[Done for V0.39] Specifying a single bitmap for floor items

Post by **Gambit37** » Thu May 15, 2003 4:09 pm

Just a quick one, would it possible to have pillars that only require ONE graphic image that can be scaled by the game engine? For things like trees, etc, this would be a lot better than having to create 6 images, and would help keep file sizes down.

Post by **Gambit37** » Fri Jan 02, 2004 12:06 pm

Just raising this back to the top again. This would be very, very useful to cut down on file sizes, and effort required to create static objects.... Perhaps with the ability to automatically scale and shade if no extra scalings specified, or to use the other images if they ARE specified.

Also, after having played with the editor a bit, would it be possible to automatically use the main graphic as the icon graphic when using added bitmaps?

For example, I have created an animated fountain by cloning the pillar, but I didn't create an icon for it. It shows up in the editor as a pillar. It would be very useful for the editor to automatically use the items first frame as it's icon rather than default to the internal one.

Post by **Gambit37** » Thu Jan 22, 2004 6:28 pm

Additionally, would it be possible to add two other behaviours to pillars?

1) HEIGHT attribute (FULL or HALF). Setting to HALF would allow flying creatures to occupy the same tile, and also for the party to throw items over the object. In this way, using custom graphics, it would then be possible to create most kinds of decorations

2) BREAKABLE attribute. Speaks for itself really. For this to work, you'd need a CONVERT_TO parameter so that the broken object is non-blocking and can have a different graphic.

These additions would open up massive scope to RTC, and would allow a lot of DM2 funcitonality to be emulated....

Post by **Gambit37** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 2:33 pm

Bumping up for possible inclusion in 0.29.

This feature (one image for pillars and scalable) would actually be essential if you are going to add the coloured fogging parameter (for things like Linflas' desert fog).

George Gilbert · Post by **George Gilbert** » Thu Sep 09, 2004 11:42 am

You can actually do the BREAKABLE thing already in V0.28 (and earlier). Simply clone a wooden door (and broken version) place it in the dungeon without a door frame or button...

Post by **Gambit37** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 5:44 pm

Just bringing this back up for consideration.

George Gilbert · Post by **George Gilbert** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 5:52 pm

The HALF thing will get done at the same time as I do tables (dunno when that will be though - if it helps, it's on the shortlist!)

Post by **Gambit37** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 5:57 pm

My main issue in this thread is being able to get clones of pillars that only require ONE graphic and are scaled by the engine, like the fountain I gave as an example at the top of this thread.

Also, as I noted further down, i think this is actually essentail if you ever implement different coloured fogging:

This feature (one image for pillars and scalable) would actually be essential if you are going to add the coloured fogging parameter (for things like Linflas' desert fog).

Is this possible?

Post by **linflas** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 7:53 pm

bumping too : because you must add some fog depending on the distance on each bitmap : same for puddles, cracks and similar flooritems... which is redundant imho.

Post by **Gambit37** » Sat Nov 26, 2005 4:29 pm

Fogging has been implemented since v0.31. I never noticed. See this thread:

http://www.dungeon-master.com/forum/vie ... hp?p=59010

George Gilbert · Post by **George Gilbert** » Fri May 26, 2006 4:34 pm

Done for V0.39 (the auto-scaling if you only specify a single front1 bitmap that is, everything else can already be done).

Post by **linflas** » Fri May 26, 2006 4:47 pm

wonderful ! would this affect all flooritems except pits and stairs ? you know these ones are special..

George Gilbert · Post by **George Gilbert** » Fri May 26, 2006 5:21 pm

The auto-scaling only kicks in if *ONLY* the front1 bitmap is specified. If any others are then it uses the bitmaps exactly as specified.

Note that loads of other things apart from the pits / stairs (e.g. pads, grates, doorframes, pillars etc) require individual specification of each bitmap because of the perspective problem.

You should only use this feature if your flooritem looks the same from any direction (in particular, diagonally).

Post by **linflas** » Fri May 26, 2006 7:13 pm

very very VERY useful for trees, bushes, rocks, grass, flowers.. !

Post by **Gambit37** » Fri May 26, 2006 8:04 pm

*Yay* *claps hands*

copperman · Post by **copperman** » Sat May 27, 2006 1:54 am

yeay, more content from DM2 can be used without needing to be whack'ed or whatever

Post by **Sophia** » Sun May 28, 2006 10:15 pm

George Gilbert wrote:The auto-scaling only kicks in if *ONLY* the front1 bitmap is specified. If any others are then it uses the bitmaps exactly as specified.

I'm wondering if this wouldn't be too hard to get for asymmetric flooritems, too?

What I mean is, to be able to specify one north, one south, one east, and one west bitmap, but let the engine handle the scaling, positioning, and shading of the bitmap from each of these directions.

George Gilbert · Post by **George Gilbert** » Sun May 28, 2006 10:37 pm

I'm wondering if this wouldn't be too hard to get for asymmetric flooritems, too?

It'd be horrifically complex!

If something looks differently from the north to how it looks from the east, then how it looks from the northeast (i.e. one of the side bitmaps needed) would be some mixture of the two bitmaps. To work out how much of each of the two bitmaps, you need to know the geometry of the object the bitmap is representing - specifically you'd need to take the 2D bitmap and turn it into a 3D model, then splice the bitmaps together and generate a 2D bitmap again - RTC might be quite nifty, but it isn't that good!

To see this, consider the example of a square pillar and a thin fence.

- In the square pillar case, the north east bitmap will be 50% of the north bitmap combined with 50% of the south bitmap (then scaled because of the root 2 extra distance).

- In the case of a thin fence (the north bitmap being wide, and the east bitmap being thin), the north east bitmap would be about 90% of the north bitmap and 10% of the east bitmap.

i.e. the proportion of the bitmaps depends on the geometry of the object (which is unknown to RTC).

Post by **Sophia** » Sun May 28, 2006 10:44 pm

George Gilbert wrote:It'd be horrifically complex!

Eh, it doesn't have to be. All of that stuff you talked about is perfectly valid, for a proper 3d implementation, but I guess what I had in mind is far simpler, and is already used for monsters, in fact.

The side views are simply the head-on view shifted a few pixels one way or the other. It's not strictly accurate, but for most objects, it looks good enough.

Post by **linflas** » Sun May 28, 2006 11:51 pm

GG wrote:- specifically you'd need to take the 2D bitmap and turn it into a 3D model, then splice the bitmaps together and generate a 2D bitmap again - RTC might be quite nifty, but it isn't that good!

come on George, why don't you make RTC in full 3D ?!!

Post by **Lunever** » Mon May 29, 2006 12:10 am

I think it'd be actually enough if such an autoscaling would be able to handle strict 2D opjects, like a 2D-tapestry or a 2D-carpet.

George Gilbert · Post by **George Gilbert** » Thu Jun 08, 2006 10:38 pm

Sophia wrote:What I mean is, to be able to specify one north, one south, one east, and one west bitmap, but let the engine handle the scaling, positioning, and shading of the bitmap from each of these directions.

OK - now done this for V0.39.

(But, as above, you should be careful doing this because the diagonal images won't be exactly right).