Help Please!

Community Forums/Graphic Chat/Help Please!

Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#1]


okay i seriously need help on creating a descent terrain... Basically this is the first level (so far) and aliens are going to attack on this planet (from drop ships) Seriously, it looks like a terrain in a RPG game... but mine is FPS!!! can you guys give me tips on how to fix it to bring out the theme? i'm really new to terrains and need help!!!


RiverRatt(Posted 2004) [#2]
I think it looks good, just need to ad rocks, trees, streams, and structures, and plants and stuff.


IPete2(Posted 2004) [#3]
I agree with RiverRatt,


You just need to add in the detail and some shadows - the sky looks great, the path looks fine.

Have you tried "TerraEd" by Filax?

Take a look at these:

Still shots:
www.smartscreenuk.com/terrain019.jpg (50k)
www.smartscreenuk.com/terrain025.jpg (50k)
www.smartscreenuk.com/terrain030.jpg (50k)

MPEG mpovie:
www.smartscreenuk.com/Terrain001.mpg (1.6MB)

All created in TeeraEd - with shadows and wind movement, the ability to control heighmaps, colour maps, lighting/shadow maps and a detail map (for ground detail). Comes with a height map editor, and the ability to set up a skybox. (You can swith this off so you can use a sky plane).

It is very highly recommended by this user. It does use Blitz terrains so its quite quick too.

IPete2.

PS Nice website Idaho!


aab(Posted 2004) [#4]
Large obstacles and possibly cliffs, as well as command posts, fences, those WW spike things (at Nomandy)?, overturned vehicles: some evidence of gun wielding ppl being there and other gun wielding ppl being there at the same time...(if thats fittin in with plot that is)
maybe some pools of water here or there..


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#5]
IPete2,

i did buy TerraEd a while back, i just haven't used it really except to create shadow maps and some color maps *drew this color map myself though*

also, thx for the comment on my web-site ;-)

aab, i'm not sure how to add cliffs, i mean i could make them but how would i texture them properly? Wouldn't they look wierd with the dirt detail map applied to it ?

How about this screen shot, i'm not sure if i do this desert setting or use the above setting for aliens attacking a military base.



i'm not sure if i like the desert setting or not.. Any advice on if i should have this terrain or the above ?


elseano(Posted 2004) [#6]
Well, a desert would certainly have a lot less structures, which means a lot less work for you/your artists XD

But if you want to make that desert look good I'd add some small shrubs and maybe some rocks, things like that.

If it was me, I'd use the desert landscape, but then again, I am lazy :p


Perturbatio(Posted 2004) [#7]
take a look at some [http://images.google.com/images?q=desert&num=30&hl=en&lr=&c2coff=1&safe=off&client=firefox-a&sa=N&tab=wi]desert pictures[/a] for reference.


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#8]
well if the desert is the easy way out, i'm going to do more vegetation hehe... I want to try and go commercial with this game so i want to do the best i possibly can! *atleast my goal is to sell 25 copies to unknown people* that would rock! anyway, i think i'll take the harder approach since it seems *from what i have seen from IPETE2* it gives you better looking results!


Red Ocktober(Posted 2004) [#9]
hey there Idaho...

yeah... that looks pretty good... some rocks, maybe some flora in places... different lighting is another option you might want to look into...

... but it looks good so far to me.

--Mike


Ruz(Posted 2004) [#10]
the tick in adding items to is to make them look non planned.
so snayway add some rocks , perhaps a few skulls, desert plants, but don't overdo it


aab(Posted 2004) [#11]
nvrmind about the cliffs...
You could look at the Desert in ffX for things to add.


Braincell(Posted 2004) [#12]
The problem with the first terrain is that the grass looks too vividly green, and the brownish dirt or path or whatever it is looks too yellow. In fact, those colours are simply too intense, make them grayer and darker and it will look just fine.


wizzlefish(Posted 2004) [#13]
For a military base, the desert.


_PJ_(Posted 2004) [#14]
Cactii!


For a military base, the desert.



Hmm like some kinda secret Area51 thing?
Then gonna need warning signs, fences etc.

Even a barren desert will need a lot of 'furniture' to look proper. You cannot cut corners with this sort of thing. So some rocks, cactii,camel-shit, whatever will enhance even a plain desert scene.


CodeD(Posted 2004) [#15]
Or snowy mountains/tundra/plains


aab(Posted 2004) [#16]
ancient ruins for a desert, with occasional abandoned vehicles even tanks, in a midst a torrent of sand.
you could even code the sand dunes to move quite easily.....


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#17]


After many attempts of me making a descent heightmap/colormap :-) I have grown to like this one, now to add grass/shrubs/trees but i have one question...

Since my terrain is a MESH how would i get the grass to follow the ground? i mean i could do what i'm doing with the camera and that's to have it keep moving down until it collides, but i don't want the player to see grass dropping out of the blue.. i was just curious on how i should set this up?


.rIKmAN.(Posted 2004) [#18]
Place them with an app to do so, theres a couple in the Toolbox section - or write your own and learn along the way :)


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#19]
yes, i'm trying to right my own... i'm looking at LinePick() but i don't fully understand what it's ment to do... i been playing with ti for a while... *i don't want to resort to move to an app* because i really want to learn blitz!


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#20]


i added some camera fog, which gives it a "haze" sort of effect.. also i keep trying to my grass to follow the ground but it's still being a pain :'-(


_PJ_(Posted 2004) [#21]
Is the terrain a 'Blitz Terrain'?

If so, check out TerrainY() command for lining up your grass properly.

Also, there's Mr Cower's "BlitzGrass" thingywhatsit


wizzlefish(Posted 2004) [#22]
What tool did you use to create your terrain?

I might be able to help.


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#23]
@Malice
The terrain is a mesh, i cannot use TerrainY()

@Digital Fortress
I just drew a heightmap/color map/detail map in Gimp, then used the heightmap generator in Milkshape3D


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#24]
Argh it's harder than i thought, can someone help me out on this LinePick() command, i'm stuck on getting the grass to follow the mesh *terrain* :-(


aab(Posted 2004) [#25]
linepick's so usefull!, though i wouldnt have though of using it here.
Using Line Pick to align the grass:

-set the areas EntityPickMode() to a mesh obstructing one (of course)
-for each square bound area of terrain you want to cover
eg:
grass=loadmesh("Grasspiece_thats_30x30.3ds")
for u=0 to 30
for v=0 to 40

linepick(30*u,1000,30*v,0,2000,0)
x=pickedx():y=pickedy():z=pickedz()
;newgrass points to a different entity each time:
;doin it like this emans i xcant access individual grasses though, so i suppose youll be using a type or array or bank
newgrass=copyentity(grass):positionentity newgrass,x,y+10,z

next
next

positions a grass model (grid aligned 30*30 apart) at each point on the terrain.
you could put in Random factors or checking the values of u and v to randomly or less ['grid like']ly positioning of the grass meshes.

--Hope this Helps


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#26]
hehe thanks i'll have to try this when i get home from school! thanks again aab!


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#27]


yay thanks for the help, linepick() worked!


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#28]
now just to figure out how to crowd the terrain with different kinds of plants, then to add rocks / tree's.. and then i can start modelling the military base :-) *i hope i don't end up killing framerate too much*


wizzlefish(Posted 2004) [#29]
Model the rocks, use FTE for tree-making, Cower's foilage sustem for the plants. :)


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#30]
FTE? i thought that was still being developped? can you use it for commercial projects? I'll look into Cower's foiage system i saw sswifts which was free... looks interesting, i just feel bad when i "try" and make money off someone else's work... and if it's even legal?


wizzlefish(Posted 2004) [#31]
The makers say it is legal - and you are right, FTE is still in development. And Cower's foilage system is free also. It's not called stealing, it is called "being resourceful."


WolRon(Posted 2004) [#32]
i just feel bad when i "try" and make money off someone else's work... and if it's even legal?
Then stop using Blitz.......


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#33]
@WolRon, i paid for this... i didn't pay for their code.. that's what i ment to say... I love blitz, it's given me a BASIC introduction to programming!

@Digital Fortress Okay if it's legal, i'll look into it! :-) i just wasn't sure.. sry


Afke(Posted 2004) [#34]
just make fog stronger to kill contrast betven sky and lend,and good idea is to make some big rocks and some kind of things around.You are good.


jfk EO-11110(Posted 2004) [#35]
Maybe use a grass system that is positioning a bunch of grass around the camera dynamicly, so you can have a high dense vegetation and still keep the polycount low. I made such a system some time ago and posted it in the original FLE thread. Positions and Rotations of each grass quad are pre-calculated, so you only need to position a number of quads around the camera from time to time.


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#36]


oh cool JFK i'll have to check into that...

This is what i have so far now, i've been playing with other plants / tree's.


aab(Posted 2004) [#37]
Looking Good!


Idaho Razor(Posted 2004) [#38]
heh thanks, i do however need to work with the lighting... it appears to be at nightime on the terrain but day light in the sky... i'mjust not sure how to work with lights to change it, i'm new to the whole "lighting" thing :-P


Braincell(Posted 2004) [#39]
To me it doesnt appear to be night time on the terrain, but maybe you could brighten up the grass onnnnnly slightly. Dont give it more intense colour, maybe brighten it and decrease contrast.


aab(Posted 2004) [#40]
im not much of a light user either. in internal areas, i had a light that repositioned itself depending apon which light position i had set, that the playter was closest to.
for external scenes though that wouldnt really suffice.

use Lightmesh, to "perform a fake lighting operation on a mesh"
and make it brigher, if u can


wizzlefish(Posted 2004) [#41]
What did you use to make those trees?