This guide describe how the game editor works. Apart from this guide, most functions in the editor have helpful tooltips that describe how they work.

For reference, the example mod presented in this guide is available here: https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3097417872
Subscribing to this mod make it easier to follow the guide.


Click the button named "Create new mod". In this view, you can either create a new empty mod, or import an existing mod that you have previously created or subscribed to on the Steam workshop. Select the "Hello World!" mod in the list and make sure that the checkbox is checked. Then press "Create".


You will now be presented with the main mod view. You can get here later by pressing the button named "Edit mod" and selecting the "Hello World!" mod in the list.

• "Starting level" is the level for the initial map that players spawn at. In particular, it sets the level of all enemies for that map.
  
• "Maps" navigates to the maps available in the mod.
  
• "Quest dialogues" navigates to the dialogues that have been created for the mod.
  
• "Custom player save" navigates to the editor for the custom player save that can be set for the mod. If enabled, each player that joins the mod gets this save instead of their own.
  
• "Upload" uploads the mod to the Steam workshop.
  
• "Main menu" navigates to the main menu (without saving!).

Click "Quest dialogues".

You can add you own dialogues to, for example, provide tutorial messages or quest information. Press "Create dialogue" to create a new dialogue.


Each dialogue requires a unique identifier (UID). You reference this UID to display the dialogue when some specific event occurs (see the events section later in this guide).


A dialogue can have any number of messages. Apart from message text, you can also specify which portrait that should provide the message.

The map overview screen contains a list of all maps that have been created in the mod. A map is an area that the player can explore that contains entities such as enemies, structures and chests. Maps are connected to other maps by portals. Example maps in the campaign are the next to infinite open-world areas as well as all the more confined dungeons.

The map marked with a green text is the initial map that all players spawn in when starting the mod. You can change which map that is the starting map by pressing the yellow arrow next to a map.


You can add a new empy map by pressing "Create map". Alternatively, you can copy a map from the main campaign or a mod by pressing "Import map".


Click the map named "intro_cloned_map". This brings up the map options screen.

• "Cell size" refer to how large each map cell is. In particular, a higher value means wider doors and walls.
  
• "Show boundaries" display the boundaries of the map. It is especially useful to find entities that are located really far off.
  
• "Auto-add corners" automatically adds corners to complete walls/doors. Note that this only happens when the map is saved.
  
• "Show debug info" displays various debug information.
  
• "Events" concern different events that can occur in the map (see later in this guide).
  
• "Biome" is the biome that is used as a base for the map.
  
• "Mod options" brings you back to the mod options screen.
  
• "Reload map" reloads the map from disk without saving changes.
  
• "Save map" saves the map to disk.

The map editor is used to add different objects and events to the world space.

To move the camera, either use WASD or press the middle mouse button while moving the cursor. You can zoom in/out using the scroll wheel.

An overview of the main controls is presented below.


The top of the screen contains the different layers in the map editor (e.g, enemies or tiled backgrounds). The "Spawn" layer is used to describe where players spawn in the map. It should always be used on the initial map, but can also be used as a checkpoint in other maps. Providing multiple player spawns in a map provides unique spawn locations for different players when playing multiplayer games.

The main tools for interacting with the different layers are:

• Create
  
• Select/edit
  
• Delete entities in all layers
  
• Clear all entities in the map

With all controls apart from delete (the bin icon), you only interact with entities in the currently active layer.

The creation tool enables creating (left-click) and deleting (right-click) entities in the active layer. An example for enemies is given below.


The selection tool enables selecting (left-click or left-press + drag the mouse), rotating (left control + move the cursor), moving (left shift + left mouse + move the cursor), deleting (press the delete key), and editing the properties of different entities in the map (right-click). An example for enemies is given below.


Some kinds of entities (walls, doors, corners and tiled backgrounds) are snapped in place based on a cell-system.


Right-clicking brings up the properties panel for the selected entities. Different kinds of entities have different properties panels.

The most comprehensive properties panel is the one for portals (see below). A portal is used to connect the present map to some other map. The "Map" drop-down menu specifies which map that is created by interacting with the portal. Remember to add a corresponding portal leading back to the present map on the target map!


A key portal property is "Map modifiers". A map modifier is some property that is set for the map that is created by using the portal. Map modifiers can loosely be translated to the different properties that can roll for Continuum Events in the campaign.

You an add various events to the maps that you create. To add an event, press "Events" in the map options screen. The events screen shows all available events within the map. In this screen, you can create new events or edit events that you previously have created.


Click the event "on_load -> intro_text".


Each event include a trigger and an outcome. When the trigger condition is completed, the outcome occurs. In this particular case, reaching a specific grid cell causes the dialogue with the UID "intro_text" to be played.

To enable a map event to trigger, there is a need to connect it to some entity/entities in the map. Go to the map editor screen for the map "intro_cloned map" (i.e., the active map). Then move the view to the bottom-right area of the map. Here you can see that the tiled background has the text "on_load" displayed over it.


Choose the "Background" layer and select this background using the selection tool. Right-click to view its properties. Then press "Trigger events". Here you can see that the "on_load" condition has been added to the background. Essentially, this means that reaching the area with this background plays the "intro_text" dialogue. You can check out which other events that are available in the map by pressing "Add trigger event".

The custom player save editor is shown below. If enabled, this save is used instead of those selected by players. You alter the starting player in the same way as you do in the regular game: equip items in the inventory and alter skills in the skill tree.

Add items to the inventory by pressing the button at the bottom right in the inventory.


If the custom save is enabled, then this information is presented in the tooltip when selecting a mod.

Thats it! Now go create some new awsome mods!

Also: let me know if you have any questions, find bugs or want some new feature implemented!

Have fun!

/Hannes