you. Since the original CROSS
came out, and the dozens of modified E1M1's, I've managed to use up a very
LARGE amount of my HD space :) seems like it's time to go back and sort
through them 250+ wads I've got collecting virtual dust and zap a few to
make room for the influx of Id quality work that's coming my way! 8D
See you around that next corner ;) And keep DOOMing!