Source engine - MDL - UV channel 2 [HELP!] Thread

This is just an inquiry I have.

How many UV channels can be stored in an .MDL in Source engine?

Regardless of that answer, how do I use 2 UV channels in Source?

Is it automatic based on my settings in Max when I export?

Do I have to specify anything in the QC file when compiling SMD?

Do I have to specify anything in the VMT file for the VTF textures? (Thinking this most likely is where I would have to do anything)

In case you're wondering why. I'm using lighting from 3D Studio Max mental ray, to generate light-maps for the MDLs in my scene.
This creates both high quality direct shading, as well as G.I.; indirect shading, and color bleeding.

For shading of dynamic MDLs (NPCs, vehicles, players) that may interact with any of the lightmapped MDLs... I will be relying on Env_projectedtexture.

Unfortunately, the UVs made for the lightmaps, will not work well with surfaces where it is ideal to tile instead of have a packed texture map for.
Some surfaces can reuse the same UV coordinates for both lightmap and diffuse detail, but others it is more ideal for tiling to be used with the diffuse detail.

The tiling can not be done in VMT, because the UVs for the lightmap are minor-stretched, rotated, flipped, and separated to get the most out of the resolution.

I need to have 2 UV channels thus for this to work out with the best quality.

Root.miriscus.com

You might be SOL with Source; I don't think .smd can contain multiple UV channels and the same probably goes for compiled .mdl files. So far the wiki doesn't seem to explicitly state it, but it seems to imply that one 1 UV is used (and that multiple skins must share the same UVs). It also sounds like Source generally only lightmaps brushes, with models being vertex lit.

That's my general experience with source from a few years ago, along with a quick browse of the wiki. Perhaps one of the newer versions (l4d2, etc) might have changed things.

2 UV channels are fine in source.
Just be sure to texture them in the modelign program, then when you export to the smd, just make your mat files the same name as they were called in the modeling program.

The QC should point it to them during compile.

DonPunch wrote: 2 UV channels are fine in source.
Just be sure to texture them in the modelign program, then when you export to the smd, just make your mat files the same name as they were called in the modeling program.

The QC should point it to them during compile.

I don't think that does what he wants. It allows for two separate materials, but only 1 per face with 1 set of UVs. He basically wants 1 materials with 2 uvs, so that you can independently tell which texture to use which set of coordinates (diffuse being stacked, lightmaps giving each face unique uv realestate).

Edited by: Cryrid

Anyway to make it so that both materials appear at the same time? Can the SMD format be modified/hacked to make it work, or is this something that is in Source engine that has to be changed?

I want to examine all options here, cause I don't want to give up on Source too soon.

Edited by: DIFTOW

I have a model we made, that uses 3 uv channels, and it works just fine in source.

My other explaination was a but odd. Basically, if you know how to make a model with 1 uv channel in source, you dont do anything different with multiple uv's.

Its kind of pointless with source (you cant use differnt shaders with models) unless you just need extra detail. UDK however has some sexy things you can do with multiple uv's,

Edit: If you are trying to layer materials, then no.

Edited by: *Don*