<< Return to Computer Games
 | - Intro to Grid Rotation: The Torus Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II |
Download tut_gridrot.zip and unzip the entire contents into its own folder.
Open STARTHERE.jed and then follow along with this tutorial.
=====================
You should be looking at this:
=====================

|
===================================
Cleave the following strip out of the default sector:
===================================

|
===================================
Make the sector look like this from the LEFT VIEW (shift+3):
===================================

Now using the good old "cleave it until its #$!*$@% round" method, make it a circle in the left view:
 
 
When you're done, it should look something like this:

Now switch to the top view, you will see this:
|
===================================
Now use GRID ROTATION and rotate the map 15 degrees CLOCKWISE:
===================================
Hold SHIFT and hit PAGEDOWN three (3) times. The default and un-changible increment of
grid rotation is 5 degrees. Your JED should now show this:

Before we can make ANY changes to our sector, we need to fix the grid so we can cleave stright
lines on it.
Unfortunetly, there is no hotkey for this, only a menu command:

This will strighten the grid and allow you to cleave.
Cleave the sector stright UP along the BLUE axis. Your JED should now show:

Now DELETE the selected sector. Press SHIFT+1 to reset JED to the default TOP view.
Your JED should now show this:
|
===================================
Now to clip off the other side:
===================================
Rotate the grid 15 degrees COUNTER-CLOCKWISE.
(SHIFT + PAGEUP three (3) times.)

Straighten the grid again:

Cleave up along the BLUE axis and delete the indicated portion below:

Reset to the default TOP view (SHIFT + 1) and you should be left with this:
|
===================================
Building the pie:
===================================
Now that we have a "wedge" of what we want our torus to look like, we can construct the
entire torus shape.
Copy and paste the torus wedge you have just made.

Rotate the new wedge 30 degrees on the Z axis.
(Press F9, on the TRANSFORMATION tab, select the Z axis, type 30 into the "angle" field, hit OK.

Now your JED should show this:
|
===================================
Align the new wedge:
===================================
Now we need to perfectly position the new wedge against our old one. Select the indicated vertex:

Now snap the grid to that select vertex.
(SHIFT + S)
Multi-select ALL the verticies in your NEW wedge, and then prepare to drag it from the indicated
vertex:

Place the handle vertex directly on the new grid origin, and your wedge should be perfectly
lined up from the top:

Now make sure your new wedge is aligned in the side view as well.
Next select one of the faces that connects the OLD wedge with the NEW one, and adjoin it (press A):

Now, select your NEW wedge, copy it, paste it, rotate it 30 degress on the Z axis, place and align
it with the last wedge you made simularly to the above instructions, and continue to repeat
the process until you have formed a complete circle:

Did I say circle? I meant torus:


All that's left for you to do is export it as a 3do, make a template for it, and place it in your level.
But i'm sure you can handle all that.
Now you have learned the absolute basics of the amazing grid rotation function in JED!
I would say that the grid rotation functionality of JED is by far the most powerful tool it has.
When applied to architecture, one can make beutiful complex architecture in a fraction
of the time you would think. EXPIRIMENT! Learn the shortcuts! Use "grid ghosts"! GO PWN!







|
|