5-9-Red

After an exterior claim has been cleared by a review, the thread will be moved here. Discussion is still allowed.

Moderator: Lead Developers

User avatar
Haplo
Lead Developer
Posts: 11651
Joined: Sat Aug 30, 2003 6:22 pm
Location: Celibacy

5-9-Red

Post by Haplo »

Claim type: Exterior
Claim ID: TR_5-9-Red (#176)
Faction: Redoran
Claimed by: Gnomey
Status: Approved (Progress: 100%)
Location: (-33,19):(-31,17) (-30,17), Size: 10
Files: TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_1.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_10.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_11.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_12.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_13.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_14.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_2.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_3.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_4.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_5.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_6.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_7.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_8.esp; TR_5-9-Red_Gnomey_9.esp

---

Uld Vraech, village, main and side roads.

Please download the merged map 5, meshes and textures found here: http://tamriel-rebuilt.org/old_forum/viewtopic.php?t=19347 - and work from the esp. Smooth/fix and change landscape if necessary, preferrably not so much at claim borders.

Note that cleaning irrelevant cells may create land tears, so backup your work regularly and often. It is advisable to keep neighboring claim cells while working on your claim IF they are in a acceptable finished state, as to keep static/texture/style consistency in our work. If in doubt, look to earlier finished claims for reference.

The program TESAME is ok for cleaning.

Now this is an interesting one. In the midts of the snowy chilly Uld Vraech we find the Redoran settlement of Mandul, cosily situated in a caldera-like area heated by underground volcanic activity. This makes tree grow and Mandul thrive in the wood business. Please add some signs of this geological phenomenon (steam/stuff).

Feel free to add caves/mines and stuff to the wilderness, perhaps a couple of old nordic ruins as well. Or daedric/dwemer. Or both if there's room for it.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

See this picture for regional borders, roads and rivers. Some roads are a little "off" in the Uld Vraech part, but the merged map file has the layout we're aiming for.

[url=http://i.imgur.com/4bpa4.jpg][img]http://i.imgur.com/4bpa4s.jpg[/img][/url]
Clicky me...

Mandul, a dunmer village on the road between tba (#2) and Shneif (#7). Situated in a dense forest in the this village serves as one of the main sources of lumber in the northern part of Morrowind. Main trade: Lumber. NPCs: Dunmer, some nord. Architecture: Velothi + Redoran (rarity of bugs).
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
Sir Dave
Developer
Posts: 102
Joined: Wed Apr 14, 2010 2:16 pm
Location: An Empty Molecrabshell

Post by Sir Dave »

Claiming.
After a long hiatus, I'm ready to plunge into exterior modding again!

when I dowloaded the new map 5 heightmap I stumbled upon some odd thing: The area of 5-9 seems to not correspond with the borders I see on the claim map. Also, 5-9 should have 5-30 to it's south but there are no cells named 5-30 in the heightmap file.

Therefore I would like to know what the coordinates of the 4 corners of this claim are supposed to be.

Other than that I'll carry out the ideas for this claim. I'll make a sawmill to symbolize the timber trade and I'll go for a dwemer ruin and some nordic tombs. maybe some mines as well. Since this region has volcanic activity I plan to make the mines ebony mines if that's okay.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Granted! Brb with the info you requested.
EDIT: Are you sure you downloaded the correct file? I'm looking at it now, and 5-30 is in place where it should be, 5-9 consist of three rows of 4 cells each = 12.

http://tamriel-rebuilt.org/old_forum/viewtopic.php?t=19347 this thread, ONLY the attachments, not the link in the post itself. It's even stated as obsolete.

Make sure to have a rich assortment of flora, it's supposed to stand out in a cold, harsh region.
Sir Dave
Developer
Posts: 102
Joined: Wed Apr 14, 2010 2:16 pm
Location: An Empty Molecrabshell

Post by Sir Dave »

Strange... I dowloaded the one from the attachment.

To make things clear: are -30,17 -30,19 -33,17 and -33,19 the correct corners for this claim?
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Yes. I know Strond is awkwardly placed but hey - new grounds to be tread. Should work!
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

You uploaded a file without posting so sorry for not noticing. I am a little confused, did you not download the heightmap and work from that? The file you posted has a Redoran settlement at the doorsteps of Strond.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
Sir Dave
Developer
Posts: 102
Joined: Wed Apr 14, 2010 2:16 pm
Location: An Empty Molecrabshell

Post by Sir Dave »

I have.. and I have placed the settlement of mandul where it should be according to the map.

So unless the whole heightmap and settlement plans have changed I don't see what the error is.
Why
Lead Developer
Posts: 1654
Joined: Sat Jul 04, 2009 3:18 am
Location: Utrecht

Post by Why »

The thing is, it's kinda like you used an outdated version of the heightmap. Compare:

Overhead of your file
Current heightmap

The idea is that we work from the heightmap Nemon made (link at the top) to make the whole region more of a unified whole.

I'm also really opposed to lava lakes in this area by the way. Underground should stay underground. I'm all for caves leading to the underground lava though.

This whole situation is kind of unfortunate :(
Sir Dave
Developer
Posts: 102
Joined: Wed Apr 14, 2010 2:16 pm
Location: An Empty Molecrabshell

Post by Sir Dave »

With the new heighmap I can't be creative..

Please revoke.
Why
Lead Developer
Posts: 1654
Joined: Sat Jul 04, 2009 3:18 am
Location: Utrecht

Post by Why »

There's a lot of room for interpretation and alterations though - I'm sure Nemon'll be along shortly to elaborate. D:
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

The claim description states that the heightmap is what you're supposed to work from. Certain areas are more developed than others, because we want specific things to be in specific places, especially for this region. Unfortunately the linked map is wrong, but the file takes precedence.

The stuff I placed in this claim was for conceptual reasons only, you are free to play around in that entire valley, moving the architecture and forest to your own liking. The cliffs needs to stay - this is imperative - so that the Strond isolation remains intact. Road exiting the claim as well.

I also wrote that underground volcanic activity is what heats up this place, with steam as an example, not giant lava lakes as that would be out of place pretty much anywhere on the mainland.

We will be working from heightmaps for the rest of the TR project, although not all claims will be as preset as this one.

Please confirm if you really want this revoked still.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
Sir Dave
Developer
Posts: 102
Joined: Wed Apr 14, 2010 2:16 pm
Location: An Empty Molecrabshell

Post by Sir Dave »

Please revoke.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Revoked.
User avatar
Katze
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2341
Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 3:29 pm
Location: Behind you!
Contact:

Post by Katze »

Possibly considering claiming this, just got a few questions first.

Does Mandul need to be moved further into the corner like on the map, or is its placement on the heightmap ok?

Also, there seems to be a corner of Strond in the cells of this claim, and the full extent of the valley is not within the claim, so the description for 5-7 will probably need updating to ensure the westernmost part of the valley is in the same style.
"If a hermaphroditic, bug-armored, bipolar god-king existing in multiple universes who has his very own bible with *actual* magic strewn throughout it is your idea of a cliche, then I really would like to live in your world." -MK

"You say a lot of things. And how does that work? You're a bicycle"

Tea is important.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Mandul's placement is ok, if in doubt - the heightmap takes precedence. Roads are just hastily put down, as well as a few roughly placed cliffs and trees - that was just to emphasize that this little valley was sort of greener than its immediate surroundings - because of underground volcanic activity. (HEY omg lets make a cave connect from this area to a perfectly hidden multi layer underground stuff in the lake near Cormar).

No visible lava, and no ash terrain - keep it green, although a few slightly sunk "pots" with steam (like the things I made near Ald Erfoud in map 4).

Strond is indeed a part of this claim, but I think I'll remove it to make it make more sense. I.e three less cells to avoid stupidity.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Not
Lead Developer
Posts: 542
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2012 10:43 pm
Location: Elsewhere

Post by Not »

Random curiosity question; are we using custom models for the houses from SHotN? Atleast as far as the village of Strond is concerned?

Edit: Nvm, just saw Nemon's last post. Forget I asked :)
Not another memory

...And so my bad karma gets worse
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

This does look like an interesting one. I think I'll take the plunge.

For the volcanic activity, I'm thinking the sunken pots you mentioned, or cracks in the earth from which steam issues, or both, depending on what looks good and what fits.

For the village, I'm thinking Redoran for the rich, Velothi for the poor, and, while even the "rich" would be pretty badly off, I'm thinking of making the Redoran buildings as blinged out as possible; the leaders of the village have a lot of pride.

I might have more questions later as usual, but two assumptions will do for now: I'm assuming this village does not have to be built with defense in mind like some of the other villages further North. Also, I'm assuming that I should use the new flora added by TR. If either of those or incorrect, do say so. Neither would be particularly hard to change.

As for the rest, I'll take inspiration from the surrounding claims, and the vertex shading thread is duly noted. (Very useful, by the way). If there's room for a Nord ruin I have an idea I'd like to try out, but I doubt it will fit.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Granted!

Sunken pots, cracks... good.

Village ideas... good. Make sure to spice it up a bit, my quick mockup was simply to get stuff in place for a modder. Play around with different height levels, rugged terrain and make sure it's more topographically interesting than the boring flat stuff now.

For defence, you can play with making it somewhat elevated with simple wall structures, but nothing too exaggerated naturally. If it looks good, great!

Flora? This is mostly skyrim-y so we don't have to go too far away from the pine tree, shrub, bm grass and container flora that set provides. This is also an issue we might look into later on, by simply adding a few new yet to be made/completed things. Have fun!
User avatar
Melchior Dahrk
Developer
Posts: 278
Joined: Fri Nov 28, 2008 2:38 am
Location: Outer Realms
Contact:

Post by Melchior Dahrk »

Nemon wrote:Flora? This is mostly skyrim-y so we don't have to go too far away from the pine tree, shrub, bm grass and container flora that set provides. This is also an issue we might look into later on, by simply adding a few new yet to be made/completed things. Have fun!
Like the pine cone tree! Is that not officially added to TR_Data yet?
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

It is, and that's what I was asking about.

Edit: while I'm at it, what are the borders of my claim? In the TR_Map5Merge2013 plugin I downloaded from the link above ten cells are listed as belonging to my claim. In the map also linked to above, twelve cells belong to my claim. A picture that illustrates the discrepancy:

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/705/q5x4.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img705/3117/q5x4.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Purple is what CS tells me while red is what the map tells me.

I'm assuming my claim encompasses the twelve cells shown in the map (and in my picture), but will keep to the village for now just to be on the safe side.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Whops, that imgur map in the post is outdated.
Please adhere to the .esp and http://tamriel-rebuilt.org/?p=forum/showmap&map=5 outlining ten cells. Good catch!

Edit: Your file should be a 3 by 3 square + an additional cell -30 17, south of Dunkreath/Strond. The village should lie in the "middle" of said 3 by 3 square.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

Hm, odd. I seem to have made a mistake, there is no error in the plugin; the cells are named exactly as in the map you just posted. The area ringed by cliffs extends past the edge of my claim, but that isn't really a problem.

Anyway, as it's morning over here I'll get to making something I can show to balance out all the tell.
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

Ooh, a landscape tear crept up on me on the Northern border of my claim. It seems it was disguised by the cells border lines, so it's been there for a while. I'll probably see to cleaning it up; luckily I haven't done much work on the cells affected.
At very worst the file above is a proof of concept. I've left in the neighbouring claims for future matching. I've half finished the town:

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/835/glva.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img835/8363/glva.th.jpg[/img][/url]

I haven't finished the wall or, in general, the detailing, but the basic elements are there. The lighthouse roof provides shelter for guards who use the building as a watchtower due to its relative height, but the building itself need not have any relation to the guards.

I've also made examples of the steam cracks and pots. I'm not sure whether I'd add much more to the cracks other than the wayward rock or two, as they really are just cracks in the ground. I still need to check in the CS to see whether they're annoying to fall into, though.

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/259/bd43.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img259/9186/bd43.th.jpg[/img][/url][url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/24/r3x4.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img24/2417/r3x4.th.jpg[/img][/url]
[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/211/onwg.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img211/4248/onwg.th.jpg[/img][/url][url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/546/vgq9.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img546/159/vgq9.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Is it alright if I get a little experimental with flora usage (with accompanying screenshots, of course) or should I keep to BM stuff?
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Looks good so far, please try to incorporate the lumber mill in the village itself. If you manage to create a make shift saw thingy as well that would be great. It doesn't have to work, just look nice.

Regarding the flora experimentation, go ahead. As long as there are visible clues to normal trees being cut down that is fine, since this is a lumber focused village.

Lastly, try scaling down the steam. It looks somewhat big at the moment. Cracks should work like that btw, just beware of jaggy terrain. Using statics to detail should help.

Edit: And tears? Remember to backup, more than one copy as well. Sometimes you have to revert back to an older file if a cell goes upfuck. Having an older backup intact is vital.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

I've just confirmed that the tears are there in the original file I downloaded. I'll probably backup, patch the border up, backup again and hope for the best.

Your post also reminded me that the village is actually supposed to make a decent profit out of lumber, which I'm sorry to say I'd almost forgotten. As such, I'm amending the town map above as follows:

1. Tavern
2. Probably (minor) Redoran noble's "manor"
3. Owner of the lumber mill
4. Barracks (around 4-6 guards, "manors" might have additional retainers, if more are necessary)
5. Merchant's house
6. Blacksmith
7. Hunter
8. Lumberjack Quarters
9. Priest
10. Temple
11. Potter
Lumber processing will be behind the tavern.

As far as the manors are concerned, I'm thinking that the boss of the lumber mill is a commoner. He and the noble try to one-up another with shows of wealth and prestige; the noble is poorer, but has rank and a rich family history, while the boss is richer but doesn't. Their relationship could be good or bad, it really works either way.

Edit: for flora, aside from the BM plants, I'll use Heather, Stoneflowers, Kreshweed and Scathecraw, as they appear consistently in other pine-but-not-snowy locations further south. Scathecraw also fits nicely with the geothermal activity.
User avatar
Yeti
Lead Developer
Posts: 2061
Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 11:50 pm
Location: Minnesota: The Land of 11,842 Lakes

Post by Yeti »

Lovely village, Gnomey. Small concise settlements always end up being my favorite places in Morrowind. I especially love how well the Velothi and Redoran buildings blend together. One of the few examples of set mixing that actually looks good.
-Head of NPCs: [url=http://www.shotn.com/forums/]Skyrim: Home of the Nords[/url]
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

Thanks! I like the set mixing myself; working with the Redoran set is a lot easier with the added versatility of the Velothi set.

Anyway, another update, as it's almost been a month or something.

As far as the overall claim goes, and I've only been working on the fertile area so far, I've finished the roads and, again, only for the fertile area, texture placement. I haven't had any problems since I patched up the tear.

The real reason for this update is because I've tried my hand at cobbling together a lumber mill of sorts. It's all manual work for manly men or, I guess, burly mer. What follows is a lengthy explanation (illustrated!) of how I thought the place would run. It's mainly of interest (maybe) for the people who make the NPCs and their quarters, who incidentally might never see this post, but general feedback is naturally always good.

First, a general overview:

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/109/b90x.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img109/6977/b90x.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Everything would be done in three-man teams.

When felling a tree, two chop at it and one keeps an eye out to make sure that it falls properly and that nobody gets hurt.

After felling the tree, two saw it down to workable segments while the third lobs off the branches and tosses them into a cart.

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/59/0ib8.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img59/3154/0ib8.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Once that is done, two or three carry the logs to a gather point. The cart with branches is carted away at some point during, after or before this stage by the third person. The branches are probably used as firewood or burnt into charcoal.

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/827/g7qy.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img827/151/g7qy.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Three other workers then take the logs from the depot and carry them up to the wood processing area where they are placed on a sawbuck.

There, one worker slowly pushes the log along the sawbuck towards the other two, one of whom holds an iron axe level with the ground which the third pounds with a hammer driving it into the wood -- a rough substitute for an adze. The wood is worked into beams.
Finer work, such as making planks, is generally done with the doublesaw. Again, one holds the wood steady while the other two saw.

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/46/f1yz.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img46/6708/f1yz.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Once the wood is processed, it is brought to a crane from which it is loaded onto carts.

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/560/yp5z.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img560/3355/yp5z.th.jpg[/img][/url]

All of that being said, the number of total lumberjacks would be some multiple of three, the smallest being three and the largest, which gets a little silly, being eighteen.

If there are only three, they would obviously do everything, one after the other.
If there are six, one team would handle the work up to bringing the logs to the depot while the other team would take care of the rest. This is pretty much the minimum practical number of workers.
If there are nine, one team would fell trees, one team would process trees, and one team would move the lumber about as required.
If there are twelve, one team would fell trees, one would trim them and bring them to the depot, one would bring the lumber to and from the processing area and would process the wood between trips and one would only process the wood.
If there are fifteen, the first team would fell the trees, the second would trim them, the third would bring them to the depot, and the rest would be handled as above.
Fifteen people would probably make for the optimal workflow. More than that and some teams might end up idling about with nothing to do at times. Whether fifteen lumberjacks could and should fit into the lumberjack quarters is another question.

It's possible that a lot of the workers would be Nords, Orcs or both from the area trying to make a living, depending on how open to outsiders the village is supposed to be. That could explain why potentially half the town's population lives in one of the buildings.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Lol, that must be one of the most detailed WIP posts I've read for a while. Nice work! I give it a mutated three thumbs up.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

That's only because I haven't visited in a while. :wink:
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

More a backup than an update, but I do have a(nother) nooby question: what is TR's rough upper accepted limit for refs per cell? More for reference, really. (While I'm at it, is there a difference between the maximum refs accepted in an interior shell as opposed to an exterior shell?)
Mandul is currently at 737, and might reach as high as 900, but probably not higher. This is due to a mixture of forest and village; the other forest cells will probably be more in the region of 250-500. As such, I'm not really worried about hitting the limit, as Baan Malur, for example, has 1332 refs.
But then again, Baan Malur should probably be the exception, and not the rule, and I thought the rule might be useful to know.

And as I'm posting, I'll update anyway:

Still only working on the fertile area. Mandul itself ~99% done and tested with an Orc and Altmer, tree placement ~50% done, cliff edge ~33% done. Squashed a few floaters and most of the rough terrain (hopefully).

I'm not really planning much in the way of non-Mandul interiors for the fertile area. There does not appear to be enough room for bandits to operate or anything. I could toss in an ancestral tomb or BM style cave entrance or both if pressed, but I'll probably leave that to whoever does 5-7-Red.

However, and here we get to the obligatory pic, I did toss in a hidden door to some old Nordic place:

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/600/azvr.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img600/7729/azvr.th.jpg[/img][/url]

It could be a barrow, or something else; maybe just a short hallway that ends in collapsed rocks with a neat little something for the player. Or, of course, I could get rid of it entirely. It requires a bit of jumping to get there, but not too much, though I'll probably sort out the approaches a little as the player tends to stutter about on the nearby rocks.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

I don't have any limitations set for exterior cells, we let that be up to the individual modder's judgement. Of course, going all crysis on foilage usage will be subjected to some degree of deletion, but we usually don't put limitations on this kinda stuff.

Some of the statics are 5 in 1, the rocks_01 through 04 for instance. 200 of those will kinda be 1000, but really it is how the area performs in game that should be your clue.
Since Mandul is small, it is accepted with a high ref count, because you won't have several cells with the same amount of references. Mandul can reach 900 alright, and if the other cells reach 500 that is ok. This is not a very snowy claim, so more detail is expected.

Anyway it's the face count that matters, really.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Btw, be careful with TR_terrain_BM_rocks_03 and TR_terrain_BM_rocks_04, 01 and 02 looks better and fits the other BM rocks we have.

I had a look at the file in the CS, in the transition between -34 18 and -33 18, do you have the chance to create a little plateau of sorts? Just a 2-3 man height cliff for visual preferences.

Here, the first post it note concept in the history of tr :p :

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/755 ... 114007.jpg

Remember the base file we're working with is very rough and simple, I'd love to see this little detail worked into the file. The reason is simple; Uld Vraech is somewhat a small region, all efforts we make to make this thing more winding and labyrinth-y is good, as long as it's not too obvious that we do this. Creating a little detour here and there is good!
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

Nemon wrote:Here, the first post it note concept in the history of tr :p
The first, but hopefully not the last. Thanks for the info on ref count. I'll see to that plateau; the valley is rather lacking in vantage points at the moment.

I only use TR_terrain_BM_rocks_03 and TR_terrain_BM_rocks_04 around the steam, as they look rather corroded, which fits. I might see if I can fiddle about with them so that they transition into the other rocks a little better, though.

Edit: new file. I ended up pushing most of the ledge onto the neighbouring claim, is that alright? What I have is this:

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/850/smnj.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img850/5391/smnj.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Scale courtesy of Mr. Adondasi Sadalvel, for all you can see of him.

I'm thinking whoever takes the other claim can extend it to their liking, for example like so:

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/208/bwrz.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img208/4791/bwrz.th.jpg[/img][/url]

I could, of course, also move the whole thing onto my side, but I'm trying to avoid messing with the border heightmap too much.

And as I've attached a new file:

Still mainly working on the fertile area. Mandul itself is ~99% done and tested with an Orc, Altmer and Bosmer; tree placement ~66% done, cliff edge ~66% done. I'm looking to finish those today.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Oops, sorry forgot that that was in 5-7 as well! Feel free to move the cliff into your side. I'll make sure to upload a fresh heightmap file with all submitted claims, WIP and finished.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

New file.

The fertile area is mostly finished; it still needs undergrowth and some polish. The high ground is about 33% done. The colder low ground is untouched. Here's a large overview image of the cells I have mostly worked on:

[url=http://imageshack.us/a/img407/8343/kwwq.jpg][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img407/8343/kwwq.th.jpg[/img][/url]

I've also expanded the ledge:

[url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/189/w0es.jpg/][img]http://imageshack.us/a/img189/4025/w0es.th.jpg[/img][/url]

The majority of the plateau will still be in the other claim, but all of the ledge is in this claim. Which brings me to a question: should I keep the bordering 5-7 cell in my file for the heightmap and perhaps vertex shading? Or should I clean it out along with the other cells before submitting?
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Looks very good, and keep the cell in your file when you submit it for review. I'll do a fresh map 5 base file shortly and this will not only be good for future modding (consistency reference) but your changes won't be ruined if the other claimant should forget this part.

Question; have you used any of the activators with sound? I think rock_crumbling or whatever it's called near the cliffs should be perfect. Feel free to experiment as well, if it's good it can be used elsewhere. I often feel we forget about the soundscape when making exteriors.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Gnomey
Lead Developer
Posts: 2869
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 11:55 am
Location: In your garden.

Post by Gnomey »

It's good that you remind me of sound activators: the steam I'm using doesn't have a sound script attached; at the very least the fissures should probably make a sound. I'll get to that.

As far as not cleaning cells goes, what about the other bordering cells I alter slightly, for example at the ends of the roads? I've noticed that the claims to the north, south and west are unclaimed, and those are the claims the roads connect to.
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

Gnomey wrote: As far as not cleaning cells goes, what about the other bordering cells I alter slightly, for example at the ends of the roads? I've noticed that the claims to the north, south and west are unclaimed, and those are the claims the roads connect to.
Just clean those, I'll get to them later on.
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
User avatar
Nemon
Developer Emeritus
Posts: 2459
Joined: Sat Oct 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Location: Bergen

Post by Nemon »

I've had a look at the file now as well. Looks good, do remember to detail roads with occasional railing/fence, rocks, grass (properly sunk into ground as to not look like bouquets) and flora. Due to texture stretch, try not to scale too many rocks > 1.00 near roads.

Also inside forest-y bits, some grass, rocks, shrubs etc to avoid repetitiveness. You might have to sacrifice a few trees here and there but that's not bad considering rocks seem to stress the frames per second less than trees. Have you looked into the vandalized waystones btw? Could work here and there...

I noticed one pace a tree stub signifying the locals clearing out forest to put up road - that was interesting and worth some elaborating.

Oh, and lights. Along main road. I imagine near a village of this size some sort of lighting system could make sense.

Hehe :slavedriver:
SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI
Locked