Brad's Dai X work in progress

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Bradster
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

Post by Bradster »

Anything's possible. ;)hint hint ;)
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

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Heh. I can see we're rapidly detiorating towards the "wow, cool model, now make it blow stuff up!" state of mind! I was messing around with video capture last night and I seemed to spot some model shots where X Bomber looked a lot "cleaner". I think it must be the difference between the large close-up detail model and a smaller and easier to fly around model. Am I right in thinking that magazine article supports that theory Shane? I'm still a bit caught as to whether to carry on with the 3D stuff or do a little more with the site. Hmm.
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Bradster
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

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*bump* I spent some time yesterday evening getting reacquainted with my Dai X model. I completed the majority of the center sliding cockpit section of the Mainbody and started adding basic colors to select polygons. Of course, I'll use textures later, but I wanted to give myself a better temporary preview of it all.
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Bradster
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

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I've started on the head, but I'm having trouble sizing up the proportions. The head looks a bit "fat" in my opinion. Ah well, here's another update. Again, sans real textures.A question: does anyone have a good picture of the Dai X's back? I think there is something like a rocket pack on the back of Mainbody, but I haven't seen an image of it recently. I might just have to dig out the old videos again...
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

Post by Shane »

Great stuff.The head's size isn't too bad, probably could do with being slightly smaller. I think you'll find that the chest section needs to be a little bit wider though. And I don't know if it's just the light but it looks like the thighs could be doing with being a little bit longer. Apart from that it looks fabulous.How much mobility will it have in robot mode?Shane.
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

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Mobility should be pretty good. Remember, I'm constructing this model to be as close to "the real thing" as possible. If its hull is too big or small in certain areas, the joints won't work properly and the mesh will intersect with itself. That's something I'm trying to avoid at all costs.This video clip I posted shows that all the joints in the arms move as they should and have a full range:http://brad.project-think.com/starfleet ... on-01.movI think you're right about the thighs needing to be tad longer. I'm thinking about adding something like a ball and socket joint above the thigh to allow better movement and also to make it a bit longer.(Edited by Bradster at 12:19 am on Oct. 27, 2002)
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

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Hmmm... I was toying around with the idea of mirror universes or alternate timelines and thought it would be interesting to see what the Dai X would look like in a more militant green paint. I also took this opportunity to position the model mid-step to show its working joints.
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

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"Dai-X strikes its famous pose from the Star Fleet Annual cover as it awaits the production of its hands and textures." [img]http://brad.project-think.com/starfle....e head.Well, the exterior of the head is now 95% complete. It is modeled to actually split and separate as the real Dai-X would (although we never see it happen in the show, I believe). The internal pieces are not finished, though. As soon as they are ready, I'll render a shot of the solo Braincom module.(Edited by Bradster at 9:04 am on Oct. 27, 2002)
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

Post by AndyThomas »

I haven't been around this weekend so can I just say - wow! You asked for a shot of Dai-X's back for reference - I've managed to find a not-too-bad one and also slung in some shots from other random angles for reference purposes. I agree with the comment about the thighs, I think the lower legs are dominating a bit. Also, I think the thighs are cylinders rather than cubes?See also this sketched version of Dai-X from the Manga Max article for a good profile perspective:http://www.sfxb.co.uk/sfgfx/mangamaxdaix2.jpg
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Brad's Dai X work in progress

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Ah! Two excellent snapshots of the Dai-X's back there! Just what I needed. :cheesy:As for the thighs, yes, they *should* be cylinders. At the time I was making the Legstrack module, I was constructing everything by hand (with the exception of the little gear/cog thing in the side and the skinny little jet, both which were originally based on a standard cylinder) and was trying to keep the polygon count to an absolute minimum. As you may already know, adding curves can increase polygon count and general complexity exponentially. It's also much harder to manually adjust curved points in 3D space (if they're just in 2D, it's easy, but they usually aren't just 2D). Looking back now, though, I think that I may have been *too* frugal with regards to the thighs. I cheated and made them irregular octagonal prisms based on a simple cube rather than cylinders so that it would be easier to add the little triangular casing to the front of them. I may extract that casing piece, make it an object by itself, and throw in some simple cylinders for the bulk of the thighs.Overall, the legs are indeed a bit dominating, but they are that way in the original as well, I believe. Here's a comparison of the two profile shots -- the manga and mine:You probably note that the hip area is lower and a tad misshapen. I did that on purpose. As I had bickered about in the previous thread about the Legtrack, the "full suit" model will NOT be able to properly separate into its component parts. Specifically, it is physically impossible for the Legtrack to fold together without shrinking, stretching, and warping the metal in the process. Thus, I chose to compromise the design a bit to allow it to actually work.
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