So... I want to see if it's at all possible to actually add cliff levels.

So far, I have one theory. Take a look at CliffMeshData.xml, after I did a bunch of random tinkering and experimentation with Terrain Cliff Meshes in the Data Editor:

What if I could simply add more CliffHeights tags (with higher indices) to a CCliffMesh? Well, there's just one problem (aside from the fact that I'm not sure if it'll even work): GalaxyEdit's Import module does not allow you to replace "reserved" files, and CliffMeshData.xml is reserved.

So for me to test this theory, I need to know: how do I replace files that GE is trying to protect?

MPQ

'nuff said

EDIT: Tried it, doesn't work. :\

Post has been edited 1 time(s), last time on Sep 8 2010, 6:08 am by Artanis186.

Blast!
Is it perhaps possible to "invert" the way cliffs are placed? I tried editing some cliff meshes to use the following elevations...

The normal organic mesh used the standard levels: -8, 0, 2, and 4.

The inverted high organic mesh used the levels: 10, 8, 6, 4; such that as you lowered cliffs using this mesh, the ground would get higher.

Problem is, the SCII engine doesn't check for "backwards" elevations, so if I, say, go from Normal Height 4 to Inverted Height 6, then there would be downward cliffs that suddenly "end", leaving empty black space; above this black space, there'd be a disconnected chunk of ground at height 6.

ASCII illustration:

   __________   

\              /
 \_          _/

Is there a way, then, to "invert" the cliffs, such that lowering the cliff height produces upward cliffs and raising the cliff height produces downward cliffs?

EDIT: This is way past my capabilities, but... It's possible to change the 3D models (and there are many) that a type of cliff uses. What if someone copied all the models for a cliff type, and then edited the models so that SCII used the upward cliffs as downward cliffs, and vice versa? (It could be as simple as swapping all the references, who knows?) That might fix the gap problem I just described, making that method (a normal cliff type and a cliff type with "backwards" elevations) plausible.

EDIT: If I remember when I get home, I'll copy a cliff type and try to swap all the outer-cliff models with all the inner-cliff models, and then I'll apply it to my "inverted" cliffs. I'll post the results here; I'm sure interesting things will happen regardless of whether or not I achieve what I'm actually attempting to do.

Post has been edited 2 time(s), last time on Sep 8 2010, 9:15 pm by DavidJCobb.

There's no way to do the first thing you were trying. The flat ramp method still works best.

Flat ramp?

Well, no wonder I was doing it wrong. I was trying to actually make the entire ramp "backwards", trying to raise the lowered ground to be higher ground rather than just equal ground.

You make the ramp go downwards, and raise it up to be level with the high ground.

Wait till Heart of the Swarm. In the intervening time, take advantage of any open feedback that Blizzard requests to point out that this is an issue.

Sorry for the necro...

So the ramp is a downwards ramp and its entire surface is level with the high ground... But then how do I make the resulting cliff go up instead of down, without bizarre visual distortions?