Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

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Elefant
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Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

You will need: A Windows computer, FLICster, and GIMP

FLICster: https://forums.civfanatics.com/resources/flicster.5860/
GIMP: https://www.gimp.org/

• open the .flc file, default is preferred
• export with options: Storyboard with border, maximum size (240x240).
• Open exported file with GIMP
• Colours, Colour to Alpha, chose BG colour, mess with settings until happy
• open palettes over selection editor, right-click, import palette, from file, chose Filename_Alpha.Pal from the directory of the image.
• Colours, Map, Set Colourmap, set to your new palette.
• If more than one column, Box select, location 0,0, size 242x1929 px, Image, crop canvas to selection.
• On all layers, layer, layer to image size
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

Update: I wrote a python script to do this automatically. It loads a file with links to download .rar archives with the units, and converts them to 64 x 48 images with transparent backgrounds.
Attachments
Civ3Tileset.zip
(853.26 KiB) Downloaded 141 times
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

A few things i forgot. First, big thanks to radarhere from the pillow project for fixing the way .flc palettes are loaded. Second, because of the issues necessitating this fix, unless you modify your pillow library, the script will not fully work. I hope that the fix will be in the upcoming 9.3 release. Or you can go and do the modification manually.
Last edited by Elefant on Mon Oct 03, 2022 11:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

I also have an exe, but it is too big to post. If there is somewhere that I can post that, please let me know.
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

Here is the patch radarhere made to fix pillow.
https://github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/pull/6626
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

Fixed some bugs with the first version.
Also included a fliimageplugin.py file that fixes some problems with pillow 9.2.
This file is not my code. It is the standard file, fixed by radarhere.
As such, it is subject to the applicable licenses.
Attachments
Civ3Tileset v2.0.zip
(855.54 KiB) Downloaded 141 times
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

Would it be possible to get a program included in the modpack installer?
Ideally, I would like it if ruleset authors could distribute a c3ts file with their mod, which could then build the tileset from the thousands of civ iii unit graphics on the internet. This would bypass license issues by having each user download and convert the graphics themselves, so that what is distributed is the intellectual property of the tileset author.
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
cazfi
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by cazfi »

Elefant wrote: Wed Oct 05, 2022 8:47 pmWould it be possible to get a program included in the modpack installer?
Ideally, I would like it if ruleset authors could distribute a c3ts file with their mod, which could then build the tileset from the thousands of civ iii unit graphics on the internet. This would bypass license issues by having each user download and convert the graphics themselves, so that what is distributed is the intellectual property of the tileset author.
I'm not sure what you are after here. Modpack that is not part of freeciv, does not need to be GPL2+ to begin with. That's the reason Modpack Installer has the "License" information column.
Or do you mean that the license in question disallows you from building up an tileset (and distributing it under some license)?
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

The problem is that there is no explicit license for the graphics, and there are many different authors.
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
Elefant
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Re: Tutorial: How to convert civ 3 unit graphics for use in Freeciv

Post by Elefant »

viewtopic.php?t=92953
The project was moved to this thread.
Civ 3 tileset: viewtopic.php?t=92953
3d Irrlicht desktop client development: viewtopic.php?t=92289&start=20
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