No matter how I try it, I cannot seem to successfully set up a conversation code! I want to player to be able to ask Archimedes about math (calculus and derivatives as well), and the quest. This is what I as far as I got:
[code]Grassy Field is a room. “This looks a bit like a Super Mario backdrop, with 8-bit music playing the background. coins are first-come-first-serve.”
A man called Archimedes is in Grassy Field. The description of Archimedes is “An old man wanders around, looking serious yet approachable. He may be a valuable person to talk to.”
Talking to is an action applying to one thing. Understand “Talk to [something]” as talking.
After talking to Archimedes:
say “‘Hello! I’m wondering if you can help me…’ you say, approaching the old man. Archimedes stops and turns to look at you, smiling.
‘Ah! You’re here, at last. Your quest has just begun.’”
After asking Archimedes about “[something]”:
say “[text here]”[/code]
Grassy Field is a room. "This looks a bit like a Super Mario backdrop, with 8-bit music playing the background. coins are first-come-first-serve."
A man called Archimedes is in Grassy Field. The description of Archimedes is "An old man wanders around, looking serious yet approachable. He may be a valuable person to talk to."
Understand "old" or "man" as Archimedes.
Talking to is an action applying to one thing. Understand "Talk to [something]" as talking.
After talking to Archimedes:
say "'Hello! I'm wondering if you can help me.....' you say, approaching the old man. Archimedes stops and turns to look at you, smiling.
'Ah! You're here, at last. Your quest has just begun.'"
After asking Archimedes about a topic:
say "Archimedes strokes his beard. 'I don't know anything about [the topic understood].'"
After asking Archimedes about "math":
say "'Math is power. Use it wisely.'"
After asking Archimedes about "quest":
say "'There's no time to waste!'"
If you want to be fancier and more concise, you can create a table of responses instead:
After asking Archimedes about a topic:
say "Archimedes strokes his beard. 'I don't know anything about [the topic understood].'"
After asking Archimedes about a topic listed in the Table of Archimedes's Replies:
say "'[Reply entry]'[line break]".
Table of Archimedes's Replies
Topic Reply
"math" "Math is power. Use it wisely."
"quest" "There's no time to waste!"
Take a look at §7.6 and §16.13 of the manual for more on these techniques.
Thank you :3 it worked when I put it in. I also want Archimedes to give the player a note when they ask Archimedes about the quest. I want him to give the player a note, and then the player be able to read the note throughout the game as sort of a list of tasks. Any idea how to do that?
The tattered note is a thing. The description of the note is "The tattered note says: 'To complete the quest, you must:[line break]
(1) Retrieve the Seven Teaspoons of Xendor,[line break]
(2) Slay the Ravenous Bugbladder Beast of Traal, and[line break]
(3) Bring me a Shrubbery.'".
After asking Archimedes about "quest" when the note is not handled:
now the player carries the tattered note;
say "Archimedes hands you a tattered note and says [run paragraph on]";
continue the action.
Test me with "x note / i / ask man about quest / i / read note / drop note / ask man about quest"
Thank you so much, it worked :3 I will certainly be back.
Can you give me any tips for future conversation-coding? I’m going to want to converse with a character later on, then bring him with me to another location (and fight him).
It’s difficult to give additional tips without knowing where you’re having issues, but a general tip is to take advantage of the built-in manual (Writing with Inform). It’s worth reading through and trying the examples. Almost anything that you’d want to do is captured in one of the ~450 examples. Don’t worry about not understanding everything on your first pass through. You can always read it again later for additional understanding once you’ve absorbed the fundamentals. If you’re looking for info on a specific thing, the general index is very thorough and should point you to the right place.
And, of course, you can come back here with specific questions if you get stuck, and someone is likely to help you out.