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====== L3DT ======

Using L3DT to create terrain for ArmA 2.

You can export the final Texture Map directly and use as a Sat_lco...

Export as .PNG can be problematic with bigger sizes - .BMP seems to work fine up to 20480x20480...

I use the Attributes Map (AM Layer) directly exported as a base for a Mask_lco... Saving large files is even MORE problematic here, for some unknown reason - neither .PNG or .BMP will save successfully as a single file @ 20480x20480 size - 10240 is OK - larger sizes you need to export as mosaic (.PNG format) and assemble in Photoshop... not too much of a chore really - I export 3 x 3 of 8192x8192 tiles and snap em together in Photoshop and crop to 20480

One point to watch when exporting the AM layer is to switch it to color output - otherwise you'll be deeply disappointed... (options button in the save as dialog - change "ColourMapped (bool) to "true")...

That's how to export the relevant images... is that what you were wanting?

I wrote a PM a little while back where I woefully under summarized basic L3DT usage... I'll paste the relevant chunk of it here as an easy way out of having to type any more (bedtime )...

Once you have made a height-field in there you can just save that - export height-field as .png - you make your own .pbl - its just a text file - adapt the tutorial one

Then you need to generate the water table - L3Dt will use that - no need to export that

Then you get to "Attributes layer" - this is the bit that uses Climates - you can just use "DemoRockGrassSand" to start with... this will generate a layer with different colors for 3 different ground textures... Later on if you want more complex masks you'll need to read the L3DT instructions heavily - then adapt or create a "climate" of your own...

As a demo of L3DT 3 color output you could check out the [[http://forums.bistudio.com/showpost.php?p=1574684&postcount=1|Falkland Islands Scale Test]] & [[http://forums.bistudio.com/showpost.php?p=1574727&postcount=5|Source Files]] I gave away a while back - that's done exactly as described here - same "climate" - same procedure...

...basically what it does is analyze your height map - decide where sand, rock, grass, etc needs to go - and it draws a map with colors where each of them go... sounds awful like a Mask_lco.... you can use it as one...

One point here - export Attributes layer as .PNG - but switch to color... (options button in the save as dialog - change "ColourMapped (bool) to "true"...

You can then carry on and generate a bump map layer (normals) - L3DT will use that - you don't need to export it - then a light map - ditto for that...

Finally you get to Texture map

At this stage L3DT will look at the basic 3 color attributes map it made earlier, and actually make a proper texture map (Like a Sat map) using a different texture for each color ... You can export this and use it as a Sat_lco

So - height field map = height field + make a .pbl

Attributes map = Mask_lco (remember to change option to save in color)

Texture Map = Sat_lco

So to start with you can use say a 1024 height map - but for speed just do a 1024 Attributes and other layers... later when you're happier with stuff - crank that up to 10x - you can make a 10240x10240 mask and sat and get more detail...

L3DT is a genuine bitch to get the hang of... it'll take time to understand all the stuff - a lot of which u don't need... your principal layers are the ones mentioned above - but the generation process in L3DT demands you make all the rest if you want bump mapping at the Tex stage - you need to have previously generated a Normals layer - if you want light and shade effects you need to have made a light map - these make the Tex map look good - but the only ones you'll export are the 3 above.... (actually - since Arma2 does its own lighting, I've found skipping the light map layer is best - you also need to untick "use light map" at the Texture layer stage... Otherwise you're "baking in" directional lighting to your Sat layer, which may look extra-great when the sun in-game is conveniently in the right place, but extra-s**t when all the in-game shadows are going in the opposite direction

Export as .PNG - it'll be a 16bit gray scale for the height field, and 8bit color for the other two - you can use them as they stand...

Again - not immediately informative, but the [[http://www.bundysoft.com/docs/doku.php?id=l3dt:userguide|L3DT User Guide]] will basically explain all the options...

I use a "Combine Channels" function in PSP to combine 4 flat masks into a multicolor mask.

L3DT can also generate alpha maps. It can be called only by the menu and not in the default work flow (height map etc etc).

The result is a mask that can directly be used in visitor. I don't change anything. As when making the alpha map you can define what attributes from the attribute map are mapped to a color.

Only thing to keep in mind is that l3dt creates the alpha maps namely and correctly in the alpha channels. In Photoshop this results in seeing a pictures that looks absolutely blank.

If this scares you off you can just open it with paint (or any other simple tool that does not support alpha channels) and save it. As poor paint does not get the alpha channels it saves it as a normal color as you know it and for that voila you can see it.
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