Newbie DarkRadiant Questions

[KaiserJohan]

I'm gonna have a look at the door again soon, I'm just gonna solve this moonlight problem.

 

My moonlight is placed like this:

 

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/5679/41049388.png

(it is parallel)

 

Yet it radiates no light at all. The vertex is pointing correctly is it not? What seems to be the problem?

 

(On a side-note, I am using the sky_starry-something prefab for skyportal, if it means anything)

[SiyahParsomen]

it should work, but difference is not too much. So you might compare two screenshots in order to see difference. vertex is not big deal.

[Fidcal]

This is a known problem with parallel lights. For some reason in some arrangements you get no light at all. Just fiddle with it a bit - move it slightly, change the radii, move the vertex a bit - and it should suddenly work. Once you've got it working then it's stable. Likely the code chokes on certain values in its calculations.

[Fidcal]

Hehe! Look on the bright side - if the moonlight is broke then you can't see the crappy door opening at a funny angle!

[DeTeEff]

Yes.

 

Make your torch light "target" the ambient room light. When the torch is extinguished, it'll trigger the ambient light to go out.

 

 

Ahh, thank you!

 

Any ideas on the other one?;

 

"Is it possible to link the light to the window of the outside material shader? When the light is on, the "brightly lit" texture is on, but when the light is out, the window is changed to a dark/unlit one...?"

 

And some more when the wheels are turning

 

How are the premade light-entities constructed? They are green in the editor...I would like to disconnect the "lightbulb" from the light because it turns when I turn the light and that is not desired in this case...

 

How do I make a window/pane of glass breakable? I guess it has something to do with health but I can only make pre made stuff like the bottles, wich have the flinder properties allready set...Must I make lots of shard-entities that spawn when the window breaks?

[SiyahParsomen]

Placed moonlight on right side of tower according to location of moon. Many players don't notice moon light if you extend it equally.

 

[aidakeeley]

This is a known problem with parallel lights. For some reason in some arrangements you get no light at all

 

¿Quantum PhysX?

[KaiserJohan]

I still cant get the moonlight to work at all. I've tried resizing, relocating and changing vertex and all. ARGH!

 

EDIT: as an additional note, I can't seem to change the volume for an ambient sound, using the info_locations. Volume dosn't change anything

Edited July 8, 2010 by KaiserJohan

[Fidcal]

Are the origin and the light_center vertex both in the open, not clipping inside any solid?

 

Have you definitely got the light_center vertex on the moon side of the light? ie, so an imaginery line from the moon through the light_centre then onwards to what you want to illumine? All other lines of light will be parallel to that.

[KaiserJohan]

Nevermind, I got it now, it was just a mistake on my part. I thought the vertex was supposed to be below the light entity, instead of above it. Now it does the job fine.

 

There's a little problem about optimization though.. :/

 

Also, the stuff about the volume for ambient sound again, I've tried s_volume and volume but nothing changes anything!

[Fidcal]

This is how to make breakable glass:

 

Create your brush and give it your glass texture

Convert it to a func_fracture entity

Give it the property health with a value (experiment to see how many hits you want it to take before it breaks.)

It automatically produces shards of glass and sound when it breaks.

You can optionally give it the property target to trigger something after it breaks. For instance if it has a frobable object on the other side you don't want the player to be able to frob until it breaks you would use a clip brush atdm:target_set_frobable around the object.

[Fidcal]

What is the exact premade light entity you mean?

[Fidcal]

To get a self-lit surface to turn on and off needs a special entity. An alternative fix for a window is to make a dark window that has a lit equivalent then make a patch that just fits over the window glass and give it the lit texture. Now convert that patch to a sliding (translating) door and set it up so it moves a tiny amount just under the dark window texture. So when it is 'closed' it shows bright; when it is open it is hidden and the dark one shows. Or vice versa. Make that door frobable 0. Then give it snd_close nosound and snd_open nosound. Now you target it from your light switch. Then you cross your fingers like I'm doing right now.

[KaiserJohan]

Alright, back on doors. Is there really no simple solution to this problem? I mean, mappers must've come across this a thousand times already!

 

On a standing door, the 0 90 0 is perfectly logical. When rotation it 45 degrees, all movement becomes absolutely bollox! I can't understand the logic behind it.

 

Here's it again: http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/4797/18665659.png

 

According to wiki, you can move the rotation origin using vertex mode. For some reason, the door just rotates around the bottom-right corner, instead of the right-side as awhole, which I bet is a part of the problem.

[demagogue]

Yes you can move the origin. I've done it a lot of times when making doors out of brushes. Move the origin to the center of the right-side, then you can get it to rotate symmetrically across the right side, rather than from the corner (I think).

[Mortem Desino]

To help optimize your moonlight, you should adjust the radius so it's only as big as it needs to be. Otherwise, there's little you can do.

 

Your rotation matrix needs to include some other 45 degree inclement (like '45 90 0'). Doors use an absolute rotation: it doesn't take into account whether your door is already at an angle.

[KaiserJohan]

If the doors are double-doors, is there a special case? Because I've got two doors next to each other, which creates this double-door link between them. They seem to somehow 'share' the rotation properties of each others or something. I've tried 45 90 0 and it's logical thing but it's completely messed up, it can't be right.

[DeTeEff]

To get a self-lit surface to turn on and off needs a special entity. An alternative fix for a window is to make a dark window that has a lit equivalent then make a patch that just fits over the window glass and give it the lit texture. Now convert that patch to a sliding (translating) door and set it up so it moves a tiny amount just under the dark window texture. So when it is 'closed' it shows bright; when it is open it is hidden and the dark one shows. Or vice versa. Make that door frobable 0. Then give it snd_close nosound and snd_open nosound. Now you target it from your light switch. Then you cross your fingers like I'm doing right now.

 

 

That is a darn smart solution! No mumbo jumbo, just a simple door!

 

The premade lamp in this case is the "models/darkmod/lights/non-extinguishable/grill_light.lwo"

Edited July 8, 2010 by Fieldmedic

[grayman]

Alright, back on doors. Is there really no simple solution to this problem? I mean, mappers must've come across this a thousand times already!

 

 

Perhaps you missed my post of last night. Go back to page 45 of the posts and look on the bottom.

 

There's no map-only solution to opening an angled door. You have to do it in a script.

[KaiserJohan]

Ah yes! I missed it, will check it out!

 

Another couple of q's that popped up in my mind:

 

1) The ambient sound again; using info_location for ambient sound, how do I change the volume?

 

2) Is there a synced speaker to a specific water-drop sfx texture?

[Fidcal]

I suspect my solution to the door rotation problem is the best compromise for the reasons given. If you don't want to try those numbers then may I suggest making a lift up or drop down door?

[nbohr1more]

My wacky interloper questions:

 

1) Can a Cube-Map be placed on a Visportal Entity instead of a texture?

 

2) If so, are they too expensive to use this way?

 

3) Could Cube-Maps be used to simulate building interiors peeking through through timbers of a hobbled together shack?

 

(all these questions presume that the Cube Map can be rendered (or baked?) in the reverse direction...)

[Mortem Desino]

1) Can a Cube-Map be placed on a Visportal Entity instead of a texture?

 

2) If so, are they too expensive to use this way?

 

3) Could Cube-Maps be used to simulate building interiors peeking through through timbers of a hobbled together shack?

 

1) I don't quite understand. Visportals aren't 'Entities' per se, rather, they're invisible planes or windows. If you change any of the textures, it's not a visportal anymore. Could you explain what you want accomplished?

 

2) Cubemaps really aren't extremely expensive in any engine (just 6 textures' worth of information).

 

3) The effect would be rather cheap-looking. Your cubemap apparent position (smack dab in the center of the cube) doesn't move when the player moves. It would be like looking at a painting of an interior, rather than looking at an interior.

[Serpentine]

@nbohr1more

 

Yeah, I've spent a bit of time thinking about this and it should work for distance closing portals (which use a patch to cover the cut off, the material shouldnt matter and you should be able to use a cubemap on it.)

I could mock up an example tomorrow if anyone is interested or doesn't understand how it all works.

[nbohr1more]

YES!

 

I would love to see this in action!

Test map or youtube please! :D

 

(thanks)

Edited July 13, 2010 by nbohr1more