Dynamic Props
I've looked around the forums here for about 30 mins and cannot come up with a solid list of props that can be made dynamic and the commands you can issue them.
We obviously all know about the fans.
I just recently discovered you can add a cool robotic arm to a map by adding a cinematic with this file: cinematics/environment/refinery/refinery_tram_repairarm.cinematic on an endless loop.
But, I'd really love to have a list of dynamic props put together... I don't have any understanding of them at all outside the fans, and I can't seem to find a list.
If there is a list, please let me know.
Otherwise, please keep the posts short and only related to the dynamic props you know about.
Mom
We obviously all know about the fans.
I just recently discovered you can add a cool robotic arm to a map by adding a cinematic with this file: cinematics/environment/refinery/refinery_tram_repairarm.cinematic on an endless loop.
But, I'd really love to have a list of dynamic props put together... I don't have any understanding of them at all outside the fans, and I can't seem to find a list.
If there is a list, please let me know.
Otherwise, please keep the posts short and only related to the dynamic props you know about.
Mom
Comments
Everything that's not an entity (like players, or structures) but still moves is a cinematic. The main menu is one. The annoying smelting pods are cinematics.
I recommend checking out the cinematic editor. It's fairly straightforward to use for low-level stuff, but be prepared for crashes.
Prop_dynamic objects CAN be collided with. The robot arms in Repair in Tram are NOT cinematics, but prop_dynamic objects.
You can animate ANY object in the cinematic editor, BUT again, it CANNOT be collided with. Thus, cinematics are best restricted to eye candy and out of bounds stuff (ie the plant carousels in biodome). Also, cinematics are client side effects. They DO NOT necessarily sync up. If you go out of range of a cinematic, it will stop playing. If a cinematic is triggered to start, it won't start until you are within range. (I ran into this problem a while ago when I was trying to make a crazy player-killing train cinematic for my map ns2_sws_metro. It didn't work out
Prop_dynamic objects (I'm about 90% sure...) DO sync up, DO collide, BUT... you are reliant on animations that are already created because new animations are tricky to make as you need a very specific version of some very expensive software (3ds max 2009) to properly export them... not to mention that if you're trying to animate an existing prop in ns2, you'll need to de-compile the .model of the prop ( http://dev.cra0kalo.com/?p=103 )
I didn't even know these exist! You never stop learning.
What beige said. Disregard my post. (Although cinematic still might be helpful for you. If you want stuff like moving fans... get a non-collision cinematic, and put some collision geometry on it. Easiest solution.)
Are the fans the only dynamic prop that can be animated?
There's a drill hanging from... Repair(?) in Mineshaft that swings. It collides. Does that mean it is a prop_dynamic? If so, what are the command options I have to make it move?
I'm just starting to learn about cinematics, and that's cool and all, but there HAS to be more to the prop_dynamic entity than just fans.
The vast majority of the editor is cataloged somewhere... meaning, I can find information and videos and everything else on just about everything in the editor... except a list of props that I can make dynamic and what the commands for those props are.
Mom
Every single animated prop has an accompanying ".animation_graph" file in the same directory as the ".model" it belongs to. It's actually the animation name specified in the animation_graph file that you reference in the editor, while the animation graph plays the animations specified in the .model file. They usually re-use the same names, so it usually doesn't matter anyways.
Tyvm.
Mom
Yes. You can create those in the cinematic editor. Take a look at the vehicle that drives through the readyroom of refinery (or one of those who are outside of tram, but the first one is easier to find). They have two spot lights in front of them that move just as they do.