Torque big maps and L3DT

#1 Check out this thread for info on this :-)

www.garagegames.com/community/forums/viewthread/112089

#2 Thanks David I will go have a look.

#3 how large and how detailed are you looking to do?

#4 Paul I have to confess that I am at the start of making an MMO and while I know this is a hot debate at the moment.

I would just like to have something that you can't run across in 2 to 3 minute and know that in the large scheme of things that there will the ability to creat a world/ continent map for an MMO when I need to.

#5 WinterLeaf Entertainment is working on both a MMO and a MMO platform using the T3D engine. Im using L3DT to create the landscapes for this. so far, the biggest and best zones that I have made that works fairly well with T3D is a 2048x2x2 zone. L3DT has a "how to" on making zones for T3D thats will explain the process in more detail. Feel free to email me if you have issues with it.

#6 Thanks Paul it is good to know that it can work with T3D. I will go over and check it out and I'll e-mail if i need to

I have created a 2048x64x64 terrian and all other combination testing T3D but it aint too good having a character running over flat ground.

Thanks again and for the info

#7 I use geocontrol to generate my height and diffuse maps for terrains, and also work on them afterwards in photoshop if i want to blend different style of terrains together.

I made some testers before aswell with 4096 resolution heightmaps, for detailed smaller maps, aswell as large zones, it works, however you cant really go +-12/15k units from 0,0,0 as you start to get some noticable flickering around shapes and z order fighting due to precision issues.

A suggestion though is to think micro machines :P shrink down all your assets and characters, create your terrain to go with that scaling, you can get more then enough terrain into your level for any rpg game to use, ive had terrains like that which took close to 2 hours to run across from corner to corner with the soldier, but bear in mind the poly count of that terrain, your view distances, and including everything else for your game running in the background and world assets, can fast bog down your resources.

Its possible, however without alot of work in the engine, t3d is not going to make a seamless world the size of something like warcraft with the performance of it.

Personally I never really liked l3dt's terrains due to the total absence of any proper "noise" in the levels it exports, huge flat areas. It gives you a nice base for a level, but it always needs retexturing, and practically the whole level to be reworked for detail.

#8 Andy thanks, It's hard to get started without the self approval of the engine would create something worth working on without change further down the line.

I had read the posts on floating point and had noticed the exaggerated skip of step when testing, which looked like a freezing on a run cycle but all irrelevant to ponder on.

It is good to know while L3dt works to an extent it still isn't a plug and play persay and cost.

I will play about with scalling. lol half the size twice the area, but I would have though there would be some tiling effect - I have read the posts on tiling and streaming and what Tom had said. I thought that the terrain was just another object in the .mis file and thus 1 pampost or 2 plamposts == 1 terrain or 2 terrains would be the same. I know it isn't but food for though anyway.

Thanks for the post and the information, back to more documentation for me, Yepee :(

Catch you later

#9 Never really worked with GeoControl so i personally have no real comparison. Does it export to T3D easily? While i like L3DT, im never against looking at something new :)

#10 it exports to heightmap, then import the image into t3d to create the terrain that way. It can also create texture maps for the whole terrain as a base diffuse using your own rules, filters and colour gradients etc, it can churn out some really nice looking realistic terrains