Panda

I'm very interested in the prospect of additional building styles. However, may I ask what the intent behind the public and private IIDs ranges are? If I am understanding the post correctly the private IIDs are intended for an author to assign their own files a building style that is distinct and separate from anyone else's building style. The public IIDs would be free for anyone to use once they are established. Is this correct? My concern is that with over 4000 potential IIDs available, there is a high potential to fragment lots across so many styles that they become useless. I can imagine the frustration of trying to troubleshoot why a particular building was not growing because you forgot to toggle on the particular style. Others have brought up the issue of having sufficient lots in a building style to allow for growth. While having a style limiting growth to a very bespoke collection of lots could be powerful, it may also cause frustration because there are not lots in that style that match your current demand. Another concern is how will these styles be controlled in the game? Adding an extra 4, 8, or even 16 styles to the existing UI seems reasonable, but how will potentially dozens or hundreds of styles work? Will there be a search function to find that one style that you forgot the name of? Now I'll admit, I'm not particularly experienced with tinkering beneath the hood of SC4, so some of these concerns may have solutions I'm not aware about. However, the core issue remains: how will people use these tilesets? What problem are they solving?

Here are fixes for the misaligned icons:

I'm learning how to create BATs. I don't have a copy of 3DS Max, so I'm using Blender for modeling, exporting as an obj file, importing into GMAX/SC4 BAT, and then creating the S3D from there. As far as I can tell, there still isn't a BAT for Blender plugin that is in a usable state. Since I'm new to this, I figured I'd start with something simple. I'm making filler lots for the 1-way roundabouts, the ones with a single empty tile in the middle. I've had pretty good success so far, but I can see how limiting Gmax renders could be for more complex buildings and materials. I've created 5 models and plan to make several other variations. On the lotting side, how do I define the type of sidewalks around a lot? I am creating these lots as park lots. Does the wealth level control this? Can I somehow specify to use an industrial texture or low wealth texture for the surrounding sidewalks? To clarify, I'm not asking about the 1x1 square the roundabout sits on, but on the 4 1-way road squares immediately adjacent to the lot. I still need to adjust the cost, park effect, etc. for consistency. Right now, I'm just concentrating on getting the model in-game. Here are the five models I have so far: (I need to redo the first one, It was my first export and the diameter is slightly too small to completely cover the gap between the sidewalk.)

I'm continuing to work on the Octangle tower. I've improved the rooftop equipment models and textures. I added a track for a maintenance crane, but need to add the window washing crane dolly and arms. I've been working on the rest of the textures. I think the glass is now a little too dark, I plan to lighten it up int he future. I've also added a ground plane for reflections. I'm still experimenting with what looks good for the reflections. I've also added window shades. I experimented using geometry nodes. I've used geometry nodes for several other elements in the model including the mullions, but I wasn't happy. I ended up just modeling duplicating the window mesh, applying a texture that is half transparent, half opaque. I then randomly selected and adjusted the UV position to make it look like shades were up or down. It's not as modular and adjustable as I had hoped to achieve using geometry nodes, but it works. )Right now it is an array, so each side of the building has the same shade layout. I plan to fix that later.

Thank you for letting me know, I'll double check the alignment. Sometimes the layers accidentally get shifted or the icon image doesn't get perfectly centered for each state. it's easy to miss when they are all sitting side by side when editing.

I'm experimenting with BAT4Blender. I've been mostly modeling and texturing though and haven't tested exporting or the lighting much. So far it seems to be working well though.

I'm working on the submenu icons. Here are three buttons for the Landmarks menu: Landmarks: 57 - Government 58 - Entertainment (theaters, operas, cinemas, stadiums, night clubs, etc.) 59 - Religion (Churches cemetries) Let me know your thoughts.

@Andreas Roth, As others have said, the design for the "top-level" sub-menus tries to mimic the Maxis UI. The reason the circles are relatively small is to accommodate the drop shadow which helps the button "pop" and clarifies that it is a sub-menu not a lot. In order to accommodate the drop shadow within the 44 x 44 pixel size allotted for the icon, I had to shrink the circle so the drop shadow fits completely within the 44 pixel square. I tested aligning the button to the left which would have allowed it to be larger, but the in-game appearance was not centered and didn't look very good. Using an oval didn't make sense since the space available was a square and an oval would have just limited the height rather than provide extra width. An option without the drop shadow is possible, but I haven't finished the complete set of the top level buttons yet. They way I have my file set up, It shouldn't be too hard to swap out the frames, but at this point I'd prefer to finish the set first. For the image, @atsf189 mentioned duplicating the image three times and de-saturating the leftmost image. The Maxis UI buttons also have a slight de-saturation and add a blue hue to the white icon on the second from the left image. (See below for an example) Maxis UI: Submenu: Of course, this menu button design was developed primarily for the top-level sub-menus. I think it could be used as a template for other submenus, but I don't think it is set up well for showcasing an image of a lot or lots like the University of Clayhurst example demonstrates.

It's so frustrating and stressful that this happened. Although I try to be safe online, this would be so easy to miss. I know I downloaded a copy of NAM 48 back in August which was before the ModDB file was infected. I know I downloaded a copy of NAM Lite in November, but fortunately that file wasn't impacted. I'm pretty sure I did not download an infected copy (but the uncertainty is frustrating.) My virus scan came up clean, so I think I'm in the clear. Still, it is very frightening and I feel for any who were unfortunate enough to be impacted by this attack. I'm glad that this was discovered and applaud all those who are involved in the investigation of this issue.

@memo This is very exciting! I'll have to test it out.

@memo It's been a busy several months, but things have finally started to slow down. I will have more time in the near future and am planning to finish working on the submenu icons.

Just a heads up, I'm pretty busy recently, so I will not be working on the submenu icons for several weeks. I plan to finish them, it just may be in a month or two.

Also, if you are using Gmax, you will likely want the HD export scripts. This gives you the option of rendering in "SD" (Zoom 5 is rendered at 1:1 pixel resolution and Zoom 6 is just zooming in) or rendering in "HD" (Zoom 5 is rendered at x2 the size so when in game, Zoom 6 is actually viewed at 1:1 resolution while Zoom 5 is shown at half resolution.) The HD resolution is great for small props or lots, but does increase the render time and .sc4model filesize significantly. Also, while it makes the highest zoom look very crisp, my understanding is it can introduce some minor graphic issues at Zoom 5 since the game is having to resample the images down. Fortunately, you can toggle which export you want to use depending on use case and your preference. There is also some information on adding true anti-aliasing to the Gmax renders. You can find more information here.

I'll jump in and add my 2 cents. I'm exploring BAT creation myself. I'm no stranger to 3D modeling, but I've never created custom BATs until a few weeks ago. As far as I know, right now Gmax is your only option for the final rendering and BAT creation. With Gmax, you are limited to its older rendering engine, so no raytracing, global illumination, PBR materials, or any other rendering advancements in the last 20 years. Additionally, I recall seeing a post indicating that some of the elements in the Gmax BAT tool don't work correctly, such as bump maps. With that limitation however, it is still possible to make perfectly passable buildings using the Gmax renders. You may have to be a little strategic about how you model and texture, some effects just won't be possible with Gmax. The workflow that I've been using is to model in Blender first, then export to Gmax for the final render. I'm currently using blender 4.0. Reading back it looks like the initial experiments to create a BAT4Blender plugin were back when 2.8 was very new. It seems like Blender has come a long way since then, for example, Blender does support exporting a 3ds file. My initial 3ds export test worked fine and showed up in Gmax. However, objects are limited to 8 characters otherwise the import will fail. Also, the 3ds format has some other limitations on file size I believe. What I have also done is work around the problem by exporting as an .obj file instead. I found some post, I think here on Simtropolis, which eventually let me to an import script on an old Battle for Middle Earth mod site (script direct download). I only use the "Wavefront OBJ Import" portion of the script, the "OBJ Import/Export" script seemed to crash when I ran it. However, that seems to be enough to render for the BAT. You might also run into the following error: "Runtime Error: Out of scripter memory- use options to increase". Gmax limits the scripting memory available, so you have to manually increase it. You can type in "heapsize += 10000000" where 10000000 is the amount of bytes to increase by. This will allow you to import larger models, but you will have less memory available for the rest of Gmax's functions. You also can't decrease the heapsize. Reloading Gmax will set the assigned memory to default. You could also add the command to a startup script so the memory is always available. It is an inelegant solution, but works ... kind of... If the model is too large, Gmax will have trouble importing, but you can split up the model and import it in pieces. I also encountered the graphics glitch when right clicking. While I don't know if there is a way to fix the problem from occurring in the first place, I did find a workaround without having to restart Gmax. If you change your screen resolution and then revert the change, the glitch disappears. Mostly I try not to right click. Not a great solution I know, but since I'm mostly using Gmax to export BATs and not to model, it helps if I accidentally do right click. I occasionally get the Direct3D message, mostly when I swap to another application. It seems to go away for me when I return focus to Gmax. I'm sure I'm not alone in being interested in a BAT4Blender tool. To my mind, for SC4 modding to stay alive, there has to be a viable way to create new BATS. The Gmax BAT is something like 20 years old and has some serious limitations. Yes it is a functional tool and still performs those same functions today. There are just none of the niceties and improvements of a more modern software. Autodesk works on the subscription model and has drastically changed their student licensing model, severely limiting the availability of their products. That and the lack of a BAT4MAX compatible with any version later than 3DS MAX 2017 seems like it is a dead end at least for SC4 modding. Since Blender is free and open source, it is of course much easier to obtain. Additionally, if some future BAT4Blender plugin relies on some specifics that change in later blender releases, it will always be possible to continue using a previous release. Now I know there is a huge gulf between wanting or supporting something and actually making that happen. I’m no programmer, so it’s easy to say it would be nice for someone to make this, but it’s a whole lot of work to actually make that happen. Despite my ignorance, I’m happy to help however I can to make Blender a feasible replacement for Gmax and BAT4Max.

Here is the rain garden in PIM-X. There is a leaf-shaped weathering steel filter garden system with tall grasses surrounded by planters and overflow filtration gravel beds. I modeled the tree and shrubs in Blender instead of as separate props so they can cast shadows on the rain garden.

I agree, I wasn't 100% happy with the El Rail either. I've redone the design which should read better, but I might still adjust it. It still kind of looks like a building on piers or something. I may try a flat elevation of a train going over arches instead of a isometric view. Old Elevated Rail New Elevated Rail

More progress on the submenu buttons. I have completed preliminary icons for the miscellaneous transportation menu. Let me know if you have any suggestions or if any of the icons are not reading clearly. Misc Transport: 21 - Bus (0x1FDDE184) 22 - GLR (0x26B51B28) 23 - El-Rail (0x244F77E1) 24 - Subway (0x231A97D3) 25 - Multi-modal Stations (0x322C7959) *Alternate: 26 - Parking (0x217B6C35) 27 - [bikepaths, access roads, alleyways] 28 - [Signage] (signs, billboards, lighting)

Yes, I've been exporting the rest using the "SD" settings. They are simple enough that it doesn't make too much difference. For the rain garden, I think the "HD" settings and larger file size are appropriate.

Another work in progress: This roundabout features a central rain-garden based on bioswales. A bioswale uses a series of basins, drought and flood tolerant plants, and gravel beds to naturally filter water and recharge it back into the aquifer. I will likely specify this lot with a slight water treatment ability to reflect that it is filtering storm runnoff in the area. I am still working on the tree and shrub textures. and a few other items. It has been a real pain to get this model out of Blender and into Gmax for rendering! I think I'll export this using an "HD" export so there is more detail at the highest zoom level.

For anyone using iLives Reader v. 0.9.3, I have updated the submenu properties xml file to include the new "Exemplar Patch Targets" property. The updated file is available for download in the original reply.

@memo That's excellent to hear! The exemplar patching sounds like an extremely useful addition. With this functionality, this really opens the doors to allowing any SC4 mod from the past to have submenus. I'm curious, does the exemplar patching allow one to edit any property of a file, not just set a submenu? From the CAM-IR fix you created, I assume this is the case, but I figured I'd clarify. If this is indeed the case, I can imagine a lot of potential uses. For example, converting an industrial lot into an IRM compatible lot, or adjusting a "cheat" lot with a nice model into something in-line with the rest of the game all without having to edit the original file. I'd imagine there wouldn't be any objection to sharing these patches either which is great for patching legacy content whose authors are not available to make updates. The only downside is I can see this is another layer of compatibility to keep track of and potentially a new source for conflicts. Honestly though, the clear benefits vastly outweigh any potential negatives. I'll have to experiment, but I wonder if creating an exemplar patch will be faster than editing each exemplar directly when bulk crating submenus. It might not since you'll still have to find the individual IDs for every target, but I'll have to test it out and see.

I have redone the fire icons and created icons for the police and healthcare sub-menus. As always, please let me know what you think. Let me know if the order makes sense, I arranged them somewhat arbitrarily. Also, let me know what you think of the firefighter's cross icon (large fire stations) I'm not sure if it is reading well. I might replace it with a stylized flame symbol instead. After this round of icons, all that remains are the transportation and landmark icons, as well as some cleanup here and there. Police: 43 - Small (0x65D88585) 44 - Medium (0x7D6DC8BC) 45 - Large (0x8157CA0E) 46 - [Jails] 47 - [Military] Fire: 48 - Small (0x868E0F99) 49 - Medium (0x91A8F38E) 50 - Large (0x9E60B665) *Work In Progress Health: 54 - Small (0xB1F7AC5B) 55 - Medium (0xB7B594D6) 56 - Large (0xBC251B69) ## - Another possible healthcare icon (Pharmacy)

It's very well done. I especially like the museum area with the big sphere. Which building is that?

I'm continuing working on roundabout fillers. I had some trouble with the night lighting on a few lots. (See the image below, specifically the roundabout on the right.) At first I was mystified, because it only was showing on some lots and not others. I realized it was the automatic LOD boxes on lots with something tall. I resized the LOD boxes and that fixed the problem. I also revised the textures on the patterned brick roundabout to give it more contrast. I've created two new roundabout styles. One features large sandstone boulders and a sculpture formed from weathering steel wide flange beam sections embedded in the earth. The other features a more formal garden with flowerbeds and neatly trimmed ornamental hedges and topiary. Finally, I realized that I am not happy with the radius I have been modeling with. Currently it barely fills the open space, leaving the interior sidewalk visible. I will be expanding them to completely cover the interior sidewalk and run right up to the asphalt pavement. I think that will look cleaner.