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Busting Out The (Valve) Hammer?
I like Worldcraft 1.6a quite a bit, but the lack of quality rotation is a real time killer. I did some experiments creating a cube and copying it and rotating it 180 degrees and recording everything I had to do to make it a mirror image and it was too much work.

I've done some reading on aguirRe's site on all of the features his map compile tools support and basically I am wondering this ...

1. Does anyone know from A to Z everything it takes to setup Valve Hammer for doing a Quake map? I've tried but get very intimidated by the configuration screens.

2. Is there any major disadvantage in Valve Hammer that is a reason to not switch to it from Worldcraft?

3. Not quite related, but at Func_Msgboard some ppl talk about using Wally over TexMex. Is there any reason to do that, I've not heard that tool talked about here.

4. What texture manager is a good fit with the WAD3 format Hammer uses and how do you convert it.

5. Currently I use CZG's fgd for Worldcraft. Will that still work?

If I can get the answers to these questions, I'll aggregate all of this into a tutorial, post it here and anyone can do with it what they wish -- mirror it, modify it to make a better one, whatever -- I'd just like for this information to be available as it seems like it requires a great deal of learning/setup to get things started with mapping and maybe with the information more readily available that would change.
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1. What you want to do is visit the following site and download Qonverge. As far as I can remember, it has compiling tools, a wad converter and the fgd. I use this myself.

http://www.icculus.org/homepages/riot/

2. Yes, there's one big disadvantage. Quoting from Riot's site, There is some legal garbage surrounding this. You see, you're legally allowed to make Quake maps with Worldcraft 3, but not Hammer. <snip> I am also allowed to tell you that the Worldcraft 3's files are totally compatible with Hammer's and that you couldn't tell the difference between a map made in Hammer or Worldcraft even if you had the source files. I assure you, however, that this whole thing is entirely coincidental.

4. I edit the wads while they're still in Quake format using TexMex, then convert them over to Half-Life. See link above for a Quake -> HL wad converter.

5. Any fgd should work just fine. I have been using the Chapters fgd a bit, and have had no problems yet. 
I Know What You Mean About Texture Lock In 1.6a 
It's the one thing that really sucks ass about it and I'm thinking of changing over to hammer for any future maps I might make for Quake.

Having said that, I did fire off an email to Valve's Yahn Bernier the other day about WC 1.6a full. I asked if they would consider making it abandonware so we can distribute it freely. I got a quick (short but also it came within 5 mins of me sending the original email) reply saying he as forwarded it to couple of people who might be able to help, which was very promising - however, I can't check my email because I'm on holiday now and I sent it via my work email address. DOH! 
Worldcraft 3.0 Vs. Hammer 
Thanks for that information.

I'm looking to do things proper, are there any major differences between Worldcraft 3 vs. Value Hammer?

Does Worldcraft 3 have the ability to rotate things without messing up the textures? Are there any major differences between 3.0 and 3.4 from the perspective of Quake maps. (I'm assuming it's just a name change/license agreement change)

Also, Hammer seems to be free (as far as I can tell). So far, it looks like Worldcraft 3.0 uses the shareware vs. full system of things.

"It's the one thing that really sucks ass about it and I'm thinking of changing over to hammer for any future maps I might make for Quake."

Yeah, it's the ONLY thing I don't like about Worldcraft 1.6a, otherwise it is totally awesome in my experience (maybe there is something GTKRadiant or Quark or maybe even BSP can do better, but my limited imagination can see what it would be.) 
Ask Him To Legalize Making Quake Maps With It? 
I did fire off an email to Valve's Yahn Bernier the other day about WC 1.6a full. I asked if they would consider making it abandonware so we can distribute it freely.

I just checked and the Worldcraft 3.3 is the first version with texture rotation.

How can I tell if making Quake maps is permitted with it? The page referenced in the first reply says Worldcraft 3 can be used to make Quake maps, so I'm guess that Worldcraft (any version) can be used for Quake but Hammer (any version) can't be.

So if 3.3 has the texture rotation fix, from a pure Quake perspective I don't think there is a difference.

Maybe if you check your email you might ask the Value people if they might allow Quake maps to be made with it in a 100% unsupported way so they have no obligation to support that use of it. 
I Wish There Was An Edit Post So I Could Add This. 
Worldcraft 3.3 Download link:

http://www.fileplanet.com/44990/download/WorldCraft-v3.3

4) What's New in Version 3.3

* OpenGL 3D Renderer. The real-time renderer is much faster, more robust, and allows for animating visuals in the 3D view.

* Texture Locking. Texture alignment is now preserved through rotation, scaling, and flipping, allowing for the hassle-free construction of odd-angled geometry.

* Powerful Texture Application Features. Automatic texture continuity is guaranteed when lifting and applying from one face to another. Textures can be fit across one face or multiple faces, or aligned to the left, right, top, bottom, and center of faces with a single button click. Textures can be projected onto faces from an arbitrary viewpoint, useful for texturing cliff faces or other irregular geometry. In addition, texture axes are now displayed in the 3D view.
 
 

How can I tell if making Quake maps is permitted with it? The page referenced in the first reply says Worldcraft 3 can be used to make Quake maps, so I'm guess that Worldcraft (any version) can be used for Quake but Hammer (any version) can't be.


That's pretty much it right there. The, ehh, EULA was changed when they renamed WorldCraft to Hammer (version 3.4), so you can't legally make Quake maps with it. The differences between 3.3 and 3.4 are absolutely minimal. 
One Word: Visgroups 
That's the only reason I needed for me to make all my Quake maps with Hammer. I can't remember what I had to do to set it up for Quake, but I followed a guide on teh internet, so Google is your friend here. God knows how I would have made Marcher in an editor without some kind of layer functionality or way of logically grouping areas o_O 
Hammer Setup 
Here are some pictures showing my hammer setup.

http://republika.pl/quake_1/hammer2.png
http://republika.pl/quake_1/hammer3.png
http://republika.pl/quake_1/hammer4.png
http://republika.pl/quake_1/hammer5.png
http://republika.pl/quake_1/hammer6.png
http://republika.pl/quake_1/hammer7.png
http://republika.pl/quake_1/compile.txt
http://republika.pl/quake_1/hammer1.png


I have the compiling tools in the rmf directory together with my bat files for running the tools. Running the compilation from hammer is fast and easy but sometimes I'm using the bat files if the compile time is longer.
You have to change the wad files to wad3 format (in Texmex) if you want to use them with hammer.
Hammer has some slight advantages over worldcraft 1.6a but I don't remeber them anymore . It has also some annoying bugs.
Woldcraft 1.6 has the vis grop functionality if i remember it right. 
Ankh 
Those screens were very confusing to me compared to 1.6a. Thanks for that.

(Yeah, VisGroups are incredibly helpful. Helps focus on a specific part of the map.)

Well ... if the differences between Worldcraft 3.3 and Hammer (3.4 and beyond) are trivial I'll just setup a "guide" for Worldcraft 3.3 since it doesn't matter for Quake purposes. 
 
One feature of the Valve versions of Worldcraft I like, is the "ignore groups" function. When you turn it on you can fiddle about with the individual brushes that make up your groups. This enables you to keep large chunks of map nicely grouped together for tidyness, while still enabling you to go in and tweak without having to ungroup everything. 
"mapversion Is Not A Field" ???? 
I get "mapversion is not a field" when compiling and running a map using Worldcraft 3.3

Do those of you that use Hammer have to manually edit that out of the .map file before compile or any clues on how to avoid this annoying thing that appears to get added into the final bsp? 
You Can Safely 
ignore it. 
This Could Have 
been asked in the mapping thread.

Anyway, no worries. A map made in Worldcraft or Hammer whould contain nothing that would betray what editor you used. So, the EULA is mainly so other dev studios can't use Hammer for their games (correct me if I am wrong). It's smoother and much speedier than WC1.6(a or b). 
Wc 1.6 
has the ignore groups function too, press g.
I originally found this when I named vis groups and places like "flag room" made the editor go weird. :) 
Never Knew That! 
does it work with entities? I'd love to be able to delete brushes from entities without having to copy properties, move to world, edit, then make back into func and paste properties.

copy and paste entity properties is something else I noticed recently - another feature lacking in many other editors. Doesn't copy flags though :( 
Copy And Paste Entity Properties ??? 
"copy and paste entity properties"
What do you mean exactly? Is it possible to copy all properties from one entity to another in one step? How? 
Like This... 
Go into the entity properties dialogue and click the copy button :)

When you select another entity, you press paste, and the properties are copied across.

As I mentioned, it doesn't copy flags, just the basic properties. I haven't experimented with it enough to know whether it adds/deletes keys/values or overwrites entity types etc. but If I want to copy the properties of a func door that makes machine sound, is named door1, has speed 50, damage 5, lip 8... then that all works fine. This is in 1.6a 
Hammer 
Well I'm totally sold on using Hammer for Q1 maps! With Aguire's tools there's no problems. Super smooth 3d preview, along with those great texture alignment tools. I recommend it to everyone! 
Could Someone Mirror Wc 3.3 In Non-planetcrap 
The old password doesn't work anymore and I won't bother to workaround.

Even with the Worldcraft name, I still have to change my wads to some stupid HL format? What about the old brightness bug? 
Ok 
found this
http://www.dhlp.de/world.php3

and Vigil told me it doesn't load quake wads. 
 
The texture brightness in Hammer 3.4 seems absolutely fine to me! 
Bambuz .... Not Anymore - Quake Adapter For Worldcraft 3.3 
I created a companion package for Worldcraft 3.3 that installs aguirRe's compile tools, a couple of open source .map and a couple of WADs.

For lack of a better name that wasn't taken by something else, I called this the QuakeAdapter for Worldcraft 3.3.

Merely install Worldcraft 3.3 and then install the QuakeAdapter and every hassle of using Worldcraft 3.3 (same issues as Hammer) are eliminated.

Upon starting Worldcraft 3.3 - AFTER installing the adapter - all of your Quake WADs in c:\program files\worldcraft\textures will automatically be converted to the HLWAD format any time you start Worldcraft.

Additionally, the "Mapversion is not a field" error is eliminated (it gets stripped from the .map).

And ... it is pre-broken in. There is no setup involved to set the tools, it is done for you.

I spent a lot of time on it and tested it about 80 times.

To install Worldcraft 3.3:

http://www.quake-1.com/files/developer/worldcraft3.exe

Then install the QuakeAdapter for Worldcraft 3.3:

http://www.quake-1.com/files/developer/wc3adapter.exe

Upon installation, you are ready to go. The ONLY catch is that you must use c:\program files\worldcraft as your Worldcraft folder.

Does this affect Hammer?

It doesn't. Hammer uses not only a separate folder from Worldcraft 3.3, but separate registry entries as well. You can have Worldcraft 3.3 and Hammer on the same machine with no issues.

Does this affect Worldcraft 1.6a?

Unless you use c:\program files\worldcraft folder for Worldcraft 1.6a, the answer is no. Worldcraft 1.6's default install folder was c:\wc2 and it uses different registry entries than either Worldcraft 3.3 or Hammer.

Why Worldcraft 3.3 and not Hammer?

Mainly because Hammer isn't permitted to be used for Quake. Additionally, I don't see any features in Hammer 3.4 that matter to Quake that Worldcraft 3.3 doesn't have. Why go afoul of a license agreement, especially if you can use a version where Quake usage is permitted (but unsupported.).

The perfect rotation and OpenGL acceleration are both in Worldcraft 3.3 and those were the only things I didn't like about Worldcraft 1.6a.

---

Btw, if anyone who takes a look at the setup has any suggestions or comments, let me know. This was at first just an idea. I included 2 .map sources, one from Trinca and one from Zwiffle because the readme.txt files for those 2 maps were very liberal, I would have included more but I'd rather follow what the readme.txt says than make assumptions.

If you discover something that doesn't work, let me know. There shouldn't be anything because I did tons of tests on it and used it several times myself, but live usage > testing, in my experience. 
Thanks 
^^^

Enourmously helpful and saved a lot of time...

That QuakeAdaptor should be put somewhere prominent so that n00bs like me would find it easier :D 
Hehe Thanks 
I want to get more feedback first. Yeah, it's pretty sweet and should be solid as a rock.

But I want to see what others have to say, they may have changes or some other sort of feedback I didn't take into consideration. 
Sounds Great 
like sliced etc.

I'd been thinking about going through that process, but I'm a lazy, lazy man. I don't even properly vis my maps, so you can see my predicament. First thing i'ma do when I get home is set up WC3.3 on my comp with your programs...
Obviously can't provide real feedback, but the idea sounds fucking sick. 
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