Yeah, I haven't finished my other house yet, so what?

Most recent screens:
http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/MGEScreenshot7.jpg
http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/MGEScreenshot6.jpg
http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/MGEScreenshot8.jpg
http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/MGEScreenshot5-1.jpg
http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/MGEScreenshot4-1.jpg
http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/Plantation.jpg (I actually like the low walls here, especially because you can see pipes in the wall that drop water, the walls can be functional to keep the water from running out. I quite like the walls.

You'll be able to make money and by slaves eventually, The Greatness is helping me script.

Comments?

Yeah sorry the thread is very plain, gotta go to work so I made the thread quick so kiteflyer can share some landscaping tips with me before I go.

I've never really taken much interest in a house mod before but I think that owning a plantation will bring lots of roleplaying oppurtunities, and this looks very detailed and interesting.

I have to agree, it's difficult to make a house/property mod interesting. Good job so far!

Thanks guys, yeah I was looking for a niche that hadn't been filled yet, and a plantation seemed like a good one. I've used Josh's Farmer mod before, and while it is very very very excellent from a gameplay standpoint, I found the plantations themselves to be a bit underwhelming, suitable as a business venture, but not as a home.

You asked for it.


The first thing I'll point out is that your entire plantation is very flat. Short of having the road built by modern heavy equipment, nothing in MW should be that flat. Try raising the ground around the plants in the field just slightly around each plant. Plants push the ground up around them slightly. You might also make slight furrows between the rows to show where the slaves walk while tending the plants. It won't take much to make the field look a lot better. As for the road, narrow it down. Even the major roads aren't that wide. Narrowing the road will also make it slightly easier to get rid of the SLS. Also, unless the road is made of solid stone, it will get worn down over time. Sink the center of the road slightly to show this. There should be a slight edge to the road (similar to modern curbs) for the road to look right. It would also look nice to have the dirt (or grass, or whatever) sloped up slightly against the walls around the plantation. There could also be little dips in the dirt along the walls. Anything but flat.


As for shading, I use a medium gray (85,85,85) to show shadows, and other colors (usually browns and greens) to help hide transitions between textures. If you have a large area of the same texture, use little random splotches of shading to break it up some. While you're in the CS, hit the "a" key to turn the lights up. It washes out the shading and makes it easier to tell where you need more or less shading. With the lights turned on, the shading you see is pretty close to what you'll see in-game. when the lights are off the shading will look very dark, but it will look a lot better in-game.


Feel free to ask any questions you might have. Sharing knowledge is the biggest reason this community is still around.



KF

Alright gotta go to work right now, but I'll digest that all when I get back. Thanks for the comments so for guys.

I don't know why I didn't think of it before. :facepalm:

Check out http://tamriel-rebuilt.org/?p=modding_data/tutorials§ion=251365. It will help you a lot.


KF

This is what i want to see!!!!!!!!!

Thank you several times...Rethan Manor pissed me off, just sitting there. Im a Hlaalu dammit: i want to make money!

I think the roads will have to stay straight and narrow unfortunately, as currently, the path around the field is only one unit wide, and I can't narrow it, while the wider path up to the manor is very difficult to make narrower and still look good. However, I'm using some of Kiteflyer's tips for more natural looking path and field. My question for you guys, is should I keep the little walls around the field? The walls kind of justify the perfect rectangular shape of the field, so they are nice in that respect, but I want some more advice.

EDIT: I narrowed the path up to the manor now, and I'm quite proud of it. Screenshot will probably come tomorrow after I vertex paint again.

http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/MGEScreenshot1-2.jpg
http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/MGEScreenshot2-2.jpg

I'm really proud of how the shading and the landscaping turned out

Is this a replacement for rethan manor or is it a seperate house mod?

It's completely separate, it is located east of Vivec, and south of Ald Sotha, on the little peninsula. Right next to Omani manor I believe.

Looking a lot better, Sir-Stabs-Alot.

I'd say you need to add a little more shading, especially where there are large patches of the same texture, but you've picked up the idea pretty quick. All it really takes is patience. Keep trying until you get it.

If you have any more questions, just ask.



KF

Like in the grass and on the road? Or where?

You already have some in the grass (at least it looks like it) but the road doesn't appear to have any. Think puddles. Unless the road is paved (cobblestone) it's likely to have bumps, ridges, puddles (not necessarily with water in them), and little spits of tall grass or plants (especially at the edges) to look natural. The more detail you add the better it will look. That's not to say you should fill up every little space, but a spot here and a spot there will make it look much better and more natural.


KF

You should make a tutorial or something Kiteflyer, I've learn quite a lot from your posts.

There's already one made. How do you think I learned?

http://www.tamriel-rebuilt.org/?p=modding_data/tutorials§ion=251365, in case you missed it. The site should look familiar. :whistling:



KF

You know I was actually originally intending on cobblestone, but I figured it would look unnatural so close to the field.

Unless the road leading up to it is cobblestone (which I doubt), I'd stick to dirt. Not many places in MW have cobblestone roads. With some playing around with height and some vertex shading this will look very nice and fit in with it's surroundings.


KF

Yeah thats the way I was looking at it too, but right up the road is Omani Manor with its cobblestone, and I just felt pretty jealous that Omani could afford it and I couldn't :swear:

I was trying to make the path right by the house cobblestone but I couldn't avoid seems and it was pretty annoying.

Do you think my shading along the paths should be wider? And where on the path should I put my shading?

Take a look at the tutorial i linked to. Specifically the pics of road building. Notice how, before shading, there are straight sides and a very blocky look. Then look at the finished road. The shading hides the edges of both textures and makes the road not appear as blocky. You can do wonderful things with vertex shading, making things appear slightly lower ( or higher ) just by playing around with the colors and density. Don't forget that you can use the right mouse button like an eraser. You can make a long straight line of color, then come back and clip out the edges here and there to make the line appear to waver and undulate without being too wide. You don't have to only use dark colors either. You can use a light tan color to make high spots too. Experiment with different combination's of color mixed with each other as well ( always lighter colors first ). As in anything else, practice makes perfect.



KF

http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/cobbles.jpg

Hide the seams under a large rock or two, maybe a couple of trees. Use your imagination. IMO, a couple of good sized rocks would look nice as corner posts.



KF

http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm34/ChaoticEnforcer/ARGGGG.jpg I can't figure out how to hide them, especially the one thats majorly sticking into the path.

But as you can see from the pic, the shading looks a bit better.

Widen the cobblestones one block, only the very end, then you'll be able to sort of arch the ends, sort of rounding off the grass corners. You'll have to adapt your shading, but you'll have an easier time covering the seams without narrowing the road. You could use rocks or trees or whatever.




KF