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Lunar Magic suggestions and discussion (LM v3.40)

Tool

I just recently fucked up my hack by pressing press shift + ctrl + alt + F8 on the overworld. Though all I wanted is change manual triggers but I pressed the wrong keys.
Lunar Magic did NOT notify me about anything being installed and thus corrupted my hack's sprite message box and part of uberASM, too.

I only found out by changing level names on the overworld going further than level 13B...

Please add a propery notification...
Originally posted by anonimzwx
Would be very nice if when you put a custom dynamic sprite, you can see the sprite, for now it is not possible because the sprite's avatar is showed using gfx, if the sprite's avatar that can be also a regular image that is possible.


Yes, something was already added to the next version so you can use external SNES graphics files for sprites.

Originally posted by Ice Man
I just recently fucked up my hack by pressing press shift + ctrl + alt + F8 on the overworld. Though all I wanted is change manual triggers but I pressed the wrong keys.
Lunar Magic did NOT notify me about anything being installed and thus corrupted my hack's sprite message box and part of uberASM, too.

I only found out by changing level names on the overworld going further than level 13B...

Please add a propery notification...


It does actually notify you that it was turned on in the status bar, but I can add a message box as well to make it more visible.

Just as a reminder though, if you're going to patch in modifications to LM's ASM hacks or hijacks the way it sounds like you have, you always do so at your own risk.
We kinda need to take that risk sometimes...
It's easily the best thing I've done
So why the empty numb?
If you want to accept the risk, that's up to you. Just keep in mind what can happen if LM ever needs to examine/update/replace its own ASM.
Originally posted by FuSoYa
Yes, something was already added to the next version so you can use external SNES graphics files for sprites.

OH. That's pretty amazing to know!
I don't mind the risk either but the message was nowhere near noticeable.
Perhaps ask the player to install an ASM like you do with sprite 19 display message?
I must ask, how come you can't use SP3/SP4 along with FG5/FG6 in the overworld? Hopefully it's a natural SMW quirk rather than some deliberate restriction... I mean, even if most people don't care much about extra sprite OW graphics, nobody should be restricted like that, because some others will indeed care.
My Mode 0 guide.

My Discord server. It has a lot of archived ASM stuff, so check that out!

Originally posted by AnasMario130
I must ask, how come you can't use SP3/SP4 along with FG5/FG6 in the overworld? Hopefully it's a natural SMW quirk rather than some deliberate restriction... I mean, even if most people don't care much about extra sprite OW graphics, nobody should be restricted like that, because some others will indeed care.

For one reason: VRAM. SMW uses up all of VRAM without much room for modification. To show what I mean:
Originally posted by VRAM Map
Layer 1/2 (FG1 [FG1]): $0000 - $07FF 4bpp
Layer 1/2 (FG2 [FG2]): $0800 - $0FFF 4bpp
Layer 1/2 (FG3 [BG1]): $1000 - $17FF 4bpp
Layer 1/2 (FG4 [FG3]): $1800 - $1FFF 4bpp

Layer 1 Tilemap: $2000 - $2FFF 512x512
Layer 2 Tilemap: $3000 - $3FFF 512x512

Layer 3 (GFX 28): $4000 - $43FF 2bpp
Layer 3 (GFX 29): $4400 - $47FF 2bpp
Layer 3 (GFX 2A): $4800 - $4BFF 2bpp
Layer 3 (GFX 2B): $4C00 - $4FFF 2bpp

Layer 3 Tilemap: $5000 - $5FFF 512x512

Sprites (SP1): $6000 - $67FF 4bpp
Sprites (SP2): $6800 - $6FFF 4bpp
Sprites (SP3): $7000 - $77FF 4bpp
Sprites (SP4): $7800 - $7FFF 4bpp

The overworld (especially the main map) fills out the whole tilemap. To get more graphics for layer 1 and 2, you have to sacrifice something and it's either the tilemaps (such as how Lunar Magic handles VRAM for levels) or graphics (such as how SP3/4 can be used for FG5/6 on the overworld).
Updating the overworld tilemap might be possible... but someone has to make the code for it.
Ahhh, that makes sense. Thanks.
My Mode 0 guide.

My Discord server. It has a lot of archived ASM stuff, so check that out!

Originally posted by Ice Man
I don't mind the risk either but the message was nowhere near noticeable.
Perhaps ask the player to install an ASM like you do with sprite 19 display message?


Yes it'd sort of be like that, although for this it'd only ask to turn it on/off for the next save. Nothing is actually installed until the next overworld save.
Could we have a command to reload all external files? It would be useful when working with things like DSC and MWT files.

----------------

I'm working on a hack! Check it out here. Progress: 64/95 levels.
Reloading the ROM only takes 2 clicks if using the recent files button though. Maybe 3 if you need to save the level first.

Or are you doing things with the files that's resulting in a more drawn out process somehow?
I'm not sure if this has been suggested but we should be able to zoom in/out the 8x8 editor as well.

Also, we should be able to expand tiles on the overworld by holding and moving their outline just like we can do in levels to expand ground tiles, etc.

Placing every 8x8 tile is somewhat exhausting and I'm surprised this is not in LM yet.
Originally posted by Ice Man
I'm not sure if this has been suggested but we should be able to zoom in/out the 8x8 editor as well.

Also, we should be able to expand tiles on the overworld by holding and moving their outline just like we can do in levels to expand ground tiles, etc.

Placing every 8x8 tile is somewhat exhausting and I'm surprised this is not in LM yet.


I suggested extending 8x8 tiles in LM a few months ago, and FuSoYa's considering it. Also, I suggested the ability to extend tiles in the L2 and L3 (title screen/credits) BG editors.
My Mode 0 guide.

My Discord server. It has a lot of archived ASM stuff, so check that out!

This is more a curiosity since there's already ways to transfer it but is there a reason why saving Overworld to file never became a thing?
I have a feature request from dtothefourth, who is currently working on the previously-announced SMW Level Inserter. He made mention that LM's command line options for .map16 files are lacking a way to import partial .map16 files. Currently it only allows for full-page import through the -ImportMap16 command or all pages import through the -ImportAllMap16 command. Shown visually, he'd like a command line feature to replicate the yellow ? button functionalities in the 16x16 Editor:



He says it would also be nice if a new command for partial .map16 file import had the option to target a starting map16 tile as an argument.

Lastly, if the -ImportMap16 command does actually work for partial .map16 files, I suppose he'd like some clarification on how it's done, because it appears that the command has a required level number argument that might be causing some confusion in the process.
Originally posted by Ice Man
I'm not sure if this has been suggested but we should be able to zoom in/out the 8x8 editor as well.


It's been mentioned elsewhere, but I'm a little reluctant to invest much time upgrading the old 8x8 tile editor since, well... it's old and limited. It's older than LM itself, and dates back to the editor I made for the SMRPG translation.

I'd replace it, but that'd take even more time. Time that's probably better spent elsewhere, as we do already have external tile editors that can serve that role.

(I do actually have another 8x8 editor around that I built for another unreleased program, but while it's more capable it also wasn't really built with zoom in mind and is around 15 years old so not sure I'd want to move that one to LM)

Originally posted by Ninja Boy
This is more a curiosity since there's already ways to transfer it but is there a reason why saving Overworld to file never became a thing?


The cost/benefit tradeoff for implementing and maintaining it just never seemed quite worth it. The overworld has a lot of different pieces of data in it, which in the end you'd just be transferring as a single unit to a different ROM anyway... a transfer that LM has always been able to do directly without any extra code needed.


Unfortunately it also probably doesn't help that a certain number of people over the years have acted rather like spoiled children by practically throwing temper tantrums over not having that one for some reason. I've been rather tempted on more than one occasion to simply blacklist that feature outright due to that kind of behavior.

Originally posted by FPzero
I have a feature request from dtothefourth, who is currently working on the previously-announced SMW Level Inserter. He made mention that LM's command line options for .map16 files are lacking a way to import partial .map16 files. Currently it only allows for full-page import through the -ImportMap16 command or all pages import through the -ImportAllMap16 command. Shown visually, he'd like a command line feature to replicate the yellow ? button functionalities in the 16x16 Editor.

He says it would also be nice if a new command for partial .map16 file import had the option to target a starting map16 tile as an argument.

Lastly, if the -ImportMap16 command does actually work for partial .map16 files, I suppose he'd like some clarification on how it's done, because it appears that the command has a required level number argument that might be causing some confusion in the process.


Not sure why he thinks it only does full pages. The -ImportMap16 command already does the equivalent of what you're talking about. The number of tiles imported is determined by the contents of the .map16 file (or for the old raw .bin files, the size of the file).

The starting target map16 tile is also determined by the contents of the .map16 file, but can be overridden by the optional X,Y command line argument (for old .bin files, the coordinates are mandatory).

As for the level number argument, it's mandatory because portions of the first 2 pages of Map16 in SMW are tileset specific (plus the 3rd page has an old option to be made tileset specific), and the tileset is determined by the level. But if you're not inserting tiles in a tileset specific area, then the level number you use doesn't really matter much.
Originally posted by FuSoYa
Unfortunately it also probably doesn't help that a certain number of people over the years have acted rather like spoiled children by practically throwing temper tantrums over not having that one for some reason. I've been rather tempted on more than one occasion to simply blacklist that feature outright due to that kind of behavior.

Wait, was there such a drama regarding that? Sorry for touching on a fairly delicate subject, but I legitimately was unaware it even happened...
Windowless ride, feeling alive
Are you alive or just breathing?
Oh, more like a few mini-dramas here and there back in the past. It hasn't been an issue in a number of years.
Thanks for the info. I'll let d^4 know what you said.

Tool