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Topic Starter Topic: Quake III Arena Beginners Guide
riddla
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PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:30 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


Quake III Arena Beginners Guide

Quake3World Beginners Guide contributors: Ezekiel, SaTurN, busetibi, Elnino, Elkrider, R99kie, cHUMTOAd, Pre, Hole, UN-Peacekeeper, Kn1ght, [BDI]Trunks, Eraser and riddla. Thanks to all Beginners Discussion + Technology & Troubleshooting Forum regulars since day one.

All information contained in this guide is intended as a reference for those who have Quake III Arena installed and have also downloaded/installed the latest 1.32 Point Release.

Index:

• Network Protocols
• PunkBuster
• Quake III Console
• Console: Binding keys
• Console: Aliases and scripts
• Config Files
• Chatting in game
• Callvoting
• Screenshots
• Demo System
• Ammo & Weapons
• Armor
• Splash Damage
• Strafe Jumping
• Rocket Jumping and Plasma Climbing
• Servers
• Bots
• Modifications
• Custom Maps, Models & Skins




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:19 AM, edited 7 times in total.
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riddla
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PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:30 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


Network Protocols

Worth mentioning first and foremost, this is the main problem issue for newcomers. Several game updates or ‘point releases’ were issued over the life of Quake III, each one with a new network protocol. A protocol is the "language" in which the server communicates with the client. If the server uses a different protocol than your client computer, you cannot to connect to that server since the server and client don't understand each other. Mismatched clients are dumped back to the menu with the message "server uses protocol xx" where xx is the protocol number.

Quake III uses different network protocols depending on the point release used.
Point release->Protocol:
1.16 -> 43
1.17 -> 45
1.2x -> 48
1.30 -> 66
1.31 -> 67
1.32 -> 68 (the latest point release upon which all info in this guide supports)

See the Quake III Mods, Point Releases, Custom Maps & Utils thread for links to the latest point release. Only the latest point release is necessary and already contains updates from all previous releases.

"User Interface is version 4, expected 3"
This means your quake3.exe isn't compatible with the currently installed point release. Reinstall the 1.32 PR; if that does not work the only solution is to remove all pak*.pk3 files located in baseq3 except for pak0.pk3 and then reinstall the latest point release.




Last edited by riddla on 11-29-2005 11:00 PM, edited 3 times in total.
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riddla
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PunkBuster

PunkBuster is cheat prevention software introduced to Quake III as of the 1.32 Point Release, completely integrated into Quake III so it can be controlled via the console. PunkBuster (PB for short) detects player(s) using known cheats who are trying to connect to the PunkBuster-enabled server and then refuses the cheater's connection.
Unfortunately the creators of these cheats continue to update their own cheats to get them to work even with PunkBuster. As a result, the PunkBuster team releases regular updates which are automatically downloaded and applied by PunkBuster-enabled servers whenever a client connects.

PunkBuster is disabled by default which means clients will not connect to a Punkbuster enabled server after initially installing the 1.32 PR. To enable PunkBuster on the client side enter the following command in the console (see the following section on the Quake III console):

/pb_cl_enable

or

/set cl_punkbuster 1

To enable PunkBuster protection for your server should you choose to run a server, enter the following command in the console:

/pb_sv_enable

or

/set sv_punkbuster 1

After enabling PunkBuster it should not be necessary to enable it again. Naturally /pb_cl_disable and /pb_sv_disable will disable PunkBuster client and server side, however this requires a restart of Quake III to take effect.

In order to update punkbuster files you should obtain the PBSETUP.exe utility from evenbalance, the makers of PunkBuster. Once you use pbsetup.exe once successfully you should be able to join pb-enabled servers. If the pb server forces you back to spectator, simply drop the console and enter /pb_webupdate
(note that this command does not work with a fresh install of pb – it needs to be updated at least once manually before the pb_webupdate command will work)

Two other very handy commands to help PB run smooth can be entered in the console after PB is enabled:

/pb_sleep 500
/pb_system 1

For more information on PunkBuster variables and how to obtain PBSETUP.EXE, visit www.evenbalance.com




Last edited by riddla on 12-02-2005 08:22 PM, edited 4 times in total.
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riddla
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Quake III Console

To enter the console, press the tilde ~ key at any time in game except during a map load. The tilde key is found above TAB and to the left of number 1. This will drop the console down over the top half of your screen and you will see a prompt for entering chat, commands or variables.

The Console and what it can do
The console is a command line interface for the game, similar to how DOS is a command line for Windows, but with completely different commands and variables. Every single game feature or setting that has a value can be changed through the console. Scroll up and down within the console using the PAGEUP and PAGEDOWN keys. Commands you typed previously in the same game session can be recalled via the CURSOR_UP and CURSOR_DOWN keys. CURSOR_LEFT and CURSOR_RIGHT let you go back along the string you typed and make edits. The console supports TAB COMPLETION, so if you type a partial command then press TAB, the game will fill in the rest of the command if it exists or list all existing commands with that prefix.

Entering commands and changing variables
Commands and variables each must be preceded by a slash / or backslash \ otherwise anything typed in the console will be broadcast as global chat.
To execute a command, enter the command or variable and press enter. To change the value of a variable, enter the variable name followed by a space and the new value. When you hit enter the new value will be assigned to the variable. If you want to see what the current and default values of a certain variable are, enter the variable name without any value behind it and hit enter. The console will return the current and default values.
Certain variables however will not show any immediate change. Mostly variables beginning with r_ (which are related to video settings) need a restart of the render system to be applied.

To reset the render system, enter /vid_restart

If a variable change requires a restart, you’ll most likely see the pending value as "latched" when you enter the variable name until the game or rendering system is restarted.

For a listing of Console Commands, see Commander Keens Console Commands

The difference between commands and variables
The difference between a command and a variable may not be clear at first, but it's quite easy to explain. A variable holds a value, whereas a command executes a certain function. For example, quit is a command. Entering /quit in the console will close Q3 and bring you back to your desktop. An example of a variable is cg_drawgun
Possible values are 0 (your gun will not be drawn) or 1 (your gun will be drawn).
A few commands (often related to player movement) are "key sensitive", meaning they act only while the assigned key is held down. The +forward command is an example of this. This command is used to make the player walk forward. While the forward bound key is held down, the player walks. When the key is released, the player stops walking. To check out how this works, just enter +forward in the console and you'll notice your character starts walking forward. Your character won't stop walking until you enter -forward in the console.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 05:42 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Console: Binding keys

Most primary functions (like walking, strafing, jumping, shooting) can be bound through the controls menu. However, sometimes you want to assign a certain command to a key. This can be done using the "bind" command.

Example:
I want to assign my 'W' key to walking forward. This can be done by entering:

/bind w "+forward"




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 05:43 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Console: Aliases and scripts

Scripts are a number of commands executed in order, or variables changed to a certain setting by an automated script which can be called via a single button press. A script can range from a simple toggle script to enable/mute the sound to giant scripts that perform more complex functions such as timing item spawns.

A script often consists of one or more aliases. An alias is a short one-line script put. This alias is treated like any other command in Q3, though there is only one difference. If you bind a key to your alias like normal commands, Q3 will echo (display) the content of the alias (the list of commands inside). To circumvent this problem, you need to put vstr in front of the alias name.

Example:
I have an alias named myalias and want to bind it to my 'Q' key. This is what I’d need to enter in the console to do this:
/bind q "vstr myalias"

You can create new aliases using the "set" command.

Example:
Using an alias can create a script that says "FIVE-O!!!, gotta flush my stash" then upon saying, your character self-frags, waits a short time and then quits the game. Here's how to create such an alias:

/set myalias "say FIVE-O!!!, gotta flush my stash; kill; wait500; quit"

The 'say' command will chat the "FIVE-O, gotta flush my stash" text to the other players, the 'kill' command makes the player suicide, the wait500 command will wait 500 game ticks, and the quit command will exit the game... all via pressing the bound ‘Q’ key.

Important note: Q3 will not save aliases after you quit the game, so put any alias script commands in a custom autoexec.cfg in order to save them. (Quake III will always run an autoexec.cfg first before any other cfg file)

For a huge list of scripts, take a look at The Bind Arena




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 05:45 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Config Files

Config files (.cfg) are text files which contain settings, scripts and binds for Quake III. The one config file everyone has is q3config.cfg, located in the baseq3 folder and also in every mod folder. The q3config.cfg files contain all the user settings and variables for Quake III and/or a particular mod. Edit these files manually using a text file viewer which supports Unicode Text Files (do not open up the q3config.cfg file in Notepad as you'll notice all carriage returns have disappeared, so be sure to use WordPad instead).

You can also compile your own config files (no need to save them as unicode text files). In these config files you can place variables, key binds and just about anything one can do through the console. Here's an example of a possible config file:

Code:
//autoexec.cfg
set name "Player"
set r_mode 4
bind mouse1 "+attack"


Save your config file as a text file with a .cfg extension instead of .txt, and save the file into your baseq3 folder. To execute your config file, open the console and enter
/exec [config name]
(where [config name] is the filename of your custom cfg file).

Autoexec.cfg
You should always use a separate config file for your scripts, since they often won't be saved by Quake III into q3config.cfg automatically. If you want to execute custom config file(s) or settings every time you start Quake III, you can create a config file called autoexec.cfg and put this in the baseq3 folder. The autoexec.cfg will automatically be executed first thing each time Quake III is started and is handy to execute additional config files, scripts and/or aliases.

Take a look at The Bind Arena for some example config files.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 05:55 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Chatting in Game

There are 4 chat commands available:

• /say [chat text]
• /say_team [chat text]
• /tell_target [chat text]
• /tell_attacker [chat text]

All should be self-explanatory; here’s a rundown:

SAY says to everyone the [chat text] you wrote
SAY_TEAM says to your team only
TELL_TARGET says to the person on whom you last placed your gun sights
TELL_ATTACKER says to the last person who shot or killed you

Example - binding to a key through the console:

/bind KEY "say_team get ready to attack enemy base"




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 05:57 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Callvoting

If playing online open the console and enter /callvote to verify if the callvote command is enabled on the server. If callvoting is enabled you will see a list of possible commands; if callvoting is disabled an error message is returned.

To call a vote, do the following:
- open the console
- type callvote [command] (where [command] is replaced by one of the following variables):

map_restart
restarts the current map, or if there is a nextmap voted, it will jump to that map. This comes in handy to completely restart the current game and it will not require a reload of the current map.

nextmap
callvotes a map on hold. When the current round ends (fraglimit/timelimit) the map which was voted with this command will load next.

map mapname
loads a map of choice and switches to it at once without having to wait for the current game to end.

kick playername
kicks a specific player. Replace playername with the name of the person to kick. If name contains spaces surround the name with double quotes.

clientkick n
simpler way to kick players. Replace n with the clientnumber of the player you want to kick. You can retrieve the clientnumber by opening the console (with the ~ key) and entering
/serverstatus
A list should be returned with server settings and the players on the server. The first number in front of each player's name is the client number. Use that number when kicking someone through clientkick.

g_gametype n
Note: callvote of g_gametype is typically followed by /callvote map as the gametype will not change until the next map load. Used to switch gametypes where n would be one of the following:
    1 Tourney (1 vs 1)
    2 Free For All
    3 Team Death match
    4 CTF
    5 One flag (Team Arena only)
    6 Overload (Team Arena only)
    7 Harvester (Team Arena only)




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:01 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Screenshots

The default key to take a screenshot either while in-game or in the menu is F11. To take a screenshot of the console itself, open the console and type in /screenshot or /screenshotjpeg

The first command saves screenshots as a TGA image files, while the latter saves as smaller JPG image files. If you always want F11 to take JPG screenshots to save valuable hard drive space, enter the following in the console:

/bind F11 screenshotjpeg

You can find your screenshots in the screenshots folder in baseq3. Mods often contain their own screenshots subfolder.

*.tga files can be opened in programs such as IrfanView, ACDSee, Adobe Photoshop, TheGimp, or Paint Shop Pro.

NOTE: in point release 1.32 you can either bind a key to screenshotjpeg or use the console command /screenshotjpeg to take a jpg screenshot.

Example:
/bind F11 screenshotjpeg




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:03 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Demo System

Demos are in-game recordings that can be played back via the game engine, great for nostalgia, studying tactics, watching past matches, sharing with other players, etc.

Recording Demos Online
Connect to the server and open the console
1. Enter /g_synchronousclients 1
2. Enter /record [demo name] (where [demo name] = the name for your demo)
3. Enter /g_synchronousclients 0 (leaving at 1 causes choppiness and lag as the game tries to wait for all clients to be up to date.
4. To stop demo recording enter /stoprecord or exit Quake III.

Playing Back Demos
Select a demo from the demos menu, or use /demo [demo name] in the console.

Demo playback fails if:
The map was not found
A required mod was not found
The Network Protocol version of Quake that saved the demo was different from your current version

The timedemo benchmark
A timedemo is a benchmark to test the speed of your current computer system. In the timedemo process, Quake III plays back a demo recording at the highest speed possible (rendering as many frames per second as possible). At the end of the benchmark, Quake III will show the results in the console. The number to note is the average amount of frames per second (fps) rendered, as this is a pretty solid number for comparison purposes provided that the same demo is ran with identical graphics settings on both machines.

Run a timedemo by entering the following commands in the console:

    1. /timedemo 1
    2. demo [demo name]
    (replace [demo name] with the name of a demo file or select a demo through the demo menu). After running the demo the results will appear in the console. Sometimes you must use the PGUP key to scroll a bit up because the results do not always show up on the last line of the console. Don't forget to set /timedemo 0 after running the demo.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:05 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Ammo & Weapons

In the user interface is a number with a symbol or ammo box icon next to it. This icon indicates what weapon you currently have in your hands, and the number next to it is the amount of ammo you have remaining for that weapon. If you run out of ammo for a certain weapon, you will automatically switch to the next weapon. You cannot use the weapon without ammo until you pick up additional ammo for it (by picking up an ammo box for the required type of ammo or by picking up another of the same weapon, as picking up a weapon adds ammo as well). The different ammo types are recognizable by the color of the box and the icon on the box itself. If you completely run out of ammo, you will automatically switch to the gauntlet. This weapon uses no ammo, but instead deals damage to your opponents via spinning blades. Hold down the fire button and walk up to someone and make physical contact with the gauntlet to deal a powerful and deadly blow.

Here's a list of the different ammo types:

Bullets. Used for the Machinegun (MG). Represented by yellow ammo boxes.
Shells. Used for the Shotgun (SG). Represented by orange ammo boxes.
Grenades. Used for the Grenade Launcher (GL). Represented by green ammo boxes.
Rockets. used for the Rocket Launcher (RL). Represented by red ammo boxes.
Lightning. Used for the Lightninggun (LG). Represented by brown ammo boxes.
Slugs. Used for the Railgun (RG). Represented by light green ammo boxes.
Cells. Used for the Plasmagun (PG). Represented by magenta ammo boxes.
BFG Ammo. Used for the BFG10K (BFG). Represented by blue ammo boxes.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:06 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:37 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


Armor

Yellow armor is valued at 50, Red armor at 100, and Armor shards worth 5. When you are shot, Quake3 applies 2/3 of total damage to armor (Some damages: Rail=100, Rocket=100(max), Shotgun=115(max)), then the rest is taken off health.
If your armor is insufficient to cover the 'debt' the leftover damage comes from your health: In other words, you must have at least 34 health and 67 armor to survive one rail slug. For every point of health you have above 34, you may have 1 point less of armor and you will live. (44Health, 57Armor=OK but 33Health, 200Armor=Dead)
Only if there is a suitably large health debt (i.e. you have 20 health and the remaining power of a rail that hits you is worth 80) will you gib (splatter into bones, blood and meat chunks), otherwise you just flop dead onto the floor.

Your health is represented by the number next to the icon of your player model’s head via the in game user interface. Your armor is represented by the number next to the armor icon via the in game UI.




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Splash Damage

Splash damage is rendered only by the rocket launcher, plasma gun, grenade launcher and BFG projectiles. The ‘splash’ of the weapon’s projectile making impact creates this damage, similar to the force of an explosion whereas standing slightly away from the explosion can still hurt you. Splash Damage is always calculated in a radius. This means that the center of the "splash damage sphere" deals full damage (i.e. a direct hit from a rocket delivers a hit of 100 health) while damage value decreases towards zero at the extent of the splash radius. You’ll often find yourself using splash damage rather than direct hit damage since it's often hard to get a direct hit with a grenade or rocket.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:07 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Strafe Jumping

Strafing is a skill which enables player movement at a faster-than-running-speed pace. Strafe jumping is performed via a continuous jumping cycle while running forward and strafing in alternate directions (or the same direction if you want to curve your jump).

In order to attempt your first strafe jumping run, find a map with wide open flat spaces which will allow bunny-hopping while running long distances.

Process:
Run forward while continuing to hold down the run forward key, jumping each time you hit the ground again. Repeat until comfortable with this bunny-hop-running method. Now you’re ready to add strafing into the mix, pressing alternating strafe keys during this process each time you hit the ground just prior to the next jump. Strafing also works when traveling backwards. Good strafe jumping can take quite a lot of practice.




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Rocket Jumping and Plasma Climbing

Rocket Jumps and Plasma Climbs are possible due to the splash damage ‘knock back’ from these weapons.

Rocket Jumps
To rocket jump you need to hold a rocket launcher. Look straight at the floor. Now pull the trigger and jump simultaneously. Provided the timing and angle are right, your player should fly far higher than could ever be reached with a normal jump. Rocket jumps take some practice and also take quite a bit of health, sometimes as high as 50 or 60. Be sure that you can afford to lose some health and that making a rocketjump is worth it. Skilled players use many surfaces and angles to successfully propel themselves in virtually any direction with the rocket jump. Similar types of jumps can also be performed with the BFG or grenade launcher after some practice to master timing.

Plasma Climbing
Plasma Climbing was introduced in Quake III engine physics, using Plasma ball knock back to propel your player upwards along the face of a wall. To Plasma climb, stand against a wall and look down at a slight angle even with your feet. Jump as you start firing the Plasmagun and hold the 'forward' key. Release the jump key as you take off. If you don't go into the air, keep adjusting your aiming angle and make sure you aren't 'sliding' along the wall while holding the forward key. Plasma climbing is one of the hardest possible Quake III skills to master, however an excellent addition to the Pro player’s toolkit.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:09 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:39 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


Servers

Your first concern when hosting a multiplayer server is available bandwidth. Naturally, a 56k modem might be enough to host a 1v1; however it will be moderately laggy. If you have a (simple) DSL or Cable connection with at least 256kb upload you should be able to host a game for 3 or 4 people assuming you have no other background bandwidth usage. A full T1 (1.5Mb up and down) can typically host 12-16 Quake III clients comfortably. Servers can be run in one of two modes: Listen and Dedicated.

Listen Server
Listen Server mode allows the player to host a server from within the same instance of Quake III in which they are playing. When the listen server host player exits Quake III or returns to the main menu the server shuts down and disconnects any connected clients. To run a listen server in Quake III, choose the multiplayer menu. Click the "create" button at the bottom of the screen. You'll be shown a list of all the maps available for the gametype selected. Select the gametype you wish to play (Free For All, Team Deathmatch, CTF, 1on1 Tournament, etc) and select a map to play from the list. Click "next".

From here on, configure available server options such as timelimit, fraglimit, pure server, hostname, etc. By clicking on the listed available player slots you can select between human or ‘bot’ opponents and/or teammates. This is also the location to specify you’ll be running a listen server by making sure the dedicated option is set to No, which assures your player connects the to localhost, aka listen server you have just configured. Listen servers over the internet are notorious for higher pings, irregular lag, choppy gameplay or even "warping" players so playing over the internet via a Dedicated Server is desirable. You should probably save the use of Listen Servers to start up a quick LAN game.

Clicking the "fight" button on this screen will start the server.

Dedicated Server
Dedicated servers can be started via the same method above, but instead setting the ‘dedicated’ variable to "LAN" or “Internet”. The main difference between each option is the LAN option does not broadcast to the master servers which allow internet players to see the server via game browsers. As noted by the name, a dedicated server is meant to run as a console only and typically on a machine with the express role of being a game server. Clicking the "fight" button on this screen will start the server. Upon startup of a dedicated server, a console will be the only window running which can accept commands in the input area below the blue-background console output frame.

Note: Quake III also allows playing on the same computer as the dedicated console; simply start a full-GUI instance of Quake III and drop the console then type \connect localhost instead of the IP address (you might as well just run a listen server than go this extra step though)

Our Technology & Troubleshooting Forum is an excellent resource for further assistance.

For further detailed and more advanced information about setting up a dedicated server please visit www.gameadmins.com




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PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:39 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


Bots

Bots are artificial players with limited intelligence intended for offline play or practice. Playing a single player campaign versus bots through the tiered-system of maps is an excellent way to become familiarized with Quake III Arena and will go a long way towards preparing one for the online multiplayer experience.

Bots can be given commands via the console during teamplay situations.

I am the leader

…this will let bots know that you are the leader. No other bot will assume command.
The bot should follow/accompany/cover/go for the specified time. If no time is specified, the bot will carry out commands indefinitely. (However, bots, like humans, can tire of doing the same thing over and over again and may randomly go do their own thing again.)

The commands:
    follow for xx
    follow forever
    accompany
    accompany for xx
    accompany forever
    cover
    cover for xx
    cover forever
    go with
    go with for xx
    go with forever
    go to (Bot should go either go to the specified location or pick up the specified object)
    get
    patrol from x to y (Bot will run back and forth between specified locations and/or objects for the specified time)
    patrol from x to y for xx
    patrol from x to y forever
    camp near (Bot will camp and defend near the specified location or object for specified time)
    camp near for xx
    camp near forever
    camp here (Bot will guard YOUR present location for a specified period of time)
    camp here for xx
    camp here forever
    camp there (Bot will guard its own location for a specified periond of time)
    camp (Bot will camp at specified object or location for specified time)
    camp for xx
    camp forever
    defend
    defend for xx
    defend forever
    guard
    guard for xx
    guard forever
    help (Bot should find and assist other team member)
    meet
    lead the way (then give action ? bot will wait for you to follow) Bot will go on ahead, then perform specified action
    kill (Bot will hunt down and kill specified player)
    hunt down
    dismissed (Bot will stop performing the last task you commanded it to do and commence roaming)
    dismiss
    stop action
    I am the leader
    I quit being the leader (Allows a bot to become the team leader and give commands)
    I quit being team leader
    I stop being the leader
    I stop being team leader

For further info refer to the Bot Commands helpfile "\Extras\Help\BotCommands.html" located in your Quake3 install folder (default path is c:\program files\quake III arena)




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:14 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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riddla
impenetrable quandary
impenetrable quandary

Joined: 02 Aug 2000
Posts: 9500
PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:40 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


Modifications

Modifications, or ‘mods’ for short are just that – a modification and/or addition to the base gameplay in some form or fashion. There are dozens of popular mods for Quake III, all of which are made by teams of enthusiasts in their spare time. Some mods are simply gameplay tweaks and enhancements, while other mods change the game into something altogether different (Total Conversions).

Most of the well-established mods provide either an installer executable or manual zip install version (or both) for each major release. Installers are generally windows-only and usually install the mod fully after minimal input from the user.

The zip version simply contains the mod files in their proper directory structure. (pk3 files, readme files, configs, help, etc). All mods are ultimately contained in their own subfolder under your Quake3 installation folder (default is c:\program files\quake III arena). Usually the mod authors set the zip file up so that if you unzip the entire file into your Q3 folder all is set up and ready for play. You should ALWAYS make absolutely sure while extracting a zip version of any mod that you recurse the folders inside the zip (unzip while preserving directory structure). Otherwise you could be cleaning up quite the mess.

Zip versions do not create start menu shortcuts like many installer versions, so if you want to create your own shortcuts on your desktop or start menu which automatically start up Q3 with a mod loaded, add +set fs_game MODDIR to the startup command. Replace MODDIR with the foldername the mod's files are in. Best practice is to make a copy of your default Q3 shortcut and make changes to the copy.

Example:
If you wanted a shortcut to the popular OSP mod and have Q3 installed to c:\program files\quake III arena the shortcut startup command would look like this:

c:\program files\quake III arena\quake3.exe +set fs_game osp

Note: the fs_game command cannot be used while Q3 is already loaded. Use the mods menu if the game is already loaded, however the shortcut method to start most mods is recommended since many mods require other parameters, such as a higher memory allocation, also known as com_hunkmegs
Most of this information however should be documented in the particular mod's readme or help files.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:16 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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riddla
impenetrable quandary
impenetrable quandary

Joined: 02 Aug 2000
Posts: 9500
PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:41 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


Custom Maps, Models & Skins

Custom maps can potentially come as one of 3 types of files (.pk3 or .zip being by far the most common delivery methods):

• a .bsp - a raw map file
• a .pk3 - a .bsp file inside a zip file with directory structure which has its extension changed to .pk3
• a .zip - a zipfile containing a .pk3 (or sometimes even a .bsp, .map, etc)

Zip files usually contain a readme.txt and a .pk3 file that contains the map.
If you have a pk3 file inside the ZIP, then the pk3 needs to be extracted to the BASEQ3\ directory.
If you have a .bsp (and/or an .aas = a representation of the map for the bots to use) these will go inside a directory called "maps" inside your baseq3 directory. Note that your pk3/bsp/aas/map files should not have any CAPITAL LETTERS in them, or they won’t be detected by the game. Raw .bsp or .aas files are almost always beta versions not yet packed into a pk3 for final use, so most likely you will seldom need use of them.

Playing the Map:
Maps contained in native pk3 format should usually show up in the map selection menu. Go to the single player menu, and click on the "skirmish" option to display list of available maps. Your newly-installed map should be in this list. Note that maps will only appear if they are compatible with the currently selected gametype at the bottom of the screen. Naturally, a Capture the Flag map won't show up if you have Free For All selected as the current game type.

If the newly-added map doesn't show up in the menu then it is missing some standard information. The map can still be called directly from the console via the following syntax:
/map mapname (where mapname is the name of the file in the pk3 with the .bsp extension)

Example:
If you wish to load the "Temple of Retribution" map (q3dm7.bsp) then you should enter:
/map q3dm7
Use /devmap instead of /map if you want cheats enabled.

Models & Skins
Custom player models and skins typically are packaged as .PK3 files and are to be extracted as intact .PK3 files to the baseq3 folder. There can be different skins for one model, but a skin will only fit one model, so skins and models are not entirely interchangeable. Since most servers are running pure and with PB, custom models and skins are not typically allowed during internet play on most servers in order to discourage cheating.




Last edited by riddla on 11-25-2005 06:17 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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riddla
impenetrable quandary
impenetrable quandary

Joined: 02 Aug 2000
Posts: 9500
PostPosted: 11-24-2005 09:45 AM           Profile    Send private message  E-mail  Edit post Reply with quote


CLICK HERE FOR FURTHER INFO

==========

Feel free to post in this forum if you have any questions that aren't discussed here. If you notice info which needs added to this guide please make a specific request.

Finally, many additional questions can be answered by visiting the Activision Support Site.
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