Making hills

[Capt. Toleran]

I'm having real problems wrestling around with creating hills, altering altitude, etc. I just can't seem to do it right without creating very jagged or unrealistic terrain.

Anyone have a "terraforming for dummies" spiel they'd like to give?

[Sgt Joch]

what kind of elevation differential are you using?

[Bradley Dick]

Try getting some topographical maps to look at. That should give you some idea of realistic contours

[tc237]

Also, along with the contour lines, use plenty of elevation points along the way to force the terrain into place.

Sometimes lower/higher elevations will "leak" through your contour lines causing the jagged effect. Use contour lines two squares deep to prevent the "leaks"

Let us know if you need more help.

(edit:You can e-mail me the scenario if you'd like)

[ August 13, 2007, 02:28 PM: Message edited by: tc237 ]

[Roter Stern]

I found that the most straight forward way to do elevations is by defining the very peak of the hill, the bottom contour, and creating a web of “guide lines” to give it a natural slope line.

Something along these lines:

Scale also has a lot to do with how smooth the hill will turn out - don't try squeezing a 50m tall hill into a 10x10m area

[Capt. Toleran]

Ah, excellent advice, especially with the visuals. I'll give them a try now, and hopefully get some scenarios up here.

[tc237]

Similar to Louch, but I do the base elevation first.

This "locks" the elevation changes and prevents stray "leaks" into the surrounding terrain.

I've mainly been experimenting with rivers/canals/ditches with bridges.