Chesterlight

Based on game build 714014 | Last updated: 2026-03-04

Overview

chesterlight is a lightweight prefab component that controls the visual and networked behavior of an animated light source, typically used for Chester's Eye in the Caves. It manages animation transitions ("on"/"off"), light radius interpolation over discrete frames, and server-client synchronization via replicated network variables (net_tinybyte and net_bool). The component is self-contained and does not depend on other components beyond core entity services (Transform, AnimState, Light, Network).

Usage example

local light = SpawnPrefab("chesterlight")
light.Transform:SetPosition(x, y, z)
light:TurnOn()  -- animate and start emitting light
-- ...
light:TurnOff() -- animate fade-out and stop emitting light

Dependencies & tags

Components used: None identified.
Tags: Adds NOCLICK and FX.

Properties

Property	Type	Default Value	Description
_lightframe	net_tinybyte	0	Networked frame counter (0–6), controls light radius interpolation.
_islighton	net_bool	false	Networked boolean indicating whether the light is currently active.
_lighttask	PeriodicTask?	nil	Ongoing task used to animate the light state change.

Main functions

TurnOn()

• Description: Initiates the "on" animation sequence and activates the light source. Sets _islighton to true, plays the "on" animation, then transitions to an idle loop, and starts the light interpolation task.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.

TurnOff()

• Description: Initiates the "off" animation sequence to fade out the light. Sets _islighton to false, plays the "off" animation, and schedules removal of the entity upon animation completion.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: Nothing.

OnUpdateLight(inst, dframes)

• Description: Internal callback used by the periodic task to increment or decrement _lightframe, updating the light radius accordingly. Stops the task when the animation completes (frame reaches 0 or MAX_LIGHT_FRAME).
• Parameters:
  • inst (Entity) – the entity instance.
  • dframes (number) – frame delta to apply (positive for on, negative for off).
• Returns: Nothing.
• Error states: Cancels _lighttask and sets it to nil when animation completes.

OnLightDirty(inst)

• Description: Ensures the light interpolation task is running; triggers an immediate update pass. Called on state change and when network state is updated client-side.
• Parameters: inst (Entity) – the entity instance.
• Returns: Nothing.

Events & listeners

• Listens to: lightdirty – triggers OnLightDirty to refresh light state on non-master clients.
• Pushes: None identified.
• Anim event: Listens to animover during TurnOff to remove the entity once the "off" animation completes.