A compilation of misc. questions I have.

[ZungryWare]

I neglected to post on the forums to answer some questions, but I decided now to give up and ask.

1) Could someone point me to a guide on how to make and install props into hammer? I know how to 3D model in Blender, but since it was for 3D-printing, I never learned texturing.

2) Is it okay to use mostly props that were purpose-made for other maps? Or is it a good idea to make my own just for originality's sake?

3) How do I get my skybox to look like the one on koth_sawmill? I used the alpinestorm preset from the sky list, but it looks different and the half below the horizon is messed up. My map overlooks a cliff, so that's a problem.

4) Logic problem: I have a basement with lights that turn on when you walk into it. I also want the lights to turn off when you leave, but on a delay. (3s or so.) The problem is that, with my current setup, if you exit the room and immediately re-enter it, the lights will flicker off and on 3 seconds later. (Because the output to turn the lights off is still queued.) And if the delay for turning off the lights is longer than the delay for turning them on, this will cause the lights to stay on, then turn off completely after the 3 seconds. Any ideas for how I could implement this system?

5) My map is a King of the Hill map, so it is symmetrical. I had the idea to make the basement asymmetrical. The basement's only entrances are on the center divider line of the map, so neither team has an advantage for getting to the medium ammo pack inside any faster. The only possible way I could think of for this giving either team an advantage would be for the targeting with the Scottish Resistance or Wrangler through walls. But that seems like a stretch. Is there something I'm missing or is this okay?

6) I have a lighting issue. (See attached photo.) That line is where two displacement "plates" meet. (Two brushes stitched together.) Is this common? How do I fix it?

7) In a symmetrical map, is it okay to have a blue prop on both sides of the map? Or does the red team's side need to have a red version of it? (e.g. wildflowers, watering cans)

8) What are cube-maps, why do I need them, and why does my map seem to look fine without them? (And how do I use them?)

Sorry if this post was too long, but I would seriously appreciate any help!

Thanks!

 

[Startacker!]

I'll answer the questions that I know how to answer.

2. They're fine to use, but note that props that were made for one map in particular can be troublesome to use in others.

3. Sawmill uses a 3D skybox and fog to achieve what it looks like, it cuts off halfway down because players never see underneath that point of the skybox ingame. You'll have to find a way to cover it.

5. Best way to find out if that works is to test it and see if it works.

7. I think as long as it's not too significant it's fine, others may have different thoughts on it though.

8. Cubemaps are used to make reflections in your map. Shiny stuff like the control point use them. They're called env_cubemap in Hammer, and the ABS pack adds a nifty little line to help you place them at the right height. I'd recommend one per room/section/area. You can build them manually with this guide (it should still be relevant) or by using CompilePal to automatically build them. Not using them can make reflective props/textures have missing textures for the reflections.

 

[Crowbar]

1) Could someone point me to a guide on how to make and install props into hammer? I know how to 3D model in Blender, but since it was for 3D-printing, I never learned texturing.

Installing premade props is usually as easy as copying a folder into your tf/custom folder. Most packs should have readmes to tell you exactly what to do.

Exporting your own models is quite a process, though.
Here is a mostly relevant guide on the technicalities.
This contains some guidelines on texturing.

I think you also realize that modelling game assets is vastly different to modelling for 3D printing!

 

[Asd417]

4. For Trigger_multiple that you used to activate light: remove its output completely. Place 2 logic_relay entities and name each something like "light_relay_on" and light_relay_off". Each relays will have output so that the light is turned on by the light_relay_on and turned off by the light_relay_off. Any name works as long as you can recognize it.

For light_relay_off, you must set the time delay in this output. "OnTrigger -> light -> TurnOff / Time delay: 3.0 seconds."

Now go back to the trigger_multiple and add two outputs so that when player touches the trigger, it fires appropriate relay. (touch: on, untouch: off). You do not need to set the time delay in any of these outputs because you already set it in the light_relay_off.

Now add a new output to trigger. "OnStartTouchAll -> light_relay_off -> CancelPending" This will cancel the pending output in the light_relay_off relay.

 

[ZungryWare]

Thanks for all the help you guys! Question 6 (the lighting issue) is the only question that remains unanswered! Though it may be related to another question I have. Fast compile works fine when running my map, but the "normal" settings cause the program to stop responding. I tried leaving it overnight, and it was still not responding in the morning. Then, it caused my entire machine to lag until I rebooted it. (Maybe a memory leak?) Would normal compile fix that lighting issue? And what could cause a compile to work with the fast settings but fail with the normal settings?

 

[squ1rrel]

Some suggestions for question 6:

-Paste your compile log here. See if there's any strange errors that may cause the lighting problem.

-If that doesn't come up with any problems, try remaking the displacement. Also is it the edge of the displacement where the lighting bug is?

-You could also try putting -staticproppolys and -staticproplighting (make sure these commands are before the -game) in the $light_exe Parameters in the expert compile options. (I know this is for props but the lighting took better to my displacements this way?).

-As for the long compile time, it could be due to vvis trying to compile too much. I don't know how detailed your .vmf is but if there's lots of fiddly brushes, try selecting them all and making them a func_detail

I suspect the lighting error might just be because its not compiled on normal settings though.

 

[ZungryWare]

Thanks! It turned out to be all of those switchable lights in the basement. With baked lighting, it had to generate the light patterns for every combination of lights, so I consolidated the five lights into just three.