Okay, in Anzio, in the Allied spawn, when you look out into the sea, you can see the seabed gets also immediately pitch-black. How is this done? Why isn't it being lit up by the map's light_env?

Some water textures incorporate water fog which can vary in color, that's all :P

No, you misunderstand. The brush underneath the water is only partially lit, but mostly dark. I'm wondering why it isn't fully lit, since there's nothing to cast a shadow.

I'll take a screenshot if you dont know what I mean.

Any object that is UNDER a water brush will receive a shadow from the water brush because it is still a world brush and the nodraw texture does not disable shadow casting

For instance if you create a small riverbed then add a brush for the water and keep the bottom face of the brush a few units above the riverbed you will see the shadow in the terrain

But the seabed receives a pitch-black shadow?

And how can I make my shadow as dark as that? Is it a matter of depth?

I just looked at the anzio vmf, and it doesn't seem there is anything particular about this water, so I'll take a guess and say it's a matter of depth (the displacement goes quite deep).

It could also be a property in the water material, but I doubt it.

There also is water in the 3D skybox, so that could be a third reason, but I haven't seen anything that would specify that, unless I'm blind. It also depends on where you started to see the pitch black ocean floor :)

Originally posted by Furyo
I just looked at the anzio vmf, and it doesn't seem there is anything particular about this water, so I'll take a guess and say it's a matter of depth (the displacement goes quite deep).

It could also be a property in the water material, but I doubt it.

There also is water in the 3D skybox, so that could be a third reason, but I haven't seen anything that would specify that, unless I'm blind. It also depends on where you started to see the pitch black ocean floor :)

Yeah, I tried looking at the .vmf, but I didn't find anything in particular. I dont think having water in the 3D skybox has nothing to do with it (I tried it myself).

Also, there is no point where I started to see the pitch black ocean floor. It's always like that. It's an area that's not lit.

Look at the 3d skybox portion of the .vmf and you will see what i am talking about, the bottom face of the water brush should be above the displacement . . .

?? The 3D skybox waterbed isn't a displacement...

Do you have some officially released .vmf or did you just decompile Anzio like I did?

I didn't look at the 3dskybox yet i just guessed

Anyway i just checked it out and the water in the main hull is not above the seafloor but in the 3d skybox the texture used for the seafloor is tools/toolsblack which should explain it . . .

Okay...you don't get it. I'll take some screenshots to illustrate.

How do I take screenshots in a format other than tga? Cause when I use F5 to do it, I can't open them later.

console and bind F5 "jpeg"
also, jpeg quailty "100"

Danke.

Okay, so I took some screenshots.

This is what I'm talking about. It's an area that's basically unlit.


You can light up the dark part with your flashlight.


Here you can see the seem of the 3D skybox's seabed (just a brush covered in a black texture) and the "normal" seabed. But I dont think it's the cause of the shadow.


I just thought I'd stick this one in here. There are two LCVPs intersecting.

Well, if you've the lost coast demo, listen to what gabe has to say about the water - maybe this will give you an insight.

I dont think my computer would be able to run Lost Coast, looking at the system requirements.

edit: You know...the person who made the map could answer this question...

*looks around*

I think that there is a nodraw brush that you cant see there, everywhere the displacement is going under the nodraw face, its black.

You did not say that you were runnin in DX7 mode . . .

Water does not render like that in higher DX levels so noone will be able to see this blackout unless u make a custom water material

Well, for people running it in DX7 or have turned off reflective water will be able to see it. And for those people, I want to recreate that blackout effect in my own map.

I take it that you're running in a higher DX level. Could you take some screenshots of the same area for me? Above and under water?

You guys do know that there are BLOCK LIGHT textures that act like a nodraw (cast shadows) but are invisible when compiled...

I looked in the .vmf. There's nothing like that, unless the decompile screwed it up.

Decompiling a map removes/alters a lot of stuff by the way :p

Decompiling it probably will destroy the no draw bursh thats under the sand.

I really think that its a big no draw because it's very important to have a no draw brush under displacement if you take any kind of optimizing into consideration. It makes sense that they wouldnt slice and lower the no draw to go under the sand displacement, when the part thats black and messed up from it is way outside of the map.

I have also had the same thing happen on my map, except with roofs and grass.

Hmm...Ill try the nodraw and blocklight.

BTW, McJewels, I think that whoever made Anzio intentionally had that black spot there. In real life, as you go deeper underwater, light penetrates less, so it's darker. Since the Source engine doesn't seem to simulate this, the mapper kind of "cheated" the engine into showing this effect.

This is the effect I'm trying to achieve as well. Plus, it makes the horizon look much better.

Yup, the nodraw did it. Thanks McJewels. Have a dog chasing a carrot! :D


:carrot: :dog:

:PARROT: Cool! :PARROT: