Subset Games Forum

FTL Event Creator
FTL Event Creator is a web-based graphical event creator for FTL.
The user builds an event chain using the interface and the event chain is converted to an XML code snippet.

I always thought that creating events in FTL was a hassle, and quite boring after staring at lines of XML for a while.
To make things easier, less confusing and less time-consuming, I decided to take a week out of my life to write FTL Event Creator.
It is written using HTML 5, CSS, and pure Javascript, along with Ariel Flesler's XMLWriter plugin.

Planned Features:

• Enemy Ship surrender/escape circumstances - WIP
• Loading Events - WIP
• Adding your event to an existing sector/event list - WIP
• Event/Text Lists - WIP

Loading and editing existing events is not currently an implemented feature. The Event Creator is not yet capable of reading XML.
Keep this in mind while making events: if you're making adjustments, leave the site open.

Screenshots:









Instructions:

1. Create your custom event chain.
2. Generate the XML for it when finished.
3. Copy the XML code. (Leave the page open if you need to make some changes later.)
4. Paste the code into your mod's events.xml.append file. If your mod doesn't have an events.xml.append file, create one.
5. Patch your mod using Slipstream Mod Manager and play.

FTL Event Creator can be found here, hosted on my personal site.
WARNING: Browsers besides Google Chrome may cause minor or major issues.
DOUBLE WARNING: Mobile devices and portrait-oriented displays are not supported.

Not only is user feedback welcome, it is ENCOURAGED.
Please let me know what I can do to make my tool better. I hope you find it useful!


FTL Event Creator is my original work and property.
Images and fonts are copyrighted property of Subset Games.
XMLWriter is copyrighted property of Ariel Flesler.

You, my friend, are a gent and a saurus.
Definitely gonna give this a spin soon! Got a few events I want to write.

One concern right off the bat; Does it have/are you planning a choice-chain cap, and/or event linking? For clarity- to my knowledge FTL can't handle an event that's more than ten choices deep. You can get around this by linking to a named event, but if you create a loop of choices the game crashes from trying to pre-process an infinite number of events.

Both of these are annoying limitations, but definitely something to consider if making an event editor.

Short of that worry this looks brilliant! Clearly a lot of love put into it.

Gencool wrote: One concern right off the bat; Does it have/are you planning a choice-chain cap, and/or event linking? For clarity- to my knowledge FTL can't handle an event that's more than ten choices deep. You can get around this by linking to a named event, but if you create a loop of choices the game crashes from trying to pre-process an infinite number of events.

At first i wasn't 100% sure whether event linking was necessary, but I had no idea about the 10-choice limitation!
I'll work on implementing that right away. I'll also have to put a warning in so users don't make event loops.
Thank you for this information! I hope you enjoy it when you get the chance to!

External event linking is now up and running with version 1.1.

Nice! Add random level for rewards, please!

bamalf wrote:Nice! Add random level for rewards, please!

Thanks! I'm on it!

edit: done! can't believe I forgot that

That was fast!

Couple of other small ideas, having had a poke around:

• The Delete and Reset buttons could use a confirmation prompt.
• The Generate button sometimes overlaps the 'lock' controls
• Locks can also be applied to enemy ships iirc
• I might have just not found it, but, is opening a store in there?
• Rewards could also include system upgrades? I think you can even install systems via events, though not sure if that's buggy.
  
  Then a fairly big suggestion-
• EventLists would be a good introduction (is this what you meant by multiple roots?) - they're also very useful for randomised outcomes to choices.
• EventLists, when introduced, could also really benefit from a duplicate feature- maybe a little drop down choice from 1 to 5, with that event being copied that many times in the event list. (The net result being you can make one out come 5x more likely than another, it wouldn't take long to do by hand, but still)

I also just had a thought- can't test it just yet cuz I'm on the wrong and of the country but someone may already know- can we use <event load> to duplicate events in a list?

I think lists are probably best handled as loading chains anyway, especially for choice outcomes, but I know there are people who've a lot more experience coding events than I have...

Gencool wrote: The Delete and Reset buttons could use a confirmation prompt.

Good idea, planned for 1.2. edit: done, added in 1.12

The Generate button sometimes overlaps the 'lock' controls

Easy fix, will come with 1.2. It's hard for me to test graphical bugs due to display variation. edit: done, added in 1.11

Locks can also be applied to enemy ships iirc

Yes, you are correct, I just learned about that. Will add a 'target' selector in 1.2. edit: done

I might have just not found it, but, is opening a store in there?

You didn't miss it, I didn't even think about having that feature. Another good idea, may release it alongside Quests, or earlier. edit: done

Rewards could also include system upgrades? I think you can even install systems via events, though not sure if that's buggy.

Yeah, I've been thinking about a good way to add those to the Rewards section. It shouldn't be buggy, but I'll take a look. edit: done (not tested. but done )

Then a fairly big suggestion- EventLists...

EventLists are something I really wanted to have done by the initial release. The problem being, I have absolutely no idea what the best method of implementing them is. I don't know when they'll come around, but yes, they are planned.

Thanks for the awesome feedback, Gencool!

I've been trying to find out what the event cap is, but I'm at an 11-choice-chain and no problems so far.
If anyone knows what the cap is, could you save a guy some time?

edit: Due to there not being an explicit depth cap, I simply added a warning for if the user reaches/surpasses a 10-level chain.

Gencool wrote:can we use <event load> to duplicate events in a list?

Yes, we can do it.