Settlement Modding

[Thor the Bassist]

What I did then was use the Edit Mesh to detach some sides of the building and thus making them seperate objects, then texture those sides seperately with the UV Unwrap.

You dont have to detach to objects just to elements.

To elaborate:

RTW engine doesn't do more than one texture vertex per model vertex. This means in the UV mapping each vertex on the model can only be represented once.

This has several large impacts on the mapping in 3dsmax:

1. UVW Unwrap - this is often the worst idea especially with buildings that have regular sides. If you use this I'd advise selecting all the vertices in the model and clicking break and breaking the UVW map vertices.

2. The best tactic is to select all the polys that are parallel or nearly parallel and to detach them to elements. Then select them in element view and add an UVW map modifier making sure it is planar. Align the little box up with the elements (by clicking on the modifier and using the normal transform methods) and then collapse the stack. Continue to do this for all elements that are aligned correctly.

This should remove all the texture skewing.

eg:

A box with 6 sides.

In poly view select the top and bottom sides and detach selecting the "detach to element" box.
then do the same for left and right and front and back.

Use element view to select the top and bottom sides and add a planar map in the z plane.
Use element view to select the left and right sides and add a planar map in the y plane.
Use element view to select the front and back sides and add a planar map in the y plane and rotate the modifier (not the model) 90'.

Hope this is understandable.