Pathing (Waypoints) in Modded System (Solved-ish)

I’ve been gradually building up a custom star system in order to familiarize myself with various parts of modding Freelancer, and i’m currently looking at trying to get waypoints to work in relation to it.

At first, since the save i’m using sits somewhere in the middle of the single player campaign right now, the mission start waypoint for the next mission pointed to the 0, 0, 0 of the system, would have the glitch of the unselected waypoint remaining on-screen as well as the selected graphic and would only disappear if I set a player waypoint somewhere else in the system.

Eventually, I got this half-fixed. After locating the system_shortest_path.ini file, I added path information relevant to my system to it and was able to get the automated story waypoints to seemingly point where they’re supposed to from inside my system, but I still have another issue i’ve had since the start: I can’t set player waypoint routes outside of the system, getting a ‘No Best Path’ message anytime I try.

I attempted to fill out path information tied to my system into the shortest_illegal_path.ini to fix this (not adding anything to the legal equivalent because my system has no jump gates), but I still get the ‘No Best Path’ message, and i’m now out of ideas.

Is there an index or list I need to add my system into for this to work that i’m missing?

starworld wrote:

1. delete : shortest_illegal_path.ini, shortest_legal_path.ini, systems_shortest_path.ini
2. run FLServer.exe

Before I go and start deleting things (or at least renaming things to get them out of the way), can I ask what that’s going to do? I have an idea of what might happen, but I want to be sure.

Regardless, thank you for the quick response.

Cpt_Rei_Fukai wrote:
Afaik those files hard code pathing information using different routes.

The idea is that every possible source system has got path info on how to get to every possible destination system. If a system is not in this list, you get the error you described. The different files use different travel methods; eg. only jumpholes; only jumpgates; any

Seems like you only added routes TO your system, but no entry for travels FROM your system.

Maybe deleting those files makes FL calculate the route on the fly?

Could be, though I did also put in entries that seemed to be routes from the system (actually did that first before realizing that on its own hadn’t done anything).

I’ll try deleting the files, then. My thought is that it will force the game to create new files containing references to the new system within them, but i’ll just have to wait and see.

Thaddeus wrote:

starworld wrote:

1. delete : shortest_illegal_path.ini, shortest_legal_path.ini, systems_shortest_path.ini
2. run FLServer.exe

I have never got that to work. Every time I try it flserver just crashes out, not having written anything.

Here’s something that half works, then.

I tried removing the ini files and running FLServer.exe, as suggested, but it just stuck loading forever and didn’t do anything.

What did do something, though, was running Freelancer itself instead of the server program. This resulted in the creation of pathing files that seem to more organically contain system data that includes my modded system, which i’ve copied back into my original mod compile so I don’t loose them.

The only issue is that even though this is preferable to my inputting everything myself (and i’m definitely going to remember that Freelancer does this for future reference), it hasn’t solved me not being able to set player waypoints from my modded system to other systems, as i’m still just getting the ‘No best path’ text whenever I try.

starworld wrote:
@Wixelt check mod https://forge.the-starport.net/attachments/download/371/FLScanII_1_2.zip

I have and have used FLScan, and the only system specific thing that comes out is to do with the LightSource, and there’s the same message for a lot of vanilla systems too. I don’t see any errors related to pathing.

Cpt_Rei_Fukai wrote:
I investigated a bit and it seems FL always tells you “No best path” if a system cannot be reached with jumpgates. For example plotting a course to Omicron Alpha tells me “No best path” as well.

Adoxas FLHack has an option for that.

Really? huh. I’ve been playing Freelancer since I was a kid, you’d think i’d have notice this by now.

Well, given the modding i’m doing, i’ll leave this as is rather than using FLHack to try and fix it. Glad to know it’s not just my system being buggy.