Best unit-making program?

WildWeazel · Jul 31, 2004

I'm thinking about making a few units, just to see if I'm any good at it, but I don't know what program to use. I have very little graphics experience, mostly Paint

, Microsoft Photo Editor, and a little bit of POV-Ray. I've heard about Blender, OpenFX, Anim8or, Bryce....

So my question is, what's the best program for a newbie? I would appreciate it if anyone could explain why a particular program is better, not just throwing out a name.

vbraun · Jul 31, 2004

Out of the ones you listed:
Blender is hard to pick up but once you understand it it's really easy. Its designed for speed and ease of creation. (And it has a smaller download size then OpenFX).

OpenFX has tutorials already made for civ but its not quite as powerful as Blender. But it has a download size of about 40mb. (Where as Blender is 3mb.)

Im not really sure about Anim8or. I have personally never used it and never seen a unit made with it.

And I know Bryce costs money and according to Wrym it is horrible for making models but great for animating.

Im not saying any is better over the other. They each have their pros and cons.

WildWeazel · Jul 31, 2004

Thanks for the info.
Does Blender use visual or text-based modelling?

Wyrmshadow · Jul 31, 2004

Bryce is around $80. Corel Makes it. It is Uber-easy to learn how to use but as vbraun said, it's not meant for making models. I animate all my units in Bryce, but I must import my models.
Some of the other unit makers use really high-end stuff like 3dStuiomax and Poser. They cost quite a bit.

vbraun · Jul 31, 2004

Blender uses visual.

truckingpete · Jul 31, 2004

vbraun said:
Im not really sure about Anim8or. I have personally never used it and never seen a unit made with it.

I am making a building with Anim8or. Gogf showed it to me. Its free and a small downloaded. It is okay, but it is hard to learn. (Well for me) All you need to do is make whatever you want the get PaintshopPro and take a screenshot of what you need and resize to everything you need to put it in...

I just downloaded Blender a few days ago...I didn't install it yet..

- TP

Blackbird_SR-71 · Aug 1, 2004

i use Anim8or. to me its easy if you have a help file

once you learn it it is easy and powerful. its also free and the download is small like maybe 4 mbs at the most. if you want to download it use my link to go to the Anim8or homepage. you can download a help file from the download section to.

Anim8or Homepage

WildWeazel · Aug 2, 2004

truckingpete, are you saying you have to make individual pictures and C&P them to a storyboard ???

Smoking mirror · Aug 2, 2004

For ease of Use, easy texturing and fairly powerfull modeling I'd suggest Open FX, it took me a weekend to learn, and the post production effects are easy to understand and very versatile.

the skeleton effects are fairly difficult to learn, and I suspect they don't get much easier once you understand them, but the alternatives are just as difficult. Its a shame all these powefull modelers use the three camera view, and not a single movable camera, that can select and zoom to various group levels, hiding every thing you don't need to see, and allowing you to move and position things while viewing them at a right angle.

vbraun · Aug 2, 2004

Smoking mirror said:
Its a shame all these powefull modelers use the three camera view, and not a single movable camera, that can select and zoom to various group levels, hiding every thing you don't need to see, and allowing you to move and position things while viewing them at a right angle.

You can have a moveable camera in Blender. Its very useful and i seem to use it alot. Its the object highlighted in pink. You can also move around a view: ex. Bottom right. I took the side view (actually front) and just moved it up so i would be looking right down the tubes. (for better positioning)

Also for the skelton stuff. Blender has an easy to use armature system were you would add bones just like any vertixe you would add by extruding. Then all you do is make the armature a parent select Use Armature then create from closest vertex. Then all you have todo is go into pose mode and rotate the bones and it deforms the vertices closest to it automatically deforms it. In the preview screenshot im using an armature to deform a cylinder into wires for my Nebelwerfer.

I could show you more of the cababilties of Blender but that would be about 10 more screenies. Oh yeah it also has a game engine so you can make your own game

truckingpete · Aug 2, 2004

Weasel Op said:
truckingpete, are you saying you have to make individual pictures and C&P them to a storyboard ???

Well that's what I do...they got an animator in Animator in the program but I don't use it. Just get Paintshop Pro and it is simple....

WildWeazel · Aug 2, 2004

Thanks again for the info everybody. For now I'm going to try Blender, since it's free, a small download (my connection is ridiculously slow), and easy to use, according to vbraun. I pick up on computer programs fairly quickly (it's a teenager thing

) so learning how to use it shouldn't be a prblem.

You can unofficially expect a completed unit.... sometime before Civ 4 is released :lol:

vbraun · Aug 3, 2004

Make sure to read the Blender thread If posted dozens of tutorials.

*vbraun thinks to him self, "Muahahaha, Another one converted to Blender!"

aaglo · Aug 3, 2004

Blender... Never!

I once dl'd it, and it was awkward compared to pov-ray.

vbraun · Aug 3, 2004

I say Bah to text based 3d programs

(I just dont have the patience)

Blackbird_SR-71 · Aug 3, 2004

no......
weasel op don't listen to vbraun he's evil he has the sole purpose of taking over the world and converting it into a blender world. instead take Anim8or which is even smaller yet as powerful.

Wyrmshadow · Aug 3, 2004

Blackbird_SR-71 said:
no......
weasel op don't listen to vbraun he's evil he has the sole purpose of taking over the world and converting it into a blender world. instead take Anim8or which is even smaller yet as powerful.

from your screen shots it looks awful. I'd have to disagree.

WildWeazel · Aug 3, 2004

@aaglo: I didn't know anyone makes units with POV-Ray. Is it hard to animate them? I actually know how to use POV-Ray to some extent, at least for still pictures. It does take a lot of patience though.

WildWeazel · Aug 3, 2004

Oh, I see now you do all your units with POV-Ray. Wow. I didn't know it could do complex animations like that.

BTW, I don't want to spend any money

so that rules out Bryce and PSP.

vbraun · Aug 3, 2004

Here's a sample from one of his units: (This is from his Medival Galley. The flag part I Think)

Code:

#declare z1= sin(radians(-45+360*clock));
#declare z2= sin(radians(-90+360*clock));
#declare z3= sin(radians(-135+360*clock));
#declare z4= sin(radians(-180+360*clock));
#declare z5= sin(radians(-225+360*clock));
#declare z6= sin(radians(-270+360*clock));

i.e. He is a master at animating with Pov-Ray. Oh i mean modelling too.

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