1.8 Custom Command Mapping

Without Keyboard Mapping in Planet Arkadia (otherwise known as hotkeying), the quickest way to Equip and use a tool is to find it in your Inventory (default key I), right click it, select "Equip" and then you're ready to use it. This can be cumbersome. When you have an Oratan running at you, you need a quicker method!

1.3 Command Mappings deals with the default keyboard and mouse settings in Planet Arkadia, and the below deals with how to customise those settings.




To begin with, let's get familiar with the interface.

• Press G (default key) to bring up the Keyboard Map.
• Click the arrows at the top of the Keyboard Map to scroll through Active Sets 1 to 9 (or you can press default keys F1 to F9).
• As you scroll, note the icons changing in the top left of your screen. They are there for a quick reference when you don't have the Keyboard Map open.
• The icon in the very top left (showing which Active Set you have selected) has arrows of its own, so you can conveniently pick an Active Set without having to have the Keyboard Map open.
• You might also notice that a lot of the icons are the same for all Active Sets. This is because they are part of the Global Active Set (more details later).
• By default, the function keys F1 to F9 in the Global Active Set are "hotkeyed" to the various Active Sets. For example, if you press F7, Active Set 7 is now selected.

Now it's time to set up a "hotkey" of your own. We're going to hotkey your VSE Mk I tool (otherwise known as your sweat gathering tool) to the 6 key of Active Set 5. First we need to open the Edit Panel.

Edit Panel

• Click the logo with the three small squares in the very top left of your screen, or press the default key L to open the Edit Panel.
• Note that some of the keys on your Keyboard Map are now dulled out. This is because they are in the Global Active Set. You can only edit them by editing the Global Active Set (more later).
• Select Active Set 5 (by either scrolling to it with the arrows on the Keyboard Map or the icon in the top left of the screen, or by pressing F5).
• Open your Inventory if you haven't already by pressing I, and click the wrench icon (called Tools when you hover over it).
• Find the VSE Mk I tool (its name will appear when you hover over it). So you know, at this stage you could right-click the tool and select Equip. We don't want to go through that every time though, and that's the whole reason we're hotkeying it instead - so you can equip it at the touch of a key.
• Left-click and drag the VSE Mk I from your inventory to the 6 key on your Keyboard Map.
• If you'd like to put a reminder icon in the top row of icons on your screen, drag the icon from the Keyboard Map up to where you'd like to place it.
• You're done! Now you can close the three windows (by pressing the default keys G, L and I, or clicking on the crosses in their corners). From now on, when you've got Active Set 5 selected, you can equip and use your VSE Mk I simply by pressing 6. Much quicker than finding it in your Inventory first!

Some handy tips

• Tools aren't the only things you can hotkey. You can also hotkey a whole range of actions, all of which can be found in the Action Library (which itself can be opened with the default key Y).
• The same procedure applies: when you have found the icon, making sure the Edit Panel is open, drag the icon to the Keyboard Map to hotkey it.
• You can see in Active Set 3, keys 1 to 5, that this has already been done. The same is true for some really cool dance moves in Active Set 4!
• Zoom out so you can see your avatar, and give it a try!
• To stop dancing you'll need to use the "Neutral" action which you can also find in the Action Library (default key Y) and hotkey too. (Another way is to type /em neutral in the main chat).

Global Action Set

The Global Action Set can be viewed only when you have the Keyboard Map and the Edit Panel open, so make sure they're both open before you proceed (default keys G and L respectively).

• Since the Edit Panel is open, you can now scroll through the nine Active Sets and the Global Active Set, represented by an asterisk (*), which comes after Active Set 9.
• Any changes you make to the Global Active Set will be apparent, no matter which Active Set you are using. For example, if you find the "Unequip Tool" icon in the Action Library and hotkey it to the 1 key in the Global Active Set, then no matter which Active Set you have selected in future (1 through to 9), pressing 1 will unequip any tool you have equipped. That can be a handy one to set up, by the way!

It is a good idea as you gain more experience, to set up an active set specifically for hunting, another one specifically for mining, and perhaps modify the Global Action Set so that the actions you use the most are on hand at all times (for example, using your Fast Aid Pack!).