[MOD] Yet Another Build Order Tester (YABOT)

2/28/2011
Version 1.4 is now available on sc2mapster and this version includes the new official ladder map rotation including Backwater Gulch, Shattered Temple, Slag Pits, and Typhon Peaks. I have also updated to Green Tea AI 0.78 and Green Tea now fully controls the manual attack waves, so they will perform micro and be more difficult.

2/6/2011
The multiplayer versions of the YABOT maps have been updated and are now live on Battle.net. Just search for YABOT when creating a custom game.

1/16/2011
If you have ever tried adding new build orders to YABOT manually using notepad, your struggles are over! Nervosa has introduced a new program for Windows that will allow you to easily edit your bank files and instantly load builds from sc2builds.com with a few clicks.

To see a video demo and download the installer, check out Nervosa's YABOT editor thread.

1/15/2011
Version 1.3.2 has been posted, which fixes issues with patch 1.2. All maps now include the top 8 build orders from sc2builds.com for each race! I have also added Jungle Basin and Shakuras Plateau to the map list. Head over to sc2mapster to see the full change log.

11/15/2010
I posted a minor update (version 1.3.1) that includes the correct version of Xel'Naga Caverns. I also fixed some other minor issues that you can see in the full change log on sc2mapster.

11/13/2010
After much delay, version 1.3 is up! I hope you'll understand the delay when you see the new feature list. Attack waves, demo mode, and checkpoints; all explained in the video below. I have already begun work on the next version, which will have increased build steps, and small GUI buttons. Enjoy and I look forward to your feedback.



10/06/2010
Hey guys, sorry for the delay but the new version is now up! I had to remove the Green Tea AI, so it's back to the AI executing the build order but it doesn't actually attack. I'll be releasing version 1.3 in one week though with many improvements to go along with our launch of sc2builds.com in one week. Attack waves will be back in some capacity, I promise.

9/15/2010
I just wanted to let everyone know that the current version of YABOT will not be updated for about a month or so until we get the community build order website is completed (see blue announcement above). We're trying hard to get the website up by early October and have it finished before Blizzcon. This will replace the current online encoding tool and also I will be releasing a new version of YABOT as well. So anyway, hold tight and more updates will be coming soon.
9/2/2010
I fixed a could of bugs with the multiplayer versions of YABOT and re-published them to Battle.net today. The biggest bug was that observers didn't work, but now they do! Also, I would like to publish these maps on the EU and ASIA servers, so let me know if you would like to help.

8/29/2010
I have just released version 1.2 which adds multiplayer support through Battle.net! All you need to do is create a custom game and search for a "YABOT" map. Here is a video explaining how the multiplayer version works as well as some new features in 1.2. Thanks to AntiStrange for helping make the video.



8/20/2010
I have had many requests for YABOT to be put up on Battle.net so that you can more easily play while chatting, watch replays, and also compete against other human players. I am making special versions of the maps for this purpose that have no AI system and is meant to be played with multiple human players. Hopefully I will be able to add back in the AI later, but I should be posting the human-only version later next week so you can start competing against each other while having all players' build orders recording to bank files!

8/15/2010
Version 1.1 is up and has some fixes for bugs that have cropped up over the past few patches. I also added some new round end conditions including "End After AI Defeat", "End After 200 Food", and "End When Build Completed". The next version will primarily focus on AI and usability enhancements. If all goes well, there will be new "basic" and "advanced" modes as well as a nice in-game tutorial.

Also, thanks to InfoDav for the following information on how to stay connected to Battle.net while playing this and any custom map! This allows you to chat with friends and play replays of the map! I will also add this information to the "How To Run" section below.



8/8/2010
I released version 1.0 today and added the other four official 1v1 maps that were missing, so now there is a complete set. I also added a "No AI" difficulty setting if you want to practice build orders undisturbed. I also upgraded to Green Tea AI 0.5, which improved a bit over 0.4. There is also a new online tool up to match this new version.

7/24/2010
Update: Some people have reported large amounts of tier 1 units being made and I'm currently looking into this.

After a long wait (and probably a little too close to the SC2 release) version 0.1.9 is up! This version is dedicated to the integration of the Green Tea AI system with the YABOT build order AI system. The two systems are now intertwined and work beautifully together. At least, I think they do and I'm looking forward to any bugs you find or suggestions you have. Here is a short video to demonstrate the new AI integration:
+ Show Spoiler +
The plan from here to to develop styles of AI play to mix things up. Like "defensive", "aggressive". and "likes air units".

7/8/2010
Another maintenance release (0.1.8.2) has been uploaded to address the bugs introduced by Patch 16. I also fixed a couple of other bugs while I was at it. For now, there's not much I can do about the timer window unfortunately. Until the next patch, enjoy the bright purple! You can always hide the timer with "-t" though. Also the Xel'Naga Towers will be back as soon as I can access the new version of Blizzard maps.

7/6/2010
We have started improvements on the micro and macro aspects of the AI system for 0.1.9. We will definitely be holding off until phase 2 of the beta comes back online because we're anticipating some new bugs due to updates to the map tools.

P.S. Be sure to check out Day[9]'s Starcraft 2 release party event. I'll be there if anyone wants to chat!

6/30/2010
I just uploaded a maintenance release (0.1.8.1) with some updated and new build orders and also a few bug fixes. Keep finding the bugs and we will keep fixing them!

6/28/2010
Version 0.1.8 was released! Check out the spiffy new loading screen ^_^

The main focus of this release brings an AI that actually executes any given build order, including custom ones. That naturally led to the "random" option, so you will have to scout the AI to see what they are up to. One note is that the AI can be interrupted if you get in their way physically, but this should be fixed in the next version. Also the micro is still pretty bad and that will be a main focus of the next version.

The secondary focus was optimizing the preset build orders. They all have attack waves defined now and we're working on adding a even more for the next release. I have also optimized the interface so you can be completely un-bothered by the GUI. -t hides the timer, and -a hides the APM counter.

There were dozens of other changes, so view the change log to see a full list. I have also set up a new ticketing system for bugs and a discussion forum on the map project page since this thread is getting unwieldy

6/20/2010
Version 0.1.8 has now begun testing and will be released ASAP. Storm (stzldzl) has taken the lead on managing all of the build order submissions and making sure they are in top shape and Vlad (vlovsky) is working on some brilliant AI behaviors. I'm also trying to get in some last minute bug fixes. Unfortunately I am currently at the Neural Interfaces Conference in Long Beach, so it will still be a few more days until the new version will be posted.

P.S. Today YABOT hit #1 on the most downloaded maps list on curse.com and there are now over 30,000 results in Google! Thanks to all of you for spreading the word!

6/15/2010
The next version will be coming out soon but I am going to need a little longer than usual to finish it. The reason is that we are putting in (thanks to a real software engineer ^_^) some pretty nice AI that will execute any build order that is currently in YABOT... even your custom ones! Oh, also I'm adding a live APM counter

6/13/2010
A new version was just uploaded and adds two new maps (Blistering Sands and Steppes of War) as well as 8 new build orders (thanks Storm for all of the Protoss builds). Just so you all know, we should all be really excited because Storm is currently watching tournament replays and collecting all of the builds, which will then hopefully be converted to some new YABOT builds soon ^_^

6/12/2010
I have set up a separate thread where you can share your encoded build orders with the community! I will try to put many of them into the map preset list as possible, but you can still load them in as custom builds. After only a few minutes we already have several new build orders posted! Details and instructions are on the new thread.

6/11/2010
New version is up! The most notable change being the "Continue Playing" button on the score screen. The next version will include 3 modes: 1) Stop after X minutes, 2) Stop after X food, or 3)
Stop after the build objectives are completed.

Now that the bugs are worked out and the features are mostly there, now I want to focus mainly on more build orders! If you're a high level player, please contribute to the build orders. I have made this extremely easy by using the online tool (click here). Just make a build that you like to use and email me (ben.mcintosh@usc.edu) the encoded text. For the attack waves, think of it like this: "if the computer chose this build, it would be able to make x units".

Also a very kind person is now helping out by researching the best way to put better AI into the map, so hopefully we'll have something to report by the next version. Other things to look forward to: Increased number of build order steps allowed (currently limited to 15), high score tracking for the session, and saving your build order at any time during the build.

6/10/2010
I have teamed up with the current coder of the original build order tester on Team Liquid and we have decided to work together such that the encoded build orders will work on both of our maps! Theoretically you will be able to play my map, have your build order saved, and just load up his map and see it there in your history, or vice versa! This should happen within the next week or so

This is a project is series of standard 1v1 Blizzard maps adapted to include a sophisticated build order testing system. You are given 7 minutes to execute the chosen build while keeping up worker production and creating the largest army possible. You will need to pay some attention to Micro because the AI will send attack waves depending on what build order you choose for the computer. At the end of the 7 minutes, you are given a score which tells how well you executed the build. Also included is a "Freestyle" build, which monitors your play and displays the build order you performed.

After playing a freestyle, you can open your bank (save) file at My Documents/Starcraft II/Banks/YabotSettings.SC2Bank in a text editor to see the encoded build as a single line of text. Copy and paste this line of text to your friends and then can import it using the map to play your build! Also included is a online tool that allows you to easily encode you own builds for sharing.

PC: Simply drag and drop the map onto your Starcraft II launcher. If that doesn't work, open the map in the map editor and click "Test Map".

Mac: Take a look at http://www.sc2mapster.com/assets/mapcraft/

-r Reset the round using the same builds
-b Choose new builds to practice
-s [#] Save the current freestyle progress to a custom slot immediately
-e End the round early and show the score board
-o Toggle visibility of the objectives list
-p Toggle pausing of the game
-t Hide / show the timer
-a Hide / show the APM counter
-sc Save checkpoint (map state)
-lc Load saved checkpoint
-? Show an in-game list of these commands