<li><aclass="backlink"title="Click to do a full-text search for this title"href="/quake4/ArtReference_CreatingTextures?action=fullsearch&value=linkto%3A%22ArtReference+CreatingTextures%22&context=180">ArtReference CreatingTextures</a></li>
<h1id="head-4385fbd8ac068b90401c2fd8f4bf623656c308dd">Creating A Texture For Quake4</h1>
<spanclass="anchor"id="line-2"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-3"></span><pclass="line874">This document will attempt to explain the process which the artists and modelers of Raven Software used to create textures for the Quake4 game. It begins at the concept stage, on through to creating the high poly models used to render out the normal, setting up the texture’s shaders, and then painting the diffuse, specular, and height maps to create a finished skin. We have tried to simplify some of the directions and descriptions for those inspired individuals that don’t have a lot of experience creating assets for a game. <spanclass="anchor"id="line-4"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-5"></span><pclass="line867"><strong>Creating Your Texture Model</strong>: After concepting up a nice texture design, you’ll need to model your texture using one of the many 3D modeling packages available. Our hi-poly modelers used Maya and Lightwave to do all of their high poly modeling for Quake4. You can use most any modeling software, but in the end, we used Maya and Lightwave because we wanted to follow the same tool path that our friends down at Id Software used for Doom3. <spanclass="anchor"id="line-6"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-7"></span><pclass="line874">The image below is of an actual texture model used to create a normal for Quake4. The texture was created in Lightwave and has a tripled poly count of 95284. <spanclass="anchor"id="line-8"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-9"></span><pclass="line867"><imgclass="attachment"src="/quake4/ArtReference_CreatingTextures?action=AttachFile&do=get&target=tex_01.jpg"title="attachment:tex_01.jpg"/><spanclass="anchor"id="line-10"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-11"></span><pclass="line867"><strong>Modeling Textures for Quake:</strong><spanclass="anchor"id="line-12"></span>Modeling textures is slightly different than what is done for a creature or world model, there is no need for a low poly model, only the high poly one. The model never goes into the game, it is only used to render out your normal map. But don’t discard or delete your texture model, save it out on your C: drive because you can always use it to copy parts off of for other textures, etc. <spanclass="anchor"id="line-13"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-14"></span><pclass="line862">Because your texture model is rendered out with the command <strong>renderbumpflat</strong> and the trace traces out at a straight-on 90 degree angle (like a scanner), you’ll need to model your texture with bevels and rounded surfaces in order for them to show up on the normal map render. Modeling your texture without bevels or rounded pieces will make your texture render out flat with no raised parts or pieces. As an example, see the texture in the image below. This is the same texture as the one in the image above, but has been turned slightly to show the bevels, rounded sections, and the fact that it is not flattened out, but with “floating” parts and pieces, like an exploded view. <spanclass="anchor"id="line-15"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-16"></span><pclass="line867"><imgclass="attachment"src="/quake4/ArtReference_CreatingTextures?action=AttachFile&do=get&target=tex_02.jpg"title="attachment:tex_02.jpg"/><spanclass="anchor"id="line-17"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-18"></span><pclass="line874">In order to render this texture out, its parts don’t need to be flattened out, butted up against each other, or even pushed the other parts. The renderer will read it as being flattened even when it’s not. Here are a couple more examples images. Notice in the top left and bottom right windows of the bottom most image that the model parts are intentionally placed in front of each other. <spanclass="anchor"id="line-19"></span><spanclass="anchor"id="line-20"></span><pclass="line867"><imgclass="attachment"src="/quake4/ArtReference_CreatingTextures?action=AttachFile&do=get&target=tex_03.jpg"title="attachment:tex_03.jpg"/><spanclass="an
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