[Windcatcher]

We have a test server running and are preparing to port some existing db work over to it for some existing OpenZone zones, but we don't have models for a lot of creatures. I have a full set of humanoid animations and it's not all that hard to rig up a model in Anim8or, but I'm a pretty poor modeler and worse texturer :P Basically we need people to tackle the artistry part and the idea is that I would try to rig what I can in Anim8or. I've also started on a series of tutorials for the next version of OpenZone that will explain how to make creature models, but it's a pretty involved process and documenting it all in the form of tutorials will take a little while. In the end, though, the central problem is that we need people who are good modelers and artists and who are willing to make models.

Since we have to import work into Anim8or the scale isn't all that important as we can rescale as we need to. For humanoid models, it would be best if they were in standard modeling form...I don't know what it's called, but basically where their arms and legs are splayed apart. That way I can rig them to my existing humanoid figure without too much fuss and the 70 or so animations I've already made should work. For non-humanoid models, I'll just have to rig them one at a time.

If you want to try your hand at rigging in Anim8or (painful though it can be), then the only rules of thumb I can think of are that the model face outward along the Z axis and that Y be up (and therefore X points to the mob's left). Because of the way Anim8or handles bone thicknesses, OpenZone does a 1/10 conversion when exporting creatures, so if you want a creature to be 5 units tall ingame then it should be 50 units tall in Anim8or. There are specific naming conventions that bones, objects, and animations need to have, all of which are documented in OpenZone 7.6, but that's not a big deal as I can rename as I need to after you submit something.

I'm not a modeling expert by any means, so if you really wanted me to answer some other question feel free to ask. I'll drop onto IRC tonight as well to see if I can help clear up what we need.

OpenZone 7.6 has all of the models I've made to date, which should give you an idea of the general orientation that I would need to fit a humanoid model to, as well as proper naming conventions. For a non-humanoid model, I have no existing template, so it's all new territory.