I was just wondering:

1) What the best way to set up death counters is?
2) What is the advantage of using this method.
3) Why would I want to use death counters in my map?

3- Why would you want to use death counters? You should want to use death counters when you want timing and varibles to be hidden from the player. If all you want to have happen is for something to happen in 2 mins, and you don't mind showing those 2 mins on the screen, use the on-screen timer. But, if you don't want the player to see when something will happen, it must be hidden. You can use death counters to hidden a timer behind the scenes. Death counters can also be used to keep track of multiple timers at once, as many timers as you have open units, and open players.

2- The advantage? The player never has to actually see what is happening. It will seem like things are natural. In the case of something happening every 2 mins, unless the player times it themselves with a watch, it will seem random. If you were to use the on-screen timer, people would know when to expect something. If you were to use an on-screen method of a unit moving from one location to another, or a unit killing another over and over, the player would again be able to see these things happening. It would also take up space on the map, or the valueable on-screen timer, which you only get one of.

1- What is the best way to set it up? There are a number of ways to do it, and it depends on what effect you need to achieve. For a built in timer to entering and exiting buildings, its fairly simple. Have a trigger that will always add 1 to a death count. I usually throw all trigger actions that need to run continuously on a map into one complete trigger right at the top. These are all the things that always need to be occuring. When you go to the building entrance, and the death count is high enough, I use around 45, then enter. Set the same death count back to 0. Then, code the exit trigger with the same death count. Death counters can be used for virtual cash, RPG Levels, health, and mana power. Every time you deem the player ready for another level, simply add 1 to the "level" death count, then code each "level" with respect to the death count, ie. Death count = 1, Heal to 10% Death Count = 2, Heal to 20%

great... lets load up the triggers with wait times... And DCs are just switches with more than 0 or 1 values.

Essentially, you use them to do anything you would want to use Custom Score for.

except display score, for that you have to use an actual score/resource variable.

So can anyone show me the exact triggers(like using the trigger bb code or sending me a map with easily understandable dc's)? I just want to get it right

Never use death counters for the reason of "I want to use death counters," but instead use it whenever it would be useful to have a variable. This post I'm quoting was from about a week ago, but the thread was filled with spam, so I just quoted myself. It's really just a matter of using some triggers to add, subtract, or set a variable and then using other triggers with atleast, atmost, and exactly as conditions. The uses for that action and condition are as open as your imagination is, but the simplest is definitely just adding 1 every trigger tick to create a timer with atleast 40 or something like that.

Here, lemme make you an example map.

EDIT:
Here.

Attachments:

Post has been edited 2 time(s), last time on Oct 12 2007, 3:04 am by Akar. Reason: Forgot Map :P

Ah, I made a map explaining how to use death counters. I used it as switches.

Unfortunately, it's also a tutorial on how to make a bound (Lol) but you should be able to learn at least how to use death counters as switches... Or how to make bounds!!!111111

Thanks all. Maybe this would be a good topic to sticky?(when we actually have mods lol! )

http://Falkoner.CoW.GooglePages.com/Death_Counts.html

Just my tutorial on it.

They are useful since there is somewhere around 14,000 possible deaths that could be used, allowing for pretty much limitless variables, they do not use up strings, like switches, they do not cause blocks, like waits, and they do not lag whatsoever.

Switches only use up strings if you rename them.

Three things. I never rename switches, why? It's called a piece of paper, a pen, and the numbers one through 256.

Second thing, you can use one deathcounter as infinite switches as long as one is never set without the other. In my map I used a death counter as the weapon you're carrying, cause it can be referenced as current player and it can have a zillion values. Death counters also make good vHP systems, good ways to keep track of levels and a way to use waits while hypertriggers are going (12 deathcounts per second per trigger that continuously adds them.)

Other thing, death counters can be used in "current player" as switches to drastically reduce triggering time.