0.9.6 disscussion thread

[phungus420]

[]Another day, another critical bug found, but at least this one is now squashed.[/]

Here is the patch. Please ensure that you install the correct patch; basically only install the Exp Graphics version if you selected the enhanced graphics optional add one when installing LoR 0.9.6c, installing the EG patch over a regular full install of LoR will break it. Also do not install one of these patches over LoR light, it'll break it, LoR light is fine, and doesn't need patching. Finally the current full version of LoR available for download has been updated to 0.9.6c*, so you don't need to patch that version, but 0.9.6c, and c+ both have critical bugs in them, so they need to be patched (or you can just redownload and reinstall the new full version).

LoR 0.9.6c* Patches

Normal full version:

• LoR 0.9.6c* patch Filefront Download Mirror
• LoR 0.9.6c* patch Atomic Gamer Download Mirror

Exp. Graphics, only use if you installed the Enhanced Graphics add on when installing 0.9.6c

• LoR 0.9.6c* EG Patch Filefront Download Mirror
• LoR 0.9.6c* EG Patch Atomic Gamer Download Mirror

 

[OnmyojiOmn]

Is it possible to switch back to Blue Marble without borking the ethnic improvements and things like that? Also, is it possible to swap the DLL out for BULL and/or Better AI 0.80?

 

[phungus420]

What do you mean? If you want Blue Marble, select the enhanced graphics option when installing. If you did that, then use the Exp Graphics patch when patching, if you choose to patch; of course you can always just reinstall.

As far as merging mods, LoR uses a custom dll, it's a modified RevDCM core, so you can't use the dll from BetterAI or BULL, no. The RevDCM core already includes BBAI and BUG, but they are earlier versions currently, the next update of RevDCM will be updated to the most recent versions, and LoR will update to them at that time.

 

[OnmyojiOmn]

What do you mean? If you want Blue Marble, select the enhanced graphics option when installing. If you did that, then use the Exp Graphics patch when patching, if you choose to patch; of course you can always just reinstall

The latest version of LoR installs Improved Graphics if you choose the expanded graphics option, not BM.

 

[esemjay]

I believe LoR renamed "Blue Marble" to "Improved Graphics" for the sake of being obvious about what it does.

 

[achilleszero]

The latest version of LoR installs Improved Graphics if you choose the expanded graphics option, not BM.

Theyre pretty much the same thing, the expanded graphics includeds some BM stuff and some IG stuff (although it wound up being about 1/6 BM stuff and the rest IG stuff). Are you wanting to switch back to BM because you dont like the new textures?

I believe LoR renamed "Blue Marble" to "Improved Graphics" for the sake of being obvious about what it does.

No, Improved graphics is a modcomp by Chuggi that is similar to BM but includes more stuff and has more detail. Some people dont like it because it is darker and less saturated than BM's textures. Im still trying to find a happy medium between the two. I have just seen a new set of graphics textures from Total Realism and will be experimenting with those as well.

 

[OnmyojiOmn]

IG's grassland and plains textures are what happens when someone discovers meth and Photoshop noise filters on the same day. If you're mixing textures, switching to BM for those would be a huge improvement. I don't mind the other parts of IG so much, and the trees are actually kinda nice.

 

[achilleszero]

IG's grassland and plains textures are what happens when someone discovers meth and Photoshop noise filters on the same day. If you're mixing textures, switching to BM for those would be a huge improvement. I don't mind the other parts of IG so much, and the trees are actually kinda nice.

The grassland is actually one of the ones that I kept from BM and the plains is from IG. Some of this stuff is just a matter of opinion, so its going to be hard to please everyone. Ive found some new textures from Total Realism that I will be incorporating (they look better than either BM or IG but need to be desaturated), so there will be even more changes.

What I think I will eventuall do is make several FPKs available as a seperate DL. One that is all BM, one that is all IG, and then maybe one that is TR. If anyone doesnt like the set up that will be in the main LoR expanded graphics, then they will be able to just overwrite that FPK with a new on.

 

[OnmyojiOmn]

The grassland in the latest download is definitely from IG. Just sayin'. Separate FPKs would be great!

 

[achilleszero]

The grassland in the latest download is definitely from IG. Just sayin'. Separate FPKs would be great!

Can you post a pic? Because in my version its showing BM grassland.

 

[OnmyojiOmn]

Can you post a pic? Because in my version its showing BM grassland.

This is with the full 0.9.6c download and expanded graphics selected.

 

[achilleszero]

This is with the full 0.9.6c download and expanded graphics selected.

That is grassland is actually half and half. You must be playing with High detail terrain on. Because what you are seeing is BM grassland blend and IG's grassland detail. When playing without that option on on normal settings, you will just see BM's grassland texture; ie: the color of the grassland which does have some of its own detail (this is what I have been refering to as the grassland texture because everyone atleast sees this regardless of whatsetting they use). With high detail terrain you will see the detail texture from IG, or the grassy noise, through the BM texture. Several other mods that make thier own custom graphics use IG's detail textures and then overlay thier own surface texture. I myself can not get the detail texture to show up in-game no matter what i do. Maybe I am missing something.

The expanded graphics is far from a finished product. There is a lot of experimentation.In a few days I will make one that has Total Realism's terrain. I will upload that so people can test drive that as well. And as I said before there will be seperate ones for BM. But LoR will include by default a mixture of whatever I think looks more realistic.

 

[OnmyojiOmn]

In the meantime I copied in some textures from BM, if only because the ones from IG were causing eyestrain. I edited the BM detail textures for grassland and plains so they don't seem bland next to the rest of the IG stuff. I'm also using the river and road textures I made for myself a while ago. Screenshots and zip below.

 

[achilleszero]

In the meantime I copied in some textures from BM, if only because the ones from IG were causing eyestrain. I edited the BM detail textures for grassland and plains so they don't seem bland next to the rest of the IG stuff. I'm also using the river and road textures I made for myself a while ago. Screenshots and zip below.

I have a BM only expanded graphics pack ready and will UL later to day. Ive also made some of my own textures out of BM's to be brighter. Yet when I put them in game I get these intermittant lines where the grid lines would be. What settings do you use to save your textures? Ive been using DXT3, w/ mipmaps. As far as I can tell that is what firaxis and BM use. Are there other settings that you used?

 

[OnmyojiOmn]

I save to tga (uncompressed!) and convert to dds with the command-line tools from Nvidia. I'd try that if you're using something else. The blend and grid textures should be DXT3 and the detail textures should be DXT1, everything should have 10 or so mipmaps.

I hope you'll try the rivers and roads in that zip file. It's hard to see the difference in the screenshots, but they're a huge improvement and nobody's modded them yet that I know of. The rivers have a really minor tiling problem that I never got around to fixing, but I can finish them if you want to use them.

 

[achilleszero]

I save to tga (uncompressed!) and convert to dds with the command-line tools from Nvidia. I'd try that if you're using something else. The blend and grid textures should be DXT3 and the detail textures should be DXT1, everything should have 10 or so mipmaps.

Thats the compression that Ive been using with GIMP. Yet I still get these wierd lines inbetween the plots. Its pretty much how all textures are saved in Civ. It would have to be a problem with GIMP's options then.

 

[stagnate]

Well, I figured out the balance issue I had. At some point I dropped from Emperor to Monarch to get used to Revolutions, and ... then I figured it out.

However the problem that I have now is that revolutions expands the gap between Monarch and Emperor - the problem is early expansion, and revolutions adds another penalty to limit early expansion. I find that Monarch is essentially a cake-walk, and Emperor is quite difficult.

I think one big issue is that early in the game you can either focus on hammers or gold, but not both. If my only concern is running a deficit, I can (somewhat) balance the two by adjusting tile focus. I haven't looked into how the bankruptcy code checks work, but if it's possible to offset some values by production (primarily to impact the first era or two) I think that might be nice.

To be honest I really don't know what the good or correct fix is, but right now I'm stuck halfway between Monarch and Emperor. I'd post this in the revolutions main forum, but I know you made changes to how bankruptcy is calculated and I'm not sure where the best fix is.