Eventing a Menu

[Kes]

Because I am seriously bad at scripting, I'm trying to find a way of eventing a pseudo menu for the player to select which skills to learn/upgrade. I'm trying to do something simple like the mock-up shown below.


However, I am unable to work out how to get text to display anywhere except in one of the 3 default positions (top, centre, bottom). I am using Yanfly's Message System if that makes a difference.

Is this possible by eventing, or should I give up?
Thanks.

 

[Andar]

evented menues usually use show picture, not show text - exactly because of those limitations.
That works on predetermined texts (which will be displayed as pictures), but is much more difficult if you want to display variables.
It can be done for a limited amount of numbers (just calculate where to place number pictures), but that becomes difficult the more numbers you want to display.

Yanfly's message system should have a configuration for changing the window position by variables, same way it can change the size of the text window - or was it modern algebra's advanced text system that had those? It's too long, I might have misremembered.

But another limitation of show text is that it has only one window at one time, so you might want to check for a combination of events and scripts, with a script that allows you to add windows to the screen. Search for something called gap window (or gab window), that script might help here.

 

[Kes]

@Andar Thanks for the suggestion of the gab script - the problem with that is that the text only stays briefly and then is gone. That wouldn't work in this situation because the player will want to think about the info given. And I think it must be ModernAlgebra's script which allows for repositioning, as I couldn't find anything in Yanfly's.

 

[Parallax Panda]

Maybe @FleshToDust has some tips for you since he's evented a couple of menu systems.

Eventing a menu is seriously time consuming though...

 

[Heirukichi]

@Kes if you want to combine script calls and events there is a nice tutorial on this forum showing how to display custom message windows. While the original purpose of that tutorial is that of showing actor faces in a different place, it does so using a combination of different windows, which is exactly what you need. You might give it a look, it requires no external script.

 

[Kes]

@Heirukichi Sadly the hosting site for the images showing things like the script calls no longer exists, so there is no way to know what was in that tutorial.

 

[Astfgl66]

You should really look into getting a script that will allow you to display text on screen without a window.
Else this is gonna be pretty much impossible without an ungodly amount of images. I don't think the show text command can work for this, even with resizing and moving the window.

Having a script to show text on screen would allow you to work with a few background images and then it's only text positioning that matters, it wouild make things much easier.
There's this one that I know of, but all the documentation is in french https://www.biloucorp.com/afficher-et-manipuler-du-texte-dans-rpg-maker--36. It's also been a while since I used ace so I don't know if it still works.

 

[Kes]

@Astfgl66 Thank you for that, much appreciated. They look interesting, and I'll try them out. Let's hope my translation of French is accurate!

 

[FleshToDust]

I made a tutorial for eventing a menu. It's for MV but eventing is the same in all the engines. The only thing that's different is the plugin used. I'm sure yanfly or another plugin maker has a Button Common Events plugin for VX Ace though.

 

[Kuro DCupu]

I once asked a scripter friend of mine to make me an eventer tool exclusive for me. Since I already know to code a lil bit, I only asked him a simple request :

"if the script command for show picture detect an array on its filename property, it will treat the string contained as a batch of text bitmap."

This is a script call for show picture :
$game_map.screen.pictures[ID].show("FILENAME", ORIGIN, X, Y, WIDTH, HEIGHT, OPACITY, BLEND)

What I asked, if the "FILENAME" is an array, then treat its content as a batch of text bitmap.
$game_map.screen.pictures[ID].show([ARRAY], ORIGIN, X, Y, WIDTH, HEIGHT, OPACITY, BLEND)

So basically I want to make text to be treated as event show picture. The rest is just me being creative to use it. And i have been using it for years.

I believe it's easy to do for any scripter here. it's also a powerful tool for eventer in show picture domain. I mean, look at me now!

 

[TheoAllen]

I believe it's easy to do for any scripter here. it's also a powerful tool for eventer in show picture domain. I mean, look at me now!

I did this for luls. I'm still not a fan of using show pic. but eh

class Sprite_Picture
  @@bitmap = Bitmap.new(1,1)
 
  def self.size_ref
    if @@bitmap.disposed?
      @@bitmap = Bitmap.new(1,1)
    end
    return @@bitmap
  end
 
  def update_bitmap
    if @picture.name.is_a?(Array)
      if @name != @picture.name
        @name = @picture.name
        size = Sprite_Picture.size_ref.text_size(@name[0])
        self.bitmap = Bitmap.new(size.width + 2, size.height)
        bitmap.draw_text(size, @name[0])
      end
    elsif @picture.name.empty?
      self.bitmap = nil
    else
      self.bitmap = Cache.picture(@picture.name)
    end
  end
 
end

 

[Kes]

@FleshToDust and @Kuro DCupu and @TheoAllen
Thank you for all these suggestions. Life is going to be a bit hectic for the next couple of days, so it will take me a while before I can look at them in any detail, but when I have I'll get back to you. I am most grateful for your help.

 

[Tw0Face]

There's this one that I know of, but all the documentation is in french https://www.biloucorp.com/afficher-et-manipuler-du-texte-dans-rpg-maker--36. It's also been a while since I used ace so I don't know if it still works.

If someone of our french people could make a demo to show how to make this work, I'll be interested in using this as well!

I did this for luls. I'm still not a fan of using show pic. but eh

This is nice. Is there a way to place text directly above event?

 

[TheoAllen]

This is nice. Is there a way to place text directly above event?

As per rule, it is better if you create your own thread for your own question. Depends on what you want, it probably better to create an entirely different script than using this one.

 

[NM Play]

I recomend you to use script or plugins like yep picture common event, or just switches and variables, its nor hard at all just need your time to make it cool.

Im doing right now one in MV with that funcitions when you click the picture something happens (move to another menu, select the character, upgrade talents, enter the dungeon), also you can use somenthing to slide the pictures, etc.
Just use your imagination at eventing and find usefull scripts or plugins to make it easier.