Current;y Dale has the4.1 versionin his mod. I have used the new 5.0 beta version in AODII 1.07 Col v 1.0 and and AODII 1.08 Col1.01f and am glad to announce I have not expieranced any issues with it. The recall to port function in Europe is awesome. You can select Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean or a specific port to sail to. Oh yeah you can even sell off surplus ships if you want to. I hope Dale integrates the improvement since he already has the base mod compiled into AODII.

Very exciting! :)

Minor gripe, as I'm the nit pickiest prick of all nitpickers, but a lot of the "Europe" stuff is dated now, since there are three non-Euro civs in AOD2 now, so "sail to Europe" and other similar labels are obsoleted. I'm finding I really like playing the Chinese ... cheap units from the getgo and increased food production are making it difficult to lose playing 'em.

The same underlying code could be used for Europe, Asia, or any name you want to give your home port.

Yep, if anyone is willing to make an asian background image, I'll add it to Europe screen and adjust unit positions. :band:

Hello Koma,

I don't think CivFans can let me attach pics, so I will upload on Apolyton.

My suggestion is to try to reverse things, keep the town on the left side and the sea on the right side. But it's entirely on you!

Please follow this link:

Chinese Port (http://http://apolyton.net/forums/showthread.php?p=5554038#post5554038)

I hope this pic is a good start!

Thanks,
Mysh :)

I finally registered at apolyton, if that was your intention... :D

I don't think CivFans can let me attach pics, so I will upload on Apolyton.
There is a "Manage Attachements"-button in the Additional Options area below Post Icons.

Hahaha! :D

Got an interesting home city gallery here. Some of them look awesome!

http://http://aoe3.heavengames.com/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=homecities

Check in other sections of the same website for Russian, Chinese and Japanese cities. I hope you will find some useful. :)

I am glad to see a Chinese port being added. Now if we can get a port screen for each "King" and use a variable to pick which screen to load based on the players civilization.

It will be really cool, but I do understand it may not be no.1 issue atm.

Got an interesting home city gallery here. Some of them look awesome!


That are some great pics. :goodjob:

Ok, I'll try this image for a chinese port:

http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/7225/chinaport.jpg

Does anyone have that game and can make a screenshot without units? It would save a lot of work.

Wow... looks perfect!

It is Age of Empires 3. Unfortunately, I do not own it.

Koma can you please teach me how to do it? I would like to have a go.

Koma can you please teach me how to do it? I would like to have a go.

Adding the screenshot as a background to Europe screen? Or removing the units from image?

Adding the screenshot as a background to Europe screen please. :)

Koma is a great teacher. So, I have done some progress.

Would you guys -and mainly Dale- would like to see pics like this (Please try to ignore things like Age of Empires III logo for now. We can improve it later on.)?

If you are interested, we can adjust the positions of goodies, and fit ships nicely.

Ideally I would like to have a different screeny for every nation.

Please feel free to give me some feedback.

Great! :goodjob:

But keep in mind you need enough ocean space to place the ships.

We have some space. :P

Bottom left and top left!

Good to see this still works with AOD1.08/Col1.01. Also love that you're trying to create individual ports for eazch nation. I mentioned this in a post on 1.08 issues and feel that it is essential now that we have so many different nations, and from different sides on the New World. This added with the ability to sail to other nations ports, and an improved bartering system would improve the trading aspect of the game immeasurably I feel.

Chinese port will surely be implemented. Thanks! :)

Although I am not the best graphics artist in the world, I can do some tricks. I had to create more space for the Chinese port. A group of ships and rocks has been removed, and replaced with a blue area resembling the sea, sky and clouds merging.

My (wannabe) finalised background is attached.

Please check the top left corner, does it look realistic enough?

Thanks

Thats pretty cool Prinz. Can you soften the edges at the top tho, and get rid of the big ship in the foreground?

I tried to soften them more, but it looked like blue pooh. :)

Maybe my skills just suck. Feeling the gap of the ship is a problem.

PS If you feel comfy with it, edit the pic and post here. :-)

This is the beta version I am working at the moment. :)

My biggest problem at the moment is I cannot find a way to bring the two ships waiting in port, closer together. :confused:

So the second one hits the shore. Looks a bit silly.

Hope Koma, or Dale have an idea. :help:

Yeah that's done through the CvEuropeScreen.py (one of the width variables). If I can suggest, by removing the treasure junk you would gain that much more space to display things. It looks extremely crowded right now.

Just my 2 cents. :)

Thanks!

Treasure junk is a pain in the butt... Removing it is ok, but filling the area is a problem.

Perhaps I should try to make sea transparent and use the ocean in the background... Lots of stuff to think now.

Koma is helping a lot. :)

Hmmmmmm... that's one try. But I still need to clean hell a lot of details, ships and all the mess.

I've also made a dock...

You have to move the dock up, else inport ships get in the way and you can't select units on dock.
And are you hiding something behind windows start menu ? :)

Ups! Thanks Koma

Got an update. Do you think this port would be satisfactory? As you can guess, it uses your background of animated sea and sky.

Now I think I need to set the ground at bottom right corner at 50% opacity. Maybe the trees too. Add some clouds? A few birds? Seems also a few pixels need cleaning up.

Checked the docks, and seems to be no prob. :)

Alternatively, I will have to look for a completely different image. Frankly I am not so fond of this picture, but it seems it's the best we've got.

Any other suggestions?

Now I think I need to set the ground at bottom right corner at 50% opacity. Maybe the trees too

Why?

Frankly I am not so fond of this picture, but it seems it's the best we've got.

Any other suggestions?

You just need some practice. Take some break and start over again. It often helps.

Here is something to cheer you up, that was my first try (EuropeScreen1). To view in full glory scale it up to 1600x1200. :)

I've played with this screeny and loved it. :)

Brings back good old col. memories...

BTW how do you add gold from unit editor?

Hi, I have been working a bit on Prinz' original picture, trying to remove the Junk and smooth out the sea/sky in the top left. Not finished yet but pretty much just need to blend the two layers of sea where the Junk was and fill in a little piece under the building on the beach. Let me know what you think :)

Edit: Bit more work on pic

I like it, I will try to play with opacity of it. Then use as background the animated sea.

Searched for hours for another port, but couldn't find another half decent one.

Hi,

Ok, here's the latest ver. Can upload hi-res ver/psd if needed.

I like this and I will use it. Please upload a high resolution one.

Thanks for helping!

Hi Res ver...

Also love that you're trying to create individual ports for eazch nation.
So, should the Aussie home port have the Harbor Bridge or just the Opera House? ;)

I think it should have the Big Ben! ;)

Thanks Kaib!

What do you think? :)

EDIT: Obviously when I run many applications, capture screen likes my taskbar. Grrr.... :)

How about putting inbound ships to the right (between both towers). After all there are coming from the east.

Easy fix. But do you like it? :)

Saying that look at this little diamond I pulled out from the internet today...

EDIT won't accept it, if I don't zip. Check it out! :)

Easy fix. But do you like it?

Of course I like it. It's my Europe screen after all. :p
Still not sure if putting inport panel on top of dock units won't make trouble.

About your little diamond: That would be a great port for Australia. :D

EDIT:
Maybe you should think about removing other both left over ships from AOE3 too. Would look more clean and gives you plenty of space for positioning.

Yeah, is it possible to have inbound above the two towers on the right?

Sure, guys. Will fix today. Was too tired yesterday.

After this one, maybe I can try Australia.

What do you think? :)

EDIT: Obviously when I run many applications, capture screen likes my taskbar. Grrr.... :)

Think you need to move the docked ships closer to the beach to allow for the Dialog Box, not sure if thats what you were talking about in another post just above.

Also, regarding inbound/outbound ship position, is it possible to place ships coming/going east between the towers, and west on the top left? Koma?

P.S. Would be happy to help with any other screens you're making :)

Kaib,

You are the man!

Can you edit .dds pictures? Can you handle images with semi-transparency?

If yes, please check this one, and do your magic again. :)

If not, will post a .jpg, but will have to go several steps back. Still it's ok! :)

Also check the Blue_Dock.rar I've posted and tell me what you think. Can we use it to make a port for Australia?

Your help is really great! :)

Also, regarding inbound/outbound ship position, is it possible to place ships coming/going east between the towers, and west on the top left? Koma?

Would be possible. You have to read the current unit plot when displaying in/outgoing units.

Shall we try to fix this for all maps?

Basically read and create new plots with reversed X position?

Shall we try to fix this for all maps?

Basically read and create new plots with reversed X position?

Not really. :)

Units shown in Europe screen are still placed on map, same plot/position where you sent them to Europe.

You have to create an east and a west panel for in and outgoing. When cycling through units attach them depending on their position on map.

Would be fun doing this, but now I have lots of others in my head!

When I finnish with ports, we can try. :)

Kaibayashi, can you play with the .dds file? :)

When I finnish with ports, we can try

yep, 6 more Europe screens to do... :crazyeye:

Huhuhuhuhu!

Would be fun doing this, but now I have lots of others in my head!

When I finnish with ports, we can try. :)

Kaibayashi, can you play with the .dds file? :)

Hey, I can load the .dds in Gimp, but am not used to working in that program, but when I convert to .psd (for Photoshop) it loses too much quality. Any chance you can post a hires ver i can use in photoshop, either jpg/gif/png or psd?

Cheers :)

Sure. Thanks a lot! :)

It's scaled in 1024x1024, but don't worry about it. Will be displayed alright in AoD II.

Let me know, if you have any probs.

Hey, I can load the .dds in Gimp, but am not used to working in that program, but when I convert to .psd (for Photoshop) it loses too much quality. Any chance you can post a hires ver i can use in photoshop, either jpg/gif/png or psd?

Cheers :)

There is a way to load dds files in Photoshop directly.
http://developer.nvidia.com/object/photoshop_dds_plugins.html

There is a way to load dds files in Photoshop directly.
http://developer.nvidia.com/object/photoshop_dds_plugins.html

Cheers Piman, I will check that out.

Prinz, i have attached what I have done, which isnt very much really! It doesn't seem like you left much undone? Let me know how else you'd like me to change it :)

Thanks man. You help a lot!

Great work! :)

My turn for homework now. Got to catch up this v1.09. ;-)

Hi guys,

I have made my changes like:

if (self.Pirates):
screen.addDDSGFC("EuropeScreenBackground", ArtFileMgr.getInterfaceArtInfo("INTERFACE_PIRATE_BACKGROUND").getPath(), 0, 0, self.XResolution, self.YResolution, WidgetTypes.WIDGET_GENERAL, -1, -1 )
elif player.getCivilizationType() == gc.getInfoTypeForString("CIVILIZATION_CHINA"):
screen.addDDSGFC("EuropeScreenBackground", "Art/Interface/Screens/Europe/ChinaBackground.dds", 0, 0, self.XResolution, self.YResolution, WidgetTypes.WIDGET_GENERAL, -1, -1 )
else:
screen.addDDSGFC("EuropeScreenBackground", ArtFileMgr.getInterfaceArtInfo("INTERFACE_EUROPE_BACKGROUND").getPath(), 0, 0, self.XResolution, self.YResolution, WidgetTypes.WIDGET_GENERAL, -1, -1 )

This unfortunately tends to call the european winter screen in winter for China. Where is my mistake?

I have also tried to set in a different way using:
self.China = gc.getPlayer(gc.getGame().getActivePlayer()).isChi na()

... but didn't like it! So I use player.getCivilizationType() == gc.getInfoTypeForString("CIVILIZATION_CHINA"):

I don't get why this does not happen for pirates. I must have a mistake!

Try that after line 59:


self.China = False

if player.getCivilizationType() == gc.getInfoTypeForString("CIVILIZATION_CHINA"):
self.China = True


Now you can use:

if self.China:
....


Change line 75 from 'if self.Pirates:' to:

if self.Pirates or self.China:
if (not sdEntityExists( 'komaScreens ....


;)

Thank you very much! :)

Thank you very much!

Shouldn't it be:

Quote:
if (self.Pirates or self.China)
?

You can use both variants. Doesn't matter.

Koma it didn't work.

I had to add the following line to make it work:

if (sdGetVal('komaScreens', player.getName(), 'ThisWinter') == 1) and (not (self.China)):
#screen.addDDSGFC("EuropeScreenBackgroundWinter", ArtFileMgr.getInterfaceArtInfo("INTERFACE_EUROPE_IN_BOUND_BOX").getPath(), 0, 0,

self.XResolution, self.YResolution, WidgetTypes.WIDGET_GENERAL, -1, -1 )
screen.changeDDSGFC ("EuropeScreenBackground", ArtFileMgr.getInterfaceArtInfo("INTERFACE_EUROPE_IN_BOUND_BOX").getPath())

Thanks for the ()! :)

Self.China worked alright!

I am sure there must be a better way...

Koma it didn't work.

You have to start a new game when making changes related to sdEntityExists. :)

Dude,

you are f*cking genious!

Not command is not necessary now... all works as good as a clock!

Will release the first beta of china screen today! :)

Great! :goodjob: Don't forget to put you in the credits (Line 62).

... but didn't like it! So I use player.getCivilizationType() == gc.getInfoTypeForString("CIVILIZATION_CHINA"):

I don't get why this does not happen for pirates. I must have a mistake!

No you didn't make a mistake. I added in isPirates into the SDK. :p

Credits? :D

Are they displayed anywhere?

self.CREDITS = localText.getText("[COLOR_YELLOW]Europe Screen[COLOR_REVERT] (Release [COLOR_HIGHLIGHT_TEXT]4.1[COLOR_REVERT] AOD2)[NEWLINE]", ((),""))
self.CREDITS += localText.getText("by [COLOR_YELLOW]koma13[COLOR_REVERT], [COLOR_YELLOW]kaibayashi[COLOR_REVERT],[COLOR_YELLOW]PrinceMyshkin[COLOR_REVERT],[COLOR_YELLOW]Fankman[COLOR_REVERT] and [COLOR_YELLOW]Dale[COLOR_REVERT]", ((),""))

OK thank you. :)

Also added kaibayashi. :)

Can I see them anywhere, so I can make myself feel important. Will I wear the big wigs too? :D

Can I see them anywhere, so I can make myself feel important. Will I wear the big wigs too?

Move mouse over trade log button. :)

Good to know! Now I feel really important. :D

Will update my CV.

Move mouse over trade log button. :)

You know, I didn't even know that! :blush:

You know, I didn't even know that! :blush:

I put you in the credits for creating the Pirates screen and helping me out. :)

But if no one ever spotted them maybe I should move them to a more prominent position.

Dale, I'm currently working on update for Europe screen for AOD2. I have some trouble with your new "Western nation high seas times". These new times are not reflected in getTripLength().
I'm using gc.getEuropeInfo(unit.plot().getEurope()).getTripL ength() for calculating the time a ship needs for traveling to new world. As you can see this it not depending on civ or unit. Right now, it breaks my recall feature for western nations. :(
Do you think you can find a way that getTripLength() reporting back a value depending on civ? I could make a way around, but it would be an ugly hack :p, only working for currently included nations as there is no bFromWest info exposed to python (i think).

I can implement that into the SDK. Shouldn't be a problem. :)

I can implement that into the SDK. Shouldn't be a problem.

Cool, thank you. :)

Okay I have done three things:

1. I have created iWestTripLength in Civ4EuropeInfos.xml to store the western nation travel times.
2. I have exposed CvEuropeInfos::getWestTripLength() to python (use the same way as getTripLength()).
3. I have exposed CvCivilizationInfos::isFromWest() to python so you can determine if a Civ is from the west and to call the right TripLength function.

Europe Screen 5 beta2 - AOD2 Version

Changelog:

- improved performance for plot finding process
- turned inbound ships around, they are facing now to the right :king:
- reduced appearance of sea gulls, they still show up once in a while
- removed 'lift boycott' feature, EuropeScreen 5 isn't about changing gameplay ;)
- made a better full length icon for carrack
- full support of unit selection/order sounds for all nations

Issues:

- recall feature for nations starting in the west isn't working, will be fixed in AOD2 1.11

Download (~ 7.6mb):

http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?oezvemyl1my

Okay I have done three things:

1. I have created iWestTripLength in Civ4EuropeInfos.xml to store the western nation travel times.
2. I have exposed CvEuropeInfos::getWestTripLength() to python (use the same way as getTripLength()).
3. I have exposed CvCivilizationInfos::isFromWest() to python so you can determine if a Civ is from the west and to call the right TripLength function.

Dale, I made use of these changes. Check out lines 1065-1068 in Europe Screen I posted above. Just uncomment them for AOD2 1.11. I hope this is working. :)

Awesome! :D

Hi guys, and thanks for your big work.

I really appreciate this mod : It's a must have IMHO.

As I'm french, I've made the translation to make v5.0 work correctly with my game, in the "text" xml.

Feel free to use (or not) my work for further modifications.
If you disagree with this work, please feel free to mp, and i'll will remove it.

Keep the good work.

STNHL

Hi guys, and thanks for your big work.

I really appreciate this mod : It's a must have IMHO.

As I'm french, I've made the translation to make v5.0 work correctly with my game, in the "text" xml.

Feel free to use (or not) my work for further modifications.
If you disagree with this work, please feel free to mp, and i'll will remove it.

Keep the good work.

STNHL

Thank you, good work. :goodjob: I will add french translation to next update.

Any chance it gets hooked up with ChinaScreen as well? :)

Any chance it gets hooked up with ChinaScreen as well? :)

Hmm, I think you have it the wrong way around. China screen is the new Europe screen for AOD2. :)

To be honest, I love the current Europe screen! Somehow the graphics seem perfectly appropriate and consistent with the rest of the game. I worry that the AoE 3 Europe screen would be too familiar to owners of that game and moreover, "too much."

Of course, this is just my opinion, but I think the style of the current screen is just right for a game like Colonization!

Europe Screen 5 beta2 - AOD2 Version

Changelog:

- improved performance for plot finding process
- turned inbound ships around, they are facing now to the right :king:
- reduced appearance of sea gulls, they still show up once in a while
- removed 'lift boycott' feature, EuropeScreen 5 isn't about changing gameplay ;)
- made a better full length icon for carrack
- full support of unit selection/order sounds for all nations

Issues:

- recall feature for nations starting in the west isn't working, will be fixed in AOD2 1.11

Download (~ 7.6mb):

http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?oezvemyl1my

Is this the current version?

Yes, it is.

Cool, I've implemented it. :)

Great work, koma! I like beta2 :)

I have found a bug with these lines:

#City list
self.CityPlotList = []
(city, iter) = player.firstCity(false)
while (city):
if city.isCoastal(1) and not city.waterArea().isLake():

When a colony is near inland sea, it causes problems in building the city list. I suppose we could check the water area to be connected to Europe in this case.

To be honest, I love the current Europe screen! Somehow the graphics seem perfectly appropriate and consistent with the rest of the game. I worry that the AoE 3 Europe screen would be too familiar to owners of that game and moreover, "too much."

This of course is true. If you know AOE3, it will look strange to have same gfx in Colonization. But keep in mind most of us modders are no graphical artists, can't create an image from scratch. :dunno:

Cool, I've implemented it.

Nice! Let's see what people think about it. There already is some oos report... :blush:

Great work, koma! I like beta2

Thank you! :)

I have found a bug with these lines:

Code:

#City list
self.CityPlotList = []
(city, iter) = player.firstCity(false)
while (city):
if city.isCoastal(1) and not city.waterArea().isLake():

When a colony is near inland sea, it causes problems in building the city list. I suppose we could check the water area to be connected to Europe in this case.

I don't think this is a problem. 'if city.isCoastal(1) and not city.waterArea().isLake():'
is only a quick pre-check, the real test is made in next lines:

if unit.getGroup().generatePath(self.pPlotEast, city.plot(), 0, false, None):
self.CityPlotList.append([city, None])
elif unit.getGroup().generatePath(self.pPlotWest, city.plot(), 0, false, None):
self.CityPlotList.append([city, None])

This of course is true. If you know AOE3, it will look strange to have same gfx in Colonization. But keep in mind most of us modders are no graphical artists, can't create an image from scratch. :dunno:

Of course that is a perfectly appropriate point. However, even if you could come up with the AoE3 graphics from scratch (imagine that game didn't exist), I think I would still prefer the current Europe screen.

This is my personal preference though and I want to shake the hand of whoever came up with that one because I feel it is somehow perfectly matched with the style of the game.

If it is possible, without increasing the file size of the mod too much (I want to be considerate of people who may not have fast connections), it would be nice if there was some way to choose the screen that is used. For example, if the info "button" that displays version info and the creators could be used to change the Europe screen, that would be perfect :goodjob:.

Whatever you all decide, I appreciate the hard work. :)

If it is possible, without increasing the file size of the mod too much (I want to be considerate of people who may not have fast connections), it would be nice if there was some way to choose the screen that is used. For example, if the info "button" that displays version info and the creators could be used to change the Europe screen, that would be perfect .

I think there is an easier solution (at least for me). The Europe screen version for Vanilla Col will work with AOD2 too... Only difference is the Pirates screen. :)

Play as Australia I got the following error. Image and save attached.

I reverted to version 4 CvEuropeScreen.py and it seems fine.

I lost the game I was playing (keeps erroring about various different things) but am able to start new ones fine.

Ok, here is a patch for Europe screen.

Changelog:

- fixed sailing to new world bug for nations starting in the west (thx nevermind and dale)
- fixed a bug with cargo messages (thx king mb)
- enabled recall feature for nations starting in the west
- added french translation (thx stnhl)
- added full length icons for pirate brig and pirate ship



Nevermind, you were right. There is some bug in that lines you mentioned. But it wasn't related to an inland sea, instead it was caused by 'sail to east/west' plot calculation. :)

Does this fix the bug I found?

Does this fix the bug I found?

Yes, try this patch. It should fix most issues. :)