Oceans Eleven?

[Mercator]

I just had a better look. Started several different games, with different map sizes. Restarted ToT, reloaded a game. They all use exactly the same pattern. And the pattern in the tiny world map doesn't actually match the pattern on the main map.

So it definitely doesn't use any sort of seed. I doubt it saves any bit patterns in the savegame. It's all hard-coded in the executable. ToT simply displays different graphics and names in a set pattern on gas giants.

The @SECONDARY_MAPS section values are only used to generate random maps. Nor do any of the values have anything to do with the banding. They're used to generate the "platform-blobs". So I'm pretty sure they don't have any influence on this.

There might be a bit somewhere in the savegame that says "turn banding on for this map" which could make you switch on the same fixed banding for other maps.

I haven't checked any of this in a hex-editor, but I don't really know where this sort of data could be saved. It certainly isn't saved in the 3 known map data blocks or I would've encountered it before. There aren't any other variable-length sections in a savegame that match the map size either.

[Boco]

Thanks! What are the odds that it is as simple as 'if offset 982 indicates SciFi, then use a canned algorithm to generate banding on map3 only'? When activated, the algorithm then fills the bands in a preset manner until it reaches the map's x and y limits. Do the banding patterns of different sized maps overlay if aligned properly?

[Mercator]

Originally posted by Boco
What are the odds that it is as simple as 'if offset 982 indicates SciFi, then use a canned algorithm to generate banding on map3 only'?

Actually, I would think that's probably how it works...
techumseh, did you test what happened if the banding still occurs if the 4th map isn't a gas giant? Or if the 2nd map is a gas giant?

Because if it isn't strictly on map 4, whether it's a gas giant or not, ToT should either read the @SECONDARY_MAPS section when loading a game to check if it is, or it should be stored somewhere in a savegame.

Do the banding patterns of different sized maps overlay if aligned properly?

Yes, they do when aligned to (0,0).

[techumseh]

Yes. The Gas Giant effect is automatic to map 3 when starting the Scifi game. I have to correct one thing, however. Apparently, the map type does not have to be set to 5.

[ravagon]

Mmmm. Are either of the secondary ocean types 'terraformable' or otherwise minable/farmable?

As well as the obvious cosmetic differences one could also do exactly the opposite - ie: leave the basic ocean terrain types effectively identical but change their properties, or perhaps use them as super resources or a just as a series of extra 'special' resources?
Some random event (or perhaps not so random?) could trigger a change terrain to another ocean type ...

'Sir, we've struck oil!"

Don't much like the sound of losing the swamp terrain though. I never noticed that there was one missing on the sci-fi maps...

Interesting.