Teardrop Merging: Revisited

Discussion in 'Halo and Forge Discussion' started by aMoeba, Jun 8, 2009.

  1. aMoeba

    aMoeba Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    1,369
    Likes Received:
    0
    This method was originally discovered by BLADEP13, in this thread: http://www.forgehub.com/forum/halo-forge-discussion/46688-geomerging-without-doors.html

    Before we get onto the guide, let's get a few things straight...
    • If there is more than one person in the Forge game, you must be party leader to be able to successfully execute this method.
    • (I know what perpendicular means. I did this guide in a rush, forgive me).


    BEFORE ASKING A QUESTION, READ THE ENTIRE THREAD AND THE FAQ. THANK YOU. NEW QUESTIONS WILL BE ADDED TO THE FAQ.

    I have chosen to expand upon this technique, it is the EASIEST way to geomerge, and probably the most reliable/straightest, but is limited. I will attempt to cover all aspects of tear drop merging in this thread, to help you fully understand.

    | What is tear drop merging? |

    Tear drop merging is a type of geo merging entirely dependent on the placement of an object's teardrop in concordance with the rotation of the object and its teardrop. This method of geo merging requires only the object you want to geomerge, but sometimes other objects may help. This method works on all the DLC maps, because those are the only maps that have large immovable objects. I will be demonstrating different map usage and the limited usage of this technique in this guide.

    | How do you do it? |

    Its quite simple, hence the reason I love it. Its very quick, and efficient. Things only turn out the way you left them, so there will be no random result of sloppiness. The basic concept is simple, but I will go in depth.

    | The Limited Nature of Tear drop merging | (excuse my Photoshop guide making skills)

    As I had mentioned earlier, tear drop merging is limited. I will show you how.

    Picture #1: Using a box (different objects have tear drops in different locations, some objects are less merge able then others)

    [​IMG]

    Picture #2: Using a bridge

    [​IMG]

    Now that you understand what you can tear drop merge and what you can't, lets go into how to tear drop merge.

    | Picture guide to teardrop merge nao plz |

    First, I'll go over in text how to tear drop merge. Then i'll do pictures, and caption the pictures.

    The steps to tear drop merging:

    1. The first thing you will need to do is place an object. The object must be immovable.

    2. The second thing you must do is check how you want it to be merged. If you look above at the two pictures, you will see that parallel merging does not work, however perpendicular does.

    3. Once you check out that the way you want the object to be merged works, proceed to step 3. This, for some, is the most complicated step. I will put this step into sub steps.

    a. Rotate the object to whatever angle you would like it geo merged. Lets say you have a box, like the box in Box picture 1, the perpendicular box. Once you have it at that rotation you want, pull it as far down as you want it geomerged, but DO NOT use the right trigger. You must pull it with the monitor.

    b. At the desired depth, save the game, and then quit. Start up the game again.

    c. The object should be geomerged at the level you left the tear drop.

    Picture guide! (The one everybody loves)

    1. Place the object, perpendicularly. Make sure its immovable.

    [​IMG]

    2. The box is obviously perpendicular.

    3. Move the object at the depth desired. Notice how the angle of the teardrop from step 1 is the same here. ( I know you can't see it, but trust me)

    a. [​IMG]

    b. Save and quit. Start game.

    c. The geo merged result. Notice how throughout the steps, the teardrop stays at the same angle, but is simply moved down without rotation. The reason you cannot rotate once you have the angle is because the teardrop will also rotate. Through this guide, you learn how to rotate the object, but not the teardrop.

    [​IMG]

    That is the essential, basic way to do it. It can be done with different angles of walls. Just remember, the object must be perpendicular to the geometry's surface.


    | Using other objects to assist depth |

    You can use other objects, as braces, I like to call them "sliders" to push the object more to a direction without actually rotating it. Here is an example:

    Example: Wall slides on an open double box to increase depth.

    This is the angle of the box and the walls are the sliders:

    [​IMG]

    This is the result, after the box is fit into the sliders, and the walls are deleted:

    [​IMG]

    | More results of tear drop mergings, on other maps too! |

    Blackout: (note that this can be done on every map with immovable objects. weapon holders are too small)

    [​IMG]

    All of the objects you see below are teardrop merged:

    [​IMG]

    Sandbox: (all of these are merged excluding the double wall interlocked with the double block)

    [​IMG]

    Avalanche:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Standoff:

    [​IMG]

    Note that these are just a few examples of the truly amazing and simple way you can teardrop merge!

    | Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) |

    Q. Can I do this on any map?

    A. Yes, you can do this on any map with immovable objects.

    ____________________________

    Q. So what does parallel and perpendicular mean?

    A. Parallel means "extending in the same direction, equidistant at all points, and never converging or diverging." Perpendicular means "maintaining a standing or upright position; standing up."
    shameless definition ripping from Dictionary.com

    My gamertag is NewbAmoeba. I would be more than glad to help people out in an actual forge game, if you still do not understand this method. Just send a voice message with your friend request saying you that would like to learn more about tear drop merging.


    Thanks for reading! Please leave a comment, and keep this thread alive! Make sure to give credit to the original discoverer of the technique (though he's dormant). You can just thank me for the in depth explanation. :happy:
     
    #1 aMoeba, Jun 8, 2009
    Last edited: Jul 18, 2009
  2. Duckyz

    Duckyz Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    653
    Likes Received:
    0
    very nice tut

    ive never seen this method before

    ill give it a tri and reply i guess
     
  3. kilamanjara14izback

    Senior Member

    Messages:
    260
    Likes Received:
    0
    I was wanting a better explanation of this. I remember the other thread about this but I never really under stood how it worked and what not. Thanks for taking the time and doing this, I am sure that I will use it in the future, especially since there is a map that needs geomerging in the sand dunes and this could help ALOT.

    ~kilamanjara14
     
  4. nitrotomato

    nitrotomato Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    100
    Likes Received:
    1
    Very nice guide. I've seen lots of guides on this but none that really made sense or explained it very well. This is great for those small merges that people want to see but take too much time using the typical door method, such as Avalanche. Should save a lotta time. Thanks.

    I may need some guidance on this for our Avalanche map for the project as part of the group - if so I'll fire a PM your way =).
     
  5. Debo37

    Debo37 Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    903
    Likes Received:
    213
    If you wanted to add it to the guide, you could perhaps also mention that objects are perfectly straight when you first spawn them from the X menu, meaning that you can make perfectly straight walls/blocks/boxes in the direction in which they're initially oriented. Aside from that, great guide! This will definitely help some people out. ;)
     
  6. patt06snipe

    patt06snipe Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    269
    Likes Received:
    0
    Thank you very much. This will really be helpful once I get the hang of it. Great explanations on how to do it. Thanks again.
     
  7. evan12075

    evan12075 Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    669
    Likes Received:
    1
    Another thing you can add... If you want to do a straight merge, you can push an object against the floor and the wall or a box you lay on the ground than grab it again. That's a useful tip for walls because even though they spawn straight out of the "X" menu, they might not be at the angle you want them.

    But anyway, great guide, I've used this technique quite a few times in some maps I'm working on right now. It's quite useful for making ramps. Great Job in showing some great instances where this technique can be used as well.
     
  8. superguh007

    superguh007 Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    127
    Likes Received:
    3
    Wow, I've never seen this technique before. It seems really useful, and this guide is great!

    One thing though, and I hate to be a **** about it, but your use of "perpendicular" is giving me a seizure. Perpendicular means "at a 90 degree angle" when used in the context of geometry. The way you've used it here is appropriate for, say, poetry, but not for anything remotely connected to describing the orientation of 3D objects.
     
  9. The Violence Within

    Senior Member

    Messages:
    47
    Likes Received:
    0
    This works very well with walls, as the physics of the game allow you to more easily rotate the wall without holding the R trigger. A very simple push/pull effect. Very nice write-up btw
     
  10. chrstphrbrnnn

    chrstphrbrnnn Guardian
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    4,640
    Likes Received:
    2
    Glad you linked the original discovery, adding this too the FTMI (Forge Tutorial Master Index).
     
    #10 chrstphrbrnnn, Jun 9, 2009
    Last edited: Jun 9, 2009
  11. aMoeba

    aMoeba Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    1,369
    Likes Received:
    0
    Sorry, I did this in a rush. I was working on my race track in Forge at the time ;)

    There weren't really any other terms I could use, because intersecting wasn't necessarily true. I just did the first thing I thought of as an opposite of parallel
     
  12. whiizzle

    whiizzle Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    456
    Likes Received:
    0
    i love you.

    this is very helpful. now get in bed right now!!
     
  13. AceOfSpades

    AceOfSpades Talented
    Forge Critic Senior Member

    Messages:
    3,552
    Likes Received:
    2,842
    You should add this because we found it out yesterday.

    If there is more than one person in the Forge game, you must be party leader to be able to successfully execute this method.

    Also, thanks for showing me yesterday. I practiced and I got some cool stuff merged.
     
  14. aMoeba

    aMoeba Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    1,369
    Likes Received:
    0
    I just woke up =_=
    actually even later than I wanted to.

    I'll edit this into the OP, thanks for reminding me.
     
  15. Jimbodawg

    Jimbodawg Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    966
    Likes Received:
    0
    This is a very good technique for geomerging, even if it is limited. This tutorial written is very detailed, and I had no problem following the steps. Thanks a lot aMoeba, I'll be sure to use this method more, I always overlooked it. =)
     
  16. Grif2200

    Grif2200 Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    53
    Likes Received:
    0
    Thanks, I knew how to geomerge with teleporters but this seems alot easier.
     
  17. Blaze

    Blaze Sustain Designer
    Forge Critic Creative Force Senior Member

    Messages:
    3,111
    Likes Received:
    1,799
    I have been using this method for the longest time and teaching people off and on. This method is VERY useful. Good tut.
     
  18. Silent oo death

    Silent oo death Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    1,040
    Likes Received:
    0
    this is a very helpful guide and i can't believe i've been on FH for so long and not realized how to do this. Thanks guess what im going to do on about every map now?
     
  19. Rifte

    Rifte Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    2,610
    Likes Received:
    36
    Lol I just learned about this too. I'm still learning how this works though, I can'tt get it to the depth that I want, although I'll start learning as time passes and I get used to this.
     
  20. Ponponhead

    Ponponhead Ancient
    Senior Member

    Messages:
    39
    Likes Received:
    0
    Wow, I can't wait to try this, I've been looking for a nice method to geomerge on Sandbox because I CANNOT do the method which includes interlocking then pushing into the ground. It just makes me angry.
     

Share This Page