Complete Exile 2 outdoor map (massive spoilers)

[Duskwolf]

 

You may have to magnify this to see it properly. White is cave floor, black is cave wall, blue is water, cyan is waterfalls, deep green is swamp, dark gray is pits, orange is lava. Medium gray lines are roads; lighter gray shades and pink are used for various cave features. Bright green is for towns and dungeons. (And gray-green is secret cave passages. Shh.)

 

Upper left corner is Garzahd's fortress. I'm not sure what the other two disconnected bits along the left edge are - I probably haven't gotten there yet. Right and bottom edges are the Dark Waters chapter and Vahnatai lands.

 

Note that there is nothing shown past the front, and behind a number of checkpoints you can't pass. That's because there is, quite literally, nothing there.

[Lilith]

Wow.

 

You... sure have a lot of time on your hands, don't you?

[Tonweya]

Really nice!

Thanks.

[Micawber]

I think I already have one of these. <Checks>. Yes I do. I think it was drawn by Travis Reynolds.

 

Link .

 

Edit: Now I look a bit closer, I see it isn't so complete as yours. So thanks, good show.

[Duskwolf]

Oh yeah - and, if you're wondering, I generated this from the "outdoor data" file. I didn't make it by hand! I don't have that much time on my hands

[ben4808]

Ah. Very nice.

[Randomizer]

Nice. It's easier to understand than the one in the hintbook.

[The Mystic]

Thanks, but I already have a more complete version of the map. Mine also includes the "Easter Egg" section, which I think is the only one missing from yours.

[Arch-Mage Solberg]

Quote:

Originally written by Duskwolf:
Oh yeah - and, if you're wondering, I generated this from the "outdoor data" file. I didn't make it by hand! I don't have that much time on my hands

And with what did you use to generate this? If I had known about that, I wouldn't had wasted months of drawing my maps out by hand!

<---- Hey Look at that...I finally made 250 posts. That's an average of a wimpy 50 posts a year.

[Duskwolf]

Code:

import sysoutdoors_f = file("outdoors data", 'r')def write_chunk(f, d):  f.write("P3\n48 48\n255\n")  for i in range(48):    for j in range(48):      x = ord(d[48 * j + i])      f.write("255 0 %d " % x)    f.write("\n")i = 0while True:  i += 1  d = outdoors_f.read(3088)  if len(d) < 3088: break  write_chunk(file("chunk%03d.ppm" % i, "w"), d)  i += 1

Given the "outdoors data" file, this generates a bunch of 48x48 chunks with weird (red->pink) colors. I used the Gimp to reassemble the chunks, colorize the joined image, fill in some unreachable areas, and hide the easter-egg area.

Python is wonderful.

[Mab]

Python, huh?

I once had lots of spare time

[Duskwolf]

Oh, very nice. I might just have to figure out the format for "town data" and post maps for those.

 

I like your color/pattern scheme, BTW. Mind if I borrow it?

[Mab]

I'd be honored. You're welcome

[The Mystic]

Quote:

Originally written by Mab:
I once had lots of spare time

So I saw. In a word, WOW. There was even a couple of things you mentioned that I didn't know, which was rather surprising.

[Duskwolf]

... and I just noticed that, in an unforgivable error, my map duplicates one terrain block (third from the bottom on the right edge). Unfortunately, this isn't trivial to fix. I'll fix it later, when I do the towns.

[ben4808]

Quote:

Originally written by Mab:
Python, huh?
I once had lots of spare time

So you actually did draw out the whole map (and all the others on your site) by hand?

[Zeviz]

Duskwolf and Mab, very impressive work.

[Duskwolf]

I've got most of the format worked out, save for objects; I'll probably have complete indoor maps available pretty soon. Here's an appetizer: Fort Ganrick.

 

 

(Apparently, the Nephilim always exist in town, but are hidden until the attack gets triggered. Interesting.)

[Lilith]

Quote:

Originally written by Duskwolf:
(Apparently, the Nephilim always exist in town, but are hidden until the attack gets triggered. Interesting.)

That's the standard method for creating monster encounters in BoE; I guess this confirms Jeff's always done it that way.

[Micawber]

Oooh! Oooh! The original Exile 2 graphics!

[Sullust]

Do you have the complete set of original Exile II graphics?

[AnarhIztok2511]

Hey, if these above are the original graphics, then I believe I have them. If you need them!

[Sullust]

I'd love to have them. However I'm a bit cautious about having others email me. I'd prefer if they were hosted online so I could download them on my own time.

 

I know Alec has some of the graphics; however, I don't think his set includes terrain. I'd also like the original Exile I graphics...

[Duskwolf]

Sullust, I PMed you a link to a set of graphics which I'd posted on a download site. Did you get it?

 

If anyone else is interested, it's at http://files.filefront.com//;8273443;;/

 

I don't have Exile I graphics, unfortunately. (I'd be interested in having them, though.)

[Toenail Returns]

Impressive. That must've taken a LONG time to complete.

[Duskwolf]

What, the map? As I mentioned earlier, it was mostly an automated process. All I did was decode and colorize it.

[Duskwolf]

By a user's request, I've created a "full version" of the outdoor map. It's obviously too large to include the whole thing here, but here's an appetizer:

 

 

A 12 MB ZIP archive containing images of all 56 outdoor regions (including the empty ones) is available here: http://files.filefront.com//;8291303;;/

 

Note that there are a few glitches. In particular, certain border "frills" may be a little off, roads aren't displayed quite correctly, and a few terrain types I haven't decoded yet are displayed as black blocks with characters in them.

 

I'll be releasing a corrected version, along with town images and the tools I used to create these images, as soon as I've got all the bugs (chitraches?) ironed out.

[Ulf]

Certainly, decrypting towns takes a lot of time and I'm sure that you're busy everyday, but what about the town maps? If you cannot post them, could you just give a hint, how to write a script decrypting towns from file town.dat? Thanks in advance.

[Ishad Nha]

From hex address 438,784 in the file "exile.exe":

 

Ground~Pit~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall~Wall w. secret door~Door~Door~Door~Door~Open door~Closed portcullis~Open portcullis~Wall w. sign~Wall w. sign~Wall w. sign~Wall w. sign~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. painting~Wall w. painting~Wall w. painting~Wall w. painting~Wall w. window~Wall~Wall~Wall w. secret door~Door~Door~Door~Door~Open door~Closed portcullis~Open portcullis~Wall w. runes~Wall w. runes~Wall w. runes~Wall w. runes~Wall w. window~Wall~Wall~Wall w. secret door~Door~Door~Door~Door~Open door~Closed portcullis~Open portcullis~Wall w. sign~Wall w. sign~Wall w. sign~Wall w. sign~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. trophies~Wall w. window~Floor~Floor~Floor~Floor w. rune~Pedestal~Desk~Counter~Counter~Counter~Book w. pedestal~Pillar~Potted plant~Statue~Statue~Bookshelf~Brazier~Good altar~Chest~Chair~Chair~Chair~Chair~Bed~Ground~Throne~Dresser~Table w. food~Table w. food~Table~Table~Counter~Counter~Counter~Cauldron~Evil altar~Floor~Floor~Floor~Pillar~Good altar~Evil altar~Brazier~Seat~ (there may be three blank entries here) Floor~Floor~Statue~Futon~Glow crystals~Rug~Box~Pedestal w. crystal~Case~Floor w. runes~Pentagram~Pentagram~Pentagram~Pentagram~Seat~Table~Table~Table~Table~Table~Fire pit~Box~Body~Filth~Bonfire~Bedding~Rubble~Rubble~Rubble~Rubble~Mushrooms~Mushrooms~Mushrooms~Stalagmites~Stalagmites~Tree~Tree~Rock~Moldy rock~Swamp~Castle tower~Castle tower~Sign~Totems~Obelisk~Fence~Fence~Statue~Statue~Castle entry~Town~Fort~Dungeon~Pit~Vahnatai town~Ground~Hut~Tower~Water~Bridge~Bridge~Stone bridge~Stone bridge~Rock in water~Waterfall~Lava~Lava~Cracked wall~Crumbly wall~Moldy wall~Cracked wall~Crumbly wall~Moldy wall~Cracked wall~Crumbly wall~Moldy wall~Walkway~Walkway~Walkway~Walkway~Walkway~Ground~Road~Rock~Moldy rock~Strange barrier~Shareware barrier~Ground w. special~Floor w. special~Floor w. special~Floor w. special~Rug~Torch~Torch~Lever~Ground w. special~Floor w. special~Floor w. special~Floor w. special~Portal~Portal~Barrier~Ground~Floor~Lever~Large Crystal~Shareware Chasm~Anvil~Bloody Ground~Ground~

 

Paste this into Word and change all the tildes into paragraph marks. I can't find any indication as to the properties of each terrain type.

[Ulf]

@Ishad Nha:

Yeah, ok... Forgive me my ignorance, but what's it for?

[Ishad Nha]

Duskwolf said that he had not decrypted all of the terrain types, giving him the names would be a start in that direction.

[Ulf]

Yeah, but it was nearly 1 year ago I believe that Duskwolf managed to decrypt them since then (provided he did it acutally)

[Ishad Nha]

Another approach would be to make a Blades of Exile scenario with sections pasted in from the Exile 2 file Outdoor.dat. This would possibly require hex editing of the picture numbers in the first 91 scenario terrain slots. You could have much more interesting and varied maps.

 

Edit: the way to decrypt the terrain types is to alter a section of outdoor.dat so that it becomes a display of the various terrain types. I chose the section around Formello and put all 255 types in nice neat lines. First I changed the default to type 77, a floor type. (I actually did the number-crunching in Excel then imported the data into a hex editor.)

[The Almighty Doer of Stuff]

You don't need to hex-edit the first 91 terrains. You can change the name, the graphic, and the keyboard shortcut, but any other change is undone when you stop editing the terrain.

[Ishad Nha]

Forgot that you can change the graphics, but I will probably enter everything via a spreadsheet anyway.

 

Edit: I have started an Exile 2 template scenario for Blades of Exile. I am not totally sure what every type of terrain actually does but playing the game will enable me to see that sooner or later.

 

Edit: I have the scenario up and running, all I need do is paste the sections in. I copy a section from outdoor.dat, paste it into a spreadsheet to convert it and then paste it into the scenario via a hex editor.

 

 

First I need to decrypt the file outdoor.dat, I have made some progress there.

 

Length~Start~Data Type~Name

2,304~0~ unsigned char~terrain[48][48];

36~2,304~ location~special_locs[18];

18~2,340~ unsigned char~special_id[18];

16~2,358~ location~exit_locs[8];

8~2,374~ char~exit_dests[8];

16~2,382~ location~sign_locs[8];

68~2,398~?~(Unknown)

64~2,466~RECT~info_rect[8];

270~2,530~char~(Area names)

288~2,800~?~(Unknown)

~~~

All sections seem to have a fixed length:~3,088 bytes.

 

(Tildes represent tab stops.)

 

Edit: I have now pasted in nine of the fifty six outdoor zones. Using a spreadsheet it only takes a few minutes per zone.

[Ishad Nha]

Now I have the outdoors sections all sorted out. I can use Exile 3 graphics because they have cave sections sharing a color scheme with the Exile 2 counterparts.

 

There is a problem with the automap using mixed.bmp, which varies a bit from Exile 3 to Blades of Exile.

 

Finally I have compiled maps for the Exile 2 outdoors:

http://www.freewebs.com/ishadnha/Exile2Outdoormaps.zip

(Above address may need to be copied and pasted in manually.)

 

I chose to create a Blades of Exile scenario, then I opened it in the BoE editor. The zoom view enabled me to get a picture of each outdoor zone. Exile 2, Exile 3 and Blades of Exile all have automaps that show most of an outdoor zone but not all of it, which is not convenient here.

[Duskwolf]

Since someone asked me recently, I dug up the mostly-final outdoor and town maps I'd generated, as well as the scripts I used to generate them.

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/cea5hn5ihd1trmj/59vL0ILFco

 

There's a few incomplete bits: monsters aren't included on the town maps (as I didn't finish figuring out the monster ID to graphics ID conversion), and a few uncommon tiles don't show up properly on either map. If it really bothers you, fix it yourself; if there's interest, I can throw the scripts up on Github or whatnot.

[Harehunter]

Thank you Duskwolf. Let's see how quickly this rabbit can pull himself out of a hat! Already have a structure to land this in. Mmmm. New guy starts next week. We'll see.

[Galadrin]

On 11/08/2007 at 11:50 PM, Duskwolf said:

By a user's request, I've created a "full version" of the outdoor map. It's obviously too large to include the whole thing here, but here's an appetizer:

 

 

A 12 MB ZIP archive containing images of all 56 outdoor regions (including the empty ones) is available here: http://files.filefront.com//;8291303;;/

 

Note that there are a few glitches. In particular, certain border "frills" may be a little off, roads aren't displayed quite correctly, and a few terrain types I haven't decoded yet are displayed as black blocks with characters in them.

 

I'll be releasing a corrected version, along with town images and the tools I used to create these images, as soon as I've got all the bugs (chitraches?) ironed out.

 

 

Duskwolf, is this still available? I'd love to have the complete outdoor map! Unfortunately the filefront link is dead...

[Duskwolf]

Hmm. What's a good place to upload files these days? Obviously Filefront isn't it anymore.

[Celtic Minstrel]

Last I checked, which was admittedly some time ago, MediaFire was a pretty good place to upload files. There are quite a few other options as well. DropBox and Google Drive (and Microsoft's equivalent, OneDrive or something) seem to be popular these days, though those are a little different from straight file hosting. You could also try seeing if one of the other members here wants to host it on their own websites.

[Galadrin]

Mediafire or Dropbox are the best options, I would think!

[Galadrin]

Duskwolf, any updates?

[Galadrin]

Anyone have Duskwolf's contact info?

[Misc Staple]

Did you try PMing him? Although you did seem pretty lucky in that your first post got a response from him in a day, when he hadn't posted in over four years on the boards.

[Randomizer]

Some users have it set up to automatically send them an email when they get a PM.

[Duskwolf]

Huh, I thought I was set to be notified for replies on this thread but I guess that setting got lost in the forum conversion.

 

Anyways, here's the files. There's a few unfinished bits, but most of it works. If someone else wants to pick this up, I can probably try to answer any questions you've got. It's been literally 10+ years since I last worked on this, though, so I can't promise I'll remember...

 

http://www.mediafire.com/?dye8ubbcu8536

[Galadrin]

Duskwolf, that's great, thank you! I have stitched it all together as a seamless map and uploaded it here. Watch out, it is over 5 megabytes... 28k modems beware!

 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/y27vcjyvi3lrxjx/exilemap.png?dl=0

 

I do have one question... the Abyss seems to be missing from the artwork... how can I get those images? I'd love to finish this map once and for all!

[Randomizer]

The Abyss was under Empire control so it got left off the map.

[Galadrin]

4 minutes ago, Randomizer said:

The Abyss was under Empire control so it got left off the map.

 

Is there still a way to get the artwork though?