TUTORIAL Build your FIRST track - BASIC GUIDE

[Johnr777]

Glad to be of help!

 

[eg01st]

That's just one layer? yikes

Splitting grass files into multiple KN5s does little for performance, All it does is help loading files into ksEditor quicker.

The guide you've read is emphasizing on using multiple layers per section. I like to use 5 layers, some guys use 3... but it really depends on how much grass you need to cover.

I'll write the way I distribute grass to my projects, by no means the only way to do it, but its efficient and follows the layer system.

1) I've cloned my grass surface object and split into roughly 10 equal sized areas. These will be my distribution surfaces... Surface 1 to Surface 1o

2) I'm now going to do a test scatter on Surface 1, determining how many polygons it will take for the area to be lush and covered. Turns out its about 50000 polygons. Easy math = 50000/5 layers = 10000 per layer.

3) I apply 5 scatter commands, each at 10000 clones, ( if using max, each scatter command needs a new seed, so the clones are random all 5 times) to Surface 1.

4) The way I name them:
surface1_01_KSLAYER1
surface1_02_KSLAYER2
surface1_03_KSLAYER3
surface1_04_KSLAYER4
surface1_05_KSLAYER5

5) Reset the pivot points of those 5 objects to their centers, its what the game needs to know so the LOD out works correctly.

6) I keep on doing the same steps 2 - 5 to all other 9 surfaces. Doesnt necessarily mean they all take 50000 clones/polygons.. but always use the math dividing by 5 layers. (ie 45000/5 = 9000 per layer, etc)

Until my Surface 10 is all set
surface10_01_KSLAYER1
surface10_02_KSLAYER2
surface10_03_KSLAYER3
surface10_04_KSLAYER4
surface10_05_KSLAYER5

7) The normals will need to be fixed, pointed up.

8) Export to FBX... doesnt need to be multiple, only if loading into ks editor is ridiculously long... then sure, split them into 2-3 FBX

9) Once loaded into the editor, need to fix the LOD out values for each layer of each surface.

KSLAYER1 = 350
KSLAYER2 = 300
KSLAYER3 = 260
KSLAYER4 = 160
KSLAYER5 = 80

These numbers arent set in stone, but its what its been used successfully, but i've done different versions of that.. again, depending on the project, and camera angles.

Once shader is all set, KN5 exported. You should have a 3d grass system in your track that is efficient, looks good, and doesnt cost you of any more than 10-15 fps.

With a good texture that actually matches the grass surface, good shader values... it could look very good.

You dont want this.... View attachment 2801

You want this.... View attachment 2802

Talking about textures, my grass becomes darker in distance in wide angle views, ingame. See the two pictures with S corners - the camera position is the same, in low FOV grass is ok, but in wide angle it becomes "dirty". Is that something to do with mipmaps/aniso filters?

Also, can somebody recommend a good texture source for dry/old/dead grass? Google gives only one example that is close, but it's half transparent and looks ugly. I place it on sand surfaces.

 

[Johnr777]

yeah, looks like your 3d grass texture is too dense for the job...

I zipped a couple of textures, feel free to use.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a6nkhq8xmn82xbs/GrassTextures.zip?dl=0

 

[eg01st]

yeah, looks like your 3d grass texture is too dense for the job...

I zipped a couple of textures, feel free to use.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a6nkhq8xmn82xbs/GrassTextures.zip?dl=0

Thank you, I will try these out.

I'm having a little struggle with getting .dds transparency through GIMP right in ksEditor. My project currenly has .png files. I make a flat transparent layer in photoshop and delete white matte to get rid of white borders.

EDIT: SuperPNG plugin for Photoshop is really easy to use for testing textures with alpha layer.

 

[Johnr777]

You should really avoid using png, it kills performance

 

[eg01st]

You should really avoid using png, it kills performance

I know, it's just for testing. It's pain to open each file after each change in GIMP and convert to .dds.

BTW:

Today's test drive. Please don't roast me for crashing. I'm a bad driver and this was first time using this car.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/q325oqxDMswUq9wz6

 

[piermario]

...

 

[Kibbutz]

Hello guys!
Anyone here is into, or has ever done a point to point track?
My problem is, in my track if I'm not in hotlap mode, AC won't save the lap time since it is recognissed as a pit exit lap, and the timer will start as I cross the finish line. Do you know if there's any workaround for this, or a related setting I can turn off? I tried looking out for this but the net is not helping.

 

[eg01st]

Hello guys!
Anyone here is into, or has ever done a point to point track?
My problem is, in my track if I'm not in hotlap mode, AC won't save the lap time since it is recognissed as a pit exit lap, and the timer will start as I cross the finish line. Do you know if there's any workaround for this, or a related setting I can turn off? I tried looking out for this but the net is not helping.

Can you put pit exit before start line? Or before first time gates?

 

[Kibbutz]

pit are before the start line. I have 2 ai, one with defined pit spline, and one without, but no matter which one I use or if I don't use it at all, the same problem occurs

 

[eg01st]

pit are before the start line. I have 2 ai, one with defined pit spline, and one without, but no matter which one I use or if I don't use it at all, the same problem occurs

Can you post a screenshot of track layout/scheme?

 

[Kibbutz]

here are 2 if I get what you need

 

[eg01st]

here are 2 if I get what you need

View attachment 2866

View attachment 2867

Is AC_TIME_0 in the same spot as Start?
I think that should not be like that, if it is. Time_0 should be between start and finish lines. From screenshot it looks like they are in the same spot, but I'm not sure.

 

[Kibbutz]

yeah, I have ac_time_0 overlapped with ac_ab_start. isn't time_0 where the timing is supposed to start?

 

[eg01st]

yeah, I have ac_time_0 overlapped with ac_ab_start. isn't time_0 where the timing is supposed to start?

No. Time_0 is the gates of sectors. So time 0 is between first sector and second. First sector's timer is the start line. So what you had was game thought you started driving after start line, because it registered time AFTER completing first sector. Move ac_time_0 in the middle of the track and test it.

 

[Kibbutz]

let me get this right. I have time_1 and time_2 as timing gate at 1/3 and 2/3 of the track, time_o will not affect them? Or they are all timing gates?

 

[eg01st]

let me get this right. I have time_1 and time_2 as timing gate at 1/3 and 2/3 of the track, time_o will not affect them? Or they are all timing gates?

If you have total 3 sectors, you only need time_0 and time_1. "0" at 30% of track, and "1" at 60% of the track.

 

[Kibbutz]

thank you, will try and report here

 

[Kibbutz]

still same problem, that didn't solve anything. Thank you anyway eg01st

 

[MTHS]

I use 3d max to make the track. I try to change the Y in the direction I want the car to go, but nothing changed. I let Y up and Z in the direction I want, the car fly away. How can I set the start direction of the car?