57 replies to this topic

[Sentinel373]

Hi guy's
So after my delving into 3d printing MWO figures. I figure it is time for something else. So I'm starting a little animation project. Nothing too fancy, something in the 2 -3 minute range. since most Mechwarrior video's out there are very old and horribly dated by today's standards. So I want to try my hand at it.

It'll be a fight between a marauder and another mech which I've yet to decide on.
It is set right at the start of the clan invasion, the marauder will be part of a merc unit called the night watch. I don't know yet if the mech it will be fighting is clan or IS. The video will be set in a city so there will be plenty of destruction. and I'm also kind of sick of all the desert battletech video's. there will be some cockpit interior shots so i'll be doing some character design as well. I can already tell you that the pilot of the marauder will be female.

I'm currently still writing a script but I do have a basic outline which I might share at a later date.

The video will be produced using source film maker rather regular CGI renderers (although the screenshots below we're rendered with mental ray.)
This is because my background is in video games and I feel more comfortable using real time render engines, also for those wondering why i'm not using cry engine. It's simply a matter of I don't like how cry engine works. in my experience it is clunky and very user unfriendly and i'd rather spend my time animating than fighting the tools I'm trying to use.

I suspect production will take a while, 6 month's minimum and I intend to use this thread to post updates. and now for some screens and animation.

First off we have the Marauder going full speed. I animated it to go 84.6 kp/h (yes I know what sarna says)
I'm creating a set of looping animations for it before i put it in SFM so i can focus on the custom animations in sfm rather than having it walk around and other mundane stuff. (I plan on doing some running scenes)


And here we have the cockpit interior
As you can see it will have a custom paper doll, screens and colors are not yet final.



all of it is still untextured but that will change soon.



One thing to note though, for this project i am going for rule of cool not 100% lore accuracy. If it's lore accurate and looks cool then fine. but if i have to bend the rules in order to get a cool shot then that's what I'll do.

Any feedback and idea's and whatnot you guys want to share please feel free.

Edited by Sentinel373, 02 January 2014 - 08:40 PM.

[Sentinel373]

Tweaked the run cycle for the marauder a bit

[Pawn Couch]

I think it should be fighting a Summoner, fights with Summoners always look cool.

[dangerzone]

When you texture it...anyway we could get a smaller image size suitable for putting in a forum signature? Perhaps add into the image a link of somekind mentioning your work or name. I'd display it proudly.

[Blackfang]

Amazing work Sentinal, the marauder animation is fantastic!

[Sentinel373]

KING PINEAPYULA, on 03 January 2014 - 05:24 PM, said:

I think it should be fighting a Summoner, fights with Summoners always look cool.

summoner sounds cool, but I was thinking more along the lines of something a little smaller and faster. something along the lines of a cicada maybe and perhaps a second mech to kind of balance the weight difference. i'm not sure yet.

Right now i have this scene in mind where the second mech runs off down a long street and the marauder is chasing it. then it suddenly rounds a corner, and because the marauder is going full speed it can't slow down fast enoegh and just slams sideways into a building when it tries to take that corner gyro overload and everything. severely damaging that building in the process and causing some damage to one of the MAD's arms.

so basicly i want something thats fast and small, but not so fast that it can run circles around the marauder so either a really fast heavy or a medium. or perhaps a medium and a light, i dunno yet. any suggestions are welcome

dangerzone, on 03 January 2014 - 08:53 PM, said:

When you texture it...anyway we could get a smaller image size suitable for putting in a forum signature? Perhaps add into the image a link of somekind mentioning your work or name. I'd display it proudly.

sure, i'll make a smaller pic later

Edited by Sentinel373, 04 January 2014 - 05:02 AM.

[Katus]

PGI, Gimme my Marauder NOW!! This might convince me to spend money on this game prior to a bug free UI 2.0 and CW.

[Fury9er]

How about a Javelin? Nasty little short range mech...but not too fast.

[Pawn Couch]

Sentinel373, on 04 January 2014 - 04:57 AM, said:

summoner sounds cool, but I was thinking more along the lines of something a little smaller and faster. something along the lines of a cicada maybe and perhaps a second mech to kind of balance the weight difference. i'm not sure yet.

Right now i have this scene in mind where the second mech runs off down a long street and the marauder is chasing it. then it suddenly rounds a corner, and because the marauder is going full speed it can't slow down fast enoegh and just slams sideways into a building when it tries to take that corner gyro overload and everything. severely damaging that building in the process and causing some damage to one of the MAD's arms.

so basicly i want something thats fast and small, but not so fast that it can run circles around the marauder so either a really fast heavy or a medium. or perhaps a medium and a light, i dunno yet. any suggestions are welcome

I was thinking of a Summoner because of the old MW2 intro, but that sounds pretty cool.

Maybe the Cicada should be leading him into a trap, a Warhammer perhaps?
After the smoke clears from the destroyed building suddenly Warhammer.

[Sentinel373]

KING PINEAPYULA, on 04 January 2014 - 03:14 PM, said:

I was thinking of a Summoner because of the old MW2 intro, but that sounds pretty cool.

Maybe the Cicada should be leading him into a trap, a Warhammer perhaps?
After the smoke clears from the destroyed building suddenly Warhammer.

I have been tempted to model a warhammer recently, I have this sketch also by shimmering sword of a warhammer (its an updated version of the one in his unseen moon painting) I like the idea of a cicada or another fast mech luring it into a trap and then suddenly warhammer, but that scene is at the beginning of the chase. and the warhammer should probably be more of a suprise halfway through
For this part I am thinking; the t-rex chase scene from jurassic park where the t-rex shows up out of the bushes and starts chasing the jeep. with the marauder being the t-rex.

This scene from the 36 second mark. thats along the lines of how I want the chase to start the tree branch will be a skybridge between buildings which the other mech can duck under and the marauder shoots it a couple of times before smashing through. (hence why I wanted the other mech to be small )

As for the javelin, i'm not really a fan of the design. If I'm gonna go for a light mech then it'll probably be a raven. but since the raven is a rather fast mech, i'd rather go for a medium.

But yeah I am a big fan of the smaller mech luring the marauder into a trap I'll think about it, thanks

Edited by Sentinel373, 04 January 2014 - 03:47 PM.

[Pawn Couch]

Ooh i got a good one, the Marauder legs the Cicada as the Cicada rips around a tight corner, the force from the AC makes it swing into a parking lot and knock a few levels down on it self.

As the Marauder turns the corner to finish off the Cicada, suddenly Warhammer.

[Izzob]

That's some very very nice work, I bet it took allot of work. Looking at it, I bet in game it would be just as easy to head shot as the catapult.

Hope it gets in game sometime.

[Adridos]

It's really nice to see someone do a full project in SFM properly. Most people get too carried away with the basic assets to fully utilize the potential within it, in my opinion.

I'd have a few questions, if you wouldn't mind:

- When it comes to in cockpit shots, will the screens be handled as static displays (each shot done from the pilot's perspective will have a set of static screens representing the situation) or more active ones (animated textures and other trickery)?

- Have you thought about situating the whole encounter sometime during night, or is the time of day already decided upon?

- Do you already have the situation around planned out? The state of the city (war-torn/fresh/...), what accident this is a part of (skirmish/raid/full-blown invasion/...), what kind of planet this is happening on (terra-like atmosphere and the like/more sci-fi enviroment/...) and other such details?

- Are you planning to add voice-overs or strictly mech speech (shots, crashes, ambient sounds,... you get the idea)?

Really good looking project, Sentinel. Can't wait to see what great animation you'll end up with in due time.

[Sentinel373]

Adridos, on 05 January 2014 - 08:14 AM, said:

It's really nice to see someone do a full project in SFM properly. Most people get too carried away with the basic assets to fully utilize the potential within it, in my opinion.

I'd have a few questions, if you wouldn't mind:

- When it comes to in cockpit shots, will the screens be handled as static displays (each shot done from the pilot's perspective will have a set of static screens representing the situation) or more active ones (animated textures and other trickery)?

- Have you thought about situating the whole encounter sometime during night, or is the time of day already decided upon?

- Do you already have the situation around planned out? The state of the city (war-torn/fresh/...), what accident this is a part of (skirmish/raid/full-blown invasion/...), what kind of planet this is happening on (terra-like atmosphere and the like/more sci-fi enviroment/...) and other such details?

- Are you planning to add voice-overs or strictly mech speech (shots, crashes, ambient sounds,... you get the idea)?

Really good looking project, Sentinel. Can't wait to see what great animation you'll end up with in due time.

The screens will display stuff relevant to the situation of the scene during in cockpit scenes. at least that's what i'm planning, as you can see i already made a custom paper doll for the marauder. this is done in illustrator so changing color and stuff like that will be easy. i hope to have it animated or at least look like its animated but i'll have to figure out how that works. I also have an idea for a small holographic hud for the crosshair etc. and stuff that wont fit on the screens. (I know that stuff is usually displayed in the neurohelmet but that won't read too well for the audience I think)
also I plan to have some in-cockpit closeup's of the pilot so the neurohelmet won't cover the entire face of the pilot.

I plan to set the video at dusk, bordering on night, (blood moon rises and all that) also I want to have it rain but that might require a lot of work to make that look good. so that's still up in the air. also that might hamper things like dust clouds from destroyed buildings etc. so not sure on the rain yet.

basically the idea is a city on an earth like planet near the periphery is constantly having pirate problems. and the night watch are hired to help deal with them. the situation at the start of the video is that there have been a few skirmishes already in the city. So there are some fires. the city is mostly abandoned (people in shelters etc.) abandoned vehicles all around which will get crushed etc. the city is going to be sci-fi-ish.

Yes I am going to have voice overs. The marauder's pilot will be voiced, I also have someone who's going to do custom bitching Betty prompts, and there will be some com chatter between the marauder and some other off screen mechs and the drop ship that's sitting on the edge of the city. The enemy mech's won't be voiced however. I have someone I mind for the marauder's pilot but I wont reveal who until I'm a bit further along in the project and I can confirm she actually wants to do it

so fun times ahead

Edited by Sentinel373, 05 January 2014 - 09:29 AM.

[Sentinel373]

Hi guy's
so some development over the last few days, first off i'm nearly finished with the marauder's walkcycle this time at 42kp/h


Next I'm adding a third mech to the video. a warhammer after a suggestion here on the forum. I managed to get a really cool redesign, also done by shimmering "Anthony Scroggins" Sword although its a new one. not the one he has already shown publicly. I'll post the concept art later when i'm a little further with the model. but it is sexy i can tell you that.

[Nathan Foxbane]

How about an ASN-21 Assassin as the bait 'Mech? Little more nimble than the Raven without all the specialist equipment (and being more common outside the CC). Jump jets can give you some vertical play and allow it to cut corners if the building is low enough. It has the Raven's armor, but a weapons complement equally lackluster as older Cicadas. The LRM launcher will be next to useless in city unless it is laying down Thunders, leaving the SRM 2 and Medium Laser.

The STN-3K Sentinel is a slower, less agile, and more durable option. Same speed as the Raven with a ton and a half more armor. An AC/5, SRM 2, and Small Laser are less threatening than the Assassin for the most part, but the AC can be flipped and fired while the Sentinel retreats.

Both are known for having jamming problems with the SRM.

Edited by Nathan Foxbane, 07 January 2014 - 05:52 PM.

[LiGhtningFF13]

Could fit here in MWO really well, nicely done Sentinel!

[Sentinel373]

so little update, I've decided on the bait mech: it will be a firefly, and more specifically this firefly

I may change the weapon load out. but this mech goes about the same speed as the suped up marauder. It is smaller and more maneuverable and I really like the look.

and last night i uploaded a new walk cycle, i got some comments on it by a friend of mine saying that the steps we're too small so i added a few frames to length of the cycle and suddenly its much more menacing.


I may revisit the runcycle as well to make it a bit smoother and see if I can get a better feeling of weight going.
Also it will no longer be just me animating the video another close friend of mine has generously offered to help with the animation. she will mostly be in charge of animations for the warhammer. she will also be helping me with the script and screenplay. more on that soon

Edited by Sentinel373, 08 January 2014 - 04:28 PM.

[Nathan Foxbane]

Just for some potential options (if you don't have enough already) on the custom Marauder using the speed as the primary requirement, starting with the most common variant (MAD-3R) as a base, any tech available prior to 3050, and no modifications that would significantly alter the model you already have as constraints.
The only change that need be made for the required speed is freeing up 1.5 tons total for an XL 375 and the corresponding heavier gyro. Using endo-steel would allow for 1.5 tons of extra weight to be played with and there is plenty of internal space to use. You can go further since the engine can carry five heat sinks at this point and use double heat sinks so it runs pretty cold, to the point where two heat sinks could be dropped and all the extra weight moved into armor and/or other equipment (no extra weapons) and the MAD would still barely gain heat running and alpha striking. Using ER PPCs, an additional heat sink and half a ton of armor can be added.
Not really options I guess, but ways to make things fit in BT without having to clutter up your story with details that slow down the plot.

I just noticed the autocannon has a firing cycle in the first run cycle and that looks amazing. The latest walk cycle gives the Marauder a very predatory feel. Would hate the round a corner onto a dark street in any light 'Mech and see that beast stalking towards me.

Edited by Nathan Foxbane, 08 January 2014 - 07:00 PM.

[Blackfang]

Dude I love you, the Firefly is one of my favourite mechs and I can't wait to see what you do with it! I loved it in Mechwarrior 3.