Rhinoceros 3D

[Legacy_Sintrea]

               Hello
So for our module we wanted to make some 3D models of our own, and are partial to the program Rhinoceros 3D.
So is Rhinoceros 3D just as usable tool as 3DS max? Or will it cause troubles.
Does anyone else have experience with this, and can give any advice or instructions?
Thanks

(I posted this in the wrong section earlier, and they directed me here. Sorry if I'm making a mess.)
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Michael DarkAngel]

               Shouldn't be any reason why you couldn't use Rhino3D to make your initial models.  However, you will still need to use one of the 3D programs that have NWN export tools available, most commonly, 3DSMax and GMax.  Blender and Lightwave are the other less commonly used 3D programs that have export tools available.

Download 3DSMax 2013 30 Day Trial
Download GMax 1.2 Free

Export tools for 3DSMax or GMax
NWMax .8 -- Works with both of the above programs, be sure to download the version that is right for you.
NWMax Plus and NWgMax Plus -- My own versions of the above tools.  I won't say better, only more up to date.  Again be sure to download the version that is right for you.

Download Blender Free

Export tools for Blender
NeverBlender

Download LightWave 30 Day Trial

Export tools for LightWave
Joviex's Import/Export Plugin -- 3rd download on that page.

Good Luck,


  MDA
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Bannor Bloodfist]

               As Michael said, you should be able to create using Rhino, but you will then have to save in a format that one of the programs he mentions can import from, then add the next step of exporting using the tools he mentioned.


Added work, very little gain, and it is highly unlikely to find an import/export routine to handle the mdl format used by NWN since it is such an old game by today's standards.

Each extra step of importing/exporting/converting will add to the possible problems you might run into as well.

Good luck though, and be sure to let us know what you find!
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_OldTimeRadio]

               @Sintrea -I've never used Rhino but everything in NWN models revolves around an editable mesh and a diffuse texture.  Get those two into GMax or 3DS Max from anywhere, and you're 99% good to go.  The only thing I'd be hesitant on is animating in anything other than GMax or 3DS Max.  I don't know where Neverblender is with animation right now.  But for mesh work, the model can come from anywhere.

Bannor Bloodfist wrote...
Added work, very little gain, and it is highly unlikely to find an import/export routine to handle the mdl format used by NWN since it is such an old game by today's standards.

Nah, it's not that big a deal really.  I'll grant you that writing a new import/export routine is a fairly big deal, though.  But playing Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon with two modeling programs to determine a good common import/export format isn't very time consuming.  Working out the kinks, if any, takes a little more time.  Smoothing groups might get lost, faces might be flipped, meshes could be imported with every triangle as an individual subobject element, faces can be doubled unintentionally etc.  But once you have a good path worked out, you are good to go.

Each extra step of importing/exporting/converting will add to the possible problems you might run into as well.

In my experience that specific problem isn't something to worry about.  I've converted from Collada, Google 3D Warehouse, FBX, OBJ, SMD and probably a lot more I can't remember off the top of my head.  I think what you're seeing there is something going on under the hood in NWMax.  If it weren't for the hidden rounding I came across in NWMax when trying to find out why I couldn't work on Estelindis's necklaces, I'd probably agree with you though.  Up to that point I'd never had to edit NWMax to get someone's files to export correctly.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par OldTimeRadio, 19 septembre 2012 - 08:55 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy__six]

               Your biggest problem is that Rhino is mainly a spline based modelling program - the model is stored as much more complex mathematical data used to define curves that are (potentially) interpreted on the fly to produce pixel-perfect results, as opposed to the conjoined sets of vertices and triangles you create with polygon based modelling. Spline based models are essentially never used in gaming as a result, and NWN certainly doesn't support spline geometry.

What that means is that even if you're able to convert those curves to polygon models for game use, they are likely to be well over the kind of level of detail NWN can handle unless you take special care.

Although I've not really gone into Rhino much so it could be I'm missing some tricks. 
               
               

               

                     Modifié par _six, 20 septembre 2012 - 12:48 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_henesua]

               You can do polygonal modelling in rhino, but that is a good point. if they are favoring rhino - it is probably because of the use of nurbs and splines in it.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par henesua, 20 septembre 2012 - 01:35 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_NWN_baba yaga]

               Whew am i late into this... i hate splines and nurbs btw!
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               I like Splines as they are very useful even in polygonal modelling. I often use them as guidelines when building an organic shape (the trunk of a tree or vine). And they can be incredibly useful in some modellers as you could attach meshes to vertices of the spline and drag objects around, or you could even generate a mesh by extruding a splines along a spline.... So many uses. But then I do a lot of 2d drafting with vectors so I'm comfortable with them. That said I know almost nothing about nurbs. i've not used them.

all that said i don't use rhino. i've only worked with people (professionally) that use rhino. with anything art related i prefer to work in os x (for now anyway) because i like cheetah 3d very much and it is os x only. that in combination with a few other packages (including blender) that I downloaded free makes for a nice set up. And all for a measly $75. Although cheetah is now about $150. And no, I didn't have to buy the mac. rescued it from the garbage and got it working again. so all in all its practically like linux for me these days. a nice triple boot machine for all my needs including NWN. '>

hmm... all this talk has given me a hankering for doing some modelling, but i'll hold off until i've got arnheim ready for our game nights again. been a few months of just dev and no play.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par henesua, 11 octobre 2012 - 01:33 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Tarot Redhand]

               I have often wondered and hopefully someone can explain to me exactly what is a spline?

TR
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

                Think of it as a bezier curve in 3 dimensional space.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par henesua, 11 octobre 2012 - 08:35 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Tarot Redhand]

               Ahhh! Curved lines who's (bad grammar I know ()) curve is determined by straight lines external to the actual curve in an X, Y, Z universe, yes?

TR
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_NWN_baba yaga]

               yeah henesua I agree that they are very powerfull when you know how to handle them... which is exactly what i never realy tried. I avoided them since my beginning and only used splines/ curves for animation paths.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               Baba, no sweat. You are a giant to me. I know how to do this stuff, but in all honesty my work is not very good. I looked at my archery game yesterday, and the art work is quite ugly. I made the architecture using splines though. '>

I included the link to shame myself not to promote. Feel free to ridicule me if you take the time to look. Even my code in NWN is better these days than what I did in Unity. I think I'll need to go back over to that side soon.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_NWN_baba yaga]

               nono, it´s quite cool. It´s not a unreal tech4 presentation but for what it is i realy like it. What would be cool is a sunflare effect when you look up to the sky and a slightly better modeled bow, very good:)
               
               

               

                     Modifié par NWN_baba yaga, 11 octobre 2012 - 04:49 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_OldTimeRadio]

               @henesua - "Dance Mod like nobody's lookin'."  '>