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WIP mod dedicated to updating the planet graphics. This one might take a while and will also be released in packs.

More pictures will be posted as progress goes along and I find them in game.
Planets done: 81 / 250.

Download:

Rapidshare
Landscape Images
Barren Rock Planets

Mirror

By lordxorn
Direct Download
Landscape Images
Barren Rock Planets

Extract in your Distant Worlds folder, make a backup of your \Distant Worlds\images\environment\planets & \Distant Worlds\images\environment\landscapes in case you want the original planets back.


Continental planet with Gas giant


Volcanic planet near White dwarf


Continental Planet with its Ice and Barren moons


Gas giant with a Volcanic moon


Ocean planet with a Marshy Swamp and a Barren moon


New landscape pictures


Original quality textured planet at 6000*6000 pixels to ingame 800*800 pixels, square shows left side zoomed in.

Wow, that looks beautiful! Looking forward to this!

Been wondering when shiny penny planets would arrive

Those pictures are stunning!

Nice effects on the gas giants! [;)]

Absolutely Gorgeous. Can't wait for release.

I was wondering if we could mod in a cybertron kind of planet  ???
Or a ring world ...

ORIGINAL: 2guncohen

I was wondering if we could mod in a cybertron kind of planet  ???
Or a ring world ...

It should be possible, but i'd rather have a "Rare" folder in the planets folder together with a text file where you can assign rarity, and other effects like lava/lightning. Tech planets and ring world all over the universe would be weird. :p

ORIGINAL: Conflictx

ORIGINAL: 2guncohen

I was wondering if we could mod in a cybertron kind of planet  ???
Or a ring world ...

It should be possible, but i'd rather have a "Rare" folder in the planets folder together with a text file where you can assign rarity, and other effects like lava/lightning. Tech planets and ring world all over the universe would be weird. :p

Your right, i was questioning myself with the same question after posting.
I propose, we should add it in the wischlist thread ?

ORIGINAL: 2guncohen

I propose, we should add it in the wischlist thread ?

There's a whole list of things i'd like to see added to modding that I came across doing other things or wasn't able to do.

Should've written them down as I forgot some, but it's the same principle. With assigning things like sound/weapon effect to a weapon and the possibility to add new weapons and tech. Different weapons like projectiles/lasers/plasma cannon would be nice.

Exceptionally good looking.
Great work!

I must know how you created these
Ive been doing alooot of space-art a few years ago myself, and tinkered with manually creating planets in photoshop pixel by pixel, and using (what the devs of this game appears to have used too) the Lunar Cell filter, as well as 3ds max renderings (by far the most pleasing results).

Update, mod will now also contain new landscapes during exploration.

ORIGINAL: Baleur

I must know how you created these
Ive been doing alooot of space-art a few years ago myself, and tinkered with manually creating planets in photoshop pixel by pixel, and using (what the devs of this game appears to have used too) the Lunar Cell filter, as well as 3ds max renderings (by far the most pleasing results).

I started off by just using planets from around the web and altering them in my impulsive moment, then I looked how much planet I actually needed to do and finding 250 planets and altering would have taken me alot more time then doing them all in photoshop. About 8 planets aren't mine.

It's all pretty simple once you've completed your first planet. Once you got the atmosphere, shadow, shading right, you can start adding other textures and then alter as you wish.

If u need help i dont mind helping. I recently started to use photoshop to generate random space images like nebulae and stars and all (since im just awed when i see such picts lol...) and i cant say im terribly good at doing that but i guess it doesnt hurt to try. I just have to know the main color tones of the planets u are planning to make and the texture (rocky, ocean, gas etc...)

ORIGINAL: Sliverine

If u need help i dont mind helping. I recently started to use photoshop to generate random space images like nebulae and stars and all (since im just awed when i see such picts lol...) and i cant say im terribly good at doing that but i guess it doesnt hurt to try. I just have to know the main color tones of the planets u are planning to make and the texture (rocky, ocean, gas etc...)

Mate i did that at first too, but i really really recommend that you start hand-painting instead of relying on filters and random generators.
There's a great 15 page read on that topic (why hand-crafted space art always surpasses any randomly generated stuff).
http://netdiver.net/images/07/CapturingHeaven.pdf

An absolute must read for everyone ever interested in or currently practicing space art

You have some really nice work here; I think these could really help to alleviate some of the more look-alike planet images in the vanilla game.

Conflictx: where is that ship from in the "New landscape pictures" pic (6th picture)? Is that in the game or from a mod? Looks cool...

Quite a project you've taken on! Looking good.

Update
Barren planet & moons with Landscape pictures released.
See original post.

ORIGINAL: shinobu
Conflictx: where is that ship from in the "New landscape pictures" pic (6th picture)? Is that in the game or from a mod? Looks cool...

That ship is included in my Star Trek mod.

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins
Quite a project you've taken on! Looking good.

Thanks, I get to be creative, and have fun doing it. And it's fun seeing something you've done in action while playing.

could u upload them to a different site like mediafire or smth? I cant access rapidshare from where i live (always gives me that 'yr IP is already dling a file' crap...)

Thanks in advance