The Modelling Thread

Mapping & modding Fallout Tactics and reviewing maps thereof.
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Post by OnTheBounce »

Flamescreen wrote:What exactly do you mean with the different named versions of the .JPG's? And which folder to put them to? The mirrored one or the original? I don't think it would have any difference but you can never tell. Ideally I would like to replace all. Two already made(planning to use one on my site, when it will be up).

Do you think it would be possible to place more than seven in the folder so that the game would not repeat every time you have to load?
Okay, the "Wait Screens" are located in the following folder:

C:\Program Files\14 Degrees East\Fallout Tactics\core\gui\wait

You would want to mirror that folder in your mod's directory. Place your wait screen JPGs in there.

What I meant about different names is that you could save the same image seven times, each with a different file name (e.g. wait1.jpg, wait2.jpg...wait7.jpg). Or if you have two you could do 4 of one and 3 of the other.

I'm not 100% sure on this, however. The best way to test this is to set up the appropriate directory, place your two JPGs in there, with one named wait1.jpg and the other wait2.jpg. Then just start entering and exiting missions (you are using the -path command, right?) and if all that shows up is your wait screens we will then know that the mirrored directory overrides the core directory.

I don't know if the limit on wait screens is 7, or if the designers just put that many in, or if you can put more in or not.
Flamescreen wrote:By the way, I think when I was playing the core campaign, the Wait screens with the robotic themes didn't appear before the 5th mission. Could be a coinscidence though.
I'm pretty sure that's coincidence/slash your imagination. I haven't noticed any pattern and I've seen all of my wait screens when loading up my own campaign.

Cheers,

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Post by Flamescreen »

I'll do that thanks. Eventually you'll hear about the outcome, but it will not be soon. Have to make them first after all, though my pace is good.
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Post by Section8 »

I think it just grabs a random Wait*.JPG from that directory, but I haven't tested it. We used to have all sorts of craziness rotating in and out of there, but I don't know if it has a limit.
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Post by Max-Violence »

Section8 wrote:I think it just grabs a random Wait*.JPG from that directory, but I haven't tested it. We used to have all sorts of craziness rotating in and out of there, but I don't know if it has a limit.
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Post by Flamescreen »

I wasn't thinking clearly last night. Today, I inserted 7 random images(jpg) and it does replace them. There are restrictions though. I tried keeping the old and start the new from "wait9" till 16. Didn't work. Tried to have 8 by firstly naming the eighth "Wait8" and then "wait0". doesn't work this way. I was hoping it would have the "pick one in random" attitude like Section8 suggested, but it seems it's checking for specific numbers(proved when I kept the old numbering and screens in an original subfolder in which case it ignored my 9-16 ones) and since I couldn't find a specific readme or something , I am assuming it's hardcoded.

Too bad. I guess it's better knowing that in advance that discovering in last minute changes.
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Post by OnTheBounce »

Good work, Flamescreen. Now we know, and knowing is half the battle. (Where have I heard that before?)

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Post by Ed the Monkey »

Section8, I've linked the lights to the dummies, but instead of shooting from one camera, I've set up multiple cameras and used video-post. Theres a way to send commands from video post after every shot, what would be the command line to rotate the lights to the proper place. Say I start with the lights in the proper place for the North camera... Or are you going to write that script? eithor way... I've got something I'm shooting.
Also you said that 25 units= 1 game unit, therefore 6 game units (the hight of a character??) should be 180 units, which should yeild a character 72 pixels high when shooting at 299x299. I'm using all the camera settings exactally as you've written them, however it seems my character is a bit small. I've made him about 280 units high, and that seems to be working, but i'd like to be as accurate as possible. some help maybe on that too?
Also, I've got the base, hair, and skin seperated into diffrent groups. The base I've UVW unwrapped and mapped. Is it possible shadow a portion of this... I mean create a transparency or matte out using some channel or something of UVM map. The base is the entire body, but (i'm doing a Vault Dweller) i'd like the white to be the team as it is with the Vault 0 dwellers, however the entire thing is UVW mapped, so i'm not sure how to seperate that out.
Finally, because of it's ease, i'm using poser to build characters and animate (3ds to render, and sometimes to build augmentations, props, etc), when I export from poser, I get 1 3ds for each frame. (i guess since I only need 9 for the running sceene it's ok, but i have to sort through 30 to get those 9.) Is there any proggie you know of that can combine them easily?
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Post by Section8 »

Section8, I've linked the lights to the dummies, but instead of shooting from one camera, I've set up multiple cameras and used video-post. Theres a way to send commands from video post after every shot, what would be the command line to rotate the lights to the proper place. Say I start with the lights in the proper place for the North camera... Or are you going to write that script? eithor way... I've got something I'm shooting.
I'm going to write a script at some time, but I wouldn't count on it coming along in a hurry. To give you a bit of a headstart with MaxScript, here's the ultimate educational tool.

MaxScript Listener:

On the Tools tab, select MAXScript. Click the Open Listener button, and on the window that pops up, drop down the Macro Recording menu and select Enable. Now you can perform whatever action you want to script in the viewports, and the listener will log the MAXScript equivalent in the pink window.
Also you said that 25 units= 1 game unit, therefore 6 game units (the hight of a character??) should be 180 units, which should yeild a character 72 pixels high when shooting at 299x299. I'm using all the camera settings exactally as you've written them, however it seems my character is a bit small. I've made him about 280 units high, and that seems to be working, but i'd like to be as accurate as possible. some help maybe on that too?
Er, I'll have to double check that, but our main server is down at the moment, I'll get back to you on that one.
Also, I've got the base, hair, and skin seperated into diffrent groups. The base I've UVW unwrapped and mapped. Is it possible shadow a portion of this... I mean create a transparency or matte out using some channel or something of UVM map. The base is the entire body, but (i'm doing a Vault Dweller) i'd like the white to be the team as it is with the Vault 0 dwellers, however the entire thing is UVW mapped, so i'm not sure how to seperate that out.
There are two ways you could go with this.

1. Cut up the mesh, so that the TCOL portion is a separate mesh altogether.

2. Make a clone of the mesh, and use opacity mapping to shade out the parts you don't want rendered in the TCOL portion.
Finally, because of it's ease, i'm using poser to build characters and animate (3ds to render, and sometimes to build augmentations, props, etc), when I export from poser, I get 1 3ds for each frame. (i guess since I only need 9 for the running sceene it's ok, but i have to sort through 30 to get those 9.) Is there any proggie you know of that can combine them easily?
Nothing that immediately springs to mind. The only real alternative I can think of is using Biped in Max to animate, but it's probably better working with software you're comfortable with and enduring a little frustrating tedium. :?
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Post by Flamescreen »

If you mean a program that combines Poser and Max, I think there is a plugin, called something like Poser to Max. Perhaps a google search would help.
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Post by lorigosolo »

Hi all how you doing!!!

Section8 could you give me some advices on this animation?? I would like to know what rotation Fallout tactics uses (this one has a 45º rotation on axis Y), how many images have a movement in a sprite (this one has 5 images) and about the size (mine is too big am i right??).
This is the animation:
<img src="http://www.lorigosolo.hpg.com.br/crapy gif.gif">
This is the armour that i modeled (big render)
<img src="http://www.lorigosolo.hpg.com.br/Little update02.jpg">
<img src="http://www.lorigosolo.hpg.com.br/Reporting for duty SIR!!.jpg">

Thanks
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Post by Max-Violence »

Hey, that animation looks pretty good! Make it more fluid and you've got yourself a winner! :D
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Post by Forty-six & Two »

Woa, yea. That Power Armor looks great... although, its abit obsolete.. I mean there already is a sprite in the game for the Tactics style BOS Power Armor?

Yours looks really really cool tough :D
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Post by Section8 »

Our walking animations had about 12 frames, so you could quite easily make yours a little more fluid. 45 degree rotations around the Y axis will work, starting with the character facing NW and rotating clockwise. And yes, he looks a little big. For a scale reference try this on for size.

Image
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Post by Flamescreen »

Forty-six & Two wrote:Woa, yea. That Power Armor looks great... although, its abit obsolete.. I mean there already is a sprite in the game for the Tactics style BOS Power Armor?

Yours looks really really cool tough :D
I don't mind it. Everything you get is good. We could use it for an advanced PA or something, plus it looks very good.
2 points though, Lorigosolo:
1) Somebody has to make a tool for you to make it and it is generally better to have that tool in advance(you know what to expect and you can make modifications while you have a less than perfect model. Saves you much work. No such tool exists and lately, I get the impression it has small chances to be ever made.
2) I don't know it will get affected, but you need to change at least the color of the scarf to a white matte, else it won't show well when players try to color it.

Note: Better not add a BoS insignia symbol on it, as it would limit what you can do with it. Great Work, btw. It showed since the model you presented in the fan art forum it is a winner.
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Post by Red »

My promise still holds. If someone manages to provide me with zars respecting a format I WILL make the sprite editor.

ie:
model_animation_direction_frame_layer.png (or some format similar to that it's already been discussed with Section8 in this thread I beleive).
Note that if your model doesn't support the layers part, you'd just put a _1 there (or a 0).

Now let me explain why it's more probable to do that:
given someone provides me with the files, it's much easyer to create a sprite from the ground up with an automated process rather then account for editing capabilities and force you to add every frame manually (for programmers: handling the lists of frames and making an interface to do all that).

Of course we'll need sequence editing regardless of the animations but that's another matter.
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Post by lorigosolo »

Thanks for the info and the picture Section8!!!

HEre is the animation a little more fluid, the only problem that i see is that the shoulders moves to much.

<img src="http://www.lorigosolo.hpg.com.br/crapy gif2.gif">

This is the animation using the size picture you posted (has more or less the same size), this was a test, the problem of this one is that the light is too soft and the model looks too dark, is like a black spot moving around :P .

<img src="http://www.lorigosolo.hpg.com.br/crapy gif3.gif">

Section8 wouldn´t be better to use a 35º or 30º rotation on the axis Y??

Woa, yea. That Power Armor looks great... although, its abit obsolete.. I mean there already is a sprite in the game for the Tactics style BOS Power Armor?
I know, but my objective was to model the PA for fun, to learn some modelling tecnicks and Because i love the desing of it too. I wasn´t thinking on making sprites for the game, but now i would like to learn how to make them so i could model others armours like the PA TB-51 and make sprites of them for the FOT. So i´m using this model to gain expirience on this sprite and animation thing, so if i model another thing i will already know how to make them, and it will be easier and faster. 8)
1) Somebody has to make a tool for you to make it and it is generally better to have that tool in advance(you know what to expect and you can make modifications while you have a less than perfect model. Saves you much work. No such tool exists and lately, I get the impression it has small chances to be ever made.
2) I don't know it will get affected, but you need to change at least the color of the scarf to a white matte, else it won't show well when players try to color it.
Ok, I will make the change on the scarf.
This zars files are the extensions of the sprites??

Cya
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Post by lorigosolo »

Section8 it should look like this??
<img src="http://www.lorigosolo.hpg.com.br/all.gif">
There are a few problems with the animation specialy at the feats are, i don´t know why the srmour if his feats does not follow the feat, will have to solve that problem, and the other problems are the lights and the movement of his shoulders.
Update: Here is the vos dude walking with aa minigun.
<img src="http://www.lorigosolo.hpg.com.br/carry a crapy minigun2.gif">
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Post by Section8 »

Section8 wouldn´t be better to use a 35º or 30º rotation on the axis Y??
Er, yes. Sorry, I've been doing some mod work with BF1942 and the Y-axis the vertical axis, so I thought you were talking about the sprite rotation. Use 30 degrees as your elevation.

Aside from that, he's looking pretty good, but might need to be a little bigger. :D
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Post by Max-Violence »

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Closing our eyes forces us to look
At the darkness inside.
Our emotions always find us
Regardless of where we hide.

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Post by Flamescreen »

You know lorigosolo, you might want to make a T-51b taller and bulkier than the other armors since it is supposed to be an advanced armor. Offcourse that wouldn't be too much like original FO's but I think it should.

Oh, and Max, I think we will not be seeing it.
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