Error reporting bug, game unplayable

[SDY]

TLDR version:

* data/talents/thought-forms.lua:48: bad argument
* Looped bug-reporting causes instability, unrecoverable game (end task in task manager)
* Error is easily reproducible if more info needed

Long and rambling version:

I'm cruising along in Exploration mode, just messing around with bikini-clad Yeek Alchemist, level 35.

In the second floor of the dwarven fortress after defeating the Master, I encountered an Orc rare immediately after walking down the stairs. I presume a talent he's using is the problem, but can't be sure. I get one turn before the game locks up in an infinite loop of trying to tell me "data/talents/thought-forms.lua:48: bad argument" - I've teleported away using a psychoport charm (both with golem remaining and with the golem absent) and still get similar behavior, so it may be a passive or sustained rather than an activated ability or it may not be related to that Orc.

I usually can't actually report the bug, as typing anything in the block is immediately tossed away by a new error reporting screen. In some cases I die and go to Eidolon and am able to report it there (did so once). The constant error screens somehow result in actions being taken in-game (possible that me clicking "close" is interpreted as a walk command). I had the spirit return me to the world map, and the game functions normally outside of the one zone, though after the constant looping it tells me it can't connect to Steam and I have troubles selecting games on the load screen when I restart the game.

Really wish the error reporting would have some sort of code that ceases to bring up the error screen after a certain number of repeats of the same error (e.g. if last three error reports are same error and last error report was <10 minutes prior, write to log only).

The error reporting is worse than the actual bug it's trying to report, which is ironic.

[Trea]

You can grab the error from the log file within the game directory itself;
This has more info

Grab that log file and attach it to your bug report

[SDY]

Looking for it.

I found the directory (which isn't in the place I'd expect for a Steam game), but all I found in the error reports were three files with no file extension. Probably these are the reports I filed in-game.

I don't see anything resembling the log file the sticky talks about.

[twas Brillig]

Just to confirm: you're playing on Steam, on Windows? And you're looking for "C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\TalesMajEyal\te4_log.txt". (Or, more generally, wherever you installed Tales/wherever the T-Engine application is?) After getting the error, close Tales however it lets you and look in te4_log.txt. The errors generated should show up there, search for 'Error'. Tales will generate a new log file every time you start it up, so if you've opened the game and closed it without generating the error, it won't show up.

[SDY]

OK, that's why - I tried restarting the game.

For some reason, I was looking in the Documents directory (which also has ToME info) and expecting to see it there.

File attached - basically a lot of:

---------------- Stack Dump ----------------
--------------- Stack Dump Finished ---------------
Lua Error: /data/talents/psionic/thought-forms.lua:48: bad argument #1 to 'distance' (number expected, got nil)
At [C]:-1
At [C]:-1 distance
At /data/talents/psionic/thought-forms.lua:48 on_act
At /mod/class/Actor.lua:683 act
At /mod/class/NPC.lua:54 act
At /engine/GameEnergyBased.lua:126 tickLevel
At /engine/GameEnergyBased.lua:62 tick
At /engine/GameTurnBased.lua:46 tick
At /mod/class/Game.lua:1181

[Trea]

Error stuff

From the code it looks like it's trying to find the distance the thoughtform is away from the summoner and derping because the thoughtform doesn't exist or something along those lines, could be wrong though.

[Stuntofthelitter]

Hmm, same error here I believe: http://forums.te4.org/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=43427

In fact, I think this isn't the first time I've seen this issue. I think this might have been the core thing that went wrong with one of theshim's games, prior to his dark voodoo kicking in and making it weirder.