UE3 - UT3 Integrating buildings into terrain

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DrCrook

New Member
Nov 2, 2009
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Hi,

Ive created an addative geometry map and have created a simple terrain with mountains to sandbox the players in. What I want to do is at the mountains (in 4 different locations on the map) put "bunkers" with sub-levels to them all connected by tunnels that go underneath the terrain.

What Im running into is that I cant seem to go through the terrain. I tried using the visibility tool, however it doesnt seem powerful enough for me. It wants to rip out a HUGE chunk of the terrain. I want the building to look as though it was build into the side of the mountains and have several underneath bunkers.

Does anybody have any tips/tricks or know of tutorials that teach you how to do this. Basically I want to integrate the buildings and terrain together without tearing my terrain to bits.

I found a picture kinda like what I wish to accomplish.
http://www.williscentral.net/photo/Compass Club/Mountainside building.jpg

with the inside area being playable.
 

ambershee

Nimbusfish Rawks
Apr 18, 2006
4,519
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Nomad
sheelabs.gamemod.net
You'll want to use a combination of visibility in the terrain, and static meshes to hide the hole you remove. If your terrain has a particularily large segments on it's grid, then expect large holes.
 

Odedge

Keeper of Tutorials
May 26, 2009
206
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www.odedge.com
To add what ambershee stated (which is what I would do), you can also form your terrain so it doesn't meet the BSP or static mesh as 90 degree angles. For terrain, using the visibility tool is what you need to do. With meshes, you will have to pick the best ones and resize their draw scale so they fit properly.
 

DrCrook

New Member
Nov 2, 2009
4
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0
To add what ambershee stated (which is what I would do), you can also form your terrain so it doesn't meet the BSP or static mesh as 90 degree angles. For terrain, using the visibility tool is what you need to do. With meshes, you will have to pick the best ones and resize their draw scale so they fit properly.

So I bumped up my tessellation and used the invisibility tool and have been able to get pretty decent results up to this point. I seem to be running into another problem however at this point.

Problem:
For a while I was able to create geometry using the csg: add etc etc. and then modify it with the edit geometry tools. However now I cant select any of the geometry I have created. I attempt to go into edit geometry and use the object selection method and it wont select anything. The best I can get is it to highlight a face light blue, and do absolutely nothing.

The geometry I have created when it T, or S views is the same grey as the terrain around it. (when in wireframe) Same with in Perspective (except white). From my understanding it should be shoing up as blue.
Any ideas how I can get to edit the geometry again?


Also the little widget is showing up way the hell off of the builder block that Im trying to use.
 
Last edited:

Odedge

Keeper of Tutorials
May 26, 2009
206
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0
www.odedge.com
In true wireframe mode, additive brushes will be blueish and subtractive will be yellowish. If you see the brushes as grey (and you can see diagonal lines going through the faces of them), then you need to select the next button to the left.

Tip of the moment. You need to build geometry to see the changes in perspective view.

As for the widget being off. If you create a big brush (1024 x 1024) and then vertex edit it to be a lot smaller (64 x 64), it will keep the original pivot point. One way you might be able to get around this is to first size your builder brush to the correct size before adding or subtracting a brush.
 

williscentral

New Member
Nov 16, 2009
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Just wanted to let you know that the picture you refer to on williscentral.net was not created via software manipulation. It is a very cool city built into the side of the mountain... I'm not completely sure where it

I wish Best of luck recreating it!