Nexis Works

[FrankU]

Hi Fred,

Hopefully these advices help you to finish the stuff without too much sweatdrops!

[gn_leugim]

Pretty much. we have to think that LODs are just shapes, as all others but, they are very important because they are what we see in the game. was a way for maxis decrease the complexity of the models on game and increase performance. in short, the gmax takes pictures of the building/prop and then snap it to the LODs, accordantly to the zoom and orientation parameters. So in the end what you have after render is a bunch of boxes with snapshots applied to them. If you change the LOD, instead of boxes you will have the new shape you made for the LODs. that simple.

So, some advices:

• first try to avoid custom LODs, I only use them for special situations (like some vine props I made in which I wanted to be able to have other props below visible)
  
• keep them as simple possible. forget the little details, just look at the overall shape of the building/prop
• don't go underground, keep the LOD at and/or above Z=0

[mrbisonm]

Thanks Lowkee33, that was quite simple and easy to understand and very useful. Jeronij's tut I have seen, but way to complicated and not quite applyable to my models I think.

Hey FranKU, I'm back..lol, this time with more info on LOD's and experience.

gn_leugim, thanks for the 3 advices, most useful.

I'll be back on the job now.....


Fred

[mrbisonm]

As much as I tried and re-tried again following all your people's tuts, I cannot seem to make those *!%**&!"|#+§*  models to fit and render with custom LOD's. Whenever I carefully fit them, at the rendering time, the original rectangular LOD comes back, although we can see the original custum LOD in between. Is that normal??
Yes, I made three copies naming them each LOD1,LOD2 and LOD3.
Yes, I saved them like this before rendering.
Yes, I deleted all three original LOD's before making the custome ones.

Being and having become a real timeconsuming and painstaking challenge, I decided that FrankU will have to do with what I can offer. I do NOT feel like going over these props again , for the fourth time....
Let's say that I had enough of these programs that don't work with me and also crash or render wrongly many times before one good one comes out, so...that's it for this Part 1 of the Proppack.
If I don't stop this somewhere, this pack will never find it's way to the "market".
I hope that they are good enough for FrankU to make us some awsome farms.

Here's a picture of what happens before and during renderings,





Part One contains all the major buildings, such as barns and stables. There are 24 of them, some euro some northams.
The first part will be sent to Frank this weekend, and I will start rendering the second part, which contain the smaller props, such as manure piles, hay, silos, etc. This pack will be rendered only ones and therefor it will take a whole less time than the first.

Here's one of the newer models included in this Part of the Proppack (one of the largest ones), many others have been shown before in this thread.



Thanks for helping, guys.

Fred

[Lowkee33]

Yes, I made three copies naming them each LOD1,LOD2 and LOD3.

Name them LOD3, LOD4, and LOD5.   

Whatever LOD you make though, I'm sure it will be great.

[xannepan]

Lowkee is right, you should name them LOD3, LOD4 and LOD5.
Mind you: the script will still automatically create boxed-shapes LODs for zoom 1 and 2, and depending on whether you use gmax or a bat4max script you will still see those appear during rendering. But do not worry about the boxed LODs, if you have named your custom LODS number 3,4,5 it should be fine.
Good luck

Alex

[mrbisonm]

Sorry about the "error" in my last post, but I actually named them LOD3, LOD4 and LOD5. I just misspelled the numbers in my post.

If xannepan is right and if I understood correctly , then the custom LOD's should be fine? Even though a box appears when rendering?

Yahoo, I really hope so, because I put a lot of time and energy in these things. I will have a look at them this weekend together with other props close to the model in the LE and then the game.

Thanks guys.

Fred



*
....and while I'm here, here is another new included model in the Mainpack, more of an Euro look.

[jmyers2043]

Hello from South Carolina, Fred!

Here's a picture of what happens before and during renderings,

This happens to me about 1/3 of the times when making LODs for foundations. However, my custom LOD will be the one that is exported and used by the game. Even if I get that 'extra LOD' when clicking the export button.  Foundations, water lots such as piers, and I suppose bridges, require very tight LODs. This brings me to my comment. I can understand an above ground LOD at times. Example, if I wish to nestle a specific prop into the rear corner of this farm building. But I can not fathom the need of a custom LOD for the rectangular building in your example   And suggest that you may be spending time with little to be gained.




- Jim

[mrbisonm]

Hey Jim, greetings from cold Quebec (getting warmer day by day now )

Yeah, I can understand why you say that I am putting too much time into my rendering of props, but this is what FrankU partially suggested. He realized that putting a regular prop close to my props with boxed LOD's make them look as if they float. Of course this is a sign that one prop LOD is trying to enter the "private space" , as I call it, of another prop LOD.
This can be illiminated by making tighter LOD's. Of course, one can overdo it and that is probably what happened in my case (still new to this)  .

As the rectangular model above does actually NOT need a custom LOD (the slanted roof) in your opinion, I made it so that a silo can be placed, and seen not interfering with the mainprop LOD, right on top of the building auch as the one seen in the second picture below.

But let me tell you, you are more or less right, Jim, when you say that I am spending time with little or no gain. And I learn and probably will make the future LOD's of the props of the second set less custom. (or at least less tighter and/or less complicated)

Here's a picture (the second one below) of such a building with a silo prop on it's roof, as we see quite often here in Quebec, a matter of taking less space and giving more freedom for machinery around the main buildings.
The first picture shows a model that absolutely needs a custom LOD if we want to place silos, manure or haybale piles close to it on the side where the dairyhouse is.

I will finish my first pack this coming weekend and it will be on the way to test and FranKU will be able to start his farmlots with the mainbuildings at least.
Next week I will start rendering all the other smaller props.

Fred

[FrankU]

Hi guys,

The discussion in this thread makes me even more detemined to stay away from BATting.... 

Fred, I hope all is going well. At least the extra barn is very good looking with beautiful textures for a less maintained farm! I look forward to your set.
Anyway I will wait with finishing the set until I receive your second set of props, because small barns, haystacks and the like will have a large effect on my farms. I hope I will not feel obliged to redo a lot of them, but hey; that's the risk I took when I started lotting without having all the props. It's an adventure I really like. I just hope it's going to be finished before Simcity 5 takes all our attention!   

Frank

[jmyers2043]

. I just hope it's going to be finished before Simcity 5 takes all our attention!

That will be one expensive game as I'll need a new computer. My compter is nearing it's 10 anniversary as I purchased it in Dec, 2002. I may be the last person on earth still tinkering around with SC4     

Good explanation, Fred. My minds eye sees a family of props that will give the same building/farm a different look. Great idea!

- Jim

[Silur]

I may be the last person on earth still tinkering around with SC4

- Jim

No, I'll play the game SC4 too ...

[mrbisonm]

I may be the last person on earth still tinkering around with SC4

- Jim

No, I'll play the game SC4 too ...

me too, my gaming computer is from 2003. I just bought a new one though for the house and on which I am creating and rendering my farmset. Not funny, when you think of it that I got Win7 on the new 'puter and changed it for win XP.....lol...that was almost the cause of a divorce with my wife.......so, I had to buy another one for her, with win7 of course....Geeeez, I hate win7.

Anyways. Hey Frank, don't worry, ALL the props should be ready by the end of the month. I will send you the first set this weekend or on Monday at the latest. I would like you to test them a little, if possible. That would help me out a lot. Thanks.

Fred

[NCGAIO]

Everyone can have absolute certainty that many will still play SC4. especially those who enjoy the game the way the community has changed.

Modify the content of the game along the lines of what happens today will not be possible in the eventual release of the new Simcity (EA have not called SC5) and it certainly will keep many players accustomed to these changes "in which you do not have to pay anything more ". playing in the universe of SC4.

[Silur]

Not funny, when you think of it that I got Win7 on the new 'puter and changed it for win XP.....lol...that was almost the cause of a divorce with my wife.......so, I had to buy another one for her, with win7 of course....Geeeez, I hate win7.
Fred

I had to buy another PC with Win7 for my daughter
Fred and Frank - YOU creating excellent objects. Good luck ... 

[gn_leugim]

dont worry, there will be plenty of people playing and modeling for sc4 yet ^^ like me for instance XD

[mrbisonm]

To make me leave behind SC4 will take one hell of a SC5, which I doubt very much will happen soon. The community has made it so that it will almost stay eternal.

I still play CIV III, although CIV IV and V have been available for quite awhile , and what's even weird, I have both of them, played a little and then.........I got bored and went back to CIV III.
That is most certainly going to happen with SC5, I will buy it, try it for a couple of weeks or months and then nostalgia will bring me back to SC4.

Fred

[rooker1]

The OSITM Team has made the OSITM section a little broader and more exciting by introducing works from our resident BATters, LOTters and MODders. 
mrbisonm has been choosen as our first for his remarkable works all around but especially his recent farming models!  A very well deserved candidate!!



Let's give a huge congratulations for mrbisonm being our first BATter in the OSITM section.
Congrats from The SC4D Staff!!!

[noahclem]

Congratulations on being selected for the first custom content OSITM 

The farm project has been great to follow so far and I can't wait to see what you have for us this month!

[Battlecat]

Congratulations, your hard work features in many of my MD cities!  Looking forward to seeing what this latest farm looks like!