enZombies - More Zombie Variations

[AndrewT]

I assume robeloto said no but since his mod and the snufkins mod both have the archon and scarecrow that would cause many bugs

 

[ErrorNull]

The name of the POI is house_old_victorian_03.

The issue came at about 85% complete and was in an upper area the Mantis really shouldn't be able to get to with the closed doors and external scripted path routing. Attacks were not causing the visual disturbance buff typically associated with the Mantis, either. These entities were fast all the time and it seemed to fit with the new Mutated zombies. The only audio was the sound of impact strikes from melee which also matched the Mutated zombies for speed. Certainly not ruling out the Cop though as they can be fast when they want to be. I was at GS136 at the time.

it looks like the XML file house_old_victorian_03.xml refers to three sleeper categories that are defined in gamestages.xml:

S_-Group_Generic_Zombie

S_-_Group_Zom_Badass

S_Zom_Burnt

each of these categories eventually drill down and refer to the following zombie groups within entitygroups.xml:

S_-Group_Generic_Zombie --> sleeperHordeStageGS

S_-_Group_Zom_Badass --> badassHordeStageGS

S_Zom_Burnt --> zombieBurntGroupGS

all three groups contain references to enZombies, but only the first two groups sleeperHordeStageGS and badassHordeStageGS contain zombieMutated. the group badassHordeStageGS is the one that spawns up in the attic that matches your play description and screenshot, so i'm paying very close attention to that zombie group.

the enZombies mod defines the following entities (including their feral and radiated variants) for badassHordeStageGS during player gamestage of 100 and higher. also i need to correct myself in that my current version of the Snufkin Addon does not spawn zombies in the sleeper groups. so it's not possible for the Mantis zombie to spawn.

Spoiler

[enZombies]
enPunkFemale1
enPunkFemale2
enPunkFemale3
enPunkFemale4
enPunkMale1
enPunkMale2
enPunkMale3
enPunkMale4
enDesertMiner1
enDesertMiner2
enDesertCowboy3
enSpider196
enBiker1
enBiker2
enFarmerFemale2
enLumberjack1
enLumberjack2
enSoldierFemale1
enSoldierFemale2
enSoldierMale1
enSoldierMale2
enStealthMale1
enSwatMale1
enSwatMale2
enSwatMale3
enFootballMale1
enFootballMale2

[vanilla zombies]
zombieMutated
zombieSpider
zombieSkateboarder
zombieBiker
zombieFemaleFat
zombieFatHawaiian
zombieLumberjack
zombieFatCop
zombieSoldier
zombieWightFeral
zombieDemolition

i currently suspect an enZombie in the above group, in combination with perhaps a bug or quirk with how that POI was designed (since this doesn't occur with all POIs) is causing the NRE. which in turn creates a cascade effect that spawns a subsequent vanilla zombie (like zombieMutated) without it's entity texture... thus a player would be unable to aim/defeat it and fail the zombie clear quest goal. i wonder if UMA zombies that have buff attachments could be triggering this? hmmm.....

i loaded up a new 10k pregen map with cheats and went into DM mode, and upped my gamestage to 135. i did not visit any trader and just teleported directed to that POI house_old_victorian_03. i explored the entire POI, including the attic, and didn't get an NRE error. but, i also checked the console logs and none of the sleeper groups had spawned in the zombieMutated entity. i did get a zombieFatCop couple times. i visited two other house_old_victorian_03 POIs on that map, fought my way up to the attic, again saw that badassHordeStageGS is activated, but among a few vanilla zombies, didn't get a zombieMutated to spawn. two things i would still like to do when i get the chance:

1) keep revisiting this POI in hopes to see a zombieMutated spawn up in the attic, and perhaps then an NRE will occur (still unsure that zombieMutated is the real trigger) and i'll get an invisible zombieMutated or invisible other zombie

2) try to visit this POI during a trader quest to see if this NRE-invis-entity behavior more commonly happens during trader quests

this issue is very intermittent so it's hard quickly troubleshoot, but i know it's happening. who knows, this NRE-invis-entity issue could just be random and not tied to a specific POI. only way to rule out complete randomness is to see if we can consistently get the NRE-invis-entity on this specific POI during a trader quest or when a mutated zombie show up(?)

definitely let me know of you encounter this issue with other POIs and/or during other trader quests. it will be very helpful to know.

 

[ErrorNull]

thanks @magejosh and @arramus  in regards to our continuing ideas to counteract the floaty ragdoll for UMA zombies, i will try out these ideas (and have other suggestions received from the discord channel) and will post up any progress. meanwhile, if you discover something more beforehand, i would love to hear it.

I assume robeloto said no but since his mod and the snufkins mod both have the archon and scarecrow that would cause many bugs

actually @Robeloto did give me the green light for me to add all his cool zombies to enZombies mod. i'm currently reworking the Snufkin Zombies Addon so i can use that as a template for the upcoming "Robeloto Zombies Addon" - as well as for another existing zombie mods out there. you'll see the robeloto zombie addon release on the next update.

 

[magejosh]

I did test it while using a t10 sacred weapons aio mod pack machete that was doing about 1000 damage. Seems to work fairly well. I still knocked a 2200hp uma zombie back 4 blocks on third and final hit, but that's way less than i was getting before. I'll toy with the numbers and see if i can get it down to two blocks knockback. 

 

[mr.devolver]

I did test it while using a t10 sacred weapons aio mod pack machete that was doing about 1000 damage. Seems to work fairly well. I still knocked a 2200hp uma zombie back 4 blocks on third and final hit, but that's way less than i was getting before. I'll toy with the numbers and see if i can get it down to two blocks knockback. 

Just find the sweet spot value and cap the damage to that value, I guess.

 

[ErrorNull]

I did test it while using a t10 sacred weapons aio mod pack machete that was doing about 1000 damage. Seems to work fairly well. I still knocked a 2200hp uma zombie back 4 blocks on third and final hit, but that's way less than i was getting before. I'll toy with the numbers and see if i can get it down to two blocks knockback. 

once you're happy with the functionality, if you would plz share that mod and i'd love to try it too and then post it on the main page.

 

[Surf]

Would anyone happen to know if this mod works with Improved Hordes?

If not I'm happy to test and report back 

 

[Guest]

Would anyone happen to know if this mod works with Improved Hordes?

If not I'm happy to test and report back 

I can confirm it is working with Improved Hordes most effectively. You may notice spot micro freezes more periodically as the non default zombies make their 5th-9th spawn (appears to be variable depending on your set-up) but this is on a case by case basis as some are noticing it more than others while some not at all.

 

[Surf]

I can confirm it is working with Improved Hordes most effectively. You may notice spot micro freezes more periodically as the non default zombies make their 5th-9th spawn (appears to be variable depending on your set-up) but this is on a case by case basis as some are noticing it more than others while some not at all.

Thank you for the super-fast response!

 

[magejosh]

once you're happy with the functionality, if you would plz share that mod and i'd love to try it too and then post it on the main page.

Most definitely! I love your work and will support it however i can assist.

I can confirm it is working with Improved Hordes most effectively. You may notice spot micro freezes more periodically as the non default zombies make their 5th-9th spawn (appears to be variable depending on your set-up) but this is on a case by case basis as some are noticing it more than others while some not at all.

Most excellent news, i'd been holding back testing that one out of concern for how many other mods i'd need to write compatibility mods for.

Just find the sweet spot value and cap the damage to that value, I guess.

Yeah the issue i see being a potential problem is there is a narrow window currently for you to get the zombie to reach LTE 10% max health at which point the ragdollDamageDebuff triggers and reduces your damage to only 10% of normal. I kept the duration to a quarter second at a time to prevent it from locking down your damage potential when being swarmed by multiple zombie types. I put in a requirement for it to only dmg cap on attacking umazombie tagged zombies and it appears to be working but i'm about to run a horde test on npcs and turret guards so i can see their behavior and fps, so i'll multitask and use same weapon to hit more high hp umazombies, and i'll try a couple whose health is lower than the max damage from one hit of the weapon and see how that effects things. 

Most definitely! I love your work and will support it however i can assist.

Most excellent news, i'd been holding back testing that one out of concern for how many other mods i'd need to write compatibility mods for.

Yeah the issue i see being a potential problem is there is a narrow window currently for you to get the zombie to reach LTE 10% max health at which point the ragdollDamageDebuff triggers and reduces your damage to only 10% of normal. I kept the duration to a quarter second at a time to prevent it from locking down your damage potential when being swarmed by multiple zombie types. I put in a requirement for it to only dmg cap on attacking umazombie tagged zombies and it appears to be working but i'm about to run a horde test on npcs and turret guards so i can see their behavior and fps, so i'll multitask and use same weapon to hit more high hp umazombies, and i'll try a couple whose health is lower than the max damage from one hit of the weapon and see how that effects things. 

actually


I can bracket that effect and requirements out to space along their health % and that should narrow that gap properly. I'll take a look at that and get back to you.

 

[mr.devolver]

Yeah the issue i see being a potential problem is there is a narrow window currently for you to get the zombie to reach LTE 10% max health at which point the ragdollDamageDebuff triggers and reduces your damage to only 10% of normal. I kept the duration to a quarter second at a time to prevent it from locking down your damage potential when being swarmed by multiple zombie types. I put in a requirement for it to only dmg cap on attacking umazombie tagged zombies and it appears to be working but i'm about to run a horde test on npcs and turret guards so i can see their behavior and fps, so i'll multitask and use same weapon to hit more high hp umazombies, and i'll try a couple whose health is lower than the max damage from one hit of the weapon and see how that effects things.

When I'm swarmed with zombies, I switch to something faster than just a steel axe, I think most people do unless they have death wish in which case they wouldn't have long time to enjoy the hilarious flying zombies anyway.

 

[AndrewT]

thanks @magejosh and @arramus  in regards to our continuing ideas to counteract the floaty ragdoll for UMA zombies, i will try out these ideas (and have other suggestions received from the discord channel) and will post up any progress. meanwhile, if you discover something more beforehand, i would love to hear it.

actually @Robeloto did give me the green light for me to add all his cool zombies to enZombies mod. i'm currently reworking the Snufkin Zombies Addon so i can use that as a template for the upcoming "Robeloto Zombies Addon" - as well as for another existing zombie mods out there. you'll see the robeloto zombie addon release on the next update.

oh nice and if u didn't notice the new giant mutated zombie he recently added was actually influenced by a zombie I told him i created for my friends planned zombie TV show called the titan zombie. in a nutshell the titan zombie I created for my firends show robeloto liked it due to the attack on titan references and used my zombie idea as influence for what became his mutated giant zombie.

 

[getkloaked]

hi @ErrorNull i experienced the invisible / invincible zombie spawn in a T5 appartment building POI. it wasn't spitting acid like @arramus reported above. had the same NRE consle pop up, which i disregarded til my buddy and i started getting beat on by something we couldnt see or kill. i didn't have any snuffkin z's installed as i find them corny as hell. i only had enzombies mod installed, with nudity. i love this mod, and want to use it but if im failing T5 clear quests and getting killed by ghosts i cant hit, its a deal breaker. hope it's fixed soon. keep up the good work. i encountered this once before back in a18/19 and it had to do with the server and client side game versions not being identical but im not sure if that's what's going on here. i dont think it is, but can't rule it out.

 

[ErrorNull]

@getkloaked thanks for letting me know you're getting the same NRE issue too. question: when another trader quest to that same POI is available again in the game, does the same error happen consistently again? and do you remember what gamestage range your party was during the quest?

this is a challenging one to troubleshoot as it seems intermittent. what seems consistent so far is that the NRE invis zombie occurs only during trader quests. unless some player out there can confirm if they also received this NRE-invis zombie inside a POI that was not quest-activated.. or out in the wilderness? another thing i believe is that the invis zombie is not always the same type of zombie.. and may be a random selection.

hopefully this is due to a specific UMA zombie (or zombie configuration) that might be causing this, and not due to just any UMA zombie. coming from this standpoint, i can tshoot by eliminating the suspected UMA zombies from spawn (and continue to remove more) until the error no longer occurs. my first suspect would be any UMA zombie that has a prefab attachment (wielding torches, tools, bags, or other non-apparel decoration). in the next day or two, i'll have a test version of enZombies mod for you to download and try.

 

[Guest]

Thank you for making wonderful zombies. Thank you for your work. I have been attacked by invisible zombies many times. Are there any invisible zombies in this mod? Or is it a bug?

@ErrorNull This was the only mention of it from recent previous posts but it wasn't clear if it was inside a quest POI or outside. It was certainly a quest on the time I experience it and it's only been the once so far. I did try another quest with the Mutant spitter and it appeared just fine.

 

[ErrorNull]

@arramus thanks much for that additional info. certainly seems like it only happens during a trader quest. shooting in the dark here, but will provide a test version of enZombies where all the prefab attachments (wielded weapons, bags, effects) on the UMA zombies are removed. trial by elimination of sorts. i think we'll eventually whittle it down to something.

UPDATE: meanwhile.. I'm about 80% with the Robeloto zombies add-on. i plan to have that released along with a few more new zombies by end of this weekend.

 

[Jay_ombie]

Loving this mod !



The zombies are very comical.  ><

I am as mentioned earlier in the thread I am getting console error spam which spoils the moment though.  

 

[ErrorNull]

hi @Jay_ombie - glad you like the zombies and thanks for reporting the error as well. looks like you also were on a trader quest with the NRE occurred ... and happened within zombie groups containing UMA zombies with prefab attachments. i'm also starting to see and wonder if this impacts only the "SleeperHordeStageCS" group.

as a player explores a POI, the sleepervolumes can refer to any number of zombie groups to populate as sleepers. the SleeperHordeStageCS group is the most common group (though not the only one).  i'll keep my eye out on that group and think of ways to test this.

everyone thanks for continuing to report.... and please continue to send screenshots of the NRE... and let me know the POI name, and if repeating that same trader quest again (if possible), whether you consistently get the same NRE... and if it results in any invisible zombies.

 

[ErrorNull]

ATTENTION:

I created a simple mod that removes all prefab attachments for UMA zombies. this serves to help me troubleshoot the NRE error issue.

so if you experienced the NullReferenceException (NRE) error while exploring a POI, drop this mod into your Mods folder in the same way like my other mods.

No Decos Mod (google drive link)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/15C47k0XIG3EyNR5jTj8JuttaLnU5l7Qh/view?usp=sharing

what i'm hoping to see: no more NRE errors when exploring POIs LOL! but i doubt it. what i do expect to see is that NRE errors still continue, but at least it tells me the prefab attachments are not the cause.. and i can check that off my list of possible suspects.. and move on to my next suspects. thanks for your cooperation.

 

[magejosh]

Awesome job on these zombies! They are working better in a20 than they worked in a19 for me so far. Haven't encountered the POI quest spam yet but i'll keep my eyes peeled and use the above mod if i do so i can report back.

I did want to note you may want to append the wildgameForest entity group back into your spawning.xml though, as that is how NPCMod spawns NPC's into the world. Or just make a compatibility patch that does it for those using both mods. It didn't effect me as I already set my spawning in the closing mod for Purgatory. But i can see it would for others not knowing how the two work. 

Also, am i the only one that gets their custom player profile deleted by a bunch of one time red NRE errors on game client load first time after installing? No big deal as it's easy enough to rebuild given the limited character customization options. Just wondered if i was the only person it happened to.