Avatar Vitals and Crawling

[J'Kla]

All of the above including a sideways squeeze like a crawl but stood up and sidways through a narrow gap (Like a real caver would).

At risk of being shouted at I would like to see player stats recorded in the vault available to age writers but not necessarly visable to players. (If you disagree so be it but I am entitled to voice my request and opinion).

I know others don't like this your objection is noted take it as read.

[nathan2055]

I would like to make another point in favour of diverse gameplay. If we had to use the KI for everything, things would really get boring. I like the idea of carrying a back pack of explorer tools that requires the explorer to decide what tool is best for certain things. Things would really get stagnant if one tool had to do it all.

Hmm, well, I'm not sure. I can see the KI being used as a multipurpose tool, but I can't really see a backpack feature. What do you guys think about this?

At risk of being shouted at I would like to see player stats recorded in the vault available to age writers but not necessarly visable to players. (If you disagree so be it but I am entitled to voice my request and opinion).

Don't worry, I agree.

All of the above including a sideways squeeze like a crawl but stood up and sidways through a narrow gap (Like a real caver would).

Interesting. I like it.

[GPNMilano]

All of the above including a sideways squeeze like a crawl but stood up and sidways through a narrow gap (Like a real caver would).

This particular suggestion (and the crawl one) are already possible with the stuff we currently have. Cyan's Avatar skeleton's which they made available for use, should be able to create the necessary animations that you're looking for. Someone will have to animate the rigging to do this, both for the male and the female avatars. Plus they need to be a different kind of component then the one currently attached to the rigging. The emote component used with the rigging Cyan made available, is not the same as the one needed to make the animations you're looking for. However The rigging can be used to make both. If you or others feel like taking on the job of making these animations, I'd be happy to help and point you guys in the right direction, and give you instructions and tips on how to do so. Presently I can't do the work myself, as my plate is full. But I've have extensively been playing around with both the rigging, and clothing, and pretty much the entire avatar and custom avatar structure. So I'm more than happy to help you guys when and if you decide to make your own animations. Cheers.

[phoenix]

Hi One and All

Thanks for the feedback. GPN Milano has raised a very valid point. Some things we can do now with the system as it is.

I would need some pointers, but am able to commit some time to animating the avi. I can think of one other animation I would like to add to the list (See number 3)

1) Crawl
2) Sideways squeeze - J'Kla - please describe this a bit better, because the avi already does side step. How would the side squeeze be unique?
3) Prone - belly crawl

GPN Milano - Please suggest some tools and a starting point. Thus far I have milkshape but have not used it, so you guys may have to bear with me while I adapt. If milkshape is not suitable, please recommend. I also downloaded the animations.blend file that details avi trigger positions and it compiles and runs just fine, so I get the jist of specific trigger regions and scale.

Later

Phoenix

[phoenix]

Hi Guys

As I am chewing on this subject of avatar animations, I propose the following to help me get an efficient workflow.

This is where GPN Milano and others would be really useful.

1- Outline the work flow of creating an avatar animation.
2- What model is used as the foundation? (If it is the wave emote, then can it be loaded into Milkshape, avimator, etc)
3- What programs form the "creative pipeline" and in what order should they be used?
4- Where does TPOTS or MOUL( the ENGINE) store its avatar animations?
5- What other things need to be done for the ENGINE to recognize the animation? (sdl, python, etc)
6- The first test

I have been looking at some avatar animation programs, and ease of use is key for me.

Can anyone recommend one of the following that is easy to use (wysiwyg):

Milkshape
qavimator
avimator
3ds max 7 - I am reluctant to use this since I only have a 30 day trial version.

Looking forward to the responses

Phoenix
ABM-TPOTS, Blender2.49, PyPRP 1.6, Win7 Home Premium 64

[GPNMilano]

Sorry, I should have been more precise in what you'll need to do this.

Currently the only way to make avatar animations is using 3ds Max 7 and the PlasmaMax plugin. (Or, if you have a newer version of max and a PlasmaMax plugin that was compiled for that new version).

This is the only current way. There will be others I'm sure. But if you wish to jump in and do it right now, this is your easiest route. You'll also need the wave emote.zip with the male and female avatar bone structure released by Cyan found here "Released" 3dsMax Plasma Stuff

[phoenix]

Edited 04 July 2011

Hi All

Okay, I have 3dsmax, the plug and the wave emote working.

I have also created a basic crouch as a starting point and it is quite simple but time consuming to do. So will need to spend some time refining movement. Once I have an animation ready I need some help on the following:

1) how to export, where to save and what to name it in TPOTS. (Another post metions this avi wont load in TPOTS --- advice anyone??)

2) how to assign an animation call in the blender file (alcscript).

3) Do I need an SDL or python file for custom animations like this?

Looking forward to your reply.


Phoenix

[phoenix]

Hi Guys and Girls

This thread seems to have gone very quiet after all the discussion. As for me, it is time to show you some results. Here is draft number 1 of the crawl animation.

I have a hunch (and need some help here) that I have to split up the animation into segments. So I will be doing this as follows:

Crawl Animation:

1) Bend down
2) Crawl Forward
3) Crawl Backward
4) Crawl Sideways Left
5) Crawl Sideway Right
6) Stand Up

Attached is a quick movie of the first phase of the animation. Rename the suffix from "zip" to "avi".

Would appreciate an honest crit. I will be improving this animation quite a bit over the next while.

Later Explorers

Phoenix

[GPNMilano]

First, is there a reason you set it up the download as a zip file, but then want us to rename it to an avi? why not just save it as an avi to begin with?

Second, while the animation looks good, remember you must make one of these for both the male and female avatars. As there's a different bone structure for the Male Avatar then the female avatar.

[phoenix]

Yes, GoW will not allow "avi" extension. I had to get around it by renaming it to zip so that it would upload.

Yes, again, I do need to create one for the female avatar as well.

On top of that I need to know who has an editable emote skeleton for TPOTS, since another post mentions that this emote will not work in TPOTS and only in MOULa. The bone structures are somehow not the same. I will be creating 4 versions in total:

Male and Female for MOULa, and
Male and Female for TPOTS