How to create and use actors templates
1. After you have imported your new map in game and finished work on height and textures it is a time to populate your map. To speed up your work you can use buildings templates.
2. For making and pasting templates you need to create two new folders in your Mods/Maps folder. That is same folder when you have your basic map. I will work on map FatCat and I will use folders empty1a and Template as my templates folders.
3. When creating templates you have to use one empty map, Online9a is good choice because map is small and flat so it loads fast. That's why I'm going to use folder empty1a, that folder is file folder for Online9a map. In that folder I'll put empty actors.static file and load.ini file.
Putting new load.ini is optional, that depends on textures you want to use as base for templates. Map Online9a and folder empty1a are my template making map and folder.
4. Next step is to create "Template Vault", You do that by creating new folder in same folder where your basic map and empty1a are. I'll make folder Template. Only thing that will be in that folder is actors.static and you will put it there when you decide to paste template.
5. In your root Il2 folder you have to make folder Maps (If you don't have it already)and in that folder create sub folders (In my case): FatCat,empty1a and Template. As I plan to make 3 templates I'll create there folders City1,City2 and TrainStation. You can use different folders or you can rename your actors files to keep track on them easier.
When you are saving your work in enhanced FMB that's where files are saved. You are ready now to create and use templates.
6. Making template:
Go to enhanced FMB and open Online9a map, as you are using empty actors file there will be no objects on map.
Now I'm going to put City texture somewhere on the map to have base for my buildings.
When this is finished I'll create my first City template, that's simple, just put desired objects on map.
when you are satisfied with your template save your work
Your work will be saved in Il2/Maps/empty1a folder as actors.static.
7. Now comes important part. You have to copy that actors.static into Il2/Maps/City1 or any folder you want. You can even leave it in empty1a folder but you will have to rename it because new template will overwrite old actors file.
8. Create now your other templates and repeat procedures.
Pasting templates
1. Decide which template you will paste now and put that template in your mods Template folder, you can put same actors file in il2/maps/template folder but you can use any actors,even empty one there. Only important thing is that you have file actors.static there and that you can choose it for paste from.
2. Load your map, in my case map is FatCat
3. Zoom into place where you want to put template.
4. Click on right mouse button and use paste from file option
5. Drag and rotate template to suit your needs.
6. When you have completed work with first template than replace actors file in your mods template folder with desired actors.static and use paste from file again.
It may sound complicated but it's easy once you do it for a first time.
FC