Quote
Originally posted by KamaShin:
**Is there a way to have transparency with tiles??? I mean not full transparency, the white color already does it, but some degree in transparency... I d like to create some tiles that would allow to give a fog impression on a map... would sorta be usefull for creating a haunted wood or smthing like that... is there a way?
**
there are two types of semi transparencies you can effect: "film" or "mesh"
film: is exactly as it sounds its like looking through a tinted piecce of plastic,(like 3D glasses)
this is accomplished by using the alpha transparency of the png file format. It interprets levels of transparency
using 8bit/256 shades of grey...black being masked out, white being solid. However if the image is that cut and dry(and contains no white) just use the pict format.
see (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/postdisplay.cgi?forum=Forum48&topic;=001680&whichpost;=ellrx01-13-200311:10PM")my post on the specifics of coldStone and color(/url) for more detail on how to effectively use white in a format that supports transparency.
this will inherently be a much smoother mask and look sharper at lower resolutions....640x480, 800x600,320x240....like a film.
mesh:
like it sounds is like staring through sheer fabric the finer the knit and the thinner the strand the smoother the effect.
this strictly exploits the pict format. like Rubber Ducky, i believe, was hinting at. You simply leave some areas white.
you can either use a pattern fill;
At no cost to you...you can use the bundled AppleWorks/ClarisWorks and use the pattern fill and determine your pattern,most likely to be an alternating checkerBoard(the smoothest pattern). Fill it with whatever main color you want (if you want purple fog/haze, or a green sewer gas, or blueGreen sea mist). And when you run the game the white drops out and the mesh is left in tact. This is useful for emulating any number of effects, from rain drops/snow to floor tiles with glowing grout.
Also you can use the;
sprayCan(AppleWorks)
to create cloud patterns and such, this likely to result in a rough effect but good for smatterings splattering of
fog/blood/water
airBrush(graphicConverter/photoShopvX.x,LE,Elements)
tends to work better just because of its refinement, with photoShop just use the airbrush and set it to dissolve and use a oval
brush with lots of spacing and 0 hardness.
If you want to preview your effects with png and such go grab (url="http://"http://www.icab.de/")the cab...iCab(/url). Its free, and displays pngS properly...use a tables and such to test out layering and your environment and even "em Bed" your background music... these test pages also trun into pretty easy full page ads after the fact.
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{EDIT} : these boards substitute the word "em Bed" replacing it wih "*"
(This message has been edited by ellrx (edited 01-16-2003).)