Universal AI amplifier (technically unnamed AI mod)

[Apeirogon]

Mod which turns you default silly doom/strife/hexeretic/all gzdoom compatible monsters to the monsters of the intellect which can proof that P=NP in the matter of seconds.
Or rather they could, since they too busy to smear you, the player, on the walls in even, thin layer

So this mod add pathfinding for monsters, for now. I want add more stuff to it, but firstly I need solve some problems with it.
Problem in short, pathfinding works....strange with most maps released before doom builder become a thing.

---

Mod create level graph, for navigation (and other stuff in future), using sectors. I.e. it pick monster and its target, check neighborn monster sectors, find one which closest to it target, check neighborn sectors of that sector, etc. until it find sector with monster target.
It uses sectors in the same way as gzdoom read them from map.
Problem is, most old maps have "multiple sectors as one" issue. In another words, on automap it looks like several different sectors, but gzdoom treat them like one single sector.
As example, plutonia map 11
https://imgur.com/a/KH0n4Qj
Map editor, and therefore gzdoom, treat sector 30 (as well as sector 107, 10, 9, some other on that map) as one sector, regardless it separate into several different polygons with other sectors. Why this was done like this? I dont know.
Until I find a way to manually check is sector is single polygon or no I dont want to expand mod further.

So PLEASE if you "mapping" maps, for the sake of future generations, dont shy to use this button

HRODA6A4 — копия.png

If you found a bug, post how trigger it here.

Video demonstration how it works


Download last release
https://github.com/MekBoss/Doom_AI_Ampl ... lifier.zip

Dev builds, usually same as last release
https://github.com/MekBoss/Doom_AI_Amplifier

[Enjay]

So PLEASE if you "mapping" maps, for the sake of future generations, dont shy to use this button...

I agree that split sectors can be harmful and, these days, there is little need to use them as extensively as they were used in the past. Indeed, going back and editing some of my older maps to convert them to UDMF really underlined just how much of a pain split sectors can be. Sometimes, however, they can still be very useful and I still happily use them where they are the best solution to what I am trying to do.

I haven't tried the mod yet, but I look forward to seeing how it works. It sounds interesting.

[Enjay]

Hmmm... found a problem. Go to E1M2 of Doom. Don't move - simply fire your weapon. You will hear a Zombie wake-up sound rapidly repeating until the game freezes and crashes to the desktop with no error message.

Also, on startup, I get these warnings with developer messages switched on:

Code: Select all

Script warning, "Doom_AI_Amplifier.zip:path_algorithms/initialization/event.zsc" line 69:
Accessing deprecated function Create - deprecated since 3.8.0

[phantombeta]

Problem in short, pathfinding works....strange with most maps released before doom builder become a thing.

---

Mod create level graph, for navigation (and other stuff in future), using sectors. I.e. it pick monster and its target, check neighborn monster sectors, find one which closest to it target, check neighborn sectors of that sector, etc. until it find sector with monster target.
It uses sectors in the same way as gzdoom read them from map.
Problem is, most old maps have "multiple sectors as one" issue. In another words, on automap it looks like several different sectors, but gzdoom treat them like one single sector.
As example, plutonia map 11
https://imgur.com/a/KH0n4Qj
Map editor, and therefore gzdoom, treat sector 30 (as well as sector 107, 10, 9, some other on that map) as one sector, regardless it separate into several different polygons with other sectors. Why this was done like this? I dont know.
Until I find a way to manually check is sector is single polygon or no I dont want to expand mod further.

So PLEASE if you "mapping" maps, for the sake of future generations, dont shy to use this button

HRODA6A4 — копия.png

This is actually a pretty common trick that's still used even nowadays. For example, it can be used to make monsters teleport in without needing a sound tunnel.
You can handle this yourself without subsectors by finding the separate shapes, then triangulating if necessary. GZDoom Builder does this for rendering, since running the nodebuilder on every change would be ridiculously slow.

[Apeirogon]

Hmmm... found a problem. Go to E1M2 of Doom. Don't move - simply fire your weapon. You will hear a Zombie wake-up sound rapidly repeating until the game freezes and crashes to the desktop with no error message.

Also, on startup, I get these warnings with developer messages switched on:

Code: Select all

Script warning, "Doom_AI_Amplifier.zip:path_algorithms/initialization/event.zsc" line 69:
Accessing deprecated function Create - deprecated since 3.8.0

Linux? Because on windows it shows where error happens.
Anyway, fixed. Redownload archive from first link.

This is actually a pretty common trick that's still used even nowadays. For example, it can be used to make monsters teleport in without needing a sound tunnel.
You can handle this yourself without subsectors by finding the separate shapes, then triangulating if necessary. GZDoom Builder does this for rendering, since running the nodebuilder on every change would be ridiculously slow.

Such sectors exist almost in every doom/doom2 map, so I dont think that intentional. I brought plutonia map 11 as example because I initially test it there.

Problem exactly in founding such separate polygons. I start from idea
"pick first[zero]/unused line in sector lines array
pick it vertices indexes
find all lines which have vertices with same indexes
repeat until no lines founds (polygon "close")
if amount of found lines not equal to amount of sector lines, there are separate part of the sector somewhere
move all found line in newly created graph node
go to 1"
Problem arise when there are another sector standing separately inside initial sector. Script think "this lines unconnected to sector, create new graph node for them". And I cant find a way to prevent it.

[Enjay]

Linux? Because on windows it shows where error happens.
Anyway, fixed. Redownload archive from first link.

Nope, Win10.

Anyway, the re-download fixes both of the things that I reported. Now to give it a proper try.

[edit] on several occasions, I found imps that were just standing still scratching the air around them (using their melee attack). Eventually, me walking up to them would stop this behaviour. I found it easy to make this happen on E1M7.

There also seemed to be some random infighting going on too. Like, again on E1M7, I could watch across the big slime pits to areas where I hadn't been and see enemies that had no obvious reason to get caught in crossfire attacking each other. [/edit]

[Apeirogon]

There also seemed to be some random infighting going on too. Like, again on E1M7, I could watch across the big slime pits to areas where I hadn't been and see enemies that had no obvious reason to get caught in crossfire attacking each other.

You sure its actual infinghting and not "monsters just shoot/throw something in "random" direction"?

About monsters which battling air I know, and I cant do anything with it without removing "universal" word from the title of a mod.
Because most doom monsters use same sprites and states for missile and melee attack. They decide what it would be, melee or projectile, right when they attack.

Upd:Actually, only at fifth thought I was able to fix this. Now monsters claw air only sometimes and only if they see player. So now they threatening and taunt before actually melee you. I can prevent this completely, but it reduce/breaks accuracy of path. Again, redownload archive from first link. Still cant reproduce infighting bug, if this actually a bug.

[Apeirogon]

UPDATED MY JOURNAL

Link in the first post.
New version include A star algorithm, and menu options for it.
Also fix one serious design flaw caused because I want to save like 128 byte of RAM for every constructed path.

[Meyers07]

Is this basically the enhanced AI from Brutal Doom but independently remake?
Amazing if it can be implemented to other mods.
Next, will there is a universal Hitscan replacer, like those hitscan guns for both players and enemies are replaced by very quick projectiles and it can work with any Doom mods?

[Apeirogon]

Brutal doom have some AI system? Except that "dont shoot in player if you hit another monster".
If yes, it dont have it, because infighting is important part of a gameplay IMO. Besides fact that disabling it make certain maps too difficulty. But it can be easily changed.
It just pathfinding for now, because there are one nasty thing related to it which I try resolve.

[theroguemonk]

how do you use it

[Apeirogon]

UPDATED MY JOURNAL

Link in the first post.
Include switch for turning on/off infighting. By default it turned on. Check menu to turn it off.
Also, there are second option, "advanced infighting". In short, it prevent weak monsters, like possessed, attack strong, like baron. It work in one direction from weak to strong. This mean zombieman cant attack imp. But imp can attack zombieman and in the same time imp cant attack cacodemon but cacodemon can. So friendly tip, in case of demon invasion dont turn into possessed. You would be at the bottom of the demon hierarchy. Does sounding like camel would worth it?
It dont disable infighting at all. If cacodemon split cacoball and hit im, imp start throw impballs back into cacodemon.
By default it turns off. Again, check menu to turn it on.

how do you use it

Em, download archive and just drop it into zdl or directly on gzdoom. He, gzdoom, can open zip archives like default packs

[Opsoc]

I'm not sure if it's worth mentioning here, but using this with any brutal mods breaks zombiemen completely, and some other monsters too. Kinda sad that you can't combine bd's behavior overhaul and this mod's pathfinding

[Netheritor]

This reminds me of Brutal doom pathfinding.
In Brutal doom, the monsters will behave like that, in certain range I think. In this mod, the monster investigate the sounds, right?
Brutal doom has that, and if no player spotted, they will just roam the stage.

Though, it will be nice if you can extract that AI behavior and make it universal.
This is my idea, if you want to add something, add something like;

Alerted enemies will alert unalerted enemies.
Sentry mode. Enemies will not investigate the sound but they will just face where the sounds coming from and preparing their attack if spotting the player.
Ambush mode. Enemies hug the corner of the wall to ambush the player.

[thugsta]

This reminds me of Brutal doom pathfinding.
In Brutal doom, the monsters will behave like that, in certain range I think. In this mod, the monster investigate the sounds, right?
Brutal doom has that, and if no player spotted, they will just roam the stage.

Though, it will be nice if you can extract that AI behavior and make it universal.
This is my idea, if you want to add something, add something like;

Alerted enemies will alert unalerted enemies.
Sentry mode. Enemies will not investigate the sound but they will just face where the sounds coming from and preparing their attack if spotting the player.
Ambush mode. Enemies hug the corner of the wall to ambush the player.

I'm not sure if it's worth mentioning here, but using this with any brutal mods breaks zombiemen completely, and some other monsters too. Kinda sad that you can't combine bd's behavior overhaul and this mod's pathfinding

Look at the date, this has not been updated or a participated thread wise since 2019. I wish it was updated as his had good promise to it but sadly you guys bumped this thread and got my hopes up lol