Prerequisites:
Everything under The Basics
Optional:
How to add a security camera
How to add an automated gun turret
How to make a Deus Ex style door
Overview:
Security consoles in Deus Ex are the wall-mounted devices that let you access
up to three security cameras, lock/unlock/open/close doors, and set automated
gun turrets to target either allies or enemies. All security consoles can be
hacked into or logged into. In this section, you will learn to set up all of
these functions.
First, you'll need to add the console into your map. Make sure "Classes" is selected in the Browse drop-down, and expand the following items: Decoration, DeusExDecoration, ElectronicDevices, and Computers. Now select the third choice under Computers, ComputerSecurity.
Move the cursor into one of the 2D views and right-click where you want the console to go. Select it and rotate/move it to where you want it. A good rule of thumb is to place it around 60 to 80 units above the floor. That translates to 4-5 grid squares if you have the grid size set to 16. Of course, you can get as creative as you want, as long as the console is accessible.
When you first add a security console, it will have one account with "SECURITY" as both the User Name and Password. Since the console is a Deus Ex "Computer", it has a number of properties in common with personal and public computers. At a minimum, you'll want to change the existing account's user name and password. Expand the Computers property of the console and then userList. You can create up to eight accounts, but by convention, security consoles normally have just one.
Select a value for ComputerNode. It will affect what logo and text the player sees when attempting to log in. The titleString and titleTexture properties are not used by security computers, so you don't need to mess with them. See Setting up computers for more computer-specific details.
If you want the player to be able to access any security cameras in your map, make sure you have added at least one camera to your map. Up to three can be assigned to each security console. These are available under HackableDevices. (for more information on security cameras, see How to add a security camera)
Assign each camera a Tag name in its Events properties by right-clicking on them and selecting Properties.
Now select the security console you added, and pull up its Properties sheet. Expand ComputerSecurity and Views. These correspond to the three video monitors that the player sees in the game when accessing a security console. Type in the tag values of the cameras you want to assign in the cameraTag fields. The player will see static for any of these that you leave blank.
Fill in a descriptive name (usually the type of room the camera is in) in the titleString field. The player will see this under the appropriate video monitor.
You can also allow control of up to three Deus Ex-style doors from a security console. See How to make a Deus Ex-style door for more information. Generally, you'll want to have each door visible by the corresponding camera to make it clear to the player which door is being opened or closed, but that isn't required. Just assign a Tag value to each door's Events property and type that value in the doorTag value(s) of the security console. That's it! The player will now be able to lock, unlock, open, and close these doors.
Finally, you can assign up to three auto-turrets to control. The player will be able to set each turret to Bypassed or to attack Allies, Enemies, or Everything. IMPORTANT: be sure to add only AutoTurret or AutoTurretSmall items to your map (available directly under the DeusExDecoration class). If you associate an AutoTurretGun or AutoTurretGunSmall item to your console, it will NOT show up as a controllable gun turret in your console. These items are for handling the "hackable" nature of auto-turrets only. For more information, see How to add an automated gun turret. As you might have guessed, you assign a turret to a console by assigning a Tag value to the turret, and type that value into the turretTag field(s) of the console.
Rebuild your geometry with F8, save your level, and check it out.