[Swamp_Thing]

Anyone knows how to make transparent glass in TS? So that FS recognizes it aswell? Like the glass of a cockpit´s canopy, or a window?
I really need to know...
Thanks.

[Taristin]

Doesn't work that way. Sorry.

In TS you can make textures transparent by either using a filter or by setting it's reflectance property to glass. but to have transparent glass in FS you need to use the alpha channel of the texture, and so that it doesnt look invisible, a shinemap for the glass, usually white, to make it look like glass.

[NGTM-1R]

..and why would you want it, out of curiousity? Unless it's so you can see the horrified expression on the face of that cruiser captain right before you blow in the bridge viewport...

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by ngtm1r
..and why would you want it, out of curiousity? Unless it's so you can see the horrified expression on the face of that cruiser captain right before you blow in the bridge viewport...

So you can something like this on a fighter

[Deepblue]

Mmmm. Anyway, can someone please explain to me how to edit the alpha channel in the GIMP whenever I select it and try to draw, nothing happens. This does not help me when I am trying to make some rather cool things.

[StratComm]

You'll need to add a layer I think, and use it to make a mask that gets applied as a transparency layer.  The specifics of how to do that escape me ATM, but that's the general idea.

[Night Hammer]

what fighter is that Aldo?

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by Night Hammer
what fighter is that Aldo?

Selkie

[Night Hammer]

you changed it?

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by Night Hammer
you changed it?

?

[Swamp_Thing]

The reason why i need transparent glass is because i want to build a dome type of thing, where i can see through the glass. I´m making a station with a "greenhouse" dome, with vegetation inside it. Wich reminds me, anyone knows where i can get low-poly trees and bushes?

Btw, what are flipped faces used for? I noticed the Orion has a flipped face in the entrance to the fighterbay, allthough i never saw any use for it in-game... It was also a ***** to remove, kept punching holes in the mesh.

Anyway, if the glass is made using just texture manipulation, do i build the mesh normally or do i need to make any special arrangements on the glass spots?
Seems i´ll have to go by trial and error on this...

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by Swamp_Thing
The reason why i need transparent glass is because i want to build a dome type of thing, where i can see through the glass. I´m making a station with a "greenhouse" dome, with vegetation inside it. Wich reminds me, anyone knows where i can get low-poly trees and bushes?

Btw, what are flipped faces used for? I noticed the Orion has a flipped face in the entrance to the fighterbay, allthough i never saw any use for it in-game... It was also a ***** to remove, kept punching holes in the mesh.
 

flipped?  IIRC the Orion has an invisible wall (polygon with the special "invisible" texture, which is invible and blocks ships but not lasers) to stop people flying into the fighterbay and hiding in there.  Same for all fighterbay-having ships.

Low poly trees & bushes - you're probably best just to get an alpha-mapped texture and use either a single double sided poly or 2 in cross type structure.

NB: not sure if that'd work or not, IIRC PCS would convert double sided polys, you may have to arrange a cube or even 'triangle' type structure (i.e. like 2 cards agsint each other in a house of cards).

Of course, if you get a good overhead shot, and put the aroboreal bit sunk under a semi-transparent dome (rather than fully or close to), you might not need to.  Another option is layers of alpha-mapped vegetation maps, i.e. like looking through the top of a forest.

[Night Hammer]

Originally posted by aldo_14


?

Haha oops, i was thinkin about the Vesuvius

[Flaser]

IIRC the stuff going under the glass part should be handled as a subobject, while the glassy part should be in the main object.

The reason is (AFAIK this is what Bob said a couple of months ago) is that the game engine draws the main body last, esle you will have strange clipping or floating problems with the stuff inside.

BTW be sure to check out some of the other "humanised" models or see the chart Bob(?) made quite a while about the Hercules. The prime reason is to get the right size, in FS things are actually very big, but their design doesn't imply so for relativly small stuff like fighters and the like.

[Swamp_Thing]

Originally posted by aldo_14

flipped?  IIRC the Orion has an invisible wall (polygon with the special "invisible" texture, which is invible and blocks ships but not lasers) to stop people flying into the fighterbay and hiding in there.  Same for all fighterbay-having ships.
 

Well, if it´s meant to be invisible, its not working! At least not on my system... I never knew the Orion actually had a built fighterbay untill i opened it in TS and saw the hole in the hull. When looking at it in-game, i only see a wall, no door, no hole, no nothing...

[Taristin]

Then something is amiss on your end.

[magatsu1]

that strikes me as an odd error.

[Taristin]

unless he somehow had a texture called 'invisble'?  Would that override the default way FS2 renders?

[Getter Robo G]

Ahem, aside from editing the model yourself. One possibility is to DL one of the Orion mods.. (any ideas which ones have a free bay access)?

  I never noticed it myself except for the lucifer (I was looking for trouble).. I always thought the orion was open cause I made miriya chase max into it and disappear for that Robotech mission. I figured all Orions were like that by defalut. If it's a problem you can Dl the SDF-1/orion and retexture it at Robotechlan.com

   Should work... But that's only if you are like me and can't model or 3d edit worth beans.

[StratComm]

The reason everyone notices it on the Lucifer is that Command [t]tells[/i] you to fly in there.  But I'd like to know what the invisible door is rendering as on your system before I make any kind of guess as to what's happening.