Fog Layers are the Tool of the Devil

I noticed about half a dozen threads about this problem tucked away in the background of GG, but none of them explained what the problem was. If there was a link with possible information, I was denied access to it.

Now that we've gotten the "why don't you try looking yourself" part out of the way... If you don't know what fog layers are, read away. If you do, skip to the bottom paragraph.

As I've managed to gather, the three fog layers work like this: each layer is seperate from the other and has three numerical values (0, 0, 0) that control a horizontal layer of fog. The normal fog layer (the fog distance value) is meant to make the transition of objects drawn in the distance appear more natural. However, if you wanted to make fog lay in a valley floor but not be present above that point, you'd have to use the fog layers. The obvious problem is that it stretches indefinitely across the playing field, unlike, say, a water block, making it impossible to place in a small area only. But I digress.

Now, let's say I want to make a layer of fog in a valley floor that is very dense at the bottom but eventually dissipates as you reach the top of the valley. Let us also say that this is a very high area: say, the lowest terrain point is "0" (the last value when you place an object on the map) and the highest point is "5000", a very tall mountain peak.

Before we try to create our layer of fog, we have to understand what the three values in each layer do. As it's been my understanding, this is what each number is: the first is the visible distance of that layer of fog. This is the same thing as the normal "Fog Distance" value. If you set it to "10" it will be 10 meters in front of you. The next number is where the fog begins. That is to say, it is the point on a vertical scale where the fog is created. If I set it to "0" then the fog will start at the bottom of our valley. If I set it to "50", it will start 50 meters above that valley floor. If you were standing there, it would be clear in front of you, but 50 meters above you, you'd notice a large sheet of fog. The last value is where the fog ends. If the fog starts at 50 meters and I set the last value to 100, then the fog will no longer exist above 100 meters. If I were standing 150 meters above "0", I would see clear skies in front of me, but below me I'd notice a layer of fog. In this example, the 3 values of Fog Layer 1 would be "10 50 100".

Okay, now that we have the supposedly accurate facts, let's try to make a nice cloudy valley floor. I want really thick fog down at the bottom, so I'll set the first value at "0", for 0 meters in front of my face. I want the fog to go all the way down to the bottom of the map, so I'll make the second value "0" as well. I want to be able to see this fog from way up, so we'll make this a large layer. I'll make the last value "1024". (Remember, our map is 5000 meters high, and that's a lot in mapping terms.) Okay, this makes our first fog layer (Fog Layer 1) "0 0 1024".

Now that we have our fog layer, we could quit. But, I want to make my fog fade all the way to the top, until it's not so thick anymore. To make the fog less thick, we'll set the first value of the second fog layer to a higher number than "0", like "256". The next fog layer will be 256 meters in front of my face. Now, we'll start off this fog layer where the last one left off. So, we'll use the last number of the first layer as the second number of the second layer. Confused? Don't be. We're stacking fog like layers of cheese and meat on a sandwhich. The meat doesn't float above the cheese, right? So, we have to make sure it looks right by putting them as close together as they should be. So, our second number is "1024". Now, we'll make the last number extend quite a bit, so it looks a bit more natural. We'll double 1024 to get our last number for the second layer, "2048". So, our second fog layer is "256 1024 2048".

I shouldn't have to explain what I'm going to do here. We'll use the same principles and get our next sequence of numbers: "512 2048 4096". The fog in this layer is drawn 512 meters in front of me, at a vertical distance of 2048 meters from the terrain's lowest point, and it ends 4096 meters above the terrain's lowest point.

We're done! Or are we? According to what the fog layers are supposed to do, I should be able to stand on my mountain top 5000 meters above the surface and see a thin layer of fog right below me, as long as I'm 512 meters from the 4096 meter point, since that's the point the fog is first drawn at. Everything is perfect.

But yet, it does not work. The way I'm told it works does not work, and in every test and trial and error I've been through, it has yet to ever work correctly. I've gotten it to work a few times by randomly typing in numbers into the mission editor and bashing the apply button until I'm blue in the face. Fog layers are a definite mystery to me, as they don't work the way people say they do. Is there some kind of interference going on? Maybe the original Fog Distance value is causing some kind of interference. I tried setting this value to both 0 up to 5000 with no results. Nothing changes. I've asked numerous people how to work this, and they explain it the same way, yet when I do it, it doesn't work. No one can tell me why it doesn't work, and apparently a lot of other people before me have been baffled by this as well.

If someone can figure this out, I'll give you a cookie. Although, if I do get an actual response, it will probably be something I do not understand, or "you're screwed." By the way, do not post a response saying "You're screwed." It may be humorous, but I will track you down and hurt you nontheless, as I am not a happy man.