modeling with MShape... Notes

[D.C. Darkling]

Hya all.. So ya got milkshape huh? trial, normal, whatever.. ya got it.. and now you want to model.

First I suggest to read this little site: http://www.dosfx.com/tutorials/csgirl/default.asp
If you did that you got a basic concept.

Now before we start we want to deside if we make a new one or edit a existing model.. I'll explain this econd option cause this is what i do. Always remember to credit the one who made your source models.

Lets start by pasting a vegeta head onto a goku body.. because we can.

open the goku model.. select all faces of the head... delete.. save the model in MShape under a new name. Now open vegeta.. delete the body exept the head and save aswell under a new name.

Now open one of the 2.. I suggest goku's file. ready? then save this as work1. ( to know what we are doing) Now click in the topbar FILE > MERGE and merge the models by openening the vegeta model.

next thing.. select the head.. in MShape.. press the tab GROUPS. Rename it... Now go waste your time hunting faces down from arms, legs, body, etc.. make groups like HEAD, LEGLEFT, LEGRIGHT.. don't do to little.

Now we can finally continue... move the head JUST barely above the body.. so close that ya can see the space between the 2 parts but just.. now select to vertexes.. then in the bar..VERTEX > WELD TOGETHER. do this with vertexes close together.. check in all views if you selected the right vertexes.. Also be sure to only select 2 vertexes at a time. one of the body and one of the head.

So ya welded the parts together huh? GOOD. now lets check if you did.. press ANIM in the rightbelow corner. select the group HEAD. move it upwards.. ALOT upwards... now rotate around in 3d view... cause its all streched up you should see gaps (nonwelded vertexes) right away. remember the places and detab anim.. don't worry.. it won't save. go weld that rogue vertex.. if no vertexes in body are suited for the rogue headvertex weld it to its closest headvertex.

So that it.. Now to insert a skeleton.. YEP... big chance that you got 2 skeletons right about now... go to the joint tab. select the joint BIP1. delete. Do this with the seconds skeleton aswell.

Now save your work. Now open the gokumodel.. select all faces... delete. a clear skeleton remains... save this.. lets pick.. work2.

(continues saving under all above is wise so it would more likely be work15 by now.)

open your work1.. merge work2.. yes we import the skeleton..

Next part... vertex-joint-assignment. a boring part.. yet vital.

now we use those cool groups we made.. hide ALL but the rightarm. go to joints and make sure that the tag is so that it shows the skeleton. Now in this joint menu SELECT the rightarm2 joint.. R Arm2. thi is the LOWER right arm... now select the lowerright arm vertexes and press ASIGN. deselect em.. noe press SelAssign.. if ya did it right it shows your selected vertexes.. there now binded to R Arm2..

Do this with ALL vertexes.. make sure you are NOT in anim mode. When you think your done.. save... go to anim mode and select BIP1.. now MOVE the model ALOT... if you forgot any vertexes they will show in the 3d view as spikes cause they don't move along. Assign those aswell.

be sure to READ that site from the link I stated above... Its nice to read it. For instance.. some vertexes don't belong to the joints they apear to be... hard to explain.. milkshape help has a thingy on it.. but let me explain.

or better said.. go see.. I was so kind as to upload a pic of that helpfile.
http://members.home.nl/dcdemeijer/vertex.jpg
go see

I dunno if I'm past maxed char so let me make another post.

 

[D.C. Darkling]

next step... SKIN..

go get LithUnwrap.. Search for that.. its free.. its somewhere around on the web..

Now open the proggy.. and in the proggy YOUR MShape model.
FILE > MODEL > OPEN.
now go to the bar..GROUPS > HIDE... ALL
also in the bar.. MATERIALS.. on that site it explains just how to make a nice chess look.. read it.

Now unhide the head... with a new model you would be forced to unwrap but you might be in luck that its still ok since you are in a edit... yet never harms to check...TOOLS >UV MAPPING > PLANAR.. I suggest to check em all but last time I used planar.

Check if the vertexes are exactly on the material you loaded... Skins can be loaded as a material so thats cool. MODIFY > PROPERTIES > MAPS > First line.. select the bitmap of the skin.

It matches? good. If not be sure to drag untill it does. also note that if the model is symetric. the unwrap will place the 2 parts onto each other.. UV mapping does this... Experiment a bit with UV mapping to counter that.

Now save the model under the Mshape name.. if your done. (so be sure to havea MShape backup)

For new parts where no skin exists of go to (in unwrap) FILE > UV MAP > SAVE. in color.

open it lateron in a paintproggy.. the colored things are the places where your model is.

Ah so we got it unwrapped ok.. made the skins... nice.. Notice the fact that you could also hide the groups in Unwrap.. this makes you being able to load only certain parts of the body and only UV MAP those... this enables more bmps for your skins... and thereby bypassing the 256 colors.. of course you can also have one group and select it face by face.. but as you noticed by now... we need to do that alot then now wouln't we.

In Milkshape.. go to..materials...make a few new ones.. see the <none> press it.. (the above one) load your skin in it.. now go to groups... (AGAIN that group yes) select a group and press asign in materials.. it should load your skin.. keep 3d view on textured view to acknowledge this. If it won't load.. let me know.

Don't worry about the groups. just select em end press the needed skin.. the unwrap info stored will skin it just fine.

Finally... a finished model.. yay.. now to animate...

save again... now press ANIM.. go to JOINTS.. move a joint with ROTATE.. not the move..no.. ROTATE..
be sure to move a arm on the joint CLOSE to the body... the further away is bad.. that controls underarm or hands rotatiosn.. same with other joints... watch that.

go move a few joints in some positions.. Don't mkae it nice.. hell.. make it crappy.. just rotate em. now save the frame as a keyframe by CTRL+K OR bar ANIMATE > SET KEYFRAME

Now we can be fools and do it frame by frame.. but we won't.
Skip a few frames.. see that number near the ANIM tab? the left one is the frame you are in..the right one the amound of frames you got.. Well.. we saved the frame so enter a amount of 10 in the right box.. now type in the left.. 10... move the joints different this time... save as a keyframe.

Go to frame 5... hey... what the.. its a perfect merge between the 2 keyframes.. All frames between keyframes slowly alter themslevs into the next keyframe.. so be sure to do it like this... only make the minimum amount of keyframes.. saves you time.

Now go to FILE > EXPORT > HL MSD.. name it test and save as a SQUENCE.
also its cool to save a new milkshape file under the same name. just in case.

your old Milkshape file, your finished model that is, without animating... we need to save that aswell.. if you don't have one.. no worries.. that test file thingy we backedup under Mshape... save it again under a new name.. press ANIM... then go the the bar.. ANIMATE... remove all keyframes.. its cleared..

We now again have a model with anims.. Go to FILE > EXPORT >HL MSD and save as veggoku. save as a REFERENCE this time.

Almost there... now to build the model. With edits your lucky...

Go to TOOLS > HL > EDIT QC. Open goku.qc

go to the $sequence lines in the script... delete all but one. replace the text between quotes by test.

now read this...

$modelname "YOUR FOLDER\WANTED_MODELNAME.mdl"
$cd "FOLDER_OF_THE_SMD_FILES"
$cdtexture "FOLDER_OF_THE_TEXTURES"
$cliptotextures

$bodygroup body
{
studio "MODELNAME"
}



now go to TOOLS > HL >COMPILE QC.. your qc file..
it makes a model with one move (jump for example if you left the jump one with test between quotes)

it shows your anim.

final note... anims are saved into a smd with ALL FRAMES as keyframes... it does this automaticly.. So editing SMD files makes you edit ALL FRAMES.. so think again whats better.. making your own anims or editing them with a anims all frames.

also if the skeleton is DIFFERENT from the skeleton used when making that animation the anim is INCOMPATIBLE with your model.. Don't bother trying..

i hope you learned a bit and any more questions.. ask ahead.

 

[-Dark Shadow-]

nice one demonic! very helpful i would sticky this! (not mod like in my own opinion)

 

[D.C. Darkling]

bump..

Anyone else like this exept my ol' buddy shadow?

 

[D.C. Darkling]

if anyone cares....

When compiling a model do NOT, and i repeat NOT, leave out animations.. I left out kamehameha and alot of others and.. well.. lets just say the model wasn't to good. (animations shifted palce and stuff)

So when animating, for the anims you don't use, USE the OLD animations.. Who cares what they look like. We won't use em.. just be sure to compile em in the keep ESF happy.

A important thingy... that is all.