Blender to MAP exporter

[torus]

Awesome! This is an amazing effort.

[motorsep]

z80: Sounds awesome. So how does it work? (exporting some meshes as ASE misc_models and exporting info_player_* ents)

[z80]

toneddu2000 First is about misc_model entity type. For example if I have some object in Blender and I want it to be exported as misc_model I add logic property "classname" = "misc_model". After that an ASE file will be created and bind to a result MAP file MAP during export.

Misc model could be a link to other misc_model. It might be useful when one has a lot of identical objects. In this case only one object is exported as an ASE and others should have property "ref_to" = "<name of mesh in Blender>". Of course, it is optional, but I'm sure it minimizes exporting time and HDD space consumption

motorsep info_* is exported in the following way. If you set logic property of any mesh to "classname" = "info_*" (info_* means an exactly that entity type what you need), it will be exported as an appropriate entity.

"origin", "angle" and "scale" properties are calculated automatically from object matrix.

I've finished exporting "item_*" entities group from Blender also. It will be available here soon. Now I'm testing it by making some map using all exporter abilities. Unfortunately, I'm awful artist and even meet difficulties copying a construction from picture to Blender I have an amazing place near my house and I dreamed about making a map with it. ( It has Google Earth coordinates: 55 deg 58 min, 02 sec C; 37 deg, 10 min 16 sec B. People in my city use this place to play Paint Ball - it's like Nexuiz It's one of Communism ghosts - planned as particles accelerator and electronics center, nut now it's perfect ruin looking like after war )

[motorsep]

z80: Blender 2.50 came out officially (alpha): http://www.blender.org/download/get-25-alpha/
I haven't tried your exporter with it, but it sounds like API is totally new. None of the scripts that work with 2.49b will work with 2.50.
It's time to port map exporter to 2.50

[z80]

motorsep Thank you for the information! I've waken up in good mood, but now... New 2.5-alpha0 version is quite different. But it seems to me very convenient!

Yes, you are absolutely right, API is quite different. But fortunatelly file created in 2.5-alpha0 could be opened in 2.49b. At least it's geometry. So there is no need to hury with remaking all stuff for 2.5-alpha0.

It seems to me that things like ZYM and DPM making from Blender models in 2.5-alpha0 are also impossible with current SMD exporter. And if MAP geometry could be opened in previous Blender version it is not the case with animations Animation data is lost when opening 2.5 file in 2.49b.

I hope all problems may be solved using 3DS export/import from 2.5 to 2.49. At least for some time.

And Blender GUI creator is also useless in new 2.5-alpha0

Thank you for the information. I'll keep it in mind and start investigating 2.5 Python API to port exporter to 2.5.

[z80]

Version 0.21 of the exporter: http://www.box.net/shared/r5fqthmusy.

Changes:

* "item_*" entities support.
* Absolute coordinates, rotations and scales use when referencing to one and the same misc_model.
* Some bugs fixed.

Almost finished a map done only with Blender.

[z80]

I've made a map only with Blender. It still has a few bugs but could someone try it, please! I tried to copy some real location near my home. But due to I'm very-very-VERY bag artist it doesn't look as nice as original place



cie.pk3: http://www.box.net/shared/1pm9luukud

Due to some reason my map appears only in "Last Man Standing" game type. To try it as is one should launch it in DM in the way "map cie" in console.

Please, tell me if it is interesting to anyone! I'm sorry for such a design, this is my first map and I don't have any experience in graphics. Could anyone, please, suggest me anything to improve this map!

[FruitieX]

Hmmm... Looking very interesting z80

[toneddu2000]

wow z80, is a very promising map!
Here my suggestion:

1 replace that bright sky with a dark night sky (with stars and moon) and on the side of the skybox put images of ruined and abandoned buildings.

2 replace leafy trees with trees with no leaves, I'm working on a tree like that, if I finish in these days I'll send you!

3 use a darker illumination globally.

4 Add every 10 mt a streetlight that ligths surrounding areas and gives it real-time shadows casting.

5 add work tools scattered away like shovels or cement baskets and so on

6 I've noticed that under the basement in costruction there is a wall made of a plane and not a box. I would replace it with a box geometry, because if you see it by side, you can't see its width

7 (maybe in future)It could be great add some horror surround sounds and a thriller soundtrack like half life 2 in "don't go to Ravenholm"


I think it could help
Anyway a great work and very useful for testing your exporter!Thanks for sharing!

PS: How much time spent your computer to export that map? Because on a very early version (I used it in July)of the exporter my comuputer takes more of 4 hours to export a very high poly map, so I'm curious if there is an improvement on that side!

[Rad Ished]

In order for a map to be fun you have to put in obstructions for people to fight around, this map is more or less open space.
But that's not what this is about i suppose, quite a few people trying to cross the blender to netradiant divide at the moment, but still no really popular map has come out of it.
All that said this is a very interesting experiment z80 , good luck and please continue.
...
Eheh, it must be cool to walk around a real place that you know in nexuiz