If you look at game engines like DX Studio and 3D Gamestudio,there you have the option to convert your 3D model to terrain.
This allows you to use all your favorite modeling tools from your 3D modeling software to create your terrain "exactly" the way that you want.
Then you export it from your 3D modeling software and then import it into your game engine where you can then convert it to terrain.

Does Esenthel also support this ?
Or do you "per se" have to use the terrain modeling tools from Esenthel itself ?
And if Esenthel does not support converting 3D models to terrain yet,then will it be supported in a future version of Esenthel ?

Yes,

You can import whatever you want, huge meshes are supported as well, just enable "embed into terrain" option in the object properties access mode.

(12-30-2010 08:05 PM)Esenthel Wrote:  You can import whatever you want, huge meshes are supported as well, just enable "embed into terrain" option in the object properties access mode.

So the 3D model will then be automatically converted to terrain ?

Well the terrain in Esenthel Engine is just a bunch of large meshes anyways, nothing special/specific. You can place any mesh and use it as "terrain". But you won't be able to continue working on it with the terrain tools of course.

But maybe your tool exports to heightmaps and colormaps so you could use that.

Quote:But you won't be able to continue working on it with the terrain tools of course.

Why not then ?
The person that posted the first reply (read above) said that I can convert 3D models to terrain.
Then why can I not use the terrain tools then,after I have converted the 3D model to terrain ?

The engine will simply handly your mesh as terrain: It can be very large, it will optimize it automatically at run-time,..

Right, Tottel & Esenthel said it: In terrain access mode, meshes are threated like terrain at runtime (not accessible, split up, streamed partially) but only terrain patches (heightmaps) created in the editor can be modified in it.

Ow,now I understand.
Thanks guys.

what are the draw backs of creating my own meshes, texturing it for example in 3ds max and then embedding it in the terrain in esenthel? i just wanted to know will it give me troubles or not

(07-19-2013 12:13 AM)MITVIZ Wrote:  what are the draw backs of creating my own meshes, texturing it for example in 3ds max and then embedding it in the terrain in esenthel? i just wanted to know will it give me troubles or not

Draw backs include:
- A bit of extra pipeline work
- You won't be able to edit the terrain in editor if you want to make changes. i.e. you will have to go back to max or whatever software to make changes and do all the exports again.
- It might be a bit of a pain in the butt to split up your terrain in another software so that it will stream properly in runtime. For example If you made a massive 8x8km terrain as one solid mesh you would waste a lot of processing if you didn't split it up to allow EE to stream in the terrains as necessary.

Personally I would recommend, if you want to do it in external software, to do it by exporting the height map from that software into Esenthel. That way you can tweak it in Esenthel if need be. Of course you will then have to do the textures in EE but I guess there are tradeoffs with everything.

in my opinion to have alot of control in the way the landform or terrain looks is a huge plus and also the texturing. I tried the height map option but it stil doesnt look the same when i take it over into esenthel.