How to make a cable, a barrel.

(Loffy) #1

Hi!
I have some questions for the more experienced mappers:

a) How do you make cables and wires, that are stuck to walls or hang in the air? Like electric cables to/from lamps. They look cool in the game, and I want to be able to create some for my maps. Is it long, streched brushwork, that are turned into cylinders, then vertex edited (move vertex points, to twist and turn the cables)?

b) How do you make a simple barrel? I managed to make a cylinder, but then I failed to make a top. I had to place a squared top (a lid) ontop of it. Needless to say, it looked silly.

c) When it comes to making stuff for your map: Which is best, in terms of high fps for the player: patch or brush? Should the barrel be patchwork (cylinder) or a 9-sided brush? (I know the cylinder looks better, but perhaps the 9-sided brush is better in terms of high fps?) In other words: What are the pros and cons of patch and brush (if you must chose between them), stricktly fps speaking.

// Loffy

([rD]MrPink) #2

That is how most people go about wires. Strictly FPS speaking a 9 sided shape would be better, but non-FPS speaking, it would take A LOT of barrels to lag down your screen. Under curves there should be an cap option, that creates a round “lid” for you.

(sock) #3

Create very thin patch cylinders and stretch them into place with vertex editing. All the telegraph wires are made from patches with a special noclip shader, otherwise you will get people trying to walk on them.

Look at the goldrush sample map near the Allies spawn area and you will see a barrel made from brushwork. Its not too difficult to make barrels from brushwork and likewise from patches.

Sock
:moo:

(Loffy) #4

Thanks! Or as we say in Sweden, tusen tack! (thousands of thanks). // Loffy

(=PoW= Kernel 2.6.5) #5

Time to revive an old post.
Loffy - you still out there?

I have a few problems making wire so maybe I’m missing something here.

I make a long thin brush from point A to point B where A and B line up nicely on the grid (A and B have the same Y and Z coord’s but different X coord’s).
I then have to rotate the brush so that it streches along the Y-axis and make it into a cylinder.
(If I don’t rotate it first I end up with a very short and fat cyclinder.)
Then rotate the cyclinder back to the X-axis.
Since my A and B are in line, I get a nice round wire with no droop towards the ground in the middle.

First question:
Why do I have to rotate brushes to get cylinders to form properly, is there a setting for which axis I want the cylinder created on?

Now,
Let’s say A and B do not line up so neatly. They have different X, Y and Z coordinates.
I make a cylinder as I did in the abover paragraph.
I line one end of the cyclinder up with point A.
Then I select vertex dragging.
I drag all the end points to point B trying to keep them lines up as they were before I dragged then.

Now I get a curved “wire” between point A and B but instead of drooping toward the ground, it curves out on the Z axis.
If I move any of the vertex points in the middle of the cylinder, it gets completely distorted.

If I want to make a wire the runs between 2 points and have it droop towards the ground how do I do it?
Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks for any help.

(kamikazee) #6

Ok, it’s not Loffy answering but AFAIK he’s still alive and mapping.

I haven’t found a way around it, sorry.

Drag the vertices from the side, but don’t select more than one row. It seems to mess up the vertex order when you drag more. ( GTKRadiant allways selects 1 row at a time if you click the side. )

(=PoW= Kernel 2.6.5) #7

I’m not sure what you mean by “don’t select more than 1 row”.

I drag the little dots one at a time. Am I on the wrong track?

(kamikazee) #8

If you keep the original distances between the dots, it should work… I don’t really see where it goes wrong then, or I’m missing something in your explanation.

(=PoW= Kernel 2.6.5) #9

The big problem is the curve that results after dragging the verticies.

First off, why doesn’t it make a straight line between the two points?

Second, the curve wouldn’t be as much of a problem if it curved TOWARD the ground like a real wire does instead of curving parallel to the ground.

(kamikazee) #10

Now I re-read your previous post, I thought the points only differed on the Z axis.

Patches do not connect the lines in a straight way, but use bezier curves. This allows to make round shapes, without the hassle of placing all points on the arc.

To make a straight line, simple place all points on a straight line. So this means that you’ll need to work in top-view first, drag the endpoints to point B and align the middle points so they connect A and B with a straight line.
Then go to side-view, and drag the middle points down. Do keep their relative position.

(=PoW= Kernel 2.6.5) #11

bezier?
I think my wife wears one of those.

Sorry, I can’t help myself sometimes.

I’ll try what you said and report back later. THANKS.

(=PoW= Kernel 2.6.5) #12

OK.

Now I got it.
Maybe this will help some other noob too.
I was dragging verticies one point at a time until I realized you can select all of them at a point along the wire by holding SHIFT and clicking the LMB twice.

How to make a wire (telephone, power, etc.)

You make the wire as a brush first.
Create a rectangular brush that is the thinkness you want the wire to be.
Start it at a connection point (telephone pole, power box, etc.).
Drag the ends of the brush out into the general direction of the other connection point.
Chances are it will not line up if the end you want is not perfectly in-line with where the wire starts.

Select the brush and apply a texture.
Rotate the brush to the Y-axis (using the Y-axis rotate button or X-axis button).
(You want the wire going up and down along the Y axis to make it into a curve.)
Select Curve—>Cyclinder from the Radiant menu.
Rotate the cylinder back to the original axis by pressing the Y-axis (or X-axis) rotate button again.

Make sure the start point of the wire is back to its correct location.
Select the curve (SHIFT + LetfMouseButton).

Using the overhead view in 2-D window,
Press V to select vertex drag.
Go to the end of your wire.
Hold the SHIFT key and double click on one of the green dots in the 3-D window.
Drag the wire end in 2-D window by the blue dots to the place you want the wire to end.
Check your other views (using the XYZ button) and make sure the end is where you want it on all axis.

Hit escape and go to the center of your wire.
There will be points out of line with the wire in the 3-D window.

Select those points by holding SHIFT and clicking the left mouse button twice on one of the dots in the 3-D window.

Using the overhead view in the 2-D window, drag the center points until they line up with the actual wire.

Now select the view (in the 2-D window) that lets out see your wire’s height above the ground.

Drag the center vetices that are still selected toward the ground until you see a nice curve in your wire that looks good.

Hit escape. You are done.

Hope this helps someone.