Avoidelectricfence

Overview

AvoidElectricFence is a behaviour node within the DST behaviour tree system that enables entities to flee from electric fence hazards. It calculates a safe exit direction by averaging the vector directions away from all electric fence segments in a shock-affected field, and instructs the entity to run in that direction using the Locomotor component. The component is typically used for AI characters or creatures (e.g., Beefalo, Pigs, Wandas) that must avoid damage from electrified fences.

The component integrates with the Brain system via inst.brain:ForceUpdate() calls to respond immediately to shock events, and registers callbacks for "startelectrocute" and "shocked_by_new_field" events to dynamically update its flee angle. It depends on the Combat and Locomotor components to drop targeted entities and execute movement, respectively.

Dependencies & Tags

• Components used:
  • self.inst.components.combat — accessed in Visit() to call DropTarget()
  • self.inst.components.locomotor — accessed in Visit() to call RunInDirection(angle)
• Tags:
  • Sets inst._has_electric_fence_panic_trigger = true internally for use by BrainCommon.HasElectricFencePanicTriggerNode
• No tags are added/removed via AddTag / RemoveTag.

Properties

Property	Type	Default Value	Description
inst	Entity	—	Reference to the entity instance the behaviour belongs to (assigned in constructor)
run_angle	number?	nil	Current flee direction in degrees (0–360), calculated from GetRunAngle(). Set when shocked; cleared implicitly on OnStop() or new shock event
shocked_by_field	function	—	Event callback handler attached to "shocked_by_new_field"; sets run_angle and forces a brain update
_has_electric_fence_panic_trigger	boolean	true	Internal flag marking the entity as responsive to electric fence panic triggers

Main Functions

AvoidElectricFence:GetRunAngle(field)

• Description: Computes the direction opposite to the average position of all electric fence segments in the given field. The resulting angle is in degrees, normalized to [0, 360). This angle represents the safest direction to flee.
• Parameters:
  • field (table) — A table containing at least field.fences, an array of fence entities, each with a Transform component providing world position.
• Returns: number — Flee direction in degrees.

AvoidElectricFence:Visit()

• Description: The main behaviour-tree entry point. If run_angle is set, it starts the movement, drops the current combat target (if any), and commands locomotion to run in the stored direction. Should be called during behaviour tree evaluation.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: void.

AvoidElectricFence:OnStop()

• Description: Cleans up event listeners when the behaviour node exits or is destroyed to prevent memory leaks or stale callbacks.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: void.

AvoidElectricFence:__tostring()

• Description: Returns a human-readable debug string representation for logging.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: string — e.g., "AVOIDELECTRICFENCE, 45.0".

Events & Listeners

• Listens to:

  • "startelectrocute" → Calls onelectrocute(inst) which triggers inst.brain:ForceUpdate() to re-evaluate the behaviour.
  • "shocked_by_new_field" → Calls self.shocked_by_field, which computes a new run_angle via GetRunAngle(field) and forces a brain update.

• Pushes: None.

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