Wow your were right! Those wheels were rediculously upping my triangle count. Check out the original counts:

polycount (triangles)

body..............300
treads............120
wheels...........2816!!!
turret............593
main gun..........472

= = = = = = = = = =

total............4301

the new total is 2391 and I still have tons of room to reduce polys if needed.

Sometimes the gizmo gets "uncentered" and it's kinda a pain in the ass seeing where it is... is there a way to reorient it to the center of the object?

Finally, got a generic texture on there and did some basic smoothing tho I still don't really know what I'm doing with that. My textures came out really weird from the edtior ==> compile. Check it:

Download clicky

edit: fsr the decent (not perfect) uvw map doesn't come through the compile and it just looks really weird... I found i had that "flip normals" glitch you were talking about too, tho it took me a while to figure out that's what it was! I tried applying seperate uvw maps to different parts of the model, and while it looked great in the editor, nothing came through the compile as well.

I'm starting the uvw unwrap tutorial now... = )

Go to the hierarchy tab next to create with the primitives, there is a button that says [Affect Pivot Only] click it on and adjust the center manually.

Captain Terror: I got your tank down to 2,229 triangles by deleting faces that were inside the tank and unseen and removing edges that to planar to other edges and welding a few things. The caps on the top of it have faces on the bottom of them you can delete. you'll never see them because they intersect with the rest of the tank. That and the tops of the wheels and such.

Here's an image of what I did to it.

Haha sweet!

I never even thought of removing the top polygons on the wheels and such. = )

I'm not guna lie, I'm having some serious trouble with the unwrap tutorial... I've tried it like 4 times but can't make further progress.

When I try to ctrl+b to move the joint, it sticks, like this:When I try to do the other endcap, there is a missing edge, at least I think:Here's the file if you want to check it:
download

edit: haha, i just realized twhl3 does auto thumbnails! sweet

holy crap thats a glitch, i got the exact same thing upon opening your file...

lets see if i may fix it :/ ...

crap. crap crap crap crap crap i can't either. I even deleted the unwrap modifier and started over.

Something is seriously wrong. this happened to me once before but i can't remember how i fixed it, and i can't seem to. You didn't do anything wrong yourself, infact the pipe is spot-on! just something else is messing it up.

I've said it before in the first tutorial, Max files are easily corruptable. Save backups ups, or do what I do and instead of saving, save as and name it something like mymodel_3. then the next save would be mymodel_4. If mymodel_4 corrupts, I can revert back to mymodel_3 and continue by avoiding whatever action may have corrupted it. You lose some progress, but not the whole friggin thing.

can you move it into the limited square space instead of it staying on the edge?

Upon further examining, it had a snag vertex on almost any unwrap i did. most irritating...

What about converting it into a mesh then back into a poly? Would that do anything?

Well at least I know what the problem is! Thanks for checking it for me.

I'll just build a new pipe and start over. = )

Also a couple questions:

How long would it take you to unwrap/paint the pipe?

Like you said, there is a hundred ways to do something in Max: Is there a substantially easier/faster way to get a almost-as-good or "close" result? (like if you were using the pipe off in the distance or a dark area or sumthin)

Misc. Questions:
Question 1: how did you change the viewport and gridline color? I googled and rooted around Max, but can't find it.

Question 2: I have seen the terms "world space" and "object space" thrown around in tutorials, and in certain parts of the max like the grid and snap settings. What does it mean, or what's the difference between them?

Question 3: is there a way to toggle tooltips, like when you hover over a button or tool, it gives you the shortcut key combination like it does in Adobe Photoshop? I have the complete shortcut list for max 7 but it would make things so much easier! = )

edit: ps I like the Maprookie site changes! (the icons and header graphics look nice)

It wouldn't take me very long to do the pipe from scratch. Lets time it. its exactly 9:00am here.

edit: ps I like the Maprookie site changes! (the icons and header graphics look nice)

Just for that i'm going to answer you're questions in excruciating detail.

Q1: On the menu bar, go to Customize > Customize User Interface...
A bunch of tabs will appear. Click the colors tab. Click the first drop down labeled Elements, and choose Grid. You can then set the Color and intensity, or invert them to look like hammer.

Q2: I don't know either. I'm guessing object space is the stuff thats within an object, like elements and faces, and world space is outside the object and includes everything as a whole. Like World Brushes and Entity brushes in hammer. Although I could be wrong. Please link to a tutorial that mentions this so I may get some context out of it.

Q3: Not as far as I know. Although you can customize your keys if it makes it easier for you.

EDIT: Not done yet, but i found out whats wrong your model from before because it just happened to me. It has to do with the "Unfolding Mapping..." tool. If that ever happens, remap the part with a different method, either Flatten Mapping or a projection like planar, or cylindrical or whatever applies.

As far as my timing, i got distracted. Had to watch "Marine throws puppy off cliff" and the madatory Ironman trailers.

EDIT: i took minute an 1 hour and 4 minutes without pelt mapping.

Pelt mapping would take 15 minutes.

haha that's awseome rimrook! you can bind every frickin' key just like in steam... (there's even a reverse lookup for shortcuts... i think i have to sit down and have a moment!)
Now, i can reset the selection lock bind which i never use and always hit inadvertantly because of using hammer! Now I can set the spacebar just like in hammer to click-drag viewport.

And as far as taking an hour and a half to finish a simple pipe, I'm not sure if i'm guna have the patience to be a good max skinner. I mean, I want to know how to do it for important projects, but that just seems like a really long time to achieve a relatively simple result.

Is there a "quick way" or "quicker way" to map the textures so they look okey but not perfect? At least for goldsource maps, I would just make the pipe out of world brushes than spend so much time making a model. In some cases this wouldn't be an option, but many it would. I guess 2 in source, models are a lot more valuable as well.

Thanks again for all the help! =)

I would just make the pipe out of world brushes than spend so much time making a model

The 5D benchmark used a lot of models. However the straight parts of the pipes were brushes and the corners and end hubs were modeled. Pipes are not hard, pipe corners are because there is no torus primitive in hammer.

The problem is that you can't everything with either models or brushes, unless you cleverly mix the two. Like shadows, models have none.

5D?

Well i'm about to give up on the unwrapping... i just don't have the patience, but I'm sure i'll come back to it sometime and try again soon. (i can never give up on anything entirely)

When i try it again i'll try the suggestions you offered. = )

5D?

typofail

Sorry to hear about it Cap'n. It does take time and practice. Hell it took long enough to grasp it myself. If you have msn, I could perhaps tutor you over a webcam or something.

Yeah, never give up. Giving up is for dead people.

EDIT: I found out some awesome QC scripting that would allow a human grunt to shoot at you or wildly as he dies, or flinch to the ground shooting and get back up, or shoot spasticly fast, or blow up on death! :D:D:D:D:D:D

Once i get stuff working right, i'll write a tutorial on it. QCs have so much power!

I'm probably guna make some models for compo 25, but I won't post them in here cuz I want to keep them a seekrit lawl. = >

I actually wanted a full model replacement for the grunt (for compo 25), but I'm sure it's way beyond our skill level at this time. If I have time after most of my compo 25 level is complete, I'm guna try it anyway! = )

test

EDIT: interesting thought my professor told me, those who do any tutorial on the internet often stop using it at the end of that tutorial. most of the time, people don't apply the material creatively after that. I told him I kinda experienced that with my tutorials. a few people picked up on it, but it takes a lot of practice to become comfortable with the tools. I'm going to once-over my tutorials so far to make sure they are clear, modify the unwrapping to include a WAY FUCKIN EASIER method of unwrapping. since finding this out, my modelling work has been lit on fire.

I'm going to do that on saturday, as for tonight.



i think i'll do the riggin tutorial next.

STAY TUUUNED!

Question for ya: are your tuts compatible with GMax?

yeah. gmax has these same stuff im sure. just nothing mega advanced.

New Tutorials on www.maprookie.com

Photoshopping textures
A QC reference guide
and a short tutorial on some more UVW tricks.

Read them over, and I know the site got a makeover and stuff isn't quite lined up right. Still working on it.

Looks neat! I can't wait to try it when i get my modeling rig up again!

0

Whats the cheapest you can get 3ds max 8 for and where from? I was going to buy milkshape but I guess its out of date?

anything is free if you know where to look

... i didn't say it...

And speaking of, if we're modeling just for half-life, would you recommend we stick to Milkshape or what Rimrook? (I think you mentioned having some problems with compiling max stuff?)

Did they make a plugin so you can select verticies in the 3D view yet?

I still do HL2 modelling with Milkshape, simply because that's what I have most experience with. However, Blender - once you get the hang of it's interface - is pretty good, and not just because it's free. I haven't tried getting some models from Blender into HL2 yet, though.

I think i figured out the max problems though.

HL was made with the built-in classic biped structure, which are NOT the same as the new custom set bones I use. I haven't tested it, only pseudo testing is using milkshape and swapping meshes.. I noticed the difference when picking through the SDK. Barney, headcrabs, scientists, all land characters were built on the biped. The controller, apache, Ickthyosaur, leeches, were all built on custom bones. Thats why only some of my models are working and some are not.

Problem. Solved.

IF there are still problems, it is possible to swap meshes using the tools in milkshape, which works thoroughly.

I guess whatever works is good. max is good for HL1 stuff because HL1 was made with max 4. you can open the original sdk source files and learn from them. HL2 was made with XSI. Why is beyond me. I think they just wanted to promote it :/

Milkshape is considerably cheaper. But GMax is free all the way, and the modeling tools are identical so my tutorials apply. At least the basic stuff does anyway.

I downloaded Blender about a month ago, and I got to tell you, looking at the interface is like looking at the cockpit of an airliner, damn that's a lot of buttons! But hey, at least it has a ton of good tutorials, even a printed book. But of course, the best part is the price, FREE....I can afford that. Now, it's just a matter of finding the time to learn it.

Well I'm getting 3DSMax in a few weeks. Might as well to give it a try.

I have a basic question. If I make a very detailed model and place it into my map will it have any affect on laggyness or playability of the map. If so how much? Im about to make a room with many models and I hope it doesn't become laggy because of it. Im going to make a guitar and add multire levels to the entire thing so will this work?

You really have to go apeshit-over-the-top for models to affect map performance. I think there may be poly limits per-model in GldSrc though.

hahaha

Why does my unwrap looks like this:and not like this:?

This is Max 8, not 7.

The Initial unwrap is a bit random depending on how you made your model.

Max8 changed the unwrapper slightly, allowing you to unwrap your model using the various projections like cylindar, planar, box, sphere, and so on. Using Planar will get a straight and even unwrap like the one in the lower screenshot.

Having Max8, you also have the Pelt Mapper, this can be helpful as well. Yet all that the pelt mapper can be is an advanced relaxer and its fairly simple to use once you know how.

Right.

So... what am i supposed to do then?
Im also having trouble getting those pipe caps unwrapped. You're talking about detaching it from the model by selecting only 3 faces, then hitting Ctrl+B or something. Why is all that needed? Why not simply unwrap (flatten?) all the faces of the entire model? Confuses the feck out of me. :/

CTRL+B breaks apart your selection in the unwrap. It won't effect the model in any way. You can select the endcap and hit CTRL+B and move it to the side to work on it more. The idea is to flatten the geometry the best you can with as few seams as possible. The unwrap effects the texture image that goes onto the model. To see what it does, throw a texture on there and play with it. You will notice that it will morph as you work with the unwrap.

Unless you meant Flatten Mapping, which breaks everything apart into 50+ little elements. Good luck texturing that by hand

I know it sounds confusing, I had to learn this crap at one point too. Perhaps a video tutorial is in need

CTRL+B breaks apart your selection in the unwrap. It won't effect the model in any way.

I know, but when i hit Ctrl+B, half of the selection dissapears.

Unless you meant Flatten Mapping

Well, unwrapping IS flattening, right?

Perhaps a video tutorial is in need

YES PLEASE!

k.

There is a UV map generator called Flatten Mapping included in Max. It can be used to its advantages.

I'll do a video soon, I've been meaning to do one anyhow.

But not now, I'm putting together my 8th presentation in 3 weeks. I'm a bit busy.

Flatten Mapping

Is that a modifier? Where can i find this generator?

In the Edit UVWs window, on its menu bar it says [Mapping]
the first one says Flatten Mapping. It'll prompt you for some settings but that's where it is.

huh, recently got 3dmax, super program, made a couple models, then comes meh birthday, got a new upgrade, and now i had to reformat my hd because of the new motherboard!

now i don't have 3dmax anymore...it's not fair...

aawwwww...

I could fix that. PM me if you're interested.

Why don't you just download it, yodalman?

guys I give you a tip.

Try out XSI mod tool, at first it's probably very complicated but..hell it is good

Ah I was looking for a decent UV mapping tutorial, cheers.