Mod Ideas/CarryTheFlag

Mod ideas for UT 2003 – Carry the Flag Mutator

Description

Carry the Flag 2003 is an update to my original UT mod Carry the Flag. I'm basically porting it to UT2k3 with minimal changes, so this extract from the ReadMe should suffice to explain just what Carry the Flag is (Once it's working, I might add a few extra things I have in mind - any suggestions are welcome too):

Original ReadMe.txt

Carry the Flag is CTF like it should have been. You can't return your flag by simply touching it, you have to carry it back to your base yourself. There are also a lot of extra options for changing the way CarryTF is played. You set these options from the rules menu, or alternatively from UnrealTournament/System/CarryTF2k3.ini. You should read these before you play, so you know what's happening.

Dropcap

Turn this on and you can score by taking the enemy flag to your own flag, no matter where it is. For example, you could grab you own flag, drop it outside the enemy base, run in and get their flag, then run back out and capture the enemy flag by touching your own flag that is just lying there on the ground.

Capture Without Flag

With this enabled, you can capture the enemy flag at your flagbase even if your flag is not there. (ie: like Team Fortress).

Take Friendly Flag

If this is enabled, then you can take your own flag from it's base by pushing the Pickup/Drop Flag key (configured at the keyboard setup page), so you can run around with your own flag just for the hell of it. Or to try and dropcap.

Bots Dropcap

With this enabled bots will attempt to dropcap, so don't be surprised if you see them taking their own flag and storming your base.

Team Fortress mode

Check this to have CarryTF play like Team Fortress. You can't carry your own flag, there is no way to get it to return to base except for waiting for it to respawn. So you have to guard it from the enemy while you wait for it to get sent back to base.

Dropped Flag Timeout

This is the number of seconds the flag can lie on the ground before it is automatically sent back to the base. Set it to zero to have the flag never get sent back... this might cause some problems if the flag gets dropped in an unreachable position.

TF Timer Reset

If this is enabled, the timer (the dropped flag timeout) will reset when the flag is picked up by an enemy in Team Fortress mode.

Send to PathNode

With this option checked, the flag will not return to base if it is dropped in lava or slime. Instead it will be moved to the nearest PathNode. Use this option to prevent people suiciding on maps like CTF-LavaGiant to instantly return their flag.

You have to set up the Drop Flag key if you want to use the Take Friendly Flag option (for UT2k3 I think this is actually in the new patch?). To do this just go to the keyboard setup window and scroll all the way to the bottom. The FlagToggle key will make you:

drop a flag if you are holding one
take the friendly flag if you are standing next to it
return the friendly flag to base if you are standing near the base and you took the flag from the base (ie: you didn't get it from the enemy)

Some recommended options configurations:

Carry the Flag

Leave all options off, and set Dropped TimeOut to 0. This is just regular CTF without magic teleporting flags.

Dropcap the Flag (Bad name, but what am I supposed to call it?)

Turn on Dropcap, Take friendly flag, Bot Dropcap and leave Dropped TimeOut at 0. This will create a faster paced and less base orientated CTF.

Team Fortress CTF

Team Fortress on (duh...), Cap without flag on, Dropped Timeout at 60. Pretend you are playing TFC.

Discussion

EntropicLqd: It seems better to make this functionality a mutator rather than part of a game type mod. There's nothing stopping other CTF mods from subclassing from the flag here. The downside is that the mutator would need to be shipped with the mod. The upside is that they will get the "carry the flag" functionality for free.

Versix: When I started this mod for UT, I originally planned it as a mutator, but that didn't really work out. I think bot AI was the major problem that required a new gametype to deal with, and there was probably other issues too. I make no claims about the viability of this for UT2k3 though...

Versix: I just started this yesterday, and as of right now I have custom flags spawning into CTF games with a mutator. How much I can get done only overriding the CTFFlag class remains to be seen...

[21/12] Versix: All gameplay modifications are now complete, all that's left is bot AI and HUD extras. This is indeed possible to do with only a mutator, so hopefully Carry the Flag 2003 will work with CTF mode in other mods/TCs... hopefully.

[13/02] Versix: Wow, over a month with no work at all. Don't worry (...not that anyone is), I'm resuming this mod now... bot AI, HUD extras, and a few config things are all that's left to do. If the AI is anything like the original version it will take a while though...

Mosquiro: Flaghunter: When you have a flag, its usible as a weapon, like a spear!

[14/02] Versix: I don't think that would add much to the gameplay, or even be very appropriate for this mod... something else, perhaps. And please put all suggestions in this discussion section.

CheshireCat: I think the flag spear idea belongs, if anywhere, in a mutator. As an extra weapon that the carrier has, I don't think it would do anything for gameplay, but it might work as the flag carrier's only weapon, which would make him very dependant on teammates for protection. Think maps with a long run between the bases, and imagine teammates having to defend the flag carrier heavily, perhaps even crowding around him to act as human shields, because his flag-spear is a melee weapon (you can jab with it, but not throw - throwing the flag at an enemy would be, um, stupid). I can see possibilities here...

[Apoc]Death: Just praying you finish this one... loved it in classic UT and really need it in 2k3... Definitely the way CTF should be played...

Howitzer: Just wanted to echo [Apoc]Death's comments.. the Carry the Flag mod for UT was, bar none, my absolute favorite mod. Such a simple concept, yet so completely changes all your strategy. Playing CTF in UT2K3 seemes like a step backwards without it.

Jb: Versix how is the progress going? We have one of our members that really wanted to talk to you about this and we have thought about doing a version ourselves. So figured makes sense to tlak to you first. Thanks!

[Apoc]Famine: Ditto to the above. I was hoping that you'd port the mod to UT2003, because I was dreading doing the coding myself. We had CarryTF in the rotation about 4 nights a week in UT, and are looking forward to it in UT2003. Any updates? A beta release maybe? Because as Howitzer so elegently put it, playing CTF in UT2K3 seems like a step backwards without it. We've yet to even bother with CTF in UT2k3, because it's just not a fun game compared to CarryTF. Thanks for the UT mod, and if you need any help on the 2k3 version, let us know!

Mysterial: Is there any word on Versix completing this? As someone requested it and I got most of the way done before he decided to tell me it was already being worked on. I'll trash my version if necessary.

[05/05] Versix: I'm really sorry about disappearing on everyone, I've been really busy with uni lately. However now that I know people are waiting for CarryTF, I'll try to make some time to clean it up and get the AI done. Right now it's human playable, is there any interest in a human-only beta release?

Mysterial: Sorry, I went ahead and released. It has most (although not quite all) of the original UT features, and bot support. Feel free to release your own if you want, but please don't ask me to get rid of mine at this point, people kept asking and asking until I finally made it and released it.

[06/29] San9000: Where can I find Versix's version. Mysterial's mute is nice, but still needs tweaking and hasn't been updated since 05/13/03.

Mysterial: Mysterial didn't know anyone wanted anything tweaked, since nobody bothered to email him.

[02/07] Versix: OK, I'll fix mine up and release it. It will be a complete port of the old version. I still have a few things to add to it (I kinda abandoned work on it when I found out Mysterial had already released a version) but it shouldn't take that long... a week maybe?

Mysterial: And this, boys and girls, is why you should never, ever port someone else's mod, no matter how much people beg you to do so.

Foxpaw: Wouldn't that be a violation of the original author's copyright anyway? (Unless they gave you permission or stated in the original release that such a thing was acceptable)

Dark Pulse: I doubt it. It'd violate it if you ripped off all the code and touted it as your own. Since porting to 2003 DOES take some work, the only way it'd violate any kind of copyright (If such a thing exists) is if it was stated not to be ported (It's different from modifying), or if the author requests you cease and desist and you fail to.

[03/07] Versix: Er, I just wanted to clarify that I have no problem with Mysterial's port. I mean, I did disappear for a while back there... I would have done the same in his position Are you going to be working on your version at all in the future Mysterial? If you are, we should team up, or something. There's no point doing everything twice.

Dark Pulse: I figured that from the tone of your posts. Working together would be... interesting, to say the very least. Especially if one of you has a great idea, that the other can expand upon.

[03/07] Versix: Actually, thinking about it, I don't know how exactly two of us would work together on something small like Carry the Flag. Although I've never worked with someone on anything before, so what do I know..?

Mysterial: Well if you wanted to I wouldn't have any real problem with it. Certainly better than simply abandoning my efforts. But the first question would be who's to base on. Mine has full bot support (don't know if yours does) but yours has all the features of the original while mine is missing a couple.

NickR: I'd be buggered if someone released a 4CTF gametype before I had released mine. Looking at you Mysterial! >

[08/07] Versix: Mysterial, mine's got bot support as well, but there's more AI I want to add (like dropcapping). I've also added some things to the HUD like the original version (so you can tell which team is in possession of which flag)... so it seems we've already done all the same work twice. I don't think we should bother with trying to combine them becuase they're already pretty much the same thing anyway.

[09/15] san9000: Any news? Please email me any release candidates you may have. Email: san9000 -at- ugodz.com Hope the project will be completed.