Global Campaign

[danzig70]

Heres a new release post. I will just keep updating it.

RELEASES:

I have made it a bit easier. Just install the WorldWind application and then add the custom content to the default "world". No need to make a custom "world" at this point.

After you install the program you will have several folders (directories) in the NASA\WorldWind 1.4 directory. Unzip and the files below and place in this directory. You will be overwriting folders but not files. Files are added and not replaced.

Readme document with note on using SRTM
www.sendspace.com/file/jjc0q1

Install NASA's WorldWind application: worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/download.html

Config files: www.sendspace.com/file/8z2xjj

Add-on files: www.sendspace.com/file/id7aba (includes a few German topo maps)

NOTE: If you have already downloaded the Add-ons.zip, I forgot to add the BK maps. You can just add the following files. The Add-ons.zip has been corrected now.

www.sendspace.com/file/uv7gkv

France topo maps:
maps part 1 www.sendspace.com/file/p0go0a
maps part 2 www.sendspace.com/file/glmf12
maps part 3 www.sendspace.com/file/ovwpp6
maps part 4 www.sendspace.com/file/utq2ah
maps part 5 www.sendspace.com/file/gimtjb
maps part 6 www.sendspace.com/file/4szs2c
maps part 7 www.sendspace.com/file/1lo4vw
maps part 8 www.sendspace.com/file/q27nfd
maps part 9 www.sendspace.com/file/k51zaf
maps part 10 www.sendspace.com/file/t280t1

[danzig70]

Here I am using terrain as a shaded relief map (in progress) so that I will be able to edit the heights once saved as xml.



This is the reference topo map in the editor


Here the true heights seen in WW

[LouisXIV]

Wow! Looks impressive!

When can you put it all together?

[danzig70]

Thanks Louis. Short answer: quite a while.

It will be a nine map chapter. I have placed roads, rail in six maps. This is my first "terrain/elevation pattern" map as a test of concept. So I have to finish eight maps, do the elevation patterns, add custom buildings, heights and scripts.

Then I hope to use the chapter script experimentally so I will have to play around with that.

Quite a while, Im afraid.

[Folgore]

I'm sure it will worth the waiting...

[danzig70]

Thanks Folgore!

This is an image of the nine maps, 3x3. Im hoping I can move from one map to another without having to go to the chapter screen.

[danzig70]

Hurray my cd of the state of Saarland arrived today. Very impressive. Here are some screenshots.





Includes 360 degree views of landmarks.

[zaltar]

Fascinating use of topographical maps!

zaltar

[danzig70]

Thanks Zaltar. I have become enamored with virtual cities lately. I read some tips which mentioned using topo maps as a basis for building footprints, etc and I was like, Hey way ahead of ya!

I am anxious to do some buildings and cars after the maps are finished.

[LouisXIV]

Feb 24, 2011 0:55:56 GMT 1 LouisXIV said:

Wow! Looks impressive!

How can you translate this into Blitzkrieg missions?

[danzig70]

Well if all goes according to plan it will be a nine map chapter for either MP or SP (using a IsPlayerPresent function). I hope to be able to move between maps without going to the chapter screen. Also, by tracking unit health using a global variable I hope to be able to exit one map via a road to the east, save the map, then load the corresponding next map. When the next map starts, the player lands as a reinforcement on a road from the west in the same condition he left.

I hope to find the mod or expansion that had artillery barrage as a type of aircraft. This way offmap artillery can be controlled by script.

Example objectives would be: hold a bridge/town, recon, direct artillery, destroy an enemy depot, etc. There isnt a specific objective to accomplish before going to the next map. It may be necessary to exit one map to accomplish a mission two maps away. In this manner, the topo or street maps are necessary to know which roads to take an where to go.

As objectives are stored in the chapter script.lua file, all global variables are updated when the player exits the map.

Example global variables would track: MP players, unit position, unit health, enemy location, and next map array.

Also, if/when I get a new computer, I hope to be able to make full map screenshots and place it on the globe. It would basically provide a street view of the area. I just added a 1:12 500 scale map of Danzig into WW which shows street names. Pretty good detail.

Im running into problems with the terrain and map xml file. There are something like 200 000 tiles in the 28x28 map. So I think the WW application enables qualitative data to build BK maps with, however, not necessarily quantitative. It wouldnt make sense to assign height above sea level for BK maps, just a slice of it. So, the elevations in the SRTM data and on the topo maps are good keeping things relatively accurate. I will probably just edit the hilltops to make them smooth.

The focus will be on a platoon or company sized unit, infantry, mech or armored. So the battles will be generally smaller fire fights. The main objective is to keep your unit intact. The chapter will track time and likely take a few hours or days to complete.

I want to use buildings in the proper orientation so I have to learn how to make buildings. I should have enough tutorials for that and I will likely make civilian cars at that time also.

I will likely release the maps without any units so people can use whichever mods they like. The chapter will likely be Mission Kursk.

Of course this all assumes that all goes according to plan.

[danzig70]

The bk maps are properly mapped now. I am not sure how. I changed an attribute but it may be that it is because I am connected to the internet now. Anyways, below is the screenshot. I am not sure why the lake is halfway up the hill either. Coverage outside the US is limited to 90m which might be why. It will be edited to appear correctly.



Still have to figure out how to select and edit the necessary elevation elements in the bkmap.xml file.

[Ocelo]

You seem to be doing quite well. Of course, your skills and project aspects are a bit out of the range of most of us; we are centered on BK and many have little competency in such matters, so not a lot of input from me personally, just suggesions.


On a side note, your last image doesn't load for me. I think its an issue with the forum; it often keeps redirecting me to some other sites. I close the new windows quickly so its not a problem, just an annoyance. Not to complain, just noting. Very glad we have the forum and I do understand its quite decent for being free; must commend Aleks for finding it in fact (and establishing if of course).

Edit: nevermind; it just came through. That is amazing!
Its a minimap of an actual BZM you have laid out there, I assume? How big can it get? Anything in regard of buildings? Maybe place a random type of a randomly generated small village where the towns of a certain size are marked on a real map? Would get very realistic IMO. You could even specify which type of village to place in there based on the location of the map (ie: France, Germany, Russia, Ukraine).

Again, awesome achievements!

One more edit: I'd also suggest making random fields which have grass terrain objects and a few small flora for the editor to fill the areas which currently have plain grass with. I'd help alleviate the simplicity of the maps, even if being a bit monotone. Above mentioned random villages for that matter as well.

One last edit: I'd also caution you about using heights. IMO they are rather hard to see in game when they are gradual, and they do cause issues for the game engine (ie: dissappearing units and objects when camera is moved). I'd suggest perhaps inserting a factor which reduces the real values by a fixed proportion before they are translated into BK map. It'd help deal with when you have steeper slopes as well.

Last, last edit, promise: apart from a global campaign, if the above screen is in fact an already generated BK map, I'd suggest you to look into the possibility of creating a similar tool, but not for European-wide or global campaigns, but for more local operational campaigns. In fact, I am confident in that you would be able to set objectives for the player, ie: capture this location by this date. Say we are covering Citadel and the player is the commander of the Soviet northern front of the bulge. Stalin STAVKA (I am liking loving this style, btw, Louis ) sets his objective to capture Orel by date X. You partition the entire map of the campaign area into squares, into which you can "place" "permanent" enemy formations; ie: if a player wants his force to pass through this area, he must fight this battle. In this way, you have a clearcut means of designating map areas, and you can set up a pretty intricate enemy defensive region.

On a further note, you could add "special" enemy groups (both the "permanent" and "special" groups are hypothetical of course and only appear on the operational map as temporary icons) which have particularly high chances of appearing in certain locations ("tiles"), ie: if the enemy launches an offensive, or the player has broken through an enemy strategic defensive line.

Here's the thrill though: the "permanent" units in the tiles will merely dictate that if the player wants to move through this area, he will have to fight on this "tile map", and the force he will be fighting will be largely composed of infantry (here we are talking about which context of units will be generated with when the map is made); you could even designate nationalities. The "special" groups, however, would have a higher ratio of tanks, SPGs, and APCs in them, being more potent and of course more mobile (cause they're able to move quickly enough for the movement to be significant on an operational scale).


In this way you have something like HOI2, but of course the player is actually taken to the battlefield, making this a true real-time strategy game.





I do not know your skills, but apparently they are quite advanced in many respects. I don't know how complex of a program you can write which may/may not be able to set objectives, victory conditions, and alter what is actually an image of a map. But aside from that, I believe this prospect is completely doable and, personally, I'd have a LOT of interest in this, because it would be very unique, appropriate for the scales of BK, and, moreover, quite unprecedented. Couple that with a content and map-rich mod like GZM, and you could truly give the player the position of a real front commander. And of course, the player would be fighting for the jewels of the map - the objectives, like Orel or the Kursk defense, on nonrandom maps, many of which are already made.

To compensate for the number of battles and lack of lower-level commanders in BK (the player controls everything), we could up the numbers in favor of the player (I am talking about the case of a Soviet player, where the numerical superiority is in many cases a step closer to accuracy).



Of course, all of the above will require a lot of work and testing, but IMO NONE of it is in any way undoable; it just depends on how many people can help out. But IMO this is a VERY interesting prospect (high map count is, for example, beginning to be an issue for some GZM campaigns), and, moreover, is realistic.



BTW, I posted a much shorter description of your project with a few of your screens at SouyzUnion, perhaps there'll be some enthusiasm and more help.

[danzig70]

Thanks for the input Ocelo, it is always welcome. I must admit at times I have no idea what I am doing. It started out simply enough creating a map of Zaolzie.

It is indeed the bkmapname_large_h.dds file which is 512x512. Buildings appear as white blocks that serve as building footprints. WW java edition can do 3d building models but I figure thats what the bk engine is for. I use the models from the Saar dvd for reference in creating buildings for the bk map. Dont worry, I havent placed all the trees yet. I also have to redo the terrain textures. I thought it would help to "color" areas of different height but the xml file separates the two. So I cant set all the tiles that are "bright grass" to a specific height. The data is stored in two different places. I really should finish it before doing the heights but I am still testing now. Dont worry, the aerial images help me place agricultural fields and forests.

I am worried about the heights. The maximum height for the first saar map is 250 meters which extends off the map to the west. I know there are problems with heights at map edges. But a hill set at 250 in the bk map is not too extreme. I thought about subtracting the lowest elevation from the highest to set the low point on the map to zero. I may not have to depending on how some tests turn out. I will probably avoid areas of extreme slopes for the reasons you mentioned.

I was able to find elevation data in 5 degree (long) x 5 degree (lat) areas that are in a text file. You just click on a grid square and download the data for that area. The data is arranged in 5000 rows x 5000 columns that give the elevation for 25 million points within that area.

srtm.csi.cgiar.org/SELECTION/inputCoord.asp

EDIT:
Even more precise elevation data can be obtained using the DEMEX tool here: (1 degree x 1 degree yields the best results) lpdaac.usgs.gov/lpdaac/get_data/demex

Free regisrtation is required but it looks like you can download a specific area of interest.




This may allow me to make a terrain generator. I suppose thats where I am at right now with this project. The 28x28 map consists of 449x449 tiles of elevation which is over 200 000 tiles to edit. I used to play a game called SimCity4. The game website has a terrain generator.



You basically zoom in to an area and the program captures the elevation data for the map area (area inside the square)



Unfortunately the site is no longer maintained by EA games so the program no longer works, but I used it in the past and it is amazing.

So, I would like to capture a portion of the elevation data in the SRTM file and input them into the elevation elements in the bkmap.xml file. It shouldnt be impossible, though I admit I will have to learn how.

I will likely have to move to WorldWind java soon as it has the capability to capture data by moving a shape and the SimCity application seems to be written in java.

I am a bit torn when it comes to RG maps. I suppose it will be necessary at some point. But imagine being able to create BK maps by dragging a rectangle across the globe and pressing a button. Sure, trees, buildings, terrain textures etc still have to be added but perhaps there can be an option to let the RMG populate the maps.

I also like your last edit. That is something I have been thinking about also but in terms of combining MP and SP games. For instance, if a team playing as Germany is battling a team playing as France. Not everyone likes MP and there probably not enough MP to simulate each battle that takes place. So the French player places the "permanent" units in the SP maps so they can concentrate on the MP maps. Something like that.

The objectives should be pretty "easy" to do once everything else is done. I think it would be neat to have a HOI type grand campaign. So many things are possible with the lua scripting you can even keep track of resources.

I like your ideas about the movement of units and that is where I hope to smoothen the transition between adjoining maps. I think this can be done by using the script commands contained in the UI folder. There is so much left to do. Thank you for spreading the word to the soyuz union site as any and all help is appreciated. I was hoping to get this working for BKR.

Oh, thank you for your kind words but I have very few skills. I dream of what would be nice and then scramble to learn how to do it. Not always successfully. I would like to build the java edition and perhaps some lua or javascript.

Thanks again for the positive words!

Here are some things that can be done with the WorldWind Java application
worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/java/demos/


EDIT: I think you have a point Ocelo, if people want to place their custom maps or RGMs from mods or scratch made maps onto the map of the globe, then that might be a good way to map different theatres. When you click a unit icon or say HQ icon, it can direct you to the mod webpage, a download, or to game.exe with command line parameters.

If the map/mod files are already warehoused on blitzserbia/SoyuzUnion and other sites, you can just link to those sites. If anyone is interested just let me know. I think the Manila map would be particularly interesting. GZM has lots of nice ships I think.

[Jagged Steel]

Great work Danzig. The best real life terrain to game map setup I know of is for Railroad Tycoon 3. You can take USGS data (and others) and generate maps with completely accurate terrain/ elevations for any place on earth, at any scale from block by block city terrain, to whole continents.

Here is a current project showing map creation by a member of the HawkDawg RRT3 forum. hawkdawg.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=65&t=2891

and the main forum : hawkdawg.com/forums/index.php

I doubt that anything can be "borrowed" from that game, but you may want to look at what can be done with the RRT3 system (and how), perhaps something can be learned from it.