DynDOLOD 3.00 Alpha 182

[BigBeef]

Hi Everyone 

I'm following Lexy's LOTD guide https://lexyslotd.com/guide/finishing-line/ but I can't seem to get DynDOLOD to work. I'm starting it up with the settings recommended in the guide:

But I'm getting all sorts of errors. In particular it seems to be Occlusion Error and LODgen error when DynDOLOD stops working but there are other errors as well:

[16:05] <Error: Occlusion generation aborted due to LODGen error>
[16:06] DynDOLOD plugins generated successfully
[16:06] <Error: LODGenx64Win.exe failed to generate object LOD for mannyGFDesert. LODGenx64Win.exe returned 25B. Check D:\Modding Tools\DynDOLOD Special Edition\DynDOLOD\Logs\LODGen_SSE_mannyGFDesert_log.txt>

I was going to attach the logs but there's loads of them and I'm not sure which ones are relevant, sorry. I can post any that you guys might think will help diagnose the problem though.

I've disabled my windows anti-virus and I don't have any other anti-virus so I don't think that can be causing the issue. 

I've tried asking for help in Lexy's Discord but she's directed me here. I'm really hoping you guys can help as it's driving me nuts to go through this long guide and fail at the final hurdle .

thanks!

[sheson]

2 hours ago, BigBeef said:

Hi Everyone 

I'm following Lexy's LOTD guide https://lexyslotd.com/guide/finishing-line/ but I can't seem to get DynDOLOD to work. I'm starting it up with the settings recommended in the guide:

But I'm getting all sorts of errors. In particular it seems to be Occlusion Error and LODgen error when DynDOLOD stops working but there are other errors as well:

[16:05] <Error: Occlusion generation aborted due to LODGen error>
[16:06] DynDOLOD plugins generated successfully
[16:06] <Error: LODGenx64Win.exe failed to generate object LOD for mannyGFDesert. LODGenx64Win.exe returned 25B. Check D:\Modding Tools\DynDOLOD Special Edition\DynDOLOD\Logs\LODGen_SSE_mannyGFDesert_log.txt>

I was going to attach the logs but there's loads of them and I'm not sure which ones are relevant, sorry. I can post any that you guys might think will help diagnose the problem though.

I've disabled my windows anti-virus and I don't have any other anti-virus so I don't think that can be causing the issue. 

I've tried asking for help in Lexy's Discord but she's directed me here. I'm really hoping you guys can help as it's driving me nuts to go through this long guide and fail at the final hurdle .

thanks!

I moved the post to the DynDOLOD 3 Alpha thread.

The first post explains which log files to upload. The message itself explains which LODGen log file to check in particular.

If there was a message pop-up and/or the summary opened it should open/point to the corresponding help page for LODGen:

https://dyndolod.info/Help/LODGen
25B Error accessing ...
There is a problem reading the mentioned *.NIF. Try to reinstall the file or mod from its download archive. Run the *.NIF through Cathedral Assets Optimizer. If the file opens without error in NifSkope, make a post on the official DynDOLOD support forum and upload the *.NIF or provide a link to the mod etc.

Again, check the mentioned log file for details.

[TFVgen]

On 5/21/2022 at 10:57 AM, sheson said:

"When making screenshots of things in the game, open console and click the object in question to show its reference form ID."

Without the More Informative Console mod, clicking an object with console open shows only the reference form id of the object and nothing else.

"If the form ID points to a DynDOLOD plugin, load the plugin into xEdit and look up the reference. Take note of the Editor ID, which is typically of the format plugniname_formID for the source plugin and reference."

The first two (in case of ESL the first 5) digits are the load order ID of the plugin that add the reference. Only ESM, ESP, ESL plugins can contain form IDs. So the first two digits of the reference form ID point us to the plugin which adds the reference. From the More Informative Console screenshot we already know it is DynDOLOD.esp.

The instructions specifically say to "look up the reference".

Why would you look up a reference in SSEEdit anyway? That wording is very vague, anyway, I couldn't find this editor ID, also nothing in that reference ID matches with anything on any Dyndolod plugin, if you could screenshot the information that you need that would be great.

[sheson]

43 minutes ago, TFVgen said:

Why would you look up a reference in SSEEdit anyway? That wording is very vague, anyway, I couldn't find this editor ID, also nothing in that reference ID matches with anything on any Dyndolod plugin, if you could screenshot the information that you need that would be great.

As explained, the Editor ID of such reference is of the format pluginame_formid so it tells us the source plugin and reference for which this LOD reference has been added to the DynDOLOD plugin.

The wording is verbatim. The DynDOLOD documentation simply does not re-explain the use of other tools. Refer to the xEdit manual or ask further question how to use xEdit.

Every reference in the DynDOLOD plugins has an Editor ID. In this case it should look something like this in the image.

[TFVgen]

31 minutes ago, sheson said:

As explained, the EditorID of such reference is of the format pluginame_formid so it tells us the source plugin and reference for which this LOD reference has been added to the DynDOLOD plugin.

The wording is verbatim. The DynDOLOD documentation simply does not try re-explain the use of other tools. Refer to the xEdit manual or ask further question how to use xEdit.

Every reference in the DynDOLOD plugins has an EditorID. In this case it should look something like in the image.

Alright, searched both references on the editor ID search bar and nothing came up, what do I do now?

[sheson]

31 minutes ago, TFVgen said:

Alright, searched both references on the editor ID search bar and nothing came up, what do I do now?

You can not search by the Editor ID obviously, since you do not have it from your in-game screenshot. As explained and shown in my xEdit screenshot, the Editor ID is what you will find on the reference in xEdit when you look it up.

As explained, from the in-game screenshot (open console, clicking the object) you have form ID of the reference. So load up xEdit and look up the reference by its form ID. For example by entering the form ID into the Form ID field top left of xEdit and hitting Enter. Adjust the load order form  (the first two digits)  in case the load order ID of the plugin changed.

[TFVgen]

24 minutes ago, sheson said:

You can not search by the Editor ID obviously, since you do not have it from your in-game screenshot. As explained and shown in my xEdit screenshot, the Editor ID is what you will find on the reference in xEdit when you look it up.

As explained, from the in-game screenshot (open console, clicking the object) you have form ID of the reference, so load up xEdit and look up the reference by its form ID. For example by entering the form ID into the Form ID field top left of xEdit and hitting Enter.

I did that already and nothing came up, not even the base ID came up as matter of fact.

[z929669]

6 hours ago, sheson said:

The billboard txt contains a list of the texture filenames and their CRC32 when the billboard is generated with TexGen.

DynDOLOD checks which textures a NIF defines. The texture filename is not listed in the currently installed billboard txt.

Typically that should only happen if the NIF changes between the time the billboard was generated and DynDOLOD is executed.

Check what texture(s) are listed in one of the billboard txt and also check the TexGen log for warnings or error.
 It could also mean something went wrong when the billboard was generated.

I'm looking at ferngrass01a as a test case. I looked through the debug logs, and from DynDOLOD debug (link in previous post), I see the warning same as in Summary:

[00:47] <Warning: Billboard for model Meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif does not contain texture textures\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.dds Cathedral Landscapes.esp FernGrass01aLight_NoGrass [GRAS:2200088E]>

... Presumably, DynDOLOD creates temp files in my output dir that link to my %LOCALAPPDATA%/Temp directory, but this texture is no longer in my temp directory as indicated by the TexGen billboard txt generated just prior to running DynDOLOD: ferngrass01a_0000088e.txt ... so it's evidently deleted by DynDOLOD process.

But it's created by TexGen, so it should still be in my Temp dir, no? From TexGen debug:

[00:28] [SplitComplexGrassTexture] <Debug: Splitting complex grass textures textures\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.dds into C:\Users\David\AppData\Local\Temp\TexGen_SSE\4E18480728C24D67B5BE8F21C0A67198.dds>

TexGen seems to recognize that I am using complex grass textures and is attempting to split the diffuse/normal of those (I assume). This seems to be successful, as the log throws no warnings: TexGen debug

I assume there may be some issue with complex grass billboard gen process. I will try running again (just grass)

PS: I am not abreast of latest DynDOLOD 'lore' on complex grass, but it seems to be supported in LOD now? I did successfully use the new GrassGID=gid setting using only custom gid.bsa that we created for AE, so I have grass LOD but no complex grass LOD. Transition is pretty stark. This is the result of the run we are discussing:

[sheson]

30 minutes ago, TFVgen said:

I did that already and nothing came up, not even the base ID came up as matter of fact.

As explained earlier, the first two digits of the form ID are the load order ID of the plugin. If it changes because the load order of plugins is different between the game and loading things with xEdit, it needs to be adjusted to match the desired plugin. Replace the DA of the reference form ID with whatever the 2 hex digits are for the DynDOLOD.esp plugin in xEdit.

[TFVgen]

Nevermind, I'm stupid

Here's both:

Edited May 23, 2022 by TFVgen

[sheson]

43 minutes ago, z929669 said:

I'm looking at ferngrass01a as a test case. I looked through the debug logs, and from DynDOLOD debug (link in previous post), I see the warning same as in Summary:

[00:47] <Warning: Billboard for model Meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif does not contain texture textures\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.dds Cathedral Landscapes.esp FernGrass01aLight_NoGrass [GRAS:2200088E]>

... Presumably, DynDOLOD creates temp files in my output dir that link to my %LOCALAPPDATA%/Temp directory, but this texture is no longer in my temp directory as indicated by the TexGen billboard txt generated just prior to running DynDOLOD: ferngrass01a_0000088e.txt ... so it's evidently deleted by DynDOLOD process.

But it's created by TexGen, so it should still be in my Temp dir, no? From TexGen debug:

[00:28] [SplitComplexGrassTexture] <Debug: Splitting complex grass textures textures\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.dds into C:\Users\David\AppData\Local\Temp\TexGen_SSE\4E18480728C24D67B5BE8F21C0A67198.dds>

TexGen seems to recognize that I am using complex grass textures and is attempting to split the diffuse/normal of those (I assume). This seems to be successful, as the log throws no warnings: TexGen debug

I assume there may be some issue with complex grass billboard gen process. I will try running again (just grass)

PS: I am not abreast of latest DynDOLOD 'lore' on complex grass, but it seems to be supported in LOD now? I did successfully use the new GrassGID=gid setting using only custom gid.bsa that we created for AE, so I have grass LOD but no complex grass LOD. Transition is pretty stark. This is the result of the run we are discussing:

TexGen loads meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif and creates a billboard from it. TexGen adds the textures that meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif defines to the billboard.txt as additional information.
DynDOLOD loads meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif and sees that it defines textures\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.dds. However, DynDOLOD does not find the the texture is being listed in the billboard.txt

This can mean the billboard was generated with a different NIF that defines different textures, e.g. it is outdated or something in this process went wrong one way or another. Check the billboard txt what textures are listed and if they make sense.

 

TexGen knows how to split the combined diffuse/normal complex grass texture. Check the preview for such grasses that it worked.

cgid/gid contain model nif and position information for grass. The used textures are irrelevant for the cache files. The textures only change how the grass billboards generated by TexGen look.

[sheson]

46 minutes ago, TFVgen said:

Nevermind, I'm stupid

Here's both:

Great! Looks like some of the modular Holds plugins changed their name a good while ago, so some configuration settings does not get applied anymore.

Replace ..DynDOLOD\Edit Scripts\DynDOLOD\Configs\DynDOLOD_SSE_mod_world_ignore.txt with the version attached and generate LOD from scratch. That should hopefully solve those LOD objects being added.

DynDOLOD_SSE_mod_world_ignore.txt

The updated config file will be included in next alpha version, too.

[z929669]

41 minutes ago, sheson said:

TexGen loads meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif and creates a billboard from it. TexGen adds the textures that meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif defines to the billboard.txt as additional information.
DynDOLOD loads meshes\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.nif and sees that it defines textures\landscape\grass\ferngrass01a.dds. However, DynDOLOD does not find the the texture is being listed in the billboard.txt

This can mean the billboard was generated with a different NIF that defines different textures, e.g. it is outdated or something in this process went wrong one way or another. Check the billboard txt what textures are listed and if they make sense.

I provided the TexGen-created billboard txt file in previous. As you can see, the TexGen log says it was created at C:\Users\David\AppData\Local\Temp\TexGen_SSE\4E18480728C24D67B5BE8F21C0A67198.dds, and this agrees with the corresponding billboard txt file also in my previous post. The textures are no longer in that location for me to check, presumably deleted by DynDOLOD or TexGen when finished?

So to me, the logs all seem correct but for the DynDOLOD debug and summary warning.

Does DynDOLOD support complex grass rendering for ENB use in LOD grasses? I suspect not, but I obviously don't know and haven't RTFM on this bit yet.

As I mentioned, I will troubleshoot by running TexGem/DynDOLOD on just grass for CL with the updated complex grass textures and keep an eye on files generated in Temp during runtime. I will also preview in TexGen to see what that shows. I just figured you may be able to look at those logs and the billboard txt I posted for ferngrass01a example and determine if things correspond properly. I will post back later once I have time to look into this further.

More later, thanks.

[TFVgen]

33 minutes ago, sheson said:

Great! Looks like some of the modular Holds plugins changed their name a good while ago, so some configuration settings does not get applied anymore.

Replace ..DynDOLOD\Edit Scripts\DynDOLOD\Configs\DynDOLOD_SSE_mod_world_ignore.txt with the version attached and generate LOD from scratch. That should hopefully solve those LOD objects being added.

DynDOLOD_SSE_mod_world_ignore.txt 1.94 kB · 0 downloads

The updated config file will be included in next alpha version, too.

Ok! I'm gonna go over the process of running texgen (to fix the bright grass) and dyndolod again and will report if any new problems arise, thanks for the patience.

Edited May 23, 2022 by TFVgen

[TFVgen]

On 5/20/2022 at 6:19 PM, sheson said:

Read https://dyndolod.info/Help/Grass-LOD#Settings
In case the grass LOD brightness or color seems off (it might depend on weathers or ENB settings), try different Direct/Ambient settings for grass LOD billboards in TexGen. In addition or alternatively change the GrassBrightnessTop* and GrassBrightnessBottom* settings in ..\DynDOLOD\Edit Scripts\DynDOLOD\DynDOLOD_SSE.ini - those settings help if the color tone is off. Especially the image based lighting effect from ENB has a big impact on the brightness and color tone of the grass LOD.

Another thing actually, you say change but generating takes a long time so it's better if I know exactly how each of these settings affect how the grass look, what raising or lowering these numbers do, I guess GrassBrightnessTop and GrassBrightnessBottom will lower brightness if I lower the 3 RGB values but what about Direct and Ambient?