3D LOD for DynDoLOD Q

[Dradaki]

Simple question really. I made a tree mod that uses NotW trees that I renamed to vanilla file names, so they only replace trees that vanilla Skyrim has. I tried generating the LOD using DynDoLOD, but not really happy with how they look in game as in some areas, they look like a giant + and is quite noticeable. As of right now, I am going to try and just have the flat billboard for LOD, much like how I have created for the XBox.

Anywho, I was going to try and make the 3D LODs as these are infinitely better. I used them when I had the full NotW mod, but decided to make the aforementioned mod to improve performance. Since these trees are just vanilla named (ie treeaspen01.nif), could I just use these models and add "_LOD_0", "_LOD_1" and "_LOD_2" or is there a different process that has to be done?

Thank you for your time

[z929669]

18 hours ago, Dradaki said:

Simple question really. I made a tree mod that uses NotW trees that I renamed to vanilla file names, so they only replace trees that vanilla Skyrim has. I tried generating the LOD using DynDoLOD, but not really happy with how they look in game as in some areas, they look like a giant + and is quite noticeable. As of right now, I am going to try and just have the flat billboard for LOD, much like how I have created for the XBox.

Anywho, I was going to try and make the 3D LODs as these are infinitely better. I used them when I had the full NotW mod, but decided to make the aforementioned mod to improve performance. Since these trees are just vanilla named (ie treeaspen01.nif), could I just use these models and add "_LOD_0", "_LOD_1" and "_LOD_2" or is there a different process that has to be done?

Thank you for your time

You should grab the NotWL LOD models that exist for the trees you chose and renamed. Then simply rename those NIFs with the new CRC32 of the full models you renamed. I would rename each one like NewTreeName01_CRC32passthru_lod.nif. Then you would also change the trunk texture path names in the NIF to use the same CRC32. This will give DynDOLOD the info needed to add the Ultra trees to the supermesh. They will look exactly like the NotWL LODs.

You can check out this article for more info, but your job is waaaay simpler, since the models already exist for your trees. Just a bunch of renaming needed.

[Dradaki]

2 hours ago, z929669 said:

You should grab the NotWL LOD models that exist for the trees you chose and renamed. Then simply rename those NIFs with the new CRC32 of the full models you renamed. I would rename each one like NewTreeName01_CRC32passthru_lod.nif. Then you would also change the trunk texture path names in the NIF to use the same CRC32. This will give DynDOLOD the info needed to add the Ultra trees to the supermesh. They will look exactly like the NotWL LODs.

You can check out this article for more info, but your job is waaaay simpler, since the models already exist for your trees. Just a bunch of renaming needed.

Thank you for the reply. I do still have the LOD mod, in case I had to fall back on that. 

[z929669]

1 hour ago, Dradaki said:

Thank you for the reply. I do still have the LOD mod, in case I had to fall back on that. 

It's also quite possible that if you only renamed the files, then the CRC32 never changed. Then the existing LOD should "just work" even though they probably have different tree names. If you modified any information inside the full models, the CRC32 would change.

You can check CRC32 if you have 7z using the context menu on any file in Explorer (or inside an archive). DynDOLOD logs will tell you if it finds the trees, too. I think it's the tree report.

[Dradaki]

14 hours ago, z929669 said:

It's also quite possible that if you only renamed the files, then the CRC32 never changed. Then the existing LOD should "just work" even though they probably have different tree names. If you modified any information inside the full models, the CRC32 would change.

You can check CRC32 if you have 7z using the context menu on any file in Explorer (or inside an archive). DynDOLOD logs will tell you if it finds the trees, too. I think it's the tree report.

I did alter some texture paths, as I changed some of the images to be more vibrant, so would likely need to do what you had mentioned first (like the Gildergreen/Eldergleam had multi-colored leaves).

On a side note, I never realized how much "direct/ambient" affects the tree LOD generation. I had used the STEP guide to set them (where I had the issue described above) then when I ran the process again last night, used what the tree mod author had and the contrast was far more diminished. Will run with that while I start the 3D tree LODs 

[z929669]

2 hours ago, Dradaki said:

I did alter some texture paths, as I changed some of the images to be more vibrant, so would likely need to do what you had mentioned first (like the Gildergreen/Eldergleam had multi-colored leaves).

On a side note, I never realized how much "direct/ambient" affects the tree LOD generation. I had used the STEP guide to set them (where I had the issue described above) then when I ran the process again last night, used what the tree mod author had and the contrast was far more diminished. Will run with that while I start the 3D tree LODs 

TexGen direct/ambient ONLY affects DynDOLOD 3D billboards (Billboard1|2|4|etc.) for trees/grass and does nothing for Ultra trees (Level0|1|2|etc.). Follow our updated guidelines in the 2.4 dev guide.