BAT - Getting Started Guide / FAQ / Resources / Help

[Oidaas 1,696]

I've got the error descriped in the top, my buildings always get destorted when rendering.

[rsc204 21,866]

Did you follow the solutions outlined in the FAQ. That should fix it. If you’ve questions about that, a few specifics would be helpful. 

[Oidaas 1,696]

4 hours ago, rsc204 said:

Did you follow the solutions outlined in the FAQ. That should fix it. If you’ve questions about that, a few specifics would be helpful. 

Yes, my solution that works for some reason is to make the model as a prop..strange.

 

[EffTheGrid 3,726]

Hi, lazy question... What does this error mean on import, and how can I fix it?

Quote

Assertion Failed

In file: '3dsimp.cpp'

Line: 546

Checked the model, no png files. 

[art128 4,622]

Does anyone remember what to do when this issue arise? I tried launching multiple instance of 3dsmax only to have the same issue every time.

box is a simple 16x16x16 cube centered on the 0x0 axis and the grid is correctly set. The LODs are automatically generated by pushing Bat4max's automatic LOD button.

 

[gutterclub 2,729]

The only times I've had it, was importing models and them being set to the models grid scale rather than my Max, or something to do with LOD size.

[Ct1999 4,200]

On 15/03/2024 at 1:13 AM, art128 said:

Does anyone remember what to do when this issue arise? I tried launching multiple instance of 3dsmax only to have the same issue every time.

box is a simple 16x16x16 cube centered on the 0x0 axis and the grid is correctly set. The LODs are automatically generated by pushing Bat4max's automatic LOD button.

 

I think you accidentally change the system unit. This occurs on me when I merge with another file with difference system unit.

[Behy 2]

Im a bit lost here, i found a lot of form post here explaining how to work with the LOT editor without links to the editor itself. Or the dependicies it apparently needs.
The posts that did have links pointed where to old websites or form treads that are offline.

My goal is to make some simple buildings and getting a feel how it all works but after 2 hours research im reaching out for help here.

I visited these treads:

https://community.simtropolis.com/library/maxis/sc4/tools/SC4PluginMan.exe

https://community.simtropolis.com/sc4-maxis-files/

 

[Rott 2,398]

@Behy

Lot Editor will take existing buildings and allow you to add things like parking lots/fences etc.

BAT is the one used to create the actual buildings.

I might not understand what you are asking, but If you are trying to make the buildings themselves then BAT is the one you want to use.

So you would create the building in BAT then use Lot Editor after to make the lot the building would use to appear in game.

[Behy 2]

sure, so where can i download, because all links i found where broken

1 hour ago, Rott said:

@Behy

Lot Editor will take existing buildings and allow you to add things like parking lots/fences etc.

BAT is the one used to create the actual buildings.

I might not understand what you are asking, but If you are trying to make the buildings themselves then BAT is the one you want to use.

So you would create the building in BAT then use Lot Editor after to make the lot the building would use to appear in game.

 

[Rott 2,398]

Seems like there's some expired links, but this should be the Lot Editor download https://www.sc4evermore.com/index.php/downloads/summary/40-maxis/55-lot-editor

And this should work for the BAT https://www.moddb.com/games/SimCity-4/downloads/SimCity-4-building-architect

You will also need the Plug In Manager eventually, but only after you finish the model in BAT.

[Null 45 3,114]

The BAT, Lot Editor and Plugin Manager are hosted in the SC4 Maxis Files section of the STEX. https://community.simtropolis.com/sc4-maxis-files/

[Rott 2,398]

25 minutes ago, Null 45 said:

The BAT, Lot Editor and Plugin Manager are hosted in the SC4 Maxis Files section of the STEX. https://community.simtropolis.com/sc4-maxis-files/

This is the problem Behy was mentioning, these links do not link to the downloads

[JP Schriefer 5,591]

@Behy @Rott
It appears that many of the links on that page are broken. The issue has been reported to the staff.
Thanks for bringing it to our attention!

[CorinaMarie 29,888]

19 hours ago, JP Schriefer said:

@Behy @Rott
It appears that many of the links on that page are broken. The issue has been reported to the staff.
Thanks for bringing it to our attention!

Yes indeed. Thanks for mentioning it and thanks JP for the heads up.

I checked and I can download from the apparently broken linkys which means it's a permissions level problem. All files are still intact so we haven't lost anything.

This'll be another side effect of the extra security measures we've needed and I believe CB'll be able to resolve them all in one fell swoop when he has a chance to look into them.

In the meantime, feel free to send each other the files via some other method (or just hold tight until we can fix it here). And by some other means, I'm thinking one way is to zip up the .dat or .exe and attach it to a post. Ofc once we resolve the issue, let's delete said post attachments.

All fixed see CB's post below.

-Cori (making an official admin post)

[Cyclone Boom 17,031]

9 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

CB'll be able to resolve them all in one fell swoop when he has a chance to look into them.

I swooped in with one fell and fixed them all.

Yes, it was due to the new security measures, so it needed a rule tweaking to add an exception.

Thanks @Behy and @Rott for letting us know!

[Dutchdragon 74]

EDIT: problem solved. I rotated the model by inverting the signs of the x and z coordinates. Somewhat tedious but it worked! 

Hello people, I have a problem rendering a BAT. It turns out like this, as seen from the ilive reader:



The model is turned the wrong way; when I view it from the other side it looks the way it should. I extracted one of the 3ds files, rotated it 180 degrees in another program and put it back in but this causes the texture to disappear. I also tried a bigger LOD, but it didn't work. I suppose it's possible to take the point coordinates in ilive reader and swap them around, but I hope there is an easier solution. Does anyone have any tips? Thanks in advance!

[Jasoncw 11,949]

Sometimes there are exporting glitches that can be fixed by slightly changing the LOD and reexporting. I'm guessing that in the export scripts there is code with some math equations for things, which get tripped up if the wrong numbers are put in. Like some kind of rounding problem that causes everything to get wacky.

Also, when you export it, keep the model low to the ground, and then raise its height in the lot editor. The lighting rig gets weird at high distances, and exports can as well.

[Dutchdragon 74]

@Jasoncw Thanks a lot for the tips, I didn't know about the rendering issues occuring at high distances. I've tried raising the building in Lot Editor but it only seems to work on props, not buildings.

[Girafe 1,729]

I am facing an issue while exporting models. 

Under 3dsmax, everything is fine while under reader and the game the model is "bleached" 

Any clue on how to fix that? 

Thanks

EDIT: found myself a fix here  

 

[Barroco Hispano 26,931]

@Girafe Gamma fix for some reason applies gamma correction to the alpha channel making the halo worse (gray pixels become whiter). I don't know if this is allowed but here is a modified version of the script that fixes that problem:

CPBuildingMill.ms

I also recommend that you update fshwrite, this new version reduces the size of BAT's by between 40% and 60%. 

 

[guepardomountain 423]

Hey everyone, I have tried a lot of different things to try to get the lights to work on one of my models, but nothing seems to work.

I am making a set of six models, and the lighting works on five of them, but for some reason only one of the models will not show any night lights. The lights appear in the preview in gmax, but not in game. The model in question is a mirrored version of another one. They are basically the same as each other, with small changes made to the mirrored version like different textures on the signs and some items on the sidewalk moved around. There are both nitelite windows and omni lights.

I have tried:

-Resetting lights and cameras

-Replacing the lighting rig with a larger size

-Merging everything except the cameras, LODs, and omni lights into a new file

-Double checking that lighting is enabled in PIM (because the building is an overhanging prop)

-Toggling between day and night in game, waiting several minutes to see if the lights go on eventually

I'd appreciate any other suggestions!

[kaimai 1,067]

You may have tried this already, but has the prop's Occupant Size been manually edited to fit within the size of the lot? I've found that changing the size of overhanging props in the Reader (usually to something small like 4m x 4m x 4m) sometimes helps, not sure why.

[guepardomountain 423]

Thank you! That worked!  

[Girafe 1,729]

Outdated message, cannot delete... 

 

  Edited October 27, 2024 by Girafe  
Outdated message, cannot delete... 

[kaimai 1,067]

I feel like this is a dumb question, but: when you make a custom LOD in 3DS Max and export it to Gmax, do you then also have to edit the LOD in Gmax somehow? I ask only because when exporting the .sc4model file a box sometimes appears over the LOD polygons as though they are contained within their own set of automatic LODs...

[Jasoncw 11,949]

You don't want to move or edit the LODs in Gmax at all, since they need to be completely identical to the ones in 3ds Max.

The LODs do need to be named LOD5, LOD4, and LOD3, or else Gmax won't recognize them as being LODs, it will think the boxes are your building, and it will create automatic LODs around them. If the boxes are otherwise identical then it doesn't matter.

I don't remember when this happens or whether or not it is visible, but it also makes LOD2 and LOD1, which I think are automatic boxes based on the other LODs. I think this might be what you're seeing.

[kaimai 1,067]

That makes sense I think. I'll double check in future since I know 3DS Max likes to automatically name them LOD004, LOD005 etc but yes it could definitely just be the LOD1/2 boxes.

[Barroco Hispano 26,931]

This problem in BAT4MAX is unbearable, it almost always generates an image that is too big or too small and must be adjusted manually. If you are unlucky, it affects all zooms.

 

If anyone knows about maxscript and wants to fix this BAT4MAX problem, I can send you the original 3Ds Max 2012 installer (You can use the 30-day trial version) 😄

[Jasoncw 11,949]

I don't know what the problem is, but I think it's a rounding error in an equation somewhere, that happens if the LOD vertexes have certain coordinates. Changing the dimensions of the LOD a little bit and reexporting usually fixes the problem.