I've recently played a bit of DF again, just to look around some of the levels to look where things might be improved. Heh...

Anyway, it occurs to me that on the Anoat level, although you are supposed to be entering the sewer system, you don't really get a feel that it is part of a city. Why? Simple...because you don't see any high-rise/apartment/office buildings in the background. Not even a simple static picture. There are also no doors shown (particularly in the start-point area) that might lead out of the complex to other areas. It all feels very confined and isolated. So I was wondering if something like that could be added - a city texture, and maybe a large door that would normally allow vehicular access to the facility?

Also, when you get to MR's workshop...it doesn't feel very much like a workshop to me. There's a work bench, but there's none of the clutter I'd associate with a workshop. I was thinking that to give it more of a workshop feel you might add blueprints, some tools on a rack, an adjustable spotlight lamp, a vice...you know, things like that. It doesn't have to be fancy.

And when you go up the stairs to find MR, maybe that chamber should be his sleeping quarters, with a bed, some empty bottles lying around, etc. It would give it a bit more of a lived-in feel - particularly if he's been there for a while.

The only other thing that comes to mind is...how about some low-lying gas (or fog) in some confined areas of the sewers? Make it feel a bit more like the putrefying place it's supposed to be...

Any thoughts?

is gas/fog like that possible?

Good thoughts. The city feel applies to Ramsees Hed's start also. The rest begin out in the middle of nowhere if I'm no mistaken...


I like MR's hideout suggestions as well. I've suggested the clutter. I like the room idea.

PerfectChaos had trouble with fog on his Tibanna map, so he may or may not get that in there.

Nah, it's all cool now. I have fog figured out now so that can easily be done. All in good time, the latest screenshots still don't affect the final product. Fog is no problem at all... and about the workshop... I dunno, that could be a bit difficult, mostly because the area is a bit cramped, and making it bigger than it was before would change the scale. No one said it had to be 100% accurate to the original, and as I said nothing is final so I can't see the end result of this map right now. I'll let Darth know about the sky shader issue, too. I haven't been able to work on my map lately due to some issues but I should get back to it pretty soon, and then I can explore some possible areas of further detailing, etc.

From what my interpretation of the level is, the Sewers level is actually a sewage treatment plant outside of town. It isn't a city unto itself or in a city. You don't find sewage treatment plants right in downtown, they are out on the outskirts for obvious reasons.

The current sky art we are using is essentially a desert made in Bryce 3D. Unless we can find some artist who can paint a distant city into the artwork while applying the perspective distortion effects that are inherent in skybox environment maps our sky art won't show any buildings. It's extrememly difficult to do.

Originally posted by Darth_Linux
From what my interpretation of the level is, the Sewers level is actually a sewage treatment plant outside of town. It isn't a city unto itself or in a city. You don't find sewage treatment plants right in downtown, they are out on the outskirts for obvious reasons.


Fair comment. :cool:

Will there be some large pipes shown coming from outside of the area? :)

Originally posted by StormHammer
Fair comment. :cool:

Will there be some large pipes shown coming from outside of the area? :)

very possibly.

Why not do it in bryce? I know how to make a city easy in Bryce.

You should do it, Ravenstroke - I'm pretty sure the team would be overjoyed to have someone make atleast 1 custom skybox, for the DF Mod.

I didn't know that JO allowed for detailed skyboxes... AFAIK games that use the unreal engine are among the only that can have COMPLETE freedom in creating skyboxes (that means textures, AND brush work inside of skyboxes... for example, one of my Unreal Tournament maps featured a working 3d windmill in the background... quite nice). I wish you could do that in JO, or can you?

I think so, I would have to have one of you dig up how to make a skybox in the first place though.

Well, I really don't know, since I've never used Bryce before. I'm pretty sure they have tutorials on it, though. Basically skyboxes consist of 6 pictures (left, right, front, back, up and down) that fit together seamlessly to make a box that gives you the illusion of being surrounded by the respective world, or scenery the author has created.
You could check outWadfather's (http://www.planethalflife.com/wadfather/) skyboxes for examples, so you can get a better idea of what I'm talking about.