[Darpaek]

Hi,

This is probably an overly simplistic question to a very complex answer - but how do you map custom maps for your IE mods?  You have a lot of really great custom maps.  What software do you use?  Can you suggest any good walkthroughs or even tips on how someone can get started making custom maps for the IE?

Thanks!

[Lava]

That may be a disappointing answer, but the whole process -- the creative part -- isn't much different from editing photos, creating digital paintings etc. 

I am not an expert when it comes to creating stuff from scratch, so I mostly use NearInfinity to export existing maps (BG, BG2, IWD, IWD2) and use GIMP to mix them together. It's just HOUR of exporting images, cutting them, editing the colors, patching, smudging, drawing shadows, cropping etc. It's basically the same as when you edit photos in Photoshop, but here you must be mindful of original styles, color palettes, compositions, and perspective.

And then, when you are done, you just crop again (because image dimensions must be divisible by 64 -- in game tiles are 64x64 px) and code the area: and that is another huge part. It was mostly described by Acifer here: https://www.gibberlings3.net/forums/topi...ent-338627

There are also those that create new areas in 3D, by using Blender or other software, but am not familiar with the process. 

Sadly, there are no tricks here, its just years and years of practice. I've been practicing modding since 2008, so... it's mostly experience, with a fine dose of luck and help of others.