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The idea is to model just the building and avoid modeling any of the yard unless there is some specific structures on the yard. You can model props that come with the building such as rooftop props like a satellite dish etc but there is a possibility to prop the building in the modding tools with pre-made assets in the game (this includes propping the lot/yard).Well, i found the 1 zone tile = 8x8m very important. Its simple information but that information allows me to scale up right.
There is just one more question: Are the lots separated? Do i need to model the lot stuff with the building or are these generated to create some randomness? If you want to keep the 'lot' information for later i'ts ok. but i want to know if i have to model hedges and fences.. stuff like that in with the building model.
It is important that the building pivot is centered so that the building appears in the correct spot on the lot (of course if you should want the building to appear maybe on the left side of the lot then you need to adjust the pivot in the 3D modeling software accordingly).
There are things like hedges in the game's prop collection (you can see them in the various screenshots in diaries and most definitely in the various videos) so you don't need to do any of that (however, you can of course create your own hedge props if you feel that you want a more unique type of fence and then import it as a prop but more on that in the official dev diary, me thinks).
The lot size is also adjustable in the modding tools so that you can with a smaller building make room for parking spaces (like in the Big Bite burger joint that can be seen in one of the Themes dev diary pictures) but keep in mind the measurements I provided earlier, especially for zoned buildings.
This is great news! The separation of Buildings and lots! I hope we can define multiple lots (or yards if you will) for the same building, or that it is auto-generated from the prop collection.
HOLY SHIT BALLS!
this sounds EXACTLY like SC4's lot editor....I am very excited now...
Quick question....can we per say....ADD to the library of "props" and make them available to other people for use to make some customized lots? so people who have not learned how to 3d model have a large library of costume props to make some very interesting lots?!?!?!?!?1
PLEASE GIVE ME AN ANSWER BEFORE MY HEART EXPLODES!
Without going to much detail here since there is going to be a modding tools dev diary in the near future, I'll just say that Cities: Skylines supports modding which includes creating your own buildings etc and Steam Workshop where you can share your creations with others. In short, if you don't know how to model, say, a garden swing, you can go to the Steam Workshop and check if someone else has already made one.
I tried Blendr as it's free but it seems like a pain in the proverbial to use. Any nicer/easier programs for novices? I don't mind paying a little bit but no more than $50 or so.
PS don't forget there are huge repositories of 3D model buildings on the internet so you don't necessarily have to start from scratch, however you may need to simplify (reduce the number of vertices.polygons) for many to keep them easy to draw.
PS don't forget there are huge repositories of 3D model buildings on the internet so you don't necessarily have to start from scratch, however you may need to simplify (reduce the number of vertices.polygons) for many to keep them easy to draw.
I don't know any 3d apps that are as cheap as $50. There's Blender that's free, but I can't stand it. The UI makes no sense to me.
LightWave happens to be on a 'sale' right now. It's $695 - which is $300 off of the normal price. From what I gather, that's as cheap as you can go for a full license of a professional 3D tool. Competing apps usually go way beyond that price, from $1500 and up to multiple thousands.
There's always MayaLT on Steam (which has a monthly subscription) and Modo Indie (which also is on Steam in a lite version of Modo) for about $260 or so. Modo by the way is sort of LightWave in a newer UI. They have a lot in common since it was created by two ex LightWave devs. I don't know which limitations Modo Indie have in terms of functionality though. Might be limitations on poly limit, rendering or baking tools. I don't know. Read up on it.
LightWave happens to be on a 'sale' right now. It's $695 - which is $300 off of the normal price. From what I gather, that's as cheap as you can go for a full license of a professional 3D tool. Competing apps usually go way beyond that price, from $1500 and up to multiple thousands.
There's always MayaLT on Steam (which has a monthly subscription) and Modo Indie (which also is on Steam in a lite version of Modo) for about $260 or so. Modo by the way is sort of LightWave in a newer UI. They have a lot in common since it was created by two ex LightWave devs. I don't know which limitations Modo Indie have in terms of functionality though. Might be limitations on poly limit, rendering or baking tools. I don't know. Read up on it.
Cant see myself making any assets for CSL, but only because theres so many thing i like to dabble in and barely scratch the surface with and i'd be very surprised if i made anything competent and useful that someone else couldnt make in a fraction of the time... that said, im REALLY looking forward to seeing it in action, and the very fact that we'll be able to design things based on official or community content with great ease, is absolutely brilliant, and perhaps will push ppl like myself to give it a try, and more knowledgeable gamers can only be a good thing for CSL and its future, and even other games who embrace modding so openly regardless of ability.
Ha! Tell me about it! I'm glad it's not just me that thinks this way.
When I first opened it my initial impression was WTF, which quickly turned to f**k this sh*t! Sometimes open-source projects become a runaway train wreck!I think I'll leave the custom models to the pros... namely OlaHaldor!
I'm much more interested (and experienced) in making maps so that's what I'll focus on. And at $100 the basic World Machine license is at least vaguely affordable! I'm surprised these 3D modelling softwares don't have home-use licensing yet. There are many other professional applications I'm familiar with (such as ArcGIS and Matlab) that have this now. The only caveat being they can't be used for commercial purposes.
Anything other than World Machine I should consider OlaHaldor? It looks pretty good from what I've seen.
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There are educational licenses. Some require you attend a course at a school. Others are more like "use it at home" as you say. I believe Maya has the latter kind of education license, if not a "personal learning" version. Give it a shot and see.
LightWave is utterly cheap to purchase compared to the muscles it can flex. It's a fully usable, commercial license. They have a 30 day trial you could check as well.
If you end up doing some 3d jobs for pay, you'll see the license pays itself with one or two jobs max!
For the record, I don't rely solely on LightWave. I have an arsenal of tools to help me get the job done. This List have been built through the course of years as I've just kept 3D as a hobby for now:
-LightWave 3D with LWCAD for modeling and rendering.
-Octane for GPU based rendering, plugin for LW
-3DCoat, to create and edit UV maps. Can also paint texture maps
-Photoshop, goes without saying
-Substance Painter to paint textures in a physically based environment
You won't necessary need all these, or you can go for entirely different software. The point being; no software does every aspect perfectly well.
I plan to make some videos with info and workflow ideas.
LightWave is utterly cheap to purchase compared to the muscles it can flex. It's a fully usable, commercial license. They have a 30 day trial you could check as well.
If you end up doing some 3d jobs for pay, you'll see the license pays itself with one or two jobs max!
For the record, I don't rely solely on LightWave. I have an arsenal of tools to help me get the job done. This List have been built through the course of years as I've just kept 3D as a hobby for now:
-LightWave 3D with LWCAD for modeling and rendering.
-Octane for GPU based rendering, plugin for LW
-3DCoat, to create and edit UV maps. Can also paint texture maps
-Photoshop, goes without saying
-Substance Painter to paint textures in a physically based environment
You won't necessary need all these, or you can go for entirely different software. The point being; no software does every aspect perfectly well.
I plan to make some videos with info and workflow ideas.
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Great info but I still think I'll leave the building models for now, until at least unless I get bored of map making anyway! I won't know for sure the best methods of working with the map editor (i.e. how it interprets or behaves) until I get it in my hands but I'm curious about using World Machine to work with DEM sources.
What else do you use other than World Machine (and image editors presumably) for your maps OlaHaldor?
What else do you use other than World Machine (and image editors presumably) for your maps OlaHaldor?
I some times sculpt something in 3Dcoat to get a head start on the main features, export a heightmap I then import in WM. Some times it's enough to just run an erosion node on it, other times I use the heightmap as the base for an advanced perlin node and continue from there. If you check my CiM2 tutorials there should be one that covers exactly this.
DEM files are a bit different. They come in all sorts of files depending on their origin, thus requires more specialized tools. But one tool to rule them all is Global Mapper. Far from free unfortunately. But it can chew on just about ANYTHING DEM you throw at it.
But most of the time when I make maps I use only WM and randomly try new things I haven't done before. Some times it looks good, other times not and need more work.
I think if we set the height boundary to 1024 we are safe. And mostly, what you see is what you get. Take into consideration that water needs some depth. so switch on that water preview while you create the map and you're safe!
I also believe the map should be 18x18km since it's 5 tiles wide for the possible city expanding, + two tiles on either side for aesthetics.
DEM files are a bit different. They come in all sorts of files depending on their origin, thus requires more specialized tools. But one tool to rule them all is Global Mapper. Far from free unfortunately. But it can chew on just about ANYTHING DEM you throw at it.
But most of the time when I make maps I use only WM and randomly try new things I haven't done before. Some times it looks good, other times not and need more work.
I think if we set the height boundary to 1024 we are safe. And mostly, what you see is what you get. Take into consideration that water needs some depth. so switch on that water preview while you create the map and you're safe!
I also believe the map should be 18x18km since it's 5 tiles wide for the possible city expanding, + two tiles on either side for aesthetics.
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Blender is just like learning to type with 10 fingers all over again. In the end you will love it. The trick I use to learn this stuff is not to look at the UI and rather use shortkeys and the spacebar for the command search.
Oh OlaHaldor, nice to see you over here. After TrainFever we now mod for CS? I'm on board. Cant wait to see your stuff.
Maybe we can bring our TF trains to CS as well. I think I'll bring my Voith Maxima diesel freight loco to CS first.
I just startet modelling the appartment I'm living in, before we get more infos on modding.
Maybe we can bring our TF trains to CS as well. I think I'll bring my Voith Maxima diesel freight loco to CS first.
I just startet modelling the appartment I'm living in, before we get more infos on modding.
Yup! I love strategy games. Can you blame me?
I enjoy modding for TF - but have so little time to get too deep into it. If I weren't engaged, studying and working at the same time I'd be much more active on the modding front for TF. Time to sit down and relax is a luxury.
I've thought of bringing the Flirt over to CSL. I think it'd be a nice commuter in the city. Hopefully, modding of vehicles is possible.
Since we have some info on lot sizes, I see no reason to hold back now
I enjoy modding for TF - but have so little time to get too deep into it. If I weren't engaged, studying and working at the same time I'd be much more active on the modding front for TF. Time to sit down and relax is a luxury.
I've thought of bringing the Flirt over to CSL. I think it'd be a nice commuter in the city. Hopefully, modding of vehicles is possible.
Since we have some info on lot sizes, I see no reason to hold back now