Techniques for trim textures

armagon

I've noticed that most people that create modular pieces end up using a trim texture sheet. Something like this:



Or this:



I have a few questions about this workflow since i'm learning and trying to create my first modular kit:

• A lot of people use NDO for this. How is it possible to make good bevels with it? Just a vector inside PS?
• If creating the bevels in NDO, how can we match them to the low-poly edges after? How to UV properly?
• Does anyone know any workflow without using NDO to create such sheets?
  
• I'm creating the lowpoly panels to apply the textures and they look a little bit like this:

Shouldn't i be bevelling those edges? Or should i leave that to the normals in the trim texture sheet?

Makkon

Yeah man, either bevel the edge, or use you modular textures creatively. What you have is more of a wall, though, and is kind of single use, which will limit it's potential use.

Eric Chadwick

Lots of info here
http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/Modular_environments

NDO is very easy to pick up and play with. Some good videos here.
http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/NDO

Sometimes it's better/faster to model high-poly models and bake them.
http://www.philipk.net/tutorials/materials/metalmatte/metalmatte.html
http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/Subdivision_Surface_Modeling

UVing is nothing special. Thiago has a good tutorial here (it's on that first link too)
http://www.thiagoklafke.com/modularenvironments.html

armagon

The first screen is from Thiago Klafke's Sampa level. From the screens, and all his tutorials, he seems to be using NDO-made bevels and no actual bevels in level geometry. Most walls are simple planes or planes with small angled details (like the one i posted). His results seem pretty good, but i always end up seeing the seams. The bevels don't fit very well with the lowpoly borders.

I've read and followed Philip Klevestav tutorials as well. One thing that got me curious was this: http://www.philipk.net/tutorials/modular_sets/modular_sets.html

He makes a low-poly of the wall set and then does chamfering to get a high-poly from it. But it's not clear if he's just using the high-poly for the normals, or if he's using in the actual asset (because it's not that high poly). Also, look at these edges:

http://www.philipk.net/tutorials/modular_sets/tutorial6.jpg

How can he make those edges so well beveled with just the normals? Blows my mind.

Eric Chadwick

Those three panels look like he's adjusted the vertex normals, instead of using a normal map. Here's the method:
http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/VertexNormal#Smoother_Shading

armagon

Ohhh. Thank you.