Are you tired of reading forums with user deleted posts? Me too! As an evil Overlord of multiple communities (evilest in the Uru community.) I have taken it upon myself to provide a service to those in need, those who write posts and then “redact” them. I give to you: The Recycle Bin.
What is the recycle bin you may ask? A place where you will find the latest in deleted/redacted post awesomeness. 😀
Have any redacted posts that I may have missed? Feel free to contact me with them, and I’ll be more than happy to share with the world. After all, sharing is caring. 🙂 I have an RSS reader and I’m not afraid to use it!
Lets start off with some deleted posts from a thread called “Two Sided Glass” over at the Myst Online Uru Live Forums. I’ll start with Ruth’s redacted posts.
rocketdog wrote:
Answer: I’m using generated material from both Blender and 3ds max.
Ruth Wrote: You can’t do that; it will not work in either game engine or with any of the exporters. You must create, apply and UV map textures for all surfaces. Here is a link to basic material/texture instructions using Cyan’s plugin:
http://dusty.homeunix.net/wiki/Materials_and_UV_Editing_in_Max
You can find further instructions on age building at that site and duplicated at the guildofwriters website and also at openuru’s website.
Good luck with your project
Ruth Wrote: rocketdog,
Reading through your posts, it’s apparent that you are suffering from a severe lack on anyone with actual age-building skills on your “team”. You are in essence a noob starting from scratch and need to study as such. I’ll try to answer a few of your questions, though this isn’t the place to learn how to build interactive ages for real-time gaming environments.
rocketdog wrote:
I followed the instructions you sent me, they explain how to surface something (which I already know how to do) but this still doesn’t explain how to make glass that will work in game. What am I missing? Do I need to map (texture) the part first and then add the raytrace after that? Where dose the transparency come into play? Have you made two way glass using this method? If you have can you please explain what I should do after adding the map?
When using Cyan’s plugin, the amount of transparency in the final results will be determined by both the alpha channel settings in the image file and the alpha settings you choose in the plugin. Ray tracing has nothing to do with alpha; it is a separate function and in the context of building for MOUL, it is used in combination with environment maps. As far as the sequence of work order goes, nothing can be done to a texture until it is applied and UV mapped to the object.
Yes, I’ve made many different kinds of “two way glass” using both 3dsMax7 and Cyan’s plugin and Blender with pyPRP. It’s actually much easier with the plugin than it is in Blender.
rocketdog wrote:
I can’t believe I’m having so much trouble with this. I know I’m missing something but what? I have tried for some time to find the answer but nowhere can I find a clear explanation on adding glass to game. Do I need to apply a transparent map? Where do I get the map from? Do I make a transparent map first and then apply it? How do I make a transparent map?
One last thing I need to understand, why am I seeing two sided glass in 3ds max but yet it will not transfer that into game.
You aren’t adding “glass” to the game. The game is no more than pixels on a screen. You are adding and tweaking alpha layers on a texture which is applied and UV mapped to an object. The manner in which this is done for the URU/MOUL game engines is very specific to those engines and the tools used to create content in those engines.
rocketdog wrote:
I also looked on youtube for an answer without any luck. Once I understand this process I’ll add a tutorial on how to make and add glass to game, it’s defiantly needed.
rocketdog
The documentation is already done, though it won’t be released to the general public for some time yet. In the meantime, try using the search function at the guildofwriters forum. Search for “alpha”. Age builders have been adding windows to their ages for years, there is plenty of documentation there.
One last thing – you’ll need Tachzusamm’s prp_MatClasses file to correct the rendering of alpha textures via Blender. You can also find that via a search at the GoW website.
Jaruku wrote:
I don’t know Ruth, I’m kinda fond of my Beach age, I grew up near the coast and I’m part of this “team” This age is very serene and kinda Myst like complete with shells and a very large creature skeleton but the question is, what lies farther down the shore? Or way out beyond the ocean’s horizon? This age is twice the size of Minkata but it needs to be explored someday…to find out…
Ruth Wrote: Oh! Now we’re sharing screenshots. What fun ;). I’ll share some of my work. You’ll note one HUGE difference here. These are actual in-game screenshots, rather than a render directly in whatever modeling software you’re using.
Here’s one that not only has transparent windows, the windows are double paned:
Here’s another good shot of windows:
Of course, windows don’t look the same in blender:
Here’s another example of how transparencies look in Blender:
vs. how the scene looks in the actual game engine:
Here’s a screen shot of a little island house I built (in game, you can actually see through the windows in the hut too 🙂 ):
Here’s another scene from the same age, though I’m not certain if R’Oshanhnin Korvahkhn is bigger than Minkata:
I really like these doors. You can’t see it very well in the screenshot, but the windows are colored, translucent and reflective with a decal – on both sides!
Of course, unlike you all, I’m still a student. Right now I’m studying with someone that is so much better than I am at building and texturing that I’m ashamed to call myself a content creator compared to him. I do have the edge on him in some of the more technical aspects of age building though.
Could someone please explain to me what a “Render Tester” is? I’ve never heard of that before.
Last but not least, Rocketdog’s redacted post.
Rocketdog wrote:
I would like to thank most of the people who answered my post especially benDwaler who has been willing to help us without question (this is the way a forum should work). In most cases the people who posted here were willing to help or have given good information that will benefit all who read this post. I had given up on posting here in the Myst forum because of the antagonistic attitude of so many people. I thought I would give it one more chance and added this post. I never twisted anyone’s arm to answer my question. Yet one person in particular had to be antagonistic and rude for no reason at all. As you notice that continued rite up to her last post not only to me but to everyone else who posted here.
I quote what I said in my first response to Ruth, should also mention this is a group effort I am not attempting this alone. I am a retired mechanical engineer with 25 years experience in cad design. But I have very little texturing experience so please bare with me. I also added a list of positions that we already know we need to fill.
I let her know from the start that I had very little texturing experience. And we were looking for someone with that experience
I have no desire to do the texturing for this age, but I would like to get It as far along as possible while waiting for someone with lots of texturing experience to join our team.
The thing I don’t understand is if you don’t want to help why would you respond? If I don’t think someone should be asking a question on this forum I just wouldn’t waste my time responding to them. Do these people think so little of them selves that belittling others makes them feel good? If she would have spent as much time answering the question I asked as she did telling me why I shouldn’t be asking the question, I would have the answer by now.
Ruth if you would ever like to compare your cad design ability to mine I would be more then glad to show you what an amateur you are. And yes I had read everything I can find to try and answer this glass question before posting here.
I will see how the rest of this post goes and determine weather I will ever post here on the Myst forum again. I don’t understand why the administrators don’t just kick the people from this forum who cannot enter into a normal conversation with others without being arrogant, rude and antagonistic.
Happy Thanksgiving. 😀