Making Displacements for Source in 3ds Max

shawnolson · 03-24-2011, 11:44 AM

I'm working on a tool to design your Source displacements right inside 3ds Max. Here is a preview video of the Wall Worm Displacement Tool:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMNKi_QylhE

taz-ed · 03-24-2011, 12:14 PM

wow looks really interesting cant wait to try out the finished program

shawnolson · 03-29-2011, 08:19 PM

Beta now available. Download, docs and new video at http://wallworm.com/projects/utiliti...ment_tool.html

shawnolson · 10-10-2011, 10:37 PM

Here is version 1.0 ... finally here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RBnX_iULY0

Some docs on use are here: http://wallworm.com/projects/utiliti...ment_tool.html

shawnolson · 10-20-2011, 01:27 PM

Version 2.0 is out. This version is incompatible with older versions! I don't have the docs updated but there is info in the WWMT changelog:

* Use Plane base meshes instead of Cube... optimizing vertex calculations for most displacements. This change is primarily why the new tool is incompatible with previous versions.
* Changed default power to 2. Previously it was set to 4. (Hammer, incidentally defaults to 3... but until I finish the optimization speeds of the sculpt mesh process... I am keeping the default at 2 to increase speeds).
* Sculpt meshes are now broken into tris to match those in Hammer.
* Added Display Walkable button that hilights in green all faces that are not walkable on the currently selected objects (must be editable poly). Serves same purpose as the DW button in Hammer. (Only works in 3ds Max 2010+) Works best on single mesh (like the sculpt mesh) as it sometimes shows incorrect results if you select a bunch of displacements.
* Added Grid and Snap button that will set the home grid spacing to match the currently selected Length setting. Also, turns on Snapping and turns on Use Pivot Point Center.
* Added Lock/Unlock buttons to lock/unlock the displacement transforms for all displacements in scene. When locked, displacements cannot move, rotate or scale.
* Added two new displacement presets: Tunnel and Tube. Tunnel makes inverted displacements and tube does the opposite.
* Updated the placement of some presets if using rows/columns so that sides that butt up against each other aren't confusing to locate. For example, if you make rows and columns of hills, there will now be spaces between them matching the length/width of the hills.
* Added support for copying displacements. You can now copy a displacement and it will be recognized as a displacement for Edit Mode and Export.
* Updated the Edit Mode button to use only the selected displacements for creating a sculpt mesh if there are more than one displacement currently selected. If no displacements are selected, or only one displacement is selected, then all scene displacements are used in the sculpt mesh.

ProZak · 10-20-2011, 04:00 PM

I'll have to check this out again soon. I was trying to do some displacements a couple of days ago, and the terrible controls in Hammer annoyed the shizzle out of me.

Thanks for doing something like this

Blueberry_pie · 10-21-2011, 01:48 AM

Did you get the PM I sent you a while back? I get an error message about getVertexColor being an unknown property whenever I leave edit mode or when I create a VMF. It happens in 2.0 as well

Would love to try this out.

shawnolson · 10-21-2011, 06:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blueberry_pie

Did you get the PM I sent you a while back? I get an error message about getVertexColor being an unknown property whenever I leave edit mode or when I create a VMF. It happens in 2.0 as well

Would love to try this out.

I never noticed that I had any messages! Sorry about that.

So I got the message and error you sent... and after looking into the MAXScript docs I learned that the function I'm using for getting the alpha for the vertices is only available in Max 2010+. So I will look into a way to making it compatible with older versions in that line. I will load a "dirty" fix today that should let you actually use the sculpting aspect of the tool... but until I find an alternative for getting vertex color... you won't be able to export the material blend.

Blueberry_pie · 10-21-2011, 07:34 AM

No worries. Thanks for looking into it

shawnolson · 10-21-2011, 03:32 PM

Updated to Version 2.1.

Should no longer have error in Max 2009 and older. However... at the moment, alpha blend only exports for Max 2010+.

Also fixed the display walkable only working in Max 2012. It now works in Max 2010+.

Also, added a placement helper to show where next displacement will go... which you can move around.

Video of some newer features at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcCrK46A684

Blueberry_pie · 10-22-2011, 01:17 AM

Hm, it looks like the script is checking for the wrong version number. The maxVersion() function returns #(11000, 25, 0) in Max 2009. (The script works fine when I change the version check, though

)

shawnolson · 10-22-2011, 05:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blueberry_pie

Hm, it looks like the script is checking for the wrong version number. The maxVersion() function returns #(11000, 25, 0) in Max 2009. (The script works fine when I change the version check, though

)

Ha... I had the correct number for it to check earlier in the day... but when I moved over to using Max 2010 for testing I had a brain fart and changed all the values to 10000 because it seemed appropriate at the moment :P

I updated the download file to use the proper version check now. I didn't change anything else... so didn't bother making any version number changes.

Sorry about that.

shawnolson · 10-22-2011, 08:29 AM

So a few emails have this same question... and I need to make it clearer in the docs:

You cannot do anything that will change the number of faces/vertices on any displacement. This means you should not use Extrude, Attach, Meshsmooth, Turbosmooth, etc.... You can move the vertices/faces all you want but do not change the actual topology of the displacements (not to be confused with topography... which you can change).

Eventually I will add some kind of notice when you try to change mesh topology... but that isn't in this version.

shawnolson · 02-20-2012, 07:48 PM

This tool has been renamed Wall Worm Anvil and does more than displacements now. It exports brush geoemetry, lights, Convexity point and brush entities, etc. Has a simple way to build your 3d skyboxes.

At the moment it doesn't export proper texture rotation and scale... which is something I'm currently trying to fix.

shawnolson · 03-03-2012, 12:44 PM

THE VMF exporter now correctly exports the correct UVW information. Oh the joy!

Thanks to Andrew Penry for solving the problem. And thanks to everyone else who shared ideas and input. Special thanks to Gulli "K@rt" Thoday for suffering through the pain of this problem for several weeks.

There are other updates... see the changelog.

03-24-2011, 11:44 AM	#1
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	Making Displacements for Source in 3ds Max I'm working on a tool to design your Source displacements right inside 3ds Max. Here is a preview video of the Wall Worm Displacement Tool: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMNKi_QylhE

10-10-2011, 10:37 PM	#4
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	Displacement Tool Version 1.0 Released Here is version 1.0 ... finally here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RBnX_iULY0 Some docs on use are here: http://wallworm.com/projects/utiliti...ment_tool.html Last edited by shawnolson: 10-10-2011 at 10:37 PM. Reason: Fix typo

10-20-2011, 01:27 PM	#5
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	Version 2.0 is out. This version is incompatible with older versions! I don't have the docs updated but there is info in the WWMT changelog: * Use Plane base meshes instead of Cube... optimizing vertex calculations for most displacements. This change is primarily why the new tool is incompatible with previous versions. * Changed default power to 2. Previously it was set to 4. (Hammer, incidentally defaults to 3... but until I finish the optimization speeds of the sculpt mesh process... I am keeping the default at 2 to increase speeds). * Sculpt meshes are now broken into tris to match those in Hammer. * Added Display Walkable button that hilights in green all faces that are not walkable on the currently selected objects (must be editable poly). Serves same purpose as the DW button in Hammer. (Only works in 3ds Max 2010+) Works best on single mesh (like the sculpt mesh) as it sometimes shows incorrect results if you select a bunch of displacements. * Added Grid and Snap button that will set the home grid spacing to match the currently selected Length setting. Also, turns on Snapping and turns on Use Pivot Point Center. * Added Lock/Unlock buttons to lock/unlock the displacement transforms for all displacements in scene. When locked, displacements cannot move, rotate or scale. * Added two new displacement presets: Tunnel and Tube. Tunnel makes inverted displacements and tube does the opposite. * Updated the placement of some presets if using rows/columns so that sides that butt up against each other aren't confusing to locate. For example, if you make rows and columns of hills, there will now be spaces between them matching the length/width of the hills. * Added support for copying displacements. You can now copy a displacement and it will be recognized as a displacement for Edit Mode and Export. * Updated the Edit Mode button to use only the selected displacements for creating a sculpt mesh if there are more than one displacement currently selected. If no displacements are selected, or only one displacement is selected, then all scene displacements are used in the sculpt mesh. Last edited by shawnolson: 10-20-2011 at 01:29 PM. Reason: forgot to add info

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03-24-2011, 12:14 PM	#2
taz-ed Join Date: Nov 2008 Reputation: 110 Posts: 2,146	wow looks really interesting cant wait to try out the finished program

03-29-2011, 08:19 PM	#3
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	Beta now available. Download, docs and new video at http://wallworm.com/projects/utiliti...ment_tool.html

10-20-2011, 04:00 PM	#6
ProZak Join Date: Mar 2004 Reputation: 60 Posts: 675	I'll have to check this out again soon. I was trying to do some displacements a couple of days ago, and the terrible controls in Hammer annoyed the shizzle out of me. Thanks for doing something like this

10-21-2011, 01:48 AM	#7
Blueberry_pie Join Date: Dec 2007 Reputation: 139 Posts: 1,453	Did you get the PM I sent you a while back? I get an error message about getVertexColor being an unknown property whenever I leave edit mode or when I create a VMF. It happens in 2.0 as well Would love to try this out.

10-21-2011, 07:34 AM	#9
Blueberry_pie Join Date: Dec 2007 Reputation: 139 Posts: 1,453	No worries. Thanks for looking into it

10-21-2011, 03:32 PM	#10
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	Updated to Version 2.1. Should no longer have error in Max 2009 and older. However... at the moment, alpha blend only exports for Max 2010+. Also fixed the display walkable only working in Max 2012. It now works in Max 2010+. Also, added a placement helper to show where next displacement will go... which you can move around. Video of some newer features at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcCrK46A684

10-22-2011, 01:17 AM	#11
Blueberry_pie Join Date: Dec 2007 Reputation: 139 Posts: 1,453	Hm, it looks like the script is checking for the wrong version number. The maxVersion() function returns #(11000, 25, 0) in Max 2009. (The script works fine when I change the version check, though )

10-22-2011, 08:29 AM	#13
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	So a few emails have this same question... and I need to make it clearer in the docs: You cannot do anything that will change the number of faces/vertices on any displacement. This means you should not use Extrude, Attach, Meshsmooth, Turbosmooth, etc.... You can move the vertices/faces all you want but do not change the actual topology of the displacements (not to be confused with topography... which you can change). Eventually I will add some kind of notice when you try to change mesh topology... but that isn't in this version.

02-20-2012, 07:48 PM	#14
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	This tool has been renamed Wall Worm Anvil and does more than displacements now. It exports brush geoemetry, lights, Convexity point and brush entities, etc. Has a simple way to build your 3d skyboxes. At the moment it doesn't export proper texture rotation and scale... which is something I'm currently trying to fix.

03-03-2012, 12:44 PM	#15
shawnolson Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 41 Posts: 165	THE VMF exporter now correctly exports the correct UVW information. Oh the joy! Thanks to Andrew Penry for solving the problem. And thanks to everyone else who shared ideas and input. Special thanks to Gulli "K@rt" Thoday for suffering through the pain of this problem for several weeks. There are other updates... see the changelog.