modmimic

[bearded]

there is a doc in the ffx folder named this with instructions.
it seems to be saying that i can do a mimic morph into a new power and attribute set and maintain the same mesh. is that right?
if so, i followed the instructions, but it doesn't work. it uses the minteman.nif as a base for the change somehow.
i know i can create rogue_* templates, but i prefer the modmimic way if possible.

[DrMike2000]

That was a nasty hack if I recall...

I think it used a positional marker with a NIF file specified in the map, didn't it? That's asking for trouble, since you may not have the right named animations and so on for the character to work correctly.

e.g. say you have a marker called "pos_rogue" which points to "mymod/special/rogue.nif" as the mesh. You then spawn an instance of "colossus" there, to create a character with Colossus' attributes but Rogue's appearance. Now, if Colossus is set up to use melee_3 for one of his attacks, and Rogue doesn't have that animation, you're a bit rooted. Even if you do have the same named animation, concacts and activation times will be all wrong.

I'd steer clear and use the method where you manually create templates. Its more work, but its robust.

(I came across this one when I accidentally spawned a bunch of microwave robots on some markers that pointed to a fence mesh. They appeared as fences that moved around and fired laser beams.)

[yell0w_lantern]

I tend to stay away from all Mimic setups as I have noticed that once a character uses mimic, it loses its attributes and does not gain them back until the next mission. This was very problematic with Rogue losing her invulnerabiliyty.

[bearded]

that's odd. my rogue does not lose any attributes. ffx or otherwise.
and thank you to drmike, that 'hack' is genius. with your tips here i figured out how to get it going. i had to swap out def morph2 with def mimicmorph2 in a regtimer setting.
it is so neat to see rogue with her targets voice and all the other stuff. i wanted to use this method cause i have like 75 bad guys and nearly as many good guys in my mod.
it is a beautiful hack. i love it.
the only problem i have is i want to port her back from the positional to her original x,y, z. i tried using the python script for a simple teleport, but it doesn't recognize teleport.
then i tried ffx_teleport and it uses the 'destroy' method. and that's all it does. i know i have to initiate ffx_tp2 but i'm not sure how to set that up.
also, i'm going to try and set up mimic so it doesn't work on anyone with a metal body type, so that way she can't affect robots.
fences with lasers? awesome! sounds like a dr who badguy.

[Epimethee]

BTW, instead of using material type to detect robots, I suggest you use FFX genders, i.e., voice categories.

[DrMike2000]

Yeah, the teleport was a big problem too.
The best bet for the "teleport" is to increase Rogue's speed stat to 1000 and move here to the target point. Maybe strength 1000 too so she can jump really high if needs be...?
Its less than ideal on anything where areas might be inaccessible due to clsoed doors or complex geometry.

I'd really recommend the templates method that I used for DD in the Strangers. Its not that bad once you commit to doing it, I had 80-odd characters to make in the first pass but most of them are just copy the existing templates, change the mesh and voice ID, remove a couple of minor powers and replace with DD/rogue base powers, and save. Not only is it more robust, but it lets you add frills like rogue_colossus having a special skin with metallic looking skin, or rogue_nightcrawler having blue skin.

I loved doing that, just quick recolours to make dd-kingzero blue, dd_adamzorn gold skinned and so on. I felt that really added a lot to the end effect.

(Oh yeah, you then have to check the animations on powers are compatible... thats a bit more work...)