Converting Civilization3 unit animations

[cegorach]

Does it include older files such as those from ten years ago? I'll have a look. There are definetely quite many interesting entries.

Also what do you think, the both of you, about pikemen models with pikes in hand? I'd like to have at least two such animations, but I am not sure about the lenght of the pikes. Many could look like half-pikes, but even that will require work.


EDIT: Boy, it couldn't be better! I guess the majority of animations which I found interesting and useful are from this guy! I'll spend Saturday going through his files to help him locate his Poser models.

[zweihander]

Does it include older files such as those from ten years ago? I'll have a look. There are definetely quite many interesting entries.

I don't know how many files he still have today.

Also what do you think, the both of you, about pikemen models with pikes in hand? I'd like to have at least two such animations, but I am not sure about the lenght of the pikes. Many could look like half-pikes, but even that will require work.

I also want to ask you this question: if we make some units using very long weapon such as pike, halberd, etc. Should we (1)render the weapon together with the unit's body, or (2) render the weapon as a separate 'item'.

(1)
Advantage: the graphical performance would be better, don't need the deal with the weapon position code.
Disadvantage: cost too many space of a bif

(2)
Advantage: save the space of the BIFs
Disadvantage: worse graphical performance, need to deal with the weapon position code, a nightmare to me...

BTW, the length, width etc. of a weapon is very easy to edit in Poser, so don't worry about this.

EDIT: Boy, it couldn't be better! I guess the majority of animations which I found interesting and useful are from this guy! I'll spend Saturday going through his files to help him locate his Poser models.

Yes, Imperator also said that he has followed PMTW mod for some years as for the ideas and the uniforms informations PMTW give.

[Stazi]

(1)
Advantage: the graphical performance would be better, don't need the deal with the weapon position code.
Disadvantage: cost too many space of a bif

A perfect example of this:

We can try both ways and see if we can get reasonable results with pike as separate weapon.

[zweihander]

A perfect example of this:



We can try both ways and see if we can get reasonable results with pike as separate weapon.

Make a quick camparsion: that one is smaller than a original MTW unit, not much smaller though.

[cegorach]

I've already went through 10 sets of animations, but don't have time to do more right now.

There is a number we definetely could use, but I have to ask another question - what about cavalry on horses?

Do we have space for that? There is a couple of nice animations we could use, but obviously only if those horses do not take too much space on a BIF.

Remember that for variety we still need what was present in PMTW 1.5 - especially with black and grey horses we can now use so only a couple of such animations would be enough.


We will have to test how much space it will take on a BIF - two per directory should be OK in my opinion.
6 such animations at the most, at least I don't think there is a need for more.

It is not to replace PMTW cavalry, but to add those few which are necessary.

[Stazi]

There is a number we definetely could use, but I have to ask another question - what about cavalry on horses?

Do we have space for that? There is a couple of nice animations we could use, but obviously only if those horses do not take too much space on a BIF.

Cavalry on horses takes even more space that a pikemen. It's like Tatars in MOCOSCAV folder. Two, maybe three units per 1024 p file at best. Of course if you want to reduce the number of poses (like those Tatars) we can fit four. BTW you mentioned that Shogun animations have more different frames. Could you upload them? I don't have Shogun:TW.

[zweihander]

We can try to create cavalry unit graphic without the horse.

[cegorach]

We can try to create cavalry unit graphic without the horse.

Yes, we could, but I thought about a couple of animations which include interesting, different mounts (e.g. Berber Camel raider) or because I need one horse & mount animation for Balcan mounted infantry - just like with Dragoon units, but different.

Alright, here is the units I want to request:

Doppelsoldner, to see if I can do some improvement to my previous doppelsoldner graphic.
Heavy Landsknecht Pikeman, for the armoured landsknechts in PMTW.
Light Landsknecht Pikeman, for the unarmoured landsknechts in PMTW.


What do you think of them?

I wanted to propose them myself + the lansknecht arquebusier/caliver which is also very useful Possibly only for one unit, but so many factions use Landsknechte it makes sense to have this animation in faction colours.

Cavalry on horses takes even more space that a pikemen. It's like Tatars in MOCOSCAV folder. Two, maybe three units per 1024 p file at best. Of course if you want to reduce the number of poses (like those Tatars) we can fit four. BTW you mentioned that Shogun animations have more different frames. Could you upload them? I don't have Shogun:TW.

I doubt there will be more than 6 such animations we will ever need, but rather less than six.

I have checked and I do not have the original BIFs anymore. I've deleted STW years ago because I no longer use a DVD player in any computer and the game required one.

Mongol light cavalry just like any cavalry unit in STW was using two BIF files so death or shooting animations were not possible to include.