My FA Content

[EffTheGrid 3,669]

Hey ST,

I've been working on a pack of FA oriented content for quite some time now. I still have many questions, but here's what I have functioning in the game right now:

Thanks to the many members who have helped out so far.

Before I release these, I'd love to know how I can lower the plop cost of each lot in PIMX. (Currently set at default. I'm a noob lol)

Additionally, I'd like to put the buildings in prop families to cut down on menu space/get each recolor in the same file. Any guidance on that is helpful.

I've also included a zip containing the semi-finished products as I'd love to know if they're working in everyone's game.

Included should be: 

FA2 3 houses

FA2 CVS Wedge

FA2 1387 Jesup Ave (+recolor)

FA3 181 Gun Hill Rd (+recolor)

FA3 Philly rowhomes (+recolors)

FA3 St. Nick House (recolor missing from zip)

Feedback/best practices are essential! Let me know what I can do to clean these up. I intend to create more--at least enough to fill in my FA networks  

FA tests.zip

[Tyberius06 12,189]

Hi there!

Pretty nice to see new FA BATs. Although I don't know much about BATting, so I can't really say a word on that matter, but I checked your lots in game and with X-Tool (PIM-X) and found a few interesting stuffs. The first and most noticable is the use of an invisible box. You don't need such a thing. If you use PIM-X (and as I saw you used that for the test lots) you can always use the blank model, which has the same result as your invisible box, but it's more safe to use. In this case the IID of your invisible box is actually conflicting with the IID of the fa3_phil_row_1-0x5ad0e817_0x4c1efe46_0x40000.SC4Model, which caused in game, that on most of the lots I got the prop building (as it was meant to be) and these raw houses too. Even on the row houses lots I got two models overlapping each other. 

Besides this, it's a really good start. I like that you already started working with multiple variations. Actually as you've mentioned above the props facing to the same direction (like the row homes) can be placed into prop families. Well, best if you request a prop family range on this site: https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?topic=2490.460 or if you don't have access to SC4 Devotion send a request to @rsc204. As far as I know, he is managing mostly the Prop Family Index. 

Also a questions. Although I don't play the game in night mode, but do you plan to lit the buildings up with nightlight? 

Anyhow, this is a very nice project of yours! Keep up the good work!

- Tyberius

[EffTheGrid 3,669]

39 minutes ago, Tyberius06 said:

(and as I saw you used that for the test lots) you can always use the blank model, which has the same result as your invisible box, but it's more safe to use.

This is very helpful! Could you elaborate about the "blank" model? Is this a SC4 game file? I HATE that little invisible box... it complicates everything and I'd love to phase it out immediately. I was under the impression that I had to use it for overhanging buildings.

Thanks for letting me know about the IID conflict as well. It was not appearing in my game. 

Nightlighting is my next learning endeavor! But it's priority #2 or 3. I want to iron out the fundamentals of BATing first... like not having overlapping models  

Thanks for the feedback Ty!

 

[Tyberius06 12,189]

2 hours ago, Sloppyjoemess said:

Could you elaborate about the "blank" model? Is this a SC4 game file?

Here is a little  tutorial about PIM-X blank/dummy building examplar creator. Originally this tutorial was created in a situation where one actually doesn't have a real building as a template, but in your case there are actually real models. That part would make some rogue modding part involved, kind of cheating the system. Although it makes life a bit easier and don't require opening the Reader. 

1. There is no need for explanation. You will find that "blank model" in the Other models section in PIM-X. That's always there (even if you untick the 3 main game folders and only select those folder, where your used dependencies are - IF you don't use maxis contents). That blank model hold the TGI for a dummy model which is in the main game files, so it will be always there when the game is running, which means this won't be a missing dependency -----> NO brown box because of missing building. 
So this was STEP 1. and 2. 

2. OK, so here comes the tricky stuffs. You have two-three options depending on how precise you want to be. This images shows the easiest and laziest way. 

a) You have the building examplar, but you still don't have lot config examplar, which would represent the LOT itself. Laziest way. Create the lotconfig as usually, don't worry about the rest (messing with the filling degree on a blank model - as I said this was about to be made for a different tutorial originally), then you can make the lot, place the props etc.... IF you want the building (blue rectangle on the lot) to take up a smaller virtual space (since it's blank it won't be visable, it could be important with lots, which could use MMPs in game), YOU HAVE TO CHANGE THE OCCUPANT SIZE BEFORE YOU CREATE THE LOT. Otherwise things will go south pretty fast and nasty immortal building bugs may occur. If you go on this laziest way, you need to post-edit the STATS in Reader. Set a proper value of the jobs and other stuffs up.  In this case you definitelly don't need to do STEP 4.

b) normally, PIM-X was developped to help modders out with the nasty maths behind the game and help to set proper stats up for buildings (like CAM growables). For this a "Filling degree" property had been introduced. By default (according to the proffessionals) the right way if you chose a real model, and would compute the growable or plopable stats using a proper filling degree (definition of this can be found in the PIM-X Guide/Manual, but shortly: it is a ratio of how much space the actual model takes up in the LOD box - yellow square on the above image, since that is a flat blank model, but it would be a 3D rectangle around a real model - according to your best guess.). Nah, this is not working that easy way with an overhanging prop/model, like your FA stuffs. (you can not have overhanging building/model -----> IMMORTAL LOT BUG). 

Staying on the right path what you can do is, create a template of your model (with PIM-X, drag and drop into the right menu, NAME it, and save it - this will create a _LooseDesc, which you wouldn't need at all normally), like on the above picture with your model, set the stats up properly. In the mean time create the lot, and place the FA/overhanging building prop onto the lot, then save it. Now you have a real lot with a building examplar, which contains inproper data and you have a building examplar (_LooseDesc) with the right data. In reader open your lot file and open the _LooseDesc file for your building template (you need to allow the reader to show "all files"). Copy and replace the relevant DATA like jobs, plop costs, pollution etc from the template (_LooseDesc) into the building examplar of your lot. DON'T COPY the Occupant Size properties ------------ otherwise IMMORTAL LOT BUG. Before you save the changes in Reader you need to "Reindex" and "Rebuild Directory File" in Reader's middle pannel, AFTER this you can save your lot. 

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3. Now here is the cheating part. It's important to follow the order of the steps properly. STEP 1 and 2 from the first picture, right? You have two choice here. Either you can ignore the image of the 2a) section or you can follow the STEP 3-4 from the image (not from the paragraph). Although STEP 4 is just an example messing around with the Filling Degree. OK so for the sake of continuity I bring it here again with image (original) 3, as an explanation what's going on. 

So what you can see, that the filling degree would calculate with the Occupant size which is quite low on the blank model, so you wouldn't get a real value. You need to keep in mind what was the Occupant size when you created the lotconfig. By default if you didn't change it, for this blank model it would be 8.0*1.0*8.0. I does matter to keep in mind what kind of occupant size you used when you created the lot. That's one of the most important value! 

4. Temporary you can change the Occupant Size. Copy the occupant size of the template and replace the one you have for your lot. Recompute the values, set the proper filling degree up.

Then change the Occupant Size back to its original (what you used when you created the lotconfig at the first place), but this time do NOT recompute the properties. The occupant size of the building examplar has to match with the blue building rectangle on the LOT. Save everything. 

That's it more or less. Before you release it, MAKE SURE that you deleted from the upload all the *._LooseDesc files, nobody needs those.

If you need further assistant or you want to check the lots before you upload, just send me them and I'll take a look onto them. I know there is a bunch of information above, so ask if you need more details or explanations about anything.

Hope it helps!

- Tyberius

 

[rsc204 21,808]

13 hours ago, Sloppyjoemess said:

This is very helpful! Could you elaborate about the "blank" model? Is this a SC4 game file? I HATE that little invisible box... it complicates everything and I'd love to phase it out immediately. I was under the impression that I had to use it for overhanging buildings.

This might be true, it depends upon just how much you need the building to overhang the lot. Otherwise if you need multiple buildings on a lot, all except the first must be Props, not Buildings. In both these cases, it can be easier or even necessary to use an invisible building, which technically must exist because without a Building on a lot, it's properties (Buildings Exemplar), doesn't exist.

As for families, you will need to apply for a Prop/Building Family ID Range. Depending on whether you use Props or Buildings, changes how you would go about making things work. If you place a Prop Family (like a Prop) onto your lot, when plopped, it will randomly select on of the items in the family to display. If you use a Buildings Family, you will have one Buildings Exemplar for each model, all of which link to the exact same Lot. In both cases, using PIM-X would be the simplest method to achieve what you're after. If you've missed it, get the great User Manual for PIM-X from here, it goes step-by-step through the most common things you might need to do, including creating such families.

13 hours ago, Sloppyjoemess said:

like not having overlapping models

Tight LODs are a must, this type of building will have severe restrictions if you use the default LODs. If two LODs collide, because for at least one model, they exceed the size of the model itself, the game doesn't handle that well. So if you've not already done so, use custom ones that conform to your geometry. Ideally these will not go outside of the area your model fits, but if that doesn't work, in very small increments, you may have to enlarge them a little. Finding the sweet spot where they work can take a bit of trial and error.

To my eye, some of the colours seem a bit too bright, specifically these building's awnings/signs:

If might be worth experimenting a little with darkening them, but it's nothing really bad.

Otherwise I'll just add, these look like a great addition, always too little FAR/WRC fitting content around .

[EffTheGrid 3,669]

First off, thanks Ty and rsc204 for your direction. I have some questions that I will address in my next reply. 

New industrial. I created this lot using the blank.dat as the building, so hopefully no surprises with the models this time!

Linked a lot with untouched stats (my intention is to make these lots relatively neutral in cost and resource consumption)

Please let me know if I messed something else up! 

Angled for FA3

 

fa_ind_test.zip