I should know this, but... Need some help with Terrain Buildings pcx.

Hi all,

I'm a little puzzled. First off, before you wonder how I could be asking such a silly question, here's a couple of things to note:

1. Except for trying a couple of mods, I haven't played (I've modded my game, but not played) an actual game of CivIII in a few years.

2. I did a search of the C&C forum for answers but got many pages of unrelated threads and gave up looking.

I'm working on my "Worker Jobs" for my mod, and here's the problem I'm having:

For building a fortress and barricade, I wanted to change the graphics to suit my mod. I looked at the ... Art/Terrain/TerrainBuildings.pcx file, and not remembering exactly, assumed that the first column is for all 4 eras of fortresses, the second column for 4 eras of colonies, the third column has an "I don't remember what", a mine, a blank space, and then a fence I can't think of a use from, and the fourth column has 4 eras of barricades.

NOW... when I double checked my theories with a test in a game, all that the workers would ever build, no matter which era I was in, were the fortress, barricade, or the colony all from the first row. I tested different eras and different civs from different cultures. I tested it until I wanted to rip my hair out in frustration.

Because I value my hair, could someone please explain to me the whole TerrainBuildings.pcx file? I wasn't sure if I was right with my guesses and it's just some weird bug when you're in Debug Mode that makes them show only the first era, whether my game is just messed up, or whether I'm totally off and those other graphics are for other things.

Attached a picture of the file for reference. Thanks.

Please help.

Grandraem said:

it's just some weird bug when you're in Debug Mode that makes them show only the first era

Click to expand...

That's the key. It may only change when you pre-place units in them and reassign the fortress to a player in a more modern era than antiquity.

Thanks, Ares! Could you please also let me know what the graphics at the top and bottom of the third column are for as well? I can't seem to think of what they are used for.

Barbarian Camp and Barricade

Vuldacon said:

Barbarian Camp and Barricade

Click to expand...

I thought the goodiehuts.pcx was for barbarians? Am I that forgetful? Are barbarian camps different from goodiehuts? I thought they always camped in the goodiehuts?

If the 4th column is for barricades from different eras, then I don't understand how the fence from the 3rd column is for barricades as well??? Sorry for pestering with all this, but as mentioned, my tests with Debug Mode weren't too helpful to me and I'm just trying to figure everything out a little quicker.

Some barbarians camp in the goodiehuts, and then are enraged when you walk into them.
But most just remain at their own camps

Grandraem... Yes, Barbarians can come from GoodyHuts but Barbarians also have Camps

The Fence is part of the improvement to the Fortress.

Thanks for the replies.

I think I'm starting to remember about the huts and camps now. Can't believe I'd forgotten.

Sorry to be a pest about this, but I'm still a little unclear about the fence.

If the fourth column is for when a fortress is converted by a worker into a barricade, where the first barricade is an improved version of the first fortress, and so on... and then there are four eras, four fortresses in the first column, and four barricades in the last column, then I don't understand how or where the fence graphic at the bottom of the third column is used as an improvement for the fortress graphic. As far as I can see it, if the fortress at the bottom of the first column is created in the last era, and then converted into a barricade, the graphic at the bottom of the fourth column would be used to represent that barricade, and I don't understand where the single fence from the bottom of the third column is used in that.

Again, sorry for taking up your time and perhaps your patience, but I'm just trying to figure out that graphic so that I know how to suitably replace it in my mod, and my tests didn't show that graphic appearing at any time.

I believe the single fence is just depicting the improvement and is not shown in Game.
Like you, I have never seen it alone in game.

... I simply place the same image (4th) on both 3rd and 4th eras.

Ah. Okay. I'll probably just do the same then, and place the same graphic in both places.

Thanks for all your help!

These aren't Terrain Buildings anymore, but something else I should know...

I'm working on replacing my interface buttons, and was a little puzzled about a few of them. The two I've highlighted in the 2nd row look particularly familiar, but doing some testing with created units in Debug mode I still couldn't get them to appear, couldn't recall what they were, and I couldn't think of where else to see a description of the buttons. I'm kind of lost when it comes to the two in the third row, the hand shake one and the "T".

Anyways, if someone can please just let me know the use of the four buttons I highlighted, I would appreciate it!

Pillage / Rush Building (leaders can do that) / Save Princess / Rename Unit

Thanks, Ares!!!

Oh yeah! How could I forget about pillage!? No wonder it looked so familiar. The rush or hurry building one I should have remembered as well! As for saving the princess, I never play that type of game, so I guess I can forgive myself.

About the last one though...

I'm sure that the one that says, "ABC" is for rename unit. Is the one with the "T" another variation or a repeat of that button? I saw the ABC one on all units for "rename unit" when I enabled advanced actions, but I never saw the "T" button in my tests.

Grandraem said:

I never saw the "T" button in my tests.

Click to expand...

The "T" button is the teleport button. It only works with the (polish) hacked Editor and the teleport function.

Ah, thank you! I guess that's why the button doesn't look too great, because it was probably just a placeholder for an incomplete addition.

iirc someone made a teleport button graphic.

I've downloaded some buttons, but I haven't looked yet whether anyone has created one for that. Seems likely that someone has though. Thanks.

Grandraem... if you want sharp images used for the CIV III Buttons they can be found in Civilization III\Art\Civilopedia\Icons\actions. Those images will explain what the designs are. The ones that are named in a manner that do not explain what they are can be figured out. Like "xthinglarge.pcx" and xthingsmall.pcx" are for Pillage.
There are Large and Small images there and the Small ones can be used for the Buttons but have to be reduced in size.

I have made many Buttons and have stencils for them.
AOI, Hegemon and EFZI2 Complete

I did not like the Radioactive design for Pollution because not all Pollution is Radioactive and in EFZI2 the Pollution is Dead Bodies so I took a frame from my Civilian Unit Death and adjusted the size for use as the Pollution Buttons as well as the City Screen and Civilopedia.

You can make the Buttons any shape you like and use color as well as movement for Normal Rollover and Highlight. You can make Roads look like the Roads in your game, etc...

I made a Torch for Pillage and also a better Lookout Tower for EFZI2 Complete.
I do not believe anyone has made a new Teleport Button as not many use it.
...here are some examples:

Vuldacon said:

I have made many Buttons and have stencils for them.
AOI, Hegemon and EFZI2 Complete

Click to expand...

...and I´m very thankfully you did níce buttons for CCM, too.

BtW.: I used a "build railway" button to replace the "T-button" in a testversion of SOE for a new kind of a railway connection in C3C.

Teleport button thread.