[WIP] Lighthouses mod

01-14-17, 11:22 AM

Hi !

I can't wait to see how your rocks and reefs look like !

gap · 01-14-17, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kendras

Any news ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kendras

Hi !

I can't wait to see how your rocks and reefs look like !

Not yet, your other mods distracted me from my main task... I am painting planes now but I promise it is just a temporary diversion

gap · 01-30-17, 02:49 PM

Hi Kendras, in my opinion for the best look of the reefs, their on land property should be set to true and, unlike your picture, they should be placed where the seabed is almost flat (alternatively you can make the terrain below them flat using Terrain Editor). I am pretty sure that some models disappearing under the soil when placed on land is due to some errors from your part. Something I have noticed is that SHIII objects are not placed in game directly, but they are assembled together in dummy files through placement nodes. The absolute position of those nodes and that of the 3D model might dictate at which heigth each object is placed on land.

At this moment I am not focusing on the shape of the reefs or on the stepness of their base, and I have little control over them. Matter of factly I didnt actually model the reock that your comment refers to. I made Blender to displace the y coordinates of the vertices in a plane mesh, on the base of a greyscale heigthmap. I have control over the heigth scaling factor though (though extreme values look a bit weird) and I can decide which heigthmap to use of course. Maybe you can help me by looking on the web for heigthmaps whose caracteristics you think fit our needs, and by linking them here. Where needed I can do some manual adjustements, but honestly I wouldn't like wasting too much time on some generic and pretty random rock models ;-)

Lastly, the seaweeds are not covering the whole model. If you look closely at the last picture, the top part of the reef is free from them. Seaweed distrkbution is in patches and it follows roughly model's heigths, with fouling gradually fading out until it totally disappears at a certain heigth. I can easily modify this heigth, make the fading zone more or less sharp, make fouling colour and other caracteristics to change with the heigth, and make them to look more or less sparse

gap · 01-30-17, 05:27 PM

here's a first version of the rocky reef that I been working on:

http://www.mediafire.com/file/3cyw0d...eefs_shoals.7z

Please drop the dat file in the Library folder (or straight into the Terrain/Locations folder?

), place the object in shallow waters near land, preferably where the seabed is almost flat, set it "on land", and launch the game.

Omitting aesthetic considerations regarding the quality of the textures or the shape of the mesh, which can be addressed in a second stage, atm I am mostly interested into technical aspects. More specifically:

is the shadow/seaweed texture correctly rendered on top of the main (gray rock) texture? If I have set the material properly, both textures should be "blended" together.
is the reef laying with its base just below the seabed, as it should?
is the object collisionable?

If the answer to the three questions above is yes, I am ready proceeding to the next step and listening to any other remark you might have

Jeff-Groves · 01-30-17, 07:27 PM

No. The flares are not in GWX.
AO can be done in SH3.
Check the Subs by Wise to see how to do the AO.

gap · 01-31-17, 12:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

No. The flares are not in GWX.

I see

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

AO can be done in SH3.

I have been told so

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

Check the Subs by Wise to see how to do the AO.

Okay, thanks, I will have a look into them later. I hope I got my file right. Maybe you can check it too

01-31-17, 06:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gap

Hi Kendras, in my opinion for the best look of the reefs, their on land property should be set to true and, unlike your picture, they should be placed where the seabed is almost flat (alternatively you can make the terrain below them flat using Terrain Editor). I am pretty sure that some models disappearing under the soil when placed on land is due to some errors from your part. Something I have noticed is that SHIII objects are not placed in game directly, but they are assembled together in dummy files through placement nodes. The absolute position of those nodes and that of the 3D model might dictate at which heigth each object is placed on land.

I will test several solutions in-game with your rock model.

Quote:

Originally Posted by gap

Where needed I can do some manual adjustements, but honestly I wouldn't like wasting too much time on some generic and pretty random rock models ;-)

Roger that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by gap

is the object collisionable?

Without my computer, I can already answer to this : Yes ! I already tried this issue by colliding the rock with my U-boot. The AI ships are also stuck if they are near the island. So, no need to have a .zon file with collision spheres ! But if you make this model a land unit, then you will have to create a .zon file with plenty of collision spheres, and this will require a lot of time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kendras

MLF · 01-31-17, 02:30 PM

Tried the reef out.
Put the .dat file in \Terrains\Locations folder.
Updated the Locations.cfg.

CTD.

Remapped id's in Silent3ditor

No more CTD.

Reef visible in game on surface (whether OnLand= true or false)

Nothing visible underwater.

And I drove straight through it.

Screenshot of result (L/H just me having a play)

SquareSteelBar · 02-01-17, 02:42 AM

Confirm that [except CTD]

inside reef:

underwater:

reef is transparent for light halos.

02-01-17, 04:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MLF

Put the .dat file in \Terrains\Locations folder.
Updated the Locations.cfg.

Reef visible in game on surface (whether OnLand= true or false)

Nothing visible underwater.

Yes, that's logical, because the base of the 3D model will always be placed on the sea surface if the model is placed from the Locations.cfg file. But the base should be placed on the sea bed if you create a new land unit and place it with the mission editor.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MLF

And I drove straight through it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SquareSteelBar

Confirm that ... inside reef

Strange ...

If you try my work, you shouldn't be able to go through the island :

d/L link : http://www.mediafire.com/file/ky0fvj...Kendras_LH.zip

You will find :
- the 3D model : K_Lighthouse_1.dat
- an icon for the LH (maybe to improve a bit)
- a single mission : Test new LH.mis

It is JSGME ready. Put the folder k -- New lighthouses in your MODS folder and enable.

Before launching SH3, open the file data/Terrain/Locations.cfg (of your installation), and write this at the end (change ### with the correct number) :

[Location ###] ; test new lighthouse
Long=-4.755715
Lat=48.043404
Heading=90
OnLand=false
ShowOnMap=true
FileName=K_Lighthouse_1
LocationName=La Vieille

Quote:

Originally Posted by SquareSteelBar

reef is transparent for light halos.

The problem doesn't come from gap's files. You have to edit the particles generators of the light halo, and change depth test from false to true IIRC. If you try my mod, you will see that you can't sea the lighthouse's light halo through the island.

02-01-17, 06:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MLF

... And I drove straight through it.

Maybe it's due to the lack of the "Static object" controller, IIRC.

gap · 01-18-17, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kendras

Hi !

I can't wait to see how your rocks and reefs look like !

Just found a good tutorial on how to generate a mesh from a grey-scale heightmap using Blender.
It might come in handy for creating natural-looking small islands, rocky reefs, skerries and shoals

01-18-17, 10:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gap

Just found a good tutorial on how to generate a mesh from a grey-scale heightmap using Blender.
It might come in handy for creating natural-looking small islands, rocky reefs, skerries and shoals

Fantastic !!!

This will help us a lot ! Just have to find good maps.

gap · 01-18-17, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kendras

Just have to find good maps.

Yep, real or fictive

Let me know if you find any which might fit our purposes, otherwise I will see if I can generate any using Photoshop

Jeff-Groves · 01-18-17, 06:14 PM

Take into account that the terrain in SH3 is pretty much a guess and limited by how it is created and edited.

Wonder why the Kiel Canal is not perfect?
It's the limits of the Game Engine.
You can not change that.

For every 3D model you create, depending on where you place it?
You will need to make more.

I can see editing of the terrain as a partial fix.
Just gonna depend on where you put them.

01-30-17, 02:49 PM	#3
gap Navy Seal Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: CJ8937 Posts: 8,214 Downloads: 793 Uploads: 10	Hi Kendras, in my opinion for the best look of the reefs, their on land property should be set to true and, unlike your picture, they should be placed where the seabed is almost flat (alternatively you can make the terrain below them flat using Terrain Editor). I am pretty sure that some models disappearing under the soil when placed on land is due to some errors from your part. Something I have noticed is that SHIII objects are not placed in game directly, but they are assembled together in dummy files through placement nodes. The absolute position of those nodes and that of the 3D model might dictate at which heigth each object is placed on land. At this moment I am not focusing on the shape of the reefs or on the stepness of their base, and I have little control over them. Matter of factly I didnt actually model the reock that your comment refers to. I made Blender to displace the y coordinates of the vertices in a plane mesh, on the base of a greyscale heigthmap. I have control over the heigth scaling factor though (though extreme values look a bit weird) and I can decide which heigthmap to use of course. Maybe you can help me by looking on the web for heigthmaps whose caracteristics you think fit our needs, and by linking them here. Where needed I can do some manual adjustements, but honestly I wouldn't like wasting too much time on some generic and pretty random rock models ;-) Lastly, the seaweeds are not covering the whole model. If you look closely at the last picture, the top part of the reef is free from them. Seaweed distrkbution is in patches and it follows roughly model's heigths, with fouling gradually fading out until it totally disappears at a certain heigth. I can easily modify this heigth, make the fading zone more or less sharp, make fouling colour and other caracteristics to change with the heigth, and make them to look more or less sparse __________________ _____________________ \|May the Force be with you!\| ...\/

01-30-17, 05:27 PM	#4
gap Navy Seal Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: CJ8937 Posts: 8,214 Downloads: 793 Uploads: 10	here's a first version of the rocky reef that I been working on: http://www.mediafire.com/file/3cyw0d...eefs_shoals.7z Please drop the dat file in the Library folder (or straight into the Terrain/Locations folder? ), place the object in shallow waters near land, preferably where the seabed is almost flat, set it "on land", and launch the game. Omitting aesthetic considerations regarding the quality of the textures or the shape of the mesh, which can be addressed in a second stage, atm I am mostly interested into technical aspects. More specifically: is the shadow/seaweed texture correctly rendered on top of the main (gray rock) texture? If I have set the material properly, both textures should be "blended" together. is the reef laying with its base just below the seabed, as it should? is the object collisionable? If the answer to the three questions above is yes, I am ready proceeding to the next step and listening to any other remark you might have __________________ _____________________ \|May the Force be with you!\| ...\/

01-30-17, 07:27 PM	#5
Jeff-Groves Village Idiot Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 5,321 Downloads: 130 Uploads: 0	No. The flares are not in GWX. AO can be done in SH3. Check the Subs by Wise to see how to do the AO. __________________ I don't do Stupid. So don't ask.

01-18-17, 06:14 PM	#15
Jeff-Groves Village Idiot Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 5,321 Downloads: 130 Uploads: 0	Take into account that the terrain in SH3 is pretty much a guess and limited by how it is created and edited. Wonder why the Kiel Canal is not perfect? It's the limits of the Game Engine. You can not change that. For every 3D model you create, depending on where you place it? You will need to make more. I can see editing of the terrain as a partial fix. Just gonna depend on where you put them. __________________ I don't do Stupid. So don't ask.

01-14-17, 11:22 AM	#1
Kendras Stowaway Posts: n/a Downloads: Uploads:	Hi ! I can't wait to see how your rocks and reefs look like !

02-01-17, 02:42 AM	#9
SquareSteelBar Sea Lord Join Date: May 2006 Location: U-73 Posts: 1,638 Downloads: 618 Uploads: 0	Confirm that [except CTD] inside reef: underwater: reef is transparent for light halos.