Mapdev:height

Height

The height of the terrain is generally defined with a greyscale displacement map with black representing the lowest point on the terrain and white the highest. The height of the terrain can also be modified in game via lua scripting.

Example

File:Mapdev-height.png	File:Mapdev-height-example.png
Example Height Map	Ingame Result

Specification

mapinfo.lua

• Mapdev:mapinfo.lua

local mapinfo = {
   ...
   smf = {
      minHeight = 1000,
      maxHeight = -300,
      ...
   },
   ...
}

minHeight and maxHeight

Any values below zero are underwater, see Mapdev:water

Image File

File Location	The height map is an intermediary file compiled into the SMF/SMT files using MapConv or MapConvNG.
File Format	Any that the Mapconv programs support
Colour Depth	16bpp recommended, however 8bpp will work.
Channels	Greyscale
Resolution	Spring Map Size* pixels = Spring Map Size * 64 + 1 2 129 4 257 6 385 ... ... 32 2049 * must be multiples of 2

8 vs 16 bpp

These two images show the differences in prescision that the bit depth of the image makes. The effect has been exaggerated here for clarity.

File:8bpp.png	File:16bpp.png
8bpp	16bpp

+1 pixel

When each pixel represents a vertex you need one extra pixel than the number of quads you are attempting to represent

Representation

Example

Additional Information

ROAM terrain engine

• Official ROAM page
• Gamasutra has a nice article on ROAM
• various other implementations of LOD terrain