TerraForm -- a map editor for CIV dos

I understand the rules of Dack and civfanatics
sorry for the insistence on the code acquisition

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How do I send E-mail Dack
I can not access the link to send mail to him
hugs

to using the google translator
then not notice the play on words

In the middle of the 90s I dreamed of editing CIV1 games. Playing on an IBM 486 with Win 3.11 Gosh - those were the days my friends...
Now over 15 years and almost 4 Sequels later I still like to play this old DOS Classic & I'm glad to know that there are still a couple of other Civ1fanatics...

Thanks Dack for your important tool!

BTW is there also anybody from Germany???

Cheers

I had a key some time ago. But then reinstalled my OS. How do I get the key now? Send email to Dack doesn't appear... :/

Moderator Action: I see that you have been a civfanatics member since Jul 03, 2009 unfortunately in that time period new rules have been implemented. Without the prerequisite number of post you are considered a new member.
See Forum Rules
And post 401 , post 410 and please read the first post in this thread

Unfortunately, I can't install it to work computer because the installer wants access to system folders

I wanted to try out the new version.

Hi Dack,

I'm trying to place some special resources next to my enemies, but I can't understand how the Special Resources & Huts menu works. The two scrolls on the left side of the screen don't provide extra information when using them (they don't actually scroll down anything); and just beneath the "Special Resources & Huts" text underneath the minimap there is a black rectangle which doesn't seem to respond to anything I do. I don't understand how the "Set value" procedure ought to be used, and I've tried by trial and error to get something -unsuccesfully. The only thing I've managed so far is to disable several huts, a straightforward action... but what I'd really like to do is to be able to place a couple of horses next to my eneies, giving them a headstart.

Yet another menu I don't understand: the "Move terrain" one. I don't have the smallest inkling of what it does (except what I can deduce from the name), and I even know less how to make it work. I select a tile, then I'm able to move to the bordering ones... and that's about it. Any Cut and Paste function I know not about?

Could you be so kind as to please send me a brief explanation on how to get a grasp on the programme? I've been hooked to it for seven hours in a row (today I will be completely worthless at work, I'm meant to be at my research in two ours), and it's frustrating to know that I can't make the most of such a dream application.

As a thread said, Civ1 is bad for my life...

jordissim said:

... I can't understand how the Special Resources & Huts menu works.

Click to expand...

The two sliders control the five bits that determine the placement of the Special Resources and the Minor Tribes (Huts). The Special Resources location is calculated using the low order 4 bits controlled by the slider on the right. This formula limits the placement of the Special Resources to sixteen different patterns. The left slider controls the high order bit of the five bits that control the Huts placement. The Huts have thirty-two different patterns. The Special Resources and Huts are locked together by the value of these five bits. There is no way of controlling the placement of an individual Special Resource or Hut map square.
The placement of the Special Resources and Minor Tribes, or as commonly known Huts is controlled by the following formula.

[((X \ 4) * 13) + ((Y \ 4) * 11) + TerrainMasterWord + 8] and 31 = (X And 3) * 4 + (Y And 3)

For any given map square X Y the game applies this formula with equality a Special Resources exists.

The sliders alter the value of the low order 5 bits of TerrainMasterWord.
The control buttons in the Huts box (Show Active, Show All, None) control the visibility of the huts only within the TerraForm program.
Set value – updates the value of the TerrainMasterWord as determined by the sliders
Special Resources on little map – shows where the Special Resources would be for a given value.
Reset to value to original in file – Just that.

For reference see:
Modding Civilization I - Patterns for Huts and Special Resources
This thread #284
This thread #117
This thread #120
If one needs to have Special Resources outside of the pattern see:
CIVMAP21 revisited

jordissim said:

... but what I'd really like to do is to be able to place a couple of horses next to my eneies, giving them a headstart.

Click to expand...

This is outside the scope of the game but see CIVMAP21 revisited if you really need to do this.

jordissim said:

... and just beneath the "Special Resources & Huts" text underneath the minimap there is a black rectangle which doesn't seem to respond to anything I do...

Click to expand...

I'm not sure what you are indicating. Where is this black rectangle?

First select the From from the Options.
Then on the large map select the upper left corner on the section of terrain that you want to move (actually it copies terrain). A white box will appear around the square. Control the size of the rectangle with the arrows in the Sizer box. When the white rectangle on the large map encompasses the terrain that you wish to move change the option to Select To Upper Left Corner . Now left click on the large map a red To rectangle will appear on the large map. You can repeatedly click on the large map until you have the To rectangle positioned where you want. Then click the Move Selected Terrain and the move will take place.

You can repeat the mouse click on the large map to move the terrain multiple times.
The terrain that exists in the white square at the time the Move Selected Terrain
is clicked is the terrain that is moved. There is no restore function.

Options
(.)Select From Upper Left Corner
( )Select To Upper Left Corner

Dack said:

The two sliders control the five bits that determine the placement of the Special Resources and the Minor Tribes (Huts). The Special Resources location is calculated using the low order 4 bits controlled by the slider on the right. This formula limits the placement of the Special Resources to sixteen different patterns. The left slider controls the high order bit of the five bits that control the Huts placement. The Huts have thirty-two different patterns. The Special Resources and Huts are locked together by the value of these five bits. There is no way of controlling the placement of an individual Special Resource or Hut map square.
The placement of the Special Resources and Minor Tribes, or as commonly known Huts is controlled by the following formula.

[((X \ 4) * 13) + ((Y \ 4) * 11) + TerrainMasterWord + 8] and 31 = (X And 3) * 4 + (Y And 3)

For any given map square X Y the game applies this formula with equality a Special Resources exists.

The sliders alter the value of the low order 5 bits of TerrainMasterWord.
The control buttons in the Huts box (Show Active, Show All, None) control the visibility of the huts only within the TerraForm program.
Set value – updates the value of the TerrainMasterWord as determined by the sliders
Special Resources on little map – shows where the Special Resources would be for a given value.
Reset to value to original in file – Just that.

For reference see:
Modding Civilization I - Patterns for Huts and Special Resources
This thread #284
This thread #117
This thread #120
If one needs to have Special Resources outside of the pattern see:
CIVMAP21 revisited



This is outside the scope of the game but see CIVMAP21 revisited if you really need to do this.
I'm not sure what you are indicating. Where is this black rectangle?

Click to expand...

Thanks a lot for your explanations, Dack!
The rectangle I'm talking about is the one placed just above the lefthand slider. There's obviously a small problem when running your programme under my system, since instead of displaying a number ("16" in the screenshot you provided), it remains all black. I thought it might be some button of sorts, or maybe a colour indicator - but it's just a compatibility problem.
Thank you again, and Merry Christmas!

Thanks for the key, Dack. Spending a little time with TerraForm, I've been able to do most of what I wanted, one way or the other. I've got one question left though.

The impression I get from gameplay experience is that regions that have been visited before don't spawn Barbarians. I figured it might involve the tile visibility ("fog of war") markers in the .SVE file, bytes 56c0-665f. I made a little script that makes the whole map visible to any civilization (TerraForm only has a button for the player's civ), and first did the Barbarians, to get rid of huts. Barbarians still spawned. Then I tried showing the whole map to an enemy civ, but they still spawned. I finally tried setting the whole map visible to the player, but they still spawned. Apparently it's not done this way.

There's got to be something. I know Barbarians don't just show up in the middle of empires, and they never seem to show up in discovered territory. I don't know where the information for Demographics: Land Area is stored, but that only covers squares touched, not moved adjacent to, so it doesn't seem like that could be it. Maybe there's another field, or maybe I'm wrong about Barbarians not showing up in covered territory.

Anyway, that's a bit off topic, but close enough. Any idea how this works?

Urtica dioica said:

The impression I get from gameplay experience is that regions that have been visited before don't spawn Barbarians.

Click to expand...

My experience is different using version .05. I find they mostly appear on the human player island at some distance from the cities. I have a vague memory of having to park a unit at a location that repeatedly spawned barbarians (but I can’t substantiate that with certainty.)

At the moment I am playing a test game as warlord level. Out of the blue barbarians appeared on terrain I had moved units in the last few moves.

From what I’ve observed what one would expect to be the barbarians’ visibility bit (.SVE file, bytes 56C0 thru 665F bit 0) is used turn the huts on/off. See post 117

I can’t say that I have given much thought to the barbarians’ movement. If you look at a saved game with TerraForm; at the barbarians’ visibility bits; it looks like the only time the barbarians are recorded is when you enter a hut and get the nasty surprise. Only the square they are placed on is marked.

I can only add more questions. How often are barbarians generated?

Dec 27, 2011: A slight amendment to this post. Each time barbarians appeared I saved the game. Using TerraForm I looked at the visibility value for the barbarians it seems that when a barbarian appears only the original square is marked. This seems to be true when one enters a hut resulting in barbarians or the square where a boatload of barbarians first appears

Hail! Can I get access to terraform as well? I tried to register, but no file was sent to me
I tried for weekes, but server's either too busy, or I don't have some kind of authority to gain the registration file to properly use and save terraform for civilization 1.
Please, spare a minute and help me. If possible send it to me: sam.breznev@gmail.com

Thank you in advance.

enigma_s22 said:

Hail! Can I get access to terraform as well?

Click to expand...

Read the first post in this thread and the forum rules (the section on new members restrictions).

So, I mainly use map editors because I'm somewhat of an AI enthusiast. I very much enjoy watching the AI duke it out, and seeing what sort of strategies they use. using TerraForm, I normally landscape everyone onto individual islands, or i'll give everyone their own section and web them together with land bridges, and for some reason watching the computer generated AI do their thing is fascinating to me.

Anyways, I've noticed that at least in Civ 1 and using TerraForm, that sometimes the AI seems to be confused after I edit land mass. If I cut off part of their island, it seems they'll spend a few turns just sitting at the new edge like they want to go further to the land that used to be there, or I'll add land and they'll avoid it thinking it's the ocean or something. They eventually, after a few turns, seem to "learn" the new map and adjust accordingly.

Anyways, just some thoughts, this is a great program for folks like me, I appreciate the time and effort you've put into it.

hi i am and spanish old user of terraform.i am trying to recover it
and playing together.

Jabb so am i except for the land , its germany not spain.
buuuuuut have the same passion i suppose

hmm.. prefect map editor.. now i want to revenge the game xixixixi..

how to win civilization with full award.. i mean with high score..? ^^

thanks mr.dack.. ^^

Cant wait to try this out

I'm Sorry, But I REALLY need halp using this, does anyone know how and is willing to teach?

Just... how to use it... I'm soo confused!

CaptainRyRy said:

Just... how to use it... I'm soo confused!

Click to expand...

I don’t know where to begin. I assume that you have a working knowledge of CIV DOS. Also that you know where the MAP & SVE files are located. Use the menu command FILE to open a map file. Then the ACTION menu to alter terrain, improvements, units, cities etc…. Perhaps the functions are not as intuitive as I had hoped. There are various topics covered in this thread. Unfortunately there is no tutorial, faq, or manual. Specific question – ask , A full manual – not at this time.

Alright, but is there anything to do after you download it?