[Kopachris]

FS2 Modeling for Dummies

Well, after a couple days of research and experimentation, I think I understand how ship are modeled for Freespace 2 now.  So, I've created a small guide to help people to understand how the whole thing works so they can do it too.  This is not a guide on how to use a 3d modeler, this is a guide on modding Freespace.  At first I thought that the names of the meshes in a 3ds file was what the subsystems, etc. were automatically going to be.  Then, when I heard about the hierarchies, I thought they were strict and that the pof file was simply a conversion.  Well, here's to people who got as confused as I did.

Prerequisites:
A 3d modeler of your choice that can export a Truespace 3.2 readable format (Anim8or is included)
You must know you to use the modeler of your choice
Freespace, preferably FS2_open
Truespace 3.2+ (download link included)
You must know how to explore and navigate open windows!  (You wouldn't believe how much I get asked at school, "Where's the file menu?" or "How do I save a document?")

This guide is a work in progress, and I have a little more to add to it later, when I figure more stuff out, like rotating turrets.  Also, the included ship has a .lum UV map, but the model itself is not UV mapped and is not textured.  So don't freak out about it being invisible in Freespace.  There were a few things that I felt the place where I got the information could explain it better, so I just put a link in and claim no ownership of it.

Download the guide

[Colonol Dekker]

if not already.
Have you checked to see if anything like this exists already *Listens for Karajorma. . . .*

[Hellstryker]

1.75 mb? 

[Kopachris]

I've looked all over the place for something that's fairly complete and easy to understand.  Either there's nothing, or the search engines (including on this site) just can't find it.  Yes, it's 1.75 MB, that's because I include Anim8or, LithUnwrap, and the model I've been working on so far.  Sorry it's so big, I have fast internet, so 1.75 meg is small for me.  If you want, I could zip up an archive without all that other stuff, but it'll have to wait till tomorrow.

[Hellstryker]

Yeah i do too, i just didnt realize you included all that stuff.

[Vasudan Admiral]

To start off with: Huge giant WELL DONE! for creating a newbie tutorial thingie within 12 posts! I've over 1500 and still not finished mine.
Another well done for having so few actual errors in it. Modelling ships is a complicated process, so in the setting of a modding guide I'm very impressed.

So with that in mind, please don't take the following 'fixes' as any kind of insult.

1) One of the biggest things right off the bat is the outdated PCS and Modview links. PCS2 has been in development for quite some time now, and is nearly bug free. Kazan's release thread is here: http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,52098.0.html

PCS2 has more data editing capabilities than PCS1 and a better render window than modview. It also makes things a lot easier with data entry by enabling you to move things like gunpoints or dockpoints around by holding ctrl and dragging in the window. (It takes a bit of getting used to with the movement planes and the like). It also has an incredibly handy auto-gen for path data which is supposed to be used once most other data is in place.

2) The stuff on hierarchies and whole vs separate meshes is a little bit confusing. I just recently wrote up a reasonably long description of that stuff here: http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,52726.msg1065742.html#msg1065742

However mine isn't aimed at covering the auto-gen features of PCS2. A better source for all that info is Bobboau's PCS 1 tutorial here: http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/blackwater/fstut/fstut_index01.htm in the "PCS auto-gen" link on the left hand side. All that stuff still applies for the PCS2 auto-gen.
Also while you're there you can find much more complete pof editing guidelines. Some of it no longer applies for one reason or another, but it's all still pretty relevant.

3) I'd say take the bit out about modeled thruster plumes. FSO handles engine thrusterpoints quite differently now, and having a modeled one in there tends to look rather crappy unfortunately.

4) The texturing stuff there seems a bit off. If textures disappear after conversion, it means they didn't get converted and you probably won't see anything in-game. You can't apply textures in PCS1 or 2 either, though you can change which texture map it uses if it already has one.

I get the impression you know what textures and UV maps are already but just in case:
What you're applying in truespace and I presume animator are shaders. Shaders don't get converted to POF - only texture maps with UV co-ordinates. (ie, you need to have the model UV mapped and then apply a texture map to it) If truespace can't see any texture map applied to the model, then the converted POF won't have one.

5) Texture maps are placed in \data\maps rather than data\textures - since that folder doesn't actually exist. Taylor wrote up an excellent document about texture formats and usage that I would strongly recommend all FS modellers read carefully and get clarification on bits they aren't clear on, here: http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,37158.0.html

Well done again!

[Kopachris]

Thanks, will do!  For me, PCS2 seems to crash every time I use it.  For instance, I open a pof and click "Eye Points" and it pops up saying, "pcs2.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close.  We are sorry for the inconvenience." and asks if I want to send the error report.  I've got PCS 2.0.1 Stable that I got from sourceforge.  I know it's not lack of textures, because it crashes for the Terran Mara, which appears fully textured, as well.  Your hierarchy tut explains it better than mine, I'll put a link to it in addition to my section.  Didn't know about the thruster plumes thing, it came from an older tutorial.  What do you mean by the textures disappearing?  I just haven't textured my ship yet.  I know that LithUnwrap can open and use pof files natively, that's where the .lum file came from.  I just UV mapped it, but saved it as a working file.  After I'm sure I'm done, I'll save the lum as something else, like a 3ds or cob to test it and have it make the template bitmaps.  I'll also have to put a note in there about using many small textures versus a few big textures.  Since I haven't textured my ship yet, I didn't really know where the textures went, so thanks for that, too!  The default FS2_open installation has all its data in the VPs, so it has nothing in the data folder.  I just extracted all the tables, because that's what I mod most.  In addition to my little note, I'll include a link to the textures from a coder's point of view.  I myself do computer programming, so I fully understand what he's talking about.  For one, if you use a bunch of little textures, each file has its own metadata in it that has to be read, so they all add up to more than one big file.  But big files are still a hassle, so you need to strike a balance.  I'm not a creative person, I'm very left brained, so I'll never be making a texturing tutorial.  Modeling is as far as I'll go.

[Vasudan Admiral]

It's getting very weird how PCS2 is crashing for quite a few people now. :\ Could you post a detailed bug report to the PCS2 mantis? http://ferrium.org/mantis/

About the textures, don't trust lithunwraps POF import - it certainly can't resave it correctly. When converting to POF, the model and UV map must be totally complete, because once in POF format you can't edit either of them. So your model in the tut has no textures at all, and as such at best will simply not display in-game, or crash it at worst.

[Kopachris]

Ahh, thank you.  That would have been a bad thing.