How to Model New 3D Units

**j4k3** · 12-06-2004, 16:38

Originally Posted by eadingas

This may sound silly, but.. have you tried zooming?

No, where is the option for that? I can't seem to find it...

**Hans Kloss** · 12-06-2004, 18:35

Right hand side corner button min/max toggle (big square and small one),click on that and the use you mouse scroll button to zoom in

**HenryLet** · 01-22-2005, 15:59

I've just got version 6.0 of 3D STudio Max and I would like to ask someone to write a brief tutorial about modelling new or modifing existing units for Rome Total War using 3D studio Max 6.0.
I would really appreciate that because I don't know how to use this programme at all!! There are too many option, buttons, bars, menus and I can't make out for anything!!
Wanna thank everyone of you who gives me an hand.

**Bwian** · 01-22-2005, 16:45

Infernalbob .... as far as changing the 3D models in this game you can ONLY use 3DS Max. When the game was designed, it was done on a commercial basis by professionals. They wouldn't restrict themselves to using a £20 software package on such a large project....they would use the best tools there budget would allow. The fact that we can mod this game at all is down to Max's power and the ability of Vercingetorix to write a Max-script file that translates the model format.

Now...Creative Assembly have made this game VERY moddable... the file format was not kept a tight secret, and as a result, we can do what we can. Trust me....I can't think of many other developers who make it as eaay as this.

G-Max...yes. OK. This is actually a cut-down version of max, with the rendering facilities removed and a VERY tight control over the formats you can save in. It is given out free....but there is a catch!

Discreet will write a plugin and integrate it into G-Max for a price. Tehn the software can export to your format. Lovely. I was invovled in a project some years back that looked into a G-Max licence, and then there was a starting fee of £10,000 for development. There was then ongoing licencing fees and costs. This is fine for the likes of Quake III or MS Flight Sims, wheer you are selling hundreds of thousands of units. It costs in. Otherwise...well...it's a very expensive way to mod. Less cash-rich developers are not going to be doing this. In short.... useful to learn Max ... useless for modding RTW.

Finally....learning 3DS Max from scratch is a big job. There are HUNDREDS of tutorials, lots of books ( I can recommend the 3DS Max 6 Bible ), Max specific forums, and such like online. Fire up google and get searching. Focus on mesh-modelling, uv mapping, and general understanding of the toolbars. Oh yes...and READ THE MANUAL! It's written in 3D-jargon, but you MUST learn to speak the language. TRy 3D Buzz for tutorials. It is a MAJOR job to teach someone to model. I know...I have done it before. You can't just write a tutorial and create an instant modeller.....it takes time, practice and a lot of patience!

**Sundjata Keita** · 01-22-2005, 19:16

This question comes up so often - How do I use 3ds max, can someone give me a tutorial. As Bwian said its not easy to learn 3ds max but someone has already written many tutorials, in fact they come with the program. Just go into the help menu and do the mesh editing tutorial (I think you model a hand, I haven't done it for quite some time now) and do the UV map tutorial (you texture some kind of spaceship). These tutorials really helped me learn and although you may sometimes get stuck just keep at it. It will only take a month at the most to learn how to edit the models enough to start on the cas files but if you want to learn every function (and you probably don't) it can take years.

If you want some breif tutorials see hoggy's tutorial and there is a really good one on strategic command center, I will edit the post and post a link if I find it again. Good luck!

**Hans Kloss** · 02-10-2005, 11:59

another quick question that I'm sure Hoggy can easily answer.How does one create lower CAS files from CAS high ? Chivalry 0.1.6 hastings mod comes with single cas files of knight templar and gothic kinght but not lower models.

**hoggy** · 02-10-2005, 12:46

I believe you have to do it by hand, building a reduced version for each level of detail and then re- exporting with a new name. There are basic poly reduction tools in max but they don't do a clean job which you need to export CAS. It's grunt work and as such most mods don't have the time but it'll mean that people with older pcs will struggle with alot of mods.

**GodsPetMonkey** · 02-10-2005, 13:22

Originally Posted by Maly Jacek

another quick question that I'm sure Hoggy can easily answer.How does one create lower CAS files from CAS high ? Chivalry 0.1.6 hastings mod comes with single cas files of knight templar and gothic kinght but not lower models.

Take inspiration from CA.

Good places to recover faces (triangles) from is the head, arms and legs.
In the high detail models, theres alot of exesive detail in the face, mainly the lips and nose, quick easy way to fix this is to vertex weld them together (you will need to do a quick re-mapping of the texture though, buts its pretty simple). Helmets often have 2 or more 'rows' of vertices between the brim and the tip, again, cheat by welding them together, or just delete the faces and recreate them so there is only one row.

The arms and legs are also pretty easy. Try to get both as close as you can to rectangular prism, with the hands/foot meeting at a sharp point. You can use vertex weld again (esp. for the hands/feet), but I find it much easier to delete the faces on one side at a time, and then create a new poly in its place using the respective tool (I normally just run the poly from the shoulder right down to the elbow, then another from the elbow to the point of the hand).

Weapons are another good place to grab some polys, just have 2 planes, facing opposite directions, and UV map them to the weapon in your texture. 4 triangles, you dont get much more minimal then that!

Of course, these tips are for the lowest of detail settings. If you want to work on the others, just find places of unneeded detail that can easily be trimmed down. For those with high end PCs, the loss in detail wont be noticed at range, and those with lesser machines, they will be thankful for being able to play your mod.

Oh yeah, and make your life easy, delete half of your model, do your LOD work, then mirror it, as you will need to reskin the bones anyway, this will nearly half your work!

**dragases80** · 07-31-2005, 17:13

Ok ...

thank to you all

I have just modified my first model... but there is a problem

how can i map this model ?

Is possible to make a little tutorial for basics uvmapping ???

Bye