arma3_model

[stuck oyster]

in missions only?

[dapper tangle]

In a server

which I believe that servers use mission files?

[stuck oyster]

game runs missions yes

missions run on terrains

terrains have preplaced objects on them

so is there going to be a custom terrain?

[dapper tangle]

Well technically yes? It's going to be in a Exile server which is going to be placed with the building script they have

So it wouldn't be preplaced

Like i've created building assets before with the same method and when implemented in the server they worked fine

[stuck oyster]

yes mission placed objects will work fine when done like that

and its all fine if they are intended for that

what your server is doing is not custom terrain

its custom mission

[dapper tangle]

Ah got ya

Well I guess i'll just take the loss and create duplicate p3d's but learning about hiddenselections will definitely help me out a lot with other things that arent penetration reliant

Anyways I really appreciate taking your time to help me out it's really hard to find much information out there lol

[stuck oyster]

👍

[reef granite]

Thanks for your answer,
Concerning this issue :
https://i.postimg.cc/Y9GRwxGs/Untitled.png

I use this rig :
https://forums.bohemia.net/forums/topic/161228-armarig-for-blender/

And when I import the RTM inside Object Builder it's working as expected.
However when I use this RTM inside my weapon config.cpp :
handAnim[] = {"OFP2_ManSkeleton", CurrentDir\data\anim\myAnim.rtm};
And when I test the weapon inside A3, the arm is still like an Alien ^^

Is there something particular to add in config.cpp ? ou model.cfg ?

[stuck oyster]

No you need to change the rigs weapon bones name to match the model. Cfg

It need to be either Weapon or weapon, and the rig has it wrong way around

[reef granite]

Indeed the weapon name is Weapon

*The "weapon bone name"

And in model.cfg :
skeletonBones[] =
{...
"weapon","Spine1",
...
}

[reef granite]

Apparently is a binarization issue related to the new Addon Builder. I can't found any working link of an old Addon Builder to try

[fresh shadow]

Hi, I am using addon builder to build a pbo from a mod I made years ago, but somehow the tracers end up behaving very weird. They are invisible when viewed against the sky, and vegetation is rendered in front of them:

https://i.imgur.com/WVhIzTU.jpg

Any ideas what could cause this?

I am using the vanilla tracer textures + materials

[polar fiber]

Vanilla textures and materials are unpacked on your P:\ drive?

[fresh shadow]

No, I guess that would solve it?

[stuck oyster]

@reef granite new addon builder? there hasnt been new addon builder

the old one however has problem with rtm binarization yes

[polar fiber]

Not 100% certain it will fix it until you try it. But not having .rvmat materials accessible during compiling models with transparency, usually does create some rendering issues. So I feel it will be one contributing factor. There may be others

[fresh shadow]

Mhmm it made it worse 😄

https://i.imgur.com/axBkzMM.jpg

It brought back this guy

[median bough]

use pboProject and a properly set up p drive

it won't magically fix your issue, but at least give you more insight with the log files

[reef granite]

You guys are great. I tried MakePbo but I got an error when launching it. I'm digging.
Thanks

[fresh shadow]

Found my old P-Drive folder with the unpacked A3. From there and with pboProject the tracers look as they should again! But now I have this creepy animation bug.

[median bough]

@fresh shadow
Can happen if you pack a already binarized anim iirc
Still got the original animation?

[fresh shadow]

How do I know if an animation has been binarized before?

But in the past I build the mod from this same folder

I had the animation issue in the past and solved it, but I cannot remember how

[polar fiber]

Load a character model or skeleton sample up in object builder and r-click on the keyframes window, "from matrices"

pick the .rtm there. If it loads, it's not binarised

[fresh shadow]

Hmm, handanim loads fine in object builder

[polar fiber]

In your addonbuilder options, set it to copy *.rtm directly for the time being. IIRC it doesn't binarise them properly and you need to use pboproject for that

[fresh shadow]

Tried that, it does not solve the error

What is interesting is that it worked fine when I did not have the game files extracted, but with the gamefiles extracted the handanim does not work

But my gamefiles were from 2016

I am unpacking the current ones right now, maybe that will fix it

Mhmm, same issues with the new gamefiles

[silver zenith]

what does convex hull do in Object builder?

[stuck oyster]

makes selection you have a convex blob

[silver zenith]

a blob?

[stuck oyster]

undefined shape

[silver zenith]

why would I need to?

rock geometry?

[stuck oyster]

well if you want to make convex parts

any part

[silver zenith]

I guess its not a beautiful tool that lets you make easy geometry lods

[stuck oyster]

no such thing exists

[silver zenith]

a man can dream

[runic plover]

sometimes i do 2 things in OB to make proper low poly geometries if im to lazy (Geometries have to be anyway lowpoly)

1. merge model, use the detect option, do it 4 - 8 times, depends on how many poly your model has to get it low as possible

2. use the convex hull option, sometimes make a second LOD and select points seperatly and copy them and make the convex hull option to split the geometry parts

and dont forget to check with nonclosed or check convexity

[silver zenith]

convexity is the bane of my existence

[runic plover]

to do Geometries is a lot of work and needs a lot of time if you do them correctly. and also use details like the penetrations. many people dont use it and thats very sad.

[karmic silo]

Hello lovely model makers of the arma discord. I could use some brief assistance if anyone is willing to help. I am trying to create a custom belt here: https://gyazo.com/5e77df011fa27e9db163e8a06961977a but as you can see it is reversed and at the characters feet. Obliviously changing it's direction is pretty straight forward however I can not seem to get it's placement correct even though it is defined for the pelvis area. Any ideas?

[small olive]

Do you have model.cfg in the same folder with your p3d?

Also you must define your belt in the model.cfg

[karmic silo]

I do yeah.

[small olive]

so do you have a geometry LOD with autocenter=0?

[karmic silo]

Seeing as I have no clue what autocenter=0 is I am gonna go ahead and say no lol

[small olive]

autocenter is a named property

https://prnt.sc/1087v4k

you must create a geo LOD and on the named property tab create new and give it name autocenter and value 0

[karmic silo]

Much appreciated, I'll give it a try

[karmic silo]

So that worked and I really appreciate the help. Now I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on how to place the pistol holster proxy more precisely as for about the past hour I have just been fiddling with it's points in blender and this is about as close as I have gotten it https://gyazo.com/46cef1c3c0eed2a00bb5a463859791d3 Is there an easier way to place it more precisely?

[quick terrace]

yeah via object builder, by showing the proxy

or using the world xyz coordinates from any handgun

and then using a point helper attched to that that would eventually be used as a mem point

[karmic silo]

Where is the pistol hostler proxy located? Every time I hit show proxy objects it prompts me for a file location. Apologies for all the questions.

[polar fiber]

Copy it, paste it, rename/repath the new one to a pistol sample model, move them both together then delete the second proxy when you're done

[warm leaf]

Anyone got a foolproof method for figuring out ironsight angle for moving adjustable sights? I'm thinking to make a script that uses the fired eventhandler to grab the projectile and get its angle, then fire the weapon using non-moving adjustable sights set to the distance I want to get the angle for - just curious if anyone has a tried and tested method that's any different

[woeful viper]

you can aproximate by doing some hand calculations of bullet drop and then trial& error hand tweak from there. But this only works on low-drop bullets. For high drop rate weapons (grenade launchers) a bug makes it impossible to do properly https://feedback.bistudio.com/T122806

rifles are also affected by this, its just that the offset doesnt cause such a huge issue.

[warm leaf]

Oh gosh wasn't aware of the offset

thanks for the heads up

[woeful viper]

iron sights = pain... as much as i love them, i have kinda given up on animating them.

[woeful viper]

btw, for vehicles this problem doesnt exist

[rose beacon]

Anyone wanna help me on a project DM for more details

all thats needed is to add the vest into game just struggling with OBJ builder

[woeful viper]

where did you get the vest from

[rose beacon]

Got perms from lads at TSF

[stuck oyster]

is there any reason why it has to be put in game again if tTSF already made it and has it in their mod?

[rose beacon]

well i reworked some of the stuff on the model

added a few things yeeted a few things

[silver zenith]

is the maximum amount of components for geometry still 99 or has that changed with later games?

also does binarize just skip the entire geometry LOD if only one component isn't convex?

[stuck oyster]

2048 is the max named selection count that lod can hold

its just not recommended to have overly complex geometry lods as that can cause spikes in collision calculation

[silver zenith]

just can't seem to go lower than 300
its a big object
and its already a piece of a bigger one
thanks
as for the binarize thing?

[stuck oyster]

dunno, I dont make non convex geometry components

[silver zenith]

thats a big flex😄

[stuck oyster]

havent really intentionally observed what happens if you have them but Id wager the non convex parts just dont work and the rest do

[silver zenith]

from what I've seen its not the case
tested a cube next to a non convex and it didn't work neither

[stuck oyster]

well time to fix non convexities!

[silver zenith]

I'm just remaking the entire lod from scratch
any tips for that?
from what I've seen the geo only handles player collision and fire collision in absence of a fire geo
assuming I have a fire geo I guess I should only bother making geometry for parts I shouldn't walk through right?

[stuck oyster]

all other geometries fall back to the main geometry lod if separate lods are not defined

geometry also affects grenades and other physics things

so make it properly

😛

[silver zenith]

isn't that a job for geometry phyx?

[stuck oyster]

well for vehicles yes

grenades still use geometry lod if I recall right

just dont try to shortcut on things

[silver zenith]

it was more of an efficiency thing
I'd still do those bits on the other lods
but if the player can't physically reach a part of the object, like a ceiling fan should it really have geometry?

[stuck oyster]

no

[silver zenith]

I see

[stuck oyster]

unless you want it to be able to deflect grenades

[silver zenith]

I'm 80% sure grenades are physx objects

[stuck oyster]

😄

you are likely to lose money on that bet

[silver zenith]

found this under the geo phys description

Grenades are currently PhysX objects, that means they do use this LOD instead of Fire Geometry.
has that changed in recent games?

[stuck oyster]

got a link to that page?

[silver zenith]

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/LOD#Geometry

[stuck oyster]

I guess you just got to test it

[silver zenith]

yup
confirmed

[stuck oyster]

indeed! 👍 My bad, I rarely make separate physX lod as it would quite often be the same as the reqular geometry lod

so all openings you want to have need to be in it

[silver zenith]

alright so
I've completely redone my geometry
checked in object builder and everything is convex and closed, mass is set correctly and size does not exceed the 50-60 meters from center of origin
yet none of my 200 components seem to work
even the default cube I used as a test which should always work as a geometry component

only clue I have is this from the binlog

11:39:29: PhysX SDK ERROR: 32, msg: QuickHullConvexHullLib::findSimplex: Simplex input points appers to be coplanar., file D:\Work\Code\Arma3\extern\PhysX3\physx\source\physxcooking\src\convex\QuickHullConvexHullLib.cpp, line 934
it seems to be about convexity
but everything is convex so no idea what is the issue

[stuck oyster]

did you test the find non convex and find non closed in OB?

[silver zenith]

yes

no results

[stuck oyster]

could try process of elimination

remove half and see if it works

if not then other way around

[silver zenith]

mhm alright

[stuck oyster]

do you have comples curvy shapes?

[silver zenith]

not in the geometry
its all cubes and triangles

[stuck oyster]

triangles?

you mean squares and triangles?

[silver zenith]

5 faced meshes

[stuck oyster]

soo they make up something quite complex?

[silver zenith]

not really
the model has no curves

and of course neither the geometry

[stuck oyster]

why the triangle thingies?

[silver zenith]

it has some weird non convex parts that I can't cover with cubes

actually that binlog line isn't even from this p3d so its not relevant
then I'm not sure why it doesn't work

[stuck oyster]

try the elimination first

see if there is any results

[silver zenith]

https://i.imgur.com/Eu9EG17.png
what is this supposed to be?
first time I see it

[runic plover]

Mass center

I think

This pic is like a potato 😂

[silver zenith]

screenshotted from my fresh 12x7 pixels screen

[runic plover]

From where is this pic? OB?

[silver zenith]

yes

[runic plover]

How are your Components named?

[silver zenith]

component01 to component137

[runic plover]

component or Component

[silver zenith]

used armatools from blender so it was all automatic
Component

[runic plover]

If you pack in pboproject, BinLog is also clean? Nothing about anything in Geometry LOD?

[silver zenith]

never had a cleaner binlog

[runic plover]

How much Mass did you?

[silver zenith]

oh it was just 38 for some reason
I guess the more components there are the less dense it becomes
or is it 38 for each component?

I'll raise it anyway

[runic plover]

If you select all components and you got 38 then its to low

Then it is 38 / 137 = 0.27

Try to make it as test complete 100'000

[silver zenith]

that would make sense
I've made a ship as dense as a bush

[stuck oyster]

blu cross = mass center

and yes sounds like your mass was too low

[silver zenith]

should I worry?

for the blue cross

[stuck oyster]

why?

[silver zenith]

never seen it anywhere else on my previous models

[stuck oyster]

this is a building yes?

dx mode hides it

[silver zenith]

maybe I just didn't see it

oh probably thats why

either way I set 427350Kg of group mass and can still walk through

[stuck oyster]

this is geometry lod right? not physX geometry?

[silver zenith]

geometry

I haven't set any other geometry lod yet
could it be a possible reason?

[stuck oyster]

no

[silver zenith]

then its option C
I've built this model on top of an ancient native american burial ground

[stuck oyster]

backup first but delete all geometry and add just 1 simple cube to see if that works

Im wondering if your chages are getting through in game

[silver zenith]

I think they are
trying the test cube again

and it works...

[stuck oyster]

then more elimination

[silver zenith]

is there any limit like number of faces/edges per component?

[stuck oyster]

dont know

but I doubt you would have reched it

[silver zenith]

yeah me neither
I've tried splitting it horizontally rather than vertically and some parts seem to work now
others don't
I don't understand the criteria

[stuck oyster]

have you tried using the find components in OB?

or the convex components tool

[silver zenith]

the find-non convexities?
already did and nothing

what does find components do

[stuck oyster]

lists all separate parts with component name

and convex component tool tries to make all separate parts into convex shapes with component name

[silver zenith]

doubt that will work well

but ill try

[stuck oyster]

@silver zenith any luck?

[silver zenith]

had to take a break but nothing yet
seems to load forever

[stuck oyster]

@charred plaza dont spam questions on multiple channels

[charred plaza]

I’m not, I just figured General chat was better.

I’ll remove this one

[stuck oyster]

👍

indeed this one was wrong place to begin with

[silver zenith]

tested more throughly
nothing changed
something I noticed is that there are 2 components by the end of the mesh which only half it works
as if the components were cut in half and a part didn't work

[stuck oyster]

they are not animated parts?

[silver zenith]

nope

[stuck oyster]

its quite possible you have reached the size limit

[silver zenith]

my though exactly but it doesn't look like it
the model is 67 meters long
center of origin is in its middle
from that point the problematic component starts at 27 and ends at 33
but stops working around 30

[stuck oyster]

sounds about right then

[silver zenith]

so far this is the only explanation I can find

[stuck oyster]

the detection range is also dependant of the terrain you use it on

[silver zenith]

I'm on stratis

[stuck oyster]

try some other one

and possibly move the object a bit

[silver zenith]

all lods have autocenter 1
shouldn't matter right?

[runic plover]

I hate this bug, this one tricked me a lot in the past 😂

[stuck oyster]

the 50x50 meter diameter is the mostly safe size

anything beyond that is 50/50 if it works

[silver zenith]

might have to cut it again if this is doesn't work

nope
welp, here I go again
✂️ ✂️ ✂️

[silver zenith]

cutting did absolutely nothing
I'm getting tired of this

[stuck oyster]

send it over?

[runic plover]

65 x 65 works fine

Tried Construction Yard at every vanilla terrain and also at my terrain and turned it in several directions and added like 20 construction yards, walked and shot everyone 😂 just to be sure there will no glitch around 🙈

[stuck oyster]

should work yeah

[bitter kite]

i have a question im trying to make it so a ammo belt will follow what direction im pointing but i need it to be static on one end
https://imgur.com/gallery/RLWGvfw

is there a way to do this? so that when i turn it it turns the proper way

[woeful viper]

yes there is, but it will cost you 1% of your life force to make it (slighty underestimated in fact). The MG on the Leopard in the Global Mobilization CDLC is animated in such a way. It requires dozends of little individual animations, and sections of the belt.
Not for the faint hearted.

you can make it easier, if you can enclose the belt (like often seen on guns on helicopters), that doesnt allow a look on the bullets.

[bitter kite]

yea its for a heli and its closed

would the process be the same?

[woeful viper]

you can use softdeformation (like uniforms do) on vehicle stuff. This is the "easy" route. If you want to see individual bullets however, you cant go that route.

[stuck oyster]

individual bullets and deforming belt is near impossible as it would require at least 1 bone per bullet and bone limit of a model is 256

[white jay]

Is it possible to edit a uniform I download and make it wear one patch/insignia on the left shoulder and one on the right?

or edit the uniform model and manually ”melt” the insignia on the model...

[stuck oyster]

no

editing is not possible

[white jay]

And this?

[stuck oyster]

like I said, editing is not possible

[white jay]

Or was it answer to both.

Okay so two patches are impossible?

[stuck oyster]

yes

[white jay]

I see. One more question though, can you use Arma 2 uniforms/faces right out of the box or they need porting skills. And are those uniforms poor quality, visually?

https://tenor.com/view/goat-damn-it-gif-18267118

[stuck oyster]

need fixing, quality is less than in A3 and the uniform gear is not split

[burnt axle]

Hey there, I've just imported a model I have made and exported it as paa and p3a, how can I swap the model with something that is already in the game? For instance a plane.

[runic plover]

@burnt axle

Textures have to be .paa
Model has to be .p3d

To make it into the Arma 3 game, you need to do a model.cfg for your plane .p3d file and you have to do a config.cpp to make it work ingame.

Pack your sourcefiles with pboProject by Mikero's tools

But first step you have to do is set up your P drive. If its your first Addon you want to put ingame, you may learn first the basics how to make a proper working Addon.

Example Files you can find in Arma 3 Samples, you are able to find it over Steam.

To make a plane good working ingame needs a lot of work.

And its not like GTA where you can swap existing vanilla vehicles just with other modified vehicles. Its a bit more work to do.

[burnt axle]

I have the model set up with all of the tools, I just have no clue how to put it in

[woeful viper]

i mean, you can, if you set it up right in your custom model

[runic plover]

@woeful viper yes but you have to make a correctly working config too, and also you have to use the same options of the vanilla model.

[woeful viper]

if you keep everything the same (granted, which isnt so easy as you cant open the the original model pre), in theory, you can simply swap it.

[burnt axle]

The only thing I want to do is swap out a model, not set up any animations or anything. It was meant to be a joke that looks really janky.

I was thinking I could just inherit from the class I want to swap the model from?

[polar fiber]

No, animations are baked into the model file. If you don't make them, the model is simply static

[sonic valve]

So lets say I make a vest model, and it has like 10-15 hidden selections. Would that drastically effect performance?

[polar fiber]

Yes

Every section is a draw call

[sonic valve]

Would it be worse then AttachTo?

[woeful viper]

?

[sonic valve]

I want to make a vest that dynamically equips various pouches, grenades, medkits, ect as players add them to their inventory.

The two options I see is just building them onto the model and hidden selection them, or attach-to proxy points.

I know it won't be super optimized, and will slap a warning label to players this is met for smaller groups, but I'm not sure which of two ways would be better.

[stuck oyster]

its basically same I suppose

each object would require a drawcall too

[sonic valve]

Should also state 10-15 is a bit overkill. Guess if I grouped certain gear together like "If you have a mag, you see mag pouches" I could reduce some of that.

[woeful viper]

who doesnt have mags? Nobody who ran out of mags throws his pouches away

[sonic valve]

Logical no, still cool looking? Yes

[woeful viper]

i would even argue that hardly anyone will notice it

[outer condor]

is it important to scale object models right from the start in third party software (Blender/Cinema 4D/etc) or you can always easily adjust it?

[frosty rain]

You can always adjust it down the line, but i’d suggest scaling it correctly from the start

[stuck oyster]

accurate and in correct dimensions modeled source saves a lot of headache later

[outer condor]

ok thanks. what does one use for reference - the soldier size or real size in meters?

[frosty rain]

Depends what you are creating, for buildings I personally use the sample character and scale everything off that

[stuck oyster]

we had a set of dimensions that are found to work put up in wiki quite recently

study by @woeful viper and I believe they are quite good reference on what works in the engine and character movement

real life size often makes quite good Arma model too since Arma world works quite accurately in real world sizes, but like @frosty rain said, depends a little on what is being made

some limits do apply if close range character interaction is required

[woeful viper]

real life size is not advisable as far as width is concerned. Many doors (european) are just 80cm wide. Even worse are real life bunkers (yes, WW2 in aprticular) - they are completely too small to move in in arma.

and adjusting size later is a huuuuge PITA

[stuck oyster]

indeed. Buildings are exception. Other things like props and vehicles work quite well in real life dimensions

vehicles need to be made for 180cm character though

[outer condor]

thanks everyone 👍

[faint briar]

Hi, based on the example of the weapon sight 3 I was editing the p3d to make a futuristic sight, but I am having trouble applying the texture to the model.

[stuck oyster]

what programs do you use?

[faint briar]

sorry for the delay, object builder

[stuck oyster]

you modeled the whole thing in OB?

[faint briar]

i dont need much to modeled i use the base p3d of a 3d scope and remove everything because i only need the points of view and the plane for the paa

i dont need a model i need only a invisible sight

is for a star wars weapon

[stuck oyster]

well you can select mesh you want to apply texture to and hit E

and fill in the texture and material slots

[faint briar]

yea i do it but when use the p3d on arma i got a blank rectangle and not the texture

[stuck oyster]

assumine the parts are UV unwrapped

[faint briar]

give 30 min i need to do other stuff of home and when i come back i can show you screenshot about what i do

[faint briar]

https://imgur.com/a/M44dMjp here is the p3d views

[stuck oyster]

I'll be fast asleep by them

I know what you are trying to do, just not sure if you know enough to achieve it

[faint briar]

I am more about code than modeling but I already applied the texture with the face properties, but it does not take the textures I am waiting for the texture to be passed to me in tga to test it inside object builder

[stuck oyster]

its quite possible the face is not unwrapped

[faint briar]

can you explain that ? how can test it ?

[stuck oyster]

there is the UV editor in OB. Bit too late a clock to go through the how to.

[faint briar]

if you talk about uv Editor i already put the sight inside 1 tile only

https://imgur.com/a/p9SiDxA

[stuck oyster]

that probably should work then

[faint briar]

Well, with those changes and everything doesn't work for me, that's why I asked for the texture to be passed on to me now, but don't worry I'll keep trying and tomorrow earlier than last I'll write here

[hybrid frigate]

Did the recent Blender update break Arma Toolbox for Blender? I cant export as a P3D anymore and even after reloading the Addon it does not give me the option anymore.

[wispy sage]

Check that your plugin didn't get corrupted during your update. Still works fine for me

[hybrid frigate]

Yeah just tried again and still not showing up. Reset Blender to factory settings too. I like the Blender is open source but frick I wish they would stop changing stuff.

[wispy sage]

Just to check the basics, the object your trying to export as a p3d is tagged as an arma object right?

[old gulch]

Is there any easier way to make hitpoint clouds?

[stuck oyster]

What version of toolbox and what version of blender

@hybrid frigate

@old gulch easier than what?

[old gulch]

Easier than having to manually place them? I never got the "generate hitpoint cloud" button to work in Arma Toolbox for Blender.

[stuck oyster]

Well I suppose there are many ways, you could use particles, or the original mesh scaled down and faces removed. Or grid mesh and then remove faces from that or perhaps physics simulation to fill the volume with spheres and turn those into points.

[runic plover]

@faint briar
-Select Face
-Press A and load your Texture
-Move it over your selected Face
-If its ok, press B

[faint briar]

Hi, I'm just going to the hospital to make an appointment when I come back I check that sentry, but yesterday I tested the texture in tga and it works so I think I am putting the path wrong when I declare the paa so that it works inside weapon

[reef granite]

Hello, I'm trying to understand how can I see an animation on a parachute in Object Builder.
I opened : P:\a3\air_f_beta\parachute_01\parachute_01_f.p3d
Then I load from matrice the anim P:\a3\air_f_beta\parachute_01\data\anim\para_opening.rtm

But nothing happens

[quick terrace]

anims are binned irc

[reef granite]

You mean binarized ?

[stuck oyster]

and you are not supposed to be able to open those models

[reef granite]

Ow sorry, I understand. I just wanted to undersand how it works in order to build mine.
I will try to find a tuto

[stuck oyster]

there are no tutorials made for parachutes

since its vehicle powered with rtm animation neither of those files are use for you anyway as you dont have the rig to see how they are working

so what you need is learn how skeletal animation works

and then look at the parachute configs for where to create classes for new files you make

[reef granite]

Good starting point thank you very much

[faint briar]

Hi sentry, I already came back, yesterday I did the tests with the tga on the models and the tga if I visualize them inside the object builder, I estimate that I am putting the texture path wrong when I change it to paa and then create the pbo with pbo manager

[errant bay]

Hey guys! Does keeping rvmats unbinarized gives a ht to ingame performances ? (doing vests here)

[stuck oyster]

yes

but packing with correct tools does all that for you

[errant bay]

I use addonbuilder, does A3 tools provide something to do so ? Or should I "merge" the rvmats and the models upon binarization ?

[stuck oyster]

addon builder should be able to binarize them when it binarizes the rest of the stuff

you are not supposed to do anything with them beyond that

[errant bay]

Alright, thanks a lot!

[faint briar]

@stuck oyster, yesterday I tried the model with the tga textures, and in object builder I see it well but when I change the path of the textures to the paa and then do the pbo with pbo manager I get the look without texture, any idea or you can tell me How does the textures route have to go?

[errant bay]

Only issue is that my p3ds are already binarized now, and I would like to only binarize the rvmats, is there a way to do that ? cfgconvert maybe?

[stuck oyster]

@faint briar ah pbo manager

thats where your problem lies

you are not using correct tools

@errant bay why do you have binarized p3ds?

[faint briar]

yesterday i try, the addon builder but i got a error code for the pbo

[stuck oyster]

do you have P drive set up?

and pls delete pbo manager

[faint briar]

yes i have the P drive, my addon is out ot P drive maybe is that ?

[errant bay]

Binarized them with their respective model.cfg with addonbuilder, but had .rvmats in the list of files to copy directly so they did not get binarized

[stuck oyster]

well you should still have the unbinarized files on your P drive

in the original folder

[stuck oyster]

yes... 🙈

[faint briar]

on the root of arma 3 projects ?

[stuck oyster]

whyy

your addon files you make need to go to P: drive and you need to pack them from there

P drive represents the games internal file system

[errant bay]

Deleted them, a week later I realized having unbin rvmats might be not cool 🤡

Looks like cfgconvert file change is what i need

[faint briar]

ok, so the path for addon builder would be something like "P: \ holosight"?

[stuck oyster]

yes, but use modtag_ prefix on your folder and file names

to separate them

if many people make P:\holosight that becomes a problem

@errant bay why did you delete them?

cant really help with that kind of situation

[errant bay]

wont cfgconvert filechange work with that man ? yeah rookie mistake here i guess

[faint briar]

ok i make the pbo with addon builder but i still have the same issue with the texture, give a second i will take a screenshot with the paths for texture and show you

[stuck oyster]

path to texture must not have P:\ in it

since the engines file system does not know P drive

[faint briar]

i have "P:\holosight\data\mira.tga"

[stuck oyster]

so P:\Path\to\something.thingy becomes Path\to\something.thingy

see where the problem is?

[faint briar]

yes thx i will try it

i cant keep the tga ? or change to paa ?

[faint briar]

I still have the problem with the texture inside arma

[stuck oyster]

.paa is the games format

binarize should convert it to paa though

[faint briar]

yes but binarize give me a error

[stuck oyster]

what error?

[faint briar]

i change the texture to .paa

[stuck oyster]

do you have a .paa file?

[faint briar]

yes

i have .paa and .tga

[stuck oyster]

what resolution is your texture?

[faint briar]

1024 x 1024

[stuck oyster]

so you feed the folder to addon builder? then what?

also if you want better debug you will need to get mikeros toolset and use pboProject to build your pbos

[faint briar]

when try to pack with binarize y got this error Build failed. Result code = -1073741819

[stuck oyster]

binarize?

why are you using binarize?

addon builder was what you were suppsoed to use?

and well if you can get addon builder to break there is some fundamental flaw in your workflow

Id recommend using mikeros tools as they have debug infromation that can tell you what you did wrong

any addon no matter how small needs to be done right

[faint briar]

i tried pbo project but i got

holosight\config.cpp circa Line 66: SP_WEAPONS\data\mira.paa
holosight\config.cpp circa Line 67: SP_WEAPONS\data\test.p3d

when the files are in the folder

[stuck oyster]

well why are your textures somewhere else?

si sp_weapons\data on your P drive?

and the p3d

[faint briar]

SP_WEAPONS is a $PREFIX$ inside folder

[stuck oyster]

dont use prefix

you are not ready for that

and you did not tag_ your holosight folder

Well you have pbo project now to tell you most errors

Ill give you couple of days to sort it out.

[faint briar]

I have been using the prefix for a long time, if it is the first time that I have used them for this modeling, but for all the reskin and weapon configuration I have been using the prefix for a long time

[stuck oyster]

¯_(ツ)_/¯

if you been building your stuff with pbo manager and outside P drive then all bets are off

It is tedious to fight bad practices so Im gonna lay off from this for few days.

[silver zenith]

what is making my model become pitch black when under a shadow?

probably an rvmat problem
what texture map takes care of that stuff?

[frosty rain]

AS

[silver zenith]

I don't see it being broken

[frosty rain]

Can you send a pic? It’s probably wayy too pink

That happened to me when I baked the AO in Substance and didn’t modify it

[silver zenith]

https://i.imgur.com/72pVj2q.png

the entire thing becomes pitch dark under any shadow

https://i.imgur.com/EubK6V9.png

[frosty rain]

Huh

The pink parts do look way too pink, but the white parts should look fine

[silver zenith]

the pinkness is probably because I often exaggerate with AO
but it never gave me these issues

[frosty rain]

For a quick test you could import the png into photoshop/gimp and just up the brightness until the darkest pink is pretty light

Or if you’re using SP modify the baked AO

Which would be better really

[polar fiber]

Sure the .rvmat path to the _as is correct?

[frosty rain]

This too

[silver zenith]

I'll doublecheck

yup all correct

[polar fiber]

It's a green parallelogram, not a yellow ? when you look at in in Object Builder Resource Library under Current Model>>External dependencies? Should also open it in texView2 if you double click it there

[silver zenith]

green rectangle?

[polar fiber]

Next to the filename, on the left it will show a symbol of some kind

if it's a yellow ? Object Builder can't find the file or it's a procedural

If it's a green parallelogram (slanted rectangle) it can

[silver zenith]

when you look at in in Object Builder Resource Library under Current Model>>External dependencies
where is Current Model?

[polar fiber]

After Current LOD

[silver zenith]

just found out about the resource library

[polar fiber]

This thing

[silver zenith]

yeah never had it on the screen until now

yellow question mark

[polar fiber]

Ah right. Well it's very useful for checking and merging your sections

[silver zenith]

for some reason it can't find it

[polar fiber]

If it's a question mark it means there is somehow a mistake in the .rvmat path. Could be if you have .tga in the .rvmat (for buldozer auto conversion to .tga) but only the .paa remains in the project folder, but otherwise it's probably some typo somewhere

[silver zenith]

rvmats have the paa and unless I'm insane the path is correct, checked 5 times

[frosty rain]

if you remove the AS map from the equation and just put texture = "#(argb,8,8,3)color(1,1,1,1,AS)"; does it look fine?

[silver zenith]

any way I can check that in bulldozer?

[frosty rain]

Not really sure tbh @polar fiber prob knows

[polar fiber]

Easy troubleshoot that doesn't rely on manually checking: Open the folder it's in, copy the location from windows explorer (deleting the P:\ bit at the start) and paste it into the.rvmat then copy the filename the same way

[silver zenith]

actually I have a yellow question mark on all my textures
and they work somehow

[polar fiber]

It's possible that it doesn't like some international keyboards though. I remember some people have problems with filepaths written with hebrew keyboard because one of the glyph unicodes is different. Maybe other languages too

[silver zenith]

all standard english

I appreciate the help
I'll probably try again tomorrow maybe I'm just missing something and need a fresh mind

[white jay]

Hello guys, i need some help. I try to save a p3d in Object Builder. I recently exported it from Blender but in Object Builder I can not save it and it gives me an error "an error occured during save operation". It just working fine on other objects.

[silver zenith]

try to save the blender project
close blender
and try again to save in OB

[white jay]

wtf, why its working now? 🤔 Thank you!

[silver zenith]

I have no idea

[stuck oyster]

you sure all stages in rvmat are correct?

shwa shader is it using?

[maiden heron]

i could see sun flare from inside of my vehicle. does that mean i need a geometry lod for my view-pilot?

[woeful viper]

no crossposting!

[hybrid frigate]

I just uninstalled Blender and deleted user settings and reinstalled. Fixed my problem. I can now access the ArmA Toolbox addon.

[stuck oyster]

👍

excellent

[hybrid frigate]

wbg_cowpie_1.p3d : \wbg\wbg_objects\wbg_cowpie_1.paa
wbg_trailerc_1.p3d : \p:\wbg\wbg_objects\wbg_strawberry1\wbg_strawberry1.paa```
This is absolutely confusing.  I have no reference to the trailer item in my config or items in my folder.  Why the heck would it say the file is missing?  This error arises when I try to pack the mod.

[stuck oyster]

means some paths are not correct

you should never have P: in the paths for starters

[hybrid frigate]

I will recopy the paths and paste again to make sure. I did that before maybe I missed something but I have tried this for the past day and a half.

That is the thing. The line that mentions P does not exist in my config

[stuck oyster]

in OB if you look into the mass texture rename tool you can see if paths are valid

if they are red, its not right

if black then it can find the file

trailerc_1.p3d contains p: path in it

[hybrid frigate]

Okay it is red so there must be a problem

[stuck oyster]

well what is the path you have there?

also if your OB settings are not right, it will not work at all

check OB settings that path to textures is set as P:\

[hybrid frigate]

\WBG\wbg_objects\wbg_cowpie_1\wbg_cowpie_1.paa

Just changed OB settings path to P. That did not seem to be an issue before.

[stuck oyster]

is that the real absolute path to the texture?

[hybrid frigate]

I think I just need to delete everything and start over.

[stuck oyster]

😅

bit harsh solutionn

just make sure you dont delete any source files

[hybrid frigate]

Like this problem cannot be an issue. It is looking for something that does not exist in file or config

wbg_trailerc_1.p3d
Does
Not
Exist

[stuck oyster]

[hybrid frigate]

I love how that worked.

Everything is fine now that I deleted all the P3D and re imported new ones from Blender.

Nope, that is a lie. I guess I need to reinstall OB because I wrote a new config and new P3D files but get the same error.

[stuck oyster]

so your folder is on at P:\WBG.. rest of the folders

[hybrid frigate]

P:\WBG\wbg_objects This is how the mod starts, there are sub folders per object.

I remove the P:\ in the config and texture assignment since it throws me all kinds of errors.

[stuck oyster]

yes you should never ever have P:\ in any of your paths

[hybrid frigate]

Correct, I have no P mentions. The error I am getting for anything P related is for a P3D file that does not exist on my computer or any references.

[stuck oyster]

can you pastebin that log

and yes it is somewhere in there

[hybrid frigate]

Okay standby

https://pastebin.com/U3g60PLw error

https://pastebin.com/22cN0EMa config

[stuck oyster]

I think you need to clear your temp folder

or run full build so pborpoject does it for you

I suspect you have some old stuff in the temp interfering with your new setup

[hybrid frigate]

You are my new living deity

[hybrid frigate]

It works great now.

[inland pawn]

Not sure if this is the correct channel but, anyone familiar with PiP? I think I have everything, but I get nothing

Not sure if my "screens" are placed incorrect or something

[stuck oyster]

this for a custom object?

[inland pawn]

Yes. Custom model

But, nothing shows up

Not even the faces I placed

[bold valve]

https://imgur.com/a/KYPWEY4

Hello

why selection for example in this pic the points seletect with blue colour?

[stuck oyster]

its partial smooth weighiting

you will want to look up how character skeletal animation and rigging works

[bold valve]

thanks

the way to aply weight for this points its similar when you apply mass in geometry?

[stuck oyster]

No

its weighting per moving bone

like I said look up how character rigging and weighting is done to understand what it means

[blissful blaze]

Hmm so just skinning of the model then

[outer condor]

how to create a FBX from a source p3d in the most simple way?
a new artist not into Arma is looking for some references of RV engine design objects (simple ones like wooden stash, ammo box, tent)

[blissful blaze]

Aren't there such example models in the arma tools from steam?

[stuck oyster]

open in OB, export as FBX I suppose @outer condor

[polar fiber]

Blender then .fbx usually gives better results for me when going to Maya. Usually lose smooth edges when I export direct from OB, after unlocking the normals

[wispy orchid]

is there a video (series) for learning to use the Alwarren's arma toolbox for blender? Especially how to get textures and materials done in blender and export to p3d

[outer condor]

thanks HG and da12thMonkey 👍

i checked the samples as i thought to recall BI provided FBX, but seems that was prior to A3

@wispy orchid for the latter part the series from El Tyranos should help at least
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbyLM76MffqwN3IpgZ63WOhuyNBFZIhd9

[severe plover]

Hello. I’m trying to import a torch model, and I’ve gotten the fire to work for the moſt part by looking at how the campfire was done, but for reaſon unknown to me, the geometry model doeſn’t ſeem to work, deſpite being convex, cloſed, very ſimple, and with mas applied. Could it be that by applying an effect to the model, the colliſion is diſabled ?
Here’s the relevant ſection of the config.cpp :
https://pastebin.com/Ue810DdQ

[stuck oyster]

pls this is not a ripped model right?

model ripping is not tolerated here.

[severe plover]

This one is a perſonal project I’d been working on.

[stuck oyster]

well ripping is not allowed either way.

[severe plover]

I underſtand.

[rose hare]

Hi i have some questions
everytime i try to wear the vest or even opening the inventory of it
the game freezes a bit
Does anyone know anything about this?

[runic plover]

Sounds for me like you havent binarized it.

What kind of packing tool you are using to make your pbo files?

[rose hare]

oh i dont know how to do it so i probably didnt do it

i am using arma 3 tools

[runic plover]

Get pboProject by Mikero / Mikero Tools. Its also better to find any errors and glitches you probably did.

[iron lantern]

hi, i'm editing a vehicle, from the d3s mod pack. My question is where can I change the colors of the lightbar?

[quick terrace]

d3s are all rips, not gonna get help here

[marsh canyon]

Also sounds like you're ripping a ripped model

[hybrid frigate]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uw_LQFaoo-4

Thanks everyone for the continued support. In case anyone cares to see what I managed to put together over the past few weeks.

[stuck oyster]

@hybrid frigate 👍 Its quite nice feeling to get things working isnt it! 😄

keep it up

[reef granite]

Hello there 🙂
I'm trying to create my own parachute and thanks to HorribleGoat I could find the good way to start building it.

However I have a very strange issue with the parachute deployment animation (animationOpen in my parachute class).
Indeed when I set animationOpen = myOwnAnimation.rtm :
=> The parachute does'nt do any animation in game. (However the animation is working inside Object Builder)

But when I set animationOpen = opening_para.rtm (the original animation) :
=> The parachute read myOwnAnimation.rtm instead.

I checked my config.cpp many times and everything seems ok. It's like a cache issue or something (I checked the clear temp folder inside addon builder).
I also checked the binarize option.

Did you saw this kind of weird behaviour before ?

[hybrid frigate]

@stuck oyster agreed. My next hurdle will be to get objects to have vehicle collision. Still have yet to get that working.

[white jay]

Looking for Some Experience Mod makers for Mil-sim Unit .

[stuck oyster]

#creators_recruiting @white jay

[jade kettle]

Has anyone seen a mod for US Military MP vehicles?

[stuck oyster]

@jade kettle #arma3_questions is the channel for mod questions, this channel is for model making

[tiny mica]

Hi guy, do you have new about the OPX building mod? or RSO building mod? The OPX building mod is not finished (impossible to enter buildings and unfinished stairs). The RSO building mod is not finished (it used the template of the OPX building models).
I tried to work on these models but I do not master object builder at all 😦

[stuck oyster]

@strong plaza is the author of OPX stuff I believe.

[tiny mica]

I think that the author of rso had taken over the work of @strong plaza to finish work.

[stuck oyster]

dunno. You will have to ask from the man himself

[tiny mica]

in case, there would be people motivated to rework the geometry of the buildings of this mods?

[stuck oyster]

there are not many building makers around

[tiny mica]

Do you know of any that would be able to help?

[stuck oyster]

nope. People I know are occupied with their own projects

[tiny mica]

Okay no problem 🙂

[pastel oyster]

Texture is fine before putting into OB, but is all over the place when I run it through the Bulldozer. I tried to switch it from .paa to .tga to see how it looked in OB's viewport - and it's completely fine there, but with .tga too - as soon as I start it in bulldozer it becomes a mess

[cedar warren]

any of you guys encountered the issue that u can't launch buldozer from OB? just get 'unable to create viewer'?

[orchid spruce]

might be your animation cache not updating, I've had that issue in the past

going into your appdata > local > arma 3 folder and deleting the AnimCacheData should force rebuild it

[runic plover]

@tiny mica first priority is to ask the author for permission to edit or finish the stuff. If the author wrote people are allowed to finish / change / edit it and source files are included it wouldnt be a problem.

And it has to be form the original first author, not from the second one.

[tiny mica]

Yes its true I tell him about it and he has put his sources online so that the community can continue the work

[reef granite]

Thank you very much !!

Guys in a config.cpp file of a weapon what is the difference between :

• handAnim
• reloadAction

When I put my custom reload animation into handAnim
=> I have a weird offset maybe due to a binarization issue.

When I put my custom reload animation into reloadAction
=> The character is skipping the reload animation

[stuck oyster]

hand anim is the pose the gun is held

reload action is the movescfg action that is played when you reload

[reef granite]

Oooh ok.
So the idea is to set a static anim for posing the gun in "hand anim".
And then animate from this point with a reload animation inside "reload action"
If I understand well

[stuck oyster]

hand anim only takes into account the left and right hand positions in relation to the weapon bone

the rest of the pose will not be used

but the reload part works like that yes

[reef granite]

You are my heros thank you

[pastel oyster]

Anybody got any ideas for this?

[stuck oyster]

somehow broken uvmapping, bad rvmat, bad texture resolution, broken model

could be many things

wrong uvsets maybe

[pastel oyster]

Yes, ofc, more curious on why the preview in object builder works fine, but breaks in bulldozer/in-game

[stuck oyster]

how are you packing the model?

and how did you make it and get it to OB?

and what is the texture resolution?

and does it have rvmat(s)

[pastel oyster]

Model is free model I found online, un-textured. Was 3Ds file which friend converted into .obj and I imported it into Oxygen.
Texture is 2048x1024, one rvmat with a nohq & smdi

[stuck oyster]

then anything goes really

[pastel oyster]

Mm, figured

He did the UVmapping for me cuz I can't use my 3Ds right now

Will have to ask him to see if that stuff was done right

[stuck oyster]

I dont really have knowledge of the 3DS workflow to comment on that side

[pastel oyster]

Thanks for the help regardless!)

[blissful blaze]

I would really advise to use fbx
Obj can be really funky with vertex normals and sometimes UVs

[vital geyser]

whats the max bone count for an object?

[polar fiber]

256

[thin forum]

Hello, is it possible to delete a part of the model by deleting it in the config and not in the model when, for example, the model is named with selection?

[polar fiber]

If it's listed in the sections[] of the model.cfg it can be hidden by assigning an empty texture in hiddenSelectionsTextures, or if it has a hide animation for that bone you can animate it via config. But no you can't just remove arbitrary parts of a model via config

[thin forum]

What if this model has no texture but the color of the object builder?

Can I enter color instead of texture?

for example #(argb,8,8,3)color(0,0,0,1.0,co)

hiddenSelectionsTextures[] = {"#(argb,8,8,3)color(0,0,0,1.0,co)" ?

[polar fiber]

That would be a solid black texture

[thin forum]

But then I will remove this color from the model and it will be transparent

?

[frosty rain]

dont think that’s how it works

If you remove the texture from something it’ll be a white-greyish plain material

[thin forum]

Oh Okey...

that is, it cannot be removed so that it is not invisible?

for example, text on a building

[frosty rain]

Uhhh i mean

You could theoretically use photoshop to remove a text on a texture map or something

[polar fiber]

I think if it's untextured in object builder and then assigned "" empty hiddenSelectionsTexture or setobjecttexture it will still go hidden

But buildings do not really support hiddenselectionstexture fully

they'll work on editor-placed buildings, but not on those placed into the terrain via visitor etc

[thin forum]

https://i.imgur.com/5vvVtB4.png I mean, for example, the inscription in front of the windscreen

I don't want to delete it in object builder, but in config, make it invisible, and now it has a color

This is preventing the theft

which I am creating

I made a string in front of the mask and I would like to hide it somehow in the config without removing it from the model

in selection I named it hl_name

[fluid grove]

You can hide a selection using the model config. Then have the source as user and trigger the animation source via script.

[uneven vigil]

Hi, can we make weight paint shortly for uniform models?

https://prnt.sc/10iuku0

[blissful blaze]

Weight paint shortly?

[uneven vigil]

example, weight painting in 15min

[stuck oyster]

Sure you can make one. No problem there.

[uneven vigil]

but how will i do 😆

I just tried the blender transfer weights

[stuck oyster]

Blender transfer weight is often a good starting point. Assuming you have made your uniform model correctly.
But for Blender itself there are plenty of weight painting tutorials available already.

[uneven vigil]

thank u

[blissful blaze]

Weight painting a triangulated mesh

That's going to be fun heh

[stuck oyster]

It's not any different to painting quad/polygonal mesh?

[polar fiber]

It's harder to see deformation

[stuck oyster]

Except you can be certain of how the edges deform

With triangles?

[polar fiber]

I find so. The mesh looks too dense with the extra edges and harder to follow edge flow along the limb

[stuck oyster]

Oh. For me the tris help. So I don't have to quess which way it bends in game.

[blissful blaze]

It's a bit less predictable when testing deformation

[uneven vigil]

https://prnt.sc/10iv195 keep calm, i backed up the quad version xd

[blissful blaze]

And eh if you have to adjust topology its impossible

The low amount of loops around the knee area will make it rough for deformation

[uneven vigil]

can you suggest me add a few edge

[blissful blaze]

Where the knee would bend just add 2 extra loops

One top one bottom

It's going to give you more space for smooth deformation

[uneven vigil]

okey i will make now

[blissful blaze]

Eh

Heh sorry can't help with that lol

[uneven vigil]

:DD

[tender hemlock]

Hello there is something wrong with my gun. The axis of view just doesn't look the way I want it https://prnt.sc/10ix1l4

[small olive]

which direction that you want them to look?

and as i understand you want to rotate them when weapon has optics right? @tender hemlock

[tender hemlock]

İn Modelcfg I did memory = 1, I solved Angle1 = (rad 90)

[honest herald]

Good morning all! I just imported an outfit into arma, I messed around making all the selections, everything works but I have a problem:
The right side is sunken, I don't know why ..
I know this is not a linear deform because I made the selections (rightshoulder and rightarm) without linear deform and the problem persists
Sorry for the translation which may be wrong, I am French 🙂

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/705169662152802334/818896018832621638/unknown.png

[stuck oyster]

its just that the weighting is not correctly set up.

nothing more to it

Arma can handle 3 bones affectig a verticle. its possible you have more than 3 there and it disregards the rest

or just some weights are not correctly balanced

[honest herald]

Do you know how to fix this problem?

[stuck oyster]

make better weighting I suppose

[honest herald]

with "paint selection color"?

[stuck oyster]

I dont know what program you use, but most popular 3D modeling programs have extensive tutorials on how to use the tools

[pastel oyster]

https://i.imgur.com/Om8gRpC.png - ingame
https://i.imgur.com/8YmdmE1.png - bulldozer & OB
The front of the weapon has the same little "thing" with the same Memory points and model.cfg animations, but works fine

I've quintuple checked for typos and found nothing, any ideas on what it could be caused by otherwise?

[stuck oyster]

bone hierarchy could cause some other animation to affect it

or wrong isDiscreet value is used

or its added to multiple animated selections

[pastel oyster]

bones "all" ,"", "gun" ,"all", "lock_f_cover" ,"gun", "lock_f_lever" ,"gun", "lock_f_holder" ,"lock_f_lever", "lock_r_cover" ,"gun", "lock_r_lever" ,"gun", "lock_r_holder" ,"lock_r_lever",..

and it's only used in one animated selection

What is isDiscreet? Can't find any info about that

[stuck oyster]

toggles soft weight animating

like in characters

[pastel oyster]

ah, isDiscrete, didn't click in my head thats what you meant

[stuck oyster]

ah typo

[pastel oyster]

Trying it now, how would I affect the specific part of the model through?

And how come is different in bulldozer and ingame, I always thought bulldozer was a "fake" Arma 3 simulation

[stuck oyster]

it is, but it runs a little different

usually it matches

[pastel oyster]

Nope, didn't fix it - and broke the rest of the animations

Will delete & copy the other side that works, since they're identical, that has to work

[stuck oyster]

it was a longshot

[keen prism]

My bridges somehow don't draw as roads on the map anymore, and the ingame type is "HIDE", however named properties are main road and road. Any ideas ? They are connected to adjacent roads tho.

[stuck oyster]

make sure no typos or hidden spaces in named properties

[keen prism]

It even happened in 6 different bridge models, which all worked prior to.. well something https://i.imgur.com/n6l67Pl.png (in geo)

[stuck oyster]

what are you packing the pbo with?

[keen prism]

Makepbo/pboproject Mikero

We're using ACE/CBA "old" build system before hemmt

[keen prism]

The Bridges Module was unchanged and had no rebuilds during the dissapearance

[stuck oyster]

sounds complicated. but problem likely lies somewhere in the build pipeline

[keen prism]

I'll try around with some even older versions, could the issue be related to terrain builder/wrp building as well ? Or some settings on the terrain?

[silver zenith]

can the same model have parts projected on the terrain ground (like helipads) and physical parts?

[stuck oyster]

no

[silver zenith]

I see thanks
what if I proxy it?

[stuck oyster]

dont know but I doubt it

[pastel oyster]

I am dumb, the texture was upside down (((

[runic plover]

did you also add in the Memory LOD the LB , LE, PB and PE points?

[keen prism]

Yes, the road is even connected to others and has start/end and all that

Its just the wrong map-type, everything else works

[runic plover]

if you try map: road will also not work / shown?

[round bloom]

This is more a A3 tools question but can't see a channel for that, and it's also in relation to Object Builder. Has anyone here got a higer res monitor like a 4k that can advise on resolving sizing issues within the tools?

Currently the main A3 tools section is a bit messed up like the below image:

https://i.gyazo.com/bde72d6dbfb9a78d400d07a72e2c98ed.png

But then within Object Builder itself, 99% of the buttons etc don't seem to be scaling for the UI size so seem far too small

[stuck oyster]

they probably are not made with 4K in mind

[round bloom]

True was just asking incase someone found any workarounds

[median bough]

workaround:
set resolution to 1920x1080 😛

[livid canyon]

I have land contacts, geometry, and geometry physics. Why does it fall through the ground? https://gfycat.com/plastictemptingglassfrog

[frosty rain]

Is your geometry closed, convex and did you find all components?

[livid canyon]

I've done Structure > Topology > Find non-closed and Convexity > Find non-convexities, no results. It's just 3 boxes named Component01 to 03

[frosty rain]

hmm that's odd

try deleting geometry physics

and testing with only geometry

[runic plover]

have you added mass in the geometry?

[livid canyon]

6.5. that's kg right?

[runic plover]

should be kg yes.
but dont use 6.5, use 6 or 7 instead

[livid canyon]

ok

[runic plover]

and only in geometry, not geophys

geophys set to 0

[maiden folio]

Can you recommend mods here for any developers to make?

Not for me, but for general use of Arma?

[marsh canyon]

At what context? Is this even a scope of #arma3_model ?

[maiden folio]

Disregard

[stuck oyster]

@livid canyon did you use the automatic component naming tool or did you name them manually?

Are the components very thin?

[red charm]

Hi guys, I've got this warning in rpt file. Does anyone know, what does it mean?

Warnings in acr_a3\addons\acr_a3_vehicles\t815\acr_a3_t815_base.p3d:shadow(10)
Warnings in acr_a3\addons\acr_a3_vehicles\t815\acr_a3_t815_base.p3d:shadow(1000)
Warnings in acr_a3\addons\acr_a3_vehicles\t815\acr_a3_t815_base.p3d:shadow(1000)

[median bough]

are you working on models that are not your own?

@red charm

[red charm]

Nope. The models are mine.

[median bough]

sorry 😄
i just know Evro and kllrt working on it.
i just saw your name on the gitlab credits.

[red charm]

Ah 😄 Yeah, I just work for their mod 🙂

[livid canyon]

Manually named and ~0.1m thick. I'll try the auto and just making it thicker

[late root]

Having odd issue with a texture on a structure.
Here is the example texture and UV.
https://gyazo.com/83f1454c55b0b30ccb92052c393bd7f6

Here is the Bulldozer/ingame view
https://gyazo.com/88d4429806f58ed84d6626e0e09f8a64

The p3d itself.
https://gyazo.com/789daac54a0a9d4317152e32513c10af

Everything has a _CO suffix, nothing has an rvmat currently.
If I delete the rest of the structure minus a wall, it works just fine.
Moment rest is present then the texture gets borked.

Figured it out, something is wrong with one of the doors. UV is corrupting on export and apparently causing havoc everywhere else

For the memes
https://gyazo.com/267cbd7973ba31efe0cbb941accb6980

[stuck oyster]

Oof XD that looks fun

[maiden sequoia]

When i import p3d file from Object Builder all the faces are flipped and the LOD isn't working. http://prntscr.com/10mj4hu

[stuck oyster]

how did you make the p3d?

what does import from Object Builder mean?

where do you import it to?

usually flipped faces mean you have them flipped on your model and should fix that

[maiden sequoia]

Made the model in Blender and imported it to OB. From there i exported it from OB to a p3d file and put into my map files and loaded into the game.

[stuck oyster]

ok so just for the future to avoid confusion, you EXPORT from Blender to p3d and In OB you should only need to SAVE it as p3d.

and flipped faces mean you have them flipped in your model in Blender

so back to blender and fix you face directions

[maiden sequoia]

I tried flipping both ways in blender and its still flipped.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/818567953091395625/821083000087379978/56a154a144f8cc44a999e3e94e577ab6.png

this is without flipped faces

[stuck oyster]

perhaps the objects scale is negative

[maiden sequoia]

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/818567953091395625/821083134648123427/d7a4eca1ee3ef25069d6c525b1f5de53.png

[stuck oyster]

or you have some other modifier on it

[maiden sequoia]

with flipped faces^

I did a 0.6 obj scale

[stuck oyster]

make sure you have backface culling on so it does not draw the backside of faces

and you must always apply all scale and rotations before exporting

as the export does not do that for you

[maiden sequoia]

also do i need a config.cpp?

i currently dont have one for the model

[stuck oyster]

depends what kind of object it is

[maiden sequoia]

just a bridge

no doors, windows, etc

[stuck oyster]

it it has no animations or lights then it does not need config.cpp classes

[maiden sequoia]

ok

I applied the backface culling and applies all scale and roations before exporting and still have the same problem.

would you like to look at the file yourself?

im at a complete loss.

[stuck oyster]

no I dont have the time for such.

make sure you export it to correct file

and also what do you use to pack the pbo with?

[maiden sequoia]

pboProject

[stuck oyster]

and since you dont have config.cpp for it, how do you test it in game?

[maiden sequoia]

i just place the model in Terrain Builder and pack the map and load it in arma.

[stuck oyster]

do you also repack the model?

[maiden sequoia]

no i just run pboProject on the folder

[stuck oyster]

what folder?

[maiden sequoia]

my map folder

[stuck oyster]

is the p3d in it?

[maiden sequoia]

i believe so, the model is going into the game just the faces/mesh is messed up

[stuck oyster]

Im not convinced it is..

and you should not pack p3ds with your terrain

thats very bad practice

[maiden sequoia]

ok ill pack it separately from now on

ill try that and see what happens

[stuck oyster]

for the models you will need a simple config.cpp with cfgPatches class in it so that the folder gets packed as pbo

and you will need to fix your templates on your terrain to use the new folder

[maiden sequoia]

Ok i packed them separately and the model is showing up but the faces are still flipped.

[stuck oyster]

are you really sure you are actually exporting it

from Blender

[maiden sequoia]

Exporting the file from blender as a obj. Then importing to OB then exporting as p3d.

[polar fiber]

There's where you problem lies. .obj imports with inverted x-axis

There's a blender plugin that will export directly to .p3d

but if you insist on using .obj, there's a checkbox in OB .obj importer to invert the X axis, which you should have checked

[stuck oyster]

pls just use the ArmaToolbox to export to p3d...

[maiden sequoia]

I will thanks

[barren atlas]

Can anyone tell me if it's possible to reverse the process of converting to p3d?

I have a model from a mod that I want to modify a bit

[stuck oyster]

@barren atlas no. That is also forbidden. You don't modify anyone else's work.

[barren atlas]

That's not a rule I've heard before, though I guess I'm more familiar with the software community

I wanted to reference a model of an M1127 Stryker as I'm trying to make a half decent LAV III

[stuck oyster]

Well it's the rule with p3ds.

They are not open source

You would have to ask for the source models from the creator.

Or make one from scratch.

[barren atlas]

I wonder if RHS would give them to me if I asked

[frosty rain]

😂

[barren atlas]

Doubt it

[stuck oyster]

Unlikely, but who knows if you get lucky

[bold flare]

But you can be sure that RHS will rip your head off and that you will be banned from here and other places of you rip their stuff without permission.

[rough idol]

you can always buy the mesh https://www.turbosquid.com/3d-models/games-pbr-model-1342933 😉

[barren atlas]

my budget is 0$, 499$ less then that 499$ model lol

my total net worth atm, I believe is actually negative

[stuck oyster]

Then git gud at modeling and put your own stuff for sale.

Get stuff for Arma and get monneyz

[barren atlas]

let me rephrase my original question

how can I open a P3D file that was never binarized in the first place (MLOD)

specifically the MTVR off this page https://forums.bohemia.net/forums/topic/177880-i-am-releasing-my-3-major-mods-open-source/

[frosty rain]

use arma toolbox to import it into blender

[barren atlas]

ah, thanks!

Ignore me I was a dummy and did it wrong

[maiden sequoia]

Ive got the model working with all the faces correct, but still cant get the lod to work. http://prntscr.com/10mmsrg
I have the model and map separately packed
I used Geometry for the LOD.

[stuck oyster]

what lod does not work?

[maiden sequoia]

the collisions

Im sorry if i dont know what im talking about.

my friend tells me that LOD affects collisions

but idk

[stuck oyster]

yes geometry lod is required for collision, but also roadway lod is required for character to walk on it

and geometry lod has some requirements that have to be met in order for it to work.

there is a wiki page explaining the lods

[maiden sequoia]

Ok i have Geo, Geo Phys, Geo Phys Old, Roadway, and Hit-points

i can walk on it

but i cannot drive on it

[stuck oyster]

you dont need geo phys old

and not geo phys either if your geo is not too complex

hacing the lods is not enough though

like I said they have requirements

all geometry lods need to be build from convex parts

and each part needs to have a componentXXX name

there is automatic tool for the naming in OB

and the "geometry" lod has extra requirement of all collidable parts must have mass set on them

[maiden sequoia]

so by componentXX you mean like Bridge01?

[polar fiber]

No, they have to be called component

[maiden sequoia]

ok

[polar fiber]

There's a function in object builder that automatically finds and names them as such

I don't know if the blender tool does the same

But if you open it in Object Builder anyway and go Structure>>Topology>>Find Components it will do it for you

[maiden sequoia]

ok i gives me a selection tool, but im unsure what to select

also selecting all points and doing triangulate convex would that make all parts convex?

[stuck oyster]

no

you have to make the lod properly

it cant be just copypaste

[maiden sequoia]

http://prntscr.com/10mnj8c

this is my LOD is it proper?

http://prntscr.com/10mnjtc

actual model^

[stuck oyster]

that should work

[maiden sequoia]

ok now i just to make sure its convex right?

[stuck oyster]

if its just square blocks it should be convex yes

[maiden sequoia]

http://prntscr.com/10mnmb9 Would this be considered convex?

i dont think it is but can you confirm

[stuck oyster]

yes

there is also component convex tool in OB that turns all separate parts into convex components

but if they are not proper or close to proper it will likely mess them up

[maiden sequoia]

Ok so i selected all points and clicked find non-convex points and it selected about 15-20 points, but it would allow me to click make convex.

[stuck oyster]

it does not quite work like that. you would have to select the whole object those non convex verticles are part of

[maiden sequoia]

Is there a page on how to make an object convex? Im looking for one and all they seem to do is explain what and not how.

[stuck oyster]

there is not really anything special in modeling convex or non convex things.

just the end result

[maiden sequoia]

http://prntscr.com/10mo10o By your drawing to make it convex im assuming i need to separate the angled bit from the rest of the model?

[stuck oyster]

yes

I assumed it was separate

[maiden sequoia]

ok i figured out how to split it. should it become a new component or does it stay as one?

[stuck oyster]

all separate parts need to be their own components

[maiden sequoia]

ok i cant find a button to make a component of the new part

[stuck oyster]

structure - topology -find components

[maiden sequoia]

ah i see where that comes into play

[maiden sequoia]

Ok ive gotten rid of all non-convex parts, but i have extra components that have no vertices. Should i leave them or is there a problem?

Ok so ive got the collision working with cars but

http://prntscr.com/10mp8wm

i dont even know what to ask

[stuck oyster]

It got destroyed and has the default damage/destruction type

[maiden sequoia]

where do i change the damage model?

[stuck oyster]

geometry lod named properties (not selections)

there is a wiki page about them

[stuck oyster]

if it does not work, you likely are not doing it correctly

[maiden sequoia]

If my model is in a different coordinate than my lod will it break?

[stuck oyster]

yes?

things need to be aligned

[maiden sequoia]

im doing center all, but it still looks like their not in the same places.

its not by much, but still noticable.

[stuck oyster]

center all centers each part on their own

Preferably you make the in same dimensions from the start

instead of trying to align them after

[white jay]

idk why but all my models started doing the default dirt splash impact, they should all be properly linked to the P drive... they worked before and I haven't changed anything. Also all the vanilla arma objects now have broken penetration effects.

I have this in the fire geometry material and the P drive is mounted yet it still does the dirt effects
a3\data_f\penetration\metal_plate.rvmat

[stuck oyster]

some mod you have must have done some serious messing up

[white jay]

huh

when adding a penetration material or referencing anything from the a3 file you back out the P:\ extention right?

so
a3\data_f\penetration\metal_plate.rvmat
instead of
P:\a3\data_f\penetration\metal_plate.rvmat

[stuck oyster]

yes

my progress for the night

[vital geyser]

what is it?

[stuck oyster]

new suit for my project

since we like sneak peeks here

[vital geyser]

Nice

[median bough]

looks like some fancy "the fifth element" dress 😄

[stuck oyster]

just needs the rest of the plating to shape it up

[wraith socket]

thats very nice

love seeing your WIP's for (I presume) lost dragons

[white jay]

oh is this part of Lost Dragons?

[stuck oyster]

Yes.

[sinful python]

I'm having issues with Ramps, they are walk-able, but not drive-able, also invisible collision near the same area. They have road-way LODs, but both are still being buggy af.

[stuck oyster]

likely you dont have proper component naming and/or convext parts in your geometry lod.

roadway lod sufface also needs to be slightly above the geometry surface

[sinful python]

Thanks for that - I'm on the right track then I think.

[urban anchor]

Where can I find naming convention of my LOD models in Maya for definition those when import FBX to OB?

[stuck oyster]

if its written down somewhere it might be on the BI forums

[tender radish]

For resolutions lods (LOD 1, 2, ...., X )
every lods need to respect name like NAME_LODX (X a number and same name everytime), Object builder will recognise them

i didn't find the other lods yet

[polar fiber]

others have a numbered name too IIRC

[tender radish]

oh and ofc you need to export all lods at the same time

[polar fiber]

can try 1000=Gunnerview; 1100=Pilotview; 1200=Cargoview. I think the Geo, PhysX etc. had some large number like 10eX type numbers

4e13 for physX https://forums.bohemia.net/forums/topic/143559-how-to-fake-a-new-lod-physx-step-by-step/

Ah, from Alwarren's blender toolbox: ('1.000e+3', 'View Gunner', 'View Gunner'), ('1.100e+3', 'View Pilot', 'View Pilot'), ('1.200e+3', 'View Cargo', 'View Cargo'), ('1.000e+4', 'Stencil Shadow', 'Stencil Shadow'), ('1.001e+4', 'Stencil Shadow 2', 'Stencil Shadow 2'), ('1.100e+4', 'Shadow Volume', 'Shadow Volume'), ('1.101e+4', 'Shadow Volume 2', 'Shadow Volume 2'), ('1.000e+13', 'Geometry', 'Geometry'), ('1.000e+15', 'Memory', 'Memory'), ('2.000e+15', 'Land Contact', 'Land Contact'), ('3.000e+15', 'Roadway', 'Roadway'), ('4.000e+15', 'Paths', 'Paths'), ('5.000e+15', 'HitPoints', 'Hit Points'), ('6.000e+15', 'View Geometry', 'View Geometry'), ('7.000e+15', 'Fire Geometry', 'Fire Geometry'), ('8.000e+15', 'View Cargo Geometry', 'View Cargo Geometry'), ('9.000e+15', 'View Cargo Fire Geometry', 'View Cargo Fire Geometry'), ('1.000e+16', 'View Commander', 'View Commander'), ('1.100e+16', 'View Commander Geometry', 'View Commander Geometry'), ('1.200e+16', 'View Commander Fire Geometry', 'View Commander Fire Geometry'), ('1.300e+16', 'View Pilot Geometry', 'View Pilot Geometry'), ('1.400e+16', 'View Pilot Fire Geometry', 'View Pilot Fire Geometry'), ('1.500e+16', 'View Gunner Geometry', 'View Gunner Geometry'), ('1.600e+16', 'View Gunner Fire Geometry', 'View Gunner Fire Geometry'), ('1.700e+16', 'Sub Parts', 'Sub Parts'), ('1.800e+16', 'Shadow Volume - View Cargo', 'Cargo View shadow volume'), ('1.900e+16', 'Shadow Volume - View Pilot', 'Pilot View shadow volume'), ('2.000e+16', 'Shadow Volume - View Gunner', 'Gunner View shadow volume'), ('2.100e+16', 'Wreck', 'Wreckage'), ('2.000e+13', 'Geometry Buoyancy', 'Geometry Buoyancy'), ('4.000e+13', 'Geometry PhysX', 'Geometry PhysX'), ('2.000e+4', 'Edit', 'Edit'),

[tender radish]

thanks, lot of time will be saved

[urban anchor]

Thanks 😊

[urban anchor]

Sorry for noob question. '1.100e+3 = View Pilot' of name in maya model_LOD1100 works fine, but how I can import '1.100e+4 = Shadow Volume'?
model_LOD11e4
model_LOD1100e4
model_LOD1_100_e_4
etc dont work 😩

[polar fiber]

1.100e4 can be written as 11000, or 11e3

1.100e3 as 1100 or 11e2 etc. etc.

[urban anchor]

I got it, it works, thanks!
Just Math

[polar fiber]

Have added it to the Biki LODs page for posterity https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/LOD#Exporting_.fbx_with_LODs

[white jay]

should I close up building LODs at extreme distances? basically make it a cube with black squares for windows?

[stuck oyster]

last lod is usually very simple yes

and often has textures baked/rendered out of the main model

[hybrid frigate]

So I notice you can make as many LOD numbers as you want in Object builder. Is it theoretically possible to have a dozen LODs and they scale accordingly?

IDK if it is something to do with LODs but after like 4km my buildings disappear.

[stuck oyster]

what is your object view distance?

and is it very small object or does it get occluded

and no more lods would not help in that

[strong plaza]

you can make your geo lod bigger to get objects to render further out by adding a vert in your geo lod and place it far above your collision mesh

max render distance for regular objects is 12 km

[rough idol]

you can also use this https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Arma_3:_Named_Properties#drawimportance or this https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/CfgVehicles_Config_Reference#featureType

[stuck oyster]

also the occlusion namedParameters can be useful

[full grove]

anyone ever gotten error for UV tag having badcount

[stuck oyster]

where?

@full grove

[full grove]

sorry I'm not that experienced what do you mean by where

[stuck oyster]

where does the error happen

what program

[full grove]

pboproject

it follows up with invalid.p3d

[stuck oyster]

is it a model you made yourself?

[full grove]

but it worked up until now

[stuck oyster]

then you have to retrace your steps and see what you have changed since last time it worked

[full grove]

yeah

I think I tried to add screws to the model and that messed it up???

[shell bluff]

SSGN Oscar II Class https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu9wa7n2hSg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UuUUiLIGaI

[frosty rain]

do geometric occluders need to have a component_# named selection apart from occluder__#?

[frank schooner]

What do I need to name a selection in a vest p3d to get it to move with a unit's body?

[stuck oyster]

it has to correspond with the bodyparts so that it moves with them

the sample vest has reference

[frank schooner]

I was using "spine" but for some odd reason that duplicated the model.

[stuck oyster]

you must have done something odd then

[frank schooner]

Probably lol. I'll look at the Sample. Thank you.

[stuck oyster]

spine wont be good on its own btw

[mint current]

I know I can include models in my mission and spawn them as super simple objects, but can I set the texture on the object so it finds it in the mission folder?

I know the texture path in missions would be just "texture.paa" and it'd point to a file called texture.paa in the root of the mission folder, but does it look it up right if I set the path like that in objectbuilder?

I would just test myself, but I can't use objectbuilder, it crashes on saving

I know I could do an absolute path, or point to a path in the game folder, but the idea is to include the model and texture in the mission folder

[frosty rain]

Maybe SetObjectTexture? No idea if that’d work

[mint current]

I've considered it, but I believe it only works for simple objects, so you'd need to define a class

I wouldn't be able to do that in a mission

[stuck oyster]

dont pack objects into your mission

[full grove]

Advice if a part of my model is not loading in-game?

[radiant bridge]

are you using proxies?

[mint current]

Why not?

[quick terrace]

that won’t work

[quick terrace]

because that’s not how things are designed to work

[mint current]

They literally added support for including models in your missions

But if it doesn't find the textures I need to figure out something else, thanks

[outer condor]

@mint current tried https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/getMissionPath yet?

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/setObjectTexture may even work with https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/createSimpleObject

[stuck oyster]

those wont work if the object has no config and hiddenselections defined

simple things can be added via mission sure

but want advanced features = make an addon

[mint current]

Yeah HorribleGoat is right

Although those pages are a bit misleading when they say super simple objects can't be textured, they can, but they just can't be retextured

And it seems that, as expected, .p3d texture paths can't point to the current mission

At least not in a general way, you can do it for a specific mission, but not for any mission

[full grove]

Yep

[sturdy prism]

I asked this in #arma3_config but just realized I probably should ask this here, whoops.

If I replace a weapon turret (the L7A2 on 3CB's Coyote for example) with a different weapon (swapping it to the M240b) will the engine automatically swap out the graphical models or do I need to do a new 3d model?

I don't think it actually works but before I reload everything thought I'd ask

[polar fiber]

Need a new 3D model

[sturdy prism]

'aight that's what I figured thanks saved me a test packing

[silver zenith]

can AI land on 3D helipads?