Hello, So I have been a little disappointed that the developers have not finished the in-game map editor. I really think that the accessible and intuitive map editor that has been the hallmark of the series is sorely missed in Cossacks3. The ability for users to make their own content really adds to the game. I was going to leave the game alone for a while and check back in some months time to see if the situation had changed but before I did so I decided to sit down with the external editor It appears complicated and so instantly puts you off using it but I stuck with it and found the results surprising. Once you begin to get the hang of it you can start making some nice looking maps and by switching between the editor and the in-game editor using the test map function it is quite easy to place troops and buildings. I became quite engrossed and also worked out which files I had to mod to upload my own textures to use. The ones currently available in the editor are as bland as can possibly be. I will post a guide and some hints and tips soon so others can build on what I found worked. There is loads that I cannot fathom yet and I have not worked out if maps can be loaded up into the game but if the developers will not finish the in-game editor then I think that we can still make maps using the external editor. Below are some screen shots I put together to give you an idea of what I was able to achieve. I was using the realism mod and the graphics mod at the same time (great work on those chaps). Stu
I knew that once you got it figured out the results would be spectacular! And you have not disappointed me in the least! Beautiful work!
Stu, you are without doubt a genius, I had a look at the Editor and thought 'what the hell'. Superb work.
Very nice Stu. Beware of the hardcoded texture limit. Past 128 textures you will no longer be able to use them. I think currently 110 slots out of 128 are taken up, but it's possible to create "texture groups' with the unused season option, bit more work, but not too complicated, that way you could add 3 times as many textures. I agree, the current textures are a bit bland and there's way too much 'grass' in the current textures. I see you added some nice ones. I think if you want to 'load' maps, you should try add them in the campaign menu for now.
Thank you, obviously still lots to learn and I do not see that there is a way to play a user generated map as a multiplayer game yet but at least by getting to grips with the editor we should be able to create our own content in the future when that feature becomes available, which is great. In due course I think that we will have to mod the camera pre-sets to have a ‘zoomed’ out mode. One similar to AC as the vanilla camera is a little too close to play large battles comfortably. That is for another day however. I was eager to see what a historical battle would look like instead of the small tests I have been doing so far so I quickly put together a map of the Battle of Edgehill, it is a bit rough around the edges but you can see my efforts below. It does look great with lots of troops. Stu The view from Edgehill showing the Royalist army forming up against the Parliamentarians Royalist artillery opens fire The view from Kineton behind the Parliamentarian lines A birds eye view of deployment
You know what would look even more amazing in those screenshots would be the daytime/night time environment that someone discovered/unlocked in the other thread. Stu what time of the day did the Royalist & Parliamentarian armies meet in that historic battle?
Not sure what time the battle started. It was a date in October and there was quite a bit of faffing about before hand so it was not an early kick-off I would deduce. There is tons of stuff in the map editor and lots of new features that have great potential. Weather, time of day resulting in battles coming to an end as night falls, reinforcements entering onto the map etc. All seem to be real possibilities. In my view historical battles, to make them a really great to play, require two main features. Gameplay that recreates the spirit of horse and musket battles - so morale, realistic casualty rates etc. The second feature needed is wonderful aesthetics. Placing lots of troops at the moment looks good but it would be even better with flags billowing in the wind, accurate uniforms and great bouts of smoke from guns. There are, of course, many dangers that lie ahead such as working out the limits of maps before crashes and trying to find the best set up so that they run smoothly. All in the greater context of the game needing to have more stable multiplayer and less crashes. But as a start there are lots of positives and potential.
Have you had any luck creating patterns? I've been fiddling around with it, and reckon you could introduce farmsteads, rivers with bridges, and fields etc into random maps, if anyone has any luck creating and saving them... So far all's I've managed is replacing patterns with those that already exist
Yes , i'v made some for my desert and artic maps and added them to the rnd generator. What exactly are you doing that it's not working? Are you using the map mask at all? Side note, if you want to introduce 'fields' into rnd maps, might want to look into a different type of texture, which already has fields in it, for example something like this: Spoiler
The screenshots are amazing. Do we have modells for horse + cart that can be placed behind the lines and near the artillery to simulate supply units? Or some ammo boxes and tents to imitate field head quarters
Just tents for now, as for simulating horses and carts there are separate models for each that can be used to replicate a supply unit in a static position. But perhaps someone can combine the packhorse and cart models and make a supply unit which could take ammo from a supply depot to men and artillery on the frontline, meaning that if you're flanked and your supply is cut off you're effectively dead.
Sorry to Highjack your thread @Stu - I've not used the Map Masks @Ebel, how does one use them? Sorry for my ignorance!
