This is where our experts try to teach you the very flexible modding system for our previous release - SOW Gettysburg and its add-ons. It's powerful, but dangerous. Post your tips and your questions.
This mod includes ten fictional maps by Garnier. It also includes a mod that improves the look of the in-game vegatation and walls.
NOTE: You may need to change the install directory depending on where your game is installed. By default, it installs to C:\NorbSoftDev so you may need to change it to C:\Matrix Games
Once the installer is finished, simply start the game, go to your Modifications menu, and enable RandomMaps4 and GCM_Terrain4. The The maps will be available in your Sandbox menu and the terrain will be enhanced.
The GCM_Terrain4 mod which is included in this installer is a modified version of Jolly's terrain mod. It can be used with the stock gettysburg maps, and any other maps that use those original terrain sprites.
The only difference from Jolly's mod is that it makes the trees darker and greener, and makes the walls darker/browner. It also uses packed sprites so it might improve performance too.
Here are the minimaps for this batch:
4L.15
4L.16
4L.17
4L.18
4L.19
4L.20
4L.21
4L.22
4L.23
4L.24
Last edited by Garnier on Wed Nov 21, 2012 3:00 am, edited 1 time in total.
Garnier, did you know that these random maps do not work with the Courier and Mini-map mod that features the larger Mini map? It doesn't fit inside the frame with lots of dark area. The Pipe Creek maps don't either. All other maps seem to though. This is bad because The courier and Mini-map mod has lots of great features and I don't want to disable it.
Maybe you could improve the road system so the map doesn't look quite so blocky. In the most recent batch, there are almost gridlines due to the road system. I liked Random Map 2.2 where there are a lot of dead ends. The main thoroughfare or two on each map is really cool though, so be sure to keep that!
I also like the smoother, flatter terrain of the most recent batch (Random Map 4S.1 looks the best in terms of elevation). I think the extreme hills of the earlier maps make fights rather onesided.
Three last suggestions are:
Combine the all the random maps into one mod file with an understandable numbering system (ex. Small Random Map 1.1, Large Random Map 4.2), which you have to some extent, but all combined into one file that we can update/overwrite/replace as you produce more maps.
I don't know if it is possible, but using the nice new textures of C-ville would certainly spruce the ground up. I don't know if the random map generator can handle splats though.
Finally, although probably impossible, fences (I understand those must be placed unlike walls), would be nice to see. They really add to the map realism.
These are some of the most interesting maps I've played on. Nice work! The quantity and quality makes them very interesting to play on. I love the open spaces where cavalry is supreme!
The grid is better than my previous roads for gameplay. They're also more realistic in the sense that road networks in real life are a grid, just not as regular as mine is.
If you happen to know of a good road-generating algorithm, I'll be glad to look at it.
Someday I'll figure out a better way to do roads.
Fences -- not practical.
Textures from CV -- not allowed, but I prefer green anyway. I might redo the ground textures someday but not soon.
I just now downloaded the Random Maps 4 and the maps look great. I quickly looked at 5 of them and they all seem to be of Pipe Creek size. Is that correct? I was really hoping that some of them were of the smaller variety, like East Cavalry Field, Devil's Den, etc.
I'll look for those in the future.
"I may have fought on the side that was wrong, but I fought on the right side." John S. Mosby
The bigger maps cost a lot less in download time per square mile, so I don't see the advantage of having half of them be smaller, when that just means there will be less new terrain to fight on.
In what way are smaller ones better?
Last edited by Garnier on Wed Nov 21, 2012 5:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
