The core class to be aware of in the Tidy TileMapper Runtime API is:
DopplerInteractive.TidyTileMapper.Utilities.BlockUtilities
The core actions you will wish to perform on a BlockMap at runtime are generally: - Create a map
- Add a block to the map
- Remove a block from the map
- Get the block located at given coordinates.
The BlockUtilities class provides the ability to do this, along with a few other functions that may be handy.
Rationale:
As the tool was initial designed as an Editor extension (and not an API) this class has been developed to wrap the mapping classes and provide easy, moderately-comprehensive - and most of all, robust access to the functions of Tidy TileMapper at runtime.
Concepts:
Tidy TileMapper is based on a few key concepts: - Block
- A Block is the smallest component of a map.
- It is a single tile on a map, and contains definitions of the visual representation of that 'type' of tile.
- Example: Grass Block
- Contains all orientations of this grass block (Grass with emptiness above, soil when surrounded by Blocks, etc)
- These orientations are called BlockSets.
- Each BlockSet can contain multiple objects that can be displayed on the map.
- These objects are called Variants.
- This is best demonstrated by using the Block Editor.
- MapChunk
- A MapChunk is a section of a BlockMap, containing multiple Blocks.
- It allows operations on a BlockMap at a subset-level.
- This is best demosntrated by using the Editor Extension and painting yourself a fine map.
- BlockMap
- We're arrived! The glorious BlockMap.
- This is essentially a grid of many MapChunks, each containing many Blocks.
- It allows addition and querying of Blocks with a simple coordinate system:
- X: As expected, left and right.
- Y: Map-specific: Up and down on an Upward-growing map, Forward and Backward on a Forward-growing map.
- Depth (Z): The leftover! Up and down on a Forward-growing map, Forward and Backward on an Upward-growing map.
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