Custom Map - Gasworks (need help)

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Custom Map - Gasworks (need help)

Postby Matt_B on 08 Oct 2008 21:43

Hi, I'm gonna be posting some updated screens here soon (already posted some on the GSC modding forum if you've not seen em).

First though I'm stuck on importing my custom bump/normal map textures. It seems like you have to feed the importer a *_bump.tga (32bit RGBA) texture which includes a normal map & greyscale bump map, but NOT with the channels in the same order as the _bump maps in the gamedata/texture folders (ie. those green looking normal map things) because the import process switches the channels around & modifies them.

The closest results I've got were from giving the importer a standard tangent space normal map with the bump in the alpha channel. That gives a similar result, but still the channels end up looking very different & low quality.

I could of course rebuild the _bump maps myself, but that leaves the secondary *_bump# textures which are also auto generated. I can't figure out what they're for, & the channels seem to use some very non-standard techniques for normal/bump.

So, anyone successfully imported their own bump maps?

Thanks

Got some editor screens & a few issues:

http://img389.imageshack.us/my.php?image=01ui1.jpg

http://img389.imageshack.us/my.php?image=02jg1.jpg

1. I've imported all 3 necessary terrain textures, including the *_mask.dds. But I'm not seeing any blending between the 3 ground materials.

2. EDIT: fixed wallmark issue using effects/wallmarkblend shader

3. I'm getting a few areas where polygons are stretched.


Any ideas how to fix these? Thanks.



EDIT: I think I may have posted this in the wrong forum section. Feel free to move to the other one if needed.
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Postby Matt_B on 09 Oct 2008 13:09

More issues :( Trying to compile a small test scene & it's crashing when you run the compiler .bat, giving this error:

FATAL ERROR

[error]Expression : assertion failed
[error]Function : b_BuildTexture::Vflip
[error]File : d:\xray-svn\xrlc\build.h
[error]Line : 30
[error]Description : pSurface

I fixed this before in a previous test scene by using simple default or def_vertex shaders, but that's not working here.

Also I get these red lines along some edges in the editor viewport, dunno if they're related:

http://img241.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... orspk7.jpg

Any ideas?
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Postby busetibi on 10 Oct 2008 14:08

"bump"
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Postby Matt_B on 10 Oct 2008 18:29

Hey, thanks for splitting the thread. I've since fixed the compiler crashes by using this fix:

http://www.stalkerin.gameru.net/downloa ... ixxed2.rar

Anyone exporting a large scene from 3dsmax will need this (Jamie especially, with his Infested City mod).

Compiling with decent quality lightmaps is taking way too long though (I've got an old comp that's down to 1gb ram after some hardware problems), so I think I'm gonna call it a day with this map & just do some renders out of max for my portfolio.

Here's how it's looking currently. Note that alpha transparency, wallmarks & terrain material blending aren't working because it's a draft quality compile. These do work with higher quality lightmaps.

http://img126.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... 414id2.jpg

So, if anyone wants the map to use in their mod just let me know & I'll sort you out with all the textures, maxfiles, editor scene etc.
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Postby DARK TEMPLAR on 10 Oct 2008 18:46

Looking good
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Postby EggChen on 10 Oct 2008 21:18

Agreed, looks nice.

Sorry we couldn't help, but you are doing things not many others have managed yet!! If you get stuck again, the Dezowave team would be a good place to seek help, they have a few levels in game at the moment.
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Postby silverpower on 11 Oct 2008 01:28

Building at high-quality shouldn't be done until you're finished with the map - draft is best for making sure everything's the way it should be. X-Ray has to do a lot of processing of the scene in order to make the map fully functional. Alternately, you can build on a separate machine - I suspect that that's how GSC does theirs.

This map, in fact, has inspired me to give X-Ray a second chance. I'd love to incorporate this map, or at least elements of it, in an appropriate place. :)
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Postby Matt_B on 16 Oct 2008 21:40

Natace has kindly offered to do the final compile, & i've now got most of my prior issues fixed & a working map ingame.

Here's a few screens (note that the terrain detail textures need changing & lightmaps are low quality):

http://img261.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... 745tm1.jpg

http://img395.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... 805wy4.jpg

http://img374.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... 443yw0.jpg

http://img374.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... 245vk7.jpg



But, there's a major issue with the 3dsmax export tools- smoothing groups are lost & it looks like they're automatically assigned:

http://img515.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... 248gk3.jpg

-you can see rounded geometry smoothing is fubar :(

Any ideas?
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Postby silverpower on 17 Oct 2008 02:50

Which export plugin are you using, and are you using the GSC compilers, or something else?

ETA: I ask because if you're not using them already, you need to hit up stalkerin.gameru.net and get bardak's latest set of X-Ray asset tools, and possibly even the new compilers (requires SSE2-capable proc; hope you're still not on an AthlonXP! ^_^).
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Postby Matt_B on 17 Oct 2008 09:09

the max plugin 'xrayexport.dlu' is dated 29 may 07 & the compiler is 'XrLC Fixed 1.1' taken from stalkerinside, dated 29 sept 08.

i'll have a look for a more recent export plugin then, thanks for the tip. & yeah i'm still on an old athlon64 :) that has sse2 it seems, but i think i'll get hold of a new mobo & e8400 this week...


edit: looked at the tools on stalkerinside & the new stuff from bardak is only for maya & milkshape. i wonder if the only way to get normals to export properly is to take my scene over to maya & export from there?
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Postby silverpower on 17 Oct 2008 09:31

Nope, that package has a 3ds Max 8 plugin too.
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Postby Matt_B on 17 Oct 2008 10:05

i've got the last 2 sets of tools from bardak dated 7th & 10th sept & they both list a xrayMaxTools.dlu in the docs, but i can't find the actual plugin in either archive :scratch:
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Postby silverpower on 17 Oct 2008 10:31

Damn, I could've sworn it was in there, but I checked my 9/10 copy and you're right - no 3ds Max plugin. :(
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Postby Matt_B on 17 Oct 2008 11:33

hmm just got a reply on the russian forum & they thought smoothing groups don't work at all with the max exporter. looks like i need to work out how to use maya & convert the stuff over...
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Postby Matt_B on 17 Oct 2008 21:27

also wondering if anyone has "xrayMaxTools.dlu" (not to be confused with "xray_export.dlu")? in bardak's latest toolset release this file is listed in the docs but not included in the archive.
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Postby Matt_B on 20 Oct 2008 11:36

ok problem solved.

for posterity, here's what i've learned: the old version of the 3dsmax exporter works fine, & the apparent smoothing artifacts were in fact lightmapping artifacts from compiling at medium settings.

the artifacts are minimized (but not eliminated altogether) by running final lightmap compile settings.

however, all the smoothing groups you assign manually in 3dsmax are lost: smoothing is calculated by a single global angle threshold in the level compiler settings ('normal smooth angle', default = 75 degrees).

so it's best to design your level meshes to work with a single fixed smoothing threshold in mind.
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Postby silverpower on 27 Oct 2008 00:01

Any chance you could assemble a fully-compiled Gasworks level, complete with SP graph (not connected to vanilla levels)? I need a test map pretty badly.
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Postby Matt_B on 29 Oct 2008 13:46

Hi, doubt it. If I'm lucky I'll get a half-working MP map for taking screenshots, & not sure if I want to go through the stress of building AI navigation data. You can have any of the source files for finishing it yourself though because I'm getting fed up with the engine & workflow.

edit: the compiler seems to be working ok now & works with multiple cores, just takes a while to get to 100%.
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Postby Matt_B on 13 Nov 2008 23:52

Seem to be at the last hurdle now. I asked this on the russian forum, but thought I'd post this here too.

Having a problem compiling detail objects with xrDO_Light. I've got all the relevant targas & thm files in my 'rawdata/textures/det' folder, but when running the compiler with 'start > run > X:\xrDO_light.bat mp_gasworks', I get this error log:


* Detected CPU: GenuineIntel Pentium-III, F6/M7/S10, 3000.00 mhz, 33-clk 'rdtsc'
* CPU Features: RDTSC, MMX, SSE, SSE2

Initializing File System...
FS: 11437 files cached, 1357Kb memory used.
Init FileSystem 0.177289 sec
'xrCore' build 0, (null)

"LevelBuilder v4.1" beta build
Compilation date: Apr 10 2007

Startup time: 22:40:46

* New phase started: Loading level...
! xrCDB: model still isn't ready
* Level CFORM: 0K
| | * materials: 134
| | * shaders_xrlc: 10
| Processing textures...
* ImageLibrary version: 2.5.4
* 25 supported formats
| | - loading: glow\glow_orange.thm
| | - loading: tree\tree_fuflo.thm

FATAL ERROR

[error]Expression : BT.pSurface
[error]Function : xrLoad
[error]File : D:\xray-svn\xrLC\xrDO_Light\compiler.cpp
[error]Line : 306
[error]Description : Can't load surface


stack trace:




any ideas?
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