===[COMMITED]=== White Rhinoceros

[Micket]

This won't happen in game, but when you make these renders of the animation, there are some artefacts that appear due to quads flipping their triangulation depending on the deformation. If you apply the "Triangulate" modifier before the armature deformation modifier, and this will be removed (and be closed to what the game will render)

[Enrique]

This won't happen in game, but when you make these renders of the animation, there are some artefacts that appear due to quads flipping their triangulation depending on the deformation. If you apply the "Triangulate" modifier before the armature deformation modifier, and this will be removed (and be closed to what the game will render)

Yeah I know what you mean. I don't usually triangulate until I export it to the game in case there is the need to change anything in the mesh.

Running anim:

[wowgetoffyourcellphone]

Nice! I wish animals would switch to running when attack. (also, wish player units would not attack animals unless they first are attackd! When attacked, nearby units would help take down animal, but not until then).

[Palaxin]

Since the white rhino as well as the Indian rhino are included in the official tasks I propose to call the current template fauna_rhino_white instead of fauna_rhino. So we can distinguish the current rhino from the future fauna_rhino_indian. If you are Ok with this proposal, I can make a patch.

IMO the size of the white rhino model is also too small especially compared to the giraffe, as you can see here. According to Wikipedia, the white rhino weighs about 2000 kg (average of males and females), giraffes only about 1000 kg. The North African elephant was probably similar in size with the African forest elephant, weighing about 2700 kg, so it is nearly comparable with the white rhino.

I propose to increase the model size of the rhino, and decrease giraffes a bit. Also the proportions between camel and horse are not fitting together. Both animals have about the same weight, however their models have big differences in size as you can see in the linked picture (which shows all animals arranged to their real life weights, references can be found here).

I have no experiences with 3D art, so I've no clue how much work it requires to rescale the models and if this somehow affects the animations and other parts.
If you can explain me why the current model sizes have been chosen or why my references are bad, please let me know. It would help me with my work on balancing animal stats (see ticket 3778).

Edited April 12, 2016 by Palaxin

[Nescio]

It's nice we have a white rhinoceros in 0 A.D. However, it would be great if someone could also add the other four species. Wikipedia has a nice image revealing historical ranges of rhinoceros habitats:

As you can see, the white and black rhinoceroses coexisted in what is now Sudan, which used to be controlled by the Kushites, and the Indian, Javan, and Sumatran rhinoceroses coexisted in what is now Bangladesh and Northeast India, which belonged to the Mauryas.

 

Here's another image from Wikipedia, giving a comparison of the shapes and sizes of several extinct and extant rhinoceroses, which could be useful for people who intend to adapt 0 A.D.'s current rhinoceros:

[Stan`]

@Nescio Would that require big changes to the existing model (By big I mean complete new body, small would be horns, and head shape) ? If not I guess we could do it pretty fast if someone finds CC0 (Preferably) or CC-BY-SA side photos of such animals.

[Nescio]

1 hour ago, Stan` said:

@Nescio Would that require big changes to the existing model (By big I mean complete new body, small would be horns, and head shape) ? If not I guess we could do it pretty fast if someone finds CC0 (Preferably) or CC-BY-SA side photos of such animals.

Well, I guess more work is needed than just replacing heads, because they're all different sizes (females are also smaller), but I'd imagine animations could be shared by all.

[LordGood]

2 minutes ago, Nescio said:

but I'd imagine animations could be shared by all.

if the body shape changes the skeleton changes, and if the skeleton changes, in most cases the animations cant be salvaged

[Nescio]

Just now, LordGood said:

if the body shape changes the skeleton changes, and if the skeleton changes, in most cases the animations cant be salvaged

Take, for instance, donkey, zebra, and horse; they're all similar yet different; were their animations developed independently from each other?

[LordGood]

considering the donkey is still missing animations i would say so. Animations do not translate well with the scale modifier

[Nescio]

Thanks for the clarification! So having separate males, females, and calves of the same species would also require re-animation?

[LordGood]

if their skeletal structures differ too much they will, a good example of those that can use the same animation, form the looks of things all of the cattle reskins seem to use the same or similar animations

male, female, and calves could be possible seeing what we have in game, but I havent gone through the process myself

the pig and piglet seem to share animations but they're on a 1:1 scale, the problem with the horse, zebra, and donkey is that the leg proportions wont fit direct scale and really everything would get all screwy

reanimating is the cleanest way to go about it

[Stan`]

31 minutes ago, LordGood said:

considering the donkey is still missing animations i would say so

Someone disagrees.

 

@LordGood is right though you can only scale anims on all axii once you start doing it in a non iso manner it gets weird. See my dwarfs anims for instance. One can tweak the armature though (move initial leg positions etc, or edit curves) but if you know how to do it (I don't) remaking anims is the best way...

 

 

 

 

[Nescio]

Off-topic yet related: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-50531208