AFSM (File Format)
The AFSM format controls AI behavior; it stands for AI Finite State Machine. AI-controlled creatures have a limited number of possible states they can be in. The AFSM file defines those states, and what triggers can cause it to transition to another state.
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This file format is almost completely documented We should have a list of possible states and triggers and a short explanation of what they generally do on this page somewhere. Also, the float settings on conditions is unknown. |
Format
Header
The format first defines a list of states, then defines the triggers for each transition attached to each state. There are no state/trigger type IDs; rather, the name string itself is used as an identifier to fetch the corresponding AI function. It starts with a short header listing each state and then providing a trigger count. Note that the trigger count isn't actually used to parse the file; it's present merely because the game uses it to allocate space for each trigger ahead of time.
Type | Count | Description |
---|---|---|
long | 1 | State count (SC) |
string | SC | State names (each zero-terminated) |
long | 1 | Trigger count |
State Transitions
Following that, it iterates through each state, defining the transitions associated with each one. Transitions are composed of a target state index and a number of triggers; when all the triggers associated with a transition are satisfied, it advances to the targeted state. The state transitions are structured like this:
Type | Count | Description |
---|---|---|
long | 1 | Transition count (TC) |
Transition | TC | Transitions |
Transitions
Type | Count | Description |
---|---|---|
long | 1 | Trigger count (TC) |
Trigger | TC | Triggers |
Trigger
Type | Count | Description |
---|---|---|
string | 1 | Trigger name (zero-terminated) |
float | 1 | Unknown (possibly AI function parameter) |
long | 1 | Target state index (note: this is ONLY present on the first trigger for each transition!) |