XTL-01

# 1 20-04-2003 , 03:06 AM

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Yep. Here it is.

www.Darkware3D.com

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# 2 20-04-2003 , 03:24 AM

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more...

www.Darkware3D.com

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# 3 20-04-2003 , 04:33 AM

Simply Maya OG
Join Date: Dec 2002

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:wow: Nice! Havent the slighest idea as to what it is, but I like it!

- Hybrid

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# 4 20-04-2003 , 04:49 AM

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Holy crap, looks like some kinda super hydrolic tank! Awesome! Not sure if i care for the texture too much, seeing it seems too spread out.. but the model itself is really amazing!

"I should call you sugar maple tree cause i'd totally tap that" haha

email - mattwettstein@gmail.com

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# 5 20-04-2003 , 08:39 AM

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Looks great !! I like it!! nice detail!!

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# 6 20-04-2003 , 08:44 AM

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Excellent model Mr Darkware. user added image

Thought about texturing it?

adldesigner
Caracas, Venezuela
Hell .. not gone perse, but with a certainly lower post count per day.

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# 7 20-04-2003 , 08:54 AM

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Nice!

Israel "Izzy" Long
Motion and Title Design for Broadcast-Film-DS
izzylong.com

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# 8 20-04-2003 , 01:36 PM

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Thanks for the comments guys. As for the texture that's currently on most of the bot, a simple cloud, I too do not like it, but seeing as how I absolutely stink at texturing, it will have to stay. I have Photoshop, but I don't know how to use it well, yet.

And now for a little background information. I made this model during spring break then added some final detail to it yesterday, which probably makes this the best model I've ever done in the shortest amount of time. It is fully rigged and animatable (is that a word?) by set driven keys. The hardest part was setting up the pistons so they moved correctly when the legs bent and making the wires flexible, too. There are six pistons for each leg, two aim constraints for each piston, and four legs, so that comes out to be 48 constraints total. Unfortunately, constraints do not duplicate, so I had to manually create each one.

As for the wires, there are six on each leg and each one has an IK handle plus a 10 joint skeleton. The parenting of the skeleton to a leg part, then the parenting of the IK handle to another leg part was a nightmare because it took so long. I ended up redoing a lot of the IK handles because having the handle travel all the way down the skeletal joints of the wires was a bad choice. I didn't find this out until I tried to animate the legs and saw that the wires weren't flexing correctly.

Anyway, the pistons and wires were the most difficult. The big long, tube-like arms you see coming out of the sides are animated by set driven keys like the legs. That wasn't too oftly hard. I wish I could have stuck an IK handle on it for more freedom, but it didn't work out.

So, there's your history lesson for today on Chris Watts' (me) mech.

www.Darkware3D.com

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# 9 21-04-2003 , 09:48 PM

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thats cool though how its riged !

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# 10 21-04-2003 , 11:23 PM

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Interesting

Interesting model. I would suggest some sort of resolution to your shapes...the primary dome shape just stops...I wonder if a small beveled edge or something will help it.

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# 11 10-05-2003 , 11:26 PM

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Gee, I hate to poo poo after all the praise you got but.........

In the real world, very few things have such sharp edges. The design is nice, but the modeling has a lot of flaws in it.

A huge improvement in the basic design could be made by either beveling some of those surfaces to get slight rounded edges, or detaching some surfaces, moving them out just a touch and doing a free form fillet to put a slight bead on them.

rounding of edges go a very long way in making objects look realistic.

First place is NOT good enough.......

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# 12 10-05-2003 , 11:59 PM

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Okay, to illustrate, I nicked your design a bit to show you what I meant.

on the left is similar to your components, on the right is the identical model with beaded edges added with bevels and fillets.

notice how the light catches the edges? It's a little extra work, but it'll make all the difference.

First place is NOT good enough.......

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# 13 15-05-2003 , 06:52 PM

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Nice

I must say it is a very cool model...I'm not a big mech fan, however, this one I like.

abie's quote of the day, "Sleep is for losers!!!"

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# 14 15-05-2003 , 06:53 PM

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Nice

I must say it is a very cool model...I'm not a big mech fan, however, this one I like. I want to see it in action, doing something, stomping on something or someone, and blowing stuff up.

abie's quote of the day, "Sleep is for losers!!!"

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# 15 17-05-2003 , 11:57 PM

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A good idea to remember is not to present a 'dark' model against a dark background. It's hard to make out what it really is.

Don't leave it as is either. texture that bad boy. That all over fractal doesn't do the model justice. Give it some worn paint, a little rust, and some scratches and scoring to make it look like what it was made for... BATTLE!

user added image