Modeling Techniques: Detailing and UV ideas discussion

[xander2077 80]

This thread was suggested by SithSpecter to create a discussion about different modeling techniques and theory. Some of these ideas are largely dependent on the modeling program one uses, but they can also be translated to other modeling programs. Though the termonology may be different, a lot of the same ideas apply.

 

While there is not always an equivalent function between one platform or another, it is good to compare notes and bounce ideas, that can help other modders and perhaps create some new perspectives on modeling in general.

 

Please bear with me because i have a really wonky spell check. I have attemtped to write the opening to this thread three times and for some reason it keeps eating my text before i can post. So i will have to be careful and post little chunks here and there to avoid that issue.

 

To open the discussion:

 

What modeling techniques do you use?

 

What is your standard workflow from start to finish?

 

Are there any interesting things you do to improve a model or create a new one?

 

Are you looking for ideas or tips?

 

Well this is probably the palce to discuss that.

 

The thread will be comprehensive, so to get the most bang fo your buck, i would suggest gleaning every page of it you can to get ideas.

 

So without further adieu, let the discussion begin!

[xander2077 80]

OK, double post i know but the first entry is for overall thread reference and discussion framing, and i feel should not be cluttered with my own piece of the discussion.

 

One of the things we were discussing in another thread is how to add detail to an existing vanilla model and not really change the art style a whole lot.

 

Just my opinion, but i feel as though the soul of the game is in its overall style, and i try to keep the essence of that in my mods.

 

So how does that apply to modeling? Well, lets say for instance you want to update a certain aspect of the game, but dont want to depart too much from the original look. A lot of that has to do with modeling. Lets face it: models in K1&2 are by far not always the best when it comes to detail. They did a pretty good job with the character models, and though some of those need an update, the really dated models or what i like to think of as rushed, were a lot of the items, and particularly wearables and weapons. They are rather blocky and can really stick out like a sore thumb when viewed along side the texture upgrades in recent years.

 

So, how to change that?

 

One way is to create a new model. Of course this can appear daunting at first, but it can be fun.

 

How have i done it?

 

I usually bring an old vanilla model into blender and just update it a bit. First i import it, then i select all faces or vertices and remove doubles. This makes the mesh one solid piece to work with and helps defne the shape better. Once that is accomplished i orbit the scene so i am looking at it from what we would consider the front of the model. However most of the models related to characters are facing away from the modeler initially, so the back is the front and the front is the back. Next i choose to work on the left half. So if i was facing the back of the model, as if i were wearing it or standing in the perspective of a head or body, its left would be the left i mean.

 

The reason for working on one half is to allow for symmetry. That way it reduces the time to completion. symmetry can be achieved many ways but for my purposes it is simply something i can do from the drop downs every so often to see the results.

 

Next i choose what i want to change. say a model was based on a cylinder with 6 sides, that is supposed to represent a curve, but that curve looks blocky in the game. Lets use the heavy targeting optics as an example. It looks like a pair of heavy sungalsses, or something from popular mechanics years ago in an article about virtual reality goggles. Well, there is a visor portion that should be a curve, but instead it is blocky. To update the look and achieve the curved appearance we can use a simple trick and keep the basic vanilla model form.

 

So i select either the vertical edge loops around the front and back of the goggles, or the vertical edges that are in the same loop, or vertices in the z axis orientation in the same loop, and i bevel that edge or vertex (vertices). this smooths the corner out and gives it a more smooth appearance more akin to a curve than a corner. I only do this on very few of the edges. To clean them up, there has to be a bit more editing. So any additional faces created by the bevel  around the face corners we want to keep, have to be gotten rid of along the sharp edges that should be sharp. so i can either connect the vertices on that edge to follow the crisp edge of the curve, and then merge vertices to get rid of the unnecessary faces, or simply merge them in the center to keep them in line. This is a good way to increase details without going overboard. Using smooth materials on the faces will export with the model and hide any blockiness left after adding the new subdivisions to select edges, and it will appear to be a lot more high poly than it really is in game. i do not subdivide faces because that is not usually necessary.

 

Anyway that is one of the ways i like to increase details on a vanilla model. Plus it is a good way to practice polygon budgeting and also refine technique.

 

Sometimes i actually delete portions of a model and replace just that part with a new more detailed part and graft it in to the existing model.

 

So for instance the infragoggles: I removed the original pentagonal collector tubes on the front (way too blocky), and replaced them with a higher detailed cylinder and then spliced it into the model. of course they have to be UV mapped, since they wont have any texture assigned until it is done, but that is another post.

 

But that is all it takes. Nothing else really needed more detail. Parts that are supposed to be squared off were left alone.