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Custom Tools
Custom tools are Plugins that
modify how actors are created and/or edited in STAGE. If the
appropriate Plugin is activated (see the
Plugins chapter for information about how to manage Plugins) and
the tool is enabled, then the editing of certain actors in STAGE
will be modified based on the tool. Generally, all tools should contain a
respective toolbar button that will allow you to quickly enable/disable
the use of that tool (Figure 6.3 shows the
toolbar button for the custom Fence Tool). |
Fence Tool
![]() Figure 6.1: Placing a Fence. |
The Fence tool is used to place any
type of object that consists of consecutive points connected together
such as a fence as shown in Figure 6.1. When first creating a fence (by dragging an appropriate fence actor into your map) the Fence tool will automatically activate itself if the Fence Tool Plugin is active, and put you into creation mode. While in creation mode, a fence segment will be generated between your original creation point and the current position of the mouse cursor. Clicking the left mouse button will place that segment and begin creation of another segment. To exit creation mode, un-check the “Create New Points” checkbox located in the tools pop up window (Figure 6.2 ) or double click the mouse button. When not in creation mode, selecting a fence post will allow you to reposition it as desired using the STAGE gizmo tool. You may also delete currently generated posts by selecting them and pressing the “Delete Link Point” button in the tools' window (Figure 6.2 again). Pressing the “Finished” button or choosing another tool ( Figure 6.3) will deactivate the tool. If the fence you are placing contains multiple segment textures and/or post meshes, right clicking on that segment or post will cycle between all of the textures and meshes it contains. For example, you could place a fence actor that has an alternate texture used for the segment which looks like a wire fence with a hole cut into it. |
![]() Figure 6.2: Linked Points Actor Tool Window. |
![]() Figure 6.3: Tool Mode Toolbar. |
The Tool Mode Toolbar shown in
Figure 6.3 will allow you to switch between
the various tool modes. The first icon (from the left) represents
the normal tool mode and is the default for most editing. The second
icon is for the Linked Points Actor Tool, which is the base tool
used for both the Fence and Building Tools (which will be discussed
next). |
Building Tool
![]() Figure 6.4: Creating a Building. |
The Building tool is a variation
of the Fence tool that allows the user to create an enclosed building
that consists of walls and a roof. The editing is done very similarly
to the Fence tool except that you create points that define the perimeter
for the building. The building tool also depends on the Linked Points
Actor Tool Plugin and re-uses the same windows as the Fence Tool
(Figure 6.2). |
Random Actor Generator
The Random Actor Generator tool is
one of the few tools that takes advantage of the STAGE Brush.
The STAGE Brush is, by default, a cube that floats at the
origin of the editor view (
Figure 2.1 shows this brush in an empty map). When the
Random Actor Generator plugin is active, a new window should appear
(Figure 6.5) allowing access to the
functionality of the tool. |
![]() Figure 6.5: Random Actor Generator Window. |
To begin using this tool, the
first step is to position and resize the STAGE Brush to cover
the area that you want actors generated by this tool to be created.
For the second step, you will need to define the actor you wish to
generate. To do this, select an actor in your map (other than the
STAGE Brush). Figure 6.6 shows
a Large Shack being selected for generation. Using the Random Actor
Generator window, you
can set all of the properties you wish such as the number of actors
to generate and how you want them to be rotated. |
Pressing the “Generate!”
button will generate the actors randomly placed and rotated within
the area encompassed by the STAGE Brush volume (
Figure 6.7 shows the results of an actor
generation). |
![]() Figure 6.6: Selecting a Large Shack for Random Actor Generation. |
![]() Figure 6.7: Random Actor Generator tool used to generate 10 ground clamped Large Shacks in an area. |
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Real Time Strategy (RTS) Camera
The Real Time Strategy (RTS)
Camera is meant to emulate a standard camera best used in an
RTS style game. When this Plugin is enabled, the original STAGE
Camera motion will no longer apply. Instead, your controls will be:
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