Starter Guide

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Revision as of 02:42, 24 November 2010 by Payne (talk | contribs) (Made the GalaxyEdit link more visible.)
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This page will act as a handful categorization of different links that should help Map-Makers to orient themselves around the vast source of wikis the Internet provides.

It is adapted for complete beginners as well as for advanced mappers.

GalaxyEdit Modules

First of all, if you are completely new to the Galaxy Editor, it is highly recommended to read the following tutorial:

It gives a basic explanation of GalaxyEdit's Modules. If you already know what each Module does, then you can continue reading this guide disregarding this last link.

Links per Module

The following links are there to give a minimally more in-depth view of the different Modules.

Terrain (F5)

  • Cameras: Cameras are used to set the point of view of the players via triggers. Very handy in many situations, though it's not really something you'll mess with with small/basic projects.
  • Doodads: Doodads are used to decorate your terrain. This page also provides some useful tips.
  • Regions and Points: Regions and Points explained.
  • Terraining Tips: A very great resource for easy to intermediate terraining tips.
  • Terrain Types (Textures): Images of all the textures of every single Tileset.
  • Water: [Temporary link] Water Guide (Author: Coldrock, member of UDMod)

Triggers (F6)

  • AI: You want to create an Artificial Intelligence for your computer players? Here's a basic tutorial about it.
  • Banks: How to do ranking and preserve data even after the players have left the game. Very useful for RPGs, for example.
  • Collision Detection: ?
  • Custom UI: Self-explanatory.
  • Day/Night Simulation: ?
  • Dialogs: You'll eventually get to use those. For example, they are used for leaderboards.
  • GalaxyScript: [Temporary link] A Guide to Galaxy (Author: AzothHyjal, member of SC2Mapster)
  • Inventory/Items: ?
  • Text Message: Any text you want to display to the players will require you to mess with this action.
  • Third Person Camera: (Also known as TPS. This wiki explains in detail how to implement such a system into your map.
  • Timers: Self-explanatory.
  • Trigger: If you're new to triggers, you must read this.
  • Trigger Libraries: If you're searching for a system already made and designed, ready for you to use and change just some basic information, well, you're searching for a Trigger Library!
  • Trigger Functions: Intermediate triggerer technique used to save time and reduce the amount of repetitions.
  • Variables: Yet another thing you'll for sure use in your map-maker career.

Data Editor (F7)

  • Abilities: If you want to mess with an already-existing ability or want to create a new one, you'll have to work with those.
  • Actors: [Temporary link] Working with Actors (Author: ProzaicMuze, member of SC2Mapster)
  • Aura Spell: An Aura spell is an ability that affects the surroundings of the caster.
  • Behaviors: Those are used for Items, Abilities, Units, and much more!
  • Build time: A basic tutorial that consists of a single image. It shows you how to modify the build time of a unit.
  • Custom button: Pretty self-explanatory. Be aware that having a custom button is required if you want to create a new ability (but you of course can use an already-existing button's graphic). We also have a YouTube video up.
  • Create a unit from scratch: Self-explanatory.
  • Data Editor Theory: A general explanation of the Data Editor. Very useful! Also contains a list of the most used fields of the 'Units' tab.
  • Designing an ability: Explains, with the help of an example, every step that must be done when creating a basic custom ability.
  • Effects: Those are used for Abilities.
  • Footprints: ?
  • Host Site Operations: Used to attach Models on other Models, HSOs can be really handy.
  • Missiles: How to create missile abilities.
  • Movers: [Temporary link] Customized Movers (Author: ProzaicMuze, member of SC2Mapster)
  • Pathing: ?
  • Polishing Spells: Graphics are -extremely- important in -any- map. Make sure you polish those spells up!
  • Roam: This is how you make a unit wander around.
  • Modifying the Supply Limit: Self-explanatory.
  • Timed Life: A basic tutorial that explains how to make units die after a certain time (just think of the Infested Terran).
  • Turrets: [Temporary link] Working with Turrets (Author: ProzaicMuze, member of SC2Mapster)
  • Unit Properties: Complete list, with descriptions, of the fields found under the 'Units' tab.
  • Upgrades: ?
  • Validators: ?
  • Veterancy: This is used to create heroes, mainly.
  • Weapons: Self-explanatory.
  • Worker: Workers are a unit type. It can be kind of complex to manipulate them.

Text (F8)

  • (Link) If you have a lot of messages to change through triggers, but already know it'll be a real pain because you must first find them, then click the action, then the message, and then modify it, it is highly recommended to us the Text module instead.

Import (F9)

  • (Link) This module is very easy to work with: you Import files with Ctrl+I... and you're done! Just make sure you save before leaving the window.



GalaxyEdit Window

To the right of the menu called "Modules", there's a menu called "Window". The tools in there are used by intermediate and advanced mappers. Though one you should definitely care about is the Lighting one.

Links per Window

Previewer (Ctrl+Shift+V)

  • Previewer: This is used to preview animations. With it, you can look at every single animation that StarCraft II contains. It also contains sounds. You can also make up custom mix of animations/sounds with this.

Lighting (Ctrl+Shift+F10)

  • Dungeon lighting (Author: Obliviron, member of SC2Mapster): Explains how to achieve a dungeon-like ambiance (total darkness, except where light sources are). (Similar effects can be designed via triggers. To know how, please follow this link about a Flashlight system.)
  • Lighting guide (Author: Obliviron, member of SC2Mapster): A very great tutorial that explains in the effects of every field of the Lighting Module. Contains images!
  • OmniLights: OmniLights are little light sources that you can place on your map.
  • Lighting: Playing with the lighting will let you create a custom ambiance that will suit perfectly your map. Maps leaving the default lighting are often looking dull.

Script Test (Ctrl+Shift+F11)

  • Null.

File Transfers (Ctrl+Shift+T)

  • Null.

Messages (Ctrl+Shift+M)

  • Null.

Console (Alt+`)

  • Null.



GalaxyEdit Map

To the left of the Window menu button, there is one named "Map". You'll use this one every single time you'll create a new map. This menu contains:

  • Map Properties: Used to define general things related to the map itself.
    • Map Info: Change the name of your map from there. You should also give yourself credits as the author. The "Basic Description" isn't used anywhere, but the "Extended Description" is the one shown under your map's image preview on Battle.net
    • Map Options: ?
    • Map Bounds: Modify your Camera and/or Map's boundaries from there. This allows you to create a map with custom dimensions.
    • Map Textures: This is where you change the tileset (or just a single texture!) of your map.
    • Map Loading Screen: Anything that has to do with the Loading Screen is in there. Here is a temporary video from Jack, one of our members.
  • Player Properties: Player-related settings are situated in there.
    • Players: Used to define players' Controller, Race, Color, Start Location, Name, and Decal.
    • Team Placement (Basic): If all you need to do is to set the allies for each individual player, then use this.
    • Team Placement (Advanced): If you have to set custom enemies as well as the allies, use this.
  • Object Groups: ?
  • Map Status: This is very useful in the case that you've opened a map showing a simple system but you aren't sure which fields have been modified. For example, this map, about a Flashlight system, may let you think that all you need to do to implement the system is to reproduce this trigger, but with the Map Status window, you'll be able to notice the little field that was modified in the Data Editor.
  • Cinematics: Temporary video link - Part 1 of 4 (Author: OneTwo)
  • Game Attributes: They are used to give some choice to the players from within the lobby. For example, Fortress Arena Classic uses those to map the players choose, among other things, the Arena they'll be playing. Special Forces: Elite let's you choose your Hero from the lobby. Currently, StarEdit Network's Community is lacking information about those, so meanwhile, please refer to OneTwo's YouTube Video (start at 6:38 for Game Attributes).
  • Game Variants: They are used to define things like how the lobby is set up.


WARNING! Some times, when you publish your map, there are conflicts between the Player Properties and the Game Variants. Here is a trick that will help reduce the chances of this happening:

  • Map Properties: Set the Race, Color and Controller there.
  • Game Variants: Leave the three fields named just above (Race, Color, Controller) empty (default).


Others/See Also

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