Wot! No skybox ceiling...

[Legacy_CaveGnome]

               I am trying to make some skyboxes for Nwn SpellJammer and have been experimenting with the "unlimited view" Roma_CZ modification because, hey... I like floating SpellJammer ships under the stars.  But... Shock! Horror! Neverwinter skyboxes lack the part above head ! Skyboxes i tried so far, had just some side graphics surrounding the PC, in a open box form or a circular band style, hence my questions.

Is this a graphic engine shortcoming or could we have some real ceilings in Nwn ? (box, hemispheric, conical...). If something like that already exists, could some goodfellow point me in the right direction ? Any good reference info on making skyboxes is welcomed.  Thanks.

Happy new 2014 !

CG
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Bannor Bloodfist]

               truly depends on what you mean by the term "Skybox".  The Skybox in NWN1 is truly only used outdoors so it would not provide a ceiling for an interior space.

You interior tile-set choices are very large, but I would venture a guess that 95-98% of them do NOT have true ceilings created for them.  NONE of the tile-sets that were released by Bioware has them as far as I know, only the vast CC tile-sets available have had them generated and as I mentioned, not many of those either.

Someone will likely respond with specific tile-set lists that have had ceilings created for them.  It would mean that you would have to use those specific tile-set(s) to be able to view a ceiling.

Sorry, and yes, it IS an engine limitation, as a ceiling is only really possible with those interior tile-sets and only if the artist went to the enormous trouble of actually generating the objects and applying a texture(s) to same.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Frith5]

               I think CaveGnome is asking about skyboxes for outdoor areas, and has noticed that some have a gap at the 'top' of the skybox, rather than a complete hemispherical texture. This becomes an issue with a fully unlocked camera.
As far as I know, it's not an engine limitation, but simply an outgrowth of people building skyboxes (not an entirely accurate term, actually) for use with a limited-view camera.
You could check the Omnibus for more information on skyboxes.
Good luck,

JFK
               
               

               

                     Modifié par Frith5, 01 janvier 2014 - 10:44 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Bannor Bloodfist]

               Ahh, my mistake then.  Sorry.  From past experience, skyboxes for NWN never look very good anyway, even when some truly skilled artist takes a shot at creating them.  The unlocked camera options only make things worse in my opinion.  Not truly much of a need for them, as 99% of the time you need to use the standard camera settings to navigate and engage in battle, or dialog anyway.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_CaveGnome]

               @Bannor Bloodfist, @Frith5,

Many thanks for your replys... Yes, i was talking about metaphorical ceilings :-) for outdoor skyboxes use and wondering at the frequent top gaps. After searching the vast vault, Omnibus and experimenting, i think there is no apparent limit to the skybox form, so we can have a realistic sky. The most advanced i found was "vortex" a quasi-spheric skybox integrated to the Aethyr tileset that gives the illusion to float in space. Not found hemispheric ones but i don't see any show stopper.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par CaveGnome, 03 janvier 2014 - 06:41 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Wall3T]

               since its on the topic, ive been using cep 2.4 with its inclusion of the skyboxes collected around the old vault. Some of them are horrifying to say the least, and there are some that cant exceed a tile limit. Eventually it stops, and you can literally go through the skybox

Im curious about those in particuler, im assuming its a designer choice but what would the purpose be for a limited tile skybox? my only guess is modules with story driven areas that require a small but eccentric points
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_CaveGnome]

               @oOKyeOo:
Yes, i too, think a lot of the available skyboxes are outdated. I haven't seen very recent work like the promising PHOD Dark Sun one, but in general what i have tried used the "box without top" form, in my opinion the worst model system. Skyboxes sizes are at designers will i think, but i am not clear on the fine details like where they are anchored or if there are hardcoded minimal or maximal size limits.

If its just a simple giant placeable with inside painted texture surrounding an entire area and "hard locked" to your area, that could explain why you could reach the skybox "walls" if you use them with too big areas. In the superior hypothesis where the skybox is hard-locked to the PC, you shouldn't be able to reach the skywalls (edit: or perhaps only if the camera max outzoom range is bigger than half the skybox size)).

I found this tutorial to make hemispheric skyboxes, but all the demo pictures are gone... Did someone know of an entire version ? thanks...

nwvault.ign.com/

CG
               
               

               

                     Modifié par CaveGnome, 07 janvier 2014 - 05:46 .