I've started crafting a lightsaber by following the tutorials found in the stickies above, however the tutorials suggest using as few sides in cylinders and other objects when working with GMAX to keep the vertex-count as low as possible. But to my eyes, well even hilt in the tutorial looks ugly and cubic.
However I have seen, for example Hapslash making models that seem to use 18-sides in the objects used in the hilt and I'm wondering how complex of a hilt you can make before the game starts rejecting it?
The reason why I'm asking is that I made a protohilt that uses 18-sides and well before I go to unwrapping the UVW, I wan't to know if it'll even work so that I won't end wasting my efforts.
Here are a few pictures of the hilt. According to GMAX, the current vertex count is 654 and it has a little over 1200 polygons.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y156/Harmaahamsteri/Modding/saber_callista_18sides.jpg http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y156/Harmaahamsteri/Modding/saber_callista_18sidesvertexes.jpg
Also if it is possible to use such a hilt in the game, is there an automatic UVW unwrapper for GMAX? To tell you the truth that is propably the only phase that I don't have patience for.
The reason why it's better to use as few verts as possible in a hilt is because you won't see the detail. It's there, but it's covered, so it's pretty much pointless to model a hilt in such detail.
The accepted norm for hilts and handles is 8 sides, 10 if you want a more round look to it.
As for UV mapping, you can easily use cylindrical mapping for a hilt. I'm sure Gmax can pull it off.
I ques I'll try building my hilt with 10 sides instead of wasting anymore time this model.
And for the cylinderic mapping, I'll have to look into it, thanks :)
The absolute maximum number of vertices you can have in any model should be 32000, but no model -- even the most complex player model -- should have that many vertices. Eighteen sides is very excessive for a Jedi Academy hilt. Even if it could display the detail, smoothing groups make it irrelevant. The difference you'll see between 8 sides and 18 sides is almost irrelevant. That's why most people don't bother using that many sides. :)
Ok, so I scrapped the 18-sided version and am now building the hilt I mentioned in 10 sides and I also have another hilt that I'm skinning currently (and I got a bit impatient and tested it ingame already).
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y156/Harmaahamsteri/Modding/hilt3.jpg
I don't think that either of the hilts will be more than mediogre, but their good practice in getting the textures done. Both hilts are based on the basic structures of Obi-Wan's and Luke's hilts.
Tone down the contrast a bit, leave the chrome to the shader.
Does anyone have a Pink Lightsaber Mod. I'm looking for one to work in Singleplayer. Like if they had RGB for Singleplayer then I customize my Lightsaber Blade Color personally.
Jose Carlos;3835700Tone down the contrast a bit, leave the chrome to the shader.
I'll try to drop it down a bit, the skin isn't finished yet, I'm still adding minor details and such. As for the shaders, they might take a while I haven't really played around with them that much.
The chrome shader Jose mentioned is relatively simple. It'll just add an environment map over whichever parts you tell it to. It can be pretty easily explained whenever you're ready for it. :)
Allright, I ques I could give them a shot. The hilt pretty much concists of different metals of chrome for the majority of the hilt, gold for the control boxes and copper for a few parts and there is also the black rubber grip parts. At the moment they look pretty bland though I tried to give them some shadows and highlights as well as signs that the hilt has been used a bit.
Can I use the same shader to bring out all the metallic parts or does each type have a different shader? And is there a shader for rubber?
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