how do i convert geometry to particles
 

hi there,
i have been learning particles in maya recently, and i was wondering if anybody knows how to build particles out of a geometrical shape, say a modeled ship or castle, or some other shape like that.
i once saw a similar question asked on this forum, but unfortunately i cant find it anymore.
wld be glad if you could help me. thanks

The closest thing to that with out having to use MEL would be to grab the geometry (for instance a castle as you mentioned) and go to particles > emit from object, and make it a surface emitter, then you can kill its speed and bump up its normal and tangent speed, once it is the shape of the castle stop playback and give the particles that inital state.

Chris

thanks a ton for this idea. this wld surely work. i'll try it out to see the result.
thanks again!