Early planning for possible next mod

[ShadowFox0809]

About a year ago I finished working on a project with the goal of creating a mod that could be played with or without the mod being installed on each client's computer. I was working on what has been termed a "CSS" mod. I'm trying to push the limits on just how different a mod can be without hindering a client's (without the mod) ability to play. I'm doing this mod for fun and to see if I can push the limits even further (I hadn't quite reach my goal prior to its completion).

This semester will be very busy for me and I will have essentially no time to work on the project. I can, however, start planning early. This is where I need a little...a lot of help. Outside of AutoCAD, I'm about useless when it comes to any serious modeling. My skills as an effects artist...novice at worst, moderate at best.However, there has been a lot of work done by a lot of hard-working individuals here...the point I'm trying to make, that is, ask, is this: I was wondering if anyone might be willing to let me use some of their materials?

By the way, my main focus on this project, besides the main objective, will be effects (all effects besides damage effects are non-CSS, but do not negatively affect client-play).

[Ifafudafi]

First, welcome to the forums; enjoy your stay, do not trole, ban Freelancer, etc.

Second, you'll need to be a bit more clear about what you're trying to do. From what I can gather, you want to essentially see how far you can push server-side mods which don't need a client .map file.

E: Just saw your edit. Generally speaking, there's little to nothing you can do serverside in terms of assets without having the client download a custom map, as every single one of Halo CE's assets are contained in their respective .map files. If any of you programmer dudes can prove me wrong, feel free to do so.

Third, you have nothing to show for your work so far. This isn't so much a mod support community as it is a mod critique community, and without something to show, you're going to get little to no interest and probably a whole lot of flaming.


As for your request, there's a bunch of crap in the HCE Releases forum, and Halomaps has a fairly large tag database. Generally speaking, anything you're allowed to use probably has a download link floating around somewhere. But if you want private stuff, you'll either need to make quite the convincing case that your project will be carried to fruition (any assets you've created help here) and PM the proper people and hope they can oblige; if you're looking for people to actually create assets for you, well... good luck.

Really, the planning stages of a project aren't the kinds of things you generally post. It's assumed that you'll take care of that stuff beforehand (through PMs and such) and post a thread when you're ready for critique and suggestions.

[ShadowFox0809]

Thank you for your helpful advice!

I am absolutely not asking anyone to create a single item for me. What I was hoping (hoping only) was that there might be some mappers who created some content, protected the map (for the sake of protecting the actual map, but not necessarily everything in it) and may have wanted the content to be shared...if they were asked for it. I don't know who might have what though. I also feel that some individuals might not feel their content is "large enough" to have a download in that section. I have checked the download section several times, and there are a few things I'm hoping will be released (I've seen finished versions of some of the material only in youtube demonstration videos).

I'm not saying I need anything soon, I was just asking in case there might be some people eager to see their work used by other individuals and might not want to post it in the download section for one reason or another.

By the way, some of what I've learned from creating CSS maps:

*New Weapon tags, vehicle tags, will crash client servers if used.
*New damage effect tags will also crash client servers, but only after the client is affected by the effect. From my last estimate (from over a year ago), it is about 14 seconds between the damage effect affects the player until the game crashes. This crashing time happened with exactly the same delay every time
*Weapon trigger effects (pre-existing, but modified), which are damage effect tags, do not affect clients. So a recoil effect (permanent, displacement, not just momentary) will affect only those with the mod. So, if the primary method of balancing the weapon in the mod is recoil, then those without the mod could have a serious advantage over clients with the mod

[Inferno]

First, welcome to the forums; enjoy your stay, do not trole, ban Freelancer, etc.

Pshhhh. Teachers don't know whats cool these day. MMFBF is all the rage.

[ShadowFox0809]

By the way, does anyone know how the secondary weapon hud "script" turned out?
http://www.modacity.net/forums/showthread.php?t=17294

Oh, by the way, my effects knowledge probably isn't as sharp as it was before (particle systems, decals, effects, particles, point physics, etc.)
Does anyone know of a fairly comprehensive and in-depth tutorial or guide on the creation of effects? I did most of my earlier work through trial and error and wound up wasting a lot of time that I likely would have saved by reading a tutorial.

[Ifafudafi]

Really, save defining every single field, I believe the best way to learn tag structure is by example. Take particle effects you're familiar with and look at their tags; it's all considerably simpler than it first appears.

Still, I don't actually think there's a particularly comprehensive particle tutorial around (that isn't a broken link), but particle effects happen to be my particular specialty, so if you have any questions, feel free to PM me.
You know maybe I should just make a got dang tutorial

Pshhhh. Teachers don't know whats cool these day. MMFBF is all the rage.

You kidding, brah? I'm totally rad, you know; I know what's "in" and stuff

[CodeBrain]

IIRC Masterz made a particle system tutorial, but that was back in the old Halo days

http://hce.halomaps.org/index.cfm?fid=3034

[Ifafudafi]

oh god that's a shitty tutorial (it only covers .particle_system tags anyway)

Yeah, I'll just spit one out in a couple of days, people should know this stuff

[ShadowFox0809]

Thank you!

By the way, has anyone ever tried modeling the original snow warthog? You know, the really awesome one?

Anyone seen a recreation of this vehicle before? I know this is possible to create, I just haven't seen it done before. I did try to make it once, but my skills on treads is awful. The doors are just as possible to create as Tiamat's snow warthog and the treads are as possible as the scorpion's.

My ideas on this have been improving, and what I've got so far is this (concept only, no mocking my paintskillz plz):

I call it the SnoWarHog!

...maybe...



Inspired partially by:

I'd like to model it myself, but I know jack about texturing models and animating them. I have no clue as to how I get the "shaders" or whatever they're called, for the treads to animate. I'm not too sharp on the actual modeling either; the only modeling I've done was to create a simple, bland piece of scenery (a door frame). Anyone have a really in-depth (and comprehensive) video/text tutorial on to do these things? If not, does anyone know a list that will cover all aspects of modeling? I'm willing to read a hundred+ page tutorial or 10 hour-long video to get the skills I need to do this task (though I don't think any exist, I'm just trying to demonstrate my willingness to learn the subject). All I need is the resources to learn how to.

Oh, by the way, I was searching around and found a warthog modification that has a really neat looking windshield (and has the idea of the lowered and extended hood done about the way I'd like it:

[JackalStomper]

Snow hog has been made, the map "Sneak" features it.