76 replies to this topic

[Mathijs]

http://www.the3rdage...?apage=397#page

What exactly goes wrong following this tutorial? Yes, it's for RenX, but the only difference for this tutorial is that Bind to spacewarp button is on the right instead of the left. I've read through it just now and it covers everything in minute detail.

[Kwen]

Select bind to spacewarp, click and drag the forged blades object to the wwskin. Then there will appear an addition option above "Editable Mesh" or "Editable Poly" depending on which one you are using. You open that drop down and select vertices. Then you highlight all the vertices for the Forged Blade and click "Link to bone" as long as you have the bones added to the wwskin then they will appear in the new window. Then you just select the sword bone. Now the Forged Blade object is bound to the sword bone.

But also I don't understand how you are having troubles using max as oppose to RenX. The only thing that is noticeably different is the placement of some buttons, and the material editor screen opens up as a different default. But all you have to do is click the "Standard" button and instead select W3D. Then it will be the same as RenX.

[Titan Cronus]

Man, you so should have written that tutorial.

 

In the tutorial, it says to "Link the object to the WWSkin" but it doesn't say how. I know its pretty stupidly obvious if you know how already and that's why I feel like a tool for even having to ask. Also, when It says "Click and Highlight the whole model", that was confusing me too. Like, I kept clicking on the actual forged blades and not the vertices. After your explanation, it all seems pretty obvious to even to me now and that pisses me off even more.

 

Like I said, I know all of this is blatantly obvious if you already know it. I feel about as stupid as a pair of square wheels on a snake's unicycle.

 

 

 

 

ADDED: Ok, I have done all that Kwen (I haven't exported and tested it yet) but when I click on the properties for the forged blade, it says the parent is "Scene Root", is that right? (when I click on the properties of an unedited forged blade, the parent is "B_SWORD" or what ever it is for that model)

Edited by Titan Cronus, 01 September 2015 - 06:46 PM.

[Kwen]

It doesn't matter what the parent is. You can rig it to any bone you want, so you would want to rig it to the sword bone.

[Mathijs]

 

In the tutorial, it says to "Link the object to the WWSkin" but it doesn't say how. I know its pretty stupidly obvious if you know how already and that's why I feel like a tool for even having to ask. Also, when It says "Click and Highlight the whole model", that was confusing me too. Like, I kept clicking on the actual forged blades and not the vertices. After your explanation, it all seems pretty obvious to even to me now and that pisses me off even more.

You say that, but I did that tutorial without any prior knowledge also, and that's how I learned... I mean, it might take some people a while and require some common sense, but all great tutorials have parts where you just need to fiddle for a bit. It's how you learn the most.

[Titan Cronus]

Ok, thanks Kwen. I was just curious.

 

I know, Mathijs. Its all about trial and error.

 

To be honest guys, ever since I started my mod, I knew this was a side of modding I really didn't want to get into (I decided well early on to just use code and art and nothing else). I knew modelling would end up driving me to despair. Right now I'm about so close to smashing my computer into a thousand little pieces. If I thought I could get away with just using FX for forged blades, I wouldn't touch this modelling lark with a 50ty foot barge poll. But, if I don't want my mod to crash or lag in big battles, then it just needs doing. I know when I have it sussed, it will be easy but it's just getting it sussed that's the difficulty.

 

Would you believe that just after Kwen posed about how to bind to a bone, I went and tried it and it worked (or at least, when I click "Link to Bone", the window popped up and I clicked the bone I wanted) but like a fecking eejit I didn't save it. Instead I came back here to ask about the parent yoke. Now I can't repeat it and have been trying since then to do it again. Every time I click "Bind to Bone" now, nothing happens, no window pops up or anything.

Edited by Titan Cronus, 01 September 2015 - 09:04 PM.

[Kwen]

Take it slow and don't stress. Create a WWSkin, click add bones, add all the bones of the skeleton. Then use the Bind to Spacewarp tool and link the Forged Blade to the WWSkin. Select the vertices and click Link to bone by name, and select the sword bone.

 

One thing I should note, when you are adding bones to the WWSkin make sure you add ONLY bones, do not add any of the mesh pieces (including your forged blade object) because when you try to Bind to Spacewarp you will get the dependency loop error.

Edited by Kwen, 01 September 2015 - 09:15 PM.

[Titan Cronus]

Ok, Cheers man.

 

You know if I import the model I want to add the forged blades to, it has a WWSkin (and in the window on the right, it has a list of all its bones). When you say "create a WWSkin", do you mean I need to make a second one or was importing one with the model "creating" one? (sorry, that's probably another stupid question)

 

 

ADDED: BTW, Is there a way of seeing if it has successfully bound to the bone before I export it?

Edited by Titan Cronus, 01 September 2015 - 09:34 PM.

[Mathijs]

Kwen said 'creating one' because in the past we couldn't import things with preserved binding. Yes, you can use the one that is imported.

 

You can't really see if it's bound to your desired result in 3ds Max, no. However, when you select the object's vertices and then bind them in the way we've told you, it'll work. You can make sure (prior to putting them ingame) through using W3D Viewer and dragging the model + some sample animations into it.

[Kwen]

My mistake, out of habit I said to create a WWSkin. You no longer have to do that since the new importer does it for you.

[Titan Cronus]

Ok, but I still need to add bones (even though the window on the right shows a list of them when I select the WWSkin)?

[Mathijs]

Come on now.

 

You're importing a model with binding intact. There's a WWSkin, it has all bones added. Take a step back and think. Do you need to add them if they are already there?

 

Spoiler

Nope.

[Titan Cronus]

Ok, sorry about that. just wanted to be sure.

 

Anyway, some more success, I have the blades attached but the texture is a bit messed up.

 

 

 

ADDED: There was another model I wanted to edit, the unused rohan barracks (rbbarracks). I just wanted to delete some fire objects from the roof. After deleteing them, all the lights in the windows went black too, just like the forged blades. Whats going on the that guys?

Edited by Titan Cronus, 01 September 2015 - 11:31 PM.

[Rider of Rohan]

You'll need to properly apply the texture settings for them
http://www.the3rdage...tem-209?addview

[Titan Cronus]

Ok, Thanks a million. Actually, I should have remembered that, I read that tutorial several times. It was just too late and my brain had stopped working.

 

 

ADDED: Should I use the same settings for the Rohan Barracks?

 

ADDED MORE: Another stupid question: Where do I find these settings? The tutorial has pictures of the actual setting but it doesn't say where to find them. (I did find a Material Editor but its nothing like the one in the pic)

Edited by Titan Cronus, 02 September 2015 - 08:18 AM.

[Mathijs]

In the Material Editor. Press M, same place you applied the forged blades texture.

[Titan Cronus]

Ok, cheers. It is the window I found before but it looked nothing like the one in the tutorial so I wasn't sure (it actually looks pretty much the same once you get to the right bit). I have found a vid in the comments for this one.

 

Thanks man.

 

ADDED: Just out of curiosity, will this happen everything I edit something (the textures go black)? Also, is it the same settings for the Rohan Barracks lights texture?

Edited by Titan Cronus, 02 September 2015 - 08:53 AM.

[Mathijs]

I'm not entirely sure of the settings for the Rohan window lights, someone else can tell you or you can check with WDump (though that might be too advanced).

 

Not all textures will 'go black', only the textures using alpha channels or requiring certain settings (like Forged Blades). Regular opaque textures can be applied normally.

[Titan Cronus]

Yea, that's what I meant sorry, textures with alphas. Ok, thanks a million man, I'll master the forged blades yoke first then go mess around with the barracks.

 

I just applied the setting from the tutorial and am testing now. Fingers crossed

[Titan Cronus]

OH YOU LITTLE BEAUTIES! SUCCESS!!!

 

Thanks a million guys, you absolutly are the best.   I really have tested your patience guys and I'm sorry for being so retarded about it. I really REALLY appreciate all the help though guys and all the super quick replies too (the replies we so fast at times, it was more like a chat room than a forum).

 

 

I do have another question though guys. Earlier on in the post, you said I could create a scene and use that every time (for making forged blades). If I import a model with forged blades and delete everything except the forged blade texture, then apply all the settings to it and save it (as a scene),can I import(?) that every time and it will work?

Edited by Titan Cronus, 02 September 2015 - 09:14 AM.