NWN2 TUTORIALS

NWN2 TOOLSET HOWTO - TRIGGERS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• What is a Trigger?
  
• Placing a Speak Trigger
  
• Area Transition Triggers
  
• Conclusion

WHAT IS A TRIGGER?

Unlike most objects that are placed in the game world, triggers are usually invisible to players. They behave as their name suggests � when a PC crosses the border of a trigger, something happens. A trigger might activate a dialog, spring a trap, or spawn a gang of monsters.

If you have played the Sample Module, �Uninvited Guests,� then you have already encountered a simple trigger. When you first approached Pitney Lannon, your PC entered an invisible speak trigger. This trigger caused Pitney to run toward you and opened his dialog window.

The toolset provides a set of pre-made triggers for quick and easy use. More advanced modders will probably make extensive use of the �generic� trigger, which can activate custom scripts and is highly versatile. For the purposes of this tutorial, however, we will focus on some simple pre-made triggers.

PLACING A SPEAK TRIGGER

A speak trigger opens the dialog window and launches a Conversation file. To place a speak trigger in the world, first open an Area in your module. Then locate the �Blueprints� panel, and select the �Triggers� tab.

Click �SpeakTrigger,� and move your mouse pointer into the Area Viewer. Note that the mouse pointer looks like a crosshairs, instead of an arrow.You will now define the borders of a new SpeakTrigger.

Click once in the Area Viewer to set the first corner of your trigger. Then click another point nearby � a line will be drawn, connecting the two points. Click two more points to define a square or rectangle. Press F2 (or right-click once), and your mouse pointer will return to default mode. A trigger can be any shape. You set as many corners as you like, and the toolset will adjust your trigger�s shape accordingly.

Once you have created a trigger, you can move it around the Area, just like any other placeable object. Click your trigger once, and click-and-drag it wherever you want.

Advanced Topic: Reshaping Triggers

If you don�t like the current shape of a trigger, you can right-click it and select �Repaint Trigger� from the Dropdown Menu. This turns your mouse pointer back into a crosshairs. As soon as you click once in the Area Viewer, your old trigger shape will disappear, and you�ll be able to set a new one. When you Repaint a trigger, any properties that you have already set on that trigger remain unchanged.

Your trigger is now placed in the world, but you will need to set its properties before it will have any in-game effect. Start by selecting (clicking) your trigger. Then take a look at the Properties Panel.

First, be sure that the �Properties� tab is selected. Scroll down to the �Scripts� section. Notice that the On Enter Script is already set to gtr_speak_node. Do not change or delete this script � it provides the basic functionality for a speak trigger.

At the bottom of the �Scripts� section is a line labeled �Variables.� Click the field to the right of the �Variables� label (you should see some boldfaced black text in this field), and a browse button (labeled with ellipses) should appear. Click the browse button to open the Variables window.

You should see nine variables listed in the new window, labeled 0 through 8. Click on each of these to view its settings on the right-hand side of the window. We�ll review the most important of these variables, in turn.

• NPC_Tag. Determines the NPC who will be initiating conversation with the player. Enter this character�s tag in the �ValueString� field. In the sample module, ValueString is set to 01_pitney, which is Pitney Lannon�s tag.
  
• Conversation. The most important field � your trigger will do nothing if this field is left blank. This field specifies the tag of the conversation launched by your trigger. Enter this conversation�s tag in the ValueString field. In the sample module, ValueString is set to 01_pitney, which is the tag of Pitney�s conversation.
  
• Run. Determines whether the NPC will approach your character when the dialog begins. If you set the ValueInt field to 1, the NPC will run to your character. If you set ValueInt to 0, the NPC will walk. If you set ValueInt to -1, the NPC will remain where he is. In the sample module, this variable is set to 1, so that Pitney comes running over to your character as his dialog begins.
  
• TalkNow. Determines whether the dialog starts before the NPC approaches your character. Set the ValueInt field to 1 if you want the dialog to start immediately. Set ValueInt to 0 if you don�t want the dialog to start until the NPC reaches your character. In the sample module, this variable is set to 0, so that Pitney�s dialog doesn�t open until Pitney runs over to your character.
  
• MultiUse. Determines whether the trigger will fire every time a PC enters it, or if it fires only once per game. Set ValueInt to 1 if you want the trigger to fire every time a PC crosses its border. If you leave ValueInt set to 0, the trigger will only fire once. In the sample module, this variable is set to 0, so that Pitney only initiates his conversation the first time the player enters the speak trigger.

After the conversation, the hostile creatures will be returned and game play will continue normally. If you have assigned a conversation tag to the Conversation variable, assigned an NPC tag to the NPC_Tag variable, and made sure that this NPC is placed in your Area, then your speak trigger is ready to test in game! Now that you have learned the basics of placing a trigger, we will discuss another trigger type: the area transition.

AREA TRANSITION TRIGGERS

Place an area transition in the same way as a Speak Trigger. To properly set an area transition so that it will transport players to the area of your choice, first select your area transition trigger, and look at the Properties panel and tab.

Locate the �Behavior� section, and set the following fields:

• Link object type. Determines whether your area transition will send the player to a door or a waypoint. From the dropdown menu, select �Transition to a door� if you want the player to be sent directly to a door object.
  Select �Transition to a waypoint� if you want the player to be sent to a particular placed waypoint. (If you select �No Transition,� then your area transition will do nothing.)
  
  
• Linked to. Sets the tag of the door or waypoint destination. [Note: You must be certain that this tag matches the tag of your door or waypoint exactly, and that this door or waypoint is actually placed somewhere in your module.]
  
  
• Party Transition. Determines whether the entire party is sent to the destination door or waypoint. If this field is set to true, the entire party will be transitioned to the new area when any one member of that party enters the area transition trigger.
  If this field is set to false, and a member of the party enters the area transition trigger, that member will be sent to the new area, but the other party members will be left behind. In general, it is a good idea to set this field to True.
  
  
• Localized Name. You can use this field to remind yourself of an area transition�s purpose and/or destination. It is not displayed to players.
  
  If you have set the properties described above, and made certain that your destination door or waypoint is placed somewhere in your module, then your area transition is ready to test in game!
  
  Advanced Topic: World Map

  It is also possible to set up transitions that bring the player to a World Map. The world map is an image that you create that depicts an abstracted map of your entire game world. You can place map points on the map, with an image (such as a city or dungeon icon) associated with each.

  When the player goes to the World Map, they can just select their desired destination and they will transport there instantly. You can even set-up scripts to cause special events to occur when the player travels to certain areas at different points in the adventure.
  
  To experiment with the World Map Editor, go to Plugins  World Map Editor.
  
  The global script gtr_world_map_en is used in the Official Campaign as an OnEnter script for all triggers that serve as World Map transitions.

  CONCLUSION

  Triggers are a useful tool in area design and allow you to create events that happen based upon the location of the player. Now that you�ve completed this HowTo, you should know:
  
  • How to place a trigger in the game world, and how to redraw it, if necessary.
    
  • How to trigger a dialog from a trigger.
    
  • How to use triggers to transition from one Area to another.