[TEC] Adding/Importing new units / SH5 Damage/collision models

[Rongel]

There is a problem I have in the campaign. I asked many times for small ships, even selected a pack from Uekel's mod.. still only big ships were imported. The only one small ship under 5K is Akita. So overall we have no only 2 ships under 5K tonnage: Akita and the small cargo from stock sh5.

Now that the traffic is improved, having 20-40K tonnage/month is easy even on high realism. Can anyone import at least 1 small ship, so I can divert the big ones in the ocean and have only small ships for coastal traffic?

I noticed that the tonnages are increased in SteelVikings release. The ships we started to import we're the smallest ships SH 4 had and their tonnage was mostly around 2000-3000. For example Kasagisan ship was something like 2400 tons, but now when I sunk it, I got 6000 tons. Maybe it's because the ships looked too large compared to the low tonnage value?

[Zedi]

I noticed that the tonnages are increased in SteelVikings release. ...

Ow.. so my memory is that bad. I also remeber that your ship was a 3K one and now is listed in the cfg as 6K. And your ships is much smaller than a Liberty. no way to be a 6K ship.

I can change the values back, but I wonder what is the reason for these changes :hmmm: SteelViking, did you had any reason to increase the tonnage?

[SteelViking]

I changed the cfg files to match the actual mass of the ships in the .sim files. That mass is used for flotation, and changing it can mess up how they sit in the water. I have imported multiple ships below 6000 tons now though. I have basically ran out of small ships to import, this is why I asked for someone to point me towards a ship pack made for sh4.

[Zedi]

Guys, this is a problem and lets see if we can find a fix. The reason of importing new ships is not only the diversity, but also the realism. The sh5 fleet is mainly about huge trans-atlantic ships, all over 5K tons. Same ships sail along the coast so having 50-100K tonnage/month is not a big deal. But kills the realism.

The plan with the new campaign is to divert the big ships into Atlantic and keep the small ship for the coast traffic. But the only ship fitted for the coastal traffic is the small N-Type coastal cargo from SH5 and Akita. We cant use only these 2 ships + the new passenger transport ship, people will get bored to sink over and over the same ships.

Rongel's ship had around 3K and during the tests and I saw no flotation problems, not even the community reported flotation problem when testing the MN test campaign. So whats the problem here, why she has now 6K? If the mass is used for flotation, can we use tricks like having 6K in the DAT, but 3K in the cfg? I suppose the game read the cfg when ship sunk, not the DAT file.

This small pack (http://www.zumodrive.com/share/cyJnNmYzMz) contains few small tonnage ships from Uekel's mod, nothing that can help on this matter?

Ah.. one more thing. I received reports from testings that the new ships have sometimes serious flotation problems, they are sailing almost under water. I think is because they are loaded with cargo.. so there is still some problem with the flotation.

[THE_MASK]

If you look at the cfg file for the C3 it has this line .
DisplacementVariation=5
Not sure what this means .
I vaguely recall some dev saying that cargo weight would be taken into account with SH5 .

[Zedi]

If you look at the cfg file for the C3 it has this line .
DisplacementVariation=5
Not sure what this means .
I vaguely recall some dev saying that cargo weight would be taken into account with SH5 .

Thats correct.

[THE_MASK]

ok , so we just have to find where ?

[Rongel]

Guys, this is a problem and lets see if we can find a fix. The reason of importing new ships is not only the diversity, but also the realism. The sh5 fleet is mainly about huge trans-atlantic ships, all over 5K tons. Same ships sail along the coast so having 50-100K tonnage/month is not a big deal. But kills the realism.

The plan with the new campaign is to divert the big ships into Atlantic and keep the small ship for the coast traffic. But the only ship fitted for the coastal traffic is the small N-Type coastal cargo from SH5 and Akita. We cant use only these 2 ships + the new passenger transport ship, people will get bored to sink over and over the same ships.

Rongel's ship had around 3K and during the tests and I saw no flotation problems, not even the community reported flotation problem when testing the MN test campaign. So whats the problem here, why she has now 6K? If the mass is used for flotation, can we use tricks like having 6K in the DAT, but 3K in the cfg? I suppose the game read the cfg when ship sunk, not the DAT file.

This small pack (http://www.zumodrive.com/share/cyJnNmYzMz) contains few small tonnage ships from Uekel's mod, nothing that can help on this matter?

Ah.. one more thing. I received reports from testings that the new ships have sometimes serious flotation problems, they are sailing almost under water. I think is because they are loaded with cargo.. so there is still some problem with the flotation.

I think we should keep the old tonnage values from SH 4. I didn't see any critical change testing these new ships and the ones with the low tonnage. During stormy seas they still kind of go through the waves like a sub, like Zedi once mentioned. And I'm not sure if the cfg-file has anything else to do than put info on the rec manual. Sim-file should do the simulation.

I agree that the point was to get small ships to the game, they were missing previously. SteelViking has done a lot of work and my hat goes off to him, not mean to diminish his work :DL.

Fixing the flotation is a time consuming process, there are many different variables and a very small change can fix it or ruin it. I'm not a expert in this field, but again, I know that stoainm is pretty good :D.

When this is fixed, there is still one thing to do, but it seems that TDW holds the answers to this: modifying the zon-file to get better sinking mechanics and missing FX sounds. I have tried it i'm but I'm like a blind man fixing stuff, don't know what I'm doing.

[Zedi]

So if I will set back ONLY in the cfg the old displacement values will cause any problem with the new ships?

I have an important question to you guys. Now that I created many new nation entries in the roster, will these ships use these nations flag or it needs more adjustments? For example, Algeria will use an algerian flag or it will sail without any flag?

[Trevally.]

I have an important question to you guys. Now that I created many new nation entries in the roster, will these ships use these nations flag or it needs more adjustments? For example, Algeria will use an algerian flag or it will sail without any flag?

Just ran a test for this in single mission.
Here you can see a ship from Brasil:doh:

http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/503/icetomb.jpg

I did this with ships from 5 nations.
All had the " red ensign"

Not sure what the Ice Tomb is about.
I did read somewhere that the UK and Canada were trying to make a carrier out of ice and straw.

Here is my mod list:-
Generic Mod Enabler - v2.6.0.157
[C:\Ubisoft\Silent Hunter 5\MODS]
FX_Update_0_0_18_ByTheDarkWraith
IRAI_0_0_32_ByTheDarkWraith
Black_Skin_albrecht
NewUIs_TDC_6_5_1_ByTheDarkWraith
Dynamic Environment SH5 Basemod (light) V2.0
TheDarkWraith_DC_Water_Disturbances_v1_0_SH5
No Logo Intro Menu_Animation v. 01.00 by AvM
MightyFine Crew Mod 1.2.1 Alt w beards
Trevally Harbour & Kiel Canal Pilot v2.4
Trevally Scopes 8x5
stoianm key commands
Trevally TDC Help
Das_Campaign WIP2
Trevally Automated Scripts v0.5
Mission10 use JSGME

Anyone seen this before:06:

[Zedi]

What a ... So you are saying that this brazilian ship spawned with an iceberg on top of it? O.o

[Trevally.]

What a ... So you are saying that this brazilian ship spawned with an iceberg on top of it? O.o

Yes, when places on map using ME - they were green as per neutral.
Date for mission was 1938 - so I did not think anything of it.
Can someone with the new "sea" and "roster" folders check this.

I had used a mod a few days ago for testing ship sizes.
It adds an environmental (iceberg03) as a ruler ontop of ships.

This could be some crazy kickback from that.
I had uninstalled it - but with so many changes to campaign etc lately, I may have a badly messed up SH5:88)

[Rongel]

So if I will set back ONLY in the cfg the old displacement values will cause any problem with the new ships?

I have an important question to you guys. Now that I created many new nation entries in the roster, will these ships use these nations flag or it needs more adjustments? For example, Algeria will use an algerian flag or it will sail without any flag?

I'm 99 % sure that using stock SH 4 cfg tonnage value isn't causing any problems. Here is little evidence: Stock SH 5 ship HogIsland's displacement is 4037 according to the cfg-file. But in it's sim file there reads Mass: 11000. And nobody's complaining!

In my opinion, these ships must be stabilized editing the sim-file. There are many options to do this. Let's leave the stock tonnage cfg where it is.

Just ran a test for this in single mission.
Here you can see a ship from Brasil:doh:Trevally, that is just crazy... Can't say what is wrong. Looks like everything! Never seen that myself. ... Don't know about the flag stuff...

[Zedi]

Ok Rongel, I will set back their original values in the cfg.. if I will find an older copy of these ships. I may redownload my test mod for MN as is the only copy I know with the old ships :DL

Trevally.. I think.. and hope that is only a single mission bug. Something similar to the double spawned ships in single missions. Going to test this in the campaign after I finish adding the algerian, turkish and some other arab nations in MN. I really hope this is only an isolated case or we are screwed...

[stoianm]

@Zedi and SteelViking,

I think you must rework flotation or to low the tonage from new ships... here they are to deep in the water:

http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l568/stoianm/testesv.jpg

[Zedi]

Maybe is because:
Displacement=6500
DisplacementVariation=150

I will rework the cfg asap and do some test in the campaign.

[HanSolo78]

Hey guys!

About your zombie ships that should not spawn in convoys... what type do the zombie ships have? Normal merchants types? You could define them as environmental unit 110.. so they should not be spawned in convoys.

regards
Han

[Rongel]

I have an important question to you guys. Now that I created many new nation entries in the roster, will these ships use these nations flag or it needs more adjustments? For example, Algeria will use an algerian flag or it will sail without any flag?

The stock game is missing many flags (like Finland for example) so the game won't use any flag in finnish ships. I tested these new ships with Terrain_harbour_flags_Mod_v1_2_1 by thfeu58. It adds a lot of new flags and this was the result :D:

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n527/rognels/SH5Img2011-05-29_220333.jpg

So we should ask him, if we can use part of his mod in Zedi's campaign! Otherwise we don't have flags for all new nations.

[Zedi]

Hey guys!

About your zombie ships that should not spawn in convoys... what type do the zombie ships have? Normal merchants types? You could define them as environmental unit 110.. so they should not be spawned in convoys.

regards
Han

Its not a solution because they will have no flags. One solution would be to create a new type of unit and is what Ive tried today.. the type 111 Z unit, but even if I had set up everything in the roster and Sea as 111, I was unable to open the campaign in ME. maybe there is a limit to how many unit type we can have?



The stock game is missing many flags (like Finland for example) so the game won't use any flag in finnish ships. I tested these new ships with Terrain_harbour_flags_Mod_v1_2_1 by thfeu58. It adds a lot of new flags and this was the result :D:

...

So we should ask him, if we can use part of his mod in Zedi's campaign! Otherwise we don't have flags for all new nations.

There should be a way, Uekel had flags on his ships. But Im gonna test the mod you had pointed out, but please give me a link as Im unable to spot that mod. Hope the mod can handle all nations, like Alger, Libia etc. Thanks.

[HanSolo78]

Its not a solution because they will have no flags. One solution would be to create a new type of unit and is what Ive tried today.. the type 111 Z unit, but even if I had set up everything in the roster and Sea as 111, I was unable to open the campaign in ME. maybe there is a limit to how many unit type we can have?


Hm.. did you test this already with type 110 and no flags?
Actually they should have a flag, I think.
And.. if adding a new unit type does not work... what about swapping it to another unit type? In Sh3 most of the unit types were not used in the camapign.. but I do not know if this is the same in Sh5.

[Stormfly]

Maybe is because:
Displacement=6500
DisplacementVariation=150

I will rework the cfg asap and do some test in the campaign.

saw this behavior also in vanilla campaign, but for escorts !

...would be nice if you could review them also :06:

[Zedi]

Hm.. did you test this already with type 110 and no flags?
Actually they should have a flag, I think.
And.. if adding a new unit type does not work... what about swapping it to another unit type? In Sh3 most of the unit types were not used in the camapign.. but I do not know if this is the same in Sh5.

Maybe as life boat, but they also have no flags. But I could change one of these entry:
Type105=Life Raft
Type106=Survivor

Rongel, which one is you use in your mod.. 105 or 106?

This is the Terrain_harbour_flags_Mod_v1_2_1 by thfeu58 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=168545) you talked about?

Stormly, I saw once a destroyer half sunk but still sailing in one of the tests using the stock game and he has the blue flotation bar at half. I think those guys suffered a collision which is not something uncommon in SH5. But these new cargo ships maybe cant keep the depth when loaded with cargo. A lot of stuff to deal with, but not enough time.

[Rongel]

Maybe as life boat, but they also have no flags. But I could change one of these entry:
Type105=Life Raft
Type106=Survivor

Rongel, which one is you use in your mod.. 105 or 106?

This is the Terrain_harbour_flags_Mod_v1_2_1 by thfeu58 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=168545) you talked about?




Yep, right mod. My boat uses 105, Life Raft. Survivor means parachuting pilot (but we don't have those in SH 5, TDW uses different system I think).

[SteelViking]

Btw guys changing displacements in the cfg files makes no difference to flotation. The game reads the sim files for flotation. To get flags copy the flg node name from one of my ships using the proper name. Also, I have never seen these flotation problems even with the ships loaded.

[Stormfly]

Stormly, I saw once a destroyer half sunk but still sailing in one of the tests using the stock game and he has the blue flotation bar at half. I think those guys suffered a collision which is not something uncommon in SH5. But these new cargo ships maybe cant keep the depth when loaded with cargo. A lot of stuff to deal with, but not enough time. .

Zedi, the units i saw had no visible damage at all, if you cant / wont look into it, someone will :yep:

[SteelViking]

Guys flotation is easy to fix and adjust. But I see no problems at all with my latest version of the ship pack. Please make sure you are using the latest versions of the ships.

[Rongel]

@ TDW

Welcome back :D

I've been trying to adjust the zones in the zon-file to get the missing sound FX to play and I understand now how it's done. I made some changes to Kasagisan ship (compared it to FX update zon-file and the zones.cfg) and it sinks just fine. But no luck with the sounds, EXCEPT that the secondary explosion sound is playing. But I'm not sure if I did it, or was it working from the start.

Anyway, I'm puzzled because there seems to be nothing basically wrong with the zon file. Unlike SH 5, most of Sh 4 ships have also FX entries in the zon file: fire small, fire big, smoke, bubbles, and so on. They are using the right type number and they are basically working, except the sounds. So my point is that I just can't find any reason for the sounds not to play. If you have spare time, could you take a quick look at the imported ships zone file, or give some advice, thanks!

[TheDarkWraith]

let's first define exactly what sounds are missing. Do the ship(s) have hydro sound (sound at hydrophone station)? Can you hear the ship(s) using external camera? Can you hear the ship(s) if your submarine is close to them (engine/screw noise)? What other sounds are there that are not there?

[Stormfly]

let's first define exactly what sounds are missing. Do the ship(s) have hydro sound (sound at hydrophone station)? Can you hear the ship(s) using external camera? Can you hear the ship(s) if your submarine is close to them (engine/screw noise)? What other sounds are there that are not there?

for me the following sounds are working:

- Hydropone Engine
- External cam Engine
- Shell impacts
- Torp impacts
- Sinking ship sound


for me the following sounds are missing:

- Burning fire on the ship
- Explosions (but not shell or torp impacts), also the bigger explosions like oil or splinter explosions which are caused by follow up damages like sinking or by fire etc...
- Maybe also sounds from destroyable items like cranes, funnels (i never saw those object destroyable on the new ships)

- not shure about the water spray sound`s

[SteelViking]

I have also changed all the numbers in .zon files to match the zones.cfg and had no luck with sounds either.

[Rongel]

I confirm Stormflys list (except I haven't tried listening for the ship in hydrophone station, at least the sound guy spots them):

for me the following sounds are working:

- Hydropone Engine
- External cam Engine
- Shell impacts
- Torp impacts
- Sinking ship sound
But also add:

-secondary explosion (I used edited zon file)
-water spray both, bow and stern if the right controllers are in place in the ships dsd-file.

For me the missing sounds are just:

-ship on fire
-not sure but possibly a big catastrophical explosion sound when ship is destroyed

[W_clear]

I think them should continue to develop silent hunter 6.

[TheBeast]

I think them should continue to develop silent hunter 6.
Why?:hmmm:

After buying SHIII/SHIV/SHV and seeing so many issue's in all release's that are not being fixed by UbiSoft. I, for one, will not buy anything from UbiSoft ever again unless they do something to regain my trust.

[Rongel]

I decided to open this again and not fill OH II threads with the imported ship stuff :D.

So some news to those who might be interested in this. I think I found out what causes the frozen flags. I tested this with only the new ships (no other mods) and found out thatif I edit the ship's dat file and remove the "Unified Render Controller", the flags won't freeze. That makes some sense to me, because it's a SH 4 controller and SH 5 doesn't seem to like it very much.

I used Trevally's tip to test this issue, so I created a custom mission with a convoy 100 km from my position coming straight towards me. That way the ships are spawned the same way as in campaign. Again, the flags were frozen every time. But when I took the controller out, they have been working since.

Bad thing obviously is, that the ship loses it's textures in the process. So I embedded the ship textures but they are still missing the lightmaps and the other eye candy, ships look very plain now. I can't remember if we got the ships to look good with embedding the skins before...

It seems to me that only way to get working flags with imported ships is to build them differently, which is obviously quite a big task.

So can anyone make a good looking ship without this cursed controller? If we get that working, these ships are almost ready in my opinion. Calling modders to the rescue.... :D

[Madox58]

Being that useing dats is actually redundant?
:hmmm:
It's only a matter of how much the solution is wanted and how soon.

[uekel]

Hi privateer,

do you have a solution for convert to gr2 files? I also have some SHV ships and in my opinion is not the frozen flag the main problem. I can live with it, because it´s not often occurs. It´s much more important for me that I can´t bring there to cast shadows. And I see the gr2 parts of the ships (crew), do it.

[Madox58]

I do have the information and Tools to do anything wished with GR2 files.
I have requested help from others to move forwards on this.
Let's see if they are willing to take my offer.
;)

[tonschk]

It´s much more important for me that I can´t bring there to cast shadows. .

The flags without shadows for me is a inmersion killer :wah:

http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z58/tonschk/SH5Img2011-08-07_133158-1.jpg

[chrysanthos]

i have something in my mind for months....since ubisoft is good to make sub simulators why the heck are not make 1 for battleships and destroyers too huh??

[chrysanthos]

i am confused:( hey friend how can i open a silent hunter 3 or 4 battleship to fixed any damage zones? please show me step by step ok:/

[uekel]

Hi chrysanthos!
i am confused:( hey friend how can i open a silent hunter 3 or 4 battleship to fixed any damage zones? please show me step by step ok:/You can use the way with "goblin editor", described in Post 1 http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=1644371&postcount=1.

But, I for myself, prefer s3d (many thanks to skwasjer :salute:) http://s3d.skwas.com/. In this you open the *.dat file.

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/6066/s3damage.jpg


Now you:

1. goto the main node of the unit

2. linked 3D model you dont need in this case, you can close it

3. open the model preview

4. open the *.zon file (let be open in background)

5. for a better vision, you can switch the diffuse map on

6. toggle to the zones editor

7. now you can edit the boxes and spheres (with rightclick on the types you can add a new)

I hope it helps but I dont know why you need it. I have imported some ships http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/downloads.php?do=file&id=3222 and it was rarely nessesary to change the damage zones.

And btw:i have something in my mind for months....since ubisoft is good to make sub simulators why the heck are not make 1 for battleships and destroyers too huh?? agreed completely :up:

I remeber wishfully the times I played "TF1942" or "Burning Steel" ...... :wah:

___________

And @ tonschk

The flags are ok, but the dat-ships dont cast shadows:


http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/9004/sh5img20110916220948.jpg

greetings

uekel

[Rongel]

Okay, here goes!
http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee503/rongel777/SH5Img2011-09-27_120531.jpg
While trying to find ways to render ships without the "unified controller" which makes flags freeze and guns not to render fully, I made a pretty significant find. If this works, flags will work, even Sh 5 guns will render fully and ships will also look more like SH 5 ships! When I first discovered this I was almost shaking! Ok, enough hype... :D

The secret is the "BumpMap" controller. So at first I deleted the unifiedrenderctrl in S3D, opened Goblin editor, and applied the "BumpMap" from SHcontrollers to the main ship node and merged it to the .val-file. For now I'm using the default values, they seem to be about right. So the basic method is really quite simple. It's more tricky to get all the maps to show, seems to require embedding (currently I'm using basic texture and occlusion map, I don't use Normal map because it was showing in the wrong places, but I think it's fixable). My current S3D setup which seems to work (the interesting stuff is in the materials):

http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee503/rongel777/bumpsettings.jpg

To get best results, ship's texture color and occlusion maps needs changes. It might be that even ships basic texture colour should be changed to grey. I would really like to sneak peek to SH 5 ship GR2-files and see how it's done, but for now it's impossible...

Ofcourse there might be some nasty suprises ahead (at first when I applied the BumpMap in .sim-file, game crashed every time ship was destroyed, but now it works!). One thing is that I don't know how to apply LOD levels, now the ships are rendered fully as far as you can see them, and it may cause stuttering to lower-end PCs. On the other hand, the current imported ships seem to be quite hard on your computer too.

http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee503/rongel777/SH5Img2011-09-27_005829.jpg
Sun/moon position affects the ship's lighting just like with SH 5 ships.

Anyway, I'll look more into this and I hope that others will too mess with BumpMap controller. That way we might get real results sooner! And no promises yet, but this might be the missing link between SH 4 and SH 5!

[mobucks]

Excellent news Rongel, quite the clever chap you are with this! Hats off!:salute:

[Trevally.]

Looking good Rongel :Kaleun_Salivating:

[bigboywooly]

Hmmmm interesting and nice find :yeah:
Be nice for imported units to look a lil like the sh5 ones
Literally hundreds of units available from SH3 and 4
Just what the game needs

[Rongel]

Yep, let's hope that the pros win the cons with this method! Not that I have seen really any, but usually there is always somekind of drawback too.

But this isn't really that hard, and I'm not that professional modder, I made my first Silent Hunter mod just 9 months ago! I think it's more about determination and hard work really.

My plan is to make this particular ship ready and close to Sh 5 as possible and if all works, realease it as a new mod. But as this is still in test phase, it's best not to make too big promises! :D

[THE_MASK]

Really great detective work there :yeah:

[Rongel]

Okay, next version of OH II full (1.4) will have a new Rongel Small Split Freighter ship that doesn't use the "Unified render controller", it's rendered with SH 5 bump map controller. There are currently some good things about it and there are some bad things that I know off.

Plus :DL

-Flag doesn't cause freezing (flag will only freeze if other ship causes it first)
-Dynamic lighting that looks more like SH 5
-Guns and equiptment are rendered correctly

Minus :nope:

-No caustics
-No bump map (currently I have to choose between occlusion map and bump map)

Can't say yet about performance, didn't notice difference myself. This ship creates also reflections in the water. Uekel figured that one out, I just followed his example, credit goes to Uekel :DL

Please remember that this is basicly a test, somethings may improve further. I hope that the big guys will make it possible to use new GR2 ships in the future, untill then we must accept some compromises.

[TheBeast]

I've noticed that Weapons do not render correctly on imported ships.
They are using model from SH4_Guns_Radars.dat

SH5 contains all of the Merchant Weapons located in file
data\Library\ShipPart\guns_radars_01.GR2, .SIM, .ZON

To verify if the SH5 Weapons would work, I edited the .eqp file on a boat and used Stock SH5 in game weapons with basically the same result but the Weapons render black, not white as with the SH4 Models.
http://img690.imageshack.us/img690/8488/merchantweapons.jpg
BTW, this model is missing its SHD 3D model completely.

Example .eqp file using SH5 Weapon names.

[Equipment 1]
NodeName=M01
LinkName=NULL
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19431231
[Equipment 2]
NodeName=M01
LinkName=4.5In_Mk9_US
StartDate=19431231
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 3]
NodeName=A01
LinkName=NULL
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19421231
[Equipment 4]
NodeName=A01
LinkName=20mm_single_Oerlikon
StartDate=19421231
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 5]
NodeName=A02
LinkName=NULL
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19421231
[Equipment 6]
NodeName=A02
LinkName=20mm_single_Oerlikon
StartDate=19421231
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 7]
NodeName=A03
LinkName=NULL
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19430606
[Equipment 8]
NodeName=A03
LinkName=20mm_single_Oerlikon
StartDate=19430606
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 9]
NodeName=A04
LinkName=20mm_single_Oerlikon
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19430606
[Equipment 10]
NodeName=A04
LinkName=20mm_single_Oerlikon
StartDate=19430606
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 11]
NodeName=L01
LinkName=reflector_base
StartDate=19420101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 12]
NodeName=L02
LinkName=NULL
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 13]
NodeName=P01
LinkName=2x2_version02
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 14]
NodeName=P02
LinkName=PT_Boat_Crew2
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 15]
NodeName=P03
LinkName=2x2_version01
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 16]
NodeName=P04
LinkName=NULL
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 17]
NodeName=P05
LinkName=1x10_version02
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 18]
NodeName=P06
LinkName=1X1_version01
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19451231
[Equipment 19]
NodeName=A06
LinkName=NULL
StartDate=19380101
EndDate=19431231
[Equipment 20]
NodeName=A06
LinkName=20mm_double_Oerlikon
StartDate=19431231
EndDate=19451231


I have to ask, If we get basically the same results using stock weapons, why are we using up more virtual memory to load more weapons that do not render correctly either?:06::timeout:

[TheDarkWraith]

We were using SH4's because they were rendering correctly. SH5's would not using the UnifiedRenderController.

SHDs are a thing of the past and do not exist in SH5. Shadows are done through the Granny interface now (GR2 files).

You see shadows from the SH5 guns because they are from a GR2 file.

[tonschk]

And @ tonschk

The flags are ok, but the dat-ships dont cast shadows:



Hi there :DL, do you think in the future the modders will be able to make the dat-ships cast shadows ?

[Rongel]

I've noticed that Weapons do not render correctly on imported ships.
They are using model from SH4_Guns_Radars.dat

SH5 contains all of the Merchant Weapons located in file
data\Library\ShipPart\guns_radars_01.GR2, .SIM, .ZON

To verify if the SH5 Weapons would work, I edited the .eqp file on a boat and used Stock SH5 in game weapons with basically the same result but the Weapons render black, not white as with the SH4 Models.



Yep, when using Unified render contoller, the guns don't render correctly. So we have to decide if we take black SH 5 guns that cast shadows, or SH 4 guns that have texture, but no occlusion/shadow map. We decided that limited SH 4 guns are still better than the other option. The gun shadow is a bit distracting too, if the ship doesn't cast shadow.

If we take out the unified render controller, all guns work but the quality of the ship suffers, we lose caustics and visual damage.

You mentioned that you have white guns, are you using latest ship patches? Guns and searchlights should have a decent texture.

[TheBeast]

Yep, when using Unified render contoller, the guns don't render correctly. So we have to decide if we take black SH 5 guns that cast shadows, or SH 4 guns that have texture, but no occlusion/shadow map. We decided that limited SH 4 guns are still better than the other option. The gun shadow is a bit distracting too, if the ship doesn't cast shadow.
A Shadow Model can easily be added to Models that are missing them. I suspect those that are missing their Shadow Model are SHIII imports?:06:
If we take out the unified render controller, all guns work but the quality of the ship suffers, we lose caustics and visual damage.
Can we add Granny Caustic Controller using GoblinEditor?:06:
If so, maybe that is a option...
You mentioned that you have white guns, are you using latest ship patches? Guns and searchlights should have a decent texture.
I am using the Merchant Ships added from the OH II v1.4 MOD.
Are they current?:06::timeout:

I am just thinking about sytem reuirements increasing as the game footprint grows from loading models that really are not required.

Regards!
TheBeast

[TheDarkWraith]

A Shadow Model can easily be added to Models that are missing them. I suspect those that are missing their Shadow Model are SHIII imports?:06:

Can we add Granny Caustic Controller using GoblinEditor?:06:
If so, maybe that is a option...

You're missing the point here. SHDs do not exist in SH5. All shadows are 'made' from the GR2 files. The Granny part of SH5 controls this.

I tried adding Granny caustics controller and couldn't get it to work. I think it actually CTD from it.

[TheBeast]

You're missing the point here. SHDs do not exist in SH5. All shadows are 'made' from the GR2 files. The Granny part of SH5 controls this.

I tried adding Granny caustics controller and couldn't get it to work. I think it actually CTD from it.

Well hopefully, the work you have been doing with 3D Studeo and Reading GR2 files. You will be able to take a existing GR2 Model and replace the internal Gr2 3D Model with a new 3D Model and specify new Textures in the GR2 as well.

Does a 3D Model contain AO, UV Map info?:06: Haven't really dug that deep with Hex Editor yet.

[TheDarkWraith]

Well hopefully, the work you have been doing with 3D Studeo and Reading GR2 files. You will be able to take a existing GR2 Model and replace the internal Gr2 3D Model with a new 3D Model and specify new Textures in the GR2 as well.

Does a 3D Model contain AO, UV Map info?:06: Haven't really dug that deep with Hex Editor yet.

A GR2 file is highly customizable (and it's this high level of customization that is causing me grief with the app). It can include a multitude of items. You could have 3 texture channels if you wanted it. If you use GrannyViewer to view a GR2 file it will show you everything you could want to know about it. Most of the VertexData for SH5 has two texture channels - one for the texture (UV) and the second for the AO. The GR2 file doesn't use specific names for each texture channel. They seem to be able to be called anything. I've seen MaxChannel 1 and 2, AdditionalChannel 1 and 2, etc.

Come to think about it I need to add a renderer for the texture channels in the app so one can see them in a 2D image :yep:

My app will spit out a TON of debug output that will tell you where it found/read everything. You can use this output to go directly to that place in file and make changes if you wish. I haven't added the ability to edit that data from the app yet.

[Rongel]

I am using the Merchant Ships added from the OH II v1.4 MOD.
Are they current?:06::timeout:There is a patch to OH II 1.4 in the first page of the OH thread, it upgrades the ships too :DL

[zachanscom]

Okay, next version of OH II full (1.4) will have a new Rongel Small Split Freighter ship that doesn't use the "Unified render controller", it's rendered with SH 5 bump map controller. There are currently some good things about it and there are some bad things that I know off.

Plus :DL

-Flag doesn't cause freezing (flag will only freeze if other ship causes it first)
-Dynamic lighting that looks more like SH 5
-Guns and equiptment are rendered correctly

Minus :nope:

-No caustics
-No bump map (currently I have to choose between occlusion map and bump map)

Can't say yet about performance, didn't notice difference myself. This ship creates also reflections in the water. Uekel figured that one out, I just followed his example, credit goes to Uekel :DL

Please remember that this is basicly a test, somethings may improve further. I hope that the big guys will make it possible to use new GR2 ships in the future, untill then we must accept some compromises.

you can set the occlusion map as a transparent layer directly over the diffuse texture and just use the bump map.

gimp can do it using color to alpha, photoshop does it with a plugin called alpha works to create the transparency.

[gap]

you can set the occlusion map as a transparent layer directly over the diffuse texture and just use the bump map.

gimp can do it using color to alpha, photoshop does it with a plugin called alpha works to create the transparency.

Thank you for the info. :up:
Do you mean an alpha channel or what?

Anyway, don't forget that dat units are not fully compatible with SH5 gfx engine, since this game was designed over the GR2 format.

It is to say that what works in SHIV, doesn't necessarily work in SH5, as far as dat units are concerned. The only way to know if some setting is going to work, is to test it in game.

[zachanscom]

not the alpha channel of the texture, but a feature to change the white pixels of the occlusion map transparent then overlay the translucent occlusion map directly onto the ship's texture.

[kevinsue]

It's a shame that some of these old but very informative threads get lost over time and only found by stumbling across them by accident. :hmmm:

[gap]

It's a shame that some of these old but very informative threads get lost over time and only found by stumbling across them by accident. :hmmm:

The whole concept of importing dat unis in game is now outdated by the new possibilities opened by GR2 Editor and especially by the RAD tools, if we manage gathering enough money. We must also consider that, as noted many times by me, and more recently by Vecko, the usage of dat-stored objects in game is, at least, contriversial, as the spawning of many of these objects, especially near land, might be the cause of some unexplained ctd's.
I nonetheless agree with you that the content of this thread is still extremely instructive. :up:

[vdr1981]

I just can't get to rid of texture problem when unit is damage for this particular ship....It's the Sub Depot form SH4...:hmmm:

http://s6.postimg.org/x1sc8ii9d/SH5_Img_2016_09_25_21_30_02.jpg

[Jeff-Groves]

If you send me a link to Download that Unit I can look at it for you.
Something don't look right with the texture mapping.

[vdr1981]

If you send me a link to Download that Unit I can look at it for you.
Something don't look right with the texture mapping.

Much appreciated Jeff !:up:

You will find in the archive two ships with the same problem...Tell me if you want test mission too...:yep:

https://www.mediafire.com/?yzadq5dq2rdck4i

[gap]

I am pretty sure that the same used to happen with the first import of the torpedo boat by TDW (which, on turn, was the first dat unit ever imported in SH5). I don't remember what was the fix, but if memory serves me well, there was a controller in SHIII-IV which controlled the rendering of 2D "hole" decalcs on damaged units. This controller is unsupported in SH5 and might cause the messing up of textures when units are damaged. The removal of the said controller might solve the issue. :hmmm:

[Jeff-Groves]

Got the package. Looking at them now.

[Jeff-Groves]

SH3 had that controller. SH4 does it totally different.

Yes send me your test mission and I'll load SH5 back on my system.

And gap. Your wrong about the first dat file in SH5.

Check the date.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H276z6ZHUVU&index=1&list=FLc9pV_8gIwezuVg1LbUkv8w

The fix I believe is to import a 3d damage object. (been awhile since I've done anything with SH5)
We all know the Unifiedrender stuff is whacked.
Send me a ship that does not have this problem so I can compare them.

[vdr1981]

SH3 had that controller. SH4 does it totally different.

Yes send me your test mission and I'll load SH5 back on my system.

And gap. Your wrong about the first dat file in SH5.

Check the date.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H276z6ZHUVU&index=1&list=FLc9pV_8gIwezuVg1LbUkv8w

The fix I believe is to import a 3d damage object. (been awhile since I've done anything with SH5)
We all know the Unifiedrender stuff is whacked.
Send me a ship that does not have this problem so I can compare them.

These are OK, single mission included with all units both good and bad...
https://www.mediafire.com/?3nojzqas8p6aimo

You can merge two mods...

[gap]

SH3 had that controller. SH4 does it totally different.

Good to know :up:

And gap. Your wrong about the first dat file in SH5.

Check the date.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H276z6ZHUVU&index=1&list=FLc9pV_8gIwezuVg1LbUkv8w

You are right mate, sorry, I had totally forgot about that proof of concept by you :oops:
I should have said "the first dat unit ever released for SH5" :03:

The fix I believe is to import a 3d damage object. (been awhile since I've done anything with SH5)...

Me to, I am just going by memory, but at first glance I think that that chunk #141: DMG_Sub_Depot_Ship shouldn't be there :hmmm:

[vdr1981]

#141: DMG_Sub_Depot_Ship shouldn't be there :hmmm:

Heh, that's one of thousand things I tried...:)

[Jeff-Groves]

That's just the internal damages model for SH4.
SH4 renders a transpartent hole so you can see it.
SH5 needs a different type damage object.
More like a blocky shape around the hull?

I'll put SH5 back on my system. It's on the external 1 TB drive right now.

[vdr1981]

That's just the internal damages model for SH4.
SH4 renders a transpartent hole so you can see it.
SH5 needs a different type damage object.
More like a blocky shape around the hull?

I'm OK with ship without any holes If that's the price to get rid of that ugly texture mess...

Here's interesting TDW's post but texture mapping is beyond me... http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=1654471&postcount=179

[Jeff-Groves]

OK SH5 is back on my system.
Let me check the dats for what you linked to.

[Jeff-Groves]

OK. Both Units have the DMG_col_ node but no 3D object in it!
:doh:

Send me a link to a ship that looks ok so I can compare.

[vdr1981]

OK. Both Units have the DMG_col_ node but no 3D object in it!
:doh:

Send me a link to a ship that looks ok so I can compare.

Check post No. 569

[Jeff-Groves]

OK. Those HAVE a 3d object for damages.
:)

I'll have to see if I have my software to load my 3D program back up to fix the other 2.

[kevinsue]

I'm OK with ship without any holes If that's the price to get rid of that ugly texture mess...

Here's interesting TDW's post but texture mapping is beyond me... http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=1654471&postcount=179

Here is another old post by Rongel about importing ships from SH4 to SH5.

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=1666222&postcount=432

Also I think all of the info contained in this thread has been updated to the original TDW tutorial in the first post which may help with the damage texture problem, which was one of the major hurdles they had to overcome when first importing into SH5.

[Jeff-Groves]

I've got a dat here for you but mediafire or my motel is being a pain.

[gap]

OK. Both Units have the DMG_col_ node but no 3D object in it!

That's correct. They have no 3d object in them, but they have the 3d object from the main unit embedde to them. Maybe not the cheapest method, but it worked and it was in the guidelines followed by all the modders onimporting new units in game.

Native SH5 (GR2) units, use a separate low poly mesh which envelops the main model instead. This tell us that the DMG_col node has nothing to do with visual damage, but with damage detection. Try removing one of those nodes (or the embedded mesh), from any dat unit, and it will become invulnerable. :yep:

[vdr1981]

I've got a dat here for you but mediafire or my motel is being a pain.

Did you fix them already ? :ping: Can you upload them now?

[Jeff-Groves]

test dat link sent by PM.

[vdr1981]

test dat link sent by PM.

Thanks Jeff...:up:

At first testing everything seemed fine but on 2nd try, I've witnessed strange unit disappearance and game freeze after the unit has been declared as dead by the game.

Saw this behavior even before your tweaks so I cant even confirm that it's dat related.

Unfortunately, I don't have any more time for testing but hopefully I'll be back in business in a few weeks...:yep: Thanks again...:up:

[Jeff-Groves]

I'll have a few days off to do some testing in the next day or so.
I'll try to run your test mission and tweek the dat a bit more then.
:up:

[vdr1981]

I'll have a few days off to do some testing in the next day or so.
I'll try to run your test mission and tweek the dat a bit more then.
:up:

RGR that! :up: I've imported a lot of fully functional SH4 units so far, but those two ships are really strange indeed...:yep:

[Jeff-Groves]

That's correct. They have no 3d object in them, but they have the 3d object from the main unit embedde to them. Maybe not the cheapest method, but it worked and it was in the guidelines followed by all the modders onimporting new units in game.

Native SH5 (GR2) units, use a separate low poly mesh which envelops the main model instead. This tell us that the DMG_col node has nothing to do with visual damage, but with damage detection. Try removing one of those nodes (or the embedded mesh), from any dat unit, and it will become invulnerable. :yep:

Yep. I know all that.
:D

I'm looking at the thread posted by TDW referenced above and noticed he stated "the 3D model specified can ONLY have one map (NO multiple maps)."
Now the Units I have do not have the Fore Aft sections and call the main model.
That model has several materials assigned.
So I took a wild shot and added a new 3D model with only one texture and UV mapping.
Then added a transparent texture as per his post.

Notice this posting above.....

"At first testing everything seemed fine but on 2nd try, I've witnessed strange unit disappearance and game freeze after the unit has been declared as dead by the game.

Saw this behavior even before your tweaks so I cant even confirm that it's dat related."

I can also tell you that the O01.dds does not have the proper image in the alpha channel in the Sub_Depot_Ship.
So you should not use specular from AO mapping until corrected.

[TheBeast]

Does anyone want the HO-229B Jet in game? Looks very cool scripted in Port area's for flyby (Looped, No Delete) as you are leaving or entering port.

Adjusted 3D Model for use in SH5.
Removed incompatible Controllers.
Added UnifiedRenderControler, WaterInteraction and SinkingEffect Controllers.
Fixed AFB_Ho_229B.dsd SoundSource so the Engine doesn't sound damaged all the time.
Need new Engine sound sample. Currently sounds like a Vacuum.
Made new Turbine TGA image.
Reworked Propeller 3D object to correct scale so it fits inside Turbine Engine.
Tried for approximately 4 hours to get the Turbines spinning in SH5.:/\\!! Discovered that none of the .dat imported plane propellers spin.
Updated data\Roster\German\Air\FBGo229B.cfg file for SH5.
Renders fine in SH5 Museum.

Required Manual Editing:
:subsim:WARNING:Before doing the following backup your entire SH5\data\Campaigns files/folder and SH.sdl file. I just ZIP or ARJ the entire Campaigns folder.:sign_yeah:

SH.sdl - Add the following entries.
- Air.GermanJet
- Air.GermanJet.Engine
- Air.GermanJet.EngineDmg
Example SH.sdl (all sounds included) is in the data\Sounds folder.
The jet engine sound sample provided is very poor and really needs to be replaced.
MissionEditor2.exe
When starting SH5\ME2 it does a quick campaign validation, If you encounter errors, click OK until ME2 is ready for use.
Click "File" --> "Open Project" and select the Project/Campaign where you want to add the Plane.
(i.e. SH5\data\Campaigns\CampaignProjects\Happy_Times.pj )
Locate the starting point/Port you want the Plane to fly on the map and zoom in all the way to your selected starting point.
Adding a Scripted Plane:
From the Mission window on the right, Click on the name PortTraffic to set focus and we add the new plane to port traffic group.
From the Explorer window on the right, Click on the Air tab and expand Roster then German. Click and hold on the FBGo229B and drag it to your desired start point spot on the map and drop it.
Primary Click on the Ge FB Go_229B1 you just dropped on the Map. In the Properties window on the left, Select Alphabetical display.
Set CurrentSpeed to a minimum of 190 or the Ho 229B rolls over and crashes on corners 90 degree or greater (Top speed is 584 but if you set it above 300, You or your Deck Watch crew will most likely never even see it).
CurrentSpeed must be set prior to creating a group or the group is stuck at the default of 90 Kph until it reaches the first Way-point.
Set DeleteOnLastWaypoint to False. If this is not set the plane fly's around the Way-points once then exits the game until game restart.
Set Doctrine to Defensive. With a 1000 KMs range, we don't want these guys possibly responding to Contact radio reports. "WTF":timeout:
Set EvolveFromEntryDate to True. Not really important but should keep in mind in case you are adding actual scripted patrol because these patrols will re-spawn until GameExitDate is reached.
Set the GameEntryDate and GameExitDate dates. At a minimum use the starting and ending dates of the campaign so if you add a Plane to the first campaign Total Germany, it isn't flying around until the last campaign in December 1945 and visa versa.
Set Height well above any terrain/ship obstacles (500 is good for a starting height on Sea/Ocean).
Set VetrancyLevel to Poor. If these guys are set to Elite they may respond to Distress Radio reports and decide to sink everything between Patrol area and Distress Call preventing you from completing your missions. "WTF":timeout:
Adding/Editing Way-Points:
Secondary Click on the GE FB Go_229B1 and select "Add waypoint". Now every time you Primary Click on the Map you will set a Waypoint. Create Way-Point 1 a short distance from the plane. Now Secondary Click on a clear Map location to stop adding way-points so we can edit the first way-point. Primary Click the way-point and you can now edit the way-point Properties and change Height, LoopPoint, LoopProbability, Radius and , Speed from this Waypoint to the next.
Each way-point you add inherits the Properties of the Plane or last way-point.
Primary Click on the first Waypoint to set focus then Secondary Click on it again and select "Add Waypoint" to add the rest of the Way-Points.
When you have set all your waypoints, edit the last waypoint and set LoopPoint to the first way-point or to what ever point you want to keep patrolling.
You should verify/edit all Way-Points when done.
Creating an AirGroup:
Primary Click on the GE FB Go_229B1 to set focus then Secondary Click on the GE FB Go_229B1 again and select "Create Group From Unit". In the Properties window on the left, you can now enter a GroupName. I recommend a name that will help you locate the plane on the map like "GeFBHo229B <Port Name Here> 01" so if you create multiple groups around multiple ports they are easier to locate in case the planes keep crashing or errors or you want to edit way points etc.
Now you can add another Plane to this AirGroup. Just repeat steps from adding the first plane then Primary Click on the GE FB Go_229B2
and select "Join Group" and in the Plane properties the GroupName has a selection of groups to join. Select the group you created.
Secondary Click on the _Ge FB Go_229B1 again and select "Head to Waypoint".

Save Project and start game to see your new plane buzz you.

Download Link:
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/downloads.php?do=file&id=5075

Horten HO-229B or Gatha Go 229 or H.IX - and - Messerschmitt Me 262 - Sturmvogel
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/downloads/german_jet_aircraft_Wq4.png
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/picture.php?albumid=255&pictureid=9269
Northrop Grunman does Stealth test of the 229 YouTube video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqgfjXaJxV8


Regards!
TheBeastBelow

[vdr1981]

This could be really nice addition...:yep: Any download links?

[TheBeast]

Soon, doing the Me 262 right now and will combine both in one DL.

[skin-nl]

This is a cool addition to sh5 :up:

[TheBeast]

I uploaded the Ho-229B and the Me-262A together early this morning.

I added both Planes to the following Airbases.
data\Land\LAB_LargeAirBaseGe\LAB_LargeAirBaseGe.cf g
data\Land\LAB_NormalAirBaseGe\LAB_NormalAirBaseGe. cfg
These files were just for testing. You can remove the data\Land folder and files from the MOD.

I added a very light Jet Exhaust to both Aircraft from file
data\Library\EUF_Plane_FX.dat
If you don't want the Exhaust smoke, just delete this file.

I provided a All sounds included SH.sdl that has the entries for the engine sounds.
data\sounds\SH.sdl
This file should be compatible with almost all sound MOD's but not totally sure.

I also added a few jet engine sound samples. The Jet engine sound samples are not very good and should be replaced with something with a lot more roar to it.

If people want I can also update the upload with a sample script for the Total_Germany.pj that has a pair of Ho-229B's flying the Canal between Wilmshaven and Kiel. These guys (if they don't crash, flying below 300m) buzz by several times before you pass through the canal.:ping:

See post #587 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=2445629&postcount=587) below for more details.

Download Link:
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/downloads.php?do=file&id=5075


Enjoy!
TheBeastBelow

[vdr1981]

Planes look really nice in the game, no stability issues or CTDs with TWoS...:yep:

Flying wings have some difficulties while following way points (they tend to crash during the turn) :)

[TheBeast]

Flying wings have some difficulties while following way points (they tend to crash during the turn) :)
Increase their speed an increase elevation a bit.
I noticed the Ho-229B starts going into a stall =< 180 Kph. 220 Kph + it has a lot more stability.
180 Kph is like final approach landing speed for it. These flying wings have a top speed of 584 Kph.

I also noticed something else. I thought it would be cool to have a couple US P-38 Lightnings cruising Lorient 1939-1940 just for eye candy. Well they drop floating mines as soon as they spawn. The three Ho-229B's I have flying around are set to Defensive and fly way off scripted course to destroy these 6 floating mines. Problem is the scripted path max height is 500m and when they dive down to attack the mines, they crash into them and only manage to take out three mines due to colliding with them.
Cruising at 220 Kph and Height of 700m they have 50% chance of impact, So you may want to make their Height more like 1000m

Did you notice the Turbine Blades spinning inside the engines on the Ho-229B? That is one of the things I customized on it.

[TheBeast]

I am taking a break from EUF for a couple days and decided to look at the Buoys again to move all of the controllers located on the .dat files to the .sim files.

I am fixing this and will upload the changes tomorrow.

Regards!
TheBeast

[vdr1981]

I just can't get to rid of texture problem when unit is damage for this particular ship....It's the Sub Depot form SH4...:hmmm:

http://s6.postimg.org/x1sc8ii9d/SH5_Img_2016_09_25_21_30_02.jpg

I almost forgot about this...Texture problem when unit's damaged solved by adding VisualDamage controller attached to the main 3D object's node in .val file.

[vdr1981]

I am taking a break from EUF for a couple days and decided to look at the Buoys again to move all of the controllers located on the .dat files to the .sim files.

I am fixing this and will upload the changes tomorrow.

Regards!
TheBeast

If you like you can extract edited light buoys from TWoS since I can confirm that they wont crash the game anymore, not under any circumstances or test scenarios...You can also use mines, nets ect...

[TheBeast]

If you like you can extract edited light buoys from TWoS since I can confirm that they wont crash the game anymore, not under any circumstances or test scenarios...You can also use mines, nets ect...What version of TWOS?

I originally started using a MOD that was just buoys but that MOD was really old so grabbed the Buoys from OH 2.5 - only have to add the UnifiedRenderControler to all of them.

Are the Buoys on TWOS different?

[vdr1981]

What version of TWOS?


Are the Buoys on TWOS different?

latest version, 1.06.
I replaced old SH3 unit ship controller and also removed some from the main dat file. I don't have time to check the files now but you can compare them for your self.

[TheBeast]

latest version, 1.06.
I replaced old SH3 unit ship controller and also removed some from the main dat file. I don't have time to check the files now but you can compare them for your self.
OK, earlier this morning I pulled Buoy models from TWOS v1.06 and moved all controllers to the .sim file and converted the Halo ParticleGenerator controller to SH5.
Put the Buoys in game and tested. The Buoy lights are not working. Spent a way to much time trying to resolve this issue. There is nothing wrong with SH5 controller and suspect that the game doesn't like those controllers in a .sim file so I am going to try moving the Halo controllers to a new RayTraceHalo_Lights.dat with RayTraceHalo_Lights.fx file and use ObjCtrlsRef to put the lights in each of the Buoys.
This would convert these Buoys to SH5 and optimize controllers at same time.
I could also create Red, Yellow, Blue and Green Halo's in same files for use in Submarine Interior as well at the same time.

[vdr1981]

Rgr that...:up:
For me personally and/or until I can confirm some issues with current setup, I'm quite satisfied with buoys such as they are right now. :yep:
They look and work nice without impact on game stability and I have finally eliminated infamous and hard to catch port CTDs...Maybe I'll just add them a bit of water reflection effects, but that would be it...:hmm2:

[TheBeast]

Rgr that...:up:
For me personally and/or until I can confirm some issues with current setup, I'm quite satisfied with buoys such as they are right now. :yep:
They look and work nice without impact on game stability and I have finally eliminated infamous and hard to catch port CTDs...Maybe I'll just add them a bit of water reflection effects, but that would be it...:hmm2:
I looked these TWOSv1.06 Buoys over and tried many different thing with them and until that lens is cut from the body and made into its own 3D Object there really is anything we can do to improve them.
The way the Model is right now, I think added a reflection would actually cause problems. The reflection controller is suppose to be on its own hidden 3D Object model.
We can easily add another hidden copy of the buoy without halo to each buoy and add the reflection controller to it.
I do recommend removing the the old caustic caustic controller. Once the lens is its own 3D Object model we can add the UnifiedRenderCtrl to the Buoy body. The UnifiedRenderCtrl is a SH5 controller that has Caustics built in to it.

Kudos' on cleaning these up.

Regards!
TheBeast

[gap]

I looked these TWOSv1.06 Buoys over and tried many different thing with them and until that lens is cut from the body and made into its own 3D Object there really is anything we can do to improve them.
The way the Model is right now, I think added a reflection would actually cause problems. The reflection controller is suppose to be on its own hidden 3D Object model.
We can easily add another hidden copy of the buoy without halo to each buoy and add the reflection controller to it.
I do recommend removing the the old caustic caustic controller. Once the lens is its own 3D Object model we can add the UnifiedRenderCtrl to the Buoy body. The UnifiedRenderCtrl is a SH5 controller that has Caustics built in to it.

Kudos' on cleaning these up.

Regards!
TheBeast

Hi guys, :salute:

if Vecko is still wanting to add a further improved version of the light buoys to TWOS, I might take some of your suggestions into consideration and create some new nagigation buoys.

Things I have in mind:

- having just one model/unit for each buoy shape (pillar, spar, can, etc), that can be customized through roster cfg (for color) and eqp files (for any accessory part).

- putting the shared "accessory parts" (top marks, lanterns, bells, maybe a rigging chain, similar to mines) in one or more external library files.

- trying to import all the models mentioned above into one or more GR2 files. This change, and the two above, might release some memory, making the game overally more stable.

- I can try adding an object pendulum controller to bells and chains (if we decide to add them). Povided that it wont make the game to stutter or to be unstable, it would be nice seeing those objects swinging as their parent buoys pitch/roll in the waves. It would also be nice connecting bell's sound to their swinging, but I dont think this is possible with the available soun controllers :hmmm:

- I can try simulating different light patterns for the buoys whose lanterns have a pulsing light. Doing that would require the creation of several light halo particle generators (though obtening the desired effect might involve some work, and those particle generators can be CPU/GPU killers if they are not used wisely).

- I can make provisions for having in game the four cardinal buoys, the two lateral buoys (red an green), isolated danger (black/red) buoys, and safe water (white/red) buoys. We can combine those buoy types with different shapes, according to real usage. Doing that would offer a big variety of combinations, by still containing memory usage (see what I wrote above). The "only" work for Vecko would be adding the new buoy types in campaign where appropriate, and testing how they will affect the overall game stability.

Recently Kendras has released a SHIII/GWX-compatible buoy mod (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?p=2448783#post2448783) offering various improvements (reproportioned buoy models, better sounds, added ray-traced ligh effects to lantern halos, etc). If you are into the tweaks I am suggesting, I can ask Kendras for permission to use some of his improvements in our work. What do you guys think? :)

EDIT: I just had a look at one of the current buoy models into Wings3D... compared to its modest in-game dimensions, that mesh contains zillions of faces/vertices. No surprise that used near land those buoys are hanging the game :o :doh:
I am pretty sure that by halving (or more) the number of their faces, buoys can still look pretty good, but with a lesser impact on PC performance :yep:

EDIT2: "superdetailed" buoys are the ones of the type "2": Buoy_D2_FL, Buoy_G2_FL, and Buoy_R2_FL, the other type has a much more acceptable vertex-size (774 vs. 1303 vertices) :03:

[vdr1981]

Recently Kendras has released a SHIII/GWX-compatible buoy mod (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?p=2448783#post2448783) offering various improvements (reproportioned buoy models, better sounds, added ray-traced ligh effects to lantern halos, etc). If you are into the tweaks I am suggesting, I can ask Kendras for permission to use some of his improvements in our work. What do you guys think? :)



Sounds good to me Gap...:up: Any improved object which can pass "All Air/Sea/Env/Playable units rendering test" is a GO for the megamod. and I will be happy to implement it...:yep: