Scenery – let’s get real!

Hi Casper..

What are the chances of you placing your assets on to TPR. Would make it easier for some of us without an FCT to download and appreciate your contributions.

Regards Dave.

Stationbeem said:

Hi Casper..

What are the chances of you placing your assets on to TPR. Would make it easier for some of us without an FCT to download and appreciate your contributions.

Regards Dave.

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He couldn't upload to the DLS anyways (I don't think), not having a high enough build.

I don’t have very much made which I consider good enough, or ready, to upload except perhaps for a few skies which many people might find a little bland. I might sort a few out and look at TPR.

My other few (just 5) assets are Italian trackside items, and an over textured church. I still need to complete and package these to achieve well performing appearance in-game.

With regard to routes, none are really finished. It takes an unbelievably long time to put together something decent. As techniques are mastered and new ones developed I find myself going back over older areas and editing them. I’m attempting, and hopefully achieving, an improvement in the look of the scenery. At the same time I’m also getting enhanced performance by applying the “less is more” principle, using better texturing methods and fewer assets.

I realise that my version is too low for DLS upload. However, even if I made a route in the most recent Trainz version it I reckon would be out of time for upload within the N3V Support Cycle policy timescale at the rate I’m creating!

What I might do is plunder one of my larger UK scenic efforts and edit it down to a six or 8 board layout with a few more industries and look at uploading to TPR, but it’s likely to be a while.

casper: I think you are right about assets..what I mean is, I personnly believe use scenery assets sparenly..I have always thought you want leave people wanting more..You certainly can overload an area with too much of the same thing, then it starts a cluttered look..

Hat's off to the OP, what a fantastic thread! Having finally started to get serious I am finding that this thread will be an awesome reference for scenery! While I'm still struggling with so many of the basics regarding assets I now feel that I have a leg up on scenery!

Loving the Trainz communitity more each day that I log into the forums

So much to learn... so little available time...

Along with casper, Time of day also comes into play..First pic taken at noon..

7:00AM

This Pic At 7:00Am..

Roads

.
Further back in this thread there are some useful hints from other contributors about setting up the scenery around roads.

I’m not Trainz active in the summer months and I’m still catching up on unread posts. That was one of them, so these road ideas are a bit late, but hopefully useful.

The clear areas to the sides of roads are valid for motorways (freeways) and some main roads in our part of the World (UK and mainland Europe). However, minor roads and tracks are usually constantly fighting with nature as the foliage begins to overgrow the hard surfacing.

With the more overgrown type of road, a hard edge can give a very unreal look.

Here is a semi-hard edged road leading straight into the distance (left). The edges can still be seen, but there is some transparency ready to merge with the texturing.

Making the land surface slightly uneven, or hilly, gives it a better look (middle).

Curving the road helps with perspective, emphasises the undulations of the terrain and adds depth (right).





Road splines with ragged, rather than hard or semi-hard, edges can give a better impression of grass growing over the verges. Here’s one I particularly like. At first the impression is one of rough edged tarmac, ..




.. but the eye is quickly fooled into seeing grass growing over the roadside when the texture is laid.





Some road splines have built in grassy edges which can be matched to ground textures.





If you find visible road edges distracting you can disguise them with other assets. For example, add some foliage along the edges ..





.. and maybe a fence on one, or both, sides. Don’t worry about the vegetation and fencing overlapping. It looks better that way.





Finally, put that road to good use. Here’s an old car rally in progress on one of my routes.




That’s all for now.

Cheers
Casper

hi casper
great stuff mate
what are the kuids for the 2nd and 3rd roads down please
thanks
ron

Thanks for your kind words saintduiex.

misterchugg said:

~snip~ what are the kuids for the 2nd and 3rd roads down please ~snip~

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Thanks Ron.

The plain grey tarmac road with jagged edges is strasse <kuid:143919:35005>

I’m not sure that it’s on the DLS, but you can get it from TrainzDepot (link here).


The sandy coloured road is sarkavizesa <kuid:128184:37082>

The two puddles which you can see in the boggy dip in the road are built into a matching road spline for the above. I’ve put in two adjacent puddles, on opposite sides of the road, by laying two short pieces, one of which is reversed. The puddle spline is sarkavizesb <kuid:128184:37083>

These last two are on the DLS. Make sure TRS2004 box is ticked.


Cheers
Casper

thanks casper

froobie said:

@scottish;


I just finished The E & N Railway (track only) (Southern Vancouver Island) it is 234 Km long.

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I am in Courtenay, I would be interested to see your route!! Don't know if the E&N will ever roll again.

Chris750 said:

I am in Courtenay, I would be interested to see your route!! Don't know if the E&N will ever roll again.

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I'm in Victoria and I'm hoping The E&N does roll again.

About my route, I've postponed work on The E&N until the 'new' Trainz because my layout is way beyond the capacity of TS12 (any build). I'm concentrating on The Kettle Valley route. There is only two largish towns, Hope and Penticton so Trainz doesn't bog down too much.

If you PM me with an email address I'll send you some E&N screenshots, if you'd like.

Cheers,
--michael.

PS Here is a screenshot of the Ladner Creek Bridge #11 of the KVRR.

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So we are on both ends of the line. It amazes me that at the best of times the E&N is 3 cars long yet people still try to beat it at crossing and get hit, wankers. Yes, I would like to see some screen shots, will get you my email address.