BModels

BModel Surface Lighting
    _color
    _distance
    _focus
    light
    _lightmin
    _lightswitch
    style
BModel Appearance
    _ambient
    _minlighta
    _lightorigin

Related Topics


BModel Surface Lighting

Quake2's surface-based lighting is generally more natural looking than point light entities. Unfortunately, only its brightness can be modified with Qrad3. ArghRad provides new ways to extensively customize surface light appearance. One method is through bmodel entities.

ArghRad allows brush-model entities (bmodels; like func_wall, func_door, etc.) to cast light from their surfaces. The propereties of all the bmodel's light-emitting surfaces can be modified by adding lighting keywords to the entity. This first group of options are affected by -nobmodlight.

Note: Remember that Quake2 lighting is static, and will remain where it's cast even if the BModel moves or disappears.


 
 
_color  r g b

location: bmodel entity    version: 1.00  
r g b: standard rgb color default: none

Sets the RGB color of the bmodel's surface lighting, overriding the original texture colors. Colors similar to the originals tend to look best.

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_distance  units

location: bmodel entity    version: 2.50  
units: >= 1 default: infinite

Sets a cutoff distance at which the surface lights abruptly stop shining. It can be used strategically to speed compiling, and reduce "face with too many lightstyles" errors.

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_focus  scale

location: bmodel entity    version: 1.00  
scale: 0-1 (fade slower),  > 1 (fade faster) default: 1

Scales how quickly the surface light fades as its cast-off angle decreases from perpendicular to parallel. Values less than 1 fade slower, spreading out more. Values greater than 1 fade faster, spreading out less.

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light  brightness

location: bmodel entity    version: 1.00  
brightness: any brightness default: none

Sets the brightness of the bmodel's surface lighting, overriding the surfaces' own light values.

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_lightmin  brightness

location: bmodel entity    version: 1.00  
brightness: 0-255 default: 0

This setting affects the bmodel's appearance, not the light it casts. It adds the specified brightness to the bmodel's light-emitting surfaces. This can make dim surface lights appear to glow brighter.

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_lightswitch  targetname

location: bmodel entity    version: 2.50  
targetname: targetname of triggered light default: none

Allows the bmodel's surface lights to be triggered. This requires an additional, separate triggered light entity. Set the bmodel's _lightswitch value to the targetname of that light. The bmodel's lighting will then be set to the same trigger.

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style  lightstyle

location: bmodel entity    version: 1.00  
style: standard lightstyle (0-31) default: 0

Sets the bmodel's surface lighting to the specified lightstyle.

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BModel Appearance

ArghRad also adds several new settings for bmodels that modify its overall appearance & behavior. These options are NOT affected by -nobmodlight.


 
 
_ambient  brightness
_ambient  red green blue

location: bmodel entity    version: 1.00  
brightness: 0-255
red green blue: 0-255 each
default: 0
default: 0 0 0

Adds an ambient brightness level to all of the bmodel's surfaces. The value can take one of two forms:

brightness - A single brightness value for plain white ambient light.

red green blue - Three separate brightness values for red, green, and blue ambient lighting (NOT a standard rgb color).

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_minlighta  brightness

location: bmodel entity    version: 1.00  
brightness: 0-255 default: 0

Applies a mottled light effect of the specified brightness to all of the bmodel's surfaces. Brightness is a standard "absolute" level (easier than Qrad3 _minlight's 0-2 scale).

Note: Do not confuse this with the global -minlighta behavior.

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_lightorigin  x y z

location: bmodel entity    version: 2.50  
x y z: any coordinate default: none

Temporarily moves the bmodel to the specified coordinate during the lighting calculations. It can be used to light, and cast light from, this bmodel somewhere other than where it's placed in the map. BModels with origin brushes are moved using the origin brush's center, otherwise the bmodel's minimum x,y,z coordinate is used.

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Related Topics

-nobmodlight
_shadow