[General] Help: Find what is causing strange repetitive noise.

[Barbafire]

Hello everyone here at Hive! I'd like help to find out what is causing a weird issue in my project, related to a repetitive sound. I'll detail more below:

Specifically, on waves 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13, when enemies spawn to attack players, a repetitive and annoying sound keeps playing in the center of the arena. It looks like the "Feral Spirit" sound effect, that smoke boom sound, but played 4 times a second. I'll note here, things that I've already noticed:

1. The sound looks like a loop: It plays 4 times per second, but lasts for about 30 seconds, and then, it stops.
2. It only occurs on those waves related above, but only on NORMAL MODE. Other game modes, that offers new enemies to fight against, but use the same system, this sound doesn't play.
3. Maybe, it is something related to units that compose the "Treant Army" itself, as other armies and any other enemies don't trigger the sound bug.
4. Waves 8 and 14 define the start and the end of the "Treant Army" fight. Wave 8 just spawn "peons", and wave 14 spawn the Boss and his minions. Both waves don't trigger the sound bug.
5. All "bosses" class unit type, have a spawn ability, that is based on "Feral Spirit". The problem is, wave 9 doesn't spawn any of them, so, the sound bug is not related to the bosses (I guess).
6. The problem always appears, when units are created. Only at this moment.
7. The sound has a source, because when we zoom out the camera or move it away from the center, the sounds gets lower until it is muted;

Below, I'll note things I've already tried to solve this problem:

1. As I've checked that the problem is related to the "Treant Army", or at least, the enemies that compose it, I've checked all units and their abilities, to check if any of them has a "Sound - Loop" defined, but none of them have it.
2. I've checked all my universal dummies (3 on total), to see if any of them has something related to the sound. Maybe some of them wasn't despawning, and them, making noises. No sucess.
3. I've checked all sounds used on triggers, to check if any of them is similar to the problem, or is "looped". No sucess.

I didn't check the triggers yet, to see if it is something related to the configuration of the enemies, but I don't believe that this can be the issue, as every other army is configured in the same way. While no one answer this thread, I'm searching for an older version that doesn't trigger this problem, and then compare to see what is causing it. This is the last problem that I need to fix to release the new version of my project... And I'm already going to week 2 without solution.

I'll leave the map, if you want to hear the problem by yourself, already configured to start on wave 9. The last folder on triggers has a list of dev commands, if you want to use (Type "-devcom" to enable them). To start the wave faster, type "-r" to get ready.

I'm also looking for ideas about how this problem happens, and if something similar already happened to you. Thank you in advance.

 

[Uncle]

Reforged is buggy, some Special Effects will loop their sounds when created with triggers.

Some solutions:

• Use a Dummy unit that has the same Model as the Special Effect.
• Replace the sound in the Sound Manager with an empty file and manually play an imported sound file (a copy of the original sound).
• Create and import a custom model based on the original Special Effect's model. Remove it's sound and manually play the sound with triggers.

The first one is the most practical.

Edit: To clarify, when I said Reforged I meant HD graphics

 

[Chaosium]

I've tested the map in SD graphics and can't reproduce that bug, so there might be something fishy with HD yeah

 

[Barbafire]

Uncle: Starting right away on the bug wave, there is no special effect created via trigger or dummy spawned. Also, I’ve changed all bosses special effects to abilities and/or dummies. I’ll check trigger if there is a leftover.

Chaosium: Hmmmmm… bug only occurs on normal mode. Did you select the right difficulty? Because it always reproduce here.

And for both, my project is supposed to be playable only via SD graphics, as I’ve already found a lot of issues related to HD. I’ve marked the map to be only be playable with SD graphics.

 

[Barbafire]

Update: After an intensive session of tests, I've finally found what is causing the strange sound.

First, I've discovered that the sound has been playing at the channel "Animation and Spells". As I don't have any sound effect that plays on this channels, I've looked for all units that compose the "Treant Army".

By disabling and enabling the spawn of every unit inside it, I've discovered that 7 from 13 enemies were playing the sound bug. In short, the units that were playing the bug sound were basically, all units that had the "Root" ability, or, the night elves alive constructions.

After testing each of them, I've noticed that the sound is coming from the Model file, and now, I don't know how to proceed. I created an entire unit from 0, but when I change the model to any of the night elves construction, the sound keeps playing. Curiously, the Tree of Life, that also has a Root ability, doesn't play the sound.

EDIT: Just to satisfy curiosity, the sound is the very first second from the "Root" ability sound, cut after the 1st second, and repeated once a second for every instance of a "Buggy Unit", during 30 seconds.

Spoiler: Complete List of Buggy Models

• Ancient Protector
• Ancient of Lore
• Ancient of Wind
• Ancient of Wonder
• Ancient of War
• Corrupted Ancient Protector
• Corrupted Ancient of War

I could be wrong, but my guess is that my Warcraft Installation got a bug somewhere. While I'm trying things here, I'll return the base "Root" ability to these units, and I'll try re-installing warcraft to see if this gets solved. Any other news I'll come back.

 

[Barbafire]

Another progress, now done today: The buggy sound only plays when a Computer player is controlling the ancients. Even when units are stopped, the sound doesn't play, just when they are engaging/moving and attack a point.

Still no solution for now, as my "custom" Root ability didn't work.

 

[Duckfarter]

Disclaimer: I have no idea whats going on, only maybe tiny pieces of the puzzle.
1. If a location is null it reverts to co-ordinates 0.00, 0.00, so f.e. if Id play a sound at a null location it would play at co-ordinates 0.00, 0.00.
2. At least when placing on map night elf buldings uprooted, they dont actually spawn unrooted but unroot when the game starts... At least thats what I think? I kno ure only using their model so its probably unrelated... probably.

 

[Barbafire]

Disclaimer: I have no idea whats going on, only maybe tiny pieces of the puzzle.
1. If a location is null it reverts to co-ordinates 0.00, 0.00, so f.e. if Id play a sound at a null location it would play at co-ordinates 0.00, 0.00.
2. At least when placing on map night elf buldings uprooted, they dont actually spawn unrooted but unroot when the game starts... At least thats what I think? I kno ure only using their model so its probably unrelated... probably.

1. I think I've made a kind of advance. I looked for the coordinates 0.00 - 0.00, and it is exactly at the center of the map... Exactly where the sound is playing. I'll look for region/point variables that maybe, are leaking, or a custom script that maybe is deleting a fixed location, to prevent leaks. I've made a quick test, changing the location of the currently used region, and the buggy sound didn't move. Just wondering why this is chained into the unit's model, as all others enemies/modes/waves use the very same system, and all of them works properly. Also, we know that "unknown" fields/values can cause very strange bugs.

2. I'm using a footman as base unit, with changed stats and model. The Root/Uproot is not a problem, and I've deleted these abilities from my "things to check" list.

 

[Barbafire]

Hello once more! Daily update about this issue:

Well, I still don't have a solution, but I've found some interesting things about it.

1. When I check the boolean field "Is a Building" on object editor, the sound length is cut almost by half. Half intensity, half times it is repeated, much less time to disappear;
2. When I change the missile model from "Stone Launchers" to something that don't make noise, like the banshee's missile, also the bug comes weaker;
3. When I put the field "homing missile enabled" to false, it also makes the bug weaker.

Each day it passes, and I just work on this, I'm getting even more crazier, because things are not making sense anymore. Maybe I'm too tired about this issue, and I'm not seeing things properly anymore. At least, now I'm thinking that the sound is not from the Root Ability, but it is the sound that Ancients make when they attack. That air deslocation. That's why sometimes the bug comes stronger, others weaker. As waves get higher, more "Ancient" units spawn.

 

[Barbafire]

Hello everyone once more. Passing by to say that I got tired of this. My mind is roting as I can't find the solution, so for now, I'm just reducing the "Animation and Spells" channel volume. It is something that I've already planned, but with this in mind, I just lowered a bit more. This is part of a "sound balance" I was planning to do, as on late game, a lot of spells casted constantly makes a huge sound mess.

From yesterday to now, I even re-installed warcraft and extracted a "virgin" model using CASC Viewer, and imported, trying to see if my project got corrupted in any way, but no sucess.

I've checked the last version that this was not ocurring, and disabled/enabled every changed trigger inside it, with no sucess.

For now, that's it, as I can't think any more possibilites for now. Thank you everyone who tried to help me, and If there is more ideas, I'm glad to read them, and try.

 

[Duckfarter]

Sounds like a bug to me so a work around is probably the way to go. Can the missile model be none and it makes no sound? If so, the units could spawn without a missile model which is instead added later. Or maybe attacks enabled none which swaps to both, or whatever other thing.