Is it possible to modify landscapes?

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Kamer
Posts: 583
Joined: Mon Mar 05, 2018 9:26 pm

Is it possible to modify landscapes?

Post by Kamer »

At the current moment is it possible to modify landscapes? For an example, if I wanted to add more detail into graveyards with more tombstones/trees or maybe even add enemies. Would that be possible at the moment. If so how would you go about doing it?

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Interkarma
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Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2015 1:51 am

Re: Is it possible to modify landscapes?

Post by Interkarma »

Welcome to the forums Kamer. :)

It is possible to adjust terrain in an algorithmic sense (change how terrain is sampled from heightmaps), but not currently possible to modify block-level data such as the tombstone models scattered around graveyards.

Daggerfall Unity reads all the map and layout data directly from the DOS game files at runtime, and lays out the world just like classic. As such there are no scene files to edit for adding new custom environments.

There are steps being made in this direction, but nothing official at this time as project is mainly focused on core gameplay right now.

One example of where this capability may come from is an outgrowth of Hazelnut's block modding feature being added for custom guild mods. This is currently used to add new NPCs to interiors but could also be used to change layout of exterior models like tombstones/buildings. However the feature isn't mature enough yet for this kind of work and has no editor support (e.g. you need to edit text files directly). It could evolve into something like what you're after in future however.

A different approach was shown by Uncanny_Valley in this thread. It allowed for overlaying new world objects to existing scenes based on world coordinates. This was never developed past a proof of concept stage as far as I'm aware, but it would be possible to create a mod like this today. This approach would allow for using the Unity Editor directly to place objects in the procedural world at runtime and save those differences to a file.

That's probably a long answer just to say "not yet", but I wanted to give you as much detail as possible. :)

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Kamer
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Joined: Mon Mar 05, 2018 9:26 pm

Re: Is it possible to modify landscapes?

Post by Kamer »

Well might as well make a suggestion for a mod when it's feasible. Everyone wants, including me, enemies to spawn while traversing the world but it still wouldn't suffice imo.

Having the outsides of dungeons modified to include specific enemy spawns would be nice. It was always great walking on a bandit infested exterior of a dungeon in the later games. Made the world seem more lively. Seeing bandit camps outside with random chance for loot piles would be fantastic. It's also really strange for Daggerfall to have these clearly operation, and well kept, fortress with absolutely no one outside of it. I'd definitely spend the time to modify all the exterior dungeon blocks when it is possible.

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