How to make a picture always visible?

[J_C]

Hi!


I'm trying to make a HUD system, using pictures as the HUD buttons. My problem is, if there is a map which is covered in darkness (using Victors's light script), the HUD pictures are also go dark, and are barely visible. Is there a way to make a picture always visible, regardless of the lightning of a map?

 

[Andar]

If you use a script to darken the map, and don't want that script to darken pictures, then that script needs to be modified (unless it already has that option and you only missed it in the script description.


So please provide a link to the website where that script and its description are posted (in case of Victor's scripts, please link to the correct site on his blog and not to the repository for his scripts)


I've moved this thread to Script Support. Please be sure to post your threads in the correct forum next time. Thank you.

 

[J_C]

If you use a script to darken the map, and don't want that script to darken pictures, then that script needs to be modified (unless it already has that option and you only missed it in the script description.


So please provide a link to the website where that script and its description are posted (in case of Victor's scripts, please link to the correct site on his blog and not to the repository for his scripts)


I've moved this thread to Script Support. Please be sure to post your threads in the correct forum next time. Thank you.

Victor's script is right here:


https://victorenginescripts.wordpress.com/rpg-maker-vx-ace/light-effects/


I read the script descriptions, but I haven't found anything about adding an exception to the light/darkness effect.

 

[Shaz]

Images are drawn into viewports on the screen.  By default, there are 3 viewports.


Viewport 1 has the map and the characters


Viewport 2 has the weather, timer and pictures


Viewport 3 has the screen flash


Anything that's done to the higher viewport numbers will also affect the lower ones (so screen flash will affect the map, characters, weather, timer and pictures).


Victor has placed the lighting effects on viewport 2, with a z-index of 100, which places it in front of everything else on viewport 2.  If you want the pictures to appear in front of the light effect, find this section in the script:

class Sprite_Light < Sprite_Base
  #--------------------------------------------------------------------------
  # * Public Instance Variables
  #--------------------------------------------------------------------------
  attr_reader :lights
  #--------------------------------------------------------------------------
  # * initialize
  #--------------------------------------------------------------------------
  def initialize(shade, viewport)
    super(viewport)
    @shade = shade
    self.bitmap     = Bitmap.new(Graphics.width, Graphics.height)
    self.blend_type = @shade.blend
    self.opacity    = @shade.opacity
    self.z = 100
    @lights = {}
  end

and change self.z to 0 instead of 100.  Note that this could affect how the weather, timer and ALL pictures appear in relation to the light effects, so it might not be quite what you're after either.

 

[Sixth]

The pictures (default ones) and the lights from Victor's script use @viewport2 from the Spriteset_Map class, but the lights' Z value is set to 100, which means those will appear above any pictures, because the lowest indexed picture got 1 for it's Z value and the highest indexed picture's Z value is 100.


What you can try is to lower the lights' Z value to 0 or even -1. This will make them appear below all pictures.


There is only one line like this in Victor's script:


self.z = 100


Change that 100 to 0, see if it works or not.


If you want some pictures to appear above, while some pictures appear below the light/shadow layer, set that Z value to 50, for example.


That would mean that any picture which got the index of 51 or higher will appear above the lights, while the rest will appear below them. Might be useful to know this.


This all assumes that you use the default pictures for your HUD buttons.


If not, it's better to change the Z value of your custom made sprites to something higher (and if needed, set their viewport's Z level higher too).

 

[J_C]

Thank you both, this was it. It works perfectly.