3ds max, any way to use the move tool to move in increments (rounded numbers), not fine decimals?
polycounter lvl 5
I want to do level design but snapping to the grid doesn't work well in perspective mode it snaps to the bottom grid. I need absolute movement.
Is there any way to for example set the move tool so that when you move it moves in 1 meter increments not 0.34341 or whatever its doing.
I need absolute world snapping, like blender has.
EDIT: Shawn Olsons Nudge tool totally fixed the problem and made a great workflow. You can move verts/edges/polys and when you let off the mouse they snap to world grid, very excellent. I highly recommend everyone get it, its free. His Brushify tool is paid but very good too. Also his Corvex, Carver, and ShellVex are also great tools for level design in 3ds max he gears them for source but I'm using them in Unity3d and the workflow is great.
Is there any way to for example set the move tool so that when you move it moves in 1 meter increments not 0.34341 or whatever its doing.
I need absolute world snapping, like blender has.
EDIT: Shawn Olsons Nudge tool totally fixed the problem and made a great workflow. You can move verts/edges/polys and when you let off the mouse they snap to world grid, very excellent. I highly recommend everyone get it, its free. His Brushify tool is paid but very good too. Also his Corvex, Carver, and ShellVex are also great tools for level design in 3ds max he gears them for source but I'm using them in Unity3d and the workflow is great.
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You can set max to 0 decimals (Main menu > Customize > General tab > Spinners > Precision:0) but it's still moving 99.891 it just shows you 100. If you set it back to precision:3 decimals it will show you 99.891, USELESS...
Maybe using custom grid objects? I've used that when I've had to, it's HORRIBLE because it suffers from the same problem as the home grid it only snaps along it's local XY. "Hey lets turn the nightmare on its side!" USELESS...
The Angle Snap Toggle will work in increments, for rotation tool only. USELESS...
I usually have mine to set to 5 degrees but there isn't anything like that for the Move Tool.
Snapping to the home grid is pretty simple but that only covers X-Y it does nothing for Z (height). For that you have to switch to ortho view which is super clunky, but that's where Shawn's tool comes into play, it toggles snaps on for you. But then you're working like it's 1995... switching views to move in Z, no thanks. USELESS...
Hey what about this Spinner Snap button in the upper toolbar? That sounds like the thing you need, only the number input boxes, those are called spinners, the thing you interact with that's a "Gizmo". What this does is if you click the arrows next to the boxes with this on, it will snap to the nearest whole number. This is good for moving to an imprecise location and then using the spinner to round up/down the three separate axis. Pretty much USELESS...
So how do we get around it? You don't... You make due with the best there is out there and try not to let the hate keep you awake at night.
Side note: That hate does keep you warmer in the winter! Thanks Autodesk!
There might be some scripts floating around that offer that kind of snapping functionality. There was this one:
https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/3ds-max-forum/auto-snap-verts-to-whole-numbers-on-object-move-or-dragging/td-p/5452916
But it runs into performance and stability issues and I haven't tested it on newer versions of max. It's the best attempt that I've seen at addressing the issue.
The next closest thing is Shawn (WallWorm) Olson's mxsSnapModes, but it only turns on 2-2.5D snaps in the ortho views (top, left, front ect...) when those modes are active, it does not do anything for perspective mode like most people want.
https://wallworm.com/store/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=69
The whole thing needs to be redone/revisited by autodesk because it's broken as hell. Maybe someone else has hacked together a better way, but I haven't come across it. If you find something post it here so others can find it too, GOOD LUCK!
So far that's about the best workflow I've found but it suffers from some bugs also, selecting edges and verts sometimes bugs out (They wont select sometimes, but that might have just been a old version the last time I tried it). In my opinion taking ideas from probuilder + progrids and making a maxscript that is similar would be a extremely good workflow.
Terrain is usually generated either in the editor using a landscape system or in a separate app like WorldMachine. Buildings, foliage and props are usually modular static mesh pieces.
Hammer is an ancient tool, I used it for a really long time building HL1-2 and TF2 maps, but it hasn't been updated in almost a decade. Meanwhile Unreal and Unity surpassed it years ago and both of those engines treat BSP as more of a design tool for blocking things in or for helper volumes but BSP isn't used for detailed meshes. Those days are pretty much over.
You can still model on grid in max, in perspective you use the home grid with 3D snaps turned on.
Most Z snapping happens inside of the level editor but to snap in Z inside of 3dsmax you switch to the left or front view and turn on 2.5D snaps.
It's a little clunky but that's where Shawn's tool comes into play. Most Z snapping happens inside of the level editor and you're just making pieces.
For the moment, there is a new function in WW that I loaded today with an updated UI for the Nudge Tools in WW. Among them are snapping functions. Those should help with old-school methods of editing brush-by-brush. Take note of the Snap Verts on Move function, which is essentially what you want.
There is also Brushify (which I know OP has) but is more in my own style of editing individual brushes.
However, my own advice is to not build your layout brush-by-brush. For me, 98% of all brushes are made using CorVex and ShellVex nodes. This is a systemic approach to brush-making that is easier to edit in the long-term.
In my experience, almost all hurdles people have with using Max as a level editor are conceptual. That is based on a very long history of everything being built atomically inside Hammer--which is the exact opposite of procedural and parametric. It's very hard for Hammer users to change their perspective on approaching brush-work.
In terms of the grid itself, here is document that should help some Hammer users: On the Grid .
Just turn off real snap while this tool is active.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/qur3gkdv8ly8p2v/Martinez_Macro_GridBasedMovementV2.mcr?dl=0
Honestly though, i'd probably use Wall Worm's Nudge instead because this doesn't do relative move. Just snaps pivots to grid.
- Auto Axis
- Auto Freeze
- Keep on World Grid
- A few utility buttons
See the YouTube video to understand all the functions: