Scenario writer

Introduction
Using the scenario writer
Multiplayer

Introduction

The Scenario writer is provided to guide you through the process of writing a new scenario or editing an existing one. It automates the generation of the scenario files defined in the scenario specification

To start the scenario editor, start the Bridge Command launcher and click on the 'Scenario Editor' button.

Using the scenario writer

Getting started

The scenario writer allows you to define the initial position of your ship, and all other ships in the scenario, and plan the tracks for the 'other ship' models - These are the vessels in the scenario which have a fixed and pre-planned route, made up of one or more legs. In addition, you can set the time and date of your scenario, as well as the weather and visibility.

When the scenario editor starts, you can either start from an existing scenario, or create a new one.

To edit an existing scenario, choose from the scenario list on the left, and click the 'Edit scenario' button under the list.
To start with a totally new scenario, choose from the world model list on the right, and click the 'New scenario' button under the list.

When you have started with a new or existing scenario, you will see a view of the world area, and any existing scenario data. Click and drag to move around the area.

You will see two main control windows on the left. The upper one controls the scenario name, date/time and weather information, and the lower one controls the ships. Both windows can be moved if convenient by clicking and dragging the bar at the top.

Choose and place an own ship model

To choose which own ship you want, ensure that you have 'Own Ship' selected in the 'Select ship' dropdown list, and select the one you want with the 'Ship type' dropdown box below. Please refer to the list of available models.

With your mouse, click and drag the map, so the map is centred where you want your own ship to start. Ensuring that 'Own ship' is still selected, click on the 'Move ship' button to place the own ship at the map centre. To change the initial course and speed, type the required values into the 'Course' and 'Speed' edit boxes, and click on 'Change leg' to apply. You will see the red heading indicator change.

Saving

You can exit and save your scenario at any point, using the 'Save & Exit' button. The scenario name is shown in red if you will overwrite an existing scenario, and in black if a new scenario will be created. There is no further warning about overwriting a scenario.

Other vessels

To add other vessels to the scenario, drag the map so it is centred where you want the vessel to start, and click 'Add Ship'. Then choose which type of ship you want by using the 'Ship type' drop down box. You should do this after you add the ship, as otherwise you will change the type of the ship you have currently selected.

To control the movement of other vessels, you can set up different course legs, with pre-set courses and speeds. These can also be modified when the scenario is running if you use the Map Controller. To add a course leg, select the ship you want, and type in the leg course, speed in knots, and distance in nautical miles, and click 'Add leg'. You will see the leg appear on screen. If you want to change a leg, select it in the 'Select leg' list, make the change, and click 'Change leg'. You can also delete the currently selected leg.

Note that you may want to add a number of small legs with a gradual course change to show a vessel making a course change, as otherwise it will suddenly appear to change heading in the simulation.

Note that after the last leg, the vessel stops and faces north (i.e. goes onto a course of 000° with a speed of zero. To keep the vessel pointing in the required direction, you can add an extra leg onto the end of the route, with the required course, a non-zero length but a speed of zero. The vessel will remain stationary, facing in the required direction indefinitely.

Time, date and weather

With the top window you can change the scenario start time, sun rise and sunset time, and initial weather (Sea state 0-12, rain intensity 0-10, and visibility in nautical miles).

Multiplayer

The Scenario Writer can also be used to set up multiplayer scenarios. To do this, click on the 'Multiplayer' check box when creating a new scenario, or choose an existing scenario with a name ending '_mp'.

In a multiplayer scenario, the 'own ship' is ignored, and each users ship is placed by adding further ships to the scenario. Each user's ship should be given a single course leg to set their initial speed and heading.

All other stages are the same as for a regular scenario.