ARTPACK -- A WITP:AE Plane Art Repacker

[RyanCrierie]

This is a program I've had on my hard drive for a bit. I'm releasing it to the greater community to help with your mega-mods.

ARTPACK, 6 MB ZIP

What it does is it helps automate the creation and exchanging of plane artwork using a common art format; because while it may be easy to add the first 10 alpha masks to the files, when you get to slot #200, errors creep in -- I actually found alignment errors in the original stock Matrix alpha masks. [:'(]

The common format is contained within the zip as "Blank.png" in "NEW_ART", but here is a preview:


USN F7U Cutlass SilverWings.PNG

Instead of having to deal with three different art files, you only have to deal with one, and they're kept all together for ease of flipthrus.

How it works

When you run PLANEPACK.exe it asks you:

▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒WITP:AE PLANE ART REPACKER▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒
Input CSV file name to be used to generate artwork.
Enter the name only, not the extension as well.
For example: GERMANPLANES not GERMANPLANES.CSV
FILE NAME:

Typing in

German loads German.csv

I've included an example German.CSV file:

The only section of the CSV the program reads are the SLOT_ID and FILENAME; the NATIONALITY and DESCRIPTION fields are there to help you remember what that thing you did was...two years later.

SLOT_ID DESCRIPTION NATIONALITY FILENAME
1 BF-110D-3 Nazi Germany GER Bf-110D-3 WITM.PNG
2 BF-110E-1 Nazi Germany GER Bf-110E-1 WITM.PNG
3 Bf-110G-2 Nazi Germany GER Bf-110G-2 WIR.PNG
4 BLANK SLOT Nazi Germany GER Bf-110G-4 BTR.PNG
5 BLANK SLOT Nazi Germany GER BV 138 WITM.PNG
6 BLANK SLOT Nazi Germany GER BV-141B Shep.png
7 BLANK SLOT Nazi Germany GER BV-155 BTR.PNG
8 BLANK SLOT Nazi Germany GER Do-17P-1 WIR.PNG
9 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
10 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
11 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
12 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
13 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
14 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
15 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
16 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png
17 BLANK SLOT NONE Blank.png

After selecting the CSV file to use, it then asks you:

▒WHAT SIDE IS BEING REPACKED?▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒
▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒1.) ALLIED SIDE (faces left on tops)▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒
▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒2.) AXIS SIDE (faces right on tops)▒▒▒

This is because I started the program as part of a greater "random scenario creator" to allow US vs US or JAP vs JAP balanced play, so some form of automatic mirroring would be needed.

After selecting the side to repack, it runs for a few seconds, then goes

WITP:AE AIRCRAFT ART REPACKED.
HOLDING FOR KEYPRESS TO ACKNOWLEDGE...

And in the /DUMP folder, you find either

A_PlaneSide.bmp
Aptop.bmp
Aptop_alpha.bmp

or

J_PlaneSide.bmp
Jptop.bmp
Jptop_alpha.bmp

depending on which option you selected.

Folders are:

DUMP: Finished files are exported here.
GFX: This folder contains the raw files used as a base by the program.
NEW_ART: This folder contains the art files referenced in your CSV.
SOURCE: This folder contains the source code for the program.

To support this program, I developed art-ripping programs to read the artwork for other Grigsby games using this style:

Original WITP/War Plan Orange
Eagle Day/Bombing the Reich
Original WITP:AE

Here's a rip dump from Eagle Day:



The files are named according to what slot they were in, e.g. ED_PlaneArt_Axis033.png is Axis Slot 33.

It's really hard to figure out what is what, because some art in ED/BTR was left on the cutting room floor from the finished game.

I'm actually quite unsure as to whether to post the "rips" because it's still copyrighted by Matrix, etc; from a different game. [&:]

[btd64]

Looks like a helpful program. Thanks....GP

[RichardAckermann]

+1
Great work! This looks really cool.

[Dili]

Great. Thanks Ryan.

[traskott]

Great! Big art air data mod with all planes in 3,2,1....

[Vipersp]

Awesome Ryan!

Great tool indeed;
Glad to see my art work used by you[&o]

Vipersp

[RyanCrierie]

I've been working a little on it; and have discovered the following easter eggs in WITP-AE Art:

Allied Art Slots:

450 OS2U-3 Kingfisher with Landing Gear

453 -- PB2Y-3R Coronado -- PB2Y-3s converted by Rohr Aircraft Corp as freighters with faired-over turrets, side loading hatch, and seating for 44 passengers, 31 built.

Aren't used (AFAIK) but they have art.

Slot

271 is a A-20A Havoc without an exhaust pipe. Wonder if it was meant for the A-20 version or...

[btd64]

The Kingfisher is in the RHS mod....GP

[DFN]

Thank you Ryan!

Please consider that there are more cans for your can-opener. War in the Med (Witp), War in the Med (WitpAE), War in Russia (Witp), Reluctant Admiral, RHS, Bottlenecks, AltWNT etc etc.

[RyanCrierie]

Please consider that there are more cans for your can-opener. War in the Med (Witp), War in the Med (WitpAE), War in Russia (Witp), Reluctant Admiral, RHS, Bottlenecks, AltWNT etc etc.

You rang?

[RyanCrierie]

Or this? [:'(]

[RyanCrierie]

I haven't done the planes for Alt WNT; looking up the AirArt Readme for it, I see that the new art that Alt WNT used for the allies was largely by me. [:D] I really should go back and try to improve those arts to fit the WITP-AE style now that I have Photoshop, not Paint Shop Pro.

As for Japan, I see that AltWNT used my He100D for the MIKE. [:D]

[DFN]

ORIGINAL: RyanCrierie


You rang?

I did, but probably the wrong bell [:D]
I mean i have the cans (mods), would you consider releasing the can-opener (ripper)?

[traskott]

And we could combine them into a new ART File?

[RyanCrierie]

Here's the next iteration of PLANEPACK:

50~ MB ZIP

The reason for it being so big (48MB~) is I've included "plane cards" for a lot of things.

PLUS

Dali's WITM Plane Sides/stuff are included in ART as an example to demonstrate PLANE_SLOTDUMP; a program that will dump a single slot; I built it to "debug" my CSV repack files for stock WITP-AE; to find "easter egg" art in the official game art, that was not actually used by the program.

---------

Folders are:

ART: This folder contains WITP Original Art to be ripped.

DUMP: Finished files are exported here.

GFX: This folder contains the raw files used as a base by the program.

NEW_ART: This folder contains the art files referenced in your CSV.

SOURCE: This folder contains the source code for the programs.

PLANE_PACK_Hold_On_Exit.bat
This batch file runs

"C:\WINDOWS\system32\cmd.exe /K PLANE_PACK.exe"

So that the window doesn't close instantly on an error. Useful for debugging.

---------

To build an "official" WITP AE side, load PLANE_PACK.exe

and type in either

WITP-AE_Allied (for allied artwork construction)
or
WITP-AE_Axis (for axis artwork construction)

To modify it; CTRL-C

WITP-AE_Allied.csv

and rename it as say

WITP-AE_Allied_MOD.csv

Open that file in your usual format for editing CSV (Comma Separated Value) files.

and in the FILENAME column, change Blank.png to:

\WarOptions\FRA Curtiss CW-77 WarOptions.PNG

etc to "pack in" the new item.

BIG NOTE This file contains "stripped" plane cards from the Matrix Games'

WITP:AE
War Plan Orange
Eagle Day to Bombing the Reich

I am unsure about including them in this collection -- if Matrix feels this is violating their copyright on the artwork; just edit the link in my post to break it and let me know via PM, or in this thread. Thanks.

[RyanCrierie]

I've also toyed with a program doing the same, but for ships. I've built crude rippers, but nothing to repack them (yet).

[RyanCrierie]

Thinking some more about the ships, I could just store them as blank silhouettes (the pink files) and then dynamically generate the top artwork on the fly:

A.) Do you want nationality flags in the corner?

B.) Do you want stock background art, or do you want darkness or overcast backgrounds?

[DFN]

Great idea!
A. No.
B. Stock.

Can we have a plane_slotdump ripper for whole strips or should we post the strips here and let you do the ripping?

[Dili]

For me

A.) option. aesthetically no, but might be useful for ships that belong to nations that are not represented in the game.
B.) i think more variety is welcome.

[RyanCrierie]

Block III, with some new programs.

Block III Download, about 67.3 MB

WHATS NEW:
More Plane Cards Premade in NEW_ART

CARDCREATOR_ALLIED
CARDCREATOR_AXIS: These program(s) take premade three file artwork files and generate a CARD for use with PLANE_PACK.

Included is a sample of MMR's Fleet Air Arm Sea Fox in Pre War Colors.

To use, you place the three images you want to combine in this directory, run the ALLIED or AXIS variant, and type in the name of the file; in this case:

FAA_Sea_Fox_PreWar_MMR

It will then look for files with the following name prefixes:

_Alpha
_Side
_Top

and combine them into a single card; dumping it into the directory.

If you chose the right program, everything will face LEFT. If not, use the other program.

The reason I did ALLIED/AXIS versions is I was doing a lot of repacking and it got tiring to enter 1 or 2 (Allied or Axis) each time I ran the program.

PLANE_RIP: This thing will rip the plane artwork from files located in \ART, and it will use the witploadAE.exe CSV dump files to figure out what is what and generate the names -- the dump file that will be used is the WITPair[scenario #].csv file.

I've helpfully included a pre-dumped CSV file for WITP-AE scenario 1 as "WITP-AE.csv" The finished artwork will be in \DUMP.