Hard Light Productions Forums

Modding, Mission Design, and Coding => The Modding Workshop => Topic started by: Unknown Target on February 02, 2006, 08:07:48 pm

Title: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Unknown Target on February 02, 2006, 08:07:48 pm
I've started taking up modeling some capital ships. You might remember my cruiser/light carrier awhile back with the fighter drum concept? Well this is a heavier version. WIP so far, but suggestions? (Again, fighters launch from the big drum in the front).

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/2bb.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/1bb.jpg)

(This is what the fighter drum on the other ship looks like; it works about the same):

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/3fb4fd96.jpg)
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Unknown Target on February 09, 2006, 04:44:34 am
Er...what happened to my topic?

Anyway, this is what happens when you forget a model's supposed to be low poly :D Maybe this should be moved to art now.
How's it look?

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/panels2.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/panels1.jpg)
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: c914 on February 09, 2006, 05:05:41 am
Now that is  very good.
You can always replace few polys by texture :D
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Prophet on February 09, 2006, 05:19:50 am
Looks like UT got a little carried away...  :)

Yes, that should be done by textures. Those "details" are so small that it would look flat in-game anyway. Do a couple of larger variations on the side (like the dock points for example), and do that plating stuff via textures... Thats what me thinks.
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Fineus on February 09, 2006, 06:07:03 am
I know (or imagine) you havent started detailing the fighter drumrolls ends yet, but could i recommend bevelling the ends per-segment? That is.. for each row of fighters there are.. bevel for it along that smooth face. Right now it looks far too... flat.
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Taristin on February 09, 2006, 05:41:08 pm
Did you do those all by hand?
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Unknown Target on February 09, 2006, 06:53:06 pm
Yep :) Sketchup makes it really easy, it's basically just drawing panels in Photoshop. Btw, polycount in this screenie (below) is 28,431; just about the entire Galactica mesh in the BSG mod, IIRC :D I'm thinking of finishing up a couple more details on this side, on the bottom and top, and then mirroring it. By then I'll have some 50,000 polies; great for testing FS2's limits :D

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/d30a78e1.jpg)

Tried a Truespace render:

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/685b6191.jpg)
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: StratComm on February 09, 2006, 07:56:08 pm
Yep :) Sketchup makes it really easy, it's basically just drawing panels in Photoshop. Btw, polycount in this screenie (below) is 28,431; just about the entire Galactica mesh in the BSG mod, IIRC :D I'm thinking of finishing up a couple more details on this side, on the bottom and top, and then mirroring it. By then I'll have some 50,000 polies; great for testing FS2's limits :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/d30a78e1.jpg

Tried a Truespace render:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/685b6191.jpg

Or texture baking.  Those panels would make an excellent source for a complete UV map.
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Unknown Target on February 10, 2006, 09:49:41 am
Er...how do I do that/how is it implemented?
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Roanoke on February 10, 2006, 11:55:09 am
As a Normal Map would be great. For all the high poly grebling it does lack any real features though.
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: FireCrack on February 10, 2006, 12:41:17 pm
bevel the greebles
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Taristin on February 10, 2006, 01:41:36 pm
Er...how do I do that/how is it implemented?

AFAIK in TS, you can't.
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Unknown Target on February 10, 2006, 03:12:15 pm
Well what would it be called? Sketchup might have it.
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: Taristin on February 10, 2006, 03:20:29 pm
It's called baking. Or renderring to texture. Essentially what it does it take the model, apply the lighting, shadows, et al, and puts all of the effects into the texture, while it's creating a single texture from the mesh.

That probably explains it poorly, but it's something you have to play with to get a full understanding of it.
Title: Re: UTs next "big thing"
Post by: supernova on February 11, 2006, 01:48:29 am
Raa explained it pretty well...

Epic games uses exactly that method to produce all the models and textures for Unreal 2007.   First they make a mesh of a character at about 2.5 million polygons, then make the normal and texture maps from that model, then apply them to the actual ingame character of about 5K polys, and then there you go, you have the detail of the 2.5 million poly model at much more realistic polycounts...

It's a shame that the render to texture function on MAX 5 doesn't work properly....if only i had MAX 8...