Suicide attacks, campaign-style

[Machop Fan]

This is my very first post on this forum, so please bear with me.

I'm working on my own campaign in World Editor, using many features the official campaigns have, and I'm currently working on a level where my base has to survive for 20 minutes, much like the Human campaign level, "March of the Scourge".

I've looked through the original levels that have the suicide attacks I'm trying to replicate, and they all have the same trigger: When the timer to start the suicide attack expires, "Send <computer player> the AI command (0,0)".

I tried just that, but nothing happened. I then fiddled around with the AI I'm using, but still can't get the attack to launch on command. Could some kind soul please help me? Thanks in advance!

 

[KaerfNomekop]

Well, AIs are one of the most problematic things to create in maps. I believe that action is only meant for the normal, melee-style AI, which is so limited that any minor changes will mess it up. You'd be better off triggering specific orders, like Train 3 Footmen and Order (Trained Unit) to Attack-Move to Player's Base <gen>.

 

[LurkerAspect]

Welcome to The Helper Machop Fan! The AI editor is either too complicated or too inefficient for most users on this forum, and as such, you'll be hard pressed to find any really useful or in-depth tutorials about the AI editor. What most of us do is make our own AI through custom triggers, so take a look at that as an option. If the surviving player does not every leave their base or do any exploring, then you can simply create groups of suicidal units using triggers at the bad guy's (for example's sake) base, and then order them to attack.

 

[Machop Fan]

I actually had a trigger-based final assault as a placeholder for a while, but I didn't think it was that reliable (I think the units I order to attack-move to my base return to theirs if a new unit is built).

The reason I want to learn how it's done in the AI Editor, however, is because I want my campaign to be as much like the official campaigns as possible (SO glad the Save Game Cache glitch was fixed so I can study their maps directly! )

 

[LurkerAspect]

Well, I'm afraid to tell you that you'll be going that path solo, the rest of us just make our own AI but if it works for you, by all means stick to it maybe when you're done, you can write a tutorial on how to use the AI editor

 

[Machop Fan]

Okay, I've found a way to access the AI's JASS script, and I've also started studying that of an Undead AI. Sadly I've found that the two scripts are largely different. I'm considering copy-pasting the lines in the existing AI regarding the suicide attacks and putting them into my own script, but I'd like to know where in my script they might go, and how I can get it to read certain units that are not in any existing scripts (eg. Skeleton Warrior is SKEL_WARRIOR, but what are the names for Skeleton Archer, Zombie and Dark Ranger?). Plus, I changed my Necromancer unit to a Skeletal Mage, but I don't know if or how that'll affect it in the AI Script.