User Guide

9
Trigger Areas You can define trigger areas as polygons to be referenced in scripts.
These areas are invisible to the user but visible to every unit in the game.
Through scripts, units can take actions based on activities inside and
outside of trigger areas.
Waypoints A waypoint is a marker that you place on the map. Through scripts, you
can reference the waypoint as a location on the map. There are a
number of specially named waypoints, which are mentioned throughout
this document.
Waypoint Paths A string of connected waypoints becomes a waypoint path, which can
be referenced through scripts. Units and teams of units can be
instructed to move along waypoint paths.
Other Map Elements World Builder comes with a full library of miscellaneous man-made and
natural objects to spice up your maps.
MAP ENVIRONMENTAL SETTINGS
Map Perimeter. Around the edge of your map, you need to define a map perimeter, which indicates the
edge of the map for AI-controlled objects.
❍
To set your map perimeter, click the Border tool in the toolbar. For more information, ➤ Border Tool on
p. 26.
Default Water Plane. If you scroll to the edge of a newly created map, you can see a blue rectangle. This
rectangle is the default water plane for your map. Use this water plane to shape the largest body of water on
your map, as its cost on system resources is low. For more information on creating bodies of water,
➤ Water
Tool on p. 23.
GLOBAL LIGHTING
After you establish the time of day in your map, you can tweak the global lighting for terrain and objects.
❍
To change your global lighting settings, select GLOBAL LIGHT OPTIONS from the Edit menu.
✯ Although they are expensive in terms of performance, you can create custom shadows over individual
objects. For more information,
➤ Edit Shadows on p. 17.
In the Global Light Options, you can modify the light source over the map.
✯ Ambient: Ambient light comes from no single source. Enter RGB values for the ambient lighting. The
new color is displayed in the square.
✯ Sun: Set the angle of the sun and its 360-degree location around the map. Changes to these positions
affect the lighting on the terrain. Set RGB values to change the color of the sun.
✯ Accent 1: Define an accent light source using the same controls as Sun placement. An accent is an
additional lighting source to highlight a specific area of the map.
✯ Accent 2: Define a second light accent source using the same controls as Sun placement.
✯ Lighting Applies To: Apply the lighting settings to selected elements of the map. In rare cases, you may
want to light the terrain and the objects differently for mood, but keep the position of the light source
consistent.
To restore defaults, click RESTORE TO DEFAULT. To close the Global Lighting Options window, click the X
in the corner.