So, lately I've been working on the DoTs/HoTs mentioned in the previous entry, as well as the framework for ground effects: ignited ground, lava, etc... And in the process I have yet again stumbled upon exactly how weird a turn-based game really is; or, at least, one done in the manner in which I am making this one.

Here's the setup: Goblinson Crusoe is built on an Action Points-based turn system. A Turn consists of 10 Rounds. Each Turn, all entities that want to act are gathered into a list, then each are given an opportunity to act for 10 Rounds. Moving, casting spells, attacking, harvesting loot, etc... these all consume Action Points until all points are used up, or until the unit chooses to end its turn early, at which point the next unit in line is given the chance to act. When all units have acted, the next Turn is started. So, while the units perform their actions consecutively, the abstraction is that these actions are ostensibly happening "at the same time". That's the weirdness of a turn-based game. You take a turn, then I take a turn, but it's supposed to be like these turns happen all at the same time. The abstraction really breaks down upon analysis, and there's really no way to make it better outside of moving it to a real-time simulation.

One way that this flawed abstraction bit me in the ass is with these DoTs/HoTs and ground effects. You see, in this system, time only really passes for a unit if that unit actually acts during a Turn. For example, control passes to the player who moves 10 hexes. That's 10 rounds worth of time, and at each step an event is fired to indicate a round has passed. DoTs, HoTs and time-based ground effects wait for these events in order to know when to do their thing. After all, you can't have an over-time effect without the "over time" part.

The problem I ran into is that while mobs such as enemies, GC, GC's minions, etc... are all active, acting objects, some things that otherwise can take damage are not. Things such as walls and doors, which have no active combat capability. They block tiles until destroyed, that's it. And the weirdness that resulted is that these units were effectively immune to DoTs. No time passed for them, so no ticks of damage were ever applied.

That's not what I wanted. I mean, obviously, a burn effect should burn a wooden door down.

It took a little bit of figuring to come up with a workaround that didn't completely break the system. The workaround is that walls and doors and such ARE active objects, but they have a different aggro component and an ai controller that does only one thing: ends its turn. The normal aggro component collects damage events and tracks them according to various damage sources, and if any damage was taken or any proximity events occurred, it signals that the unit is ready and willing to act that Turn. The fortification aggro component, however, only tracks DoT/HoT and ground effect events. If any of those are applied to the unit, then the unit wants to act. If they all expire, then the unit no longer wants to act. In the case of fortifications, "acting" means to simply end it's turn without doing anything. End Turn will cancel out any remaining Action Points, add them up, and send off a Time Passed event for the amount remaining, meaning that an entire 10 Rounds worth of time will be sent for the unit at once. The result is that if any fortification is hit for periodic damage in a Turn, then the camera will pan briefly to that unit while the damage numbers tick off, then will move on.

It doesn't really feel optimal, but I guess it's about the best I can do. The turn-based system in GC is fairly zippy, and simulation speed can be increased if desired, but it's still not great that the player has to spend some few seconds of a combat Turn watching DoTs hit all of the walls engulfed by the last Inferno spell he cast. But still, it seems to work okay.

It's always nice when I get these relatively large, relatively unbroken blocks of time in which to get things done. And it's always sad when they come to an end. Night shifts at work start tonight, and I'm working some extra days in the next couple weeks, so this thing'll probably be put back on the back burner once again. :(