Mutatedbuzzardcircler

Based on game build 714014 | Last updated: 2026-03-03

Overview

MutatedBuzzardCircler manages the circling and eventual landing behavior of a mutated buzzard entity around a designated target (typically a killed creature or player). It handles radial movement around the target, dynamic speed and scale adjustments using sine-based easing, migration node tracking, and interactions with flares and corpses. It is typically attached to a “buzzard spawner” entity (e.g., a lunar beacon or flare event object), which spawns the actual buzzard instance stored in self.inst.buzzard.

Usage example

local spawner = SpawnPrefab("lunar_beacon_spawner")
spawner:AddComponent("mutatedbuzzardcircler")
spawner.components.mutatedbuzzardcircler:SetCircleTarget(target_entity)
spawner.components.mutatedbuzzardcircler:Start()

Dependencies & tags

Components used: migrationmanager, mutatedbuzzardmanager, corpsepersistmanager Tags: None identified.

Properties

Property	Type	Default Value	Description
scale	number	1	Current visual scale of the spawner entity (used for animation/simulation only; real buzzard scale is separate).
speed	number	math.random(3) * 0.01	Circulation speed (radians/tick) during active circling.
circle_target	TheSim entity or nil	nil	Target entity around which the buzzard circles. Must be valid and persist.
min_speed	number	5	Minimum speed factor (used in scaling speed via Lerp).
max_speed	number	7	Maximum speed factor (used in scaling speed via Lerp).
min_dist	number	8	Minimum radial distance (units) from target.
max_dist	number	12	Maximum radial distance (units) from target.
min_scale	number	8	Minimum scale factor (scaled by 0.1 before use).
max_scale	number	12	Maximum scale factor (scaled by 0.1 before use).
sine_mod	number	(10 + math.random() * 20) * 0.001	Frequency modifier for sine-based speed/scale oscillation.
sine	number	0	Current sine value, updated each frame.
update_target_pos_cooldown	number	0	Countdown until the next target position update.
last_valid_migration_node	any	nil	Last known valid migration node for the target (used during entity sleep).

Main functions

Start()

• Description: Initializes and begins the circling behavior: sets speed, distance, angle, and offset based on tunables, positions the spawner, starts the update loop, and records the current migration node.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.
• Error states: Returns early with no effect if circle_target is nil or invalid.

Stop()

• Description: Stops the circling behavior by ending the update loop.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.

SetCircleTarget(tar)

• Description: Sets or clears the circling target, adjusting internal counts and registering/unregistering onremove and death listeners.
• Parameters: tar (entity or nil) — the entity to circle. If valid, increments _num_circling_buzzards; if cleared, decrements it.
• Returns: Nothing.

GetSpeed()

• Description: Returns the current effective circling speed, applying direction (positive/negative) to indicate clockwise or counterclockwise motion.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: number — scaled speed adjusted for rotation direction.

GetMinSpeed(), GetMaxSpeed(), GetMinScale(), GetMaxScale()

• Description: Return configured minimum/maximum speed and scale factors. Scale values are scaled by 0.1 before being returned (min_scale * 0.1, max_scale * 0.1).
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: number — the respective tunable factor.

OnUpdate(dt)

• Description: Main per-frame logic: updates target position (with cooldown), finds and lands on corpses, adjusts speed/scale via sine modulation, calculates angular velocity, sets rotation and motor velocity, and manages proximity-based acceleration.
• Parameters: dt (number) — time since last frame.
• Returns: Nothing.

FindCorpse(target)

• Description: Searches for valid corpses near target within a 25-unit radius, filtering for those that aren’t ignored, mutating, or gestalt-arriving.
• Parameters: target (entity) — center point for corpse search.
• Returns: entity or nil — a randomly selected valid corpse, or nil if none found.

LandOnCorpse(corpse)

• Description: Positions the spawned buzzard onto the corpse, sets it to glide, assigns the corpse to the buzzard, plays a sound, and terminates the spawner circling behavior.
• Parameters: corpse (entity) — the corpse to land on.
• Returns: boolean — true if successful, false otherwise.

DropBuzzard()

• Description: Spawns a buzzardcorpse at the spawner’s current location and removes the actual buzzard entity.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.

UpdateMigrationNode()

• Description: Updates last_valid_migration_node to the target’s current migration node if valid and close enough. Otherwise calls StoreInMigrationNode.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.

StoreInMigrationNode()

• Description: Removes the spawner entity via KillShadow() if it is valid to enter the migration node.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.

OnEntitySleep()

• Description: Ensures migration node tracking during entity sleep; updates node if the target is valid, then calls StoreInMigrationNode.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.

GetDebugString()

• Description: Returns a formatted string for debugging: current sine value, speed, and max speed.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: string — e.g., "Sine: 0.5214, Speed: 0.060/0.070".

Events & listeners

• Listens to:
  • onremove (on self.inst) — triggers OnRemove, which clears circle_target.
  • miniflare_detonated (on TheWorld) — fires OnMiniFlareDetonated, potentially spawning the buzzard from the spawner on flare impact.
  • megaflare_detonated (on TheWorld) — fires OnMegaFlareDetonated, potentially spawning the buzzard on flare impact (up to 5 buzzards).
  • onremove and death (on circle_target) — fires internal callback to KillShadow() and nullify circle_target if the target is removed or dies.
• Pushes: None.