3D Max 9 and SMDs.

[Stefano]

I'm using the 9th version of max and although it brings some pretty cool improvements, working with SMDs got a lot harder too.
I did some research and found a brand new exporter, tailored by wundeboy for this version of max in this url: http://www.wunderboy.org/sourceapps.php#max9_smd

Max 9 (and 8!) users are out of luck with importers, though. Wunderboy claims he might write such plugin in the future but it's a lot harder than exporting.
For now, I did some research and learned that there are 2 softwares that might help me with this task:

1. Fragmotion (http://www.fragmosoft.com) => imports *.smds gracefully and exports it to another format. Costs $20,00 bucks. Apparently it has some cool support for animation and I read it's a great buy.
2. Blender (url=http://www.blender.org) => imports whatever extension you have chosen to export in Fragmotion (I've tried *.x and *.md2) and saves as 3d Studio's *.3DS. the thing is the model is rotated (which is fine. You'll just have to correct that manually) and it has no bones! Big problem. I can't solve it...

If I import the very same files (*.x, *.md2) back to Fragmotion, bones are there, though.

Does anyone know an easier way to import SMDs using softwares, or knows Blender well enough to help me with this problem?

Thanks and cheers,
-Stefano

 

[Hellequin]

I'm not sure about using Fragmotion as an intermediary, but you should check out the direct-to-Blender import/export scripts I wrote, especially for M&B.  Can get 'em here.

Feel free to PM me if those give you any trouble.  The trick is to import the mesh and skeleton from a BRFEdit-exported .smd straight from Native, and change nothing about the skeleton - not position, not names of bones, nothing; the exporter will fail if you do.  At that point you can rig to it directly in Blender (or, of course, probably re-export into 3DS format or whatever).

 

[Stefano]

Oh, that makes the whole process a lot easier. Thanks! I'll sure check it out. 

Cheers,
-Stefano

 

[Stefano]

I'm sorry, mate. I don't think you script works for me... please tell me if I'm doing anything wrong:
1. Downgraded my blender to 2.42 and my python to 2.4.4
2. Dropped the python scripts into the scripts folder in Blender
2. exported man_body.smd from BRFEdit 0.8.2 and converted my texture with the same name as the *.dds to *.tga.
3. dropped them at my module directory (mount and blade directory/modules/my module/resource and texture directories respectively)

The mesh seems to be fine, but the bones...

(Deleted mesh)

 

[Hellequin]

The skeleton changed as of 0.8xx.  That's the correct skeleton you're looking at.  No, I don't know why Armagan changed to this weird boning scheme.  But open it directly in BRFEdit for comparsion; it's identical.

Sounds like everything's working, you were just taken aback (not surprisingly!) by that change.  Keep going!

 

[Ursca]

Mine looks like this;

Fairly similar to the old one if my memory serves me right.
I know any horses needed re-rigging for the new version, but I don't think armours did.

 

[Hellequin]

Hm.  Now that you mention it, Ursca, maybe you're right; maybe I've been seeing some kind of bug with the importer and not realizing it, misremembering and assuming it to be linked to that instead.

Damn, that's the more likely, innit?

I so don't have the steam right now to figure out what's wrong with the importer, then.  Not a hope.  Sorry, guys.  About the best I can offer is that it will still preserve weights, this shouldn't affect any rigging you do (either in Blender, albeit with the bones in seemingly the wrong places, but by the right names) or in 3DS Max.  So you should be able to still use these scripts to bring 3DS models into Blender, export 'em as SMD, and vice-versa.

Sorry about that... I'll try to get to the root of it eventually, but damn, not likely to happen soon.  Anybody wants a crack at it, go ahead; I'll happily try and explain what's going on in the scripts.

 

[Stefano]

Don't worry Hellequin. We all do m&b stuff in our free time and most of us are still learning. Plus, every developer need the help of beta testers to find bugs, right? Well, here I am. 
I had the chance to take a look at smd files at some occasions and it seems that the links between arms-thorax and legs-pelvis are not real bones (although they look that way in BRFEdit).
Maybe that's part of the problem? I don't know squat about programming, so...

I'll get back to my old attempts as I can't know for sure if rigging will be affected by the displaced bones...

Cheers,
-Stefano