Models by Jorzi (AR)

[aubergine]

In terms of loading, I imagine some sort of internal reprap system is used (just as trucks use those beams to create buildings, I imagine the tanks use them to create ammo).

[Jorzi]

I went for the spent case ejection mechanism since, considering the ammo consumption, it has to have a much larger ammo storage somewhere else anyway.
About the constructor beam of the trucks, I find it really out of place considering the overall tech level. I see it more as a gameplay compromise. ( "Yeah, we won't have realistic building times anyway so let's just beam them up while we're at it")

[Goth Zagog-Thou]

Looking great as always, Jorzi.

[aubergine]

Looking awesome

For half-tracks, would it be possible to split the armour over the wheels from the armour over the tracks? I often find it difficult to differentiate between halftracks and tracks when the camera angle is looking almost vertically down on the map.

A similar effect can be seen in Stratadrake's cartoon viper wheels: http://s67.beta.photobucket.com/user/St ... 5.png.html

[Corporal Punishment]

A good attempt, basically. But I can see a major technical flaw with how you solved it. It looks like the cases are ejected downwards, from slots in the underside of the ejectors. This means the ejected cases would accumulate on the hull roof. Admittedly, most would rebound and fly off. But sooner or later one would get caught in the slewing ring and block the turret. The ejector slots should really be in the face pointing outwards at 45° so the cases are thrown out in a ballistic arc and clear the vehicle hull no matter what direction the turret is facing.

[Jorzi]

Thanks guys
@Corporal Punishment: I see we're thinking a bit along the same lines I see what you mean now. For some reason I just assumed that one wouldn't want the casings to fly around in the air, which is the case for infantry, but not at all the same problem for tanks.
As you can see from the wireframe, though, I didn't intend for the casings to eject straight down

[Olrox]

Yeah, but switching that duct to the upper tapered face of that box would not compromise the shape at all and would be more visible from the players' point of view! But it's pretty obviously really nice either way

~Olrox (out of fraking nowhere)

[aubergine]

Would it be possible go get a muzzle flash coming out of the vents as well as the end of the muzzles? Sort of like backfire from the barrel as the shell casings are spat out?

[Olrox]

Would it be possible go get a muzzle flash coming out of the vents as well as the end of the muzzles? Sort of like backfire from the barrel as the shell casings are spat out?

Afaik muzzle flashes are positioned automatically along with projectiles at the end of each barrel (which is a Point stored within the model's PIE file). It would probably generate a flash and a projectile directed to the target. I'd also imagine that implementing it differently would mean messing with the firing events in the code and adding an "additional FX" rendering step - which would be certainly nice but proportionally demanding to do.

I'd say it's too much work for little (nice, but little) benefit

~Olrox

[Corporal Punishment]

@ Jorzi: That ejector might get the cases clear of the hull roof as long as the turret points forwards or backwards. They'd still hit the vehicle when it is firing to the right or left. Infantry getting hit by some cases should not be that much of a problem. It happens all the time actually. Cases have the aerodynamics of bricks, so the lose their momentum rather quickly. Being hit by a small caliber gun case (the assault cannon is just 76mm, that is small) from fife or six meters away is like someone throwing a football at you. Annoying at best. And as a soft and squishy infantryman fife meters is much closer then you go near a 70 ton tank who's driver sees almost nothing and would not even realize if he ran you over. Also, cyborgs are wearing armored power suits, they can stand some cases, right?

@ aubergine: Getting muzzle flash from the case ejector opening would mean the weapon malfunctioned, specifically that the breech just exploded. If you research you'll find any firearm except light pistols and a few submachine guns uses some technical means or another to delay the breach opening until after the projectile has cleared the barrel and pressure inside the barrel has normalized. If this was not the case, a significant portion of the energy would escape through the breech instead of accelerating the projectile, the case would not be able to withstand the pressure still working against it (remember that as long as the case is, even partly, in the chamber it forms part of the barrel), shatter and possibly block the feeding mechanism plus the hot and usually acidic smoke would soon corrode the feeding mechanism. The only type of large-caliber firearm where a part of the pressure is vented through the breech are recoilless cannons, which were used as anti-tank guns in the 1940's and 1950's. They required a less substantial mount then normal cannons and so could be placed on a jeep or carried by paratroopers. But they were highly inefficient and became obsolete with the advent of shoulder-launched anti-tank rockets and missiles. Long story short: No flash from the case ejector with a Gatling type cannon.

[MaNGusT]

Afaik muzzle flashes are positioned automatically along with projectiles at the end of each barrel (which is a Point stored within the model's PIE file).

Nope.
There are connector(s) which you can place everywhere you want to see a muzzle flash effect.

[Rommel]

For us TD;LR people... are these models going to be included in an upcoming release? They are soooooo cool! These designs been around since 2010? It's 2013 now... how come they are not in the game???

[Emdek]

Rommel, they won't. Not all are done yet... Also since they are more complex it could create noticeable impact on CPU usage (at least on older hardware, like Pentium 4).

[aubergine]

@Rommel: You can get them here: viewtopic.php?f=49&t=9921

[Jorzi]

@Corporal Punishment: About the cases I meant I'm used to considering ejection for infantry rifles and I intuitively followed the same principles for this design, not thinking about whether or not the same principles apply.

Anyway I tried changing it so it throws cases ~45 degrees upwards, what do you guys think? I was thinking I could have some kind of retracting automatic dust cover in the ejection ports...(mostly to get away with simpler geometry on the lowpoly)

@MaNGusT: So you can place any number of muzzle flashes? That's nice, but I assume they are all attached to the barrel and rotated with it?

@Olrox: Good to see you as always