Creating or Modding Building Models

[Seth Krn3ll]

Some views on my working-on Isengard city :)

[Aradan]

These look very beatiful. Orthanc's texture and half-standing the orcish pits are great!

[Myrddraal]

Aren't the pits a little big relative to the tower? Looking good

[Thor the Bassist]

Aren't the pits a little big relative to the tower? Looking good

I think the tower could be a little taller not the orc pits smaller. Then again I proberably will always want a bigger tower

Lookin good.

[Seth Krn3ll]

Ok my orc buildings are going on nicely, excepted for the texturing problems (someone skilled should REALLY add a tutorial with steps, tips and tricks to effectively skin buildings).

The LOTR-TW mod uses original game building models, calling them differently and giving them in-game adequate capabilities (e.g., roman academic buildings are used as warg dens) so as a start I am just creating my models and saving them with the name of the original game items.

But I was wondering, why not creating completely new structures?
So i worked on the process and found out that there are many files implied in structure listing and ingame use of them. Here is a list of what I guessed by experience:

data\export_descr_buildings.txt
gives the game building three with all capabilities and specifics for each building in the campaign. Vastly explained in many tutorials around.

data\export_buildings.txt
here all buildings are given a text description which will appears in game.

data\descr_settlement_plan
very uiseful and important file: this one defines the single elements to be used in every city shown ingame. There are set association with every culture settlement single plans, groups of various building models to be shown in settlements and culture variations. I found no tutorials around to mod it, and even if its pretty easy to understand it I think that file deserves much more attention.

data\settlement_plans\city_type.txt
where "city_type" stands for each type of settlement in the game, forts and camps included. Those files are fantastic. There you define all building models to be shown in each kind of settlement. You can specify coords and type for all kinda objects, including walls. It can list only models already listed in descr_settlement_plan, so if you want to customize settlements a lot you will have to work on descr_settlement_plan too.

Data\descr_building_battle\bdd.*.txt
Those files are still partially obscure to me. Actually, I guess they enlist all 3d building models fo the game, being sort of reference for all other quoted files. Sounds weird to me that they are not organized for cultures or building type, like lets say "dbb_roman_buildings" but they are assorted with names (maybe the one of of guys who made the buildings models?) like:
"dbb_nicks_roman_buildings".
Anyway their function is pretty clear, but listing models they refers to some things I missed to find out. For example, by listing the shrine object:

shrine_round
{
stat_cat small_stone
localised_name shrine
level
{
min_health 1
battle_stats
item shrine_round
physical_info info _shrine_round.cas
}
transition default_large_stone
level
{
min_health 0
battle_stats
item roman_rubble_7_radius
physical_info info _roman_rubble_7_radius.cas
}
}

"stat_cat" obviously stay for statistic category , and small_stone will probably be the referenced material. I guess its about how the object reacts to lights or maybe to other factors like earthquakes.

"localised_name" puzzles me. Which list of names is referenced here? Anyone knows? In my tries to add new buildings, this point seem a trouble. I tried setting "none" but not sure if it works.

"level" opens a bracket and inside are defined the different states for the buildings, I guess when its up and when its destroyed.

Not sure what "min_health" defines, nor "battle_stats", maybe they refers to reaction to siege attacks.

"item" its clear, it refers to the item .cas file to search in the item directory, so it tells the program what item model to use for that building in game.

I guess "physical_info" refers to a hidden .cas file setting the collisions infos of the model, unfortunately I was not able to open the .BPI files in INFO folder but it may be workarounded by using info of some existing buildings with same dimensions of the custom one.

**

As far as now I have not been able to add a brand new 3d building to the game. All I can do is to modify an existing one and use its references inside all files.

I think an exhaustive tutorial on creating new buildings would be important and if anyone is able to add totally new buildings and want to write down a step by step on the topic I hope those infos may help.

[Makanyane]

Seth you seem to be talking yourself into doing the tutorial you requested yourself - well done

"localised_name" puzzles me. Which list of names is referenced here? Anyone knows? In my tries to add new buildings, this point seem a trouble. I tried setting "none" but not sure if it works.

You can add a new name for something but it needs a look up added in data/text/building_battle.txt
(version of that file can be included in mod-folder.)

eg in the dbb file:
localised_name sacred_blood

you need
{sacred_blood} Sacred Blood
in the text file and you get a nice little hover message - instead of 'building' which is what 'ambient' used there gives you. If you use new 'localised_name' and don't put it in the text file you get straight CTD.

It doesn't matter which dbb file you add buildings to - but they must be in a dbb file or in
descr_building_battle.txt
itself - if you open that file you'll see if gives the list of all the dbb files which the game should read - its just a way of splitting up the files so you don't get one super long file with everything in.


You should be able to get totally new buildings in - other mods have and I did for eod2 (they are statues and odd totems etc, but game doesn't know they're not 'buildings') - what problem / error messages are you getting when you try new ones?

[Seth Krn3ll]

Seth you seem to be talking yourself into doing the tutorial you requested yourself - well done

LOL would love to be so skilled to write down a tutorial, my ones are just ideas and weird tentatives :)

You can add a new name for something but it needs a look up added in data/text/building_battle.txt
(version of that file can be included in mod-folder.)

Wait: in my version of the game the data/text/building_battle.txt seems to be greatly outdated. Maybe export_buildings.txt works for that too? I see if I msis adding name, descr and descr short there game crashes.

It doesn't matter which dbb file you add buildings to - but they must be in a dbb file or in
descr_building_battle.txt
itself - if you open that file you'll see if gives the list of all the dbb files which the game should read - its just a way of splitting up the files so you don't get one super long file with everything in.

Perfect! That sounds great, so I will just include my own dbb files and not tounch the original ones.

You should be able to get totally new buildings in - other mods have and I did for eod2 (they are statues and odd totems etc, but game doesn't know they're not 'buildings') - what problem / error messages are you getting when you try new ones?

Ok, I made a try and followed those steps:

1. added a building "orthanc" in export_descr_buildings.txt with a single level and its features:

building orthanc
{
levels orthanc
{
orthanc requires factions { romans_brutii, } and hidden_resource orthanc
{
capability
{
happiness_bonus bonus 1
recruits_exp_bonus bonus 1
}
construction 1
cost 400
settlement_min town
upgrades
{
}
}
}
plugins
{
}
}

(of course I added a "orthanc" hidden resource and added it to the region where the tower is settled).

2. added "orthanc" to the list of primary buildings in descr_settlement_plan.txt , and also added a slot named "slot_orthanc", no variants:

slot slot_orthanc
{
default
{
orthanc, 0, 0, 0, 0
}
}

3. Added names to export_buildings.txt

¬--------------
¬-------------- Unique buildings made by Krn3ll for LOTR-TW
¬--------------
{orthanc} Torre di Orthanc
{orthanc_desc} Torre di Orthanc
{orthanc_desc_short} Torre di Orthanc
¬--------------

and to be sure also to building_battle.txt

{orthanc} Torre di Orthanc

4. Included a personal file to includes in descr-building_battle.txt:

;krn3ll adding
include dbb_krnell_orc_buildings.txt

5. in that new dbb_krnell_orc_buildings.txt added the new building:

orthanc
{
stat_cat large_stone
localised_name orthanc
level
{
min_health 1
battle_stats
item orthanc
physical_info none
}
transition default_large_stone
level
{
min_health 0
battle_stats
item roman_rubble_48x32
physical_info info_roman_rubble_48x32.cas
}
}

I temporary let "none" for collisions becasue I had not a suitable game model: the idea was to find one suitable later on.

6. added my orthanc thing to the orc_large_city.txt (settlement plan)
slot_orthanc, 0, 0, -90, 0.5

7. added to ITEM folder the orthanc.ITEM (just a copy and rename of the actual roman_proconsul_palace.ITEM, which is the orthanc tower I remodelled and already works ingame)

8. Not just because I'm lazy but because the tower is already there at the time the campaign starts, added orthanc to a settlement in descr_strat.txt:

building
{
type orthanc orthanc
}

Then I run the game, it loads. I enter war of the ring campaign, it loads. I enter Isengard city, I see a "orthanc" building there with his own features.
I click on see settlement in battlemap, it starts loading... and half bar loaded or so it CTDs. No error messages.

My guess is that game does not like my slot_orthanc because it has no overlay - underlay, even if I read some buildings does not need overlay and / or underlay...

Anyone can tell me if thats the reason or what else am I doing wrong?