Message history window improvements

[daftigod]

-Separators in between turns (Player clicks). A dotted line across the window area before each player click would be sweet for quickly seeing what the heck just happened to ya.

-Spreadsheet style alternating coloring. Maybe a 10-15% darker overlay on the background color in between every other dotted line to make this even sweeter. Think the green and white colored paper with rows, but with different sized rows and not green and white.

-Increase the size of the font slightly on each player click and enemy move. Maybe just 2 pt larger or even 1 pt. This would be extremely sweet to see exactly what the other guy did to cause all those different types of damages.



-Speaking of damages from status effects: maybe add the status effect that caused the damage in parenthesis after each damage line and remove the player/npc name that caused it:

"Biff suffers 10 blight damage (Decreptitude disease)."
"Giant Hulkmanthing suffers 33 flame damage (Burning), 32 flame damage (Burning), 13 nature damage (Insidious poison)"

But keep it the same way it is now for the lines where the actual turn took place. Where an actual attack from a player caused the damage. Or a spell from an npc hits something.



Furthermore, a linear way to list damage in all cases would be great:

(separator)-----------------------------------------------
1. player turn action (larger font)
2. result of an instant action (heal, status lifted). repeat 1 and 2 until all instant actions are finished and the player makes the actual turn
3. hit or miss on npc.
4. damage to that npc if it hits
5. status it caused to that npc
6. any on-hit damage caused by that npc on the player (and the cause in parenthesis like a status effect). ex: (from armor)
7. repeat 3-6 for each npc in the effect radius until that player action is finished and all npc's are covered
(space)
8. npc turn action (larger font)
9. result of an instant action (heal, status lifted). repeat 8 and 9 until all instant actions are finished and the npc makes the actual turn
10. hit or miss on player/npc
11. damage caused
12. status effect caused
13. any on-hit damage caused from the player/other npc (cause in parenthesis) ex: (chant of fortress)
14. repeat 9-12 for each player/npc in the effect radius until all are finished.
15. any damage from staus effects on the current npc
16. any status effects lifted on the current npc
(space)
17. next npc action (font)
18. repeat steps 9-16 for each npc until all turns are finished for the round
(space)
19. list all status effects that are expiring on the player
20. list all status effect damage on the player
(separator)----------------------------------------------
next player turn action (font) (repeat 1-20)

...Example...

Biff is no longer frozen.
Biff suffers 44 water damage (Tidal wave), 8 nature damage (poisoned).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Biff casts flame.
Biff hits green worm mass for 132 flame damage.
Green worm mass dies.
Biff hits another green worm mass for 125 flame damage.
Another green worm mass dies.
Biff hits Wrathroot for 136 flame damage.
Wrathroot is burning.
Wrathroot waits.
Wearthroot suffers 32 flame damage (burning).
Wolf moves.
Wolf suffers 44 water damage (tidal wave).
Wolf dies.
Biff is no longer poisoned.
Biff suffers 44 water damage (tidal wave).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Biff uses wild infusion.
Biff is no longer pinned.
Biff feels less pain.
Biff uses manasurge rune.
...


Italicize deaths.

Finally, when listing multiple critters of the same species use the prefix another before the name after the first one, and Yet another- for all after that.
1st. A green mold.
2nd. Another green mold
3rd. Yet another green mold

Thanks!

[lukep]

That looks very good to me. One idea for multiple monsters of the same type would be to give each one a unique name/number, for example, a character could see:

Green Worm Mass
Wrathroot
Master Vampire (2)
Master Vampire (1)
Dread (7)
Dread (3)
Dread (12)

The identifying numbers would only be shown when there are more than one of the same type of enemy visible.