BAT for Blender (Looking for help)

[Bryan623 94]

Hey guys,

I've been using Blender for a few years now, and i have some (very) basic python knowledge.  Now that i'm back into SC4, and don't have a copy of 3ds Max 2014, i'd like to help out the community a bit and start a project that would benefit not just me but a lot of people.  My only issue is that my skill set is kind of weak.

I have dug up some useful info, but i suck at math.

http://users.tpg.com.au/rivit/rvt-SimCity-articles2.htm <- some useful stuff here

https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=17650.20 <- page 2 has some nifty stuff too

 

If anyone is interested let me know (i'm sure a lot of people are)

 

  Edited January 12, 2019 by Bryan623  

[Jasoncw 11,840]

A lot of people would find this very useful, but right now I don't know who's around who would have the knowledge to help you.

[thawking 28]

Hey @Bryan623 (and @Jasoncw), there's a discussion of this happening at SC4Devotion. Some progress is being made, although the project is still very much in its infancy. I've modelled all my BATs (all three of them, lol) in Blender, bc i find it easier than 3ds Max, but at present i still need to export them to 3ds Max (or Gmax) to render them for SC4. 

[Jasoncw 11,840]

I'm looking forward to the progress!

[Handyman 765]

@Bryan623 I started to look into this some time ago but I was thwarted by my complete ignorance of how to use modelling software. I have some experience with Python but I don't know  how the software needs to be manipulated. At the time, I took a long look at the python modules in Blender and was gaining some insight, I even created a couple interface buttons to move an object on an axis. There was a time (20 yrs ago) that I wrote code for cnc machine tools, so I am familiar with x,y,z, and co-ordinates but even with that and a lot of research I still was unable to figure out how to apply it to the software.  

Anyway, if you think I can help in any way, I would be glad to try. Keep in mind that you may have to lead me by the hand.

[ohdude 2,353]

Well, today in 2024 and having the tools of AI... may we have the possibility of resuming this project. What do you think about it? How AI could help to coding the tools necessary to develop Bat4Blender?

[ohdude 2,353]

Well, i have no idea of coding so CHATGPT 3.5 told me this:

"To create a Python export script for Blender that can export models in the .s3d format used by SimCity 4, you will need to use the Blender API. Here I'll provide you with a basic example of how you could get started with a simple script that exports the geometry of a selected object in Blender:

python

 

import bpy

def export_s3d(filepath):
    # Get the selected object in Blender
    obj = bpy.context.active_object
    
    # Check if the object is a mesh object
    if obj.type != 'MESH':
        print("The selected object is not a mesh.")
        return
    
    # Get the mesh data from the object
    mesh = obj.data
    
    # Create an .s3d file and write the mesh data
    with open(filepath, 'w') as f:
        # Write the .s3d file header
        f.write("S3D v1\n")
        
        # Write the object's geometry (vertices, faces, etc.)
        for v in mesh.vertices:
            f.write(f"v {v.co.x} {v.co.y} {v.co.z}\n")
        
        for face in mesh.polygons:
            f.write("f")
            for vi in face.vertices:
                f.write(f" {vi + 1}")  # Blender index starts from 0
            f.write("\n")

# Example usage
export_s3d("/destination/path/model.s3d")

 

This script exports the selected object's geometry to a .s3d file format. However, please note that this is a very basic example and does not include exporting texture information, materials, or other properties of the object. You would need to expand this script to meet your specific requirements, such as exporting texture data, generating .fsh files, etc.

Creating a complete export script for SimCity 4 would require a deeper understanding of the Blender API and the .s3d file format. You may need to further research and consult the documentation for Blender and SimCity 4 for detailed information on manipulating models and files in these programs."

 

[ohdude 2,353]

more:

"let's expand the script to include exporting texture information, materials, and other object properties. Here is an improved version of the script that addresses these aspects:

import bpy

def export_s3d(filepath):
    # Get the selected object in Blender
    obj = bpy.context.active_object
    
    # Check if the object is a mesh object
    if obj.type != 'MESH':
        print("The selected object is not a mesh.")
        return
    
    # Get the mesh data from the object
    mesh = obj.data
    
    # Create an .s3d file and write the model information
    with open(filepath, 'w') as f:
        # Write the .s3d file header
        f.write("S3D v1\n")
        
        # Write the object's geometry (vertices, faces, etc.)
        for v in mesh.vertices:
            f.write(f"v {v.co.x} {v.co.y} {v.co.z}\n")
        
        # Write face information including normals
        for face in mesh.polygons:
            f.write("f")
            for vi in face.vertices:
                f.write(f" {vi + 1}")  # Blender index starts from 0
            f.write("\n")
            f.write(f"n {face.normal.x} {face.normal.y} {face.normal.z}\n")
        
        # Write material and texture information
        for material_slot in obj.material_slots:
            material = material_slot.material
            f.write(f"material {material.name}\n")
            # Write texture information if available
            if material.use_nodes:
                for node in material.node_tree.nodes:
                    if node.type == 'TEX_IMAGE':
                        texture = node.image
                        f.write(f"texture {texture.filepath}\n")
        
        # Write other object properties if necessary
        
# Example usage
export_s3d("/destination/path/model.s3d")

This updated script exports additional information such as face normals, materials, and associated textures. However, please note that this script assumes that materials and textures are set up using Blender's node system.

If your materials and textures are set up differently in Blender, you may need to adjust the script to fit your specific workflow. Additionally, you may need to handle other object properties such as animation or physics data based on your requirements.

If you need further details or assistance with any specific part of the script, feel free to ask. I'm here to help."

 

I wish it could help.

Ohdude

[Propfam 2,289]

@ohdude, you can instruct ChatGPT to provide better code. You do it by using GPT-4 and providing a huge amount of data to it. In the context of SC4, we "just" have to collect tons of knowledge from Devotion and Simtropolis and collect it into a collection of PDFs. Here's how:

Hope it'll be useful.

[rsc204 21,813]

What if such knowledge were not simply collectible? At some point wouldn’t teaching AI to do it take longer than just doing it?

[ohdude 2,353]

@memo is making very interesting progress on Bat4blender here: