Hello forgehub.com, For my first post here, I’ll be asking a question that has plagued me for some time. How do you interlock in thin air so well? :frustrated: Most of the ‘race’ type maps authors use this skill quite amazingly, and I’d like to use it myself. However, I’ve tried several of methods, but none have worked for me. Aside from having practiced for some time, I imagine that there is something I have to be missing. I know how to use the respawn interlocking method, but I can’t hold and object in thin air and hope I’ve got it lined up correctly with the object set to respawn. While in most of the maps I've seen, the objects are almost perfectly lined up with each other. The save and quit method doesn’t work because it isn’t for interlocking objects, just making them float. These conclusions have led me to believe that I’m missing something from my repertoire and that it’s not just a lack of raw forging skill. Does anyone have some tips for me?
I've only ever made one racetrack, and it wasn't that good, so I don't know for sure. Try putting a brace on top of the box you are about to interlock into? Put a double box on top of it, with half of it sticking out, then when interlocking, use that; push the new box against that so it's in the right place. To change direction.....tilt the guide block and save it at the angle you want, then do the same thing? To be honest though, I'd ask someone who's good a tracks.
I understand what you're saying with the double box method, but that limits your progress to approximately half of a wall or box at a time. Also, what do you do when you're pulling out of a slope? I guess you could drag the box to the edge of the wall, and save & quit; then, the next wall will be close to the edge of the previous. However, that method could cause you to run into the glitchy behavior of save & quit items (i.e. not appearing where you saved them). I guess I might be asking too much of the limited nature of forge, but people have made smoothly interlocked maps in air. Should I start on the ground (or grid, in the skybubble's case)?
The save and quit method can very easily be used for interlocking. -Mark the corners of your object with spawns. -Turn your object off. -Save and quit a new piece aligned with these respawn points.
You can't use spawns in the skybubble (they fall through the grid), much less in mid air. I learned how to interlock using the simple respawn point method, but then I learned to line up other objects like double walls with the object I want to interlock. That method helped me straighten out the objects I was interlocking faster and smoother. Anyway, I've been working with the method mentioned above for mid air, but with double walls, and it works okay.
Even though I've never made a track, I consider myself knowledgeable enough when it comes to Forge that I believe I can give you an answer. Teardrop Merging should solve your problems. Discovered this previous December, Teardrop Merging allows one to Forge ridiculously quickly with near-perfect accuracy and precision. It's not incredibly difficult to do, and with practice you will likely become better and better at it. Teardrop Merging's secret lies in the hidden Rotation Values assigned to any given Forge Object. Ever notice that a Double Block is perfectly flat and aligned in a straight manner when you initially spawn it? That's because that Block's Rotation Values are all set to zero. An object in its initial condition is perfectly straight. I like to call these objects "fresh" objects, as they haven't been tampered with. If I were to save and quit while holding a freshly spawned object, it would appear perfectly straight when I started a new game. The important thing to know is that the Rotation Values of the object determine its position after a save, not the way the object looks when you place it. Therefore, the only truly reliable way to Forge is to save and quit after placing each piece. Now that you know what RVs are, you can manipulate them to your own ends by the concept of object "states." An initially spawned object is in its fresh state. If I were to put it down on the ground, rotate it 45 degrees with the R trigger and the joysticks, save the game, end it, and start a new game I would find the object in a new "state." It would be in a different position than when it was initially spawned. So why is it that rotating the object with the R Trigger changes the object's state when you start a new game? Rotating an object with the R Trigger does something to it. A push of the R Trigger combined with motion of the joysticks changes the Rotation Values of the object. Moving the object with the joysticks alone does NOT change the Rotation Values of the object. An object's "state" reflects its rotation values. When you save and quit to start a new game, a previously placed object's position will match its Rotation Values. Because Rotation Values are hidden (meaning you can't know for certain what they are unless the object is fresh), you can never be sure of an object's placement until the game has been saved and a new game has been started. For instance, the Rotation Values of a Double Wall are somehow corrupted upon saving when it has been moved from its fresh state (which causes the "Wall Tilt" Sandbox bug). I'm assuming it has to do with the Rotation Values for the Wall being rounded improperly. Now you need to know how objects spawn. The game takes the object's rotation values and spawns the object from the little "Teardrop" point that's located somewhere on the object (usually on its bottom). The location of this teardrop determines the location of the object after a save and quit. That being said, you can manipulate this in an extremely helpful manner. By putting an object in a definite state (placing it somewhere, saving and quitting, then starting a new game), moving the object's teardrop where you please using the joysticks only, and save-quitting the object you can interlock and geomerge with EASE. For example, let's say you have a Double Block floating about three block-heights high on the main tier of Sandbox, and you want to interlock a Double Wall with it horizontally. 1) Place the Double Wall flat on the ground, twisted to match the angle of the Double Block (if the block is angled). 2) Save Changes or Save as New Map, and End the game. You don't need to be holding the Double Wall while doing this, but even if you are it won't make a difference. 3) Start a new game. 4) Grab the Double Wall from the ground. Do not press the R Trigger at all or let go of the object once you have grabbed it! 5) Fly up to the Double Block in the sky using the joysticks only. 6) Position yourself above the Double Block and place the Double Wall on top of the Double Block and, using the joysticks only, push its teardrop over the side and down slightly (so that it's about half a Wall's thickness below the Double Block's top edge). Still do not let go of the object. 7) Pause, Save Changes/Save as New Map, and End Game without leaving the Pause menu. 8) Start a new game, and you'll find the Double Wall in the same rotational state as it was when on the ground, but it will be interlocked into the Double Block! Using this technique is likely the easiest way to build huge floating tracks. Hope I helped!!
Okay, I'll be back in about an hour. I'm not really understanding what you're saying. I understand the explaination of the Rotation Values of objects. That's a logical progression, but I don't get the steps that you showed me. I can see the teardrop you're talking about, but I don't understand how placing the wall next to the double block with the teardrop next to it will effect the spawn position of the wall. Shouldn't it just spawn where you placed it, or are you saying you can grab the teardrop and menuver it? Does the wall have to be set to spawn after 'x' amount of time? Or, does the double block have to be set to spawn? If not, how do you manage to interlock the objects? How can you judge where the object will be when it respawns? Sorry about the large amount of questions, but I'm trying to get this clear. Has someone has created a thread in the past, explaining this method? I appreciate your explaination, but it lacks the clarity I need to recreate it in-game. Sorry... :embarassed:
You don't need to mess with "place at start" values at all. In fact, it's more helpful for the block to be there while you're positioning the teardrop. As for maneuvering the teardrop, you can't actually grab the teardrop alone and move it. You have to move the object, but position the teardrop where you want it. It's pretty awkward at first because you have to move the object with the sticks only, but it soon becomes second nature. I think there's actually a picture tutorial thread. The concept is the same between Foundry and Sandbox. http://www.forgehub.com/forum/halo-forge-discussion/46688-geomerging-without-doors.html
Sorry about the long response time, but I got called into work today. Anyway, your explaination and that tutorial helped a lot! Check it out: As you can see, the walls are not vertically even, but they each are merged with each other, and perfectly flat. I think that a little practice will have me building awesome floors and tracks quite quickly. Thanks for the help.
Look at the video shown. You don't need to understand what's happening in the video because he's demonstrating banked turns. Just watch what he does in the video. YouTube - Rogue Shaddo's Forging Technique Just follow this method but don't turn the new track piece if you want your track to be straight.