Helper

State Controller: Helper

Creates another instance of the player as a helper character.

Required parameters:

none

Optional parameters:

helpertype = type_string (string)

This parameter is deprecated; player-type helpers are not supported. If helpertype = normal, then the helper will be allowed to move off the edge of the screen. Furthermore, the camera will not move to try to keep the helper on screen. If helpertype = player, then the helper will be constrained to the screen and will be followed by the camera, just like a normal player. Defaults to normal. If you plan to use a helper for camera manipulation, do not use a player-type helper; instead use the ScreenBound controller in a normal helper with the "movecamera" parameter.

name = "name_string" (string)

Specifies a name for this helper, which must be enclosed in double quotes. If omitted, the name defaults to "<parent>'s helper", where <parent> represents the name of the player creating the helper.

ID = id_no (int)

Sets an ID number to refer to this helper by. Defaults to 0.

pos = x_off, y_off (int)

Specifies the x and y offsets to create this helper at. The precise meaning of these parameters is dependent on the postype. Defaults to 0,0.

postype = postype_string (string)

postype works nearly the same as in the Explod controller. postype_string specifies the postype -- how to interpret the pos parameters. In all cases, a positive y offset means a downward displacement.

Valid values for postype_string are the following:

p1

Interprets pos relative to p1's axis. A positive x offset is toward the front of p1. This is the default value for postype.

p2

Interprets pos relative to p2's axis. A positive x offset is toward the front of p2. If p2 does not exist, the helper is created with respect to p1.

front

Interprets xpos relative to the edge of the screen that p1 is facing toward, and ypos relative to p1's axis. A positive x offset is away from the center of the screen, whereas a negative x offset is toward the center.

back

Interprets xpos relative to the edge of the screen that p1 is facing away from, and ypos relative to p1's axis. A positive x offset is toward the center of the screen, whereas a negative x offset is away from the center.

left

Interprets xpos relative to the left edge of the screen, and ypos relative to p1's axis. A positive x offset is toward the right of the screen.

right

Interprets xpos relative to the right edge of the screen, and ypos relative to p1's axis. A positive x offset is toward the left of the screen.

facing = facing (int)

If postype is left or right, setting facing to 1 will make the helper face the right, and a value of -1 makes the helper face left. For all other values of postype except p2, if facing is 1, the helper will face the same direction as the player. If facing is -1, the helper will face the opposite direction. In the case of postype = p2, facing has the same effect as above, except it is with respect to p2's facing. Defaults to 1.

stateno = start_state (int)

Determines the state number that the helper starts off in. Defaults to 0.

keyctrl = ctrl_flag (boolean)

If ctrl_flag is 1, then the helper is able to read command input from the player (e.g., the keyboard or joystick). Also, the helper will inherit its root's State -1. If ctrl_flag is 0, then the helper does not have access to command input, and does not inherit State -1. The default value of ctrl_flag is 0.

ownpal = pal_flag (boolean)

If pal_flag is 0, the helper will inherit its parent's palette. If the parent's palette is temporarily changed (eg. by a PalFX controller), the changes will be reflected in the helper too. If pal_flag is 1, the helper will receive its own working palette, that is independent of its parent's. Defaults to 0.

supermovetime = move_time (int)

Specifies the number of ticks that the helper should be unfrozen during a SuperPause. Defaults to 0.

pausemovetime = move_time (int)

Determines the number of ticks that the helper should be unfrozen during a Pause. Defaults to 0.

size.xscale (float)

See below.

size.yscale (float)

See below.

size.ground.back (int)

See below.

size.ground.front (int)

See below.

size.air.back (int)

See below.

size.air.front (int)

See below.

size.height (int)

See below.

size.proj.doscale (int)

See below.

size.head.pos (int,int)

See below.

size.mid.pos (int,int)

See below.

size.shadowoffset (int)

These parameters have the same meaning as the corresponding parameters in the root's CNS file. You can specify one or more of these parameters to change it to a value suitable for this helper. Otherwise, they default to the values inherited from the parent.

Example:

none