Here are some of the things I've learned about Creatures 3. It's
mostly stuff you type into the CAOS command line. CAOS commands can
be very useful, but they can also ruin a world beyond repair. Be
very careful about what you do, because once you've made a
mistake it's almost impossible to fix.
Docking Station: Many of these tips refer to objects only found in Creatures 3, but most are applicable to Docking Station too.
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September 11, 2001
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Tutorials
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Learn to PRAY:
Here's a tutorial on PRAYing your cos files into full agents. Includes commented PRAY template files for Docking Station and Creatures 3 and complete directions for using the caos 'PRAY MAKE' command or PRAYBuilder.exe from the MS-DOS prompt. Also included are all the files you need to make your own example agent, the Bread Vendor. The cos for this vendor is exhaustively commented, but the focus of this tutorial is creating .agent files, not the basics of CAOS.
Download the zipped tutorial.
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Errors and Troubleshooting
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Autokill:
Sometimes you will notice that certain agents in the C3 world just
disappear, for no apparent reason. There is a reason, known
as 'Autokill'. This is a function of the C3 game engine designed
to prevent the game from crashing completely. When Autokill is
enabled, any agent that has an error is destroyed, keeping it
from crashing the game. The most likely candidates for being
zapped by Autokill are the Creator Machine, or Egg Layer, usually
because you're trying to create an object or egg that has errors
in it.
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Disabling Autokill:
Running C3 with Autokill off is a good idea, especially
if you are testing agents. It also speeds up the game slightly. You might
want to turn it on for wolfling runs, so the game doesn't freeze if you
leave it unattended for a long time.
To turn off Autokill, open the Wolfling Control Panel by typing
ctrl-shift-w.
Next type ctrl-shift-a.
The screen should now say 'autokill disabled'. Finally, close the control
panel by typing ctrl-shift-w again.
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Error Log:
When the C3 game engine gets an error, it creates a file
called creatures_engine_logfile.txt. It can be found in your main C3 folder.
This file is very useful when you are trying to figure out why something
got zapped by the Autokill function, or if you are having problems with
new agents, or the game itself.
When you're writing to the newsgroups or Creatures Labs about a problem,
always include the relevant part of the error log. Figuring out what went
wrong isn't always easy, but this file gives you a place start.
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Aborting the Game:
If an agent gets zapped by autokill, the best solution is to
abort the game without saving. Simply type ctrl-break. You'll get a little window that
says 'This will quit the Creatures Engine without saving any changes'. Click
'OK' and the game closes. When you restart C3, the world will go back to the
last time it saved. Be aware that you can lose creatures or eggs this way.
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Restoring Agents:
If you've been zapped by autokill and the game has already
saved, all is not lost. You can restore many agents, things like the Egg
Layer, the Creator Machine, the Replicator, or even the Graveyard.
First, close the game and open your Creatures 3 main folder. In it
there will be a folder named 'Bootstrap'. Open that. Create a new folder
in the Bootstrap folder. Name it something like 'Restore 001'. C3 keeps track
of which folder names it has loaded into which worlds, so you have to use a
different folder name every time you want to restore something to the same
world.
Now open the folder called '001 World'. This folder contains all the
cos files for the agents that are present when a new world starts. Find the
name of the file that belongs to the agent you want to restore. The Egg Layer's
file is named 'Norn Egg layer.cos', for instance. Once you've found the file you
need, copy it into the new folder. Then rename the copied file. You could name it
'Restored Egg layer.cos', or 'hey presto!.cos'.
Now you're ready to start C3 again. Load the world that you want to fix, and the
agent should be back where it belongs. Hurray! Delete the new folder you made before
you open or create any other worlds, or you will have two of the agent you've
replaced!
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Lifeforms and the Ecosystem
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Keeping stickletrout alive:
The flying bubble-bugs from the Desert Terrarium make great fish food.
Just drop one in the trout pond and forget about it. Make sure you get
one that can't fly anymore, or you might end up with hordes of the
little things floating in your Norn Terrarium. But they recycle just
fine!
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Carnivorous Creatures:
If your Norns are starving for protein and fruit or
food just isn't enough, try feeding your Norns critters. Hedgehogs in
particular make a filling meal.
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CAOS Commands and Cheats
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The following are CAOS commands. To use them you
have to open the CAOS command line interface by typing
ctrl-shift-c.
Enter the CAOS command you want, then type enter to run it. Use ctrl-shift-c again
to close the command line when you're finished.
Note: Typing enter
with the command line open will execute the last command used, so be careful.
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Get the CAOS document:
This will make an html file that has all the CAOS
commands. If you want to learn CAOS, or just figure out your
own cheats, this is the place to start. The file will be called caos.html,
and can be found in your C3 or DS Journal directory.
file oope 1 "caos.html" 0 dbg: html 1 file oclo
To make an alphabetical listing:
file oope 1 "caos.html" 0 dbg: html 0 file oclo
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Bioenergy Increase:
Everyone knows this one. The important thing to note is that
"Bioenergy" is case sensitive. That means you have to use that
capital 'B' or it won't work.
setv game "Bioenergy" 1000
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Age your creatures:
Ages the selected creature one life stage.
targ norn ages 1
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Move all the pick-ups to the Norn Terrarium:
Does just what it says. Tell your Norns to 'push tool' and in a
few minutes you'll be all set! I don't know how this works with JayD's
Macros, or his Pick up Pick-Ups.cos, since I don't use them.
enum 2 24 4 mvto 760 770 next
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Change the number of Creatures:
Do NOT use this command
with Docking Station!
Docking Station has population controls built-in. Look in the middle menu window.
This changes the maximum number of creatures of all types in
the current world. This command is CASE SENSITIVE. Replace X with
the number of creatures you want. It must be at least four more than
c3_max_norns (see below), and shouldn't be any higher than about 25
or your computer will just crawl. Trust me on this one. :-)
setv game "c3_max_creatures" X rgam
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Change the number of Norns:
Do NOT use this command
with Docking Station!
This changes the maximum number of Norns allowed. This command is
CASE SENSITIVE. Replace X with the number of Norns you want. It must
be at least four less than c3_max_creatures. I like to play with
8-12 Norns, so my computer will stay nice and fast for wolfling runs.
setv game "c3_max_norns" X rgam
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Find the classifier number:
To use this one, type in the command, but don't press enter.
Position the hand over the agent whose classifier number you want to
see and then press enter. It might take a couple of tries to snag
small or moving agents like fish eggs.
targ hots outv fmly outs " " outv gnus outs " " outv spcs
If you're using Docking Station, simply press
ctrl-shift-t and hover the
hand over the agent.
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Destroy ANYTHING:
Be extremely careful when you use this, because you can't
undo mistakes! This is another command that works by placing the hand
over the thing you want to destroy.
kill hots
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Cure diseases:
This works on the selected Norn. It's a big command, so I broke
it up into two parts. The first removes Antigens 0-3, the second 4-7.
Press enter after each line of code. This command and the one after
can be sort of bad for your overall population, because it lets even
the weak creatures survive. But it's hard not to save that cute
little Norn baby! :-)
targ norn chem 82 -1 chem 83 -1 chem 84 -1 chem 85 -1
targ norn chem 86 -1 chem 87 -1 chem 88 -1 chem 89 -1
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Cure poisons:
Like the command above, it works on the selected Norn. Press enter
after each line of code. The first line removes Heavy Metals, Cyanide,
Belladonna, Geddonase, and Glycotoxin. The second line removes Sleep
Toxin, Fever Toxin, Histamine A, Histamine B, and Alcohol. The last
line removes ATP decoupler, Carbon Monoxide, Fear Toxin, and
Muscle Toxin. Use all three or just the one you need.
targ norn chem 66 -1 chem 67 -1 chem 68 -1 chem 69 -1 chem 70 -1
targ norn chem 71 -1 chem 72 -1 chem 73 -1 chem 74 -1 chem 75 -1
targ norn chem 78 -1 chem 79 -1 chem 80 -1 chem 81 -1
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Fountain of Youth:
Extends the lifespan of the selected creature. This won't
reverse aging, so it's best to use it on Adult creatures, before
they get old and gray. Especially useful for female Grendels just after
they've laid an egg, because they age terribly fast for a few minutes
afterwards, and often die.
targ norn chem 125 1
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'Pause' an animal or plant:
This command stops the timer script for an agent. What that means
is that for most animals and plants it will stop moving, but not die
or starve or suffocate. I use it on rainbow sharklings, so I can take
them out of the Aquarium, replicate them and put them back. Type in the
command, put the hand over the agent you want to pause, and then hit
enter.
targ hots outv tick tick 0
You'll notice it put out a number. Remember it! Write it down somewhere
or something. You'll need it to start up your paused agent again. Not
everything has a timer script, so this command might return 0, and
not really do anything. When you're ready, put the hand back over the
agent, then type in the following, replacing X with the number you
wrote down:
targ hots tick X
And there you go! The agent should act like normal!
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Set Egg Gender:
Sometimes you don't have enough male or female creatures, and the eggs keep
hatching babies of the wrong gender. You can set which gender an egg will produce with
a bit of CAOS. It's best to use an egg that is full size, but not yet hatching. Type the
following code into the command line, hover the hand over the egg, and press enter.
To hatch a baby girl:
targ hots setv ov01 2
To hatch a baby boy:
targ hots setv ov01 1
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Other Hints and Tips
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Fun with the Replicator:
You can duplicate all sorts of things with the Replicator Machine.
It works on toys, animals, seeds, animal eggs, gadgets, and best of all,
creature eggs! When you want male Ettins or female Grendels,
replicating the eggs saves time waiting for the Ettin and Grendel
Mothers to lay more. You can replicate Norn eggs as they're laid, and
save the copies as 'back-ups' in your inventory or a pool of water.
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