SC2Mapster

Today I made a modification for SM Marauder and let it looks like a in-game marauder.

The tank is really fun, punch your enemy's face.

@Leruster: Go

That‘s also me. I made the model in an earlier time, just got time to texture it yesterday.

UH-60 “Black Hawk”

I textured it this afternoon but the software crashed when I nearly finished it and all my work all gone. So I had to redo everything tonight, and finally I finished with 3 hours lost.

@Zolden: Go

Yes, that's true, I tried some similar ideas on Ver 24444, but only returned a bug (it's fixed in Ver 25448) and destoryed my little "weather ball"...with environment map the "weather ball" model designed to focus the image inside itself which looks like 3D object and can rotation through different camera angle.

I haven't tried custom map/ogv in Ver 25448, but with official textures it could work.

Look forward for your experiments.

@Zolden: Go

In SC2, the spawn particle speed is controllable, also maybe you can set a channel and add a SC2 force field for your particles.

@Zolden: Go

Looks good~ The "spawn when collision" is very useful to simulate such an effect.

@Leruster: Go

Yes, a single skin modifier.

A magical ball, I am trying to do something like a container for energy races.

@GhostNova91: Go

It's very nice that there are still many guys use the 3rd party tools instead Star tools, after all the m3plugin and m3addon is better when modify official models from SC2 and for now that's still a big project.

I prefer Star tools more for I usually need to create original custom models and there are some wield errors when I was trying m3plugin and m3addon (for blender). First one has a unexpected skin error and blender got a rotation reset when export FBX files... Maybe I just not so lucky...

About the normal map, Zbrush or Mudbox could be a good choice, 3dcoat is also good and even better when texturing low mesh models for SC2 units (not these for Cutscene).

Sorry for that I made double thread... I am still not accustomed to this system, in China I usually set a thread incomplete first and fix it in revise mode.

The reason I want make such a thread is that we can learn things from this: 64 bones is a limit and that's fine, mostly we don't need so many bones in one mesh (In fact the true number that SC2 can handle is over 600 and Blz also usually use more than 100 bones in a model, so that's not a big problem.) They are some example can help us understand this tools but not means we have to challenge these limits every time. Knowing these truths can help we check these mistakes can cause crash or export error.

I always used the SC2 engine do something strange or even wield... That helps me to find the ultimate limits which STools can get. Most time we don't need 600 bones or a 9000+ key frames animations or 90 animations with 20 trackers in a model. But sometime these help the models much smarter and achieve special functions. For example I made a physical calculator with SC2physic and it can calculate 1+1, I know it's useless, but it's still fun, isn't it?

Now I am still testing the new UI model (the one with a thermal camera) with my partner, I think this model can help us do a 3D UI frame like BattleField.

As always your suggestion is sincere and helpful, I just want you to know that I do did wield things, but only for testing, and only the mature technologies will appear in my public creations. So don't worry me :).

As always, a new day and a new model.

@phanalax128: Go

Sorry, I also wonder to know why I created two forum here... Perhaps the internet lag or I happen double clicked the "Accept" button... I will delete the eld one.

Hi guys, here I want to discuss some technology details of Star tool open beta (Ver 25548). Doesn't like some bug report threads, this thread tries to show some mistakes, handy designs and these details which easy to be overlooked in this art tool. So I want to get more discussions and showcases of practical skills here, not only ask for Blizzard to fix them, after all most of them are just exist but not really obstruct daily use if you know how to avoid them.

I will make a list here, for limits which star tool can't work so far at that situations, details which Blizzard designed but not mention in the official guide, and bugs. I will update if I find new interesting things. Most of these things is tested by me only, so if I make any mistakes plz point them out for me, thanks!

Limits

• The number of bones for single skin modifier can't greater than 70. Result: 3dsmax crash. (Tested in Ver 24444)
• The number of SC2physic helper in one scene can't greater than 80. Result: SC2 keeps first 70s and delete the excess (Tested in Ver 24444)
• A single SC2 material can render most 65535 vertexes. Result: Export failed (Tested in Ver 25548) Solution: Create another SC2 material.
• Joint for SC2 Physic helpers: Current joints are very hard for complex joints behavior like cross and pound sign style. Result: N/A Suggestion: add an independent helper in 3dsmax create list for joints so that user can see them in the view point always.
• Face FX tools for FXA is missing. Result: Blizzard doesn't have this patent, so it will keep missing I guess. Suggestion: N/A
• m3a files can't recond new behaviors and trackers. Result: When you try to add a m3a to retract zealot's light saber (only for an example), you can't use an m3a file contain an animation "Cover" with a Tracker limits the animation to the visbilty of saber mesh. Solution: Modify the original model.
• Ver 25548 can't recognize the Chinese words, but Ver 24444 could, so mostly this won't cause troubles, but an old max file created on Ver 24444 with Chinese words may cause a sudden crash. Result: Only this guys using 3dsmax 2011 Chinese version need to notice that.
• Can't render in 3dsmax with a SC2 camera, most time the result is a sudden crash. Result: No one will do that in 3dsmax, so no problem.
• Force fields can't be scaled in SC2 game correctly like other part of the model. A unit with Force fields may becomes wield if you scale it too much.

Hidden details

• The preview will not create the "bounds" for your models in 3dsmax, but when you export it, the tool will add one if you don't create it yourself. Some models from WOW may cause a sudden crash of SC2 editor if an error bounds has been created automatically.
• Turret behavior inherits the original bone's rotation and scale. A bone which scaled before may cause an wrong turret behavior.
• Cutscene editor can only recognizes few turret behaviors with special names like "head", "Chest". Custom names can't be used in "Look at" node.
• Copy an attachment in 3dsmax will also copy it's behaviors to the clone, if you add same behaviors to this clone, the properties will inherit from the original one.
• Mirror tool in 3dsmax will cause a wield normal error is SC2, but mirror modifier won't, even these two things are the same in 3dsmax and other softwares.

Bugs

• SC2 Force field: In Ver 24444, the star tools can't handle resultant of forces for physical objects and particles. In Ver 25548, this function is mostly fixed, but cylinder sharp doesn't work.
• RTT (Render to texture) channel 7 (max res) can't avoid the images from other RTT channel if there are multiple RTT nodes in the cutscene.

I will update more tomorrow, now it's time to bed :)

Created a small cellphone, Nokia forever.