Taking Character Actions

Taking Character Actions#

To control your characters, you do so by using Enums.

Actions List#

As you code, your take_turn() method needs to return a list. That list is currently named actions. This list needs to consist of only ActionType enums.

Even though a list is being returned, only the first enum in the list will be executed. Please be mindful of this as you code! (This is simply due to the engine. Could it have been changed? … yes, but we aren’t paid for this. :D)

Active Character#

As you code, the character that is taking action is not determined by you, but by the environment. Every character will take their turn in a cyclical manner based on their Speed stat.

In your take_turn() method, your active_character for the turn is already provided for you, but here’s how it changes so you understand the game cycle.

Gameboard’s Ordered Team#

The gameboard stores a list of tuples which is called ordered_teams.

ordered_teams: list[tuple[Character | None, Character | None]] = world.ordered_teams

Each tuple is ordered by a Uroda character in the first index, and a Turpis character in the second index (this ordering does not interfere with character taking their turns if one is faster than the other, so don’t worry about that). Either index can be a None value if that respective team has less characters than the other.

To know which pairing would be taking their turn for either team, you can use the gameboard’s active_pair_index variable to access the correct pair:

active_pair_for_turn: tuple[Character | None, Character | None] = world.ordered_teams[world.active_pair_index]

With this, you can see what character from the opposing team will also be taking action their action if applicable. Remember - if a value in the tuple is None, that means that team cannot have a character taking an action that turn. Again, the order of the tuples are (Uroda character, Turpis character).

How the Cycle Continues#

As stated previously, your active_character rotates cyclically based on your team manager’s team list.

alive_team: list[Character] = team_manager.team

The active_pair_index for the gameboard will always reset to the first index after reaching the last index of the ordered_teams list. Here is the order of events for how the process works:

  1. Let the active pair take their turn

  2. Increment the active_pair_index

    • Repeat until the last pair of ordered_teams executes their turn

  3. Remove any dead characters from the gameboard and team managers

  4. Reorganize ordered_teams based on every alive character’s speed stat

  5. Set the active_pair_index to 0

  6. Go back to step 1

Normal Move#

The Normal Move is the base move for every character. This Move is used to fill your Special Point meter, which is used for Moves called Specials. Every Normal Move costs zero special points.

To use a character’s Normal Move, set your actions list to be:

actions = [ActionType.USE_NM]

Your actions list will be what your code returns at the end of the take_turn() method, and the order will determine which character – in order of speed priority – does the listed action.

Special Move 1#

The Special Move 1 is a low special point Move, and costs for this Move vary by Move.

To use a character’s Special Move 1, set your actions list to be:

actions = [ActionType.USE_S1]

Special Move 2#

The Special Move 2 is a high special point Move and costs for this Move vary by Move.

To use a character’s Special Move 2, set your actions list to be:

actions = [ActionType.USE_S2]

Swapping#

A character can also Swap, allowing a character to switch places with an adjacent character on their team, but it will not allow you to move out of bounds. If a match up is not going well for a character on your team, this enables you to tactically move to a better position! The Swapping Enums are listed below.

Swap Up#

A character can use Swap Up to Swap with a character above them.

To use a character’s Swap Up, set your actions list to be:

actions = [ActionType.SWAP_UP]

Swap Down#

A character can use Swap Down to Swap with a character below them.

To use a character’s Swap Down, set your actions list to be:

actions = [ActionType.SWAP_DOWN]

Note#

Note that a character is still able to swap to a space even if an ally isn’t positioned there. That is, your characters will always be able to swap as long as it is not out of bounds.