And models ..... like maybe some more realistic tank beach barricades? Made this up tonight. I did some checking and my software can save to certain file types which can be converted to SMD. Probably lots more steps from here to an Empires model. PS. by scale this thing is about 8.5 feet tall. Can be adjusted to whatever.
Jesus fuck man, you're fast. If you want to do models, I'm sure Trickster or Beerdude would have piles of suggestions for you.
I'd suggest you download Blender, it allows for easy importing and converting to Smd. Blender Source Tools
Had already forgotten about that. Take your time though. If I finish my beach displacements before someones has finished the bunkers, the worst that could happen is that we both have to make some changes for it to fit together well This difference in opinion is simply because in my head, the attack would actually begin right there. There have been no previous battles, the map would actually start by having the landingships move towards the beach. BE's AA defenses wouldn't allow for airstrikes (hence why NF will be powering the AA's down). Early bombardment would be difficult to explain. If they had ships capable of that close by, you wouldn't be able to explain why they didn't just destroy the bunkers and gates before the assault. And they have to be intact in the first assault so NF has some interesting objectives from the moment they land. So the area would still be clean and orderly. And it's BE, so I had the clinical precision of germany in my head when it came to organizing defenses. The 'river' is a ditch dug out by BE to slow down attacking vehicles even more. They just connected it to the ocean. Oh boy ... As a mapper I can tell there's always been way too few things like good looking bushes, trees, rocks ... outdoor props in general. In this map, like you've already done, there's the dragonteeth and those steel structures, but I could also use alternatives for the rocks that are scattered around the beach (bigger) with plenty of unused skins on them so that mappers can use new skins on them without having to recompile the model. Key thing is performance though. The iron structures would preferrably be a bit bigger (so I can place a few less). Ingame model should be as lowpoly as possible so details would have to be added with the textures (or maybe normal maps from highpoly models, i'm not sure how much of an impact that would have)
Looks nice but also very expensive. Things like the little bolts should not be actual geometry, but instead should be illustrated with texturing and bump mapping. Also Silk if you still need some one to work on the base area I'm down since brush work is something I have quite a bit of experience with.
You're in Updated link: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/234836/mapping/emp_echelon/emp_echelon.rar For the base remember: - Even if the main gate and secondary gate are destroyed, their should still be complete visibility blockage between the base and the outside - There's probably gonna be an infantry route from the cliff side bunkers all the way up to the main base
Yes model rocks please, this game needs a bigger catalogue of rocks, especially ones that fit. For this map make some sandy rocks, as right silk put in mossy rocks from canyon.
IMO rocks should just be made with displacements. Much easier and they will still look good. Not to mention the massive difference in performance. Also it kind of worries me seeing the stock empires rock models in this map (or any map for that matter). The collision meshes are so primitive, making it look like your bullets are hitting air when you sue them as cover. If I am remeber correctly, there is a away to compile the map to have the models have the collisions meshes match their visual mesh, but it is quite expensive. Honestly, with Silk's terrain skills, all those rocks should be made with displacements.
On topic of rocks, I don't care how they look or how are they made, but the hitboxes absolutely should match with the model, not the current shit that makes you either see the enemy through itself,but still kept you in perfect cover, or makes you kil yourself because mortar shell just decided to go off in your face.
tbh if mappers would have looked at the collisions in the model browser this could have been avoided. its only a couple of rock where hitboxes fail completely. anyway on topic of displacement rocks - i think its not worth the work youd have to put in, in comparison to doing it in a 3d suite. in some its basically, "create me a rock". have shape lets say a cube, apply modifiers fed by randomization algos similar to terrain generation, create texture, done*. in hammer you have to form a rock out of hundreds of vertices you push around indivdually if texture stretching is of concern to you (this projected textures - if you know what i mean, i forgot the name - could work nice though). *simplified to make a point
Downsides to using model rocks over displacements: -decreased performance -increased map file size -non editable in hammer (all rocks look the same, can make all rocks look different if they are displacements) These are only a few points but the first two make a big difference. If no one wants to make them I can do once I get hammer working again.
displacements can be incredibly buggy and you can make ungodly mistakes with them, imo model rocks are way more efficient and mappers usually aren't great at stuff that's like modelling, so making them model their own rocks with a hacky method like displacements would output some ugly fucking rocks.
Why don't the hitboxes always match the models? I agree that it makes sense to be that way, but there's got to be a reasonable explanation.
i didnt mean to stop you and you make good points. im looking forward to see what you can archieve. i didnt mean to question the posibility. im eager to see the results and especially how you did it those bunkers are built to withstand artillery, its the sole reason they exist actually. we can destroy them partially and make em look like they been hit by artillery in a way its still enough cover. for me its harder to understand why there are pillboxes that can be taken by enemy infantry and why there has been no artillery bombardment. who would run against a fully fortified position, thats nuts! also since misfire can model, we might ask if he could make some skybox-scale, really low poly, far away, nf-themed battleships as scenery for the ocean ................................ :D and didnt people already ask for artillery shenanigans? they are from hl2 and there was no need to waste precious calculations where they have been used. assumingly there is no technical reason other than that. you could use the exact same model aswell, rocks aint that complex.
Can't be more expensive than something like one of those swaying tall tress can it? But no problem, 17 seconds later no bolts. And other things could be smoothed up if needed. The old engine is a problem, but it is something helped by a better vid card?
this yells LOD since itd be so easy to make, just remove the thickness and its 6 rectangles and 3 triangles and it should be of less concern? idk exactly how you do it but it cant be that much work ... edit: didnt someone make such models already? this and those concrete tanktrap things. edit2: while searching if figured this dlds still works if its of any help http://forums.empiresmod.com/showthread.php?t=10032
fml, the only map that comes to mind that ever used any of that was silks dusty map. It was also only to make map borders too.
