Tractor

Model Tractor 2015-08-30

Acumen

Annoyer
aa
Jun 11, 2009
704
628
thx, was a pain in the ass to finish this texture :D
man i hate these complex models ^^
anyways i guess it was vfig who suggested to try the phong shading with the whales so now i tried it with the tractor too and don't know which shading to go for. Left or Right?

tractor_ingame.jpg
 

Owlruler

L12: Fabulous Member
Dec 10, 2008
964
275
left
 

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
Edging slowly towards the right, what lightwarp are you using? weapon, hand...?

I'd personally go for a smoother lightwarp than what you're using.
 
Last edited:

Acumen

Annoyer
aa
Jun 11, 2009
704
628
the pyro one. i just copy/pasted this line from the bombcart material, since i'm not too much the material tech genius :/
just did some research, which of the existing lightwarps would you use ? Or did you mean, make my own ?
anyways, just did a little map mockup to pay tribute to ethankarnopps original concept !

tractor_ingame2.jpg
 
Last edited:
Dec 25, 2007
566
439
I think the one on the right looks better. Most detail props in the game are not phong lit (although the old-style truck is IIRC an exception). But since this is a large prop that won't be densely used, I'd say go for it.
 

Acumen

Annoyer
aa
Jun 11, 2009
704
628
the bombcart uses one, too. well i'm not too sure on this. YM said i should try a custom lightwarp, which i did, but i see hardly a difference and kinda like both effects...
right now it's 3:2 for the lefter side :D
 

EArkham

Necromancer
aa
Aug 14, 2009
1,625
2,773
To be fair, the rubber parts of the wheels do look better on the right, but the metal/body parts look so much better on the left that it's no contest for me.

I wonder how much our respective monitor settings are affecting our choices, heh.

Kep
 
Dec 25, 2007
566
439
Well then, use a phong mask with a high exponent on the body and a low exponent on the tires (or is it the other way around? I forget).
 

Westerhound

L5: Dapper Member
Feb 5, 2009
248
104
YOU ARE SO AWESOME, ITS FUNNY TO ME!

Also note that you are credit to team
and
flawless victory, now do it again!
 

Rexy

The Kwisatz Haderach
aa
Dec 22, 2008
1,798
2,533
I'd go with just specular, unless you can find a lightwarp that looks really good. As YM suggested, a custom one might be the way to go. But as much as I have found, (this isn't always true) phong shaded items are usually reserved for gameplay items, weapons, resupply cabinets, player models and so on. If you're making a vehicle for tf2, check out what material parameters are being used for other vehicles in tf2. That would clue you in.
 

TheDarkerSideofYourShadow

L10: Glamorous Member
Apr 12, 2008
792
286
Man, looks amazing.

EArkham hit it right on for me. The right looks better for the tires and wheels, while the cab/body look too shiny there, and perfect on the left.
 

Acumen

Annoyer
aa
Jun 11, 2009
704
628
K, finished the model today. Did some LOD - Levels as well - what a shitty work task ! Comes with 6733, 4493, 2889 triangles. Have fun, would love to see this model in a couple of maps in the future :)



Also reposting the ingmae picture, just so you know what's one click ahead - just take the risk !

tractor_ingame2.jpg
 

Owlruler

L12: Fabulous Member
Dec 10, 2008
964
275
Question, is there a collision mesh?
 

Acumen

Annoyer
aa
Jun 11, 2009
704
628
yup there is :) learned my lesson after people explained the importance of collision meshes to me.
did that hold you back from downloading and having a look at it ?? :O
i always wonder why people just not dl some 5-10mb to just spin it around in model viewer - i always do this with released models :D
 
Last edited:

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
Model = stunning and beyond belief

LOD models = very poorly executed and really quite terrible.

:(

Here's why:
The initial model is so incredibly high poly count (stupidly high) but doesn't drop for a big distance, then the first polys to go are the most noticable, and some of the polys left in the very final LOD are some of the least noticable and should have been the first to go.

I'd like to urge you to re-do your LOD models.

LOD | Metric | description
1 | 30 | Small slits in rear tires lost. Front wheel loses curvature on hubcap slightly. Insides of all wheels loses detal. Most detail inside the cabin starts to dissapear, bolts become a single, square plane floating (no side polys). The gearstick can lose masses of polys, can become 4 maybe 5 sided cylinder. Chair can lose roundness. Radiator grills can become straight
2 | 60 | Radiator grills become a single quad, no sides like the bolts. steps on the ladder can become a single quad also, text becomes floating polys, no sides. Most detail in cabin dissapears, chair loses more definition, it's bracket on the floor dissapears all together, put tansfer it's colour to the texture space underneath it instead of having jet black. Maintain the shape of the rear wheel's hubcap at all costs but lose polys in the detail there too. Lose detail in the tire grips before the side profile of the wheel. general reductions in the roof, bumper, exhaust and lose lots from the curvature of the tanks underneath. Lose the hinges from the door on the back.
3 | 90/100 | Sides of the ladders can now be single planes (visible from the front, use $nocull in the vmt or to keep them visible from the back or make them triangluar prisms). Begin to lose detail in the rear wheel's hubcap. tanks underneath should be almost cubes and supports to front wheels should be as simple as possible, text dissapears, if the steering wheel isn't alreadt it should now become a ring of one-sided polys (best to use nocull instead of making everything triangles) the shaft it's held on should be 4 sided by now too. The seat also should be really blocky. Box under the back should be 6 sided now.
4 | 120/130 | All detail on the side of the back wheels should be gone but maintain the shape of the centre hub and get rid of that terrible black ring around it, very unprofessional LOD. Either reduce the tire grip to just the top planes losing the sides or make the texture on the surface of the wheel the right colour (not black) (or do both). steeringwheel shaft should now be triangular prism, as should the gearstick. Door on the back and it's hinges should have their colour transfered to the polygons below and be removed totally. Rear axle, combine the two sides of it into one and make it four sided. In this final LOD more curvature should be lost from the roof as well as the exhaust

Your LODs make me a very sad bunny, seeing such a professional model gimped so unnecessarily by such sloppy LOD models. The LODs are the only reason why I won't consider using this model. I'd absolutely love to get it in any future maps of mine, its just let down so badly by the LODs :(

You need to re-jigger your LOD making attitude, you're keeping details that aren't needed like the steering wheel, chair, gearstick and front wheel supports but losing the details that are integral to the model like the rear tire's shape. At a distance the tires are a large, visible, feature of the model, the interior of the cabin and the grills aren't, those are the areas polys need to be shaved off first.

Please, please, please, re do your LODs and really make this the finest custom tf2 model!
 

gamemaster1996

L13: Stunning Member
Sep 30, 2009
1,064
134
I think valve'll want this for a map at some point (as they need more farm maps theres only 1/2 officials). They need to redo their old maps.