Overriding NetDamage

Mysterial did a fantastic job writing the UT2004RPG, and as a general rule we do not touch his code. All the mods etc we add tweak the game based on the hooks he put in.

However, one bit of code we frequently hit problems with is the NetDamage function in the RPGRules. This bit of code is responsible for adjusting the damage according to DB/DR, RPG weapons, RPG abilities etc.

While it works well, there are some bits of functionality that cause us some problems:

The DB/DR calculation means that high level players basically do one damage per shot. We have added a piercing weapon, and set RPGWeapon damage to a minimum of 15% to get around this

SuperWeapon damage goes through a different path to normal damage. This means that you do not get extra exp for extra superweapon damage provided by a double damage, and superweapon damage does not check either players abilities for damage reduction, damage bonus, vampire etc

Should it be possible for some damagetypes to bypass DB/DR without being set to SuperWeapon damage (e.g. Rod)?

I have tested overriding the UT2004RPG NetDamage with a different NetDamage, and it seems to work ok. So have we a desire to change this code?

And if so, do we add a hook so that other mods developers can easily replace our NetDamage code with their own?
EDIT: now working so the ini file defines if it is using the original RPGRules, the new one I have added, or one the Server Admin wants to supply in an extra package. So everyone should be happy.

How does this impact the existing 15% piercing applied to weapons currently?

Also, TBH I am not sure why Rod should do DR ignoring damage at all. Shooting out potentially infinite lightning beams every half second with perfect accuracy in a radius that's bigger than a Redeemer isn't good enough?

Overriding NetDamage is good though, as it opens up new avenues for doing stuff. You could, for example, create new artifacts that added something like a 25%/50%/75% bonus to damage when activated.

Wail wrote:

How does this impact the existing 15% piercing applied to weapons currently?

No decisions yet. We do not have to do anything - so it could be left as it is. We could take the code out of the RPGWeapons and instead put it on the DB/DR calculation in the NetDamage. Suggestions?

Wail wrote:

Also, TBH I am not sure why Rod should do DR ignoring damage at all.

The problem is more that with high level players while low levels are on, the DB/DR works in their favor and the Rod does upto +30% extra damage for the same adrenaline. The superweapon flag ensures that the damage to adrenaline ratio is consistent. But I agree - having it as "piercing" is a big advantage to high levels later on.