[WIP] Sneaky Doom - New A.I.!

[Josh771]

Very nice update here. I've added bonus damage for the fist against unaware opponents -- and freshly aware opponents. If they've only just discovered you, you can probably still deliver a brutal punch. I've also made monsters search for you longer the longer they'd seen you. If you have trouble shaking one, he'll search and search and search. Monsters also see you much better while searching now and do not pause when searching (they do move slightly more slowly, however).

[TheMightyHeracross]

I was about to suggest that first one! And the other ones are great touches as well.

Awesome mod you have here.

[Josh771]

Thanks! Also, a mostly bug-fix update here. The search code had only been updated for zombiemen to prevent very short searches. I've added this code to all the monsters properly now and increased their search durations. They also have slightly better senses when searching and much better senses when alerted and chasing you. Breaking LOS is more effective now.

EDIT: Oh, and I forgot to mention: I've turned the Blur Sphere into a Sneak Sphere. It now offers an inherent bonus to your stealth property for 60 seconds.

[TheMightyHeracross]

Oh, I have a suggestion: the chainsaw should be activated with the fire button once before attacking. This is because sometimes when you scroll through the weapons, if you take out the chainsaw, your cover is blown. The chainsaw can also be equipped automatically when you pick it up if you have that setting, which can be annoying, because you instantly have demons on your tail.

[-Ghost-]

Will you be swapping the chainsaw out for a knife or something quieter?

[Josh771]

@ TheMightyHeracross, yeah I do typically play with switch on pickup turned off, but I see where that would be a real issue. Adding a simple starting mechanism might be on my to-do list.

@ -Ghost-, I don't know about swapping out. I'm thinking having stuff in addition to classic Doom weapons. My idea is that you start with the silenced pistol, but the other stealthy options are rare replacements for the classic arsenal (so occasionally a shotgun is a sniper rifle or a chainsaw is a knife or a chaingun is a silenced MP5, etc.) I really don't know if there will be a stealthy way to use shells; I'd rather avoid going Call of Duty here and sticking a silencer on a 12-gauge.

[Josh771]

Update! I've added the knife, which currently replaces the chainsaw. I also did some little bit of voice-acting (and whistle-acting?) to add a distraction ability. You can now draw nearby enemies' attention by alt-firing. The silenced pistol fires more slowly now. Players are slightly more opaque (but no easier to see by monsters).

EDIT: Just added a minor tweak to AI. Monsters now notice you while searching much more easily if you run or enter bright light.

EDIT2: Just added proper berserk / stealth damage to the knife.

[-Ghost-]

The Ballistics mod (http://forum.zdoom.org/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=29876) had a pretty cool knife mechanic. If you got close enough you'd slit the enemy's throat with your knife for an insta-kill. That could be cool for zombies and imps, though it wouldn't really make sense on anything bigger.

[Josh771]

I don't know if I'll ever use elaborate animated kills or anything like that -- although I'd like to replace the punch with a chop (think GoldenEye, heh).

Also, another minor update: Added the night vision goggles. They currently use cells over time; you start with 100 cells. I'd like to make these use a subtler grey-tone infrared effect, but I don't know how. I'm not sure I can change the built-in effect for light amp powerups.

EDIT: Well, I'll need some advice on these newest additions. You now can bleed out at less than 50 health, and it gets worse the lower your health is. You now carry a stealth indicator in your inventory. The silenced pistol no longer fires if you hold down the button; rather it fires almost as quickly as you can click, but it becomes more inaccurate if you spam the button. Kind of a bunch of experimental stuff, really. Oh, and crouching helps your stealth more now, but you become stealthy more slowly now, so you can't as easily use noisy weapons or sprint into the shadows without breaking your stealth. Everything does more damage to you, so stealth is more important. And ammo is sparser, so use your knife -- or your bare hands -- when you can.

[Nash]

This is impressive stuff. Finally, a stealth mod made in ZDoom that actually works! Bring in the Metal Gears and the Thiefs!

[The Zombie Killer]

This might be a neat feature to add

[Josh771]

This might be a neat feature to add

Consider this officially on my list of things to add to this mod.

[Josh771]

Update time! Sneaky Doom now has the Zombie Killer's footstep code (modified by yours truly) integrated with the stealth system. Ideally I'd change the stealth effect per texture (a la Thief) so that carpet isn't so damning a surface to cross, but this should do rather nicely for now. I've also made the fist, knife, and pistol switch faster, so that you can knife that imp and handle the sergeant down the hall with your pistol in one swift move.

[Dancso]

Sweet baby jesus this is just like the stealth system I wanted to make for my thief mod but never got around to actually doing it.
Glad to see someone else succeeded

[Josh771]

Heh, and I'm fine with folks using any part of this as a resource in their own projects, as long as there's due credit. So, if you get the urge, you can always adapt some of the scripting you see here to your mod and see it finished.

Also, update: monsters all have their AMBUSH ("Deaf") flags cleared, meaning they will hear and pursue you just like any other monster. This has tactical advantages and disadvantages; I think it should, for the most part, improve gameplay. If I get lots of complaints about brokenness, then I'll change it back.

EDIT: Just revised monster awareness and stealth criticals with some guidance from Yholl. Now any weapon will deal 10x damage against opponents unaware of you. Melee stealth kills are tricky but not impossible to pull off. The silenced pistol just got a whole lot more useful.