As far as max goes, here''s a technique I like. Start with a box, and make sure it has a lot of "segments" Convert it to an editable mesh, select sub object -> vertex and edit away. Then, use meshsmooth if appropriate. I for one, LOVE MAX If only my programming skills were on par w/ MAX

And just FYI, I''ve had an awfully hard time with NURBs, so don''t use em unless you really know what yer doing...

ok ok ok ok.. this is a one on one thing. Oh and what are nurbs? yes im a dumbass but hey...

"Why does my life have to be so hard in every world?"

Nanami Jinii

actually, yeah, stay away from NURBS for a while. sorry. but it's great for organic modelling, however, it's essential to understand the basics before moving to NURBS. but for your curiosity, NURBS is non-uniform rational basis spline, which, i acutally have no idea what that means, but it just has to do with all curves and stuff. it's the way the smooth line algorithm is performed. i think carmack uses NURBS in q3a, (or is it just bsplines?)

it takes a long time to figure out how to construct NURBS models, because it involves a different way of thinking from your general "build-up" modelling method. just stick with the suggestions that people have come up with, like extruding faces, and starting off with a segmented primitive. you'll find very quickly that the EDIT MESH modifier will be your friend, cuz that's the modifier that ultimately helps you decide where all the vertices are placed. and i guess meshsmooth really is popular, especially with organics.

a2k

Edited by - a2k on September 8, 2000 11:49:07 PM

they used b-splines for Q3...

and nurbs are great. i learned to model using nurbs, and they are really easy to use for organic or almost anything else. but as far as games go...your best bet is to stick to polys/meshs, and maybe b-splines(which are almost identical to nurbs). but for doing high end stuff, use b-splines/nurbs. much easier.

-Luxury

Weellll.... is it not possible to create a model in ms3d with verticies and then take that into max and add an edit spline munipulator? You know how you can adjust the properties of a shape with this but can you then adjust the verticies of the model you made in ms3d so that the verticies become bezier''s? hmm this for me would be Immensely useful seeing as how im good at high poly models in ms3d...

"Why does my life have to be so hard in every world?"

Nanami Jinii

Weellll.... is it not possible to create a model in ms3d with verticies and then take that into max and add an edit spline munipulator? You know how you can adjust the properties of a shape with this but can you then adjust the verticies of the model you made in ms3d so that the verticies become bezier''s? hmm this for me would be Immensely useful seeing as how im good at high poly models in ms3d...

"Why does my life have to be so hard in every world?"

Nanami Jinii

One of the best ways I have found for modeling low polygon characters is using cylinders. Almost every part of the body can be broken down into a cylinder. That''s one of the keys in 3d modeling, is figuring out how to break what you want to model into basic shapes (except of course NURBS,in some cases though...) Anyways, first thing you want to do is to produce a drawing of your character, front and side, nothing too complicated though. Then in MAX, create two boxes, perpenedicular to each other, one facing the front the other facing either left or right. The go into the material editor and apply your sketches (on different materials, of course) as the diffuse map. Under the map-submenu click on the checkered box to display the maps in the viewport (it has to be shaded) do this for both maps then, apply the maps to their appropriate box. Then create a primite shape (like a cylinder for the leg) And convert it to an editable mesh, then you can move the vertices around till it pretty much fits the outline plotted out by your drawing. You model all of the pieces this way (just one side of the body) then you can weld them all together, mirror it and weld the two halves together, and you have your character.

JD

well i made a model of a person useing nothing but cylinders and then attached them together by connecting verticies in ms3d. Do yo have any idea how hard it is to attach arms to the torso... ooh my god that took an hour by itself. It has no head.
What i was trying to do is make a human figure and then model the actual characters around that and delete the parts of the figure that dont fit. make sense?

"Why does my life have to be so hard in every world?"

Nanami Jinii

be careful when you attach appendages like arms and legs. you have to figure out the intended usage of the mesh before you can do that. if it''s just for practice, then, that''s cool. if it''s for a game, you might want to reconsider. if it''s for an animation, that''s probably okay, but then you have to worry about the animation.

okay, cool.

a2k