Terrain Creation Guide

[This page is a work in progress. New tools are in development that will likely replace Sprite Editor]

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This guide will explain how to create your own terrain files for use with the in-game land generator, just like the built-in levels like Forest, Cheese etc.

See the wkTerrain page for more info on how to play additional terrains.

Terrains are stored under the DATA\Level folder of your Worms install directory. Each terrain has its own folder containing 2 files: 'Level.dir' and 'TEXT.img'. 'TEXT.img' is a small icon for the terrain displayed in the in-game land generator. 'Level.dir' is an archive file (similar to a zip) that contains all of the terrain images and config files.

The image assets in level.dir are in two formats; .IMG files for images, .SPR files for animated sprites. .SPR files are accompanied by a .SPD text file containing parameters for the .SPR file (frames, width, height etc).

The WA Directory Editor utility (https://worms2d.info/WA_directory_editor) (SpriteEditor.exe) is able to take your image assets (in .BMP [OS/2] format), convert them to .IMG/.SPR and then produce a Level.dir file usable in the game. It is also able to extract assets from existing level.dir files although the program is a bit buggy and some files wont extract.

Download and extract the terrain guide files: https://www.tus-wa.com/files/file-2229 This has an 'EXAMPLE TERRAIN' folder containing examples of the core assets required for all terrains and 4 example custom objects. It also contains the standalone SpriteEditor.exe for convenience or you can download it from the link above.

Core Files (required)

File Name	Info
text.img	The main texture of your land. Dimensions: 256 x 256
soil.img	The soil texture revealed when land is destroyed. Dimensions: 256 x 256
back.spr	The background mountains image. Dimensions: 640 x 160. Other dimensions may work. Despite being an .SPR file, this is a single image and the background cannot be animated.
back.spd	The sprite parameters file for back.spr.
bridge.img	The flat part of the bridge. Dimensions: 64 x 19
bridge-l.img	The left part of the bridge. Dimensions: 64 x 50
bridge-r.img	The right part of the bridge. Dimensions: 64 x 49
debris.spr	This is the animated falling debris. It's a single image containing all of the animation frames stacked vertically. Dimensions vary depending on content.
debris.spd	The parameters file for debris.spr. Adjust width, height and number of frames accordingly. 'framerate' should be 0. 'flags' should be 1.
gradient.img	The sky gradient image. Dimensions: 8 x 916. This is the only image asset to have a separate 17-colour palette.
grass.img	Contains the top and bottom grass and the fringe colour you see when land is destroyed. Width is 136 pixels. Height can vary so experiment but it's typically 16 pixels.
Index.txt	A list of the custom objects to be displayed on the terrain (not the above assets), exlcuding the .img file extension. Maximum of 32 objects. See 'Custom Objects' below.
Level.dir.txt	This is used by SpriteEditor.exe to compile the final Level.dir file. It's a simple list of all files to include. NOTE: .SPD files are not included. The utility uses the .SPD and .BMP to create the .SPR file

NOTE: For conveniance, there's a '_UPDATE INDEX AND LEVEL.DIR FILES.bat' script in the EXAMPLE TERRAIN folder which will automatically build out the 'index.txt' and 'Level.dir.txt' files including your custom objects as you create them.

Custom Object Files

You need at least 1 object for the terrain to work.

There are 3 types of object placement in the game; floor, roof and side.

Your objects can have any name but the file name must end with '.img.bmp' (including file extension). EG, toaster.img.bmp. It's recommended to avoid spaces in the file name and if making a lot of objects it's a good idea to name based on object type, eg, 'obj-floor-toaster.img.bmp', 'obj-roof-knife.img.bmp', 'obj-side-fork.img.bmp'.

Each custom object you create must be accompanied by an .INF file. EG, the object 'obj-floor-toaster.img.bmp' would have the .INF file 'obj-floor-toaster.inf'

The INF file contains a list of numbers representing internal parameters that describe the properties of your object, EG:

5
0
0
1
1
3

In order, this is what the values represent for each line :

Custom objects dimensions can vary but the height and width values must be divisable by 4. All images must be saved in BMP (OS/2) format for SpriteEditor to convert, or you'll get an error.

Palette

Worms uses indexed palettes for all assets. The first colour must be black to represent transparancy.

All core and custom object image files, apart from 'gradient.img.bmp', must not take up more than 97 colours (including black for the 1st colour). It is recommended to index all of these assets down to the same 97 colour palette.

'gradient.img.bmp' has its own 17 colour palette (as always, the first must be black).

Creating the Level.dir File

When all of your objects are saved, and all .INF and .SPD have been created/updated, update the 'Index.txt' and 'Level.dir.txt' files either manually or by running the script.

Open SpriteEditor.exe Ensure "Compress .SPR files" and "Opaque .IMGs" are UNCHECKED (they are checked by default). Select "Reconstruct from log" Select your 'Level.dir.txt' file. The utility will convert all of your BMP assets into IMG's and .SPR's Select "Save-As" and save the file as Level.dir

Creating the Terrain Icon

This is stored in the TEXT.img file that accompanies your Level.dir file. It must be 64 x 64 and 17 colours (first colour black).

In the ICON folder within the "EXAMPLE TERRAIN" folder you'll see an example 'TEXT.img.bmp' file. Save your icon with this file name. Open SpriteEditor.exe Ensure "Compress .SPR files" and "Opaque .IMGs" are UNCHECKED (they are checked by default). Select "Reconstruct from log" Open the "icon.txt" file in the ICON folder. This will immediately create the corresponding TEXT.img file. Close SpriteEditor

You now have the Level.dir and TEXT.img file. Simply create a subfolder within 'DATA\Level' giving it the name of your terrain and copy over the 2 files. You can now play the terrain.

Extracting Assets from an existing Level.dir file

Open SpriteEditor.exe Select Open and navigate to a Level.dir file Select 'Extract, convert, log' and select a folder to extract the contents to. You may also select individual assets to extract.

eg_value	Info
5	Can be 1 to 10. This value affects the chance of an object being placed and is relative to the values of others objects. EG, by setting all objects to 5, you can increase or decrease the values of objects that appear too much or too little (smaller objects or objects with a narrow base will typically have more places to appear in the terrain)
0	Specifies whether the object is in front or behind the terrain. 0 = behind, 1 = in front
0	Specifies whether the soil texture appears when the object is destroyed. 0 = none, 1 = soil
1	Enables or disables collision for the object. 1 = enabled. 0 = disabled
1	Specifies whether other objects can be placed onto this one. 1 = no
3	Location type of object. 0/1 = side of the terrain, 2 = ceiling, 3 = floor