LEVELS.txt

Description of level files
For X-Bomber v. 0.8

by Bill Kendrick
kendrick@zippy.sonoma.edu

New Breed Software
http://zippy.sonoma.edu/kendrick/nbs/

June 19, 1998


WHAT'S THIS ALL ABOUT?

  This document tells you how to tweak levels in X-Bomber.


LEVEL FILES:

  There are 100 ASCII text files stored in the directory "levels/".
  Each of these files is named "level##.dat", where "##" is a number
  between '00' and '99'.

  Each of these files, as you probably have guessed, corresponds to each
  of the levels in X-Bomber.

  You can change these as you wish.  They must be 17 lines of 17 characters
  each.  The characters in each line can be one of the following:

    " " (space) - A blank spot (dirt)
    "#" (pound) - A primary indestructable block
    "@" (at)    - A secondary indestructable block

  Remember that you can use "-l#" (where "#" is a number between '0' and '99')
  to specify a starting level in X-Bomber, if you wish to test a particular
  level that you're editing.


LEVEL STATISTICS:

  As distributed, there are 10 different kinds of levels in X-Bomber.
  Some levels have boxes, others don't.  Some have TNT, others don't.
  And finally, some have warp spots, and others don't.

  Levels 1, 11, 21, 31, 41, and so on, have the same arrangement of
  objects, as do levels 2, 12, 22, 32, 42, etc., and levels 3, 13, 23, etc.,
  and so on.

  Which levels have what is determined by the following in "xbomber.c":

    /* Level stats: */
    
    #define LEV_MOD 10
    
    int lev_usebox[LEV_MOD] =  {1, 1, 1, 1, 0, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0};
    int lev_usetnt[LEV_MOD] =  {0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0, 1, 1, 0, 0};
    int lev_usewarp[LEV_MOD] = {0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 1, 0};


OBJECT DISTRIBUTION:

  You can change the distribution of objects in levels, as well.
  In "xbomber.c", these definitions determine how many objects are
  placed (plus or minus):

    /* How many randomly placed boxes to place in a level: */
    
    #define HOW_MANY_BOXES 100
    #define HOW_MANY_TNTS 50
    #define HOW_MANY_WARPS 25