VME basic zone writing manual

Ken Perry


Table of Contents
Introduction
Giving Credit Where Credit is Due!
Who should read this book?
What does this book cover?
General Compiler Information
The compiler
The VMC pre-processor
Commenting your zone
Macros and what they can do for you
Including other files in your zone
Doing minor calculations
Zone source file
Definition types
Zone information section
Unit Building Blocks
The Room Section
Description of Room Fields
Building your first room
Compiling and debugging your first room
DIL functions for rooms
A more complex set of rooms
Exits with doors
Locked exits
Hidden exits
Rooms inside of rooms
A room using force move.
A death room
Putting the rooms together
Suggested room exercises
The NPC section
Description of NPC fields
NPC macros
The attack and armour macro
The defense and offense bonus macro
The NPC abilities macro
The NPC weapon and spell macros
Using the composed.h
Building your first NPC
Compiling and debugging your first NPC
DIL functions for NPCs
A More Complex Set of NPCs
Magic Casting NPC
A wandering janitor
Creating a teacher
Guild master functions
NPC banker
Dragon station with rooms and NPCs
Suggested NPC exercises
The objects section
Description of object fields
Object macros
Weapon and armour craftsmanship
Magical modifier
Setting weapon fields
Setting armour fields
Setting shield fields
Setting material types
Drink container macros
The food macros
Light object macro
Container macro
Money macro
Cursed objects macro
Potion, wand, and staff macros
Magical transfer macros
Building your first object
Compiling and Debugging your first object
DIL functions for objects
Restriction functions
Tuborg function
Message board
More complex objects
Making a communication board
Making a container
Creating drinks
Creating food
Making a weapon
Making armour
Making non-armour worn objects
Dragon station with rooms, NPCs, and objects
Suggested object exercises
The reset section
Door resets
Loading objects and NPCs
Special reset functions
The complete directive.
The follow command
The purge command
The random command
The Remove Command
Reset walk through
The complete dragon station
Color and formatting codes
The escape character
Formatting codes
Formatting code descriptions and examples
Color code descriptions and examples
VMC command line options
Reserved keyword listing
Race Definitions in values.h
weapon definitions in values.h
Liquid macros file
Complete magical transfers macros listing
Skill definitions in values.h
Spell definitions in values.h
Index