Wardogs Without Handlers?

[Subrosa Florens]

Has anyone ever been able to get Wardogs to work without handlers? The way they are normally annoys me to no end, because when they are loosed and attack you, you cannot order your units to attack the dogs themselves. Your soldiers only fight them by accident, when a dog runs into them. I would like to change them so they work just like any other unit (and can be attacked like any other unit).

I can start a custom battle with them, select them, move around, etc... However, I am having a CTD whenever they start fighting another unit. The game crashes just as they are about to strike, so I am sure it is an issue with the skeleton they are using to attack with.

The only skeleton I know of that will work for them is the wardog skeleton, so I do not know what I might switch it to. Does anyone have any ideas on how I might fix this?

I am using the following code:

EDU

type             barb wardogs
dictionary       barb_wardogs      ; Warhounds
category         infantry
class            light
voice_type       Light_1
soldier          wardog, 36, 0, 1.2
attributes       sea_faring, hide_forest
formation        2.2, 2.2, 3, 3, 3, horde
stat_health      1, 0
stat_pri         6, 4, no, 0, 0, melee, other, piercing, none, 25 ,1
stat_pri_attr    no
stat_sec         0, 0, no, 0, 0, no, no, no, none, 25 ,1
stat_sec_attr    no
stat_pri_armour  3, 1, 2, leather
stat_sec_armour  0, 0, flesh
stat_heat        2
stat_ground      2, -2, 3, 2
stat_mental      4, normal, untrained
stat_charge_dist 40
stat_fire_delay  0
stat_food        60, 300
stat_cost        2, 410, 40, 60, 80, 410
ownership        britons, dacia, gauls, germans, scythia

DMB (unchanged from vanilla)

type                wardog
skeleton            fs_dog
scale            0.8
indiv_range            40
model_flexi            data/models_unit/unit_wardog_high.CAS, 15
model_flexi            data/models_unit/unit_wardog_med.CAS, 40
model_flexi            data/models_unit/unit_wardog_low.CAS, max
model_sprite        70.0, data/sprites/wardog_sprite.spr
model_tri            700, 0.3f, 0.3f, 0.3f

[Aradan]

How about using their models/skeletons for a 'horse' unit and having tiny, invisible riders?

[Subrosa Florens]

That should work. I will give it a go when I have time tomorrow.

[Subrosa Florens]

Not having any luck. I tried making them a mount with an invisible rider, and now they last a little longer, but still get an errorless CTD. I think it is happening when they take their first casualty.

I did some more testing and gave them a horse skeleton. No CTDs with it, so clearly it is the fs_dog skeleton that is the root of the crash. Maybe it cannot handle rendering a dead dog with a rider? I would not think that would matter.

Unfortunately, as you can see it is not going to work with a horse skeleton though...

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[★Bandiera Rossa☭]

Hahah they look like dogskin tents..

[Killerbee]

Maybe making the handleres invisible ? With some alpha texture/small model ?

[makanyane]

Maybe making the handleres invisible ? With some alpha texture/small model ?

won't help because the point that you can attack the unit will still be where the invisible handler is, which can be half way across the battle map....

I tried making them a mount with an invisible rider, and now they last a little longer, but still get an errorless CTD. I think it is happening when they take their first casualty.

presume you can't use them as a substitute for a horse mount because they don't have whatever the 'saddle' bone is that gives the rider a point to sit. If the invisible rider has an attack value it produces a CTD when he engages because he's not properly attached to the mount. same problem as with the 'elephant = troll' trick if you give the invisible rider an attack value

try EDU with secondary attack value only..

stat_pri 0, 0, no, 0, 0, no, no, no, none, 25 ,1
stat_pri_attr no
stat_sec 7, 9, no, 0, 0, melee, simple, blunt, axe, 25 ,1.0
stat_sec_attr area, ap, launching

if you haven't already - might need to be on an elephant class mount though and not a horse... which'll get you a whole new range of problems including the ability to chew through buildings


really though you need a custom skeleton / animation - not sure if Bwian or Wlesmana ever did anything like that - they're the only two I can think of who might have.

[Subrosa Florens]

try EDU with secondary attack value only..

if you haven't already - might need to be on an elephant class mount though and not a horse... which'll get you a whole new range of problems including the ability to chew through buildings

No dice. I think you are right in that it really needs a new skeleton, which is not really my area of expertise at all. Oh well, at least it got me a few amusing screenshots.