Cori's Tree Shoppe

[huzman 445]

4 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

do I need to Flora Off

Watch out for that one. My experience is that I have a few third party tree mods and I go back and forth between GM and MM with no trouble.
That Flora Off did some nasty things in my comp. Have you read about it in the Cheat Reference? There are contradicting comments.

[11241036 5,097]

@CorinaMarie There's an easier way to do so: If you download my tree controller, there's a file named Maxis TC Disabler.dat. This file disables Maxis God-Mode trees. It allows you to keep God-Mode planted Maxis trees in your region without worrying about the game returning to desktop when adding a new TC or bulldozing the trees while preventing them from being planted any further. If you only install this file, you won't be able to plant any new trees anymore.

Side note: To me, due to the in-game mechanics, it seems mandatory to create exemplar files that disable Maxis God-Mode trees before adding new ones, so most likely any tree controller should come with the ability to disable Maxis Trees while still allowing you to keep them. I don't know it for sure, but at least the Cascadia TC comes with such a file. If you want to install a new TC and want to be on the safe side: You can open the file Maxis TC Disabler.dat from my TC and open all files from your new TC in a second window and do the following:

• Compare the IID's of the exemplar files and see if you can find exemplar files with a corresponding IID.
• If yes: Check the property FloraPreferences. This property contains 256 (yes, it's really that many) reps that are only 0 or 1. They should all be 0.
• If you can't find corresponding exemplar files, or if one of the reps mentioned before is 1, or if you are not sure, just keep the file Maxis TC Disabler.dat and make sure it loads last, because the worst thing that could happen would be twice the same files.

[rsc204 21,808]

The real issue here is missing flora exemplars. A tree controller shouldn't override the original Maxis trees, instead it used unique IDs for the flora (trees) that it produces. So whilst the trees that get planted will be changed to the new flora, the original Maxis ones still exist. I.e., if they already exist in your regions, the replacement will not mess with them, just plant different trees from here on out.

Now the part that causes CTDs is where the flora planted by a tree controller no longer exists as flora in your plugins folder. Most controllers when removed remove all the flora, even if only the exemplars, the models might remain, but it's those exemplars the game really needs. Missing models = brown boxes only, it's much less of a problem. But this simply isn't a problem for Maxis trees, the flora exemplar always remain in the main SimCity dat files, so you don't need to worry about it like when switching from a 3rd party TC.

Do you use Flora Off at this point? Well it depends on a number of factors really. The main one is that by using this command all plopped flora will disappear, that means any MMP'd content too. If you haven't used any MMPs then this isn't going to be a problem and there is an argument for removing the Maxis trees because most likely those in the tree controller will look vastly improved over the originals. As such they won't necessarily blend in well together, so you may wish to replant the trees in your region for more uniformity. Just remember to use the additional command Flora On afterwards, although it's function is mostly to allow correct seasons to work, I'd recommend it just in case.

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

There's more info on the Flora Blast command in a topic started by @chfzdn : Flora Blasting? It will work with some tree controllers, but not others. See for instance this post and this post (in that same thread) by @Dragonxander where it does work with the CPT Meadowshire forest mod.

[Lucario Boricua 7,028]

If I may suggest anything, I'd like different members to test the Flora Blast cheat on their current tree mod and post the result on the Flora Blast discussion thread. Then we can update the tree shoppe by adding a mention of compatibility of the flora mods with the flora blast cheat.

[Toby Ferrian 873]

Good idea, I'll start.

I read earlier in the linked thread that it didn't work with the Cascadia tree controller, which is what I use, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to try it myself.
As I expected, it didn't work.

I'll update the first post with this.

[Lucario Boricua 7,028]

Ran another test of the Flora Blast cheat!  So far I've found out:

 

* HBS Yucatán Tropical Tree Mod is compatible!

* I suspect that the CPT Italia Tree Controller is compatible (same maker as Meadowshire)

[Toby Ferrian 873]

6 hours ago, Dragonxander said:

Ran another test of the Flora Blast cheat!  So far I've found out:

 

* HBS Yucatán Tropical Tree Mod is compatible!

* I suspect that the CPT Italia Tree Controller is compatible (same maker as Meadowshire)

Added that to the original post.

 

Side note, I've noticed the images have gone missing from the post. I will fix this.

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

6 hours ago, Toby Ferrian said:

Side note, I've noticed the images have gone missing from the post. I will fix this.

Side reply, since you have created this as a resource to host here on ST for everyone's benefit I can offer another option for those images. If you would send me a .zip file with all of them inside (and ideally named in consecutive order like 01-Desc, 02-Desc, etc) then I can load them directly to the server here and provide you will the URL linkys to post. This has two advantages. First it does not use up any of your attachment space quota and second they will remain without disappearing as long as ST is in existence.

Edit: Pics received and URLs sent to you via PM.

[Lucario Boricua 7,028]

I still find it disappointing that there's so few God Mode flora packs with a tropical theme--just HBS Yucatán and HBS Tropical. We need some modders to make more of this stuff, especially with how plentiful tropical trees, shrubs, palms and other plants are among the custom trees available for SimCity 4!

 

I'm also noticing some tree / flora mods absent from the main post:

* PEG God Mode Pine Tree Mod

 

* Snow add-on for Paeng's God Mode Pine Tree Mod

 

* Desert Flora Mod by JohnB (very simplistic but still a mod!)

 

* Southwest Desert Flora Pack by tfinvold

 

* Arizona Desert Flora Mod by tfinvold

 

[Toby Ferrian 873]

Thanks for the links, I'll add them when I have the time.

[Lucario Boricua 7,028]

I have continued to run more tests on the flora blast command, these are my latest verifications:

* All CPT flora mods (Meadowshire coast, Meadowshire river, Italia, Olympic coast, Painted Desert and Missouri Breaks) support the flora blast command. They need higher numbers of tree density (4000, or two applications at 2500-3000) due to their high proportion of slender and small flora elements.

* All HBS flora mods (Yucatán, Californian Mediterranean, Chihuahuan, Tropical Flora--this one isn't listed and I'm linking it at the end of the post) also support the flora blast command. They need lower numbers for tree density (2500-3000) to achieve a reasonably dense cover.

* The Central European Tree Mod (seasonal) does not support the flora blast command. It's not a big problem because the mod uses larger trees for almost all elevations, except for the alpine scrub, as well as larger God Mode flora brush. This means it doesn't take a lot of effort to apply a sufficiently dense coverage.

 

Missing flora mod:

 

[BartonThinks 3,416]

One thing that the main post doesn't quite capture is the way certain tree controllers cause flora to conform to different terrain. That's not a criticism -- it would require a lot more screencaps for each mod. But it can make a big difference with certain controllers.

I haven't tested a ton, but CP's tree controllers are specially designed to respond to the geography of the areas where you apply flora blast. The flora patterns in this image were created simply by applying the Meadowshire Coast Tree Controller's flora blast to the entire map. Using this controller, flora only grows in certain areas, depending on moisture levels, wind, fluctuations in elevation, etc. So with the right map and terrain mod, you can end up with some really beautiful landscaping, -- including clusters of forests and open pastures -- with only a few minutes' worth of effort.

(For anyone who's curious, the city below is also using CP's Meadowshire Terrain Mod. The water is PEG Brigantine.)

[Lucario Boricua 7,028]

This is true. Additionally, there are tree controllers which have very simple altitudinal zonation (ex. the HBS controllers), where moisture isn't a variable in the first place; and then there's more elaborate ones like the CP controllers, creating extremely elaborate landscapes.

When developing a flora mod / tree controller, the modder has the option of using up to 256 slots for this variability, conforming a matrix of 16 altitudinal changes and 16 humidity groups. With enough time and effort it's possible to recreate a full ecosystem in terms of natural vegetation. I really want to do this for tropical flora mods, as the existing ones are very simplistic.

Just as a simple demonstration, we can look at the Holdridge life zones. This scheme was developed to map the relationship between elevation and humidity as controlling variables for vegetation cover in tropical regions. It does have some applicability to non-tropical regions but does not capture the effects of seasonality. Depending on the flora mod we develop, we can use a portion of it rather than the full thing, but a really ambitious maker could use all of it even if the results do not look particularly realistic.

Figure made by user Peter Halasz in Wikipedia.

[The Edge 215]

Are there any tree mods that don't require any dependencies, apart from the ones that come with the game?

[monkeywater 910]

All tree controllers use trees other than maxis, so unfortunately not.

[Lucario Boricua 7,028]

On 6/26/2020 at 3:42 AM, The Edge said:

Are there any tree mods that don't require any dependencies, apart from the ones that come with the game?

Maybe the better question is which mods use a minimal amount of dependencies. As an initial recommendation it'd be the Heblem / HBS mods.

[The Edge 215]

Thanks sorry just saw this. I'll have a look. Cheers

Edit: I searched for "Heblem" and found over 200 matches can you suggest a specific mod I could try? Sorry.

[Lucario Boricua 7,028]

23 minutes ago, The Edge said:

Thanks sorry just saw this. I'll have a look. Cheers

Edit: I searched for "Heblem" and found over 200 matches can you suggest a specific mod I could try? Sorry.

Heblem's a prolific modder and custom content maker (not sure if he's still active, doesn't seem like it), but the terrain stuff is almost entirely available in the Tree Shoppe (HBS flora mods) and the Terrain Shoppe (LBT and HBS terrain mods).

[monkeywater 910]

My tree controller has minimal dependencies. ( At least compared to some)

 

Also, can my controller be added to the Shoppe?

 @Toby Ferrian

[Toby Ferrian 873]

Added it 

[BartonThinks 3,416]

EDIT: A better version of this tutorial (which includes some additional tips and tricks) can now be found here:

----

A quick bit of advice (from Vortext at SC4D) for anyone who's using a tree controller that doesn't support Flora Blast. This should give you an easier and faster way to cover an entire tile with flora with your controller.

1. Install Whatevermind's Flora Brush mod. This brush paints trees in a square pattern, and the Zoom 1 brush will cover an entire city tile if you place your mouse at the center.
2. If you have a Windows device, go to Settings > Devices > Mouse > Additional Mouse Options and click the box marked "Turn on ClickLock." (I'm not sure what the equivalent is for Mac, so if someone could help me out here, that would be great.)
3. Go into the city tile that you want to cover with flora, and select the God-Mode flora brush at Zoom 1. Center your cursor in the middle of the tile and hold down the mouse button for a few seconds. Release the mouse button. ClickLock should activate, which means your mouse will act as if you're holding down the button. At this point, you just need to keep the cursor in the middle of the city tile and let the flora brush run for a little while. Within a few minutes, the entire tile should be covered with flora.

If you don't like having ClickLock on at other times, you can turn the feature off as soon as you're done. Similarly, you can take Whatevermind's mod out of your plugins folder after you've saved your city and exited the game. That way, you can switch back to the regular brushes if you prefer them.

On a related note, here's a way that you can use this technique to create more realistic season-to-season transitions if you use a seasonal tree controller.

Normally, these controllers recommend planting everything on September 1. However, this results in all of the deciduous trees changing seasons at the exact same time:

By using this method, you can cover an entire city tile in flora in a matter of minutes, and your trees will change seasons much more gradually. Roughly half of your trees change seasons one month, and then the other half will change seasons the next month:

As a bonus, this can actually help with game performance when using a seasonal controller. With the usual method, all of the trees need to transition at the same time, which can cause significant lag when season changes occur. With this method, the game is changing half as many trees at any given time, so the lag effect is noticeably reduced.

Here's how to do it...

Step 1) Open the city tile that you want to cover with flora and fast forward to October 1 (any date between Sep 5 and Oct 4 will work). Pause the game.

Step 2) Cover the city tile with flora using the Whatevermind Flora Brush + ClickLock method described above.

Step 3) Fast forward to September 1 of the following year (any date between Aug 5 and Sep 4 will work). Pause the game again. At this point, all of your deciduous trees should be in summer mode.

Step 4) Repeat the Whatevermind Flora Brush + ClickLock method on the city tile until the deciduous areas are a nice balance of summer and autumn trees.

Step 5) Un-pause the game and watch for the seasonal transitions. 

Not only will this technique make seasonal transitions less jarring, it takes less than 10 minutes to achieve -- even across a large city tile (I spent more time editing and uploading the images for this post than I spent planting trees).

I'm sure a ton of other people have figured out this technique, but with all of the flora blast talk, I figured it made sense to include here.

And for anyone who's curious, that's the Cascadia controller applied to Lowkee33's Appalchia terrain mod (note: I use the high-altitude settings for the Appalachia terrain mod -- if you use the standard settings, the terrain and tree patterns will be different).

[City_Slider 2,716]

I found this Controller few Minutes ago in Japan:

http://uki-sim.seesaa.net/article/240500205.html

[Toby Ferrian 873]

14 minutes ago, City_Slider said:

I found this Controller few Minutes ago in Japan:

http://uki-sim.seesaa.net/article/240500205.html

I'll have a look at it when I get the time

[rsc204 21,808]

1 hour ago, City_Slider said:

I found this Controller few Minutes ago in Japan:

http://uki-sim.seesaa.net/article/240500205.html

Are you sure it's a "God Mode" Flora Mod, i.e. Tree Controller? Even with my non-existant Japanese, I think the filename might suggest it's not (uki_Neko-Seasonal_MayorMode.zip), but an MMP instead. But a good find none the less, I'm going to download this it'll be useful for my Japanese Region. Although the best Cherry Tree I know of was made by the VIP Team, find it in this package:

 

[City_Slider 2,716]

No, im not sure. I do have other Problems at the Moment like to fix em :-(

[monkeywater 910]

 

I made another one if it can be added to the list. 

[Briolab 2]

Can anyone help with an extracted version of CPT No7a Missouri Breaks Tree Controller (v1.0). I'm on a MAC and can't run the .exe file. Tried Wine but it did not work. Thanks. 

[CorinaMarie 29,605]

3 minutes ago, Briolab said:

Can anyone help with an extracted version of CPT No7a Missouri Breaks Tree Controller (v1.0).

CPT_No7a_MissouriBreaks_TreeController.dat

[AOM1550 27]

Hello, good morning, I need help.
install this tree controller in god mode, when using it certain signs appear, double check all the dependencies they request, so I don't know the reason how to make them disappear, without having to eliminate them using the bulldozer.