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New FF6 hack in discussion...thanks for any feedback.

#21
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I actually don't know if the softlock is caused by Setzer's intro. I know that there IS a softlock possible using the saves in the save archive, having to do with Setzer's letter respawning in Owzer's Mansion, and players reading it without both Locke and Celes in the party.

The 2 things that the Editor Restoration does is:
1. Restores WoR Vargas event code after saving in FF3usME. This code is actually free space at the end of the dialog pointers code, but since I don't reach the number of lines where I would need that in DP, FF3usME doesn't detect it as dialog pointers when you load up the rom. If you have added more lines, then you may actually be blowing away your pointers every time you apply the editor restoration patch. You'll need to relocate Vargas's event code to different free space.
2. Restores Leo's theme after saving in FF6LE. The FF6LE map editor tries to place a new compressed minimap in C3, but I am using an edited version of Madsiur's new minimap, which puts a better map in a different part of the rom. When FF6LE tries to save the minimap to "free space", it's actually corrupting Leo's theme, causing the sound to glitch out. It also changes the minimap pointer to point at C3, rather than the location where I actually placed the map.

If this seems drastic... I can't stress enough how full Divergent Paths got. I used almost every spare byte in the 3MB rom. If you take Vargas's code, Leo's theme, and the new minimap and figure out how to relocate them to an expanded bank, you might be able to avoid running the editor restoration patch. I don't remember where all of the pointers are, and I won't have time to look until next Wednesday at the earliest. You will likely be able to find the pointers from looking at the rom map on the wiki though.


Projects:
FFVI: Divergent Paths (Completed) - a complete storyline and gameplay hack of FF6 that adds Leo as a playable character
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#22
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Panda: I actually don't know if the softlock is caused by Setzer's intro. I know that there IS a softlock possible using the saves in the save archive, having to do with Setzer's letter respawning in Owzer's Mansion, and players reading it without both Locke and Celes in the party.

That helps. I need to get in the habit of using new/fresh save files if I'm going to be able to take myself seriously. I know that I can view my work via FF6LE and ZSNES, but I haven't had the gumption to do so yet.

Panda: The 2 things that the Editor Restoration does is:
1. Restores WoR Vargas event code after saving in FF3usME. This code is actually free space at the end of the dialog pointers code, but since I don't reach the number of lines where I would need that in DP, FF3usME doesn't detect it as dialog pointers when you load up the rom. If you have added more lines, then you may actually be blowing away your pointers every time you apply the editor restoration patch. You'll need to relocate Vargas's event code to different free space.
2. Restores Leo's theme after saving in FF6LE. The FF6LE map editor tries to place a new compressed minimap in C3, but I am using an edited version of Madsiur's new minimap, which puts a better map in a different part of the rom. When FF6LE tries to save the minimap to "free space", it's actually corrupting Leo's theme, causing the sound to glitch out. It also changes the minimap pointer to point at C3, rather than the location where I actually placed the map.

That first point is most likely what's happening. I haven't added any lines in terms of adding any new captions/lines, but I have added PLENTY of page breaks (i.e. <EOP>).

Panda: If this seems drastic... I can't stress enough how full Divergent Paths got. I used almost every spare byte in the 3MB rom. If you take Vargas's code, Leo's theme, and the new minimap and figure out how to relocate them to an expanded bank, you might be able to avoid running the editor restoration patch. I don't remember where all of the pointers are, and I won't have time to look until next Wednesday at the earliest. You will likely be able to find the pointers from looking at the rom map on the wiki though.

Well, there's no rush at all. Mind if I get a link to the rom map? I'm positive it's on this site, but... ...

I can see the logic in keeping the rom size 24bit instead of 23bit, though. There's so much more freedom the community will have when they get around to making another FF3 build. I'm glad to hear that the Vargas' code, Leo's theme, and the new minimap can be relocated without breaking the game. That'll have to be a project I sink my teeth into soon. Right now, I want to stick with projects I know I can complete with success.

1. Editing events in Vanilla/TWUE so that Dialog is either skipped, removed, or rerouted to redundant lines without having maptiles glitch on me. There are just a few events that I want to edit in minor ways.

2. Changing a few of the NPC sprites to better reflect the context of a given event. This mostly involves the misuse of the bandit and old man sprites. As an example, I'd like Duncan to show up in the WOB instead of the old man. The player may know who Duncan is, but the fictional characters don't (Edgar, Locke, Terra). Making use of Duncan's sprite adds to the irony of Vargas battling Sabin in the first place. It also adds a wink-wink moment to the player. Sometimes bandits are used instead of far better sprites, IMO.

3. Replacing the ground tiles in the end credits with water tiles.

This should give me practice for my end-goal of adding a script to Divergent Paths. The excitement of the changes you've made and my initial conversations with you inspired me to cross a new and improved FF6 script off my bucket list (by that I mean a script for Vanilla/TWUE). Everything else is just gravy right now.

I'll move generalized hacking questions to this thread from this point onward. I have questions... Many questions.

Oh, speaking of requests! I've been watching some of the tuts the community uploaded on YouTube. The one's involving the COV build seem to be the most instructive. Unfortunately, they're an hour a piece and have NO time stamps. This means chatter between friends needs to be endured. Endured isn't the RIGHT word for it. Can we get some time stamps for the older tuts on YouTube that run close to the hour mark?
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#23
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Has anyone encountered a bug in Zozo where Dadaluma doesn't disappear after he's defeated? I think this is happening due to the fact that I've erased the pink merchant close to the Pub/Cafe. Just checking in. Is this a common bug???
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#24
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Nattak\'d
Many maps have NPCs that have event code tied to them, so if you remove or add an NPC it can change the NPC# associated with them in the order, so you'll need to update any NPCs that are now a different # on the map. For instance Dadaluma is normally NPC #13 ($1D in actuality) on the map, so since you removed the merchant that has a # before him, it would change Dadaluma to be NPC#12 on the map... so his event would need to be updated.

Dadaluma event:

Code:
CA/96A9: 4B    Display dialogue message $042D, wait for button press
               Good day, gentle folks.
               Can I be of service?
               I hate fighting, so I'd better let you pass!
CA/96AC: B8    Set bit $1DC9($4B) [$1DD2, bit 3]
CA/96AE: 4D    Invoke battle, enemy set $45, background $3F (Default for this area), (mosaic effect enabled), (swoosh sound enabled)
CA/96B1: B2    Call subroutine $CA5EA9
CA/96B5: 42    Hide object $1D
CA/96B7: B9    Clear bit $1DC9($4B) [$1DD2, bit 3]
CA/96B9: D7    Clear event bit $1E80($34A) [$1EE9, bit 2]
CA/96BB: 96    Restore screen from fade
CA/96BC: FE    Return

Notice the hide object $1D at CA/96B5? That would need to be changed to $1C since you removed an NPC before it in order.
There are other NPCs that would need to be updated as well, for Zozo, like the dead people on the street which are handled via the map event code at CAEF85. And the jumping between buildings guy... there's a lot of NPC event stuff going on for the Zozo map.

So yeah, when removing or adding NPC to a map, be sure to check if any NPC after the # of the one you remove or add are being used by event code, and adjust their values accordingly.


We are born, live, die and then do the same thing over again.
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#25
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Nice! FF6Tools is really easing me into this whole notion of pointers… Would I be better served by opening this rom in Notebook++ to make the changes you’ve described? I have yet to use that application. But, based on what I’ve discovered using FF6Tools, combined with what I commonly read about on this site, I think I could manage it.

Again, should I make these changes using Notebook++?
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#26
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Nattak\'d
You would use a hex editor, notepad++ isn't used for editing ROM data afaik.
But FF6Tools has an event editor you could also use for this purpose. I've never used FF6Tools for event editing purposes but it'd probably be more user-friendly to figure out if you're not familiar with hex/event editing.


We are born, live, die and then do the same thing over again.
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  • Joshua H. (01-30-2023)

#27
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Welp, I've run into another game-crashing bug. I know it's because I'm deleting sprites, so I'll have to dedicate sprite removal to version 1.1 or 1.2. Removing text boxes, palette swapping sprites, changing sprite images, and reassigning sprite behavior are all fair game. But, removing sprites is just a little beyond me at this time. Might have to wait until Summer for the final draft release.

So, this might be interesting for one of the pros to look into.  I've removed Cid from the airship in WOB and the game plays all the way up to the point where you gain full access to the airship.  Once Setzer says, "The airship is ready."  The screen fades to black and then freezes.  I'm using TWUE as a base for my patch.  Since I'm using FF6tools I should have a ROM map... I'll upload that if requested.
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