1-way Sky

Dr_aaagh

<div class="IPBDescription">Is a 1-Way sky brush doable</div> In a map, I'd like to have the readyroom above the main area so the players in the ready room can look down on the action (to get an idea about the map layout - it has a maze-style layout).

The problem is, that the main area needs a top surface of SKY brush and so I need to have a wall (or whatever) of SKY brush on the underside and yet from above, it needs to be 'see through'.
Is there anyway at all of doing this?

Having a clip brush (or NULL brush) on the top surface doesn't work, and neither is it possible to have a func_wall with a SKY brush.

I am completely lost, and I don't really want to resort to a large moon texture (AKA Truman show) due to the long viewing distances required (would look daft if it was too close) and/or a normal texture brush with a sky-like appearance would look a bit cack.

teh_fatts

that's a toughy... It seems to me that certain things show through a sky brush, and certain things do not, but I havent really looked into it. My suggestion would be (since the NULL doesnt work) to make a very small easy to compile map with oen wall a SKY and experiment... I think maybe it shows you everything thats on the other side of a poly or something..... or maybe whatever VIS says you can see... in any case, being able to see the whole map would lead to horrible Rspeeds or whatever, but then thats nto really important in the ready room now is it?

my only other suggestion would be to try a func_wall (or illusionary or what have you) layerd on top of a Sky brush, with the "shared" faces both NULL.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
[..........................................]
[_____________________]

,,,, = invisible

.... = NULL

__ = sky

no idea if that has even the slightest chance of working, but its something to try at least.

brute_force

Well, someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe a sky works like this: the sky brushes are removed, and then when rendering the sky, a big skybox is placed around the whole map, which is why (no matter how complicated skybrushes) the sky will always take 12 wpoly (6 sides x2). This also explains why some things can be rendered "through" the sky, since it's actually placed behind everything. Basically, if there is no visblock for something behind a skybrush, you should be able to see it. Try it out.

Avitar

Yes this is able to be done, and I have done it in many of my maps.

this is similair to a 1 way window.

Make the sky box.
Make a rr room above the skybox that used the skybox as a floor
choose the texture application tool and choose only the rr floor side of the skybox (not the entire thing, just 1 face).
Texture the selected brush face with the {BLUE texture from the default HL wad.
Compile and done.

brute_force

<!--QuoteBegin-Avitar+Jul 11 2004, 08:29 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Avitar @ Jul 11 2004, 08:29 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Yes this is able to be done, and I have done it in many of my maps.

this is similair to a 1 way window.

Make the sky box.
Make a rr room above the skybox that used the skybox as a floor
choose the texture application tool and choose only the rr floor side of the skybox (not the entire thing, just 1 face).
Texture the selected brush face with the {BLUE texture from the default HL wad.
Compile and done. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
This will not work. You will just get a "mixed face contents" error here. And also, any faces with {BLUE will still be rendered, better to use null (won't solve anything in this case though, since a skybrush must *always* have SKY on *all* faces).