Asking NPC Puppets to do Things

[Pantoufle]

Though this may be just the tiniest bit petty to some of you, I wonder how complicated it might be to implement a slight change in the current code used to issue commands to NPC slaves, guards, soldiers, etc.  If I wish to open a container, myself, I can simply type 'op gate' or 'cl door', etc.  With NPCs one must type out the entire command.  I know, I know.  It's really not that big of a deal.  Life goes on.  It won't kill me to type out 'ask <So and So> open 3.wardrobe'.  But at the same time, the more we can reduce the amount of typing required the more we can all save ourselves from future arthritis.  There is of course the school of thought that I might programme a few aliases but .. well .. this is my suggestion anyway (however minor it may seem).

[Halaster]

Basically, most npc's people can control have a script that makes this possible.  The script intercepts the commands given to the NPC from the PC and checks them against a list of "allowed" commands.  I.e. open, close, stand, sit, etc.  It was written at a time when there was less functionality in scripts, so we had to basically do string comparisons.  Did you type "open"?  ..then allow it.  "oPEn" might not work (not sure offhand if it's cap sensitive).

Since then a lot more functionality was added to the scripting system but by then those scripts were well-used and all over the place.  So, it's probably possible to rewrite them to work like you want, but.. eh.. I can't imagine some really wanting to do that, heh.

[slipshod]

The last time I checked, they were case sensative.

'ask so-and-so Follow elf'

would not work, but

'ask so-and-so follow elf'

would work.

[Apocalyptic_Cow]

There is of course the school of thought that I might programme a few aliases but .. well .. this is my suggestion anyway (however minor it may seem).

Yeah, aliases in this situation work wonders. "ord open door", etc. If we contract the actual commands, they lose their intuitiveness. I think it's best to leave labeling the shortcuts to the players. Maybe there should just be the suggestion to alias in the help file for 'order'.