• New Horizons on Maelstrom
    Maelstrom New Horizons


    Visit our website www.piratehorizons.com to quickly find download links for the newest versions of our New Horizons mods Beyond New Horizons and Maelstrom New Horizons!

Tool for making characters and converting VRML files to gm

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->He looks great, but what about the talking head animation, which one is used for the mixed models?<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Grimm, I still can't get that to work right. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/modding.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":modding" border="0" alt="modding.gif" /> I thought if I retraced my steps and do again what I did before, I would get the same results. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/mellow.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":|" border="0" alt="mellow.gif" />
You'd have thought I would have learned by now... <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/oops3.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":eek:ops2" border="0" alt="oops3.gif" />
I have an idea, however, that I haven't tried and I'll get back to you on whether or not it works.

Alan, this only shows how great minds think alike! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/par-ty.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":cheers" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" />

Inez, I think the question may be which is the "good" twin? <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/diomed.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":dio" border="0" alt="diomed.gif" />
 
I've worked on that head animation thing and you can get it to work, but the model sometimes looks weird if you switch heads...

I did it on the "Fanielle" and "Black Danielle" models I added to the game.

Basically you have to use the animation for the model whose head you used - and make a separate skin that it will use that has the head changes AND the wardrobe changes (as best as you can simulate them) on the same skin as the face... Then make sure the ani file calls the right texture, and it should work. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />

<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/oops3.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":eek:ops2" border="0" alt="oops3.gif" /> (hope you understand that) <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/oops3.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":eek:ops2" border="0" alt="oops3.gif" />
 
Use the head animation for the character who´se head you put into the mixed model, yes, I think I can follow <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/icon_wink.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=";)" border="0" alt="icon_wink.gif" />
And I thought that the way to go as well, when I experimented with my Rochfort character.
 
If you've got the Fanielle character, check out her head animation when you talk to her. You will note that there is a modeled collar that is NOT part of the Danielle body - but part of the towngirl head I used... I couldn't change that in the head model <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/urgh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":urgh" border="0" alt="urgh.gif" /> so I just made the skin match her wardrobe as best I could, and until someone figures out how to fix the switched models a little differently, we'll just have to live with that collar... <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/dunno.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":shrug" border="0" alt="dunno.gif" />

I'm incredibly busy here at home now with some work and I've been a little foggy sometimes in my thinking or expression. It was late (2AM) when I wrote that and my head had been in my computer monitor all day long, so I just couldn't quite figure out whether I made sense or not.

(after I posted that I passed out dead asleep - fortunately I found the bed and my pillows beforehand! HA!) <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":rolleyes:" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" />
 
Uploaded a new version to the usual place <a href="http://home.arcor.de/swigard/Downloads/TOOL/" target="_blank">http://home.arcor.de/swigard/Downloads/TOOL/</a>.

Because I don't really have time to make anything sophisticated concerning .col files I have implemented a small thingy that allows you to make a .col file with one color only. So you can at least make a room darker or give it a certain shade.
Here's an example:
<img src="http://home.arcor.de/swigard/Pictures/col.gif" border="0" class="linked-image" />
(Not that I'm seriously suggesting *this* color, it's an example only, and you can choose perfectly reasonable colors, too.)

The Scene editing window now has some controls to tile and position textures which I find especially useful.

Besides that animation making is documented in the helpfile at least a little bit, and the interface improved.
Oh, and the displaying of animations has also much improved as a consequence of my work with the parrot: it can now also handle female and animal animations.
 
Heh, yes, that looks great! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" /> I REALLY would love to play with this - wish I had more time! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/urgh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":urgh" border="0" alt="urgh.gif" />
 
I'm downloading the new tool now, first bit of the new anything in the past couple weeks I've had a chance to try out.

What's this about making new animations? How well does that work?
 
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->How well does that work?<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Oh, it's still very clumsy. You get sliders to choose a frame, and to rotate the bones. It's a lot of work to make a new animation that way, but if you're really determined, you can do it.
I'm trying it myself with the parrot right now.
 
Pity... I'd hoped I wouldn't still be getting errors when saving a model after adding a small piece to it, but I just got one using the newest tool.

So OK, adding the modelly bits by code is fine for the curio, maybe even better, to give it a constantly changing decour. I'll focus on the dialogs and quest events.
 
Alan, I can't understand why you're getting those errors- it works fine for me! If you want you can send me the models (the one you want to add and the one you want to add to and either I do it for you or I see what's wrong and correct it.
 
Grimm,
I got the animated picture to show up!
<img src="http://www.pix8.net/pro/pic/332ZK34H/397945.jpg" border="0" class="linked-image" />

Clearly it needs a little work, but that's half the fun. I also think I did this in a way that is harder than it needs to be, <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/oops3.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":eek:ops2" border="0" alt="oops3.gif" /> however, I'll keep playing with it.

Nice new smiley! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/doff.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":doff" border="0" alt="doff.gif" />
 
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/w00t.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":woot" border="0" alt="w00t.gif" /> Looks good, Sir Christopher! WTG!!! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />
 
Inez: Nothing I'm worried about in this particular case, with the Curio. But of course I'll impinge on you if I've another model I'd like to work with.
 
{ Maybe you've said all this before and I just can't find it... : }

A question, brought up by my delving into fight animations.
I notice there's a Keyframe menu option in View->Animation Data.
Does it work, and if so how?
I'd love to make some new fight anims by pulling frames of old ones and making them keyframes in new ones.
Can your tool append new animation data to the end of an AN file like that?
Or even better, I see you have various sliders in the Animation Data window; does that mean we can move/rotate bones by hand?
{I'd love to get some high or low thrusts in, rather than just the one thrust we have.}
 
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I notice there's a Keyframe menu option in View->Animation Data.  
Does it work, and if so how?  <!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yes, and you use the sliders to rotate the bones into the position you want, then choose the keyframe menu item, and the rotations will be interpolated between the current frame and the last keyframe.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->by pulling frames of old ones  <!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
That can't currently be done except you can start with some frame from an old one and change all the following.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Can your tool append new animation data  <!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Not, it's not appending, it overwerites some of the frames. Which ones are open to edit at all depends on the values in the two textboxes (I guess I´need to gaive them some labels - at startup one has a value of 0 and the other somewhere in the 4000s which is the total number of frames in the an file.)
 
Ah, OK.
Yeah, I didn't know about the boxes or sliders. Shoulda played a bit more. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/mybad.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":facepalm" border="0" alt="mybad.gif" />
OK, so I'll overwrite some unused stuff like barman...(and swap ani to man_fight.an and various ANIs when starting to fight...)
 
Actually, copying keyframes from other animations is not a bad idea at all - I'll see what I can do..
 
NK: are you sure barman isn't used? tavernkeepers do behave a bit differently, like when they lean forward with their palms on the counter. that's all I've noticed but maybe there's more and I haven't been watching, like when he turns around toward his shelves.
 
That's not a problem as long as the barman doesn't need the new animation, too. You can give him the original man.an (by making him his own .ani file), and give a new .an with a different name to the fighting characters.
Probably it can even be switched on the fly.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top