• Welcome to SC4 Devotion Forum Archives.

BAT Showcase

Started by mattb325, February 01, 2007, 04:07:43 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Kitsune

I really love that is 6 tiles too. These stations are going to have immense use.

Quote from: eggman121 on December 22, 2017, 05:50:56 PM

I have been at work all this morning and Supermarket work at this time of year is well... Not very pleasant.

-eggman121

%BUd%
~ NAM Team Member

mattb325

Thanks guys. No wonder I didn't know about the 7.5m rail. I'm still on NAM35.  :-[

I wish all of the networks were 7.5m...much closer to RL measurements

The plan for these sorts of stations is to have a few different models, but this last building is the basic shape (at least for the lower stories where the through-networks dissect) and each building can cater to a few (but not all) different types of elevated networks.
Now because I don't intend to make each model do every single network type, but will leave them flexible enough for users to repurpose, I'm therefore planning to make a very sleek modern building primarily for HSR/Monorail/El Rail; a more traditional 1930s building for viaduct rail/el rail (the National Audit Office in London is utterly perfect for this purpose) and now I'll add a much more traditional station type to the 7.5m viaduct rail.

Eggman, I don't envy your job at this time of year. Christmas gets more hectic each year!

Now as for RKT3, with the above in mind for the next few buildings, I'm happy to give it a go. I just need to get the two network pieces (plus each zoom/rotation?) referenced at either side of the lot. While I am the first to describe my modding competence as basic, meaning this is well beyond my skill set; it certainly makes sense especially for the users who insist on using the Maxis type rail textures and I guess it will also cater for the choice of wall skin on the viaduct. So long as the Lods behave, I think it's certainly an option to explore.

reddonquixote

That's a great little building, I predict this will be put to lots of good use  :thumbsup:

I feel for you on your LOD issue, I faced the same issue way back when I did Flinders Street Station.
Pay heed to the tales of old wives. It may well be that they alone keep in memory what it was once needful for the wise to know.

mgb204

Navigate to z___NAM\z Props and Models, see the file EL Network Props.dat, where you will find Prop Exemplars for most Elevated Maxis/NAM Networks. These are RKT0 props, the difference being that you need only one for every zoom/rotation. The game will take care of the lower zooms for you. Simply add those props onto the lot and you will get the actual network models upon your lot, including textures picked up from the installed choices. One of the key benefits of using these props is that any customised textures/models used in cosmetic mods will be supported. Whereas anything made as part of the BAT and rendered as a normal BAT will be stuck for eternity as-is.

The best solution to the LOD problem is probably making the gap a little bigger than the network that will go through it. Around .2m away from each edge of the network model should do the trick. Skin tight LODs are another option, but can lead to things poking through and glitches. So the more gap you can put there, the less chance of problems. Bear in mind too that space (height) is needed for automata, but they aren't all that picky. The simplest way to ensure the RKT0 models/props will fit is to add them into your scene and use them as a reference. It's useful to set them so that they are invisible to the render camera too. This way you can use the actual models to make sure there will be space in your models for the props.

For example, if making a L2 "tunnel", it would be ideal to make the gap large enough to fit the largest L2 network through it. Obviously, this does limit the modelling that can be done around the tunnel itself, but is a worthy trade off if a station can support any L2 network as a consequence. You can bet if such a model was released, I would happily mod separate lots to cover all applicable networks. HSR is the odd one out here, but Monorail, El-Rail and Viaduct Rail should all have similar dimensions. To save you finding them yourself, I've extracted all the NAM/Maxis elevated models as 3DS files and attached them to this post. Note that all will be rotated by 90° when you import them, SC4 requires them to be rotated as such, but you should have no trouble with that. Bear in mind too, the ground plane on the ML (moonlight) models is not required, but will be part of the models as I've exported them.

If you send the current station you have over (PM), I'll take a deeper look at the modding. It's hard to go through all the transit switches in a screenshot. But actually, one thing I learned from Steve (Z), is that there isn't always a logical rhyme or reason to them. It often needs trial and error/testing to get the best out of them. Although, like you I typically settle for the station simply working for all included transit types. Anyhow, I hope this helps you out.

mattb325

Thanks Robin  :thumbsup: &apls

It may be an issue that I'm on v.35, or just with the way I installed the Nam (or something else that I'm being stupid with %confuso), but I can only see the el-rail piece in that folder; none of the others are there apart from the El Network Props which contains the exemplars for other networks, but no models. The transit station textures file is just a road.

At any rate, after Xmas (it's already Xmas day here in Oz)/NY - I'm away for a week or so, I will get onto installing v.36 so as to get a feel for the way the 7.5m networks behave, which will then give some inspiration for a station for that type.

Thanks so much for your help, MGB204 & eggman121  :thumbsup:

mattb325

#1285
I was due to go away for a week, but persistently bad weather has put that on hold...instead, I installed V36.

Very, very, very nice. And I really love the 7.5m errw (the L1 and L2 are draggable!!!!) as well as the new SAM (those industrial textures are absolutely stunning!!!!) and of course all of the new street curves.

And the RKT0 props...just excellent  :P

I've batted a new station prior to installing the nam36. It's completely fictional:



& seeing how it will play with other elevated networks (note I haven't added the RKT0 props yet), but as there is a big square hole in the LODs for the elevated network, automata and everything else will be seen:



The HSR is a little tight esp in the platforms, but it is no different from some of the standard stations that are used for HSR, so I can live with that....the choice is either tight HSR for each station or the Sims have to take a running leap on all of the other types, which to me is less acceptable.

The lot has had nothing but minimal modding...when I come to make the additional lot variations for the viaduct elevated rail, I take it I can just use the rail feature in the SC4tool to add the TE? There's nothing special needed to make it function?

Now onto the art deco version for L2 which will possibly be the last for the L2 networks...although I am tempted to muck around with the new Nam features - it's much more than just an incremental leap from v35 - so it may take a while between Bats  :D

TheTeaCat

Oh I love this one!!! Superb nightlighting!!

(I used to be a Manager in one of their London Hotels for nearly 15yrs  :D  )
Kettle's on. Milk? Sugars?    ps I don't like Earl Grey  $%Grinno$%
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - If you're not part of the solution , you're part of the problem!
"Never knock on Death's door: Ring the bell and run away! Death really hates that!"
Tales at TeaTime      Now A proper NUT      TTC plays GRV II

Andreas

Modern and European and tight downtown setting, that's a great combination. Surely a keeper!
Andreas

Jack_wilds

love it too... from its design and funtion

Girafe

Nice job Matt  &apls &apls

Multi networks station are quite rare and this one is awesome  :thumbsup:
The Floraler

This is the end, hold your breath and count to ten, feel the earth move, and then...

*   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *    *   *   *   *   *    * 

mattb325

Thanks guys

I am pleased you like that one as it is a fictional building.

Sadly, the next one is going to end up on 'the ones that never made it' unless I can get an easy fix as I have absolutely drawn no luck whatsoever with getting it to work.

The render on Z5 West is constantly borked and nothing I do will fix the issue.

This is what it looks like. It's a standard 6x3 building like the last one.




However, the render simply cannot organise the 8th and 9th FSH files on Z5West and throws a screwed up model.

The 8th slot is blank and the 9th slot contains the FSH on what should be the 8th slot (meaning the 9th slot FSH file is simply not included).




I have re-rendered 15 times. The other train models did this too, but a rerender usually fixed it. I have encountered this issue before with bat4max and small files, but it has never been so persistent as with this model.

These are the steps that I have taken:
1) Refit lods & re-export (15 times);
2) Import to a new scene (minus lods/sky/tb2 camera handle etc 15 times);
3) Delete all output files and delete all files from the gmax/gamepacks/bat import and scene folders;
4) Redo the offending wall from scratch in 3dsmax;
5) Change the size of the model over the blank areas: as I said above, bat4max often has problems trying to render large blank areas. I know this because of the sheer amount of models I have made. The large overhanging area at the rear of the platform is one such attempt...that wasn't part of my initial model;
6) Just using a non-custom lod - the reader image you see is with a standard lod and despite that it is still broken;
7) I have added a couple of small .001x.001x.001 textured boxes above the blank platform areas so that there is something for 3dsMax to 'see' for the render;

Each render takes 40 mins, + 2.5hrs to model & texture so I have already wasted over a day on this thing.

Unfortunately on this computer, trying to use rivits fsh tools to try and manually insert the two files causes a BSOD without fail - it used to work on my old computer but it has never worked on this one (despite having all of the correct & required M/soft files etc).

Does anyone have any other suggestions on how to fix it? (please note I will politely but steadfastly ignore any advice that starts with 'try uninstalling and re-installing 3ds Max' as other models work just fine and the advice is therefore just a waste of time  ::).)

:'(

fantozzi

Terrible news - as the building looks great. And even as I'm clueless - may I ask - does the render error persists if you rotate the model by 90 degrees?

mattb325

Thanks Fantozzi  ;)

Your suggestion is one I have used once before on a growable (so it's quite reasonable), but the consequence for a ploppable like this is that it permanently faces the wrong way when you are trying to place it, which would make it painful for users. With a growable, you can rotate the building on the lot and it is the lot that only needs to face the street, so the user is none the wiser, but with a ploppable like this that only goes one way and has networks dragged through it, the results wouldn't be satisfactory.

Instead, using a bit of creative thinking, rather than trying to limit the amount of dead space within the LODS which causes the render issue, I increased it exponentially, and made the flag-pole very tall indeed, so that even if FSH files aren't written, there's so many blank ones that the chances of having it bork the ones you need are slimmer. And it worked.  ::)

If you ever need proof that batting is two-fifths dark art, then this is it.



At least I don't have to look at it again  $%Grinno$%

Unconstantean

What a beauty!!! Art Deco at it's best, :D  :bnn:  &apls &apls &apls

siemanthepieman

Quote from: mattb325 on December 30, 2017, 11:06:22 PM
At least I don't have to look at it again  $%Grinno$%

I have a feeling you'll be seeing it again in at least a few MD's - it's a ripper! Glad you got it working.

Tyberius06

Hi!

Or you making the bulding as a prop, and place the prop on a blank lot, and you can rotate the prop as you want... But as I see it worked either way and it's really beautiful! :)
I love it!

- Tyberius
You may find updates about my ongoing projects into my development thread here at SimCity 4 Devotion: Tyberius Lotting Experiments
or over there on Simtropolis into the Tyberius (Heretic Projects) Lotting and Modding Experiments.
I'm also member of the STEX Custodian and working on different restoration projects on behalf of non-anymore-active custom content creators.
Current projects: WMP Restoration and SimCity Polska Restoration.
Member of the NAM Team and RTMT Team.

matias93

I love those windows, I love that clock tower, I love the platforms, I love the lights on the facade and your borderline magical skills to solve things that would have made me to throw the computer through the window!!

Now I'm having the irrational need to see that beauty used as a City Hall, don't you think so? What's for sure, you'll see tons of relots of it, just like the real thing!

"Lets be scientists and as such, remember always that the purpose of politics is not freedom, nor authority, nor is any principle of abstract character,
but it is to meet the social needs of man and the development of the society"

— Valentín Letelier, 1895

art128

That art-deco train station is an absolute master piece. The light fixtures on the facade are sublime.

Happy New Year!
I'll take a quiet life... A handshake of carbon monoxide.

Props & Texture Catalog

reddonquixote

That's a lovely looking building. So glad you got it to work - would have been very sad otherwise. That would have been my suggestion, to make the LODs taller than required. (If I've understood your fix correctly?). No idea why this works, but it seems to solve this issue on very small BATs. Never needed to use it on a large BAT before. Dark arts indeed  $%#Ninj2
Pay heed to the tales of old wives. It may well be that they alone keep in memory what it was once needful for the wise to know.

Jack_wilds

just adure that art deco... love its facade and courtyard...  &apls