Vandragorax Prime Route

[Vandragorax]

Vandragorax Prime Route [WARNING 1920x1200 res screenshots]

Hey everyone! I'm new to Trainz Sim and have picked up Trainz 12 to play around on. I've started designing and making my own map, not based on anything real just totally made up to be fun, interesting, and exciting.

Currently it's in VERY early stages but I wanted to start a thread here so I can update with screenshots etc. over time and also hopefully take suggestions on board or post for help if I get stuck on anything

Without further ado...

Screenshots are HERE

Please click through them at your leisure, they are in date order newest first. I have currently laid out most of the landscape I'm looking at working with, these pics show the basic "test circuit" I have in the snowy tundra area, and then the coastline/mountain/waterfall which I have begun working on now. I am also planning on having some kind of plateau/mining industrial area on the opposite side. Some of the stuff behind the enginehouse and that lot will be moved, I just dumped down a few interesting looking items to remind me of them later on

I'm also hoping to do a lot of interesting stuff with the AI, so that the map feels "alive" when you play it, and you can simply take your favourite engine out for a spin, or take over one of the AI vehicles to continue its schedule yourself.

So far I have a heli-tour which takes off from a helipad, flies quite low over the central loop test track, and then back over the "city" (which isn't there yet) and lands again before starting over.

I also have a plane which I plan on using as a map tour session. It starts off at the airport, and I laid my own track on the pre-made airport as well as programming the AI so the plane takes off around the other planes and then continues to fly a wide route quite high up around the track so you can view it all from the air. Once in the sky, the plane just keeps looping on its track so you can keep going until you get bored, or airsick

That's it for now, hopefully I will be able to update this regularly as I plan on getting this project finished asap!

Regards,
Van

 

[NevadaNorthernFan901]

Looking pretty good! Keep it up and keep us posted!

 

[RRSignal]

For somebody who is brand-spankin'-new, you've picked up some good terraforming and ground texturing skills. Keep it up!

 

[Vandragorax]

Thanks guys! Yeah I've read a few tutorial sites, especially on signals and turntables (with AI use) to get a few bits working. Regarding the terrain and texturing, I've always been creative and have an eye for that sort of thing, so hopefully as I progress on this route it'll get better and better as I learn more I will certainly keep more shots coming as I move on with this project, and criticism is always welcome!

 

[kittycraft]

Yes, I agree with RRSignal. Very good Terraforming & Texure laying, also...
Welcome to the fourms!

 

[Vandragorax]

Thanks! Hopefully I can get to know a few more people in this extremely active community

 

[Vandragorax]

Just updated the waterfall, I think it looks much better now, much more powerful and impressive

Updated Waterfall Screenshot

 

[H222]

You have amazing skills for a n00b! :hehe: :hehe:

We welcome your skills to the forum, be sure to get tea and scones in the 'General Trainz' Thread, Suggestion Box in 'Suggestion Boxcar' Construction Site in 'Surveyors, Operators and Engineers' Cafe in 'Trainz Community' etc. etc.

Jamie

 

[SD45T-2]

Very Nice. Reminds me of my first routes when I got 2010.

 

[Vandragorax]

Hey all! I have an update of the new track I Just finished laying. I've also been working on the squares adjacent to the track squares with a bit of terrain to make the horizons look somewhat more complete.

This is a high-speed 200mph line running parallel to the mainline without any planned stops along the way. Going from the main station-house area on the tundra part of the map, under the new tunnel (I decided to use a tunnel to break between the tundra and mountain areas, it helps the track change and scenery flow much more smoothly) and around the plateau, finishing up in the planned coastal town at the bottom of the mountain pass

Screenshots here (look at Jul 23rd screens)

It performs really well with the SNCF TGV SE running at 200mph both ways, should feel really good speeding past all the other traffic and scenery once it's complete

Let me know what you think!

 

[Vandragorax]

Another update, bit more interesting visually this time! I've been using this picture as inspiration to try to get my "desert-y" area looking a bit better as I was bored of staring at brown ground everywhere.

This is what I've come up with so far (in a very small area only).

I've simply used a ground texture with plants, a very low-res spline for the main bushes, and then a few giant cactus scattered about with trees on the riverside to just complete the scene. Using these three elements seems to keep the frame-rate from dropping noticeably which is always good!

Let me know what you guys think, is this a good idea to keep doing this on quite a lot of the area up here or do you think that will positively kill the frame-rate? (although I'm thinking it should be ok... I've noticed mainly that high-res buildings seem to kill the frame-rate more than anything else)

Cheers for any feedback