Using the Level Editor

The Level Editor can be used to build Levels from scratch, or to modify existing Levels or Levels that were imported using the Level Ripper. There are three ways to enter the Level Editor:

• Press Ctrl+Tab during gameplay when running a non-"packed"/"protected" game
  
• Use the "-editor" Command-Line option in conjunction with the "-warp" and/or "-game" option to start with the Level Editor in the proper Level, or with the "-levrip" option to start the Editor after ripping is complete. Note that neither "-editor" nor "-warp" will function when starting a "protected" game
  
• Use the "-editfiles" Command-Line option to edit orphan Level and Tile files in non-gameplay mode. This will not include Objects, and will not allow "returning to" gameplay mode
  
• While in any other editing mode, press "1" to return to this editor
  

The pointer, represented by an arrow, is moved by the mouse. There are two different modes, which determine how the pointer (and other options) work:

Edit/Draw Mode Common Features

Edit/Tile Draw Mode

Stamp Draw Mode

Layer Setup Mode

Edit/Draw Mode Common Features

The following features are available in both "Edit/Tile Draw Mode" and "Stamp Draw Mode":


• Status
  
• Main Menu
  
• Plane Resizing
  
• "Water" Effect Positioning
  
• Solidity Overlay
  
• Large/Small Editor Modes
  
• Level Data Saving
  
• Map Image Dumping
  
  
  Status
  
  
  Pressing the "TAB" key will enable or disable the Status display.
  
  Whether the editor is currently in "Large" or "Small" mode determines how exactly this display will look, with "Large Mode" placing it along the top of the screen in a section cleanly-separated from the editing area (and allowing some options to be clicked instead of requiring the use of hotkeys or a "Main Menu"), and "Small Mode" using a vertical list format starting at the upper-left corner of the screen, and drawing over the editing area.
  
  This text display provides the following information:
  
  

  T(ile):	The current X,Y grid position of the Tile Cursor
  Coord/W(orld):	The current X,Y world position of the pointer
  TileNum:	The ID number of the Tile currently placed on the Tile Plane at the position of the Tile Cursor
  Floor/Angle:	The "Floor" and "Angle" settings of the above-mentioned Tile, in that order, and in hexadecimal form
  Current:	The ID number of the currently-selected Tile/Stamp (in the form "ListID : StampID")
  Plane:	The ID number of the currently-selected Tile Plane
  Size:	The X,Y size of the currently-selected Tile Plane, measured in number of Tiles (pixel size divided by 8)
  Type:	The Scroll Type setting of the currently-selected Tile Plane
  Solids:	The current view setting for Solidity Overlay (only visible for "Flat" Planes)
  X Speed:	The fraction of the Screen's current Scroll Position that will be used to calculate the starting X position for drawing the horizontal scroll unit selected by the pointer (Tile Plane, Tile Row, or Pixel Row, depending on the Plane's Scroll Type setting)
  X Loop:	The horizontal grid position of the last Tile that will be drawn before the Tile Plane, Tile Row, or Pixel Row repeats (Not the position of the first Tile that is not drawn)
  Y Speed:	The fraction of the Screen's current Scroll Position that will be used to calculate the starting Y position for drawing the vertical scroll unit selected by the pointer (Tile Plane, Tile Column, or Pixel Column, depending on the Plane's Scroll Type setting)
  Y Loop:	The vertical grid position of the last Tile that will be drawn before the Tile Plane, Tile Column, or Pixel Column repeats (Not the position of the first Tile that is not drawn)

  
  Other elements provided only while in Large Mode include:
  
  
  
  

  Save: Lev Til:	Click either of the two data types to save Level Layout or Tiles, respectively
  Obj:	Click to enter the Object Editor
  Til:	Click to enter the Tile Editor
  Spr:	Click to enter the Sprite Editor
  Gam:	Click to return to gameplay mode

  
  Main Menu
  
  
  When in Small Editor Mode, pressing "0" will toggle on or off the Main Menu (which is not available in Large Editor Mode). The arrow keys are used to select an option, while the Enter key is used to activate it. The Menu, which replaces the Status Display and suspends Level editing, contains the following options:
  
  

  New:	Removes all existing Tile Planes and replaces them with three blank ones (VTil 500x250, Flat 1200x320, Flat 1200x320)
  Save:	Saves all existing Tile Planes and all of their settings to the current Level File. This file must have been loaded by Script, or by the "-editfiles" or "-levelfile" command-line parameter, but doesn't need to have already existed
  Save Tiles:	Saves all existing Tiles, "Stamps", "Level Palettes", and all of their settings to the current Tile File. This file must have been loaded by Script, or by the "-editfiles" or "-tilefile" command-line parameter, but doesn't need to have already existed
  Level Warp:	Allows selection of a "Zone" ("A"/"S") and "Act" ("D"/"F") to warp to by pressing Enter while this option is selected
  Return to Game:	Exit Editor Mode and return to Gameplay Mode
  Exit Game:	Exit the program completely

  
  Plane Resizing
  
  
  Holding "CTRL" while pressing the arrow keys will expand/contract the currently-selected Tile Plane.
  
  When the Plane is expanded, a new, blank row/collumn will be added to the edge of the Plane, with its loop point set at the edge of the plane, and its scroll speed set to 0.
  
  When the Plane is contracted, rows/columns with a loop point beyond the new size will have that point moved to the edge of the Plane.
  
  "Water" Effect Positioning
  
  
  The "Water" effect can be drawn in the Level Editor so that its default position can be manipulated visually, and so that it can be seen in relation to its position between the existing Tile Planes. The effect is normally drawn using a special Built-in Object that isn't drawn in the editor, so it must first be enabled and positioned through Layer Mode.
  
  Hold "A" or "Z" to raise or lower the position of the "Water" effect. When the Level is saved, this position is stored as the default for this effect.
  
  Solidity Overlay
  
  
  The Solidity Overlay will draw a full map graphic representing each Tile's Solidity on top of the currently-selected Tile Plane, or on top of every currently visible "Flat" type Plane. This graphic uses the same color coding scheme as in the Tile Editor.
  
  Pressing the "5" key will toggle this feature between "Not Visible", "Current Plane", and "All Flat Planes".
  
  Pressing the "6" key will toggle the addition of each tile's Angle or Floor settings to this overlay.
  
  Large/Small Editor Modes
  
  
  "Large Editor Mode", enabled by default uses a 640x480 editing area so that more of the level is visible and can be manipulated before having to scroll, and also uses a more compact and non-intrusive status display and scrollbars. There is also a "Small Editor Mode" that is somewhat faster and displays the editing area at the game-native 320x220 resolution, however this means that there is less available editing space, and the status elements will overlay the editing area.
  
  Pressing "F2" will toggle between these two modes.
  
  
  Level Data Saving
  
  
  Press "F3"to save all existing Tile Planes and all of their settings to the current Level File. This file must have been loaded by Script, or by the "-editfiles" or "-levelfile" command-line parameter, but doesn't need to have already existed.
  
  Hold Shift while pressing "F3" to save Level Layout and Tiles.
  
  Hold both Ctrl and Shift while pressing "F3" to save Level Layout, Tiles, and Objects.
  
  
  Map Image Dumping
  
  
  To dump an image containing the entirety of one or more Tile Planes, those Planes must first be selected for viewing or editing.
  
  Pressing "CTRL+Q" will draw these planes in order of their ID (smallest in back, largest in front) into to a file named "SH000000.pcx"
  
  
  
  

Edit/Tile Draw Mode

This is the default mode, and is used for scroll and property editing, and otherwise editing a Tile Plane at Tile-level. Plane editing using larger structures is handled by Stamp Draw Mode.

The pointer arrow is followed by the Tile Cursor, a box that is locked to the Tile Plane grid and contains the currently-selected Tile. When editing a Tile Plane that uses a Lined Scroll Mode (as opposed to a Tiled Scroll Mode), there will also be a horizontal or vertical line on the outter edges of the box that follows the pointer directly, which represents the pixel colum/row that will be affected by Scroll Property keys.

The following features are available in this mode:


• Editor Movement and the Cursor
  
• Tile Placement
  
• Tile Selection
  
• Grab Tile
  
• Edit Tile
  
• Area Selection, Copying, and Pasting
  
• Stamp Creation and Replacement
  
• Tile Group Mass Animation Frame Setup
  
• Tiled Path Object Map Dumping
  
• Insert Tile Row or Column
  
• Tile Attributes
  
• Scroll Properties
  
• Switch to Stamp Draw Mode
  
  
  Editor Movement and the Cursor
  
  
  The Editor will scroll across the Level when the Ctrl key is held while the pointer/cursor is moved to any of the four screen edges, and can be scrolled by one Tile's width/height at a time by using the four arrow keys.
  
  There are also Scrollbars in Large Editor Mode that can be used for scrolling by clicking on the bar or the arrows, or by clicking and dragging the scroll position marker.
  
  The Pointer/Cursor can be controlled by the mouse, or can be made to move one unit at a time by holding spacebar and pressing the arrow keys. In Flat, Relative, and Tiled Scroll Modes, this will move the cursor by one Tile's width/height in any direction. In Lined Scroll Modes, this will cause the pointer to move by one pixel unit horizontally or vertically, in HLin or VLin mode, respectively.
  
  
  Tile Placement
  
  
  Clicking the left mouse button, or holding and dragging, will place the currently-selected Tile onto the currently-selected Tile Plane at the cursor's position.
  
  Tile Selection
  
  
  Using the "S" and "X" keys will cycle through the available Tiles manually.
  
  Using the mouse wheel will also cycle through the available Tiles.
  
  Pressing the "1" key will enter the Tile Selector, where the Tile can be selected from a visible list, and which provides limited Tile List management functionality.
  
  Grab Tile
  
  
  Using the "G" key will "grab" the Tile that already exists within the currently-selected Tile Plane at the Tile Cursor's position, selecting it as the current Tile.
  
  Edit Tile
  
  
  Pressing the "3" key will enter the Tile Editor with the currently-selected Tile.
  
  Area Selection, Copying, and Pasting
  
  
  By holding the right mouse button and dragging the pointer, a Selection Box can be drawn over any section of the current Tile Plane.
  
  Pressing the "C" key will copy the selected area to the Map Clipboard.
  
  Pressing the "P" key will paste the contents of the Clipboard, starting with the Tile Cursor's current position as the top-left corner. Holding the "P" key and dragging the pointer will paste the same pattern on a grid the size of the pattern itself (it will be pasted as a repeating pattern).
  
  Selections can be copied between different Tile Planes. A good practice might be to set aside an entire Tile Plane for "Prefabs", pre-built patterns that can be copied and pasted into the Level in multiple places. These Prefabs can be built from within the editor itself, or imported as whole patterns from external images by the Level Ripper.
  
  When a Selection is active, all Tile/Pixel rows/columns within the selected area will be affected by Scroll Property keys.
  
  Clicking the right mouse button will de-activate the Selection.
  
  Stamp Creation and Replacement
  
  
  Holding Shift and pressing "C" will use the Selected area of the currently-selected Tile Plane to create a new "Stamp" for use in Stamp Draw Mode, which will be appended to the end of the currently-selected Stamp List.
  
  Holding Ctrl while pressing Shift and "C" will overwrite the currently-selected "Stamp" in the currently-selected Stamp List with the contents of the Selected area of the currently-selected Tile Plane.
  
  Tile Group Mass Animation Frame Setup
  
  
  To automatically merge groups of Tiles into larger animated sections, first, ensure that all Tile groups that make up each frame of animation are laid out in the same pattern. Ensure that each Tile in each pattern is unique; If any Tiles appear more than once or are shared, this could cause problems.
  
  Select and Copy the group of Tiles that make up the next frame of animation. Then, hover over the upper-left corner of the section of Tiles that represent the first frame of animation, and hold ALT and press "P" to insert the copied frames into the Tiles within the target section. This will automatically increase the number of Frames for each of the target Tiles, and the first frame of the corresponding clipboard Tile will be copied to the end of the target Tile's frames list.
  
  Repeat until all Tile sections representing new frames have been inserted. Then, enter the Tile Editor and use the Tile Animation controls to set up the timings for each Tile.
  
  Tiled Path Object Map Dumping
  
  
  The easiest way to create a map for a Tiled Path Object is to draw or rip it into a Level, and "dump" it in script-readable form from the Level Editor.
  
  Holding spacebar and pressing "C" will dump the Selected area of the currently-selected Tile Plane to the file "/dump/tilemap.txt", in a format ready to be pasted directly into an Object Def entry.
  
  Insert Tile Row or Column
  
  
  Holding the "I" key enables the use of the two insert keys:
  
  The "R" key inserts a blank Tile row into the currently-selected Tile Plane at the Tile Cursor's vertical position, extending the height of the Plane and pushing all rows below and including the selected row down by one. The new row will have its loop point set to the horizontal edge of the Plane, and its scroll speed set to 0.
  
  The "C" key inserts a blank Tile column into the currently-selected Tile Plane at the Tile Cursor's horizontal position, extending the width of the Plane and pushing all rows to the right of and including the selected row to the right by one. The new column will have its loop point set to the vertical edge of the Plane, and its scroll speed set to 0.
  
  Tile Attributes
  
  
  If the currently-selected Tile Plane is "Flat" type, the "Floor" and "Angle" settings and Solidity layout for the Tile that already exists in that Plane at the Tile Cursor's position (not the currently-selected tile) may be changed from this editor.
  
  Pressing "W" or "E" will modify the Tile's "Floor" setting by 1. Holding spacebar while doing so will modify the setting by 16.
  
  Pressing "R" or "T" will modify the Tile's "Angle" setting by 1. Holding spacebar while doing so will modify the setting by 16.
  
  Holding Space and pressing "1", "2", "3", or "4" will fill the entire Tile with No-Solid, Top-Solid, All-Solid, or Special-Solid, respectively.
  
  Holding Shift and pressing "1", "2", "3", or "4" will fill all non-zero graphic pixels of the Tile with No-Solid, Top-Solid, All-Solid, or Special-Solid, respectively.
  
  
  Scroll Properties
  
  
  While "Flat" Tile Planes follow the screen's scrolling directly, non-"Flat" planes scroll by fractions of its position, and can be broken down into Tile or pixel rows or columns, depending on thier Scroll Type setting. This fraction is #/64, where "#" is any value from 0 to 128 (no scrolling, up to 2x scrolling). If the value is raised above 128, the value will wrap back to 0, and the row/column will scroll automatically rather than waiting for the screen to move.
  
  Selecting an area of the Tile Plane will cause all rows/columns spanned by the selection to be affected by changes made to these settings. If the values are not already equal, each will take on the settings of the row/column at the position of the mouse pointer.
  
  Only one axis may be split into Tiles/lines (this may only be done either horizontally or vertically), so the plane will scroll and repeat as a whole on the other axis.
  
  Pressing "W" or "E" will modify the horizontal scrolling speed by 1. Holding spacebar while doing so will modify the setting by 10.
  
  Pressing "R" or "T" will modify the vertical scrolling speed by 1. Holding spacebar while doing so will modify the setting by 10.
  
  Pressing "Y" will set the horizontal looping point. This is the last Tile that will be drawn before the Plane repeats, not the first Tile that will not be drawn.
  
  Pressing "U" will set the vertical looping point. This is the last Tile that will be drawn before the Plane repeats, not the first Tile that will not be drawn.
  
  
  Switch to Stamp Draw Mode
  
  
  Pressing the "Q" key will switch to Stamp Draw Mode.
  
  
  

Stamp Draw Mode

This mode allows for drawing to the currently-selected Tile Plane using "Stamps" instead of individual Tiles.

"Stamps" are rectangular groups of Tiles of any size that can be created from within Edit/Tile Draw mode, and can be drawn to the Plane in a manner similar to that mode's Copy/Paste feature.

The pointer arrow is followed by the Stamp Cursor, an image of the currently-selected Stamp itself.

The following features are available in this mode:


• Editor Movement and the Cursor
  
• Stamp List Creation and Deletion
  
• Stamp Selection
  
• Stamp Placement
  
• Stamp Deletion
  
• Switch to Editing/Tile Draw Mode
  
  
  Editor Movement and the Cursor
  
  
  The Editor will scroll across the Level when the Ctrl key is held while the pointer/cursor is moved to any of the four screen edges, and can be scrolled by one Tile's width/height at a time by using the four arrow keys.
  
  There are also Scrollbars in Large Editor Mode that can be used for scrolling by clicking on the bar or the arrows, or by clicking and dragging the scroll position marker.
  
  The Pointer/Cursor can be controlled by the mouse, or can be made to move one Tile unit at a time by holding spacebar and pressing the arrow keys.
  
  
  Stamp List Creation and Deletion
  
  
  Hovering the mouse pointer over the Status element that represents the currently-selected Stamp List ID enables the following operations:
  
  
  Press the "A" key to append a new Stamp List to the end of the list series. The new list will automatically become selected.
  
  Press the "D" key to delete the currently-selected Stamp List. All Stamps within the list will be destroyed, and any lists with a greater ID number will have their ID number reduced by 1. If a valid Stamp List follows the one that was deleted, it will automatically become selected. If not, the previous list will automatically become selected.
  
  
  
  
  Stamp Selection
  
  
  Using the "S" and "X" keys will cycle through the available Stamps.
  
  Using the mouse wheel will also cycle through the available Stamps.
  
  
  Stamp Placement
  
  
  Clicking the left mouse button will paste the contents of the Stamp onto the currently-selected Tile Plane at the Stamp Cursor's position.
  
  Holding the left mouse button and dragging the pointer will paste the same pattern on a grid the size of the pattern itself (it will be pasted as a repeating pattern).
  
  
  Stamp Deletion
  
  
  Pressing the "D" key while holding Space and Shift will delete the currently-selected Stamp from the Stamp List.
  
  
  Switch to Editing/Tile Draw Mode
  
  
  Pressing the "Q" key will switch to Editing/Tile Draw Mode.
  
  
  
  
  

Layer Setup Mode

In Large Editor mode, these options are always available without holding any modifier keys

When in Small Editor Mode, this mode is accessed by holding CTRL. Editing is suspended, and certain Tile Plane controls appear on the Status Display.

The following features are available in this mode:


• Status
  
• Select Plane for Viewing or Editing
  
• Plane Type Selection
  
• Inserting and Deleting Planes
  
• Copy and Paste Plane
  
• "Water" Layer Visibility
  
  
  Status
  
  
  The following Status Display fields are modified:
  
  

  Plane:	A list of all existing Tile Plane IDs, ending with an "X" that represents the next Tile Plane that may be added, and containing an "S", representing where the editor will draw the "water" effect between visible Tile Planes. Planes selected for visibility are highlighted, and the Plane currently selected for editing is marked by a box
  Type:	A list of all available Scroll Type settings, ending with an "O" that represents the currently-selected Plane's "Opacity" setting. The current settings of the selected Plane are highlighted

  
  Select Plane for Viewing or Editing
  
  
  While it is only possible to select one Tile Plane for editing at a time, more than one may be visible, and will be displayed in order of ID (0 at the back, up to the highest value at the front).
  
  On the "Plane" section of the Status Display, the Plane selected for editing is surrounded by a box, and the Planes selected for viewing are highlighted.
  
  The Plane selected for editing will scroll as "Flat" regardless of its Scroll Type setting. Other Planes selected for viewing will scroll as they would during gameplay.
  
  "Flat" Planes selected for display must be at least as large as the Plane selected for editing. Otherwise, scrolling to the edit Plane's edges will cause the program to attempt to draw outside of the view Plane's boundaries, and possibly crash.
  
  Left-click a Tile Plane ID in the "Plane" section of the Status Display to select it for editing.
  
  Right-click a Tile Plane ID in the "Plane" section of the Status Display to select it for viewing.
  
  Plane Type Selection
  
  
  Left-click the name of a Scroll Type setting in the "Type" section of the Status Display to apply that setting to the currently-selected Tile Plane. Changing the Scroll Type setting of a Plane will reset all of its Scroll Properties (All loop positions will be set to the edge of the Plane, and all Scroll speeds will be set to 0).
  
  Left-click the letter "O" in the "Type" section of the Status Display to toggle "opacity" on/off for the Plane.
  
  
  
  Inserting and Deleting Planes
  
  
  Tile Planes can be inserted between any two existing Planes or at the end of the Plane list, and any existing Plane can be deleted. To select a Plane ID for the operation, hover the pointer over that ID in the "Plane" section of the Status Display. The "X" marker represents the next Plane that can be added.
  
  Press "A" to insert a new Plane at the selected position. The plane already occupying the selected ID, and all following IDs, will be shifted up by 1 (Inserting at Plane 1 will cause the current Plane 1 to become Plane 2, and Plane 2 to become Plane 3, etc). The new plane will be inserted with the selected ID, and will default to blank, "Flat", and 1200x320. Selecting "X" will use the lowest unused ID value, and will not affect any existing Planes.
  
  Press "D" to delete the Plane at the selected position, permanently discarding all of the Plane's data. All Planes with greater ID values than the deleted Plane will be shifted down by 1 (Deleting Plane 1 will cause the current Plane 2 to become Plane 1, and Plane 3 to become Plane 2, etc). Using this function on the "X" marker will have no effect.
  
  Copy and Paste Plane
  
  
  Tile Plane Type, Size, and Scroll Properties can be copied from one Plane entry to another. To select a Plane ID for the operation, hover the pointer over that ID in the "Plane" section of the Status Display. The "X" marker will have no effect.
  
  Press "C" to copy the selected Plane's data to the Plane Clipboard.
  
  Press "P" to paste the contents of the Plane Clipboard to the selected Plane ID, permanently discarding all of that Plane's current data and settings.
  
  
  "Water" Layer Visibility
  
  
  The "Water" effect can be drawn in the Level Editor so that its default position can be manipulated visually, and so that it can be seen in relation to its position between the existing Tile Planes. The effect is normally drawn using a special Built-in Object that isn't drawn in the editor, so it must first be enabled and positioned.
  
  Press "S" or "X" to enable the "Water" effect and move it between the Tile Planes. Its position will be listed on the "Plane" section of the Status display as "S". To disable it again, cycle its position until the "S" is no longer shown.