Making planets with Kopernicus: video guides

[The White Guardian]

On 16-7-2016 at 3:34 PM, LordOfMinecraft99 said:

I did the science data on purpose, the idea is kind of a planet for me to get all my data and move on. I thought the radius was measured is km not meters, that why its so big. For the atmosphere part, i just copied from your tutorial. Thanks! P.S your tutorials are AWESOME! I have been trying to find good tutorials forever, and yours is the first i could understand that was not Kopernicus Tech, an older mod. 

EDIT : The planet still does not show up in the tracking station. 

Could you check in logs/Kopernicus and see if there's a logfile named 'Idiotor.body'? If so, could you copy-n-paste the contents of that file into a message here? Also please paste it into a spoiler (the eye symbol) because those files are usually very long, and thus will clutter up this thread and the inboxes of people who had subscribed to this thread unless it has been pasted inside a spoiler.

The .body file of a planet is basically Kopernicus logging it's every step when it loads the planet, if there's an issue the .body file should be able to tell us what it is.

[LordOfMinecraft99]

There is not even a .body file for my planet so its probably something with the file arrangement or .config.

[The White Guardian]

On 14-7-2016 at 7:04 PM, rough93 said:

Alright, if you would permit me to ask, I tried the config "   @Kopernicus:AFTER[Kopernicus] { !Body[Eve]{}}   " but Eve is still there, am I missing something?

Is it possible to rename Kerbin? "@Koperniucus:AFTER[Kopernicus]{ @Body[Kerbin] { name = Example } } doesn't work

Hmm... Eve should be gone. Looks like a Kopernicus bug tbh, try asking around on the main Kopernicus thread.

And yes, you can rename planets, but instead of using 'name', use 'cbNameLater = (New name)'

Just now, LordOfMinecraft99 said:

There is not even a .body file for my planet so its probably something with the file arrangement or .config.

.config? It should be a .cfg file?

[LordOfMinecraft99]

No, i mean that there is no .body file in logs/Kopernicus. There is .body files for every other planet mod i have, but not mine. So i think that something is wrong with how i arranged the files in my planets folder in the gamedata folder

[rough93]

2 hours ago, The White Guardian said:

Kopernicus

Awesome, thank you very much, I also released the pack, thanks so much for your tutorials and all your help. It helped me go from zero understanding having never messed with Kopernicus before to being able to release the mod requested. Extra internet points sir.

2 hours ago, LordOfMinecraft99 said:

 

No, i mean that there is no .body file in logs/Kopernicus. There is .body files for every other planet mod i have, but not mine. So i think that something is wrong with how i arranged the files in my planets folder in the gamedata folder

 

A screenshot may be helpful, you could also post your config in a spoiler.

Edited July 18, 2016 by rough93

[The White Guardian]

 

17 minutes ago, rough93 said:

Awesome, thank you very much, I also released the pack, thanks so much for your tutorials and all your help. It helped me go from zero understanding having never messed with Kopernicus before to being able to release the mod requested. Extra internet points sir.

A Star Fox pack?

Okay... I actually didn't want to spoil this until it's release, but I've been working on something similar, something that turns the stock system into a procedurally generated Lylat system. Here's a drawing I made with the textures of Cerinia.

I've got most of the locations finished: Cerinia, Corneria, Fichina, Fortuna, Katina, Macbeth, Papetoon, Titania, Venom, heck, I even got Solar to work!

Give me a moment and I'll show those planets too.

[The White Guardian]

@rough93 This is what I've been working on:

Corneria - Fichina

Fortuna - Katina

Macbeth - Papetoon

Titania

Venom - Solar

All planets are procedurally generated (no heightmaps at all), and made entirely with KSP's engine.

Edited July 18, 2016 by The White Guardian

[rough93]

!!! damn that looks awesome, mine just adds in the system alongside the stock system. I can't wait to see that release!

[OhioBob]

@The White Guardian, nice videos.  I appreciate you taking the time to do this.

I noticed in your Gas Giant video that you don't know what temperatureSunMultCurve does.  I recently wrote a tutorial that explains all the atmospheres curves (see link below).  In addition to the three curves identified in your video, there are several other curves that few people seem to know about.  These curves define things like latitudinal, diurnal, and seasonal temperature variations, which is all explained in the tutorial.  When these curves are omitted from the config file, the curves of the template are used by default.

Also, starting with KSP 1.1.3, you must assign a value to the parameter staticPressureASL, which is the atmospheric pressure at sea level (it works similarly to temperatureSeaLevel).  If you don't give a value to staticPressureASL, the information panel in the Tracking Station will display the sea level pressure of the template.

 

Edited July 18, 2016 by OhioBob

[The White Guardian]

On 18-7-2016 at 11:08 PM, OhioBob said:

@The White Guardian, nice videos.  I appreciate you taking the time to do this.

I noticed in your Gas Giant video that you don't know what temperatureSunMultCurve does.  I recently wrote a tutorial that explains all the atmospheres curves (see link below).  In addition to the three curves identified in your video, there are several other curves that few people seem to know about.  These curves define things like latitudinal, diurnal, and seasonal temperature variations, which is all explained in the tutorial.  When these curves are omitted from the config file, the curves of the template are used by default.

Also, starting with KSP 1.1.3, you must assign a value to the parameter staticPressureASL, which is the atmospheric pressure at sea level (it works similarly to temperatureSeaLevel).  If you don't give a value to staticPressureASL, the information panel in the Tracking Station will display the sea level pressure of the template.

 

Alright, I'll update the video, thanks for the info!

[rough93]

Hey there, I've been working on an update to add biomes to all my planets, the biome applies just fine, but all my experiments report they are being taken from whatever biome is listed first, in the case I have here, the North Pole. Would you happen to know where I've gone wrong?

 

Spoiler

biomeMap = Lylat/PluginData/Zoness/Biome.png

        Biomes            {
                             
            Biome
                {
                    
            name = North Pole                  
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.20392,0.13333,1.0,1
                
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = South Pole               
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.95686,0.63529,1.0,1
                
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Lycanthers Craters                
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.86275,0.97647,0.27451,1
                
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Taciturns Run                 
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.97647,0.41569,0.27451,1
               
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Sea of Corvus                  
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.18431,1.0,0.57647,1
               
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Lowlands of Anubis                 
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.54118,0.96078,0.61961,1
               
                        }
                    }

 

[The White Guardian]

56 minutes ago, rough93 said:

Hey there, I've been working on an update to add biomes to all my planets, the biome applies just fine, but all my experiments report they are being taken from whatever biome is listed first, in the case I have here, the North Pole. Would you happen to know where I've gone wrong?

 

  Hide contents

biomeMap = Lylat/PluginData/Zoness/Biome.png

        Biomes            {
                             
            Biome
                {
                    
            name = North Pole                  
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.20392,0.13333,1.0,1
                
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = South Pole               
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.95686,0.63529,1.0,1
                
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Lycanthers Craters                
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.86275,0.97647,0.27451,1
                
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Taciturns Run                 
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.97647,0.41569,0.27451,1
               
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Sea of Corvus                  
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.18431,1.0,0.57647,1
               
                        }
            Biome
                        {
                    
            name = Lowlands of Anubis                 
            value = 1.0
                    
            color = 0.54118,0.96078,0.61961,1
               
                        }
                    }

 

Could you show me your Science Defenitions config? (To prevent spoilers, you can send it through PM)

I have a gut feeling that I know what's going on.

[rough93]

Thanks, I've sent it

[cubinator]

Hi, I'm currently working on my first real project, all I can say right now is that it's a small moon. I made bare-bones configs and textures for it, I just want to try and get it to show up in-game. Unfortunately, I can't seem to get it to do even that. My config file reads:

@Kopernicus:AFTER[Kopernicus]
{
	Body
	{
		name = Secret Moon
		cacheFile = Kopernicus/Cache/secretmoon.bin
		Template
		{
			name = Kerbin
			removeAllPQSMods = true
			removeOcean = true
		}
		Properties
		{
			description = For the record, it's not actually called Secret Moon. That's just a name which is functionally the same as the real one, which I can't tell you just yet.
			radius = 80000
			geeASL = 0.07
			rotationPeriod = 90000
			rotates = true
			tidallyLocked = false
			initialRotation = 0
			isHomeWorld = false
			timewarpAltitudeLimits = 0 2000 5000 5000 10000 30000 50000 50000
			ScienceValues
			{
				landedDataValue = 5
				splashedDataValue = 1000000000000
				flyingLowDataValue = 100000000000000000000000000000
				flyingHighDataValue = 1000000000000000000000000000001
				inSpaceLowDataValue = 4
				inSpaceHighDataValue = 3
				recoveryValue = 5
				flyingAltitudeThreshold = 0
				spaceAltitudeThreshold = 0
			}
		}
		Orbit
		{
			referenceBody = Kerbin
			color = 0.3,0.3,0.3,1
			inclination = 0.8
			eccentricity = 0.005
			semiMajorAxis = 800000
			longitudeOfAscendingNode = 0
			argumentOfPeriapsis = 0
			meanAnomalyAtEpoch = 0
			epoch = 0
		}
		ScaledVersion
		{
			type = Vacuum
			Material
			{
				texture = secretmoon/textures/secretmoon_color.dds
				normals = secretmoon/textures/secretmoon_normal.dds
			}
		}
		PQS
		{
			Mods
			{
				VertexHeightMap
				{
					map = secretmoon/textures/secretmoon_height.dds
					offset = 0
					deformity = 0
					scaleDeformityByRadius = false
					order = 20
					enabled = true
				}
			}
		}
	}
}

The file path is:

---

GameData

     secretmoon

          textures

               secretmoon_color.dds

               secretmoon_normal.dds

          secretmoon.cfg

---

Kopernicus was installed as per instructions, i.e. I merged the GameData folders. It was an otherwise stock install, save for a couple of very small part mods. The normal map is currently a blank one because I don't need the moon to have a texture at the moment, although the textures were converted to .dds in Photoshop and loaded fine in WTV. I just need to know:

• Why isn't the moon showing up in game? How do I fix it?
• Do I need a VertexHeightMap if the moon doesn't have a heightmap yet?
• Do I need the extra ScaledVersion stuff that I cut out even though the moon doesn't actually have an atmosphere or ocean or anything?

EDIT: I added a blank height map to the specified location and it's there now. Disregard this post.

Edited August 10, 2016 by cubinator

[The White Guardian]

14 hours ago, cubinator said:

EDIT: I added a blank height map to the specified location and it's there now. Disregard this post.

Well, if you tell Kopernicus to load a texture, it would indeed help if the texture is actually there.

Anyhow, next time you get an issue with your planet, look in logs/Kopernicus/PlanetName.body, this is where Kopernicus logs everything it does with a specific planet.

VertexHeightMap adds elevation to the terrain by using a heightmap, it's not necessary, but it can be used as a base noise. If you specify a heightmap, you do need a map for it to load though.

So "do I need a VertexHeightMap if the moon doesn't have a heightmap yet?"

Well, you're actually adding a heightmap to the planet, if the moon has no heightmap applied to it you could add a heightmap although PQSMods alone can do the job as well. So technically you don't need a heightmap unless you want to add a heightmap.

You don't need to specify stuff that you aren't changing, by that I mean if the template you chose already has specific settings that you want it to have, they you don't have to adress these settings, in that case Kopernicus will automatically take the settings from the templated world.

[cubinator]

1 hour ago, The White Guardian said:

snip

So to add terrain features I should edit the heightmap instead of the normal map? From what I gathered, the normal map makes it look like it has depth, while the heightmap actually gives it that depth. So I should make a normal map from the heightmap? And how should I go about manually editing the slope of a crater through the heightmap? It needs to be very specific, and not like other craters.

[cubinator]

Well, my normal and height maps are there, but the moon is still just a flat sphere. I've switched to using Ike as the template because it's pretty much featureless, but it still looks like this:

I don't want that rocky look to it, but if there's a way to replace that texture with a different one, I could really improve the final product. 

[cubinator]

--UPDATE-- I had set deformity to 0, so it rightfully displayed a flat ball.  Now it's starting to look like what I want it to, but it's still extremely crude:

 

[BashGordon33]

I kind of get how to make KSP planets now, but how do I get those maps? I'm trying to make a planet located far out from the solar system. Its going to be a gas giant with a few moons. How do I make the planet maps and textures that Kopernicus loads? 

Also, unrelated topic: You said you were naming one of the planet packs in your developing pack Titania. Hate to tell you this, but Titania is a name in KillAshley's New Horizons.

[BashGordon33]

Spoiler

@Kopernicus:AFTER[Kopernicus]
{
    Body
    {
        name = Nirgends
        Debug
        {
            exportMesh = true
            update = true
        }
        cacheFile = Nirgends/Cache/Nirgends.bin
        Template
        {
            name = Jool
        }
        Properties
        {
            description = Nirgends is a planet
            radius = 1500000
            geeASL = 0.6
            rotationalPeriod = 43200
            timewarpAltitudeLimits = 0 1000 10000 100000 300000 1000000 2000000 5000000
            ScienceValues
            {
                flyingLowDataValue = 1
                flyingHighDataValue = 1
                inSpaceLowDataValue = 1
                inSpaceHighDataValue = 1
                recoveryValue = 1
                flyingAltitudeThreshold = 100000
                spaceAltitudeThreshold =  1000000
            }
        }
        Orbit
        {
            referenceBody = Sun
            semiMajorAxis = 1000000000000
            inclination = 0
            eccentricity = 0
            longitudeOfAscendingNode = 0
            argumentOfPeriapsis = 0
            meanAnomalyAtEpoch = 0
            epoch = 0
            color = 0.0,0.0,0.5,1.0
        )
        ScaledVersion
        {
            type = Atmospheric
            fadeStart = 0
            fadeEnd = 0
            Material
            {
                texture = Nirgends/PluginData/Nirgends_color.png
            }
            rimPower = 4
            rimBlend = 0.2
            Gradient
            {
                0.0 = 0.2,0.8,0.8,1.0
                0.5 = 0.1,0.2,0.2,1.0
                1.0 = 0.0196,0.0196,0.0196,1.0
            }
        }
        Atmosphere
        {
            ambientColor = 0.1,0.1,0.6,1.0
            lightColor = 0.6,0.6,0.4,1.0
            altitude = 260000
            enabled = true
            oxygen = false
            temperatureSeaLevel = 90
            pressureCurve
            {
                key = 0 607.95 0 -0.0175180
                key = 20000 312.958 -0.0120652 -0.0120652
                key = 40000 133.036 -0.00614003 -0.00614003
                key = 60000 51.5595 -0.00246703 -0.00246703
                key = 80000 19.8192 -0.000953029 -0.000953029
                key = 100000 7.40557 -0.000371008 -0.000371008
                key = 120000 2.71404 -0.000135342 -0.000135342
                key = 140000 1.02383 -4.83295E-05 -4.83295E-05
                key = 160000 0.416679 -1.77566E-05 -1.77566E-05
                key = 180000 0.184984 -7.20029E-06 -7.20029E-06
                key = 205000 0.0716413 -2.67217E-06 -2.67217E-06
                key = 235000 0.0237546 -8.64690E-07 -8.64690E-07
                key = 260000 0 0 0

            }
            temperatureCurve
            {
                key = 0 90 0 -0.00114286
                key = 15750 72 -0.00114286 -0.00114286
                key = 83250 53 -0.0001614 -0.0001614
                key = 133750 53 0.0001614 0.0001614
                key = 189750 67 8.82E-05 8.82E-05
                key = 260000 70 0 0

            }
            temperatureSunMultiCurve
            {
                key = 0 0 0 0
                key = 83250 0 0 0
                key = 133750 0.5 1.132E-05 1.132E-05
                key = 260000 1 0 0

            }
        }
    }
}
            
            
 

I made this config file, and I tried to use it in KSP, but the planet didn't appear. It wasn't even mentioned in the Kopernicus logs. I have no idea what the problem could be. 

Edited August 14, 2016 by BashGordon33

[The White Guardian]

On 11-8-2016 at 3:02 PM, cubinator said:

So to add terrain features I should edit the heightmap instead of the normal map? From what I gathered, the normal map makes it look like it has depth, while the heightmap actually gives it that depth. So I should make a normal map from the heightmap? And how should I go about manually editing the slope of a crater through the heightmap? It needs to be very specific, and not like other craters.

The normal map only matters for the ScaledSpace, a low-def representation of your planet that appears in the map view and from very far away to reduce memory. You should edit the heightmap, and you can indeed generate a normal map from the heightmap. GIMP and Photoshop can do this, but I believe there also was a website called Normalmap online.

To draw craters on a heightmap, you have to understand what it is exactly. A heightmap is a representation of your planet's elevation, the brighter an area the higher it is compared to the surrounding terrain, and vice versa, the darker an area the lower it is. To make a crater you need a bright rim and a dark inner circle. It requires some envisioning of what you are actually trying to make.

[cubinator]

3 hours ago, The White Guardian said:

The normal map only matters for the ScaledSpace, a low-def representation of your planet that appears in the map view and from very far away to reduce memory. You should edit the heightmap, and you can indeed generate a normal map from the heightmap. GIMP and Photoshop can do this, but I believe there also was a website called Normalmap online.

Yep, I got that figured out.

3 hours ago, The White Guardian said:

To draw craters on a heightmap, you have to understand what it is exactly. A heightmap is a representation of your planet's elevation, the brighter an area the higher it is compared to the surrounding terrain, and vice versa, the darker an area the lower it is. To make a crater you need a bright rim and a dark inner circle. It requires some envisioning of what you are actually trying to make.

I understand that, but since the crater is not on the equator it will have to be distorted some in the heightmap in order to appear circular in-game. I have not yet gotten it to work using the spherical mapping corrector I mentioned to you in another thread, but I have only used the default settings. I will experiment with some different settings to see if I can find the right one.

[Kepler68]

Normals map online dosent always work with Kopernicus, the lighting is at 90 degrees

[BashGordon33]

Thank @The White Guardian for teaching me to make planets, I finally made myself a gas giant! But I do have 1 question though: I got space engine to get the textures, but when I export the planets the textures acquired look nothing like what they do in Space Engine. And when I use them for a KSP planet, they look horrible and glitchy. Am I missing an in-between step here?

[Kepler68]

51 minutes ago, BashGordon33 said:

Thank @The White Guardian for teaching me to make planets, I finally made myself a gas giant! But I do have 1 question though: I got space engine to get the textures, but when I export the planets the textures acquired look nothing like what they do in Space Engine. And when I use them for a KSP planet, they look horrible and glitchy. Am I missing an in-between step here?

What do you mean by horrible and glitchy? What looks different?