Well I have just started getting into modeling as im employed by a games company as a GUI designer. I take a fairly unorthodox way of modeling. Altho its faster than mainsteam model creation with far less polys. That ship i made is only just over 4000 polygons and it has no bump map layered on yet, with it, it looks sweet. What is the Maximum polys can a Sins model hold?

If you want to me to model your ships all i need is a side view picture of the ship. A drawing that of which i can detail up in cs4. Should only take 2-3 hours from start to finish.

Oh i was going to restart my old mod on the Pax Imperia Eminent Domain game as it has all the views i need. I just dont have a clue about Sins coding and frankly dont have the time to learn it.

These are just general numbers, but helps give an idea.

• Fighters: < 1k tri
• Frigates: < 3k tri
• Cruisers: < 5k tri
• Capitalships: < 12k tri

I guess first step would be to see if your models are compatible with Sins. Some modeling techniques don't work which is unfortunate. If you want, you can send me a model and I'll see if it's compatible.

I noticed you had an old post with that. How far did you get with the fleets?

I made 18 of the ships from that game. Not fully textured, i create a totally different way now so models without a texture 1st are heading for the bin.. How would you want the model file? I normally export model meshes with texture map as an OBJ file. As then i can import into various applications.

Obj works good for me. I'll PM my email.

4k is pretty tiny. Sins can handle 50k. I have many models at nearly that size ingame without any problems, but anything over and the converter will not handle it.

In fact, virtually, you have no limit...

If you make a 500k poly model, simply save it in block of 50k poly... the trick is to use particle... you make the first block in .mesh, adding 9 hardpoint for anchor the other block... other block ( .mesh too ) are called via particule effect and use the normal ship.fx shader...be sure to increase the max amount of particule in your usersetting.ini ...

Only problem is during construction in shipyard, only the first section will be visible... particle effect will kick in only after the launch...

The real limit is mainly the hardware... but sins can show a huge amount of poly on screen... i remember battle between 3 fleet having 100 or more ship on each side... this is a lot of poly onscreen !!!

Method can be used in mamy various way... by example, for the lower left model show in the main post ( http://www.love-from-russia.be/DSC.jpg )... can make it very interesting in sins... save/convert the back in a.mesh, the clamp in open postion in b1.mesh and closed position in b2.mesh, the front in c.mesh... a.mesh will have two hardpoint for b type and c type, along one hardpoint for a colony effect...

Showed normally in game, a + particle b1 + particle c ... once start colony, show a + particle b2 + some ignition particule effect, particule c is killed and used particule c1 who show the front part moving toward the planet ( like for bombardment weapons )... once planet is colonized, kill everything related to the colonyship and create a new a part who who act like a defense station ( back section with 6 torpedo tube, a heavy long nuclear range missile, and two 8 barrels flak gun )...

Well, it was my idea when i have make these model but since XSI hate me, all my idea are in sleeping mode until somebody able to use XSI find it interesting... hmm, not really fully my idea but i have take it from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ck6Hcg2cjk ... model is made from these video too... can make it in sins look like in the end of the video, section separate, forward section land for colonize, and end section remain in space for orbital defense...

Any way, the point is the only real limit is your hardware, that trick allow you to use more that 50k poly for a model... at modeling level, it simply mean that you need to work in a modular way... and more important, thinking outside the box can lead to very interesting result... anyway, you need to know what trick will be used before begin to model...

A other example of thinking outside the box... people wish/ask dev for turret who track target... well, in some case, it can be possible to make it like in the pic below :

How? Simply model the ship without turret, but with the turret door... with the weapons hardpoint on them... create a firing particle effect who include the turret... in combat mode, turret will appear on the door, firing at target... since the turret is part of the firing particule effect, the turret will always be targeting at the ennemy... no more turret orriented on the left, firing at almost 90 degree to the front...

The trick with multiple mesh, particle, and fx can be used for a lot of thing... the B5 mod have use it first for make the rotating section from the Omegaship... but it can be recycled for make moving texture, light emiting section, stealth ship ( almost transparent, sins support it via his shader FX ), etc...

Ok done some remapping, had some errors with normals but have finished the entire model (without engine). 8348 polys total.

Zombie i'll send you the obj tomorrow quite late here in the UK.

kind of looks like a plasma repeater from halo reach.

Haven't played halo reach, but this really looks sort of like a cannon

lol its nothing like that weapon.

Ive began to work on models for a Pax imperia mod im slowly making. 2 races done and now just adding textures and bumps. Here is one cruiser 5,116 pollys.

What you think? btw the grey is gonna get a reflective shine.

Here's a couple of ingame shots of the new Tyrant battleship the Xin are going to get to play with:

NICE ManSh00ter. but what are those blue things on the bottom?

Cojones.

No, those are energy emission globules. Bigger Xin ships use them as a form of communications device, especially to coordinate their own combat drones (different and smaller than assault drone frigate analogs) and some ships can even use them as a makeshift point-defense weapon.

Beautiful.

Just had to share the in game render of the model I've been working on for the DS mod team.   Enjoy!

hmmm... I think I've seen this somewhere...

It's a great model. You outdid yourself, man. Now all the other flagships are gonna be envious.

lol I remember that model

Here's a new model I made, it's not smoothed yet to give it the curves I usually have with my ships. Been making use of the bump function of wings3d now since I noticed I get fit in more details with it to make the ships stand out more. I'm also looking for suggestions on how to make the models more detailed prior to texturing.(mainly other functions of the modeling program I can use to utilize.)

final part, the rear section with the engine, I still need to go and do lol

Are you using wings 1.4.1?

fredled how are those models i sent you coming along??

for that model yeah it's 1.4.1, I also have version 1.0.2 on my computer. I find that 1.0.2 allows me to do more with the extrude option then 1.4.1 does.

I am working on my own meshes...

Probably a stupid question, but here it is:

How do I get to edit the texture projections in XSI?

I know how to link them up and adjust them, but how do I actually texture them?

its not a stupid question

if by texturing you mean by making them then i cant help you 

there is a tutorial around here somewhere

You do that in the Texture Editor. Shortcut is Alt-7.