[Spinlock]

when looking over the elements file, there is something that creates some confusion.
For example: The elements 'High grass' and 'Crops' have a height of 2. They also have hindrance values above 0, but the field 'Block los' is set to
false for these elements.
So am i correct in assuming that 2 soldiers laying prone in high grass at any distance would have perfect LOS on each other?
shouldn't the "block los" value be set to true for these elements?

[Tejszd]

Block LOS is like a wall, it is something solid. So no it should not be set to true for high grass.

You need to look at the hindrance values, as the number of each element viewed across/through is added together and when a certain number is hit LOS is blocked....

[Senior_Drill]

[Spinlock]

Thanks guys, that clears it up.

Another question. How is the soldiers height changed by its stance? (prone,low, med, high)
Does the game do a ray cast to the target? excluding elements that have a level, does a standing soldier have a
different height for LOS than a prone soldier or is accumulated hindrance the only thing used?

[Senior_Drill]

Soldiers do have a height difference by their stance, but I don't have any idea by how much or how the game engine calculates it.  I can't recall an instance where it was noticable to me for my units while attacking, but I have seen the effect while defending.  I've watched as an enemy team in a wheat field become visible when they stood up to run, then disappear when they dropped back to prone.

[Dfox]

And a small question from me...

I'm using 3C Cartographer for map coding. So is it necessary to remake LOS files for the maps if I want to change any element data in Elements.adb ?

[Senior_Drill]

In general, yes.  It depends on what it is you are changing.  If you are just replacing elements that have the same height like a Wood Fence for a Stone Fence, then the game will handle the hinderences and evaluate the LOS for adjacent units per the Elements file.  In this case, generating a new LOS, which can take a few hours, would not be necessary.

If you are adding new elements or removing old ones that have significant height (more than 1/2 meter), like trees and buildings, then you do need to spend the processing time to cook a new LOS file.

A note about coding and recoding maps:  Whether you use 3C or 5CC, you need to ensure that you are using the proper Elements file for the version of game your mod is for, and that you have all the tree graphics WITH APPROPRIATE SHADOWS for that version.  Both come with stock trees and a small selection of tree shadows.  If you are using additional trees in the Terrain file, you should make sure that these are in the editors and have additional shadows in the support files.  Nothing looks silllier on a map than having leaf tree shadows for pine trees or pine tree shadows for palm trees.

[squadleader_id]

[Senior_Drill]

Four years old might be considered ancient, I'll admit.  However, I am a card carrying member in good standing of a Luddite cult.  I prefer to use 3C.

[CSO_Linebacker]

[schrecken]

Three LOS calcs on various machines around the house

LOS on a celeron 1.7


LOS on a celeron 2.6  


LOS on a P4 2.8  

These were on the same map.

unfortunately 3C won't calc LOS on maps using expanded elements files, 5CC does the job superbly though.

[squadleader_id]

[Dfox]

I don't want to add new or delete old elements, but to change the hindrance or height for....mmm... High Grass. Looks like that after this change I have to make new LOS file for all maps with High Grass. Am I right ?  

[CSO_Linebacker]

[schrecken]

[squadleader_id]

Even using my Celeron M Laptop (1GB RAM), with an older build of 5CC, it takes only about 4-5 minutes to generate LOS on small maps.
And that's using the 'conventional' emulating method...generating LOS using the faster "elevation and mega tiles" options takes only a few secs.
I'm running WinXp SP3...not Vista  

[schrecken]

just checked pegasus bridge map from tLD

Using 5CC it took 42 seconds to create LOS file on 2.8ghz P4


I think it's safe to say 5CC generates a LOS file much quicker than 3C (remember 3C is not capable of generating LOS files for the modern releases)

[squadleader_id]

So why is Linebacker's PC is struggling with 5CC LOS creation...older build of 5CC or maybe running on Vista?
Have you installed the Microsoft dual-core patch for AMD procs on your machine, Linebacker?