Net Power 2000 #2/NetCD2.iso/Patch/sb/Sc101.exe/data1.cab/Program_Executable_Files/Patch.txt

Text File | 1999-11-30 | 12.2 KB | 323 lines

PATCH.TXT

Septerra Core: Legacy of the Creator
Version 1.01
November 26th, 1999
Copyright 1999 Valkyrie Studios, Inc.


**********************************************************

This document contains information about version 1.01 of Septerra Core.
It also contains updates to some of the information included in the
Manual that came with the CD.


For information about Septerra Core, visit
http://www.lith.com/septerra

For support questions or problems, visit
http://support.lith.com


Please do not make unauthorized copies of Septerra Core.  The program
you've purchased was produced through the efforts of many people who
earn their livelihood from its lawful use.  Don't make copies for others
who have not paid for the right to use it.

To report copyright violations to the Software Publishers Association,
call 1-800-388-PIR8 or write:

     Software Publishers Association
     1101 Connecticut Ave., Suite 901
     NW Washington, DC 20036

This program is protected by United States federal and international
copyright laws.


**********************************************************

CONTENTS:

GENERAL
PREVIOUSLY UNDOCUMENTED FEATURES
CHANGES IN VERSION 1.01
TROUBLESHOOTING

**********************************************************

GENERAL

This document addresses previously undocumented features (movie
review, screen capture) but more importantly, all the changes that went
into updating version 1.00 to 1.01 - including how to undo the effects
of the more notable bugs.  We've also included a troubleshooting
section which describes the more common non-Septerra problems.



PREVIOUSLY UNDOCUMENTED FEATURES

* All of the movies that have (or should have) already been viewed can
be reviewed.  The '<' and '>' keys allow you to move backward and
forward though the movie playlist.  The '?' key allows you to play the
movie most recently viewed in this manner again.  Note that the shift
key is not actually required - that is the ',' '.' and '/' keys perform
the same function.

* You can capture the current screen by pressing F9.  The capture will
be placed in the same directory as Septerra.exe and will be called
SCRNxxxx.BMP.  In place of 'xxxx' will be a sequence number which
resets to 0000 each time the game is run.



CHANGES IN VERSION 1.01  (not in any particular order)

Please note that this section does contain items which might be
considered "spoilers".

* While the "Random Combat Hang" (game suddenly stops during combat
with the "Wait" cursor active) has been determined by the Monolith tech
support group to be most often caused by bad/old sound drivers, we now
have a workaround which should suffice in most cases.  Pressing
Control-A will cancel any sound the game is currently waiting on and
should allow combat to continue.

* The problem with the Mining Helgak combat failing to end has been
fixed.  We apologize to those of you who have used a side-effect of
this bug  to amass large quantities of gold.

* Various problems with the incorrect display of stats have been fixed.
This was most noticible just after adding Badu to the party.

* The incorrect calculation of the prices paid by stores to buy back
items or equipment under high crime conditions has been fixed.

* The "Mold Antidote" problem has been resolved.  The fix for this is
in two parts:  1) The player may no longer give the Hermit the antidote
at the wrong time.  2) For those players who have already been tripped
up, the Antidote Herb now regrows in Pranno.  To concoct a new batch of
Antidote, buy another bowl, pick another herb and recombine the bowl,
herb and Helgak Flute (you should still have the flute).  Note that
depending on where you are in the game, Pranno is either on Shell 6 or
Shell 1.

* The crash resulting from entering too many characters on the
"Command:" line has been fixed.

* The "Shell 4" problem (the "Slums" of Shell 4 getting raised too
soon) has been resolved.  Again, this comes in two parts.  1) Azziz no
longer talks about it (thus making it happen) out of sequence.  2) If
you've already been tripped up but have not gotten to where it should
have been raised, it gets put back.  If you enter a "broken" savegame
either on the Shell 4 world map or the Bazaar mini-world map, it may
still appear to be raised.  Leaving that level and coming back will fix
that.

* The problem with Araym not being able to achieve his #9 skill has
been fixed.  This fix also resolves the problem with Araym not being
able to use a breather mask in the Mold Forest if he is higher than
level 34.

* The problem with Corgan and Led not being able to use a breather mask
in the Mold Forest has been fixed.

* The inability to add Badu to the active party immediately after
finding him as been fixed.

* A problem has been fixed which caused an extra head icon to appear
during Maya's battles while she's alone on Spikey Isle.

* The source of the "Skipping Chapter 8" bug has been fixed.  Note that
skipping chapter 8 does not prevent the game from being finished, but it
does deprive the player of some of the Doskias/Conjunction story line
and the Mirror Fate Card which is won in the battle with the HellGod.

* The library Abbot in Wind City no longer hands out extra passports.
This prevents a strange storyline with Corgan in an unwinnable battle
which comes from using the extra passport.

* The failure to give Layla the supplies before leaving shell 3 is
prevented and rectified if it has already happened.

* A never-ending battle with an Opterra Nest in the Mold Forest has
been fixed.

* The hang when Corgan talks to May in Wind City has been fixed.

* The "Hidden Caretaker Robot" problem on the Old Mountain Highway has
been fixed.

* The background music is now restored after using the 'X' shortcut to
access the options screen.

* The "Hidden Item Cursor" problem (click on an item in Explore mode,
click on Subscreen button, cursor appears to be an arrow but is still
the item) has been fixed.  It really is an arrow now.

* When Maya is separated from the rest of the party, the core bar
displayed incorrectly.  This has been fixed.

* Led no longer has her "GrubbCombo" skill if Grubb isn't in the active
party.

* The Grubb & Led Combo skill is no longer available if either Grubb or
Led is "dead" in a combat.

* Since the Escape Fate Card never made it into the final version of
the game, the blank spot left for it in the "deck" has been removed.

* The animation of Duke (and other enemies who use the same art) no
longer blinks out during combat.

* The hang in Gregor that resulted from trying to give Mary Kay the
holo-message has been fixed.

* A problem with the Haywire Caretaker Robots (in the Jinam labs, for
example) committing suicide has been fixed.  They still commit suicide
occasionally, it just doesn't mess things up anymore.

* A problem where Maya could "teleport" to the other side of a wall
while walking toward a switch has been fixed.

* The "Missing Selina" problem has been fixed.  Once again, this is a
two parter:  1) The player may no longer meet Lobo until Selina rejoins
the party.  2) If Selina should be in the party, she'll automatically
be added when a savegame is loaded.

* Killing the Lochmaster outside the Ill Repute now supplies the
correct experience and gold payout.

* The experience and gold payouts for the engines on Doskias' flagship
are now correct.

* The experience and gold payouts for the battles with Connor are now
correct.

* The screen capture file is now in the same directory as Septerra.exe.
It was originally placed in C:\

* A failure to display found items in the "payout box" has been
fixed.  This was the result of the player already having 99 of the
item.  Please note that while the item is now displayed, you still can
only have 99 of any item.

* A problem where core could be lost by experimenting with various
pieces of equipment (short of actually equipping them) has been fixed.

* Key items can now be combined correctly in the Subscreens.

* The inability of the player to escape out of some dialog scenes has
been fixed.

* A minor problem with the globe in the Wind City Library has been
fixed.

* An occasional problem with the party being pulled into combat by
enemies on the wrong side of a wall has been fixed.

* A problem with your inactive characters losing their hitpoints has
been fixed.

* A problem where you don't get any experience points for killing an
undead creature with a healing item has been fixed.

* A problem where the characters lose their stats when they get to
level 99 has been fixed.



TROUBLESHOOTING

Almost all of the problems that players have reported concerning the
failure of the game to run - either at all, during or after movies, or
during combat - are related to sound & video drivers.  While Septerra
does not particularly push any limits itself, DirectX and QuickTime do.

This has been a problem so many times that the best bit of
troubleshooting advice that we can offer here is:

* If you're having difficulty making the game run properly, make sure
that you have the latest drivers for your machine.  These can typically
be downloaded from the web site of the hardware manufacturer and in
some cases, the web site of the computer vendor.  If upgrading drivers
doesn't work, try upgrading to the latest version of DirectX.  It is
important to note that older machines or cards may not be capable of
being brought up to current standards - either because they're actually
incapable of being upgraded or because their manufacturers have
abandoned them.



Problems With Movies

Many users have experienced compatibility problems when DirectX and
QuickTime are used in conjunction with one another.  We have
"discovered" several things which might help if you don't see the
movies:

1) Completely uninstall and reinstall QuickTime.  The version on the CD
was current as of September, 1999 but there may be a more recent version
at http://www.quicktime.com

2) Open QuickTime setup from the Windows Control Panel.  In the
drop-down list select "Video Settings" and uncheck the box for "Enable
Direct Draw Acceleration".

3) Some have suggested that installing DirectX Media and the latest
verison of the Windows Media Player might help.

4) If the movies are playing, but poorly, this may help.  Create a
shortcut for Septerra.exe.  In the shortcut's properties, add -d to the
end of the Target line (be sure to include a leading space).  This will
cause the engine to play the movies back at their native resolution
rather than doubled.  With 1/4 of the pixels to render, it should be
better.

5) If you're just sick of messing with it, put -m on the Target line
instead (with a leading space).  This causes the engine to not play
movies at all.  I don't recommend this - I think the movies are
terrific, but it's there if you need it.



Problems With Sound Skipping or Repeating

The timing required for keeping the sound buffers properly fed is
critical.  We've put in as much cushion as possible, but if your machine
is off doing something non-Septerra when the time comes, then the
DirectSound driver wraps back to the beginning of the last buffer and
starts to repeat the last chunk.  You can help prevent this by turning
off other programs.  Known offenders include FastFind, virus scanners,
FTP/Web servers, email retrieval, automated web update retrieval.



Problems With Combat Hanging Randomly

The "Random Combat Hang" (game suddenly stops during combat with the
"Wait" cursor active) has been determined by the Monolith tech support
group to be most often caused by bad/old sound drivers.  If you have
updated and still experience the problem, pressing Ctrl-A should clear
the hang and allow combat to continue.



Problems With Sound Effects being "late"

A number of people have complained about some combat sound effects
being late - particularly Grubb's & Led's attacks, where they will jump
over to the enemy, swing, jump back and THEN you hear the attack sound.
This is also a sound driver problem.  We have seen it on Valkyrie
computers and have been able to solve it with sound driver updates.




For other support questions or problems, visit
http://support.lith.com