hero model size limits or restrictions.

[dtu031770]

hello. i was looking throughtout the forum but couldnt find the info i was looking for, so here i go. i want to start modeling biped characters and i was wondering if i had an idea as to if i wanted to model/bone a character, say like Marvel Comics X-Men "Cyclops" or "Wolverine", who in real life might be 6ft. and 5ft.tall respectively, and im thinking of using a measurement scale of 6in./5in. or 6cm/5cm in relation to actual footage onscreen, would this pose a problem once i got ready to animate? and does modeling/boning something this small aid in creating smaller file sizes or faster rendering time? and if in doing so would cause a problem, how small could i model and animate a biped character, say,...like the Avenger known as "Wasp", if she was in her shrunken form in relation to much taller characters? thanks.

[Stuart Rogers]

For a character of typically humanoid scale, I find it best to model it 1:1 - if your character is six feet tall, model him six feet tall. Unless there are very good reasons, I don't see any point in doing otherwise.

 

A few months ago I started modelling a humanoid, but only about six inches tall rather than six feet. I did this simply because it matched the default import size of the rotoscope I was using as a guide. Trying to judge proportion and real life comparisons (e.g. my own body) was much simplified when I scaled it (the model, not my body!) up to full size as then I didn't have to use conversion factors.

[robcat2075]

Also, particle and gravity simulations in A:M presume you're making your models in real-life sizes.

[Stuart Rogers]

...and the stereo settings too.

[dtu031770]

...oops,...so if i did start to produce a model that small, i screwed up and need to trash and start over? i dont gain anything by building them that small? i kinda thought i would save on filesizes, how big a file would i biped character be @ 6ft. vs. 6in.? its not that i "have" too, im just trying to understand the reason behind the logic, or is this simply just how things r done, and such,... thanks again. it kinda makes it easy to gauge proportions in real time, anyway.

[oakchas]

nah, don't trash 'em, just scale 'em up!

 

If you open the mdl file of the biped you create in a text editor... you'll see that, for the most part, it's just a bunch of numbers (probably indicating cp positions in 3D space) So, for tiny little bipeds, you'll have as many cps as you would for huge ones.... File sizes for the basic mesh of the mdls tend to be pretty small... but then you start decaling and making skin look real... and the requires some graphics and then... well, files can get huge.

[dtu031770]

oh, ok,... now i understand. i guess this is why i was thinking of producing animations using smaller models, cause i didnt know how much larger the files sizes would be once i started adding decals, and such. but if this 1:1 ratio is just how A:M works, then its cool. plus i found some models via Hash and opened them, and the largest filesize was a little over 1mb, so is this concidered ok, or around average depending on the detail of a biped model? thx much 4 ur time and assist.