[hippie159]

Hello all you SC4 mainiacs! Its time once again for yet another question from me (I'm full of 'em ). I was wondering if some of you folks use any kind of standard dimensions for stuff like wall height, door size, window size, etc. I've only recently started BATing and think I've hit upon the proper size for wall height (I use 5 meter high for single story wall). So if you use some sort of standardized dimensions for BATing and would like to share and maybe discuss, please do. Once again I thank any and all who read and reply.

And now for something completely different..........This site is great! I'm really more of a lurker and the folks here have made me feel really comfortable about asking questions. I salute you all  .

[marcszar]

Glad you enjoy the site!

I don't use "dimensions" per se when designing BATs but rather some unconscious (best word I can think of) system of proportions when figuring out how tall/wide/etc windows/walls/doors/etc should be.

I first sketch out a building by making a series of solids to fit within a certain area. For example, if I want to design a 1x2 rowhouse for SimCity, I set up a 16x16m grid in Rhino with a major grid line every 16 smaller grid lines. Each of the smaller grid lines represents one SC meter and a 16x16 square is 1x1 SC tile. I create a 1x2 tile (16x32m) box within which I'll design the rowhouse.

Now only the height of the building has to be determined. Usually I leave this to the end and overcompensate a building's height. Once I put in windows and doors that seem proportionately correct, I just crop off the excess height of the building's walls and slap on a roof and any other details. If a building's walls end up too short, you can always stretch them up too. (Remember that you should stretch your building upwards about 20% to compensate for the squashing effect of SC's isometric view.) Although I'm using Rhino, the process is virtually the same in gmax.

After a while, it will become easier and easier for you to gauge if something looks too fat or thin- if a rendering shows detailing to be too blocky, you can make it thinner. If detailing looks spiderlike and is hard to see, it might be too thin.

Here's a screenshot of a work in progress that should help explain my gibberish above  :

[hippie159]

First of all...wow, I have several lots you made that I totally enjoy. I have never thought of using the rendered view for detail checking as I tend to hit export and go do something else...next time I see the building is in game.
Also I did not know that tidbit about the squashing effect useful info there. I sorta dig the way you do it in regards to dimensions. It seems easier than what I've been trying to do. I seem to always find the hardest way to go about things. Thank you for the reply and the pic. Might I ask, when you make your building do you create seperate walls and put them together (like the tutorial on ST) or do you carve you building from a solid piece? I hope that makes sense hehe. Ive seen tutorials that use both methods but I would kinda like to know what someone whose lots I use and have seen in game does. Thanks again and may life treat you fair.

[marcszar]

First of all...wow, I have several lots you made that I totally enjoy. I have never thought of using the rendered view for detail checking as I tend to hit export and go do something else...next time I see the building is in game.

  Since the rendered views are exactly what will show up in game, they (believe it or not) are quite useful for judging dimensions, proportions, scaling, and detailing.   

Also I did not know that tidbit about the squashing effect useful info there. I sorta dig the way you do it in regards to dimensions. It seems easier than what I've been trying to do. I seem to always find the hardest way to go about things.

Yes, I think some BATters still design (or used to design) a BAT in gmax with the 20% height increase in mind, but they soon realize it's a lot easier to build to "natural" proportions and then just stretch the whole building up afterwards.

Thank you for the reply and the pic. Might I ask, when you make your building do you create seperate walls and put them together (like the tutorial on ST) or do you carve you building from a solid piece? I hope that makes sense hehe. Ive seen tutorials that use both methods but I would kinda like to know what someone whose lots I use and have seen in game does. Thanks again and may life treat you fair.

I know exactly what you mean. I've used both the "slab" method and "carve" method (Or "boolean" method as it's called in Rhino) in buildings- the rowhouse you see above is a combination of both methods. The front wall is a flat panel whereas all the gray rear walls have been booled out of a single box and as a result are all one piece. (It can be split into slabs if needed later.)