Kieme(ITA)

Kieme CMBS modular roofs pt. 1 mod
 
After a test I noticed that doubling the resolution was not giving much visual impact, that's why I decided to go with the standard definition version, therefore this mod does not affect game performance.
I will surely make a standard definition version for the modular buildings mod too as soon as the roofs are finished.
This mod covers the "high angle" roofs in game, lower angle ones will come in part 2 (flat roofs covered by buildings mod already)
 
Download:
https://app.box.com/s/5yoz7chtwhu3c95nbrlaub62hs2h0fv9
 
Changelog:
-new roofs (2 ceramic tiles, 3 metal plates)
-new gables (2 cinder blocks, 1 wood, 2 concrete)
-new damaged versions
 
Previews:

Hehe, presence of tanks is another con against having stripes on the roads.
 
A preview of the modular roofs, mod ready at 25%:
 
Vanilla roof:

 
Modded roof:

Kieme CMBS modular buildings add on 1 (HD)
 
Important !!! this mod does not change any file of the game, it simply ADDs 4 new modular buildings types you can choose from the editor while making a completely new map.
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/3whq3ye3oxl5k1ru6qsj7b68xyp0ffxx
 
Previews in previous replies.
 
Changelog:
-additional building (modern highrise, brown, light weathering)
-additional building (modern highrise, white, medium weathering)
-additional building (industrial concrete, light grey, light weathering)
-additional building (industrial concrete, light grey, with rollup doors, light weathering)
-dedicated new doors and windows for each
 
　
Note: this mod is in HD (2x the size of original textures), therefore it will ask more resources to your system and it could slow down your game.
 
Note to scenario designers:
if you wish to use the buildings of this add-on please remember that:
-if a player without this mod/add-on will use a scenario made using this mod/add-on as an option the said player will see the buildings in game but with one of the 8 original textures, being those modded or not..
-the roll up doors in building no.12 do not work in game, they are just aesthetics
-the windows seen on middle facades of buildings 9 and 10 don't work in game, but you can use the long windows + balconies) to match the facade and make it servicable -and yet visually pleasant- in game, see this example:
http://i58.tinypic.com/2j4cyae.jpg

Kieme CMBS modular buildings add on 1 (HD)
 
Important !!! this mod does not change any file of the game, it simply ADDs 4 new modular buildings types you can choose from the editor while making a completely new map.
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/3whq3ye3oxl5k1ru6qsj7b68xyp0ffxx
 
Previews in previous replies.
 
Changelog:
-additional building (modern highrise, brown, light weathering)
-additional building (modern highrise, white, medium weathering)
-additional building (industrial concrete, light grey, light weathering)
-additional building (industrial concrete, light grey, with rollup doors, light weathering)
-dedicated new doors and windows for each
 
　
Note: this mod is in HD (2x the size of original textures), therefore it will ask more resources to your system and it could slow down your game.
 
Note to scenario designers:
if you wish to use the buildings of this add-on please remember that:
-if a player without this mod/add-on will use a scenario made using this mod/add-on as an option the said player will see the buildings in game but with one of the 8 original textures, being those modded or not..
-the roll up doors in building no.12 do not work in game, they are just aesthetics
-the windows seen on middle facades of buildings 9 and 10 don't work in game, but you can use the long windows + balconies) to match the facade and make it servicable -and yet visually pleasant- in game, see this example:
http://i58.tinypic.com/2j4cyae.jpg

They are ready. Since there is no repository yet I have attached the .zip files here - they are only 400K or so each.
 
Here is the key:

 
I have a mod for the US including Ukraine (both red and blue sides) and a separate mode for the Russians.  My eventual plan is to create a Russian tactical symbol set because my preference is to play with the symbols used by the given army.  I do not know how long it will take me to get there but it will be a while.
 
US and Ukrainian icons
CatTacticalIconsCMBSUSNato.zip
 
Russian icons
CatTacticalIconsCMBSRussianNato.zip

That's one great idea Mord!

Agreed and as you point out - this stuff can be done already - it just requires the player to have the self-discipline to, in the words of the OP to 'NO SAVE & NO LOAD'.

I found the right building, it's not exactly the one I picked before, because this one is turned 45°, adding more complexity to the pathfinding.
The building in question is sitting on a 5 squares position. Where the middle square is entirely inside the building, and the other 4 squares are covered by 1 half each.
The game engine works with squares, as we know, but these squares are devided in two parts if the situation occurs, such situation is, for example, a fence running amid the square thus dividing it in two, both logically and for the game's brain.
 
 
Now, this picture shows where you can place your command, it's a half square (or a triangle) due to the presence of the fence, the White marks indicate the grid.
 

As you can see the door is closer to the right outside square than to the left outside square... So that's the reason the AI recognizes the right side square as the closest one, and as per my description in the previous post, the AI will go there in order to re-align with the grid system before reaching the first waypoint.

 
The first waypoint is directly outside the building, that's true, but it's 2 squares away in the game's brain eyes, therefore the closest square to use is the one on the right.
I replicated the movements and no matter where you place the first waypoint outside the building, the units will go to the (in this case) firezone before aligning to the waypoint. So it's a matter of grid.
 
Take a look at this:
from the game's brain point of view, the troops are in square a, and they are ordered to go to half square c, they can't go directly there, so the game picks the closest square between a and c in order to "fill the gap" of the logic command. It picks b, because it's the most logical square to use in order to reach c.. in order to re-align with the grid system the troops will have the tendency to reach square b center before turning towards the waypoint.

 
A gridded terrain mod might help with precise order plotting, although I belive BFC should add a "show grid" option or quick hotkey, enabling or disabling the fictional grid system used by the game.
 
In a far future game development they could either reduce the grid size, thus allowing for even more precise plotting (and terrain detailing) but raising the calculation complexity; or they could somehow disloge the ground grid from the order plotting (waypoint plotting), but I am not sure how the system works so whatever.

I belive the first module will include VDV for Ukr and Rus and MARINES for USA.
It will include some new terrain/buildings/flavour objects types (civilian vehicles and commercial standard containers are already hinted in game files)
It will surely have a MARINES campaign, possibly also a campaign for Rus VDV. 
 
 
The second module will include a new country, possibly one like Germany or United Kingdom.
Although I'd like to see something really new like France, Poland, Italy.
On the Rus side naval infantry could be added.
 
Irregular formations could be interesting too, for Ukr and Rus sides.
B type formations both for Rus and Ukr are also possible.

Kieme CMBS modular buildings (HD) mod
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/lriagz6nrjlo1m6y2eke1u99f5jowptc
 
Changelog:
-new textures (HD) for all 8 modular buildings
-new doors and windows
-new details
-new flat roofs
-new floor texture
 
Note: this mod is in HD, that means that all the content textures are 2x the size of original game's ones. Please note that use of this mod will require more computer resources and might cause lower performances of the game with your system.
 
Preview: (more previews inside this forum thread, please check other pages):

Kieme CMBS modular buildings (HD) mod
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/lriagz6nrjlo1m6y2eke1u99f5jowptc
 
Changelog:
-new textures (HD) for all 8 modular buildings
-new doors and windows
-new details
-new flat roofs
-new floor texture
 
Note: this mod is in HD, that means that all the content textures are 2x the size of original game's ones. Please note that use of this mod will require more computer resources and might cause lower performances of the game with your system.
 
Preview: (more previews inside this forum thread, please check other pages):

Kieme CMBS modular buildings (HD) mod
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/lriagz6nrjlo1m6y2eke1u99f5jowptc
 
Changelog:
-new textures (HD) for all 8 modular buildings
-new doors and windows
-new details
-new flat roofs
-new floor texture
 
Note: this mod is in HD, that means that all the content textures are 2x the size of original game's ones. Please note that use of this mod will require more computer resources and might cause lower performances of the game with your system.
 
Preview: (more previews inside this forum thread, please check other pages):

Kieme CMBS modular buildings (HD) mod
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/lriagz6nrjlo1m6y2eke1u99f5jowptc
 
Changelog:
-new textures (HD) for all 8 modular buildings
-new doors and windows
-new details
-new flat roofs
-new floor texture
 
Note: this mod is in HD, that means that all the content textures are 2x the size of original game's ones. Please note that use of this mod will require more computer resources and might cause lower performances of the game with your system.
 
Preview: (more previews inside this forum thread, please check other pages):

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cxtufr9i2tazqcn/HQS%202.1%20-%20Black%20Sea%20-%20Shock%20Force%20-%20Afghanistan.rar?dl=0     1. Put the "sound" in your Data/Z folder.  2. WATCH OUT! - If you have any sound modules you have to remove folders which mod changes, because sounds have changed names. Don't just copy and paste. If you do it both old and new sounds will remain!    - There are so many changes that too much to write about them (eg. I added the sound of flak for approaching aircraft )   just have fun;)     this version is almost ready, missing only the optional ambient sounds and noises for the Ukrainian infantry. Soon I will add approximately 50-100 sounds for Ukrainian infantry (radio chatter, etc.) - are mainly in Russian, as we know, many Ukrainians know only Russian language (mostly from the East) - Optional ambient sounds and vehicles   Please comment, it seems to me that everything is okay, but there's always something can be done badly

Thanks Mord and Vin, your words are much appreciated.
 
Vin, I also tried to fight the blurry distant textures (and tree differences) over and over again. Found a thing by chance: if you increase the resolution of the close texture (the one you see at closer distance, the "good" texture) you have to reduce the resolution (or dimensions) of the mini ground texture to reduce the visual difference.
 
For example: CMBS original terrain is 1024x1024 per tile, with the correspondent mini texture at 64x64 pixels. My higher resolution mod uses 2048x2048 closer textures, where the correspondent mini is sometimes a little 8x8 pixel image (!).
So I wonder this: considering that a large map, looked from far away, has more space covered by the "mini" textures than space covered by the large closer textures, is there really a big frame impact to the game engine -keeping in mind that there will be 8x8 pixel images instead of 64x64 at distace, and 2048x2048 at closer distance instead of 1024x1024?
I belive yes, there will still be an impact because the number of 8x8 Tiles needed to cover the 1024x1024 of a single closer tile is quite large.. (1.048.576 pixels), but, being of a smaller size it means that the far away mini squares will be many...
Not sure if all this profane and untechnical elaboration was clear...

Glad you like this.
 
It's a hobby, but after some time spent modding CMSF and CMRT, after having learnt how to use the different instruments of a specific painting program, after collecting a lot of textures in a database, and after knowing quite well how the textures behave in game and what effectively is in the game, I must say that the modding process can be very fast; take the modular buildings, for example, I now use a simple method: find a good picture imaging a roughtly size of a 3-storey structure in game, medium size (smallr size will shrink the texture a bit, large size will stretch it); then mentally divide it in 3 parts and see if it can fit. If it does then I cut the part I need, resize it in a 2048x1536 image, or "master building texture" (which is exactly the size of the in game modular building, 3 storey high). Then I paste the image in a raw 2048x512 picture, make three of those (bottom/middle/top), and you got the most of the building done. Quick test in game (using a pre-made dedicated small map with buildings inside), check what it looks like near a soldier, check if it fits the other buildings, apply corrections to colors/definition/brightness etc., then add some weathering using decals. Then finish the details (such as balcony), find some matching door/window/longwindow from a pre-made database, finally make the normal maps using a free quick tool; one last in game check. The building is done. Could really make a lot of them, but if you need to make 30 clicks to find what you need it's not going to be pleasant to detail a scenario's map. That's why I will mod the 8 vanilla buildings and at max add 8 more new types, 15 clicks to browse the avilable buildings is more acceptable.

Some last previews of the modular buildings mod.
 
I have found a solution for the flat roofs, which will be included in the mod (BFC decided to use only 1 flat roof type for the 8 buildings this time, for performance reasons).
The other roofs will come separately.
 
The only missing parts to finish the mod are the details (around Windows and doors), should be done today or Tomorrow.
 

Glad you like this.
 
It's a hobby, but after some time spent modding CMSF and CMRT, after having learnt how to use the different instruments of a specific painting program, after collecting a lot of textures in a database, and after knowing quite well how the textures behave in game and what effectively is in the game, I must say that the modding process can be very fast; take the modular buildings, for example, I now use a simple method: find a good picture imaging a roughtly size of a 3-storey structure in game, medium size (smallr size will shrink the texture a bit, large size will stretch it); then mentally divide it in 3 parts and see if it can fit. If it does then I cut the part I need, resize it in a 2048x1536 image, or "master building texture" (which is exactly the size of the in game modular building, 3 storey high). Then I paste the image in a raw 2048x512 picture, make three of those (bottom/middle/top), and you got the most of the building done. Quick test in game (using a pre-made dedicated small map with buildings inside), check what it looks like near a soldier, check if it fits the other buildings, apply corrections to colors/definition/brightness etc., then add some weathering using decals. Then finish the details (such as balcony), find some matching door/window/longwindow from a pre-made database, finally make the normal maps using a free quick tool; one last in game check. The building is done. Could really make a lot of them, but if you need to make 30 clicks to find what you need it's not going to be pleasant to detail a scenario's map. That's why I will mod the 8 vanilla buildings and at max add 8 more new types, 15 clicks to browse the avilable buildings is more acceptable.

In my opinion the game engine is forcing into much reduced visual distance capability for all units for simulation reasons. Given also a random factor that will most probably be there I'd say the game engine is doing a good job in lowering visual distance capability of units given the scenario setting and time. 
 
In conclusion I see no bugs or problems here but a precise game design feature, that is aimed to simulate the conditions.
 
We could discuss all day long on what our own opinions are, and if a vehicle could be spotted at 100m of distance we would have a forum complain about it being not realistic enough, but all of this doesn't change the fact that the game design is there for the above reason and it is doing its job.
 
Given the actual development of the game I belive this is fine with what the engine rendering capabilities are.

Thank you people, the buildings mod is 50% done, roads mod is 30% done, roofs mod not yet started, add-on for buildings is 50% done.
 
Meanwhile, this is the last ready to go mod I got, but I'm not 100% satisfied with it.
I wanted the modern concrete slabs in lieu of the vanilla blocks wall, because I belive that the original texture concept is more suited for a full urban setting, while in most cases we do need a modern wall to fit most situations and the concrete slabs are quite modern and common sight; the brick wall has Always been a troublemaker for me, you might want to consider this one as a gap filler (that's what I do) until someone comes up with a much better version:
 
Kieme CMBS alternative walls (HD) mod
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/syqg4s9yz98y4vw8it85ik1b08fb2nh4
 
Changelog:
-new brick wall texture (modern red bricks) in HD
-new stone wall texture (concrete slabs) in HD
-new editor buttons for stone and brick walls
 
Notes:
-this mod is in HD (2x original texture size), despite that, it should have little impact on game performance since the original textures were of a very low resolution.
 
Previews:

PREVIEW CMBS Reworked Foliage Mod
 
 
Will include all new interface buttons and tiles to better distinguish tree types, shapes and dimensions in the editor

Hello everybody!
 
here comes a new adventure into modding CMBS.
 
I will use this forum thread only for all my mods, discussions, previews and releases, in order to avoid clogging the forums.
 
For now I can't to use CMMODS site because it does not support CMBS and I have no way to recover/reset my lost account; I don't want to use the official repository in its actual state; if you don't mind you'll find download links from a free upload site, at least for now.
 
I will add posts like: PREVIEW XXX or RELEASE XXX, toghether with screenshots, descriptions and download links. Feel free to comment, suggest improvements, point out mistakes or problems. 
I'll try to post a summary from time to time with a list of released mods and downloads.
 
Now some words about my way of modding: as many others I mod for myself following my personal taste, therefore there's no claims about any mod if not that they follow my personal view and preferences. Generally speaking, I try to follow to some rules with all my mods such as: the use of more detailed textures, HD textures (2x or even 4x the original resolution size) when possible, more desaturated colors, use of photorealistic textures and decals. 
My main interest has always been modular buildings and terrain modding, but I'll try to mod vehicles too.
 
Some comparative screenshots to let you better understand what I'm talking about:
 
PREVIEW: CMBS Reworked Foliage Mod
Vanilla foliage:

Modded foliage:

 
PREVIEW: CMBS Terrain Mod
Vanilla pavement:

Modded pavement:


 

Kieme CMBS ground mod (HD)
 
Download links:
 
Part 1
https://app.box.com/s/ywtyid56b1t7dphm4fg7et7668q0egdg
Part 2
https://app.box.com/s/2arjajmarl8gd33j3j3bad939iks1n9l
 
Changelog:
-new textures for all terrain tiles (27) in HD (2x original resolution)
-new crater texture
-new distant ground texture
-new mini tiles
-new editor tiles for hard ground, pavement and pavement2
-new editor buttons for pavement and pavement2
Notes:
-download split in two for uploading reasons, can be placed in the same folder;
-this mod does not include a texture for "ground cobblestones", I suggest to use Aris' Combat Mission Red Thunder ground mod's cobblestone texture to improve over the original;
-this mod is in HD, which means its contents have 2x (or even 4x) the resolution of the original textures, therefore it will require more computer resources overe the official suggested requirements to be used without performance drops;

Kieme CMBS alternative crops mod
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/7aia2idxkivf2hfm8r7w6dzrnsf11piz
 
Changelog:
-new crop sunflowers (changes cabbages)
-new crop corn (changes potatoes)
-new texture for grain n.2
-sharpened texture of grain n.1
-new texture for sugarbeets
-new editor buttons
-new editor tiles

Thank you people, the buildings mod is 50% done, roads mod is 30% done, roofs mod not yet started, add-on for buildings is 50% done.
 
Meanwhile, this is the last ready to go mod I got, but I'm not 100% satisfied with it.
I wanted the modern concrete slabs in lieu of the vanilla blocks wall, because I belive that the original texture concept is more suited for a full urban setting, while in most cases we do need a modern wall to fit most situations and the concrete slabs are quite modern and common sight; the brick wall has Always been a troublemaker for me, you might want to consider this one as a gap filler (that's what I do) until someone comes up with a much better version:
 
Kieme CMBS alternative walls (HD) mod
 
Download link:
https://app.box.com/s/syqg4s9yz98y4vw8it85ik1b08fb2nh4
 
Changelog:
-new brick wall texture (modern red bricks) in HD
-new stone wall texture (concrete slabs) in HD
-new editor buttons for stone and brick walls
 
Notes:
-this mod is in HD (2x original texture size), despite that, it should have little impact on game performance since the original textures were of a very low resolution.
 
Previews: