Backstabber

I was thinking of a 3rd party s/w company making something to retail to us modders, and would-be modders. I would pay $50-$100 for a file converter~3dModeller program that can write RSE files. I wasn't thinking of RSE buying a sdk, but have them let s/w companies know of a demand for a .QOB program. Discreet just made plugins for 3DSmax to write RSE filetypes, as a sdk to sell to RSE. Why can't some cheapie 3D company make plugins for their 3D program to write RSE filetypes- most already export to DFX and VRML, have them write in support for QOB. Not as a sdk for developers, but a modder program for retail / e-retail. If a demand for such a program was demonstrated, maybe some company will supply it. How many modders would pay $50-$100 for Easymodel or VariCad(or whichever 3rd party) if it wrote RSE filetypes like it writes .DFX?

If you need plug-ins to get 3DSmax to save to RSE's .qob filetypes, why can't plug-ins or converter programs be made for other non-Discreet model software? There are tons of cheap 3D software, can't RSE make/get a plug-in for one of them? I'm thinking there are alot of people that would spend $100 or $200 on modeling software for a game, why can't some developer write a RSE based modeling program (more likely modify their existing s/w for RSE output)- or have RSE ask some company to. OK, 3DSmax is powerful & lots of features and is the greatest thing for developers since sliced bread. But homemade models can still be made without it... just not in RSE's filetype. (I posted a question about modelling with .dfx output & using 3DSmax to convert the file to RSE formats)

Back in 88 me & some buddies were drinking beers & shooting the cans with 357mag. MPs showed up and told us to follow them back, but we said we were to drunk to drive. MP said, "If your drunk, follow us, just drive real slow." What kind of cop orders people to drive when they say they're DUI

GR already employs tunnelvision for scope zooming- What if the whole scope/reticle was just larger, taking up more of the non-tunnelvision area? That might help eliminate some of the Out-of-Scope scenery, rather than or in conjuction with, bluring.

What about using the directional cone of a super wide spread, front & backblast? Set the directional front at 0.1m starting width, and a far width of like 7km at 50m. Use a spread like that on front & back and there would only be a sliver of safety out to the sides, like a butterfly-yoyo of destruction. Would that do the trick? Oh, wait... then some guy 30m infront but 200m to the side will get plowed, giving the blast an effective range of well over the desired 50-100m. Nevermind

ok, I got a 3D program from download.com, and slammed out a quickie pistol model for testing. Shots from EasyModel and as DFX There is a zip of the DFX file on that page too. I can't get color/texture info to save in DFX filetype. How much more work is it to use 3DSmax to open the DFX file, apply some color/textures like in the .jpgs, hand locations & whatnot? (I can put the numbers in the .gun file) Oh yeah, I can't set units either, so the whole pistol may open up as 190 meters long .. just shrink it to fit

ok, 3DSmax is way expensive. Can us po' folk model things in a cheapie 3D with .DFX export, and have some kind soul convert the model with 3DSmax to the right format? Could it be done with minimal effort on the part of the person converting- like just Import the dfx, Set the hand locations(whatever), and Save As the right stuff? It would be great if the masses could stretch out to the world of weapon modeling without a few grand investment. Call me an optimist.

I see that there is a trend to limiting Pistol range, and it surfaces in the weapons .gun numbers. I hear this is for balance, but I fail to see why to change the physics of ballistics rather than other game balancing methods. If you want to stop pistols from taking people out at 100m, look at the terminal performance, not the velocity of the bullet. How can you say arbitrarily that a slug just loses all it's velocity at 50-75m. I can tell you first hand that a 230gr .45 slug can inflict a world of hurt if --IF-- it hits someone at 200m. I've seen plywood and 2x4 posts discombobulated by .45 slugs far downrange. For game ballance, try tweaking Armor values. There is a world of difference between a .45 slowed down to 125m/s hitting even the lightest of body armor, and slaming into somebody in a T-shirt. Even if it gets a no-armor hit, there is still that DamagePoints --> WoundChance% that play against a kill for a slowed bullet. Let ballistics and physics do their own ballancing. There is also .44mag that consistantly knocks over steel rams at 200m with a scope, but they compete iron sights too. Give that scoped .44 a huge aquire time like a sniper rifle, but dont say it can't reach. And doesn't it take the grace of god to actually hit someone with a pistol at 150m with no zoom? We've all peppered away with a 9mil trying to hit decent beyond 50-75m, why punish someone with a lottery winning 200m hit , that has a poor game chance of a wound anyway. If you want to stem the flood of pistoleros lobbing shells 150m, look at the accuracy, at the armor, and the wound chance.... not that .45's magicly slow to a stop at 75m. I've had a lot of fun with my AMT 1911 aiming 20-30ft high and holding 5ft left of plywood way, WAY down range. PS- Silencers and Subsonic Ammo are another thing altogether

-----from Para's Tutorial---- The Ghost Recon (GR) Velocity Equation: Vr = mV + (P x R) + (M x R^2) --------------------------------- My physics may be alittle rusty, but Para's functions - as seen in IGOR as well, seems to have the acceleration the wrong way. (not dissing Para) The second power of the function is adding to the speed, such that the round will accelerate as it gets very far away. This is the function of a parabola centered right (foward in distance) and high (starting velocity). As it goes distance to the right, it drops velocity at first, but then as it continues further right in distance it levels off and then curves back up in velocity- accelerating. Sure, the first coefficient is usually a negative number, but the second variable (M in this case) is usually positive. This is evident in the original missions M24.gun stats. The gun starts at 804m/s, and does decelerate for a while, but it decelerates less and less till it hits 263m/s at 1480m. It the starts speeding back up, and will skyrocket at 1700m and 2000m. That bullet will never drop below 263m/s. This is the model of .308 that GR used in most of its .308 guns. Yes, I know most soccer-moms wont be shooting at things a kilometer and a half away, but I was trained on the M60 to use Plunging Fire with a Foward Observer to rain bullets in on targets 1500-3000m. If GR is going to us an obfuscated set of detailed physics to model ballistics, I would just like functions to work at all ranges, and not have the bullets magicly stay above 263m/s. BTW- I'm a GR newB, so if this topic has been ranted to death already, just let me know. I would like to thank Para for his Tutorial, it does a good job of explaing the math, I may not agree with it, but it's well written. Also, guys use a 44magnum to knock over steel rams at 200m with 90% hit rate, and hunt whitetail deer, but the GR comunity seems to think pistol bullets should just vaporize at 75m. --- I 'll bring that up in another post.