Group: Member Post Group: Level 4: Voice of Influence
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Most NS pub admins have it set in their minds that scripts are so amazingly evil that they won't even consider mp_bs 0. I was shocked to see that you would even consider removing the script blocking, so I thought I'd take the opportunity to explain why, as of v3.2, blocking scripts is no longer useful on pubs as it was even in v3.1.3 (and of course earlier).
ANSL allows scripts and explains why. The Half-Life engine has intentionally built in limitations into their scripting engine, therefore any scripts that do not somehow get around these limitations are legal. It's that simple, but years ago, you could actually get an unfair advantage since there weren't as many limitations as today.
These are the most common scripts used (today) on servers that allow scripts:
1. Pistol script
2. Wiggle walk script
3. Marine request scripts
4. Config changing scripts
5. Bunny hop script
I will now explain why none of these give you an unfair advantage (and I'm sure you're thinking pistol scripts definately do).
1. Pistol script
Years ago there was no limit as to how fast your pistol would fire, therefore if you made a script that would shoot 4 bullets (enough to kill a skulk) with 1 button click, they would fire instantly. This hasn't been the case for quite a while (I forget what version the limit was placed). If you can click fast, then you can already click faster than the limit (at least I can and I wouldn't say I'm an amazingly fast clicker).
The most common pistol script is a 2 shot script, one shot when you press the button down, and one shot when you release. Although this still may seem like it gives an unfair advantage, it has disadvantages as well. If you miss, you miss 2 bullets instead of one, if you release the mouse button too fast, you will be going over the fire rate limit and therefore the second bullet won't fire.
But probably the most important argument that this does NOT give an unfair advantage is that you can still have the effects of the pistol script, without using a script! OMG WHAT ? Yes that's right, you can bind your mwheeldown to +attack and then just spin your mouse wheel. This is not a script, gives the same effect (which since the limit was placed really isn't really a big advantage anyway).
2. Wiggle walk script
Wiggle walking is tapping your left/right strafe keys really fast. It allows you to run faster (works as marines and all aliens except lerk). It gives you slightly less speed than wall strafing (which does not require scripts), but wall straffing requires smooth walls, so wiggle walking is used where there are none. Of course most places do have smooth walls, so this isn't used as much as you'd think.
The real problem with the wiggle walk script is that it runs for about 0.5 seconds and then shuts off, so you have to tap the button repeatedly. If you say tapped the wiggle walk script button 10x, then the script would run for 5 seconds. So why is it a probem that it runs for about 0.5s? Because when it's running you can't do anything else except move your mouse, mouse button clicks don't even work. You can't jump, you can't switch weapons, you simply can't do anything except look around with your mouse. I've been killed so many times because of that damn wiggle walk script that I don't even bother anymore, except in the first 10 seconds or so of the game when I know no aliens are nearby. So hardly a big advantage, but if you're in a serious game where every second counts, then wiggle walking in those first couple of seconds is worth it.
Oh yeah, did I mention you can tap your left/right strafe keys really fast, have the same effect, but be able to 'turn it off' (meaning not have to wait for it to stop running before you can shoot that skulk) whenever you want (by just no longer pressing the left/right strafe buttons)?
In summary, wiggle walking is only useful where there are no smooth walls, has the disadvantage of being extremely vulnerable while using it, and you can wiggle walk without a script (although not quite as fast).
3. Marine request scripts
If getting a commander to notice your request is an unfair advantage, then I'll give you this one. As many more advanced players know, you can bind medpack/ammo/order requests to keys so you just hit one key and it does the request associated with that key. The request script causes a single key press to do 2 things. It both sends the in game request, but it also sends a team_say message, to give a slight additional notification of what you need and where.
You can have this same effect without scripts, just use 2 keys. Bind one to the in game request and the second to the team_say msg. Still it's hardly a big advantage as the comm is probably still going to ignore you, just your team will realize you're requesting stuff.
4. Config changing scripts
Config changing scripts are typically used to change mouse sensitivity, key layouts, or other aspects of your configuration for different lifeforms. So your skulk may have a different sensitivity than your marine. You can change a multitude of config settings with just a single press of a button (which in turn will do exec skulk.cfg or exec marine.cfg or whatever).
The reason this script does not present any advantage is that you just open up your console and type "exec fade.cfg" while you're gestating, or skulk.cfg while you're waiting to spawn, etc. So really this script is more of a convenience thing than it is an unfair advantage because you can still have the same effects without scripting.
5. Bunny hop script
I think when people think of bunny hop script they think it's actually going to automagically make you bunny hop and that's just not the case. Bunny hop scripts simulate you pressing your space bar 3x very very quickly. This is a matter of jump timing. So you still have to time your space bar presses right before you hit the ground at the end of each jump, it just makes the timing a little easier, but you know what? Most people just use mouse wheel for jumping. It has the exact same effect, and you can do it on servers that block scripts, so most people don't even bother using it, or if they do, on servers that block scripts they'll just use their mouse wheel. Some are actually good enough to not even need to use mouse wheel (I'm certainly not).
OK so those were the common scripts of today and as you can see, NONE of them give a big advantage, they're just minor things that can be done without scripting (except wiggle walking, since it does give a slightly faster than what you could do without scripts speed even with its huge disadvantage). But what about uncommon scripts? Or scripts that really do give an unfair advantage?
1. Rate scripting
Rate scripts will change your cl_updaterate/cl_cmdrate up and down as you press different keys, like wasd, space, mouse buttons, etc. This makes you near impossible to hit. IMO this is the same as hacking and should be banned as such, but there's an easier way. There's a plugin that prevents players from changing their rates during the game, or prevents them from changing them frequently. But the reality is that you could just sit your rates really low and have a similar effect (being hard to hit and teleporting around), or say play on a dialup like repears_revenge. That kid is impossible to kill as lerk because he's teleporting around.
2. Lerk flap script
Lerk flap script simply simulates (usually) 2 jumps when you press spacebar, to get you up to speed faster. This was typically used to do a move where you would fly up and down very quickly. As of v3.2 the lerk flight model has changed and it's no longer possible to do this like you could before, although is still possible to some extent. You could always do it without a script by pressing spacebar quickly.
3. Leap/bite/parasite script
4. Blink script
I'm just going to group these together. Before v3.2 which was released as final in March 2007 (although was public beta since November 2006), these scripts have become obsolete because they are actually LESS USEFUL than the new +movement feature of v3.2. I'll explain the blink script and you can guess what the leap/bite/parasite scripts do.
Blink scripts automagically and quickly change between blink and metabolize so that you can blink and metabolize at the same time, thereby reducing energy consumption. As of v3.2 not only has the blink energy rate been reduced as part of the game, but you can blink and metabolize at the same time by just using +movement for blink and slot 3 weapon for attacking. While this still requires you to switch between swipe and metabolize, it's hardly much of an advantage, especially with quick switching.
But quite possibly the biggest reason scripts shouldn't be blocked is that you can do all of the things possible with scripts, and even more (remember Half-Life has limitations purposely imposed in the scripting engine) by using macros. Macros are 3rd party programs that run outside of the game. No they're not hacks, in fact they have nothing to do with games. For years macro programs have been available to allow you to do multiple functions on your computer with a single key press and they don't have any limitations on what you can do, how fast you can do them. They can use macros to get around the limitations in the Half-Life scripting engine, or simply get around mp_bs 1 and use macros that do the same things as the scripts they would use if mp_bs were 0.
IMO macros should be banned since they can be used to do things more advanced than what the Half-Life scripting engine allows. Oh and ANSL feels the same way. They clearly state that macros are cheating, but scripts are ok.
In summary, scripts are limited in what they can do, which isn't as much as many people think. The ones that do give an advantage it is very minor and can be done without scripts (pistol/bhop/etc), or they can be done with +movement (blink/metab). Point is, as of v3.2 there is hardly any advantage that can be gained through the use of scripts that cannot be gained without using scripts. It's primarily a convenience thing (at least in my case with the config changing scripts). And I hardly see how my ability to change configs by pressing a single key somehow gives me an advantage over changing the config by manually typing in 'exec lerk.cfg' while I'm gestating.
I believe most admins that block scripts either don't actually know of any scripts that give advantages, or, like the pistol script, heard about them years ago when they really did give a huge advantage, but have not kept up with the times.
But quite possibly the biggest argument I have for allowing scripts on junktext's server is that it's supposedly no game altering elements. You know, the way NS was meant to be played, but there's one little secret I bet almost nobody (except server admins) know, and that's that the NS developers do NOT block scripts by default. If you want to block scripts, you have to change the mp_bs 0 line to mp_bs 1 in the official server.cfg file.
EOR (End of Rant)
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