Graphics

It looks very good! Great job.

Working progress for a new quad :


After some stry I have finally decided to make something with the hull of the current trike. My others vehicle done something maybe to close to real ones while this is definitly sci-fictional.

I have finally finish the main work for new low poly meshes for all tanks units. Here some pict (obviously, they aren't be maped yet).




I have try to follow previous comments :
- make something with style unity
- make something seem not too real
- make something feet with dune lore (I have choice to make hulls partly movable like if they are big insects)
But make something still possible (turret can turn, wheel can roll, guns can move up and down, pilots in cockpit can see the way etc.)
The heavy scorpion is still inspired by C&c artwork.

I don't know if I will can use all movables part in the game animation, but this can do something like this :

Update list of art modified :

vehicles
- all hornets (wasp, beesting, locust, firefly dragonfly, cielago) : news meshes, new combat animations, team coloureds, new buttons
- thopters : new meshe/button for the falcon. current falcon become the atreide's hawk. Slight modifications of meshe and combat animation of eagle thopter (guns more visible, general design less "flying shoes box")
- optimisation of textures files (multiple textures files are combined) to save memory and game speed

soldiers
- 5 different skin style : regular (light green), grey, blak, camo, mercenary (patchworked) all of these are used by two house except the harkonnen's black, team coloured
- lascanon trooper : new gun, new combat animation/sound
- lasgun trooper : new combat animation/sound
- bladesmen, hd bladesmen, shield fighter and kindjal fighters, sardaukars : new shield effect, modified animations
- Heavy troopers : different meshes for regular and grey style

houses flag and colour
- fremen become orange, corrino yellow with black-gold flag, BG purple with purple flag, ecaz become royal blue

In progress
- new meshes for tanks, suspensors, carryalls and sieges units, minor scale and skins adjustements

In project
- partialy invisible animated skin for no-ship and cielago, new meshes for cymek, lasgun and heavy troopers



Thopters


Hornets (top is firefly, dragonfly and cielago, down is beesting, wasp and locust)

That's some nice work

It's great that your getting stuck into some art stuff, LeBashar. I do have some comments/constructive criticism.

1. I like the style of your new Hornets, the textures do look like they could use a bit of sharpening up/refinement, but that could just be the image compression.

2. Thopters: I like the new Falcon Thopter mesh. It would still be good to get rid of the WH40K Dawn of War based units as they were quickly hacked together and look a bit out of place.

3. Suspensors: I think the existing line works pretty well to be honest.

4. Quad: Ironically, the trike was originally made from a four wheeled vehicle from the Worldshift game - now you have coverted it back . I don't mind changing this, although your point about huge glass is not necessarily a problem in the Dune universe since there is Metaglass.

5. Scorpions: I like your meshes. The easiest way to animate them is to rig them to existing Civ 4 tank skeletons and animations. The Coyote's guide is probably the best resource to get you started here. Rigging vehicles is easier than rigging to human units (there are less moving parts), but like a lot of things in life it is only straight forward once you've figured out how to do it yourself and done it a couple of times. I can give you some pointers and possibly do some of the rigging myself if time allows.

6. Regarding "optimisation of textures files (multiple textures files are combined) to save memory and game speed". This is fine, but just make sure we're not losing quality as a result. Repeated DDS compression on textures can really compromise sharpness and quality.

7. I am not in favour of changing any of the banners. Some of the original reasoning is here. The priorities when selecting team colours/banners was:
(i) Pick team colours that are distinctive and well spread through the spectrum.
(ii) Team colour should match the banner colour.
(iii) Use bright colours, if we use colours that are too close to sand/brown/spice then the graphics end up being too monochrome.
(iv) Team colour should have some thematic association where possible.

I don't like Orange for the fremen - specifically because we want contrast with the desert palette (iii above). Black for Corrino doesn't work because that makes them the same colour as the barbarians - I appreciate it is the colour of the Sardaukar but I think purple works fine. I prefer red for Harkonnen it just fits better - it says evil. Blue for Fremen has the association of water. I generally think that the banners have been settled for a while and I don't feel there is compelling reason to change them.

7. I don't really like replacing the Heavy Troopers with beret-wearing units. Berets don't really seem like appropriate combat wear for the harsh desert environment of Arrakis. Something more armoured and sci-fi looking would be better I think.

8. The general idea with unit art, in order to be consistent with our vague post-apocalyptic backstory, was to have the early units appear like ragged, rough looking survivors like the Soldier unit and units progressively become more uniformed, armoured as you progress up the tech tree. I was never a huge fan of the ninja units for Bladesman/Hardened Bladesman but I would still like some units that look less smart than the later ones.

9. Really all the melee units should use short stabbing swords rather than long slashing swords to be consistent with the Dune lore (to penetrate shields you need to stab slowly rather than strike hard and fast). The Charlemagne Short Swordsman animations are good for this but I never got around to rigging more units to that. If you find any base meshes that you'd like rigging to new animations I might be able to do it for you - not promising anything due to time.

10. It might be worth reading some of the original Art Thread to understand some of the decisions that have been made in the past. Also, there is something unit art discussion here.

My own unit art priorities are as follows:

High priority: (look out of place on Dune/repeated art used)

CHOAM Emissary
Zealot/Mujahid - differentiate - reskin?
Narcotics Dealer
Sardaukar Agent
Traitor
Kwizatz Units
Smuggler

Lower priority (has Unique Art but could improve):
Missile Trooper - reskin and have proper missile launching anim
Mongoose Trooper - bad mesh
Devastator/Re-Skin and button
Great Merchant - adjust to make more Dunish
Heavy Troopers

Anyway, good work with taking this on. Keep going.

Thank you for commenting. For now I have make the choice to work on my own tastes, because I arrive so late after the battle xD

But I can read some criticism, and if I finally produce something which satisfied everybody, it's better

1- For the quality of textues, I haven't noticed the compression could destroy them (except for buttons) but I will take care. The difference visible in pict are only pict compression, because I haven't modified any of original textures, only copy cut. But maybe it is about the two bomber ? It is the first unit I have converted, and copy from babylon5 meshes, with original very poor texture. In fact I really think to remade theses two.

2- For thopters, I don't know anything about WH40X. The new falcon I'v made is 100% modification of the original vulture meshe, with the same texture. Do you want to says the eagle and buzard are wh40x meshes and could be modified for more "dune" ones ? (EDIT : ok, I see history of models in the linked topic)

I have a special question about glowing reactor effect : in the original final frontier unit's, the glowing is applied on the unit while in all other, it is draw under, and so it become invisible when you look by the rear. I haven't found how to control that, if you know ?

3- Suspensors, the problem I have is I don't see the unity between all of them, and I found some meshes very poor (destroyer, but gunship and transport also. and carrier). I am working on something very different, inspirated by the heavy vessels visibles in pict of era. Something with more biological form, maybe like SC protoss's inpirated design (more SC1 than SC2).

4- Tanks : the huge glass of the quad is just an example. In fact I really don't found all theses meshes nice nor futuristics. Especially the light scorpion : when I play, I don't want produce a thing like that . But for my new models I have problem for make good textures. I'm not a good mapper for produce something about nothing and furthermore the uvwmapping in 3dsmax is really uneasy (maybe there is better plugins... surely there is better). But my work should be sufficient for low poly units.
I have already found how to rigging, and I have finish all except the new heavy scorpion. But my 3dsmax export don't work directly, and I have to copy-cut branch part in nifscope. It's work, but I can't make new animations. So my new meshes can't make use of the turning ability of their body. Well, it is not really important.
I have modified combat animation to give quad/trike/roller the same as mechanized infantry, and the three scorpion the same as tank. with two fire for the heavy to match two guns.



And I work on project for mechnicals siege engines which could be totally different, inspirated by armored vehicules in ghost in th shell universe : with legs, and insectoid form. But still different of the ixians mechas.

7- I've asked myself if your ideas of "heavy trooper" should be something like stormtrooper, or if it just a regular infantry like the current button could let think. You have answer : I will certainly take the time to make new meshes. One for heavy trooper, and one for the lasgun, more different than the lascanon. Maybe a soldier with a laser pitol and not a laser rifle (?) for make them more different.

8-9 melee units : At the begining, I have replace the two ninja by modified meshes of the shield/kindjal who've been invisible under the shield effect. But now I have found a better shield effect, and we totally see throught it so we see there is the same meshes
I will see if I can found something better with stabbing sword. I haven't think to that. Or maybe we can just reduce the lenght of current sword. It is not difficult.

For your priority list : I could easily do a slight texture modification for mahdi mujahid. The kwisatz I have already modified, replace texture and head, with inspirated by the current mentat art. spy aren't in my priority list, because we see only yours. But you could still tell me if you have already ideas of what you see for replace them ?

missile trooper anim : I can do this.

Some new additions :

10/07/2012 :
- add strike animation of the rocket trooper to the missile trooper
- add a retextured mahdi zealot for the mujahid (bloody red cover)

13/07/2012 :
- modified heavy troopers : new meshes for all styles
- modified melee fighters : new meshes for bladesman, weapons transformation for hd bladesman, shield fgt and kindjal fgt.
- new meshe for spymaster (current one used for bladesman with modified weapon)

18/07/2012 :
- new meshe, animation and selection sound for fishspeaker

I have finally finish the 3D meshes for my news suspensors ship. Inspirated by fish forms, starcraft protoss carrier design, and somes pict used in dunewars for differents era (industrial and modern). I hope you enjoy. (the round form in the center of all ships will be textured as a glowing halo)

I'll give you screenshots when I will map them and put in the game. I think I will make a release of all my work at this occasion.

And new meshes for caryalls (with a harvester under it just for fun )

I really like your work. I can't wait patch, which you promised.

I guess this will not be a real patch but just new resource files to update the graphics?

Yes, I am not in the original developpement team so, I will just make a patch anyone could add after dunewars installation for change the graphics. And of course, when I will finish, I will let the dunewars team use of this at their wish.

Nice, those look great LeBashar. Would you mind if I also use some of them for spaceships in Colonization: 2071 ?

Once I will release, anyone feel free to use. I don't care about copyright or even credit, all of this is make for dunewars just for fun, for me.

And this is lasts meshes for siege engines. I have tried to make something inspirated by mechanichals tanks in ghost in the shell universe, big insect or crustacean but with enormous bubble wheel for desert, like harvesters. But I'm not satisfied by the missile launcher (in the middle) and I will rework it to have a look more "beetle" like.

I think it's great that you are making these models. One feedback on the set you just posted. These really don't look like they would work in the desert. The harvester (post #30) seems OK; those are big huge tires on the side, and I can imagine this crawling slowly, in a straight line using those tires. However, the ones in post #35 look like those spinning wheels you put under a desk chair in your office. ("swivel casters" in wikipedia). My immediate reaction is that these would get totally bogged down in sand.

hum, I think it's just a problem of texture. Actually, the wheel of the harvester can't work because they are not all in the same alignment so with this a such vehicle can only turn on himself

In the previous model I have made the connexion between the wheel and the vehicule toward the exterior, because it's a military engine, and I think logical the conception should protect the wheel and not connect them by the interior and let them exposed to the ennemy's projectiles. But because the arms are fully articulated, they can also be turned in the other side, which is enlarge the sol area of the vehicle. And wheel must can turn to maintain the alignment even if the arms moves, so they are necessarily connect byt their top, this is I think what's give you idea their are like swivel casters.


I hope texture will make them much similar than harvester's one, but I will maybe modify a little the form of the connector, especially for the two front in the smallest one. All other are hung by their side, it should be "desertproof".

Doesn't it seem that the wheels will just sink into the sand? Maybe it is just me.

Extralarge wheel are though the best way to roll in sand. But I don't understand why the harvester wheel don't hurt you and these one yes, because they are similars ? (except the two front one)

I don't think I can explain why. The harvester looks like it would be hard to turn, and it doesn't look like it would sink. It isn't a combat vehicle; it is dropped by the carryall, and it might in fact never turn.

The other models look like office chairs on casters, which are supposed to be easy to turn. But the casters and the legs look like they would just sink into sand.