[Spoilers] Everything About Bots

[angellus]

Okay, first, I would like to say thank you for anchpop for the original post. Also, thanks to CodeMyster for the fancy images which I have reattached here. Second, the reason I am making this post, anchpop's post was incredibly helpful for me, but it made me want to pull my hair out. I am making this post as most of a "tutorial" rather then just some random info on bots. I am also adding in some of my own info too I have learned. Some of this info many you probably already know, just keep reading. I am writing this for anyone, including someone completely new to the game. Anyways, lets get started.

Where to find the bot
Once you start a new world, you are at your crashed space ship. Close to your ship (about 100 blocks for me) there is a tall dark metal structure with a green glow. The structure should be visible from your crashed ship. It is of XenoMorph origin. Directly under the center of it there should be a weird item laying on the ground. It is a XenoTech GravPad. Step on it. It will propel you up into the structure. Inside of the structure you will find the bot.

Explaining the bot interface

In game interface (I found this image with Google):


As you can see, there are three sections here. The left pane is for the list of scripts made so far. The top pane is to show the script and the bottom script if the possible symbols to enter. There are two default scripts:

Tunnel
Creates a 2x1x11 tunnel
:
(Dig Forward Dig Up Move Forward)

Script:

(Move Down Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Dig Up)

Tower
Creates a 7x2x2 tower made of Light Basalt
Items:
: Light Basalt
: Light Basalt

Macros:
:
(Dig Forward Move Forward Place Back Item 1 Turn Left Dig Forward Move Forward Place Back Item 1 Turn Left Dig Forward Place Back Item 1 Dig Up Move Up Place Down Item 1 Turn Left)

:
(Dig Forward Move Forward Place Back Light Basalt Turn Left Dig Forward Move Forward Place Back Light Basalt Turn Left Dig Forward Place Back Light Basalt Dig Up Move Up Place Down Light Basalt Turn Left)

Script:

(Move Down Dig Forward Move Forward Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 2)

I will explain what these scripts do later.

The symbols are further divided into four sections:

Commands:

---Move----Dig----Place---Turn Left--Turn Right

Directions:

Forward----Up-----Down-----Back

Blocks:


Macros:


Bot Operations
Bots work very slowly. I have found that I can do a task much faster then a bot. However, the bot can work at the same time I do. So I can basically get 150% efficiency using one. So they are still very useful. Also, the bot can mine any block, whereas you are limited by your P.I.C.K. The bot also always takes up a slot in your inventory and you can cancel it at all time (press "X" on the bot or left trigger with the bot selected in your inventory). While the bot is digging up blocks, it will place them in the first inventory slow free in your inventory (not in your hotbar). If you inventory is full, it will goto the first free storage unit, even if you and the bot are not within range. While it is placing blocks, it will first pull them from your inventory then it will pull them from your storage units.

Writing Scripts
Now, some of the above symbols are pretty clear what they do where others are not. Also, the default scripts should make more sense now. The general syntax of command is in one of three formats:

Command
Command -> Direction
Command -> Direction -> Block

For example, if you wanted the bot to turn right, it would just be the symbol for turn right. If you wanted the bot to mine the block above him, it would be the symbol for Dig then the symbol for Up. Likewise, if you want the bot to place a block in front of itself, it would be the symbols Place Forward BlockSymbol. Macros act like normal commands.

Block Symbols:
In the last example I just mentioned BlockSymbol rather then explaining it more. That is because the symbols for Blocks have no meaning. Or rather, they have no mining until you give them meaning. If you edit a script, then highlight over them, you have the option to edit their meaning (by pressing "Y"). Once you give a block symbol meaning, then it can be used and it will refer to that block. Block Symbols are local to each script. So you can have 7 different blocks in a single script.

Macros:
Macros work similarly Block Symbols. They have no meaning until you give them meaning. Macros however, are not a single block. They are a set of commands you can program together in a "subroutine" or macro that you can use in your script to call upon as much as you like. Macro are local to each script. So you can have 8 different Macros per script. That also means if you want to reuse a macro in a different script, you have to rewrite it.

Example Script
So maybe this is not just an example script, this is also the first complex one I wrote. I wrote this script for myself to mine tunnels and kill my supply for Basalt when it starts to get up there too high. I wanted to make a road from spawn out to the skylands, so I made the bot do it. Anyways, the script has the bot mining out a 2x2 tunnel and surrounds it in concrete. So it is 4x4 with a 2x2 walkway. The example here is for 2x10x2, but it can easily be expanded to any length. This version of the script takes 120 blocks of concrete to finish.

Blocks:
: Concrete

Macros:
:
(Dig Forward Move Forward Dig Up Place Up Concrete Dig Down Move Down Dig Down Place Down Concrete Move Up)

:
(Place Down Concrete)

:
(Place Back Concrete)

:
(Place Down Concrete Place Back Concrete)


Script:

(Macro 1 Turn Right Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 2 Turn Right Turn Right Move Forward Macro 3 Move Forward Macro 1 Macro 2 Turn Right)


(Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Turn Right)


(Macro 1 Macro 3 Turn Right Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Turn Left)


(Macro 1 Turn Left Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Macro 1 Turn Right)


(Macro 1 Macro 2 Turn Right Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4 Macro 1 Macro 4)


(Turn Right Move Forward Macro 3)

This script will mine a 2x2x10 tunnel and place concrete for the walls, floor, and ceiling. If you want to make it place a different block, just replace concrete with a block of your choice. The place you stand when you deploy the bot will be the left side of the 2 blocks wide. The last line is always needed, it finishes off the tunnel and places the last block of concrete. If you want to make it mine longer then 10, then on line 2 add Macro 1 and Macro 4 before the Turn Right, on line 3 add Macro 1 before the Turn Left, on line 4 add Macro 1 before the Turn Right and on Line 4 add Macro 1 and Macro 4 for each block you want to add. The script can also be used to make tunnels wider then 2, but you should figure that out your self if you want to do it.

If you have any more questions, do not be afraid to ask.

[PhoenixFyre]

I say, Well Done!

[CodeMyster]

Ah snap using my pic's I worked so hard on!!!

Also this should help ppl also

[rulitawyn]

I think you may have a syntax error on line one of the sample script images I haven't tested it yet because i am at work but i am pretty sure that after (turn right) (turn right) you have (forward Move) (Macro 3) (forward Move) (macro 1)(macro 2) (turn right) instead of ...(move forward) (Macro3) (move forward)... the written translation tho seems accurate otherwise I am happy that you had decided to actually use the images instead of just saying v=move f=forward... etc. its hard enough getting used to reading the scripts in alien but having to read a string of English letters then translate them in your head to their meaning then into alien

[angellus]

I think you may have a syntax error on line one of the sample script images I haven't tested it yet because i am at work but i am pretty sure that after (turn right) (turn right) you have (forward Move) (Macro 3) (forward Move) (macro 1)(macro 2) (turn right) instead of ...(move forward) (Macro3) (move forward)... the written translation tho seems accurate otherwise I am happy that you had decided to actually use the images instead of just saying v=move f=forward... etc. its hard enough getting used to reading the scripts in alien but having to read a string of English letters then translate them in your head to their meaning then into alien

I will compare it with my in game script to make sure later. And I know. I hated people using the letters. It threw me off. I know the commands and I know the symbols. I have the commands for each symbol memorized and I can write a script really fast, but when you use a different symbol for a symbol that already means something else, it is annoying and slows me down.

[Magiciks]

I can't seem to make stairs and get the miro to work. I have a basic stairs going up but I don't know how to get the mirco to work I have to keep repeating the entire script over and over. Can anyone help me ?

[angellus]

I can't seem to make stairs and get the miro to work. I have a basic stairs going up but I don't know how to get the mirco to work I have to keep repeating the entire script over and over. Can anyone help me ?

Post your script?

[Magiciks]

Dig,forward,move,forward,dig,up,move,up,dig,back. That makes a small stair case going up...if I could figure the mirco I could get it to repeat with out always putting it in again.

[Reikaku]

All you would need to do is edit the macros on the far right (in the pic above, #1-8). You goto those and hit "Y" on your controller and you can edit them.

Put in your code for the stair digging (looks like it should be good to put in what you have). Then under the main program screen, just add your macro (1 for this instance).

Main Program would be:

1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1 etc

Which would create a 15 stair staircase.

If you plan to do the same set of actions continually, nothing beats the macros.

[Magiciks]

Thank you so much this helps out a ton