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[milo christiansen]

"User/Fix/Vermin Variations" is based on code I found on the forums, I have no idea how it really work (or even if it works at all).

"command and package documentation" refers to the documentation as created by the "godoc" tool for the "dctech/rhino" package, as you have discovered I exported the command documentation to text files already, so no need to go that far unless you really want to know how thing work under the covers.

Anything you have trouble with let me know, I can always write new tutorials

BTW: Scripting is not really needed for most things, the template system is easier to learn and, for most cases, all you really need.

Glad to see someone interested in modding with Rubble, if you make something nice post a link here and I'll add it to one of the first posts and/or include a .webload file for it with Rubble.

[IndigoFenix]

You mentioned rebuilding the powered script for the gnomes in Masterwork.

If you would do that, that would be great.  There are a couple of differences that I would like to retain, though: first off, disabling diagonal and non-90-degree-aligned inputs.  Your system is more flexible, but it's also less intuitive and more prone to mistakes, which I would like to avoid.  The other is keeping in the ability to kill creatures who step on the input tiles, using the machinery as sources of !fun! that could also double up as traps is something I'd like to keep.  Especially with the factory controller making things simpler.

Making the machinery work faster as it is fed more power would be great, although I'm not sure how well the building-hacks system handles that kind of thing.

There are also a few fun machina from the original script, too - the drilling rig, seismograph, and item/creature launcher.  Drilling rig could be tricky (and illogical) without the ability to adjust either its speed or power requirements in-game, though.

I wouldn't expect the Cosmic Gear time warp as a standard plugin, but if you could include a way to make adding new plugins that run special scripts that would be helpful.

Anyway, if you did do this, I'd definitely put it in and credit you for it.

[milo christiansen]

I would be happy to convert everything with the changes you suggest.

Faster with more power would require a custom powered workshop plugin, so if you (or someone else) made one that is possible, but with just building-hacks I can't do that (but like I said, if someone does make a plugin that can do that I would be happy to support it).

Limited input/output locations would be easy to do, consider that taken care of

Mostly what I would is provide the API converted to work with DFHack without the Rubble support stuff and a bunch of basic powered workshops. The drilling rig and other advanced stuff would be your job (but with the provided API to help that would only need a ~100 line script per workshop, with most of that code being boiler plate that can be copied from any other workshop).

It may be a week or two before I am done, I am away from my primary computer until near the end of the week. The next version of building hacks also has some features that I will need/want to make things more user friendly (the ability to run reactions at unpowered powered workshops (for use with setting adjust reactions) for example).

Are there any workshops that you do not want? I have a lot of basic workshops, and some may not fit your idea of how gnomes should be.

Creature injury would also be easy, basically I just need to make it so that if the input search function can not find an item it finds a creature to mutilate instead, simple (that may make a good option for the Rubble version as well!).

No matter what I come up with you will want to make lots of tweaks (your own workshop graphics for example), but that is easier than making something from scratch

[milo christiansen]

I have just discovered that the coming version of the building-hacks plugin will allow modifying the amount of power used/produced on the fly.

(@IndigoFenix: This will not make it possible to work faster with more power, but it should be possible to make the drill use power based on the depth.)

I plan to make workshops that produce power via several means, for example a clockwork key that produces power for a while after you run a reaction and a treadmill that produces power for as long as a creature is on it (with produced power based on the creature size probably).

So expect some awesome new powered stuff with a future Rubble version (just as soon as the new building-hacks is available).

[H995]

"User/Fix/Vermin Variations" is based on code I found on the forums, I have no idea how it really work (or even if it works at all).

"command and package documentation" refers to the documentation as created by the "godoc" tool for the "dctech/rhino" package, as you have discovered I exported the command documentation to text files already, so no need to go that far unless you really want to know how thing work under the covers.

Anything you have trouble with let me know, I can always write new tutorials

BTW: Scripting is not really needed for most things, the template system is easier to learn and, for most cases, all you really need.

Glad to see someone interested in modding with Rubble, if you make something nice post a link here and I'll add it to one of the first posts and/or include a .webload file for it with Rubble.

Thanks for the info!

I've found out that to create new creatures or a completely stand-alone addon the templates are optimal and I don't need to use scripting, but when I need to create an addon that modifies the base (to make fixes or tweaks), I'll need scripting right? For example, I was trying to give wings to dragons and make them fly, I tried to find a way to do this with a template, trying to do the same thing you did with the fix/Whips addon, the problem I found was that creatures don't have a share-object hook like items have shared-item, so rubble was parsing the vanilla dragon creature and not my modified version. After that I opted to use scripting, I just used your user/Cat Damper script as a base and now my dragons can fly.

I would like to know if scripting was indeed necessary to make dragons fly, or if I could have used another method without the need for scripting (I tried adding {SHARED_OBJECT;DRAGON;DEFINITION} to the dragon creature inside the base addon, but it didn't work and I don't like modifying the base addon). I'm asking this because let's say I want to implement the plant fix mod thru rubble, would I need to modify every plant thru scripting? Because in this case it seems more demanding than just adding the modifications manually.

The addons I have created so far are a Wyvern creature and another to make dragons fly, grow faster and to add a limbless wing (so they don’t grab your nose with their wings).

[milo christiansen]

I didn't make shared objects templates for creatures, so yes that is one case where you need to script stuff. Plants all use SHARED_PLANT, so you should be able to use SHARED_OBJECT_ADD, and other templates like that.

Really the only reason why creatures don't have SHARED_OBJECT template is a combination of me being lazy (there are a LOT of creatures) and the fact that back when tileset support was based on SHARED_OBJECT I didn't add support for creature tiles. Since those decisions were made I made an automated way to insert SHARED_OBJECT templates and created a better way to support tilesets. I really should add a SHARED_CREATURE template, may be for 6.3 (if I don't forget).

If you look at the object you want to modify in the base, if it is surrounded by a template named "SHARED_*" then it may be modified or overridden externally without scripts. Keep in mind that if you want to override an object which one to use is determined on a first come/first used basis. So to replace an object your version needs to be parsed first (conventionally by prefixing the file name with "aaa", so a plant file would be "plant_aaa_*.txt"). If all you want to do is add some stuff to the end of the object you can use SHARED_OBJECT_ADD, for an example look at "Libs/Wood Additions", it uses SHARED_OBJECT_ADD to make some changes to the wood material template.

If you want to replace or remove a tag SHARED_OBJECT_REPLACE_TAG and SHARED_OBJECT_KILL_TAG may also come in handy.

All of these template are documented, so it should be easy to find what you need (and if not ask!).

[H995]

Thanks!

Indeed a SHARED_CREATURE would be a great addition.

I have a suggestion. When I first saw this topic I didn't get what rubble was all about, then I just ignored it. Later I found the blast topic and after reading it I was like, "wow, this is a really great tool" then I started to learn blast, however when I saw your posts on the last page of blast topic I gave another chance to rubble so I could try to understand it. After already understanding what blast was all about I could more easily understand rubble. What I'm trying to say is that rubble's first post is a little confusing to people who are not into modding, the tool is not only great for modders but also for anyone who wishes to tweak their DF without really getting into modding itself.
I think you would get more attention if your formatted the first post to look more nice/organized and friendly to non modders, let's look at the beginning of the "Overview":

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

In Rubble many little (and not so little) mods (called addons) are combined and run through a special parser to generate standard Dwarf Fortress raw files.

These addons are, by construction, able to be assembled in many configurations with minimal direct internal dependencies. Most of the time an addon is completely standalone or dependent on only a few common items/materials present in the vanilla raws.

The beauty of this system is two fold: on one hand users have many choices and can construct their own private version of DF with minimal effort, on the other hand modders can make use of the power of Rubble to make installation of their mod automatic and use the template/scripting system to automate most if not all of the more repetitive parts of modding.

This is the first thing a user will see when looking at this topic for the first time, but you already start talking about parsing and dependencies, I think that if you added a more general and simple intro you would get more attention to this amazing tool you have created.

Something like:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Rubble is not only a tool for creating mods but also a kind of mod manager. If you are only interested in installing mods, you can use the GUI to easily install them from a collection of already created mods.
In case you are a modder, this tool has also a series of templates and functions to automate the process of creating a mod, and it has it's own scripting language in case you want to automate some more complex stuff...

Other thing that really helped me understand blast was the three use cases that MagmaMcFry included in his post.

Well, at least that’s what I think would be great, maybe I’m just dumb and couldn't understand on the first time =x (considering english is not my native language).

[milo christiansen]

Hmm... Your way is clearer, I'll have to give the intro more thought. (I tend to be too technical in my writing, even when I try not to)

Thanks for the feedback!

[IndigoFenix]

Excellent.

There was one other difference that I forgot to mention, which was that your factories work very differently, checking for appropriate input items on the input tiles and then immediately converting them into outputs and transferring them to the output tiles.  Mine would pull items into the machine regardless of whether they were appropriate or not, then converted them into an output using a variety of 'rules' and popped them out on the next turn - it could also hold several items inside the machine and combine them in some way.

Part of the reason for this was to include the possibility of players inputting the 'wrong' items and having weird things pop out (the most notable, of course, being when creatures fell into a furniture maker and wound up as furniture made from their bones) and allowed certain machines to have multiple uses (the automatic smelter could either smelt metal or turn organic materials to ash) but certain incorrect inputs would damage the machine and could potentially cause it to explode if abused too much, all in the name of fun.  It also tended to convert things based on the volume of the items, and could add 'decorations' on an output if multiple materials fell in.

At any rate, it's up to you how you prefer to make it, I suppose once the plugin is separated from Rubble (and documented clearly) it could be modified easily enough.

[milo christiansen]

I forgotten about that...

I think it would be best to write an abort function that is called when a factory cannot find what it wants. This function would try to find any item (calling a factory specific "mutilate" function if it finds an item) and if there is no item it looks for a creature to abuse.

Simple, modular, and easy to port any future Rubble powered workshops to work with it (plus I can make it easy to make "dangerous factories" an option for the Rubble version).

This will be a fun project, I can't wait till I get home (only a few more days to go, but till then I have internet, so mixed feelings...)

[milo christiansen]

6.3 is up!

This update is most for the SHARED_CREATURE template, but some other stuff got in as well.

[milo christiansen]

6.4 is up!

This version has the NEW powered workshops!

[milo christiansen]

6.6 is up!

This version fixes some major powered workshop bugs and adds an automated turret workshop!

[milo christiansen]

6.7 is up!

This version has some awesome new stuff, some not so awesome new stuff, and some bug fixes (of course).

[milo christiansen]

6.8 is up and includes some cool new powered workshops and some moderately important bug fixes. Oh, and a Modest Mod base addon!