SHOOBINATOR'S PROFILE

I believe this tutorial is what you're looking for: http://rpgmaker.net/tutorials/536/

1. Make a skill called "Scan Skill".
-Set the skill type to Normal.
-Set Effect Rating to 0. Set Success Rate to 100%. Set MP Consumption to 0.
-Set the target to Single Enemy.
-Add an appropriate animation.
-Optional: Make a condition called "Scanned". Have this skill inflict the Scanned condition, which always abates after 0 turns and has a 100% chance to recover each turn. No other effects, but to show that the monster was just scanned.

2. Make an item called "Scan Item".
-The item type will be "Skill Scroll".
-The item should have one-time usage.
-The item will invoke "Scan Skill".

3. Now comes the hard(er) part with the retroactive monster event. I will explain my version below, but there is also another tutorial here: http://rpgmaker.net/tutorials/536/

(Actually, I don't think my method would technically be considered a retroactive event. After testing, if a retroactive event is used here like described in that tutorial, the scan message would not appear at all. This must mean that the game maker checks the values of items in inventory and current MP of heroes at different times, or something else weird like that.)

-Anyways, make several variables each called the following: OldNumScanScroll, NumScanScroll, ScanHPMax, ScanHP, ScanMPMax, ScanMP. The last four will be used to store the monster stats.
-Make a monster group battle page for your first hero with the trigger uses the command.
-In this page, set the variable OldNumScanScroll to the current number of Scan Items held.
-Make an if branch that activates when the monster is targeted. Inside this branch, set the variables ScanHPMax, ScanHP, ScanMPMax, and ScanMP based on the monster's current stats.

-Copy this branch for a total of 8 branches. Change the condition of each to activate only if each monster is targeted. You will have to put 8 monsters in the monster group at least temporarily to have this option.
-Now copy this page for each hero in your game. Change the page trigger accordingly.

-Make another monster group battle page that activates when "Turns Elapsed is X + 1".
-In this page, set NumScanScroll to the current number of Scan Items held.
-Then, subtract NumScanScroll from OldNumScanScroll.
-If OldNumScanScroll is now 1, display the scan message, or call a common event that displays the message. You can display variable values in messages like this: This will show the fifth variable in the database.

-Finally, you will need to copy each of these pages into every monster group for your game.

Hm, maybe I should just copy this as a tutorial for the website...

@Xenomic: If you want the scan item to work with unlimited use, you will need to give the party one item that is of single use only, and then right after the message add one scan item to the party inventory. You need to do this because otherwise the page activated by using an item will always activate the switch or set the variable that would activate the other page that displays the message. This will work only if the only consumable item in your game is the scan item (which I would guess is not the case).

However, this will create a brief period where the scan item is strangely missing from inventory because it takes one turn for the message to display and another item to be added back into inventory. You could make this reason apparent to the player such as the item is currently in use, scanning the enemy, and you just have to wait again to use it. (i.e. It can only scan one enemy at a time and it takes one turn to do so.)

Let me know if you get this to work 100% as intended. I made a scan item before, but I had to settle on using a method that involved a retroactive event. Ultimately, the scan ability worked and could target individual enemies with an animation etc., but I could only ever make the scan message show up one turn later.

So for example, you have your hero use Scan Item on Goblin. The animation will show on Goblin and will store its current and max HP, but the message will not show up until right before Goblin takes an action or until right before another party member takes an action.

That was the best I could make my solution. Let me know how yours goes.

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In most cases, how I got mine to work will be sufficient, but if the enemy is slow or just attacked, and then you use a Scan Item, you will either have to wait or go just one more turn/action before knowing the results of the scan.

Also, one of my characters was going to have a scan ability as an innate ability and that one showed the message instantly, which could be an incentive to keep him around in the party for that purpose rather than getting a bunch of the items that have the delayed message.

author=FlyingJester

author=Shoobinator
Hm, you might as well make this thread, "Which type of conflict is most important in my game?"

• Man vs Man

• Man vs Society

• Man vs Self

• Man vs Nature

• Man vs Machine

What if the game has no conflict?

Games can have no story, but I assumed this thread was targeted towards those types of games. Moreover, a story with no conflict would probably be really boring.

Hm, you might as well make this thread, "Which type of conflict is most important in my game?"

• Man vs Man

• Man vs Society

• Man vs Self

• Man vs Nature

• Man vs Machine