Feral Heart

Help & Guidance => Game Help => Help Guides => Topic started by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 04:36:24 pm

Title: The BIG help thread
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 04:36:24 pm
//The Big Help Thread//

If you got a problem with the game or the forum, checking here before you post a help thread is always good.

Read the list below to find something related to your issue.


Game Related, Post 2-7
How Do I play the game? (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144688#msg144688)

Unable to log on/go online. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144690#msg144690)

I keep getting bad tokens, failed to connect to map server or timing out while playing. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144795#msg144795)

Game is not starting/or having graphical issues/glitches. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144821#msg144821)

The game is running slowly or you want it to look sharper. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144855#msg144855)

The rules of the game, the mods and how to report. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144893#msg144893)

Forum Related, Post 9-14
Issues with downloading the game or logging in (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144927#msg144927)

I need a quick guide on how to play. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144946#msg144946)

Forum rules and the forum mods (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144959#msg144959)

How to use and modify your forum profile (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg145000#msg145000)

I need assistance with something game/forum related. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg145005#msg145005)

I want to learn how to download/make maps/presets or other customizations for FH. (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg145032#msg145032)

If you still have unanswered questions, feel free to post help threads or contact an online mod.


~FeralHeart Staff (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28&Itemid=52)

The Magical Fixer!:
Uninstall the game completely
Re-download New installers
Install the game with the new installers!

50% Success rate since the launch of FH! :D
Title: How Do I play the game?
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 04:36:37 pm
How Do I play the game?

FeralHeart is more than just a simple flash game and is nothing you can play directly in your web-browser. The list below will show what you'll need.

In order to play the game you need to have the following:
1. An account here on the FeralHeart site.
2. The game installed on your computer.
3. Internet connected.

Signing up
If you want to play, you need to sign up to our site creating an account. This account will be the one you use for logging into the game later on, but also posting here on the forums. So the site and the forum logins are the same. If you've already are able to post on this site, and know you already created one, you can skip this step.

If you look in the top right corner you will see a yellow box
(http://i.imgur.com/At1NjYY.png)

By clicking the text "Register," it will take you to the page you sign up on and it will ask you to fill in a few fields for your account such as.

Username < (This will be your unique identity you will be known as on the forum and in the game)
Password < (The password needed to use your account at all, keep it secret)
Valid E-mail < (This is for sending out an activation mail, making the account usable)

Fill out the required fields, read our terms of use, and then accept (A tip is to stay away from spaces,numbers and symbols in the name and just use letters from a-z in both the password and username to prevent log in problems.)

This will create your account and then send an activation mail to the E-mail address you registered with. Click the link inside of the mail and then your account will be ready to use!

Downloading/Installing the game
In order to get the game and play it, you first need to download it from our site. In order to do so, click either one of the "Downloads" tab.
(http://i.imgur.com/84B5whO.jpg)

On this page you'll need to download one of the following:

- Web Setup
- Torrent

Be sure to update your game to the most recent patch version (If you don't do this you wont be able to play online). You can download either the Web Setup or the Torrent, it's up to you which one to install. The PresetSync add-on installation is optional, but if you decide to download it, do not install it until AFTER you have downloaded the Web Setup or Torrent. The Mac / Linux options are for Mac users only.

(http://i.imgur.com/Zm9myNF.png)

To download the game, make sure you are downloading the latest version of the patch by selecting either Web Setup or Torrent. If you use Internet Explorer, click "Save As" and then save it to a location like the desktop.

Once it's downloaded, run the game installer. Just follow the installation wizard until it says it's complete. Once the game installer is done.

The game should now be working! Just open up the Feral Heart application, log into the log-in page (https://feral-heart.com/login/index.php), and log in with account you created earlier. Be sure to check the game rules before you start playing. > Rules < (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=59894.0[b).

If you were unable to install the game for such reasons as broken installers, or installers unable to finish, check to make certain you have space on your computer for the game. Try downloading the installer once again from our page and install with the NEW one.

NOTE:
This game was in first hand made for Windows computers. If you by any chance have  a mac, you might be able to play it by looking Here! (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=56782) Linux users and mac users that aren't able to use the version given by the link. Try installing Wine or crossover and running the game through that.

End~
Title: Unable to log on/go online.
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 04:36:48 pm
Unable to log on/go online.

FeralHeart is mainly an online role playing game. This means if you want to get the most fun out of it, you'd need to be connected to the internet. Some people might have issues getting on the actual game, so here's a few things you can try if you have the game but aren't able to go online.

List of things to check:
1. Wrong username or Password?
2. Do you have the most recent patch?
3. Check so there's no security software blocking the game.
4. Make sure that you've a solid internet connection.
5. Be sure you have the log-in page (https://feral-heart.com/login/index.php) open and running in the background.

Wrong username or Password?
There's actually a "bug" in the current registration system, logging into the game can be a problem for some reasons. If you're unable to log in, and just get banned for 15 mins for getting the wrong pass, here's a few things that might solve it.

-The password is capital sensitive, so if you use a small letter where you regged with a big one, it will be the wrong pass
-The numpad on keyboards doesn't work. So you need to use the numbers above the rest of the letters
-some symbols doesn't work as they should and you need to change keyboard layout in order for them to work

If you are unable to fix this, it's suggested that you reset your password (https://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=57) to your account and set it to a new one without any complicated symbols or numbers, just letters. And if still no success, just create a new account here on the site, and follow This! (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144688#msg144688)

Got the recent patch?
The game gets updated every now and then with new features or just fixes. In most cases when there's a new patch available users need to download it in order to play.

If you get a window when trying to log on the game saying "Please download the latest patch @ feral-heart.com" Then you simply need to download the latest patch from our "Downloads" and install it. Once that's done you can play the game again!

Is the computer allowing FeralHeart to connect to the internet?
Games like these needs to be able to connect to the internet, but sometimes Windows doesn't know if the game/application can be trusted or it just skips, adding the game to exceptions. If you aren't able to log on the game, this might be your issue.

Open up your Control Panel, located in the Start menu. Depending on which Operating system you use and which layout, it might look differently. But Windows firewall should be in the category "security," or just find the text, "Windows firewall" or "Allow a program through windows firewall". This should take you to the correct place.

Once there you'll get a new window with a list of programs. Try to locate FeralHeart.exe in there and add it to exceptions by marking the checkbox. If you can't find it, and the game to the list by yourself by pressing "add program."

If you don't understand how to do this still, ask someone else to do this for you.

Sometimes there might be something else blocking the program from accessing the internet. A good example of these are some Antivirus programs. This can vary a lot as well. But check up if by any chance your virus program might be blocking Feralheart. And just not only by clicking the icon in the corner sayings, "nope!" Look in the advanced menus and preferences first. Only you can check this.

How's your internet connection?
Sometimes the internet connection of the users trying to play the game might be weak. This can cause you to not be able to connect or stay online for a longer time. Many people might start blaming the game or server for this when it in fact might be themselves.

Here's a few things you can check:

1. Are you even connected to the internet right now?
2. Are you running any downloading/streaming programs?
3. Are there any other computers/devices using the same internet?
4. Are you currently using a wireless connection, if so, are you getting good signal?

Sometimes the internet connection can time out for various reasons and then jump back on again, so be sure to try a few times first.

Programs in the background
Downloading things or running streaming programs eats your bandwidth, and this bandwidth is needed in order to play the game, especially if you're using slower speeds. You can start by shutting off things like downloading programs and internet browsers. Maybe even IM programs such as MSN and AIM and try to play again.

Turn off extra devices
If you got more than one computer or other devices also using the internet, try turning them off if they're not in use. This will give you more bandwidth to spare.

On a wireless connection?
If you're using a laptop you might be using a wireless internet connection. These can sometimes loose their signal to the internet source. So try placing yourself closer to your modem, this might give you a stronger signal.

Are you using the log-in page while you play?
In order to be able to connect successfully to the game, you will need to keep the log-in page open and running in the background. The page refreshes every hour or so. If you are having issues with the log-in page, it could be due to the following reasons:
-Lack of good internet connection
-The page isn't refreshing often enough
-You haven't signed into the log-in page with the account you're trying to connect with
-You have a proxy preventing you from connecting
-Your IP isn't matching up

See above for help on internet connection. If the page isn't refreshing often enough, try looking online to find a page-refresher; most of these are free to use and will ensure the page refreshes for you. A page refresher is in the form of a website that will work with the log-in page to help refresh your page.

Be sure you've signed into the account you're trying to log in with. Don't sign into the log-in page with account "Animaluv1" and then try to log into the game with a different username, such as "Animaluv2." Be consistent.

If a proxy is preventing you from connecting, you can turn them off by going into your internet or computer settings. Oftentimes a proxy is in the form of a private browsing session-- make sure you turn this off and are not using one while you open the page.

You can test to make sure that your IP matches up by looking here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=59711.msg820865#msg820865).

These things should solve the most connection problems!

End~
Title: Connection problems while playing
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 07:22:18 pm
I keep getting bad tokens, failed to connect to map server or timing out while playing.

If you have made sure your connection is working fine, and maybe FeralHeart has worked all good before, there still can happen things in the game when walking around in different maps. Examples of these are so called "Bad Tokens", "Failed to connect to map server" messages.

Even though the game has it's own server, it's not perfect and can get stuck as well. If you're experiencing troubles a good bet is always to wait a few mins/hours and try again later. It solves a lot of problems.

Bad tokens
is the servers way to tell you that something went wrong when loading a map/location most of the times. The client failing to communicate with the server, or other way around. If there was some connection problems just during the time you tried to load a new map, this might happen to you. Also maps that has an extreme amount of online users, or more objects and other custom things might take longer to load, and the chance of getting bad tokens might rise. Usually the issue doesn't last for too long and get solved by just trying going through a portal again or loading the character again or just keep reconnecting, for some it's worse than others.


Failed to connect to map server
is a message you also can get while changing maps and entering portals in the game. It's usually nothing severe either, and as worst, your character might be stuck in that map until there's a reset of the map server process. Another issue similar to this can be if you get the loading screen after choosing a character, but it never loads. Most of the time it should be followed by this "failed to connect" message. If you try to choose another character that isn't placed in the same map, it sometimes let you play since every map in the game, has it's own server process. Sometimes the server needs to be restarted in order to fetch some stuck characters. If you had characters that's been stuck for weeks, you should contact the staff.


Failed to connect to front server
is another funky message you might get. Most of the time you get this either when your internet is down or the server is down completely. It can also be that your firewall or any other security software is preventing FeralHeart from accessing the internet. If it's the server and not your internet it should be sorted shortly and be back up and running, if it will be down for longer times the staff will let you know.

Another cause for this message is failing to open the log-in page extension on the website and having it run in the background while you play. The log-in page was established for security precautions and to esmnaure a safer, stronger server. This also means it's necessary to acknowledge this precaution when logging into the game, so you will have to use this page while you play. You may have signed into the page but are still experiencing issues, in which you should review the possible solutions above, contact a staff member, or look for help in the Help boards of the forum.

If the server is up though for a longer time, and you're still having issues to connect, you should follow the tips mentioned in the post "Unable to log on/go online" (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=10423.msg144690#msg144690) above, and if that fails to work. Contact those responsible for your internet or maybe someone that knows more and are able to help you.

End~
Title: Game not starting/Graphical issues
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 08:09:27 pm
Game is not starting or having graphical issues/glitches.

FeralHeart is a game like so many others out there, it needs a computer to do all the work so you can play it. Not everyone can just install the game and it works all perfect for them. Sometimes the computer might even be really old and the game too new. But if you got a computer from the last 5 years, playing this game shouldn't be any problem at all.

The ogre errors!
The ogre errors are something that users can get either when trying to boot up the game or when entering a custom map. These errors come directly from the game, and even though the error messages might look a lil messy, most of the time they actually clearly shows where the problem is. Ogre errors can also come up from broken installers that doesn't install all the files needed to run the game, and in these cases "The magical fix" usually solves this. Uninstall > re-download game > install with new installers.

An ogre error example could be as pretty much straight out saying that the following file "Gui Template/Reminder" is missing. And in this case, if something is missing, an uninstall and re-install should do the trick. But there can be other errors like "Items already using the name blabla" or "Failed to create OpenGL rendering." They can vary very much, some are easier to fix than others.

If you look <here> (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=2296.0), you will find a big list of previous ogre errors, and many of them with a solution. So take a look there. (Thanks to Shell Prisoner for making that thread)

If you still are unable to sort it, feel free to post a help thread.


Graphical glitches and other weird visuals can show up in different ways, and here's some examples of how it might look.


(http://i.imgur.com/POwITcn.jpg)
Distorted pictures and hard to read text

(http://i.imgur.com/E5J6viV.png)
Complete black images not showing much at all

(http://i.imgur.com/QDD28Oi.jpg)
Only Red, green and blue colours showing.

You may also experience cut off polygons, weird looking shadows, or missing textures.

The absolute first thing you want to try is to change the rendering mode for the game. There's different rendering modes you can pick from, usually OpenGL and Direct3D9. This decides which way your graphic card should process the game. This one is at standard set to OpenGL, so we'd want to set it to Direct3D9.

There are two ways you can change this setting.

How to fix it!
Either you start the game, go into the Options menu (can be accessed by pressing the Escape key on your computer), click the Video tab, and then change the rendering subsystem and restart the game.

Sometimes you aren't able to even enter the game, and all you can hear is the menu music, or it just crashes directly after launch. Those who experience this can enter the Feralheart folder located in C:\FeralHeart at standard, find the file called "Ogre.cfg" and open it with Notepad.

This file works just as the ingame options menu, but instead of buttons and sliders, there's text.

What we're interested in is the top row
(http://i.imgur.com/KLeN2VH.png)

Set the top row text so it is just like in the picture with the text
Code: [Select]
Render System=Direct3D9 Rendering Subsystem
Save the file, and close it. Next time you run the game it should boot with the new settings you applied. You can also change your Rendering system by setting it to OpenGl instead of Direct3D9.

Even though this solves the graphical problems for most, there's still some unlucky ferals out there that the problems still remain, but there's still one more thing you can try, and that is to update your graphic card drivers.

A computer is hardware, and with time it gets old just like any other thing in this world. If you had your computer for a while, and never updated the drivers, this might be the cause for FeralHeart not to work correctly. Installing Drivers for your computer is like installing any other program that it might need, though knowing how to do this might be tricky, so check the tutorial on how to Here! (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=514.0)

If you already tried this and it's not working, chances are that your computer is getting old and can't handle the game. Installing drivers might help, but you're still running the same hardware. Try the game on another computer instead.

End~

Title: The game is running slowly or you want it to look sharper.
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 09:07:10 pm
The game is running slowly or you want it to look sharper.

Performance of the computer means a quite a bit if you are going to have a difference between a choppy game and one that flows like a river. FeralHeart can be very demanding on your computer at times, and not everyone has a NASA computer standing in their closet. This is why the ingame settings are good to have.

Want to make the game look sharper and more nice on the eyes? Just turn up the settings.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Is the game running slow and is hard to play? Try turning down the settings making it less demanding!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Changing the settings after your needs
Changing the ingame settings have a BIG difference on how fast your game runs, but also how it looks. Down here are two identical screens. One with the highest settings and one with the lowest possible settings (take note that there's a texture mod installed for the felines).

Highest settings possible.

(http://)
Lowest settings possible
(http://)

So it's not surprising if changing these does some difference. You can also set your own preferences inside the options menu inside the game. Just enter the video tab there and set the the values you want. The higher the value, the more demanding it will be.

Under the video tab you'll find these settings:
Rendering Subsystem:
This decides which kind of rendering that will be used for the game. Try both and see what works best for you.

Video Mode:
Changes the resolution = How many pixels that will be rendered on the screen. The higher the value, the more sharper things will look, but it will also be more demanding for your computer.

Fullscreen:
This one explains itself, it sets the game in full screen or not. If you like to do other things when you play, keep this unchecked. If you want to focus on the game, and the game only, why not use fullscreen?

Anti-Aliasing:
This is used for even out sharp edges on the screen, the higher the value, the smoother everything will look. This setting is very demanding and is not recommended to use for users with slower computers. Keep it on None unless you know it works well.

Water Reflection:
Turns water reflections on and off. Makes the computer work more. Turn off water reflections if you are experiencing a lag or intense delay in the game movement on-screen.

View Distance:
How far you can see the objects in the distance. The game does look nicer with this as high as possible. But if you lower this it will most likely make your game move smoother.

Play around with these settings and I'm sure you'll find something that works well.

End~
Title: The rules of the game, the mods and how to report.
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 10:07:10 pm
The rules of the game, the mods, and how to report.

Even though the game is meant to be fun, even this place has its rules, and you can't just log on and think you can act however you please. There's real people just like yourself playing this game, so following the rules of both the game and forum is important.

The Game Rules can be read right here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=59894.0) and the mods do expect that everyone reads them. If you didn't read the rules, and then find yourself getting kicked or banned from the game, don't go around whining about it inside the game or on the forum. Read the rules instead and try to understand why you got kicked in the first place. The rules are there to make the game more enjoyable for everyone that plays, and that means EVERYONE needs to respect them.



The Mods inside the game are the ones that enforces the rules of the game and make sure people aren't breaking them causing a havoc for the rest of the users. You will notice when mods are around if they might use their red mod text to warn other users about their behavior. More often, though, the red text will not be used frequently, and moderators will interact with one another by using the local chat-- just as you do.

Example of the red mod text/godspeak is:
MOD80: Please don't swear in the chats

Moderators are trusted with the power to kick other users off the game server, and they sure will do so if they catch anyone doing something prohibited. If a mod uses the red text, their identity will be HIDDEN. However, they are not there to make life harder for those playing the game, but they will take action when the need arises. They're simply there to ensure the game doesn't get out of hand. Please respect their actions and let them do their job to ensure everything works smoothly in the game.

Becoming a mod is not something you just can choose. The mods aren't just randomly drawn, and there is not a way to apply for being a mod. If you were doing good things for this community, maybe you'll be noticed. But asking around of how to become a mod is definitely not something that's wanted. If you're curious about how moderators are chosen, you can read up on it here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=21992.0).



Reporting A User is something anyone can do as long as they have a reason to do this. Even though there are rules to follow, people still break them, either because they never read them in the first place, or because they think it's funny to do this.

Reporting a user who is breaking the rules just helps the moderators do their job in the game. Users help might be needed at times. If you want to report someone, take screenshots of the actions in the game by pressing "prnt screen" button on your keyboard while playing. The screenshots will be placed in the location C:\FeralHeart\Screenshots. Simply upload them to a site like imgur.com, photobucket, or imagehack, and send the links to either an Administrator, Global Mod, or Moderator here on the forum via PM.

There's a forum Modlist that will show who in the game is a staff member, and it can be found here. (https://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28&Itemid=52)

For an in-depth guide on how to properly submit a report, look here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=50652.0).

End of game related posts~
Title: Forum Related Posts
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 10:49:44 pm
Forum  Related
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
For questions or issues regarding the FeralHeart forum
Title: Issues with downloading, logging in or posting.
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 10:53:55 pm
Issues with downloading the game, logging in or posting.

You can't download the game?
The downloads on the official download page should always be up for grabs no matter when you try to get it. And I'm sure there could probably be quite a few reasons why someone aren't able to download.

The issue could be browser related. Such as preferences in it preventing you from downloading the game. In this case you should look in your internet browser settings and see if there's anything odd looking. Maybe even try another web-browser, that solves the issue for some.

Are you checking where you actually place the installer after you download it?

The best thing is if you save the installer onto your computer, preferably someplace like your desktop (as you might forget where you saved it). So try downloading it again and make sure you know where you saved it.

The network you're currently might now allow downloading; this could be normal if you use a school network or if you're at work. If so, you should try downloading it elsewhere.

The download link might be temporarily broken or maybe there's a change for a new patcher. If this problem remains for a longer time and you know others aren't able to download either, you should contact a staff member.

Issues with logging in or posting?
Yeah, this is something we don't like getting. There could be a several reasons why you aren't able to log on the site or post, and here's a few.

1. You keep timing out when you try to log on/posting.
2. The site is currently down.
3. You've been banned or your IP is blacklisted (sometimes surfing the forum still works).
4. You're having web browser-related issues.
5. The login page won't log you in.

1. If you keep timing out, you should check your internet connection. It might be weak at this moment. If it isn't your connection, it can actually be the site that's slow at the moment, so don't panic. Try to wait a while first and try again later, it solves it sometimes.

2. If the site is down, really slow, or if you are receiving an error message when attempting to access the website, not much will happen at all. Check back again later, and it might be up.

3. If you don't behave on the forums you might get banned for a certain period of time. This ban can be in different ways. Not only in how long it is-- such as one day, one week, or for years. But you can also become banned from making posts, or banned from viewing the boards at all. Usually there's a message in this case explaining why you're banned. But if you're using a shared internet, such as a college internet where someone has been doing bad things on it, the IP adress might be black-listed, preventing you from accessing the forum or certain parts of it. In this case, there's not too much to do about it.

4. Sometimes the issue can be just something spazzing up. Try logging out from the forum by clicking the "logout" button along the forum indexes, and then log in again shortly after.

5. If the login page will not let you log in, or clears the form for the login, it is likely you have a connection issue, or it is a problem with the browser you are using. You can solve this one of many ways. Going through to see if your connection is faulty, or you are connected to the internet. Another would be trying a different browser, such as Google Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and the others. Using another browser or making sure you stay connected is a good way to stop the login form from clearing.

If the issue still remains, you can also try deleting all the cookies for the site, restart the browser, and then try again. How to do this can vary from browser to browser. Usually you can find this option inside the Tools/preferences menu of the web browser. In Firefox, you can do this by pressing "Tools > page info > Security > Cookies".

Most of these issues are temporary, though, so if you restart the browser and just try again, it usually works.

End~
Title: I need a quick guide on how to play.
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 11:38:36 pm
I need a quick guide on how to play.

Even though FeralHeart should be fairly easy to learn, people might want a kickstart on how to play the game or maybe need to learn just a lil more, there's always ways to get aid.

Want to learn the controls before you start playing?
There's a Documentation part explaining the controls and ingame settings for you, and if you're new, it would be healthy doing so. You can find it here (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=16&Itemid=27) together with some other nice tutorials.

You may also need some help! If you have any questions in regards to game play, you can visit this little helpful board and ask other members of the community for help. Surely, they can help you there!  Link here! (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=24.0)


But I meant more like how to act on the game and what to do!
Actually, this game is something you need to play and learn. However! If you want someone to show you the ropes, or just tell you more about the game, feel free to send a pm to any of the mods or maybe even other active users here, I'm sure they'd be glad to help! You might even be able to log on the game and ask someone in the game to actually help you.

Most in this community are more than willing to help, so don't be afraid to ask.

End~
Title: Forum rules and the forum mods
Post by: Redlinelies on August 07, 2011, 11:53:24 pm
Forum rules and moderator functions on the forum

Just as the game, the forum has it's own rules similar to the game ones, but also it's own staff team. Here at the forum is where all the updates, downloads, events, and other cool stuff goes down. This a big community with many people taking a part in it so rules are needed.

The forum rules can be found here, (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=59897.0) and they're just as important to follow as the ingame ones if you spend time on this forum, so be sure you read them through. If you can't behave and follow the rules, the mods here might lock/remove threads from you, warn you either directly or via PM. And if you can't behave, you might even get banned.

The forum + game mods
The forum mods are here to help everyone, doesn't matter if it's forum or game related, they're always a helping hand. They're the ones deciding what will happen here on the forums and the ones making sure there aren't any troubles. If you see something that doesn't belong here on the boards, you can always report it via PM. The moderators you see here on the forum are the same as the ones in-game. A forum moderator is a game moderator, and a game moderator is a forum moderator. That means you can contact any moderator you see here on the forum regarding game matters.

As mentioned, they are here to help, and they are the ones checking up on the whole FeralHeart board. If you need assistance with the forum or maybe even the game, they're the ones to contact. There's also several different kind of mods. And mods should appear in another colour than the rest of the users you see on the site.

There's Administrators, Global Moderators, Moderators, and Mods in Training, just as an example for people that are on the staff team. Some slots may not always be filled, but that does not mean there is not sufficient staff to answer your question. For a complete modlist, look here. (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=12157.0)

If you are looking to be a part of it, the best tip is simply to help out here on the boards and in-game. Being a helpful member, always showing interest, and contributing to this community goes a long way. There's no real way to just "apply" for being a mod, and if that opportunity comes, the staff will let you know.

End~
Title: How to use and modify your forum profile
Post by: Redlinelies on August 08, 2011, 12:41:54 am
How to set up, use, and modify your forum profile

Everyone that logs onto the forum will have a forum toolbar, This toolbar is placed right under the banner and above the forum boards, and is how you use most of the forum in an effective way, but also what holds a lot of modifications. As you can see it consists of a few things, and even though they're rather visible, many people skip looking into how they work.

Home:
This wonderful button always brings you home to the forum index/the main page. So if you're getting lost in the sea of threads and posts. Just click home and you're back to square 1.

Help:
This button mostly contains help about how to use the SMF forums in general. Nothing extremely important for the avarage user.

Search:
This lets you search through all the posts in the forum. If you want to know if anyone posted about pickles in the past, just write pickles and hit enter! This tool is useful if you're looking for help, or want to see if others might've had the same issue as you had.

Profile:
This button is interesting; it takes you to your own profile panel that lets you change things like your avatar.

My Messages:
If anyone sent you a message or a reply on something you sent, a number will appear beside this text letting you know you have a message.

Members:
Here, you'll find the memberlist. All this does is show you a list of the members on the site. You can search for other users like yourself here, too.

Logout:
You can log out of the forum area here-- nothing special.



Just as you have a profile and a customizable character in the game, you're able to set modify your own profile here on the forums. This will be shown whenever you make a post on a thread, or when someone is viewing your profile.

A few examples on things you can change:
-Avatar
-Profile information
-Signature
-And forum settings

Just click the "Profile" text in the toolbar and it will bring you to a new page that allows you to modify your profile and change some forum settings.

(http://i.imgur.com/kWKa8qz.png)

(http://i.imgur.com/7nc3nzf.jpg)

As you can see here, this is the place that shows all the information about your profile here on the forums, but also what others will see when they visit your profile.

We will look into the "Modify profile" action since it's what lets you modify YOUR profile.

Here's yet another list of the things accessible from here, and what they do:

Forum profile information:
This page is for some of the main settings when it comes to your profile-- it's also the fun part. On this page, you can set your own personal avatar, signature, and personal texts. Avatars are the small images that are shown next to every post you make. Signatures are the boxes below people's posts. These can have pictures, texts, links to other sites, etc. In here you can change/set your birthdate, location info, and other info about you. You can add links to your social media websites outside of Feral Heart, along with other fun widgets. It also has options like showing you when you're online, if your email should be hidden for others.

Look And Layout Preferences:
This is a rather simple place that doesn't need to much checking up on. It lets you decide things like what should be shown when reading the threads, how to load the pages, and the time.

Notifications And Emails:
Set if you want to get notifications from the forum sent to your email or not.

Personal Messaging Options:
This page lets you manage options such as if you would like to select the option of showing a popup when someone messages you, choosing how Private Messages appear in your inbox, and selecting who you will allow to send you forum messages.

Buddies/Ignore List:
This page lets you block (ignore) users that might be annoying you here on the forums. This will prevent them from sending you PMs. This page also shows your buddy list and lets you add new buddies.



Changing the avatar on your page
Common things to do is to change the avatar and signature. When you change the avatar, you can either upload a picture directly from your saved computer images, use a direct URL that links to your image, or select for no avatar. Be sure to save when you're done. If you experience issues with uploading your avatar picture, make sure it's not too big (100 x 100 is the standard/ideal size).

Having a picture in your signature

If you want to post pictures inside your signature (or any post, for that matter), you need to know about the IMG code.

The IMG code is used to post pictures inside post on the forum, and it work the same way when you want to post an image in your signature.

The code looks like this:

Code: [Select]
[img]INSERTURLHERE[/img]
First off, you need the direct link for the picture, and an example would be funnyderrppictures.com/gallery/trolol.jpg. If this were a valid direct link, you'd just put it in between the two IMG codes making it look like this:
Code: [Select]
[img]funnyderrppictures.com/gallery/trolol.jpg[/img]
That would make it show the picture instead of just a link to it.

This works with any picture that has a direct link. And if you have a picture on your computer that you want to use, you can upload it to a site like imgur.com, photobucket.com, or another similar site .

This cover the most important parts, but if there's any other questions, you can always make a help thread or ask a mod.

End~
Title: I need assistance with something game/forum related.
Post by: Redlinelies on August 08, 2011, 12:45:47 am
I need assistance with something game/forum related.

If threads like these don't cover your questions, there's still ways to get help. As mentioned in the earlier posts, you can always contact a mod or members of this community via the PM function. Most will be glad to help you out.

However, there's also a help section here on the forum. And if someone's got a tricky question regarding the game or forum, they can ask for help there as well.

There's two sections:

Game Help (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=24.0)
&
Forum Help (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=27.0)


It's pretty much self explanatory. The Game help section is for questions regarding the game, such things as the game not starting and you're getting frustrated since you haven't found any solution for it, items missing inside the game, weird crashes, etc. This is the place to go!

The forum help is for other questions more on the side of the website, such as not being able to log on the site with a different account, account doesn't get created, how to post moving text, where to post something, profile help, etc. Similar things.

This is just to split up all the help threads we're getting  and to make it both easier for the ones posting and for the ones trying to help those in need of help.

There's always plenty of ways to get help, just as long as you're polite and willing to actually receive help from others.

End~
Title: Customizing FeralHeart
Post by: Redlinelies on August 08, 2011, 01:09:47 am
Customizing FeralHeart

A big part of the game itself is to be able to be creative, it can be from just roleplaying in the game to making maps and presets. Customizing FeralHeart is definitely a big part of the game, and that's why it has its own little part here in this thread. If you play often, you'll most likely end up customizing your game as well.

How do I learn making these maps and "presets" everyone is talking about?
Actually, it's not that hard if you just get a good start. Making these things have been simplified to the extreme compared to how it used to be in the past. As long as you are determinated to learn, it will be rather pain-free.

If you're in the absolute first stages of learning how to make maps/presets, a good thing would be if you checkout our Documentation page on this site. It goes through the most things you need to know, just click This (http://feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=33) and you are ready to get started. Making these things does require you to have an image editing software like Photoshop or Gimp. If you don't have any of these, you can download Gimp for free here (https://www.gimp.org/downloads/).

If you'd end up needing an even more precise tutorial on how to make presets and/or maps, there's a section called "Member Made Tutorials (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=85.0)" here on the forum. It's the place where people post all kind of tutorials and guides on how to make things for the game. Be sure to check that out as well if you feel creative.

Two of the most regular things people do around here is that they show each other the presets they've made or create maps for their roleplays (or host a party in their new maps). So here's a quick guide on how to make it work.

How to see a friends preset they made:
Most of the time the preset is one exported .fhp file. If a friend of yours wants you to see their preset, all you have to do is download the file from the link they give to you, and then paste the .fhp file into
C:\FeralHeart\presets.
If your friend or the one you downloaded it from made and exported the preset correctly, you should see them with their new look next time they're using it in the game!

If you had a finished preset you'd need to do the same in order for others to see them.

What is Preset Sync?
Preset Sync is a separate download offered to you on the "Downloads" page on the website that will allow you to see everyone's preset automatically, without manually downloading their .fhp file and pasting it into the "presets" folder-- when you download the Sync, it does all of this for you. The way this works is that if someone uploads their preset to the Sync, anyone else who has the Sync installed onto their computer will see that preset, even if you've never asked them for that preset. For more information on how to use this, check out this (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=39845.0) thread.

How to install a map someone else made:
Maps are also a big part of FeralHeart. Hanging out in custom maps is usually a great place to socialize with company, but it's also a big part of joining private roleplays and feeling a bigger variation when playing.

If someone made a map, itt's most likely put up on as a download link for those who want it. The thing is that most map includes more than just one single file, so these are packed into either a .zip file or .rar file for you to download.

Zips
.zip files are easy to open and is needed to open certain programs. Just right click the downloaded zip file, and choose "Extract all" or "Open with Windows Explorer."
This will unzip the files to a new folder with the same name, making them usable. If you don't do this, chances they will work are extremely low. Depending on if you have a file like WinZip or 7Zip installed on your computer, your extraction method may look different.

To open .zip file by extraction:
(http://i.imgur.com/0TYQEyL.png)

By Windows explorer:
(http://i.imgur.com/gLO8EWa.png)

Rars
.rar files are another way to pack files into a bundle. Though this requires you to have Winrar or any other program that can extract these files on your computer, Winrar is free, and you can download it from their site or other sites hosting it. The .rar files work pretty much the same way. When having Winrar installed, just right click the .rar file and chose "Extract here," and it will extract the files next to the rar in a new folder, making the files usable.

Now when you have the files required extracted and all, you just need to do one more thing-- that is to paste them into your game folder. The maps work the same way as exported presets, but you don't put the map files into the same files as you would the presets. You paste most the downloaded files (these usually end in .fho, .fhm., .fhs, .fhw) into the exports folder located here:
C:\FeralHeart\exports

Sometimes the maps has more files than just exported .fhm and .fho such as .mesh .mat etc. If so, check the downloaded folder and see if there's any ReadMe text file for the map; the ReadMe will often tell you where to place files, often image or texture files, specifically. If there is none, and you need help, contact the map creator or seek out the help boards.

When all the files are in place, the map should be visible from within the game!

Just enter the map "Cape of Distant Worlds," located to the right of your Lonely Cave spawning point, and locate the globe portal. This will lead you to the downloaded maps. Head straight through the maps past the archway, and then the map portals will appear along the sides of the pathway, if exported correctly.

And that's how you install maps for your game.

There's more!
There so much more that you can do with the game other than sharing presets and making maps.

You can make your own emotes, customize eyes for the characters, make markings, custom skies for your maps, make meshes or your own objects, change textures, or install modifications, just to name a few. This thread would be endless if it were to explain how to make/use all of the modifications you can play with.

On the forum, we have a place called "Addons & Mods" (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=34.0). In here, people post all possible creations they've made/are making for you to download or look at.

If you want to download maps, look here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=21.0).
If you want to download presets or other markings, look here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=22.0).
If you want to download a mesh for the game, look here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=93.0).
If you want to download other kinds of mods that don't fit into those categories, look here (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=86.0).
If you want to download anything for the game? Just look there (https://feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?board=34.0).

Same thing is if you want to show other members of this community something you're working on or want to share it. Just post a thread in a suiting section. Just whatever you do, do not steal someone else's work!

If you still feel confused and don't know where to start, feel free to ask the people around here or make a help thread in the help section and someone will come jumping to your rescue.

Good luck!

End of forum related posts and thread~
Finally!