Modding Tutorial

All Modding reference in a single article

Information

Standard Modding Interface, you can see the minimap of the mod in the bottom right corner while the mod is running

Starblast Modding interface can be found here: https://starblast.io/modding.html (ECP required)

Starblast Modding interface allows you to create custom mods for Starblast. The interface is made of a code editor window, on the left, and a console window, on the right. The code editor is where you type the JavaScript code for your mod. The console is where you can type commands to start your mod, stop it or interact with it while it is running.

Main programming language uses in this interface is JavaScript (ECMAScript)

Documentation and Tutorial

Important Notes

In newer version of browsers’ updates, you can’t use the Modding Client in incognito mode anymore as they restrict some incognito features which are used by the editor.

And make sure to read all of these from the start to the end so that you won’t miss any important info!

Creating your first mod

In the Mod Code window, type the code for your first mod:

this.options = {
  root_mode: "survival",
  map_size: 30
};

this.tick = function(game) {
};

Running and testing a mod

Change region

Once your mod code is ready, in the console, start by selecting your preferred region for modding using the command region <region name>. For example with Europe:

> region Europe
Region set to Europe
> █

(Currently modding is only available in these 3 zones: Europe, America, Asia)

Start mod

Then to start running your mod, type command start:

> start
Mod started
https://starblast.io#1234@12.34.56.78:2000
Use 'test' to open game frame for testing
> █

Test the mod

As instructed by the console, you may want to open a test window to join your modded game with a Starblast client. Type test:

> test
> █

ALWAYS keep the Mod Editor Tab being active while running the mod!

This is one of the most important things you need to keep in your mind!

Why? Because that’s nuances of how browsers work.

Browsers slow down all javascript in non-active tabs in order to decrease the CPU processes.

For some mods (e.g Battle Royale), it doesn’t matter like with ship tree and options only,

but for other mods where some logic in tick function or events - it will affect them A LOT!

Ticks start to work slower and slower…

Soon everything will be lagging in game, like any reactions on mod buttons, any mod logic like spawning something in tick, etc.

And… depending on mod complexity it can just CRASH THE ENTIRE MOD - locally, server will continue to work so game will work but without mod logic anymore.

So, always keep the mod editor tab online or you will have unpredictable results!

Also, you need to have a stable internet connection if you don’t want your mods becoming laggy.

Stop the currently running mod

You can stop your mod anytime by using command stop. Note that this will kill the game and disconnect all connected players:

> stop
Mod stopped
> █

Other terminal commands

echo

Print any values to the terminal, can be used in both mod code (after mod started) and terminal

Syntax: echo(<item>)

> echo("Message from terminal!")
Message from terminal!
> █

clear

Clear the the terminal, only available in terminal

Syntax: clear

help

Display help message inside the terminal, terminal use only

Syntax: help

Main code parts

Options

Definition

Stored in this.options is a data structure where you can set options for your custom, modded game. These options are used for initializing the game when you start your mod. Changing them while the mod is running does not affect the game.

Custom ships and custom tree

You can import ships made with Starblast Ship Editor. In the Ship Editor, use "Mod Export” feature to export a JavaScript code snippet for the modding interface. Then paste this snipped in the coding window and add this:

var myship_101 = "{ … … <this is your exported ship code> …";

var ships = [myship_101]; // add your ship to an array of ship

this.options = {
  root_mode: "survival",
  ships: ships,         // specifying a list of ships to complement / replace existing ships
  reset_tree: true,     // set to true if you want to remove the original ship tree, false if you just want to replace some of the ships
  map_size: 30
};

this.tick = function(game) {
};

Then run your mod. If your ship is set to level=1 model=1, your ship will replace the Fly. You can replace other ships in the tree in a similar way, using reset_tree: false. Or you can remove the original ship tree completely and provide a whole new one using reset_tree: true.

Customizing the emote-chat system

The vocabulary used for the emote-chat system can be customized by setting the field vocabulary in the game option as follows:

var vocabulary = [
      { text: "Hello", icon:"\u0045", key:"O" },
      { text: "Bye", icon:"\u0046", key:"B" },
      { text: "Yes", icon:"\u004c", key:"Y" },
      { text: "No", icon:"\u004d", key:"N" },

      { text: "Flower", icon:"\u{1F33B}", key:"F" },
      { text: "Snowman", icon:"\u26c4", key:"M" },
      { text: "Shark", icon:"\u{1F988}", key:"S" },
      { text: "Ghost", icon:"\u{1F47B}", key:"G" }
    ] ;

this.options = {
  vocabulary: vocabulary,
  // ...
};

This allows using Starblast built-in emote icons, which are listed here for reference: https://starblast.io/glyphs.html

You can also use unicode icons, here is a good source for reference: https://unicode.org/emoji/charts/full-emoji-list.html

Note that wide unicode characters (using more than 2 bytes) require a specific Javascript syntax as shown in the example above (example: \u{1F47B})

Custom asteroids maps

You can create a custom map of asteroids. This allows creating a maze for example. The custom map you provide is actually a JavaScript character string which is used to "paint” the map.

For example:

var map =
"999999999999999999999999999999\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"99                          99\n"+
"999999999999999999999999999999" ;


this.options = {
  custom_map: map,
  map_size: 30
}

In the example above, 9 sets the biggest size of asteroid. You can use smaller values for adding smaller asteroids to the grid. Any value other than a digit will be interpreted as no asteroid. If your map_size is set to 30, make sure to create 30 lines and 30 columns, or you may get unpredictable results.

Note: Use "" for blank custom map

You can use Online Map Editor (a community tool) to create, edit and export maps.

Other common options

Most of the options are inherited from the usual custom games. A few more options have been added, specifically for modding (top of the list):

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
root_mode	The mod to inherit from: "survival”, "team”, "invasion”, "deathmatch”, "battleroyale” (or unspecified)	Unspecified
reset_tree	Set to true to remove the original ship tree	false
ships	An array of ships to add to the tree	None
map_size	Size of the map, range from 20 to 200	100 (survival) 80 (team and Battle Royale) 60 (unspecified) 30 (Invasion) 20 (deathmatch)
soundtrack	"procedurality.mp3”, "argon.mp3”, "crystals.mp3”, "red_mist.mp3”, "civilisation.mp3” or "warp_drive.mp3” or none (empty string)	"crystals.mp3” (invasion and Batte Royale) "argon.mp3” (deathmatch) "procedurality.mp3” (others)
max_players	From 1 to 240	70 (team) 60 (survival) 40 (unspecified) 30 (Battle Royale) 20 (deathmatch) 6 (invasion)
crystal_value	Float, from 0 to 10	2 (team) 0 (deathmatch and Battle Royale) 1 (others)
lives	Number of lives, from 1 to 5	4 (team) 1 (deathmatch and Battle Royale) 3 (others)
max_level	Max level you can reach, from 1 to 7	7
friendly_colors	Serves to define teams; how many teams (or 0, maximum 5)	3 (team) 1 (invasion) 0 (others)
map_name	Name of the map	Auto-generated name
survival_level	Level which triggers survival mode (8 for no trigger, 2 minimum)	7 (survival) 8 (others)
starting_ship	Enter desired ship code: 101, 201, 404, etc.	101
starting_ship_maxed	true or false	false
asteroids_strength	0 to 1000000	5 (deathmatch) 0.5 (Battle Royale) 1 (others)
friction_ratio	0 to 2	1
strafe	strafing speed factor, an integer from 0 to 1	0
speed_mod	0 to 2	1.25 (deathmatch) 1.2 (survival and team) 1 (others)
rcs_toggle	true or false	true
map_id	Number in the range [0-9999]	Game id
map_density	Density of the map (0 to 2)	None
weapon_drop	0 to 10 (probability that an asteroid will drop a weapon)	0
crystal_drop	percentage of gems can be collected when a ship drain gems	0.5 (deathmatch) 1 (others)
release_crystal	true/false for allowing/forbidding [V] to release gems	true (team) false (others)
mines_self_destroy	true or false	true
mines_destroy_delay	all landed mines will be destroyed after this interval if no enemies triggered the mines (in ticks) minimum 0, no actual maximum limit (highest ever reached is 10308	3600 (Battle Royale) 18000 (others)
healing_enabled	true or false	true (team) false(others)
healing_ratio (not settable)	0 to 2	1
shield_regen_factor	minimum 0, no actual maximum limit (highest ever reached is 10308)	1
power_regen_factor	minimum 0, no actual maximum limit (highest ever reached is 10308)	1
invulnerable_ships	Ships are invulnerable or not (true/false)	false
weapons_store	Set to false to remove access to the weapon store	true
radar_zoom	Set value to 1, 2 or 4	2
auto_refill	When set to true, collecting an energy or shield pill immediately refills energy or shield ; the collected pill is not added to the active weapons	false
projectile_speed	Affects the speed of rockets, missiles and torpedoes; use 1 for default speed (minimum 0, no actual maximum limit (highest ever reached is 10308)	1
choose_ship	e.g. setting to [301,302,303] will let player choose a ship from these 3 ships before entering the game	None
collider	enable/disable (true/false) collisions of player ships with anything	true

Survival mode specific options

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
survival_time	When to trigger survival mode; 0 or a value in minutes	60

Team mode specific options

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
hues	array of hue numbers for teams, with the same amount of elements as used for friendly_colors	Auto-generated hues
station_regeneration	factor to apply to station shield regen	1
station_size	size of the stations; integer from 1 to 5	2
station_crystal_capacity	factor to apply to the station crystal capacity, range [0.1,10]	1
station_repair_threshold	part of the station crystal capacity that must be refilled to repair a module. In the range [0,1]	0.25
auto_assign_teams	allow assigning players to a specific team (true) or let them choose the team themselves (false)	false

Deatmatch mode specific options

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
ship_groups	an array containing some arrays, each of them representing one ship group (by name) available for selection See the example below. The longer the array is, the lower chance for each ship group being available in a single match	See Deathmatch for a list of default ship groups Note: The mod won’t run if reset_tree option is set to true

Example:

ship_groups: [
  ["U-Sniper","Howler"],
  ["Crusader","Pioneer"]
]

Ticking

Definition

Found in this.tick is a JavaScript function which is called 60 times per second. In this function’s body, you will be able to code specific actions that your mod needs to take automatically while the game is running. This function can be modified while the modded game is running and the changes will apply automagically.

Events

General

Your mod can receive events through the function this.event:

this.event = function(event,game) {
  switch (event.name)
  {
    case "ship_spawned":
      if (event.ship != null)
      {
        shipJustSpawned(event.ship) ;
      }
      break ;
  }
} ;

Available events

Event name	Description	Additional event fields
ship_spawned	A ship just spawned in game or respawned	event.ship
ship_destroyed	A ship was just destroyed	event.ship, event.killer
alien_destroyed	An alien was just killed	event.alien, event.killer
asteroid_destroyed	A movable asteroid was just destroyed (this event won’t trigger for non-movable asteroids)	event.asteroid, event.killer
collectible_picked	A ship just picked a collectible item	event.collectible, event.ship

Game step

Definition

Can be accessible through game.step, is an integer presenting game’s duration

Unit

The unit of this value is tick, where 1 tick = 1/60 seconds

Which means that 60 ticks = 1 second, 120 ticks = 2 seconds and so on.

Uses

This code uses to set the first ship in the list to the center of the map in the first minute of the mod and reset its crystals every 5 seconds (assume that there is one ship staying from the start of the mod):

this.tick = function (game)
{
  if (game.step == 3600) { // 1 minute = 60 seconds * 60
    game.ships[0].set({x:0,y:0}); // Center teleport
  }
  if (game.step % 300 === 0) { // 5 seconds * 60
    game.ships[0].set({crystals: 0}); // Reset crystals
  }
}

Ships

You can access to the list of ships (players) through the array game.ships

You can also find a ship with specific id using game.findShip(id), which returns an object represent the matched ship or null (if there are no ships matching the provided id)

Accessible fields

You have read access to the ship’s main fields and options:

Field	Description
x	X coordinate
y	Y coordinate
vx	Velocity vector X component
vy	Velocity vector Y component
r	Rotation angle of the ship (in radian)
name	player’s name
alive	Whether the ship is alive or destroyed
type	Ship type code (e.g. 101)
stats	Ship current stats upgrades, compiled into a single integer. For example: 10012301 means the 8 stats upgrade levels are 1,0,0,1,2,3,0 and 1
idle	tells if the ship is in idle status or not
team	the id of the team this ship is in
score	player’s score
shield	current shield value
generator	current generator value
crystals	current crystals value
healing	whether the ship’s lasers are in healing mode or not

Configuration

You can set different options on the ships. For example:

> game.ships[0].set({x:0,y:0});
> █

Will move the first ship in the list to the center of the map

List of accepted options when using ship.set:

Option	Description	Server response error message (if improper)
x	X coordinate	Wrong coordinate
y	Y coordinate	Wrong coordinate
vx	Velocity vector X component	Wrong coordinate
vy	Velocity vector Y component	Wrong coordinate
invulnerable	Use to set the ship invulnerable for X ticks (e.g. 60 for one second invulnerability)	Wrong invulnerable time
type	changes the type of ship (use the ship code, e.g. {type:403} )	None
angle	changes the direction the ship is facing	Wrong angle
score	sets player’s score	Wrong score
idle	set to true to force the ship to stay idle (and false to revert)	None
shield	sets the value of the shield	Wrong shield value
generator	sets the value of the generator	Wrong generator value
healing	sets ship’s lasers mode to healing (true or false)	None
crystals	sets ship’s crystal ammount	Wrong crystals
stats	sets the stats upgrades of the ship	None
kill	Set kill: (any "truthy" value, e.g: true) to destroy the ship	No violation
team	Changes the team this ship belongs to (in range [0-X] where X is teams - 1)	None
hue	Sets the color of the ship (range [0-359])	None

Intermission

You can send the ship to intermission (a screen with results, offering to respawn). This screen allows you to display custom results information:

> game.ships[0].intermission({"Best Achievement":"Managed to run the mod","Score":1234});
> █

Triggering and Customizing player’s GameOver screen

You can also trigger the gameover screen for any given ship. Here again, you can pass results information to pass on to the player:

> game.ships[0].gameover({"Rating":"Can do better","Score":1234});
> █

Instructor

Calling instructor

You can have the flight instructor send instructions to the player. For this find the players’s ship and use:

> ship.instructorSays("Hello!")
> █

You can hide the instructor window using:

> ship.hideInstructor()
> █

You can later show it again using:

> ship.showInstructor()
> █

A second, optional parameter allows you to choose which one of the instructor characters will talk to the player. Example:

> ship.instructorSays("Here is your report, Commander","Maria")
> █

Available characters

Lucina	Klaus	Maria	Kan	Zoltar

Custom UI components

General

The mod can create custom UI components that will show up on the player’s screen. This is done by calling setUIComponent on the ship, passing in a component descriptor.

For example:

> ship.setUIComponent({
    id:"myid",
    position:[0,0,25,25],
    clickable: true,
    shortcut: "X",
    visible: true,
    components: [
      { type:"box",position:[0,0,100,100],fill:"#456",stroke:"#CDE",width:2},
      { type: "text",position: [0,0,100,50],color: "#FFF",value: "My Text"},
      { type: "player",id: 1, position: [0,0,50,50],color: "#FFF"},
    ]
  })
> █

Here is the list of UIComponent’s accepted options:

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
id	a unique identifier for this component, mandatory	None
position	expressed in percentage of the main screen, the position of the component [x,y,width,height]. Example: [45,45,10,10] creates a component in the center of the screen, which width and height are 10% of the screen width and height.	None
visible	Whether the component is visible or not. Resend the same data with visible set to false to hide the component	true
clickable	Whether this component can be clicked or not	false
shortcut	When the component is clickable, a keyboard shortcut allowing to trigger the click event	None
components	gives a list (array) of graphical features to render within the component, which will be described below	Empty array

Subcomponents’ accepted options

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
type	type of the subcomponents currently supported: "round”, "text”, "box” or "player”	None
id ("player” type only)	id of the player associated with the subcomponent, which will be disapleyd as their name and badge (if exists) in the rendered subcomponent	None
position	positions of the subcomponents, formatted as [x,y,width,height] these subcomponents are meant within the main component coordinates	None
value	value of the subcomponent, e.g value:"Sample text"	Empty string
color	text color of the subcomponent, this can be a string with any color formats (hex, hsla, rgb, etc.), e.g "#fff"	None
fill	background color of the subcomponent, same format as the color property	None
width	width of the subcomponent’s border (in percent)	0
stroke	border color of the subcomponent, same format as the color property	None
align	alignment of the texts inside the subcomponent "left”, "right” or "center” only	"center"

Combining with events

The example below creates a warp button for every player, which can be clicked and results in the ship warping to another random location, also adding 3 seconds invulnerability to it:

Full example: https://github.com/pmgl/starblast-modding/blob/master/examples/warp_button.js

var warp_button = {
  id: "warp",
  position: [2,50,8,14],
  clickable: true,
  shortcut: "W",
  visible: true,
  components: [
    { type:"round",position:[0,0,100,100],fill:"#456",stroke:"#CDE",width:2},
    { type: "text",position:[10,35,80,30],value:"WARP",color:"#CDE"},
    { type: "text",position:[20,70,60,20],value:"[W]",color:"#CDE"}
    ]
};

var warpShip = function(ship) {
  x = (Math.random()-.5) * ship.game.options.map_size*10 ;
  y = (Math.random()-.5) * ship.game.options.map_size*10 ;
  ship.set({x:x,y:y,vx:0,vy:0,invulnerable:180}) ;
} ;

this.tick = function(game) {
  if (game.step%60==0) // ensure this is done only once per second
  {
    for (var i=0;i<game.ships.length;i++)
    {
      var ship = game.ships[i] ;
      if (!ship.custom.warp_button_installed)
      {
        ship.custom.warp_button_installed = true;
        ship.setUIComponent(warp_button);
      }
    }
  }
} ;

this.event = function(event,game) {
  switch (event.name)
  {
    case "ui_component_clicked":
      var ship = event.ship ;
      var component = event.id ;
      if (component == "warp") // check that this is our component "warp"
      {
        warpShip(ship);
      }
      break ;
  }
} ;

Customizing the scoreboard or radar

The built-in scoreboard can be replaced by your own custom scoreboard component. As soon as an UI component with id "scoreboard" or "radar_background" is created, you will be responsible for updating the scoreboard/radar. Your custom scoreboard/radar component does not have to include a position because it will automatically fill the area already reserved for the perspective UI Component.

Global UI

You can use game.setUIComponent({ options }) to set the UI to all current players in the game

Other methods and instances

Remove all ship’s secondary slots

Syntax: ship.emptyWeapons()

Aliens

You can access to the list of aliens through the array game.aliens

You can also find an alien with specific id using game.findAlien(id), which returns an object represent the matched alien or null (if there are no aliens matching the provided id)

Creation

To create an alien, use game.addAlien({ options })

List of accepted options:

(Note: Server will response with Incorrect data when at least one input property value is improper)

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
x	X coordinate	0
y	Y coordinate	0
vx	Velocity vector X component	0
vy	Velocity vector Y component	0
code	Type of alien, must be an integer in range [10-20]	10
level	Level of the alien, in range [0-X] where X depends of the alien type	0
points	The number of points you earn when you kill this alien	None
crystal_drop	The crystal amount to be dropped when this alien is killed	None
weapon_drop	The code of a collectible weapon to be dropped by this alien when killed	None

Here is the list of supported codes:

Code	Alien name
10	Chicken
11	Crab
12	Fortress
13	Some weird new thingy
14	Candlestick
15	Hirsute
16	Piranha
17	Pointu
18	Fork
19	Saucer
20	Final Boss

A new Alien object is immediately added to game.aliens; however it cannot be used before it has been assigned an id (positive integer) by the server.

Configuration

Once an alien is live and has an assigned id, you can set options to it. For example:

> game.aliens[0].set({x:0,y:0});
> █

Will move the first alien in the list to the center of the map

Accepted options when using alien.set:

Option	Description	Server response error message (if improper)
x	X coordinate	Wrong coordinate
y	Y coordinate	Wrong coordinate
vx	Velocity vector X component	Wrong coordinate
vy	Velocity vector Y component	Wrong coordinate
shield	Shield	Wrong shield value
regen	Shield regen	Wrong regen value
damage	Laser damage	Wrong damage value
laser_speed	Laser speed	Wrong damage value
rate	Firing rate	Wrong rate value
kill	Set kill: (any "truthy" value, e.g: true) to destroy the alien	No violation

Collectibles

You can spawn collectible weapons in the playfield

You can also find a collectible with specific id using game.findCollectible(id), which returns an object represent the matched collectible or null (if there are no collectibles matching the provided id)

Creation

Here is an example:

> game.addCollectible({code:10,x:0,y:0});
> █

This will add a new collectible pack of rockets to coordinates (0;0)

Here is the list of supported codes:

(Note: Server will response with Incorrect data when at least one input property value is improper)

Code	Description
10	4 rockets pack
11	2 missiles pack
12	1 torpedo
20	8 light mines pack
21	4 heavy mines pack
40	Mining pod
41	Attack pod
42	Defense pod
90	Energy refill
91	Shield refill

Accessing

You can check the collectibles still available to collect in the playfield by using: game.collectibles

Asteroids

You can access to the list of moving asteroids through the array game.asteroids

You can also find an asteroid with specific id using game.findAsteroid(id), which returns an object represent the matched asteroid or null (if there are no asteroids matching the provided id)

Creation

To create an asteroid, use game.addAsteroid({ options }).

Here is the list of accepted options:

(Note: Server will response with Incorrect data when at least one input property value is improper)

Option	Description	Default value (if omitted)
x	X coordinate	0
y	Y coordinate	0
vx	Velocity vector X component	0
vy	Velocity vector Y component	0
size	Size of the asteroid in the range [1-100]	30

A new Asteroid object is immediately added to game.asteroids ; however it cannot be used before it has been assigned an id (positive integer) by the server.

Configuration

Once an asteroid is live and has an assigned id, you can set options to it. For example:

> game.asteroids[0].set({x:0,y:0});
> █

Will move the first asteroid in the list to the center of the map

List of accepted options when using asteroid.set:

Option	Description	Server response error message (if improper)
x	X coordinate	Wrong coordinate
y	Y coordinate	Wrong coordinate
vx	Velocity vector X component	Wrong coordinate
vy	Velocity vector Y component	Wrong coordinate
size	Asteroid size in the range [1-100] (note that changing asteroid size resets its life points)	Incorrect size
kill	Set kill: (any "truthy" value, e.g: true) to destroy the asteroid	No violation

Add 3D objects to the scenery

The mod can create custom, textured 3D objects and add them to the scenery using game.setObject method. These objects have no physics for now (physics is planned in a near future).

For example:

var cube = {
  id: "cube",
  obj: "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pmgl/starblast-modding/master/objects/cube/cube.obj",
  diffuse: "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pmgl/starblast-modding/master/objects/cube/diffuse.jpg"
} ;

game.setObject({
  id: "cube",
  type: cube,
  position: {x:0,y:0,z:0},
  rotation: {x:0,y:0,z:0},
  scale: {x:1,y:1,z:1}
}) ;

Object type options

Option	Description
id	a unique identifier for this object type, mandatory
obj	a URL (HTTPS) to the OBJ file
type	Object instance options, see the section below for more details
diffuse	a URL (HTTPS) to a diffuse texture file (optional)
emissive	a URL (HTTPS) to an emissive texture file (optional)
specular	a URL (HTTPS) to a specularity texture file (optional)
bump	a URL (HTTPS) to a bump texture map (optional)
diffuseColor	diffuse color of the object, e.g. 0xFF0000 (for red)
emissiveColor	emissive color of the object, e.g. 0x00FFFF (for cyan)
specularColor	specular color of the object
transparent	whether the object’s texture has transparency or not
bumpScale	scale for bump mapping (default: 0.1)

Object instance options

Option	Description
id	a unique identifier for this object instance (mandatory, allows changing the object afterwards)
type	the object type definition
position	coordinates for placing the object
scale	allows to scale the object
rotation	allows to rotate the object
shape	Object’s shape (used for creating hitbox) Note: We recommend not to use this property as it usually doesn’t work as expected

Accessing

Game property game.objects stores all active 3D Objects maintained by the mod

You shouldn’t modify this property in order to keep the mod run smoothly

Changing or moving an object

Use game.setObject again with the same object instance id.

Removing an object

game.removeObject(id) removes the object with given id. You can omit the id parameter, which will remove all custom objects in the scene.

Example

Working example, adding cube objects to the scenery: https://github.com/pmgl/starblast-modding/blob/master/examples/adding_cube.js

Reading game’s detailed options

Accessing

Once the mod starts running, all detailed options will be passed into the game.options object

Accessible fields

This includes all properties defined in this.options, plus some extended fields listed below (except if they are not defined):

Field	Description
bouncing_lasers	if bouncing lasers is enabled or not
max_tier_lives	number of lives when player reaches ships with the highest level (defined in max_level option)

Team mode specific accessible fields

Field	Description
teams	an array represent teams’ most basic info each item in the array contains: base_name: name of the base faction: faction name hue: team hue
crystal_capacity	an array presenting the capacity of the stations in the increasing level order
deposit_shield spawning_shield structure_shield	an array presenting the the stations’ deposits/spawnings/small structures shield in the increasing level order
deposit_regen spawning_regen structure_regen	an array presenting the the stations’ deposits/spawnings/small structures regeneration in the increasing level order

Assigning custom properties to some entities/objects

You can assign properties into some game entities or objects as side notes/indicators

Accessing and assigning

Simply just call out their custom property (which is always an object) and assign properties to it.

Supported objects/entities

• game object
• all ships
• all aliens
• all collectibles
• all asteroids

Example

game.custom.hasMod = true // game object
game.ships[0].custom.userScore = 6712 // ship entity
game.aliens[0].custom = {created: true, rating: "10stars"} // alien entity
game.asteroids[0].custom = {init: true} // asteroid entity

Other game instances and methods

Set custom maps in-game

You can use game.setCustomMap(<map pattern>) to set custom map while the game is running

where <map pattern> has the same format as the custom map in this.options

Lock/unlock the mod from attracting new players

Use game.setOpen(true/false) to lock/unlock the mod to be visible to players (only for Modding Space mods)

There is also game boolean properties game.is_open is used to determine if the mod is open or not

Common problems and how to fix them

Black screen issue

In most cases you’re getting a black screen after loading your mod cause of bad ship tree.

Follow these rules to avoid it:

1. Your ship tree must have a ship with type/code 101.
2. If your ship tree has level 2 ships, then it should have level 1 ships too.
3. Either models should go in the right order without gaps: 1, 2, 3 etc (not 1, 6, 17) or control all ship tree routes by next param in ship codes (but keep correct order for unreachable ships).
4. You can’t have possibly infinite ship tree routes, made by next params - all routes should end at some ship, there shouldn’t be able to come back to some ship again.

My mod closed accidentally but the game is not stopped

Sometimes, some unexpected problem can crash the mod, but it only disconnects from the modding side, or so-called "controller” side, the game itself will continue running without control from your modding client until it meets the closing requirements (or even in some serious occasions, game developers - like PMGL - need to close it by themeselves).

Here is some reasons which can lead to mod crashing:

1. Closing/Reloading the modding tab/window without stopping the mod first (Most common one)
2. Very unstable internet connection
3. Server resolve error (which will automatically disconnect the controller by itself)
4. Browser tab hangs/crashed (careful of infinite while/for loops)

Also keep in mind that you can’t reconnect to your previously crashed server, even if it’s still running.

Community resources

Tutorial and Documentation

• How to add ship to the mod - by InterdictorSD
• Modding Live #2 by PMGL
• General modding tutorial

Tools

• Map Editor

Code resources

• Community Mods Archive
• WIP Modding plus by Dpleshkov
• Starblast code reference by Bhpsngum
• Starblast code and objects reference by 45rfew
• Starblast code reference by Wolfan

Update status

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