Track LP files
- Thread starter MelonFan42
- Start date
The mechanics of "Reflap", the NR2003 lp creation tool.
These are the directions for making a workable lp, be it a race.lp, pit.lp, or any other (xxx).lp, it's not an explanation on how to create lp's that improve ai perfomance.
These are the directions for making a workable lp, be it a race.lp, pit.lp, or any other (xxx).lp, it's not an explanation on how to create lp's that improve ai perfomance.
fortine_oo is the master in my opinion.......and we're glad to have him as a member.
To add a little more input on making LPs to what my buddy fortine_oo posted above... here is a 10 step reflap procedure for dummies. A beginners guide.
Preliminary procedure. Get good at the track. Get a good stable setup under you. Drive a couple of hundred laps before you make LPs. Know what you want and where you want it. Don't try to make them cold on a track, other than to just create basic LPs that the AI can follow that you know you'll modify later.
1) Go into testing mode and to the track.
2) While in the pits hit <ctrl><alt> <shift> <~> (last one being the far left key on top row on english systems). This will turn reflap on. Red text will show in the upper left corner of the screen.
Drive
4) When you're ready to record an LP (after properly warming your tires, getting used to the track, etc.), go to far chase view (so you can see the next step immediately)
5) Hit <alt R> and then <ctrl ~>. The Yellow triangles are the ones you're making and coming out behind your car. The orange triangles (at this time) are the track's centerline.
At this point...
a. For maxpanic and minpanic, you can probably stay in chase view.
b. For minrace and maxrace, I tend to run from roof view.
c. For race..... I run cockpit.
d. To get a copy of limp..... drive the bottom of the track or a line that is out of the way of the cars racing on the track and will take you by the pit entrance.
e. For pit0 and/or pit1 lp's, I tend to run from far chase so I can see what is coming well in advance.)
6) Drive the line you want to drive - fast, but smooth. If you screw up a portion, just drive another lap. The faster you go, the faster the LP will be. The smoother you go, the smoother the AI will be. If you lift and do throttle modulation to control the car, the AI will lift really big time when they follow it. Do not throttle modulate! Be smooth on the throttle. Let off, ride it and accelerate. Don't accelerate too soon. LISTEN to your engine. If you hear even a minor drop in rpm, do another lap. Trust me, you'll regret it if you don't.
7) When you have driven the perfect lap you want and gone thru the last portion that you screwed up... hit </> to save the line in a temp file. The yellow triangles will change to orange and the orange centerline triangles will disappear.
NOTE: Sometimes, if the track is really difficult and you can't take your eyes off the track or your hand off the wheel... call someone into the room to hit the </> key for you like a friend, your wife or son.
8) Unnecessary step: hit <alt R> to turn off the yellow triangles you are still creating. That will just clean up the view so you can better see what you have recorded.
9) Drive a full lap looking at the (now) orange triangles. Is it what you want? If not, repeat above. If it is what you want, hit <ctrl /> to save.
10) Exit the game. The line you saved will be named reflap0.lp in the track folder.
You can make as many LPs as you want in one session after saving...... just remember what you're doing.
Oh........ and PLEASE, don't forget to SAVE (<ctrl />) after you check out your orange LP before exiting. I wish I had a nickel for every time I've gotten in a hurry and exited without saving the dang line from the temp "stash".
Preliminary procedure. Get good at the track. Get a good stable setup under you. Drive a couple of hundred laps before you make LPs. Know what you want and where you want it. Don't try to make them cold on a track, other than to just create basic LPs that the AI can follow that you know you'll modify later.
1) Go into testing mode and to the track.
2) While in the pits hit <ctrl><alt> <shift> <~> (last one being the far left key on top row on english systems). This will turn reflap on. Red text will show in the upper left corner of the screen.
Drive4) When you're ready to record an LP (after properly warming your tires, getting used to the track, etc.), go to far chase view (so you can see the next step immediately)
5) Hit <alt R> and then <ctrl ~>. The Yellow triangles are the ones you're making and coming out behind your car. The orange triangles (at this time) are the track's centerline.
At this point...
a. For maxpanic and minpanic, you can probably stay in chase view.
b. For minrace and maxrace, I tend to run from roof view.
c. For race..... I run cockpit.
d. To get a copy of limp..... drive the bottom of the track or a line that is out of the way of the cars racing on the track and will take you by the pit entrance.
e. For pit0 and/or pit1 lp's, I tend to run from far chase so I can see what is coming well in advance.)
6) Drive the line you want to drive - fast, but smooth. If you screw up a portion, just drive another lap. The faster you go, the faster the LP will be. The smoother you go, the smoother the AI will be. If you lift and do throttle modulation to control the car, the AI will lift really big time when they follow it. Do not throttle modulate! Be smooth on the throttle. Let off, ride it and accelerate. Don't accelerate too soon. LISTEN to your engine. If you hear even a minor drop in rpm, do another lap. Trust me, you'll regret it if you don't.
7) When you have driven the perfect lap you want and gone thru the last portion that you screwed up... hit </> to save the line in a temp file. The yellow triangles will change to orange and the orange centerline triangles will disappear.
NOTE: Sometimes, if the track is really difficult and you can't take your eyes off the track or your hand off the wheel... call someone into the room to hit the </> key for you like a friend, your wife or son.
8) Unnecessary step: hit <alt R> to turn off the yellow triangles you are still creating. That will just clean up the view so you can better see what you have recorded.
9) Drive a full lap looking at the (now) orange triangles. Is it what you want? If not, repeat above. If it is what you want, hit <ctrl /> to save.
10) Exit the game. The line you saved will be named reflap0.lp in the track folder.
You can make as many LPs as you want in one session after saving...... just remember what you're doing.
Oh........ and PLEASE, don't forget to SAVE (<ctrl />) after you check out your orange LP before exiting. I wish I had a nickel for every time I've gotten in a hurry and exited without saving the dang line from the temp "stash".
J.R. Franklin said,
"6) Drive the line you want to drive - fast, but smooth...."
For years I operated under the premise that a very good race.lp made at (racing) speed is superior to a race.lp made at moderate speed. The application of these "race speed" lp's proved the validity of this idea in most instances.
I believed, assuming that if it was extremely well done, the "moderate speed" race.lp could hope to be "as good" as a very well done "full speed", but certainly not better, and for the most part required many more attempts to achieve the desired result.
I never considered creating a race.lp where the actual speed was inconsequential. But at Palm Beach International Raceway T1/T2/T3 loop, the ai are drawn toward extremes due to the track construction (track centerline/track sections) and the ai would not follow the race.lp. I couldn't even contain them with out-of-range minrace/maxrace lp's. I had to create a race.lp that was extreme to one side of the track entering and to the extreme other side of the track exiting and I just couldn't make the transition in that short of a distance while doing race speed. I had to fake it at that section of the track and it worked well. I perfected the technique and used it to create the race.lp for "Lemans2008_ai addon".
I've made the "Controlled speed" method my normal "go-to". [This method does not require real race speed, however, technique is critical.]
This method is particularly suited for a RC, where smooth driving, car control, and the driving/racing line is a premium for good race.lp creation, but it works on ovals. I've not used it on a plate track where one is mostly, if not always, at WOT.
"Controlled Speed" Technique:
[This explanation is more for a RC, where slowing and acceleration occur regularly. Ovals?... I think I may have done 1 or 2, but IDK what this method would yield when it comes to plate tracks.]
1) When acceleration is required, apply the throttle gingerly and keep applying the throttle and gaining speed until it's time to slow for a corner. It's easier to stay in control if you never reach the "actual" top speed for the straight. You may have to reduce the rate of throttle application to keep the speed down. The rate of throttle application isn't paricularly important. What's critical is to continually increase the throttle and continually increase the (car's) speed until it's time to slow down. AVOID on/off/on throttle application, this causes the ai to slow (dramatically) when it occurs in an acceleration zone.
2) Let off the throttle to reduce to corner speed; you can lift early and coast into the turn. Only apply the brake if necessary (and apply it as gingerly as the throttle). Release the brakes as soon as possible and begin to apply the throttle prior to the corner apex. Again apply the throttle gingerly and keep applying the throttle until it's time to slow for the next corner. NEVER apply the throttle and then get out the throttle because you've misjudged your speed or lost control of the car, this will only cause the ai to checkup dramatically and lose momentum at race speed.
"6) Drive the line you want to drive - fast, but smooth...."
For years I operated under the premise that a very good race.lp made at (racing) speed is superior to a race.lp made at moderate speed. The application of these "race speed" lp's proved the validity of this idea in most instances.
I believed, assuming that if it was extremely well done, the "moderate speed" race.lp could hope to be "as good" as a very well done "full speed", but certainly not better, and for the most part required many more attempts to achieve the desired result.
I never considered creating a race.lp where the actual speed was inconsequential. But at Palm Beach International Raceway T1/T2/T3 loop, the ai are drawn toward extremes due to the track construction (track centerline/track sections) and the ai would not follow the race.lp. I couldn't even contain them with out-of-range minrace/maxrace lp's. I had to create a race.lp that was extreme to one side of the track entering and to the extreme other side of the track exiting and I just couldn't make the transition in that short of a distance while doing race speed. I had to fake it at that section of the track and it worked well. I perfected the technique and used it to create the race.lp for "Lemans2008_ai addon".
I've made the "Controlled speed" method my normal "go-to". [This method does not require real race speed, however, technique is critical.]
This method is particularly suited for a RC, where smooth driving, car control, and the driving/racing line is a premium for good race.lp creation, but it works on ovals. I've not used it on a plate track where one is mostly, if not always, at WOT.
"Controlled Speed" Technique:
[This explanation is more for a RC, where slowing and acceleration occur regularly. Ovals?... I think I may have done 1 or 2, but IDK what this method would yield when it comes to plate tracks.]
1) When acceleration is required, apply the throttle gingerly and keep applying the throttle and gaining speed until it's time to slow for a corner. It's easier to stay in control if you never reach the "actual" top speed for the straight. You may have to reduce the rate of throttle application to keep the speed down. The rate of throttle application isn't paricularly important. What's critical is to continually increase the throttle and continually increase the (car's) speed until it's time to slow down. AVOID on/off/on throttle application, this causes the ai to slow (dramatically) when it occurs in an acceleration zone.
2) Let off the throttle to reduce to corner speed; you can lift early and coast into the turn. Only apply the brake if necessary (and apply it as gingerly as the throttle). Release the brakes as soon as possible and begin to apply the throttle prior to the corner apex. Again apply the throttle gingerly and keep applying the throttle until it's time to slow for the next corner. NEVER apply the throttle and then get out the throttle because you've misjudged your speed or lost control of the car, this will only cause the ai to checkup dramatically and lose momentum at race speed.
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