arma3_model

[stuck oyster]

there is a wiki page for "Arma 3 Named Properties"

[fierce rain]

i will have a look on that. thank you so much ❤️

oh btw i found this lod in the Objektbuilder https://prnt.sc/11r6uak

is that the shadow lod?

[stuck oyster]

one of them yes

that resolution for it is not correct for this type of object though

you also may want to alter your OB UI to be more clear

makes it easier to use when its clean

[fierce rain]

should i make it 10000

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Creating_Shadow_LODs

im in this thread now

[stuck oyster]

no

just 0

[fierce rain]

so i have to set it 0?

[stuck oyster]

yes

but if you use the named property then you dont need shadowLod at all

[fierce rain]

ok will try it

[warm spindle]

hello i would like some help please i created my first helmet model but it appears on the chest of the unit instead of the helmet , any idea about how to fix it ?

[small olive]

your helmet needs to have selections like head, neck etc. to tell the game which parts belongs to which body parts and move with them. also you need to create a empty geometry lod and add a autocenter named propertie with value=0: https://prnt.sc/11razy1
and you need to copy model.cfg from the arma 3 samples characters folder to same folder with your p3d and define your model down below: https://prnt.sc/11rb6t0 (name must be same with the p3d object)

[warm spindle]

ahh thanks i found the problem , i wrote autocenter wrong

[strong plaza]

@fierce rain visualex does not look good on buildings as flat surfaces get shadow banding

[stuck oyster]

Maybe it gets a fix sometime

[strong plaza]

it was supposed to have been fixed, but it's still an issue

[wary dome]

Hi everybody.
I've a problem with my animation.
So my animation work but it is instatanly no transition ...
model.cfg

class garage1
            {
                type="rotationZ";
                source="garage1";
                memory=1;
                selection="Gate_1";
                axis="gate_1_axis";
                animPeriod=1;
                minPhase=0;
                maxPhase=1;
                minValue="0.0";
                maxValue="1.0";
                angle0="0";
                angle1="1.6";
            };

and here my config :

class open_garage1
                    {
                        displayName = "Ouvrir la porte";
                        displayNameDefault = "<img image='\A3\Ui_f\data\IGUI\Cfg\Actions\arrow_up_gs.paa' size='2.5' />";
                        position = "porte_01_action";
                        radius=2;
                        onlyForplayer = "true";
                        condition = "((this animationPhase 'garage1') < 0.5)";
                        statement = "this animate [""garage1"", 1]";
                    };
                class close_garage1
                    {
                        displayName = "fermer la porte";
                        displayNameDefault = "<img image='\A3\Ui_f\data\IGUI\Cfg\Actions\arrow_down_gs.paa' size='2.5' />";
                        position = "porte_01_action";
                        radius=2;
                        onlyForplayer = "true";
                        condition = "((this animationPhase 'garage1') > 0.5)";
                        statement = "this animate [""garage1"", 0]";
                    };

Do you know why ?

[stuck oyster]

have you defined the garage1 in config.cpp class animationSources

[frosty rain]

@wary dome as goat said I don't think you have defined it in animationSources, the thing that determines how many seconds the animation takes is animPeriod

Would there be any difference in loading time if I have two buildings in a pbo and i split each building in its own pbo?

[wary dome]

thx 😄

[wary dome]

Normaly, arma take more time for loading two pbo than one 😄

[frosty rain]

Does it really affect if the overall size of the pbos didn’t change? Like if i split a 200mb pbo into two 100mb pbos

[stuck oyster]

some hefty buildings...

[frosty rain]

yeah, it's from when i was learning and used 4k textures and supershaders for everything 😬

[stuck oyster]

🙈

[frosty rain]

Anyways, do you know if the loading time would be different? I am thinking of splitting it since if I update building_1.p3d I don't want the person to have to download building_1.p3d and building_2.p3d since they'd be in the same pbo

[stuck oyster]

probably not any meaningful difference

[frosty rain]

Alrighty, thanks!

[stuck oyster]

but pls make them use multimaterial xD

[frosty rain]

Hahaha I've since converted into the ways of using multimats for any walls, etc. Don't worry 😂

[fierce rain]

@stuck oyster setting it to 0 fixed it

thank you ❤️

[stuck oyster]

👌

[runic plover]

Do not use 4K textures..safe these for the future like Arma 4

Id rather to go with 2K textures, more perfomance friendly in loading ingame.

[frosty rain]

Yeah I don't use 4k textures anymore, it was mostly compensating for bad texel density

[olive rampart]

how can i make my buldozer show full screen?

[stuck oyster]

I suppose you could scale the window

but why would you want to?

[olive rampart]

why wouldnt i? i have 3 monitors and like to USE them

you cant scale the buldozer window

[stuck oyster]

@olive rampart u sure?

[olive rampart]

99.9% sure i dont get the option to scale at any spot on my buldozer window, which would be why i asked.

[stuck oyster]

if its active you cant

but if you have some other window active you can take hold of the edges

[robust cosmos]

My friend I have I quick question please!!

It is possible to increase a poly count for a model ?

Is the model will be more detailed

Thank you very much

[stuck oyster]

there is no magic automation for that

[robust cosmos]

Pardon me

I didn’t get it

[stuck oyster]

lets start from what model are you talking about

[robust cosmos]

Okay let me explain

[inland pawn]

You have to manually add more detail. There is no way to automatically increase poly count

[robust cosmos]

@inland pawn I understand

[inland pawn]

If it’s your model, by all means add as much detail as you want. If it’s someone else’s, don’t touch it

[robust cosmos]

@stuck oyster there is a dude was contributing his models once before in Bohemia discussion

It’s old post

And I like to work with ot

It

I’ll provide the link for you

[stuck oyster]

its easier to make your own models

then you know how they work

[robust cosmos]

@stuck oyster I’m saying so

[stuck oyster]

using old models is messy

[robust cosmos]

Coz I’m having problems with rv mats

[stuck oyster]

well you just have to learn how they work

using old files is not the best way for that though

[robust cosmos]

https://forums.bohemia.net/forums/topic/171235-bafx-and-rangemaster-mod-packs-released/?do=findComment&comment=2942471

Here is the link with all the models

[runic plover]

@robust cosmos in OB you can try with Points / Merge Near "detect or do own values" but it might cause bugs and you need to repair sometimes.. it can be used to make resolution lods.

But the better way is like said above, do the models new.. its a faster progress to reduce polycount.

The other way works if you need to add more poly of a low poly model

[robust cosmos]

@runic plover appreciate that I’ll give it try then 👍🏻👍🏻

[carmine ether]

Find an airplane maker

[quick terrace]

lol what?

[ocean patio]

So I made a couple of helmets and facewear, but for some reason when in first person/piloting the character, the facewear and helmets cover up the camera. Of course, I was easily able to fix this on my uniforms by removing the headgear and facewear proxies from them, but the issue persists on base game uniforms and other mods'. What can I do to make the facewear and headgear not appear in first person?

[rough idol]

create empty pilot view lod

[ocean patio]

Ahhhhh yeah that makes a lot of sense

Thanks!~

[uneven vigil]

how can I use direction sources in character model?
https://prnt.sc/11w72rv

[uneven vigil]

for Compass

[stuck oyster]

you cant

or well I never got modelc.cfg animations work on characters at least.

so at least educated guess is you cant

which is why you have the compass item

[uneven vigil]

The watch with a compass is very cool 😄

[stuck oyster]

yes but you cant make it work on the characters wrist

you are not the first one to try

[olive rampart]

What are arma poly limits? I know dayz was around 30k

[frosty rain]

The modelgeometry in each LOD needs to be below a "maximum polygoncount". This "maximum polygoncount" varies depending on how your model looks. The actual limit is based off vertex normals. The total amount of triangles you can use therefore depends on the Smoothing splits and UV splits in your model. According to some tests and documentation of DirectX9 the limit appears to be 2^15 = 32768 vertex normals in ArmA, Arma 2 and early Arma 3 (where DirectX9 is used). In a recent (Q1/2016) update, the .p3d format in Arma 3 was updated to version 70 and now has a higher limit (above 2^16 vertex normals). If you exceed the vertex normal limit, loading your model may crash the game or it simply won't display it. You can check it in Objectbuilder by loading up Bulldozer - if the LOD is not displayed, you are above the limit. Modern 3D modelling tools also offer native or user created tools to check the amount of vertex normals. Please remember that this is the absolute maximum you can use - this does not mean you should fully utilize it on every object.

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

[ocean patio]

Does the distance between the direction hlavne determine ballistic barrel length?

[polar fiber]

No there’s no simulation of internal ballistics in Arma other than being able to adjust config initspeed

The memory points are mostly for generating particle effects in the right place

And forming the axis of the weapon bore

[iron oriole]

Can anyone point me to info about a model workflow without OB? I haven't been able to find anything other than the ancient blender plugins. Just started getting the camera problem so OB is pretty much unusable now.
Edit: Got it, didn't realize Arma toolbox was updated

[sour fulcrum]

Hey model makers! What's a good poly count for a vehicle? I've got a model I want to import, but it's waaaaaaay too high of a poly count for the engine to handle. Trying to work out how much I need to shave off this thing?

[polar fiber]

Depends on the vehicle. Whether it has an interior etc.

70k verts for something with multiple weapon stations, or lots of wheels wouldn't be unusual

I would aim around 90k for say a tank with appliqué armour. But on the other hand something with a fairly simple, smooth monocoque body like a car or plane might be as low as 30k

[stuck oyster]

this is actually old info, theoretical limits are now in millions (was updated some years back)

but you should never ever aim to reach that limit

what is good performance friendly target depends on size and detail level of an object

but also a good object has multiple resolution lods that makes its draw more performance friendly at different distances

[jovial solar]

Hi I need some help getting simple objects into Arma all the tutorials Ive seen(thanks H.G.) need LODs or are inventory objects any help appreciated DMs welcome

[stuck oyster]

explain what kind of a problem you are having and perhaps solutions can be found

It is better to do help in public as too many times the private chat helping is never passed forward and gets lost in the DMs

[jovial solar]

to be honest Im still trying to understand it at all, I dont even know what LODs are but they seem to be required for interaction with bullets etc, but I just need walkable simple 3d structures placed in editor

https://youtu.be/TboTYArmi2s

this is the easiest tutorial I have "understood" but I still dont get it

he seems to make an inventory object but I dont know if its something you could walk on, or how I would find it as an asset in the editor menu

[stuck oyster]

no inventory item is not what you want to do

you could look into the El Tyranos tutorial series.

[jovial solar]

thanks again for that one, I found Gattington easier to understand. I suppose there is not easy method/tutorial for such a complex subject. I would just love to know how to add customized obstacles into the game

If anyone does know how to do this, lets make a video together.

[frosty rain]

I mean most people here know, doesn't mean we have the time to make tutorials lol

as goat said this is probably one of the best tutorials to learn about lods and stuff https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxGIgurkzW4&t=1759s&pp=qAMBugMGCgJlcxAB

[jovial solar]

I know they know, but I figured a tutorial for beginners would help the community, I dont want to disrespect that guy for his tutorial, but it is extremely difficult to bear his mic (personally) and I strongly suspect it could be much shorter. again I dont mean disrespect, I just want to help the Arma community by making a simple to understand video about this subject

Video idea: make a cube in Arma, and climb on it

[stuck oyster]

@jovial solar please no video. Video is not good format for this kind of complex stuff

[jovial solar]

I don't understand. Video is the only way some of us can access this kind of information. I would like to simplify it to help the Arma community grow both in size and intellect. Some of us need a hand holding, help me provide it.

[stuck oyster]

why is written tutorial not accessible?

[frosty rain]

I think goat means text is a better format for explaining this

[stuck oyster]

well text and images

[jovial solar]

It is accessible just not useful for some.

We all learn differently, help me understand so I can relay that info to others in a way I know they will get

Im coming from and early childhood education perspective, there are very effective teaching methods that can be used here

Just need to simplify it

[stuck oyster]

there isnt that much you can do to simplify this stuff.

there are lot of parts, lot of programs lot of things that need to be right

[jovial solar]

Cube video would be simple

Good microphone would be effective

Short video with key points indicated would be extremely effective

[stuck oyster]

but its not short

[frosty rain]

Honestly the El Tyranos tutorial is already very simplified

[stuck oyster]

there are lot of things

[jovial solar]

a cube video would be short(er)

[stuck oyster]

even for a simple cube

[median bough]

the main problem with videos vs text is, changes can not be applied "on the fly"

[frosty rain]

Wouldn't really be that much shorter

[jovial solar]

Im just talkiing about the intro to modeling

[frosty rain]

All the concepts in El Tyranos tutorial apply to a cube

[stuck oyster]

modeling intros there are many

[frosty rain]

Oh if you're learning to model straight for arma you're starting on the wrong foot

[stuck oyster]

for each commonly used program

[median bough]

there are already thousands of hours of videos for entry level modeling available

[jovial solar]

Ok, I just wanted to help.

[stuck oyster]

thats alright

but the basic modeling stuff exist already

[median bough]

your intentions are good, just the chosen medium (video) is not

[stuck oyster]

from basics to advanced "how to"s too

ok so

there is "general modeling"

which is making model in a program you select

and then there are general how to make textures how to make uvmapping in any given program

those are starting steps for modeling

[jovial solar]

I think I could prove it, if I could watch any of you make a cube and ask questions

[frosty rain]

Making a cube is 2 clicks on blender

[stuck oyster]

1 click

you start it and the default scene has cube

thats not the point

[frosty rain]

ah true lol

[stuck oyster]

then along with the genral stuff that applies to everything

there is the Arma specific things

[jovial solar]

ok lets see it, DM me and I'll watch you add that to Arma, then make a video that is short, for the community to learn from

[stuck oyster]

but to understand those, one must first grasp the general basics

[jovial solar]

this is how some of us will grasp it, please help me help others like me

[stuck oyster]

now that gets us to the problem of time

which most of us have sparingly

[frosty rain]

#arma3_model message @jovial solar

[stuck oyster]

@jovial solar do you have a 3d modeling program you want to learn?

[jovial solar]

respectfully @stuck oyster, I see you helping people all the time here. What I am asking will help exponentially

[median bough]

for blender:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyJWoyVx_XI&list=PLjEaoINr3zgEq0u2MzVgAaHEBt--xLB6U

[stuck oyster]

that is a decent introduction to blender yes

[jovial solar]

its adding to arma, not making blender stuff that is the hope here

[median bough]

but, as with every video tutorial: blender has changed since then......

[stuck oyster]

@jovial solar yes but do you already have the basic understanding of for example Blender

[frosty rain]

so you want to eventually buy models and import them instead of creating i assume

[jovial solar]

simple cube + LODS + pack + try in editor

[stuck oyster]

well I have no time for that

to make an efficient video out for such it would require hours of preparation

[jovial solar]

@frosty rain no, and please dont assume BS about me... the honest answer is that I want to import giant letters of the alphabet to write fun stuff with stuff like NAM in giant letters in the mist... since I cant figure it out from the tutorials I have found, I thought I should get someone who knows to help me.

as far as time to help people goes, video would make you helping people exponentially effectve (@H.G.)

[frosty rain]

Well for that you still need to learn the basics of blender

[jovial solar]

@stuck oyster

[frosty rain]

https://blender.stackexchange.com/questions/116358/text-converted-to-mesh#:~:text=To convert the text%2C press,able write letters like before.

[jovial solar]

I have objects already(@frosty rain)

[stuck oyster]

I dont like to be pressured into things either. Good luck with the letters though.

[jovial solar]

@frosty rain

no pressure, I was just asking and you replied(@H.G.)

[frosty rain]

so do you know how to create text in blender and transform it into a mesh?

[jovial solar]

yes

@stuck oyster I think I placed my @ at the wrong time and he replied faster... it might have looked like I meant I had 3Dobjects for YOU, I didnt mean that

[frosty rain]

i'll do a video just for you, won't have audio or anything so you'll have to see it very carefully

[jovial solar]

@frosty rain if you can do it, please join me in a DM to watch, than I can make a video for everyone

[frosty rain]

uploading now

[jovial solar]

ok great, thank you!

[frosty rain]

https://youtu.be/XStNHFbiSBE

keep in mind the normals/direction of the faces are backwards but i cant be arsed to fix it

to fix this in blender alt+n and recalculate outside

https://www.mediafire.com/file/8cbjpzgdavpdvtx/Myke_Client5.rar/file this is the mod if you want to experiment with it

[jovial solar]

wow that was so fast!

thanks man!

[stuck oyster]

Dont take this the wrong way @frosty rain but this video is not really helpful in the long run.

[frosty rain]

keep in mind this is absolutely the worst way to learn

[jovial solar]

I would live to talk with you while you do it, thats the best way to learn

Why is that? @stuck oyster

[frosty rain]

yeah, it was just something fast so misconduct can possibly import his letters lol

[frosty rain]

because it doesn't explain lods, how to do configs from scratch, how to texture, etc, etc, etc

[stuck oyster]

@jovial solar it lacks the resons why things are as they are and why they work as they work

[jovial solar]

Ok, but that dosnt mean that the medium is incorrect , its just missing some information

[stuck oyster]

Im sure I cant convince you otherwise so I'll get back to my work.

[jovial solar]

We could make a tutorial that teaches with concepts the beginner can comprehend, and also have a clear mic, English primary (for my purposes)

[stuck oyster]

thats the part that takes hours

which people rarely have

as they like to spend the few free hours working on their own stuff

[jovial solar]

I apprectiate you pointing me to El Tyranos but his tutorial could be better for newbies, I realise takes time, as does video editing, but its worth it for the community to grow

[stuck oyster]

¯_(ツ)_/¯

[frosty rain]

its not better in any way for newbies, el tyranos explains most of the stuff of why it works

[stuck oyster]

he does leave stuff out too

[frosty rain]

the best way I can compare it is el tyranos is a tutorial on the basics of how to play guitar, mine is a tutorial on how to play a specific song lol

[stuck oyster]

Arma modding is not quite like that

Arma modding is the band

[frosty rain]

lmfao

[stuck oyster]

playing the guitar is just 1 small part of it

[jovial solar]

@frosty rain music teachers do teach beginners just a song, so they can learn from the thing they already like and understand

[stuck oyster]

if we go there, we start by how computers and windows work

because a lot of "basic modding" expects that knowledge to be already ready

[jovial solar]

Anyway I will try my best to make a video from that you showed us. But I could use a voice to learn from

[stuck oyster]

what does the voice add?

[jovial solar]

questions and anwers @stuck oyster

best teaching practises

[stuck oyster]

possibly so. if we were in business of actual real life teaching

that however is unreasonable task to ask

in my opinion

from people who like to do modding for a hobby

[jovial solar]

I could prove it, if anyone would be the instructor.

[frosty rain]

I might eventually do a full video with audio and stuff when I have time, keep in mind it will assume you have basic modelling and texturing knowledge, I only do life stuff in arma though so it won't teach you stuff like the paths lod and stuff that AI needs

El Tyranos does teach the AI stuff tho

[jovial solar]

I really dont want to disrepect anyone for their efforts, but the mic quality alone is enough to deter a newcomer. Concise video editing and visuals can explain any concept better than text found on BI forums or from a teacher with great intentions, who has a broken medium

I will try to make something fun with what you showed me @frosty rain, if you are going to make a tutorial, allow me to help you by asking the questions that a newcomer would ask

[stuck oyster]

I am certain a well written text with images is still better medium. Answers on the forums are not in any way a good comparison point

and you cant properly search video for certain information or key phrases

and if you want a good on point video

it has to be scripted

so you actually have to write it all down first

if you wing it, it will have minutes of silence or misclicks or going off point explaining something else

[jovial solar]

@stuck oyster with respect, you and I learn in completely different ways. I can teach what I know, and I can learn from seeing live, and interacting

[stuck oyster]

yes well

you cant interact with video either

having a live tutor is a totally different thing altogether

[jovial solar]

I will prove it when I find someone willing to speak about modeling in voice, with video interaction

[stuck oyster]

and yes, when I've learnt these things, there were 90% less stuff written down

and basically no videos

[jovial solar]

sir, that is the way you learn, not I.

but thank you for your help

[stuck oyster]

well I have not really been able to help you since there are no such resources that I could point you to.

[jovial solar]

ok, thanks for your input then.

[olive rampart]

new to arma model.cfg's....i took one from an example i found and altered to what i thought was correct for my weapon. but when i pack with mikeros, i keep getting this error cfgModels: There is no 'Weapon' in cfgSkeletons to inherit from

[stuck oyster]

you are trying to inherit from "class weapon"(yourclass : weapon) in cfgskeletons or you are trying to use "weapon" in one of the inheritance parameters without it existing

[olive rampart]

Yeah, because the arma samples are shit

The model cfg has a weapon class. Whether it’s set up correctly idk

And no, I wasn’t inheriting from weapon, it’s just in model.cfg as the sample showed it

[stuck oyster]

well the samples are not designed for the rigorious checks pboProject makes

[olive rampart]

so im at a loss then on a model.cfg for an assault rifle. because the sample is all i had to go off. lol

[stuck oyster]

the sample is fine. you just need to understand the parts so you can write your own

all you need is 1 class for skeleton and 1 class for the weapon in cfgModels

the classes before test_weapon in the sample are just example of how inheritance can be structured

in the example basic weapon functionality is defined in the class weapon

then common rifle stuff is added on it in the class rifle

and then those are passed on to weaponbase where some specifics for that weapon family are added

and finally the weapon itself

it is not mandatory to make it like this though

it is just one way of organizing it

it can be useful if you have many same type weapons in same model.cfg

so that you can have the shared parts in one class

for single weapon.p3d a single class weaponp3dname is enough

[olive rampart]

lol, so basically i can set it up exactly how i did my dayz model.cfg's and not have a problem. awesome

all that confusion for nothing lol

ty

[olive rampart]

so the model works in game. but the hand placement is off, and if i try to aim down sights its off to the side of the gun, if i attach a DMS scope, long range part works, but if i go to the holo im looking at the buttstock

[frosty kraken]

I did a quick search of this channel and some suggest to keep the object's scale in Blender 1:1:1. Could be that but how does one keep the scale in those? No matter what I try the scale seems to change even if I'm supposedly only trying to change the proportions of the object~~~
Live,learn edit: better to do the object proportion editing in Blender's *Modeling* mode. That seems to keep the scaling intact

[stuck oyster]

Yes that is correct @frosty kraken

@tranquil coyote yes you can load P3d into Blender with weighting

[olive rampart]

how can i change the holding animation of the gun im making? or a list of which ones can be used or something?finger is on the trigger correct, but it holds the gun like its trying to get to an underbarrel GL and thats not correct.

[stuck oyster]

there is a config entry for handanimation

for a custom weapon you will likely want to make a custom animation

Its rare that any ready animation fits

[kind lion]

how am i supposed to use hard vs soft edges? i dont normally do HP bakes, but it seems that baking from a high poly with hard edges creates some nasty artifacts, while having everything smooth bakes correctly

hard

smooth

is the shading in game calculated from the normal map and therefore soft edges get ignored?

[polar fiber]

Baking hard edges requires splitting the UV along the hard edge and having a couple of pixels between the now-split edges, to pad

So really you should only have a hard edge where the borders of the UV shell are

[kind lion]

hmmm but do i need the hard edges if i am baking from a high poly still? the shading there looks right

or is that going to cause a mess in game? 🤔

or as a rule i should use hard edges only on texture seams?🥴

[polar fiber]

I would keep the hard edges you deem necessary for the untextured mesh lighting to look good

[kind lion]

ok thanks

[olive rampart]

crap, i have NO idea how to go about making a custom animation. is there any guide/sample?

[woeful viper]

@kind lion watch this, it should clear things up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciXTyOOnBZQ (its the same for every 3D tool)

[stuck oyster]

@olive rampart #arma3_animation pinned messages

[olive rampart]

ty

[kind lion]

thanks!

[stuck oyster]

fbx export to work it needs to have a skeleton/armature with corresponding bones exported with it

[polar fiber]

Use the Blender Arma toolbox and import and export directly in .p3d format if you want to import weights without much fuss

[stuck oyster]

he wants to get the file out of blender to some other program though

[frosty kraken]

Can object texturing be done exclusively in Blender so that it'll be game-ready or is it necessary do the texturing in ObjectBuilder?

[frosty rain]

You can’t texture in object builder afaik, you texture in other programs (usually photoshop/mari/substance painter) and then assign the textures in OB (or in blender with the arma toolbox plugin) with rvmats

[frosty kraken]

It's possible to texture objects in OB, since I'm sort of currently (while still learning here) doing just that. In OB you assign a texture to a face of an object and by that texture paths are set correctly and so on. I was just thinking that if it would be possible to do the texturing part in Blender.. and maybe if it would be possible to assign texture paths correctly in Blender

[frosty rain]

I thought you meant like actually painting it in OB lol, yes you can assign it in blender

[runic plover]

you can texture in OB

[frosty rain]

@frosty kraken https://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=20519

you use that to assign the textures in blender

[frosty rain]

corrected, thanks!

[frosty kraken]

Hmm, thanks for the idea so to say! I already have Alwarren's Arma Toolbox configured in Blender. I guess I haven't yet gotten that far to figure out how to assign textures with the help of it 🙂

[frosty rain]

https://imgur.com/a/wn12ILZ Basically what you need to do is select the material you want to assign the texture to, scroll down and there should be the Arma Toolbox Material Settings

You can select either a texture, a color or custom

[frosty kraken]

Do PAA-files work with Blender (with Arma Toolbox)?

[frosty rain]

You won't be able to see the textures, you're only assigning their paths

[polar fiber]

Ah right, well in that case I'd probably keep a copy of the weighed one and try my luck with weight transfer tools in blender to restore them on the adjusted model

[white jay]

is there someone that can teach me to make models for arma?

[frosty rain]

youtube

is your best bet

#arma3_model message @white jay

[white jay]

thanks

[median bough]

@white jay
https://www.youtube.com/user/AndrewPPrice

[frosty kraken]

In Blender I have applied a material ("Material.003") to a object I'm testing with, then in that material a TGA texture with Arma Toolbox Material Settings. Should the texture display immediately in the object after it has been selected or do I need to press some magic key for the texture to show up?

[stuck oyster]

The Arma toolbox material and texture are just for the export. For Blender internal use you have to set up a normal blender material

[frosty kraken]

Ahh, copy that, thank you 🙏🏽

[stuck oyster]

👍

[warm spindle]

hello how many vertices are there typically for a helmet, say an M1 Helmet

[polar fiber]

Above 5k verts would be excessive I think. Would probably aim closer to 2k

[warm spindle]

thanks

[quick terrace]

no mate, blender self entitled guru tuts are not game oriented

[stuck oyster]

but its a start into how blender works

[quick terrace]

i recommend arrimus 3d

instead, much better quality

[stuck oyster]

looks alright too 👍

[jade quest]

Hey peeps sorry if this isnt the right chat, what could lead to an objects bounding box changing when its being moved by a zeus?

[stuck oyster]

❔❔ ❔❔
❔❔ 😆 ❔❔
🤚 Animations? ✋

[jade quest]

HG with the emote cult

[stuck oyster]

was waiting for TB to save.

but depends on how Zeus view calculates the bounding box

id wager its done in runtime and affected by animated parts

[kind lion]

after your replies from yesterday i cleaned up the hard edges and unwrap and finally it baked correctly, thanks guys

[silver zenith]

been trying to replicate an decal object but it just doesn't seem to work, I don't see any difference from the vanilla helipad both p3d and config wise

the rvmat is correct aswell

[stuck oyster]

did you put the land_decal in the geometry lods named properties?

[tender radish]

hey it's me again 😄
Is there some "rules" to respect for the view geometry lod ?

or is it just like the geometry lod

[frosty rain]

Should be the same as the geometry lod requirements I believe

Closed, convex, components, etc

[tender radish]

ok thanks 👌

[stuck oyster]

yes same as geometry but no mass

[silver zenith]

yes

[tender radish]

ok so now i have another problem xD
if i have a vehicle inside my building and the sun light is on the vehicle, the textures of the vehicle goes blank
i know it's the same problem (about the occlusion) but my view geometry lods seems good

here a video that show what i explained:
https://i.gyazo.com/a6a9f742e5e6b3b1a9f90394bbb5ea8d.mp4

[stuck oyster]

do your textures use correct suffixes? _CO/_CA etc?

and does your car have non alphachannel rgb _CO texture on it?

and this is more alpha sorting issue

[silver zenith]

I had a similar issue recently and I think it was an alpha sorting problem

[plush forge]

Anyone had a P3D: Bad header before when packing?

[stuck oyster]

sounds familiar

[plush forge]

I've not come across it before.

[median bough]

i had it once and i think i solved it by loading and resaving it in OB

[plush forge]

🤔

[white jay]

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/566060230824165383/836066184389853224/20210425222552_1.jpg

any idea what's causing this weird lighting bug?

at some angles the model appears completely shadowed and sitting normally the top appears shadowed

[stuck oyster]

bad shadowlod perhaps

[white jay]

Should I add one? all I have are the visual LODs, geometry, land contact, geometry phys and fire geometry

[stuck oyster]

depends how you want to cast your shadows

[white jay]

Arma's default lighting seems to work pretty good normally, I feel like there's something weird with the geometry

the other LODs look good

normals are facing the right way

could this have something to do with it?
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/566060230824165383/836068375166976030/shadow_settings.PNG

[stuck oyster]

nope

probably just your lack of shadow lod

or you could try sbsource = visualex named proeprty

or perhaps you have used some odd rvmat shader

[white jay]

that was it, the rvmat was causing issues

[warm spindle]

hello does anyone know BIs policy on porting and/or modifying models from Arma 1,2 ?

[median bough]

arma 2 data pack:
https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Arma_Licensed_Data_Pack
arma ADPL text:
https://www.bohemia.net/community/licenses/arma-and-dayz-public-license-share-alike-adpl-sa
more info on Public Data
https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Category:Public_Data
even more:
https://www.bohemia.net/community/licenses
@warm spindle

[warm spindle]

ahh thanks , just to make sure i understand this correctly only the files at the first link can be adapted for arma 3

?

[stuck oyster]

different packages come with different licenes

but yes these are the released files

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Category:Public_Data

there are also sample models that are in editable format

[kind lion]

the license only allows you to port models to other arma games

in case thats what you were wondering

[warm spindle]

Naturally ,i only want to port the models to arma 3 and perhaps modify a few

[stuck oyster]

might be worthwhile to mention that the texture and model quality is quite a bit lower in the old models than in A3

so it could be far simpler to make new models instead of fighting with the old ones

[idle bronze]

helloo there model makers, just want to know how detailed concepts need to be in order for someone like ur selves to turn the concepts to models?

[frosty rain]

Honestly, the higher quality reference you get the better, also if it's higher quality you don't need to figure out as much stuff yourself

but also depends on what you're making

[idle bronze]

hmm thank you, would u be able to take a look at one in dms and see if they are workable?

[frosty rain]

for sure, feel free

[shrewd jay]

Okay maybe someone here knows an answer... I have a View Cargo 2.0 LOD and associated Shadow Volume - View Cargo 2.0.. in Dev my interior is appropriately shadowed, but when I try in current stable or RC, it is fully lit and there is no shadow whatsoever. I've been tearing the last bits of my hair over this and I cannot figure out why..

[stuck oyster]

https://tenor.com/view/bad-hair-day-own-it-gif-12406916

[stuck oyster]

This may need input from @bold flare or @rough idol and if there are known differences in shadow volume behaviour between dev and stable

it kinda sounds like its loading some other lod instead of the one you want to use

[shrewd jay]

That's what I thought as well, but literally everything but the shadow lods have a lodnoshadow=1, even the memory, hitpoints and land_contact

I actually have two View Cargo lods, one for the driver (LOD 1) and one for the turret crew (LOD 2), the driver works, the turret doesn't.

driving me insane

[stuck oyster]

are you using any config parameters to assign the lods on specific seats?

[shrewd jay]

Scratch that, I just notice the driver'S view cargo shadow doesn't work correctly either, it's just not that obvious

Yeah, the commander, loader and gunner are specifically assigned to that LOD. They do see it correctly, too

[robust lark]

hey, is there any guides for getting started on making models for A3? In specific structures/buildings is what I'm interested in. Total starter but I'd like to have everything I can so I can look at it when I get to it without asking here over and over. From modelling, to texturing (and having it sort of match the in-game standards or lighting/colours) to importing it into the game / giving doors functionality at most. I know it's hard but if there's guides or links out there I'd like to have them so I can read them when I have time. I'd like to start making my own models for my terrains and I know nothing about 3D modelling but from what I've observed a lot of A3 models are very square-ish shapes and get away with it very well. I know some stuff about configs and overall Arma editing basics (and anything making a terrain requires) but not about Objects in specific. Any directions/guidance is appreciated!

[stuck oyster]

modeling basics and generic program of choice use should be taken care of first

only after that can one start looking into what Arma specific things are

[robust lark]

that too! I appreciate any good tutorials you could recommend on 3D modelling programs, or if there's general concepts to apply that works too. I'd preffer a free program since I can't afford a paid one or a subscription (unless it has very generous regional pricing).

[stuck oyster]

but also no there are not much in the way of A3 modeling tutorials

Blender is good and free and has community made addons that handle A3 file formats

the path to modeling starts from just learning how the program works and the concepts of mesh, UV mapping, texturing etc

there were few tutorials mentioned not long ago too that could be helpful to get started

Blender has a lot of tutorials though so googling will help

[robust lark]

I'd appreciate that. I just want to do generic houses or structures so nothing too crazy. Is there any sort of concepts, sizes/ratios or design choices I should keep in mind if I want to model something that will eventually be for Arma?

[stuck oyster]

when you understand how the things work in general, the requirements for Arma should open up quite easily

houses are already a lot more complex things than you think

"just house" is very misleading idea

[robust lark]

sorry, I'm ignorant - I just consider (from my ignorance) that making stuff such as vehicles or weapons would be more complex in terms of modelling, but I don't know, I'm just assuming

[stuck oyster]

concepts sizes etc are not yet of concern at all

in terms of modeling, its all the same

model is made out of same elements

no matter the subject

there are of course some specifics in things like textures and materials etc

but you dont need to concern yourself with that yet

[robust lark]

So how did you get started? Or what sources of information do you consider to be good to look into? Tutorials and information can be misleading or have bad habits and I don't know trustable sources for that to guarantee I pick up the right things or learn the proper way

[stuck oyster]

I started so long ago that those sources are not really available anymore

so cant really name any specific thing to start with

check out the ones mentioned on the channel earlier

also look up the Blender community discord(s)

and for starters dont do anything specific, just explore how the tools work

and when you start with something specific, start with something small

box

barrel

door

or even doorknob

and those dont need to be for Arma. just general practice

[robust lark]

mhm I'm aware it's knowledge that applies beyond Arma in the end

are these the tutorials you mentioned being mentioned earlier?
https://discordapp.com/channels/105462288051380224/105462541215358976/835639034067681300

[stuck oyster]

yeh that and the Arrimus one Pufu mentions bit later

[robust lark]

thank you, I'll look into it

[stuck oyster]

Just start slow and steady so you dont burn yourself up

[quick terrace]

that ^ buildings are not simple

[warm spindle]

hello , i created a helmet model for arma with a camo pattern , but when i try to use the hiddenselection texture to add a new helmet texture in the config file it doesnt work , any way to fix it ?

[frosty rain]

Did you define it on your model.cfg?

[warm spindle]

no i explaned it a bit better here #arma3_config message

#arma3_config message

[rough idol]

uh, are you sure that your file is correctly packed? Maybe you have file patching enabled in dev env?

[shrewd jay]

Yeah I am sure. And since I normally launch my dev branch from a batch file, I copied the file over to my regular Arma stable install, change the binary name, and run it there. Result is the same, shadow volume works in Dev but the whole interior is lit up in stable and RC

If I disable file patching in dev, it still works as expected

[shadow cape]

sorry if this is wrong place to ask but I am looking for static model of soldier that can be used as marker. hope that makes sense

I saw that somewhere but I don't know if it was vanilla arma model or custom

[jade quest]

Sorry, what do you mean as a marker? as a map marker or?

[shadow cape]

3D marker

kinda like the 3D arrows but 3D static soldier

[jade quest]

do you mean an object that you can just put somewhere without it doing anything?

[shadow cape]

yes

[jade quest]

Try disabling a units simulation in their attributes

Not exactly the same as the arrow, but might be enough for what you want

[shadow cape]

I would prefer simplified model that soldier model has lot of detail

I would also want it to be similar color (one color) like the arrows

does that make sense?

[stuck oyster]

I dont think there is such a thing in arma

you could perhaps make use of the VR character

but yes its more a #arma3_scenario thing isnt it

[shadow cape]

yeah was thinking that but it's not ideal..

[shadow cape]

i guess

[tawdry tree]

Do any of you know if it is possible to change a model upon injury of the NPC/Player? I know you can add blood to a texture based on injured state, but I was wondering if there was a way to do that with a model. Perhaps through event handles? (Not sure if this should go here, or in #arma3_scripting).

[stuck oyster]

scripting thingy to swap the identity I believe

maybe tied to damage eventhandler

[silver zenith]

do helipad objects have a vertex limit?

[stuck oyster]

Id suppose same limits as what other objects have

why do you ask?

[silver zenith]

I still can't manage to create one
so I though it was because the object wasn't a square

[stuck oyster]

shape should not matter

just the class inheritance from the base helipad class

but also tall helipad might not be understood by the engine

[silver zenith]

its still a 2d shape I haven't made it 3D.
I just modeled in the shape of the object so I wouldn't have to make a CA texture for it and use a color generator

not that it is something I can't do I just didn't want to increase filesize with a texture containing a single color

currently its a 50x50
so size shouldn't break anything I guess

[stuck oyster]

is it supposed to be a helipad?

[silver zenith]

just the properties of an helipad
so snapping to the ground

[stuck oyster]

thats not helipad related

decal != helipad

⬇️ 🚁

helipad

[silver zenith]

its the first example that came to mind when it came to inheritance
I guess there are also roads

and those dirt things

[stuck oyster]

cfgVehicles class has nothing to do with it

[silver zenith]

then where does the magic come from?

[stuck oyster]

what have you done so far?

and wheres that page about them

well cant find the one with the fancier explanations

but its this

that makes verticles hug ground

[silver zenith]

oh... it was that easy?
were it not for the rules of this land I would have said bad words

[stuck oyster]

class land_decal makes it draw with roads and other decals and makes its simulation simpler

shift+e brings up that menu

[silver zenith]

yeah I know where that is
thanks

[stuck oyster]

also if its not land_Decal type it does not overlap nicely with other decals

[silver zenith]

I should learn the UI better
lots of stuff I just auto ignore

I guess that decal check on the right also helps?

[stuck oyster]

no

that is deprecated if I remember right

well does not hurt to try what it does

but might be unexpected behaviour

[silver zenith]

I'll keep it simple

[silver zenith]

seems to be working
also apparently decals take longer to load than just plain 2D textures

[stuck oyster]

longer to load?

and whats a plain 2D texture?

[blissful spire]

why is geo/fire geo work so hard. ObjBuilder keeps telling me my stuff is non-convex, so ive convex'd my firegeo and it doesnt actually do so. im not sure what im doing wrong here

convexing just makes it worse and leaves an open section. Geo lod works fine for collisions though.

[frosty rain]

I suggest using only cubes, i’ve never had problems with only cube primitives

Usually OB will recognize something as non convex when it is convex tho, but just using convex component hull makes it go away

[blissful spire]

I've done that and it doesn't help any. I'll try the cube method.

Just the tank ive done works out fine with its fire geo and it's non-cube

[orchid spruce]

OB looks at how a mesh is triangulated to decide if it's convex or not too, that's usually the part that becomes a pain in the ass

most modeling programs will have something that will be able to generate a convex hull out of any object, I usually use that as a guide for how each component should be triangulated to be fully convex

[stuck oyster]

OB does not like verticles in middle of flat planes either

[runic plover]

Make geometry simple as possible and keep the mesh's shape

And

Structure / convex / component convex hull

Then, check for nonconvex stuff

And check for nonclosed

And please add in firegeometry or if you only do geometry LOD some penetration like if you hit metal, wood, pavement, concrete or glass.. most people dont do that and i think (my opinion) if you add such it makes your work more interesting and finished.

Same for roadways

[silver zenith]

as in a single face

non decal

[stuck oyster]

I dont quite understand the problem, but might be related to decals being drawn in different pass from other models

or some such

[silver zenith]

its not really a problem
just something to note
the same object takes longer to be loaded by the game if its in decal form

[stuck oyster]

like how roads are drawn last

[blissful spire]

Making this fire geo lod was for the purpose of penetration rvmats. Just a matter of actually getting it to work

[bitter kite]

https://streamable.com/ex2wko anyone know what can cause this? Rotors only showing when there is another heli nearby

[stuck oyster]

maybe faulty shadowlods

[bitter kite]

https://imgur.com/gallery/0LD7ySy hmm thats weird this is what they currently look like the only thing i see that is different from the rear rotors is those double faces

[stuck oyster]

does it have multiple shadow lod levels?

[bitter kite]

yea 2

[stuck oyster]

quite possible you are seeing the 1 when you have just 1 helo and the 2 when you have 2 as it simplifies the scene

[bitter kite]

but both of the lods have the rotors in them

[stuck oyster]

try with just the first shadow lod

are they animated to hide for example

perhaps you have faulty animation hiding them

try with just 1 lod

[bitter kite]

alright thanks ill try it now

hmm even with just 1 shadow lod the rotors only show up when a second heli is nearby

[stuck oyster]

that was quite fast pack

you sure it updated? 😄

also does the same happen in game?

live

[bitter kite]

the rotors only showing up when theres another heli?

[stuck oyster]

or not showing if only 1 is at the scene

also does the rotors show if you put the second one very far away?

[bitter kite]

yea they only show up when the second heli is within like 50m

[stuck oyster]

and does they show if you put something else to the scene

[bitter kite]

only shows up with the blackhawk model

https://streamable.com/71hwm1

same thing with more than 1 shadow lod

[stuck oyster]

quite likely that you have some issue in the shadow lod then

did you try with just the other shadow lod?

[bitter kite]

ill try that now

[quick terrace]

@rare stump mind if i PM you about dis - https://forums.bohemia.net/forums/topic/231377-tier-1-weapons

[rare stump]

Sure, no problem.

[polar fiber]

What selections names do the rotors have in the shadow LOD?

[bitter kite]

rotordive

[blissful spire]

so, i went back and redid the whole fire geo with pretty much squares that had triangulated faces via blender. its a closed and comvex shape using ObjBuilder, saved as, and reopened in obj builder to make sure the rvmat is saved. packed using addon builder and its still doing the dirt effect

[runic plover]

Use pboProject

In arma 3 samples you can find some penetration examples in different caregories like test_house etc

[woeful viper]

dirt effects just means your rvmat paths are incorrect or missing in fire geo...

[blissful spire]

i know where pen examples are from the a3 files in my P drive

and the paths are correct

[runic plover]

Copy path here

[blissful spire]

a3\data_f\penetration\armour_plate_30mm.rvmat

idk why everyone wants me to use pboproject. considering i dont use it. ive had no issues with addonbuilder to do what i need to do.

[stuck oyster]

because addon builder has no problems

as it does not care of any errors you make

[blissful spire]

to use packer i have to move my whole work folder to my P drive. which I really don't see why I have to.

[stuck oyster]

well you do you if it works for you

but it does mean its near impossible to debug your problems

since you dont work in the same way as others

so others have no idea how to help you

except the generic "maybe you have wrong pathing"

the other workflows work

[blissful spire]

I mean. I'll test it using packer to double check.

[stuck oyster]

until they dont

[blissful spire]

none of my normal paths are going to work since its decided to split the folder they were in into individual PBOs

[stuck oyster]

what decided?

for a folder to pack you need a valid config file in it

but if you have some custom setup you wont be able to use pboProject with it

[blissful spire]

my root folder is DSA_Armor with two subfolders. apc and tank. it made apc and tank into its own pbos

rather then just making 1 pbo as DSA_Armor

[stuck oyster]

well do you have config in DSA_Armor?

[blissful spire]

No. Because I've never needed one to pack it.

[stuck oyster]

then best you forget pboProject

[blissful spire]

That kind of defeats the whole purpose then.

[stuck oyster]

your workflow is not compatible with it

[quick terrace]

lol, are these folder on p drive

or just someplace on desktop or alike

[stuck oyster]

MultiPass?

[warm spindle]

hello, for some reason the shadows of my models are wrong , what could be causing this ?

nevermind, i found the problem , terns out i plased the wrong NOHQ file!

[strong plaza]

@stuck oyster you making progress implementing wamen?

[stuck oyster]

maybe

[strong plaza]

👍

[radiant cairn]

Why do Helmet and Vest models sit between a persons legs whenever you attempt to import them into Arma?

[polar fiber]

Because you're missing a fundamental step like creating a correct model.cfg file or weighing the vertices to the correct named selections

[radiant cairn]

gotcha!

[obtuse kindle]

so I've had this Idea of making a mod that has a stealth bomber drone that, can dropes nukes and other weapons. I've make a rough model of the drone I blender. the one thing that is stopping me from me making the mod is the simple fact that I have no cule on how to mod or code. so I ask to those people who can mod and code, would you like to make this with me?

[marsh canyon]

#creators_recruiting is the place to ask someone like that

[obtuse kindle]

thanks

also why can I not post pictures here

[marsh canyon]

Because for antispam

Use imgur or such with proper description

[obtuse kindle]

ok, is there a way?

[stuck oyster]

you can link the image from elsewhere

like imgur or gyazo or even steam

@obtuse kindle

[broken abyss]

I've got a problem with a tank interior i'm working on. In buldozer the textures look fine. Base layers, MC layers all ok but when loaded ingame only one of the texture set looks correct and all of the others are black as night. You can see a faint texture when a face is turned towards the sun. Is there a limit to how many texture sets you can have on a lod?

If you have any idea please ping me as I am going to bed after hours of f*cking about with this with no luck 😄

oh and the rvmats for all texture sets are identical

[stone cargo]

Quick question

where can I find the base character mesh and uniform models to use for reference when making models around it

[broken abyss]

Download arma 3 samples from steam and look in the files

@stone cargo

[stone cargo]

thanks bud

[stuck oyster]

@broken abyss mayhaps bad path in rvmat

[broken abyss]

A bad path would be visible in buldozer

and the textures are there, its just that they are very dark

[stuck oyster]

vertex normals in right direction?

is it a dark blob in OB view

[broken abyss]

Nope

normals are fine

[stuck oyster]

gib pictures

[broken abyss]

we shall continue this quest tomorrow

I have turned my pc off

[stuck oyster]

ShAMe

[broken abyss]

[broken abyss]

It was the ADSHQ

It was way too dark

[stuck oyster]

👍

[stone cargo]

Quick question, are we allowed to redesign the arma 3 base character mesh (sample one) for skin tight uniforms?

I heard it was open source and I'm wondering if the eula allows for this

[stuck oyster]

For arma use only yes.

also the reference hands and feet are usually good to be used on new character where ever there is skin visible

that way they skin parts work with the vanilla identity textures

[old gulch]

So, having a weird doohickey with exporting from Blender for some reason. The sharps aren't preserved, I think?

[stuck oyster]

How are you export from Blender? Link pictures of the problem

And in case it's the toolbox addon, set the path to O2script.exe in the toolbox settings correctly

[old gulch]

Exporting with Arma Toolbox for Blender, and I just reinstalled that addon, so let me just set that again.

Huh

Checked it in Bulldozer and it looks fine...

[old gulch]

Figured it out

Was just some registry issues

[warm spindle]

hey are 5000 vertices okay for a uniform ?

[stuck oyster]

Sure

[warm spindle]

awesome thanks

[olive rampart]

any examples for storage type items? items with inventory space and proxies?

[boreal breach]

aayyy is there any recent arma3 modding tutorials with 2.9 blender i dont understand the older versions

[stuck oyster]

No. The procedure is the same though. Ui has changed a little. It will be important to be able to figure this out since there is a lot of things that are not written in clear "this is how you do it" tutorials

[orchid spruce]

I just saw the thing about updated character fire geometries, they do seem much more detailed now but how much of a change is it? is it worth updating any custom uniforms I have with them or is the actual practical difference very small?

also I'm assuming that the "update" would just mean copy pasting the new ones into my firegeo lod? is that all the script does?

[rough idol]

I would say it doesn't hurt to update your character fire geo as it's really easy to implement

those new fire geometries are solving some minor edge cases + allows you to use much more precise armorComponent configuration https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Arma_3:_Damage_Enhancement

It's not used in vanilla data since quite a lot of community creations are used vanilla classes as base for their creations and assets without those components would be partially broken

but if you have your own mod & you don't have to worry about derivatives then you can safely utilize it - keep in mind though that passThrough values has to be tweaked since armorComponent is more precise when it comes to damage calculation

Another nice thing that is possible is ability to use armorSim classes once you have armorComponents utilized

[stuck oyster]

uu this sounds cool

big thanks @rough idol

[vocal shard]

how do i make my pbr maps ready for arma 3, or convert them to rvmat?

[dapper tangle]

You need to convert your textures into a .paa format using Tex View 2 and linking them all together in a rvmat which inside you can change the file path

You then assign the texture and rvmat to the model inside object viewer or inside blender if you’re using Arma 3 Tools for blender

[desert notch]

Hey guys.
I had a question for those of you who are familiar with making vehicles
Is it possible for units in cargo seats to have variable animations? kinda like "turn in/out" for turrets?
I just want to know if it's possible, not how.

[stuck oyster]

@vocal shard Also Arma shaders do not use PBR

so you will have to convert your PBR textures to Specular/Gloss workflow

@desert notch they dont have turn in/out but they can have unique cargo turrets

and each cargoAction (normal sitting pose) can also be different

[desert notch]

you mean each cargo seat right?

[stuck oyster]

yes

[desert notch]

but a single seat cannot have different animations? (it's always static?)

[stuck oyster]

how would they change?

[desert notch]

isn't that how turn in/out works?

just change the animation?

or is it a different seat?

[stuck oyster]

like I said, they dont have turn in/out

except if the "turn out" to cargo turret mode

[desert notch]

I don't actually mean turn in/out.
any way of changing their animation. (I can't think of anything except turn in/out that does this, so that's why I mentioned that example)

oh, I sorta understand what you mean now

thanks

[rough idol]

well, you can play any animation that you want on cargo seat

[desert notch]

well I hope no one does that! 😄
anyway, another question:
do each cargo seat have their own class in the config? (like turrets)

I can't seem to find it

or let me ask my question this way:
is it possible to find where each unit will be seated in a vehicle, using some config value?

do they have a memory point or something?

[rough idol]

Look for cargo proxy and their indexes

[desert notch]

oh! thanks!

[boreal breach]

how to assign vertex groups in blender every video i watch is outdated or not helpfull

[frosty rain]

https://docs.blender.org/manual/en/latest/modeling/meshes/properties/vertex_groups/assigning_vertex_group.html

[boreal breach]

thanks that actually help a ton, but say i wanted to make a static turret, i cant seem to find anything on how one would do that in blender 2.9

[stuck oyster]

there is nothing specifc you need to do in blender for static turret

its same modeling and same vertex group making that depends on what named animated parts you want to use

[olive rampart]

where can i find the files for helicopters? like the p3d's and what not so i can look at them with eliteness?

[marsh canyon]

Arma 3 Samples has one

[olive rampart]

yeah, not quite wha tim looking for

not the same as the one im doing. wanted to look at something a bit closer for comparison. but i cant find any p3d's in the unpacked files on my p drive

[marsh canyon]

Why compare?

[olive rampart]

look, im just asking where to find the files....

[marsh canyon]

You can't open binarized p3ds whatsoever. It's in air_f things though

[olive rampart]

im aware of what i cant do with them. as i stated in my question, i would like to open them with eliteness to check a few things.

[marsh canyon]

Ah. Never used Eliteness to look kind of things

Anyways air_f is the answer

[olive rampart]

use eliteness to check selections/model.cfg's

[olive rampart]

wasnt trying to start anything, or tell anyone anything. has been deleted

[stuck oyster]

thanks.

[olive rampart]

Bohemia ever gonna update the samples? Open any of the helis in elite ness and it’s twice as many selections

[stuck oyster]

Id wager its unlikely to happen

the samples are not really meant as full blown "do it like this" things

they show how things work together

and you can add on that whatever parts you want

because there are so many different things you can make, its important to understand how things work and be able to put them together

[olive rampart]

oh i know that. but alot of the things in eliteness are actually quite useful using new game files

like controls....

[stuck oyster]

but its impossible to make an example of everything

[olive rampart]

pedals...

etc

lol

[stuck oyster]

they all adhere to same animation rules

[olive rampart]

im not talking all the extra attachments...but the valid game pieces would be nice

[stuck oyster]

and the animation sources available are listed on the wiki

[olive rampart]

like the weapons...no magazine persay...its attached to gun. no magwell config

they update the game, update the samples

[stuck oyster]

[olive rampart]

🤷‍♂️

[stuck oyster]

well you can either accept they dont and carry on as best as you can or stop

[frosty rain]

I highly doubt samples would get an update, maybe the Arma 4 samples will be more detailed

[olive rampart]

if its ever released 🤣

[stuck oyster]

now you jinxed it

[olive rampart]

well, matter of WHEN

[stuck oyster]

if there ever is A4, theres just a folder full of potatoes as sample

[olive rampart]

would make sense

[stuck oyster]

and we can thank @frosty rain

[olive rampart]

but, potato guns are fun

just saying

have you ever blasted one of those?

[stuck oyster]

sure

but you dont get a sample for a gun

just the potatoes

[olive rampart]

good old american redneck fun right there

its a potato gun...its pipe and a lighter, we got this

[frosty rain]

I can see arma 4 releasing april 1st with arma 2 samples

[stuck oyster]

https://tenor.com/view/perfection-michael-fassbender-perfectionist-perfect-gif-7910211

[olive rampart]

70gb download, for a video trailer

on april fools

[boreal breach]

Python: Traceback (most recent call last):
File "C:\Users\helms\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\2.92\scripts\addons\ArmaToolbox_init_.py", line 223, in execute
exportMDL(self, filePtr, self.selectionOnly);
File "C:\Users\helms\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\2.92\scripts\addons\ArmaToolbox..\ArmaToolbox\MDLexporter.py", line 511, in exportMDL
export_lod(filePtr, obj, wm, idx)
File "C:\Users\helms\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\2.92\scripts\addons\ArmaToolbox..\ArmaToolbox\MDLexporter.py", line 441, in export_lod
writeMass(filePtr, obj, mesh)
File "C:\Users\helms\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\2.92\scripts\addons\ArmaToolbox..\ArmaToolbox\MDLexporter.py", line 320, in writeMass
weight_layer = bm.verts.layers.float['FHQWeights']
KeyError: 'BMLayerCollection[key]: key "FHQWeights" not found'

location: <unknown location>:-1

what the hell does this mean

[marsh canyon]

What are you trying to do

[boreal breach]

honestly im so lost i dont even know anymore i was hoping that was an ez fix

[marsh canyon]

[stuck oyster]

your geometry lod does not have mass

[boreal breach]

how does one fix that, is it an ez fix cuz i kinda just recycled the whole project to start from the beginning

[stuck oyster]

add mass/weight to the geometry lod components

[alpine arch]

👋 Question on memory points

Do I have to use the czech names? I.E I have a launcher with memory points in English such as;
barrel_start
barrel_end

        shotPos = "barrel_end";
        shotEnd = "barrel_start";

But I'm getting the following in my RPT;

12:08:10 Bad muzzle direction in RW_Launch_ASM:'usti hlavne'-'konec hlavne' 12:08:10 Bad muzzle direction in RW_Launch_ASM:'usti hlavne'-'konec hlavne' 12:08:10 Bad camera direction in RW_Launch_ASM:'eye'

[marsh canyon]

Is that your own launcher? Original p3d?

[alpine arch]

Yeah

However I'm using the base game NLAW as a config ref so maybe I've just inherited something I shouldn't have

[marsh canyon]

Then use the name you named. If you named it barrel_start, put barrel_start there

[alpine arch]

Ok, any insight on the RPT lines above?

I see those are the czech for muzzle/start

[stuck oyster]

You can define your names but the config and P3d must match
Also this check quite possibly means your weapon is pointing to rear and not front

[alpine arch]

They match up 🙂

Also this check quite possibly means your weapon is pointing to rear and not front

I did have this problem initially which was quite a cool feature

Now it's in-game, it is firing in the right direction and I'm still getting those errors despite having them matching up in the config and p3d

[charred bolt]

@alpine arch
Perhaps you are inheriting:

muzzleEnd = "konec hlavne";```
so try redefining them in the correct place in CfgWeapons {} (order depending on positioning in your p3d)
```muzzlePos = "barrel_end";
muzzleEnd = "barrel_start";```

[boreal breach]

so im importing to Object builder and its not loading my full model, like ill get only one part of my model insted of the entire thing

[stuck oyster]

How did you make the model and get it to OB

[boreal breach]

i export it from blender as a P3d, although i suspect its a problem with the vert count as its super high but i dont know if that matters in object builder

[frosty rain]

Did you join all the objects into one?

[boreal breach]

no

[frosty rain]

You have to do that

[boreal breach]

okay is there a way to get rid of vertices without deforming my model? i know about dissolving

[frosty rain]

Well it really depends on how the model was made, but you can try things as Mesh - Clean Up - Delete Loose

And then depending on the model merge by distance

Also deleting unecessary edge loops

Can also try the decimate modifier

But if you mean importing a high poly model into arma you’ll probably have to retopo it

That should give you better results than just using a decimate modifier to lower the poly count for example

[boreal breach]

it has 897,126 verts

[frosty rain]

Jesus

[boreal breach]

lol

[frosty rain]

Yeah you’ll most likely have to retopo

What is it?

[boreal breach]

its a model of the 2005 tripods from that one movie

war of the worlds

[frosty rain]

Yeah retopo is the way lol

Sometimes you can get away with just using merge by distance to clean up but it really depends on the model, but since your model is so high poly your only chance at importing it will probably be retopologizing it

[boreal breach]

allright thanks cuz i dont wana make it myself i suck with blender

[runic plover]

To many 🙈 visuals for such "gun?"
1/100 + 2000 or 3000 of what you have should be fine

[alpine arch]

Thanks - I'll have a gander

[alpine arch]

That was it 👍

[livid kelp]

on my vehicles cargo slot the head pos is set to the centerof the object, can someone tell me how to change the view pos of the cargo slots ?

[stuck oyster]

This is something you just have to either learn or give up whatever you are doing.

Since you did not make the model, there is also it's licence to consider. Is it even allowed to be used in a game etc.

But honestly. You want to put things into game, you have to learn modeling too.

[stuck oyster]

You need cargo proxy for each cargo passenger

[livid kelp]

a question on the cargo proxy, dose it need to be named cargo.p3d ?

[polar fiber]

Yes

But that’s all it needs to be called. Animation etc comes from the config so you may as well use generic proxies from the Arma 3 data

[livid kelp]

okay, i can now enter the cargo slot but my first person view is not on the head instead its on the center of the object

[stuck oyster]

If proxy is made to look like the used animation, it is helpful for placing it correctly.

But like @polar fiber said, any proxy named cargo works

@livid kelp is it using custom cargo animation?

It is cargo seat, not gunner or pilot

[livid kelp]

im not sure what you mean with animation...
im using the a cargo boat proxy
and
cargoAction[]=
{
"passenger_boat_holdleft",
"passenger_boat_holdleft",
"passenger_boat_holdright",
"passenger_boat_holdright"
};

[charred bolt]

@livid kelp You may need to set in config:

cargoProxyIndexes[] = {1, 2, 3, 4};```

[livid kelp]

tested it, still the same issue

[charred bolt]

Do you have a Cargo LOD in the p3d? In 3rd person view do you see the cargo passengers in the correct place?

[unborn bane]

Hey, Question, Are there any online guides or videos to get started in making my own model's and stuff?

[stuck oyster]

there are a lot of tutorials for all the popular 3D modeling programs

for Arma specific things not as much

[unborn bane]

Ive been googling it and all im getting is retexturing guides

[stuck oyster]

and actually quite little

if you dont know any modeling then you dont need anything Arma specific

you just need general "how to use X program tutorials"

once you understand how modeling and texturing works

the arma specific things open up almost on their own

[unborn bane]

Ok, thanks

Any Suggested programs or just go find one and start?

[stuck oyster]

Well Blender is great program and free

and in arma context it has very good compatibility with Arma via community made plugins

but you dont have to worry about that stuff for a while yet

[olive rampart]

is there anyone who could help me figure out why the SKIDS on my helicopter are dropping down when i take off, and coming back up when i land. almost like they are "suspension" or landing gear. supposed to be solid skids.

[stuck oyster]

are they part of a selection that animates them

as that is the only thing that can make them do so

[olive rampart]

i do not believe so. i mean, my czech is not very good. but the only place my skids are even their own selection are the geo lods as far as i can see

[stuck oyster]

there is nothing that can alter their shape unless they are part of a damper animation selection

[olive rampart]

haha. bet its "gear1". snuck that one in on myself lol

only in main res lod

[stuck oyster]

why are your names in czech tho? 😄

could be yeah

[olive rampart]

they arent. i meant memory points

[stuck oyster]

they too can be anything

if you define them in the config

[olive rampart]

yeah i've started changing them over as i learn what they are

[stuck oyster]

👍

[olive rampart]

now to figure out why my character wont show inside the heli lol.

[stuck oyster]

no proxy in correct lod?

[olive rampart]

i think its a matter of figuring out WHAT proxy to use?

thinking i used the wrong one

\a3\data_f\proxies\heli_light_01\pilot
is what i had

[stuck oyster]

pilot proxy is for pilot position yes

gunner positions would require gunner proxy and cargo positions cargo proxy

the proxy however only defines the position of the character

[olive rampart]

i know. my character wasnt showing when i got in. and the cargo proxies were showing constantly no matter what

[stuck oyster]

the config defined "seatType"Action define the animation used

Id recommend you remake the proxies if they show as triangles in game

they are not supposed to do that and are usually result of copy pasting gone bad

[olive rampart]

no, they show the actual proxy...

so thats why i think im using hte wrong proxies

[stuck oyster]

only thing that matters for passenger proxy is the name

pilot, gunner, cargo

and the index of the proxy

as the name and the index tie it to config

[olive rampart]

basically it looks liek this in game
https://prnt.sc/12mnzin

[stuck oyster]

this is in buldozer though

[olive rampart]

yes, and it looks just like that in game

shows THOSE proxies

[stuck oyster]

in dozer it loads the proxy because in dozer there is no connection with config. if in game it shows the proxies then yes they are not set up right and they just show the proxy object like any other proxy

and they are not connected with the config and passenger system

[olive rampart]

yes, which is why im trying to figure out where i went wrong setting them up

[stuck oyster]

if you get into the vehicle does your view go into correct place?

[olive rampart]

first person in pilot yes. passenger...no lol

[stuck oyster]

and did you copy the proxies from somwhere or did you create them via the proxy creation tool?

[olive rampart]

via creation tool using the paths from the sample

repacking all my new changes. will check in editor

pilot shows....passenger doesnt.

view is WAY off when in cargo position too.

[stuck oyster]

are you refering to the copilot as cargo?

or are there more passengers?

[olive rampart]

only have the pilot and copilot proxies in right now. i do not have any selections for either other than the proxies themselves

that could be why.

[stuck oyster]

is the copilot proxy called cargo?

the do not need any selections on them

[olive rampart]

yes it is cargo

[stuck oyster]

what is its index number?

should be 0

[olive rampart]

\cargo01.001

[stuck oyster]

cargo01 might be the problem

it should be named only cargo

[olive rampart]

\a3\data_f\proxies\heli_light_01\cargo01

[stuck oyster]

that would be the path

I believe

[olive rampart]

cargo01, gunner, and pilot are the only proxies in that folder

[stuck oyster]

cargo01.p3d?

[olive rampart]

yes

[stuck oyster]

looks like that name is indeed not valid

[olive rampart]

thats teh folder im using the pilot proxy from as well

[stuck oyster]

it should be just cargo

you can for example load the cargo.p3d from heli_light_02

what the proxy looks like in buldozer is irrelevant to its in game look

the action animation is what dictates what pose the character takes

usually proxy is just made to look like the animation so that it is easier to align to correct position

but in this case you can just use any cargo.p3d to test it out

[olive rampart]

ok

using cargo proxy from heli02 has the same effect. copilot is not showing. im assuming im missing some sort of selection.

https://prnt.sc/12mp27s

[stuck oyster]

does your config define cargoAction?

something like cargoAction[] = {"actionName"};

[olive rampart]

            passenger_apc_narrow_generic03,
            passenger_apc_generic02,
            passenger_apc_narrow_generic01,
            passenger_apc_generic04,
            passenger_apc_narrow_generic02,
            passenger_generic01_leanright,
            passenger_generic01_leanleft,
            passenger_generic01_foldhands
        };```

[stuck oyster]

alright so it has a lot of other cargo too

do all these other passengers have cargo proxy?

[olive rampart]

config from sample

[stuck oyster]

aa sample

right

[olive rampart]

there is no other cargo proxys right now. i only have the pilot and "copilot"

yeah, im trying to learn off the sample

[stuck oyster]

so you need this, but with just 1 action

1 per cargo proxy

[olive rampart]

how would i make THIS cargo be a copilot though? heli can be flown from either front seat.

[stuck oyster]

humm thats different thing from just cargo

[olive rampart]

i see this
cargoIsCoDriver[] = {0, 0};

but not sure how to use it, and i think that may make ALL cargo become pilots

[stuck oyster]

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/CfgVehicles_Config_Reference#cargoIsCoDriver

this may be useful

[olive rampart]

that is, ty

[olive rampart]

 crew = "Test_Soldier_F";```

this has me lost now. does it matter what faction i choose? and if so, is there specific crew for that faction? test soldier obviously errors out from the sample.

[stuck oyster]

it matters for editor categories and such

[olive rampart]

but doesnt effect players getting in and out?

that was my only concern. is that i needed a certain faction and crew type to let normal players use it.

[inland pawn]

No, faction has nothing over that. Just makes it fall under what group

As goat said

Editor categories

[olive rampart]

thank you

[outer condor]

how to adjust the quality and rendering settings for BD?

[stuck oyster]

in the BD config file I recall. The actual video settings menu is a bit lacking

[olive rampart]

ok, im still having the issue of cargo passengers not showing up in my helicopter. and first person view for them is all messed up.

[stuck oyster]

do you have the proxies in all view lods?

and in the ymmm

[olive rampart]

in 0.00, view pilot, and view cargo

[stuck oyster]

fire geometry lod perhaps

[olive rampart]

i have them in fire geo too. and view. still wont show my passengers. only pilot

ah ha. well thats something

if i get in back....it shows my passenger in front seat.

[olive rampart]

yeah, not sure whats going on at this point. the only proxies that show are pilot and one cargo in the rear. no copilot or the other 2 cargo. could use some assistance if anyones willing to help.

[inland pawn]

Weird thing, re did the geo and geo phys onto another tank and with practically the same setup, it won’t move at all

[charred bolt]

Chubby's issue with proxies showing fixed in DM's (config related).

[olive rampart]

ty sir

[inland pawn]

https://imgur.com/8tYn4hE Could the geo phys be incorrect?

[charred bolt]

No geo phys is probably ok. The problem with doing vehicle physx is that there are so many interlocking parts. Memory points in the Mem LOD are critical, overall mass and distribution in the Geometry LOD, tied in to the config.cpp entries (class Wheels {} etc), gear box and torque curves, then once the vehicle moves, get all the visual animations synchronised with model.cfg.

[inland pawn]

I’m basically creating a T72 copy. Using the test tank stuff as a placeholder until I can alter it

So, physX is the same

Only thing I can think of is either physX or config, but I doubt it’s config

Each wheel is assigned in physX. Just like the other one I did

When I’m back at my computer I’ll take a pic of my memory lod

Wheels rotate fine. Everything works besides movement

[charred bolt]

In class Wheels {}, experiment with reducing values for dampingRate and dampingRateInAir (make same value).

[inland pawn]

Yeah

Nothing works

[olive rampart]

ok so my problem wasnt exactly solved. can not get into heli as copilot...only pilot, or in back as cargo

[inland pawn]

Either your indexes are indexed incorrectly or your model is screwy

Be sure that proxyIndex corresponds to the correct #

[runic plover]

@inland pawn set the GeometryPhys a bit higher.

I mean this what hits the ground at bottom

[inland pawn]

It's set accurately with the model atm. Raise it?

[runic plover]

The Geophys should not hit the surface, make it higher (only track part)

[inland pawn]

https://imgur.com/TCvyxQ5

[runic plover]

Nothing of the GeoPhys should hit surface

[inland pawn]

Doesnt look like it hits the surface

I'll try it

[runic plover]

Middle part also a bit higher

[inland pawn]

Trying it now

Nothing changed

[runic plover]

Do the wheels work in the bulldozer viewer? Left and right?

[inland pawn]

Yes

[runic plover]

Dampers also?

[inland pawn]

Yeah

Everything works

Just wont move

https://imgur.com/Sdcizqz This geo phys works fine

From a different tank

Could it be physX

[runic plover]

Looks like Halo tank

[inland pawn]

OPTRE Dev here

Doing an insurrectionist tank and....it aint goin well

[runic plover]

Tracks are also named?

[inland pawn]

Yeah, though, they're named PasOffsetP/L and in geo phys

[stuck oyster]

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Arma_3:_Diagnostics_Exe

[olive rampart]

this is how apollo had my copilot seat set??
https://prnt.sc/12no268
cant get into copilot seat.

this is how the cargo is
https://prnt.sc/12no3ok

[stuck oyster]

recommend taking a peek with diag exes physX views

@inland pawn

[inland pawn]

https://imgur.com/LhlQGKl

Affirm

Ty