Could someone please post up a set of detailed setings they are using in max to get chrome to look effective...whatever i try doesnt seem to look as it should when it goes into devmode cheers
Basically, you can use just cube map t1 and set 100% cube blend. The diffuse map can be anything, but I like to use an aluminium type texture incase I want a dirty looking surface, which you then use something with alpha reflect and add some detail into the alpha map which will then show bits of the diffuse. For the record, there is a chrome cube map, which is just grey and white, you can see it on this badge.
Well,,, you can, if its a chrome bumper for example and you want damage. Then just make the alpha channel in the diffuse pure white. But if you don't require damage, then just cube map t1 is fine, or bump cube map t1, that badge is bump cube map t1, the rough bits are the bump map. Just that if you do want to use alpha reflect, make sure the chrome bits have a white alpha.
Is there any reason why cubemap is greyscale? Maybe I'm unaware of something, but imagine incoming light's spectrum. Since environment is colorful, this spectrum will be have different values for different wavelengths. For example, here's red, blue and purple light spectrum: I can think of no material that receives these different light spectrum, but always reflects this: Simply put - chrome reflections should be as colorful, as environment is. But like I said - maybe I'm unaware of something and there is actually such chrome material that "actively" emmits light at all wavelengths while being stimulated by any wavelength.
Try with Bump Cube Specular Map Add Alpha Reflect T1 lerp T2 Vertex. With reflection mapper on, dont forget to put REFMAP0. Put 0.2 in min fresnel in the cubemap options, blend at 75%, for color map use a medium grey with no alpha (DDS-DTX1), if your color map is too white you lost the brighter reflections, the reflections itself give that brightnes. View attachment 4829
The dynamic cubemaps are of course full color, actually hi range if you're running HDR. They're not grayscale unless the shader says grayscale, but these are older shaders and probably shouldn't be used anymore. You can use a grayscale static cubemap, not sure why you would unless you're after some specific effect.
No, you don't need to use the grey scale cube map with rf2, env. reflections work fine with chrome. My words were taken a bit out of context. It was a 'for the record', meaning not important, but just for the record, as in covering every aspect of the technology past and present. Because sure enough, someone would correct me if I didn't mention it When I was playing around with env reflections a while back I made the car body 100% reflective (ie, chrome).
is it possible you post your settings to get that chrome with pics...something is going straight over my head cause it doesnt look that good lol this is what i have in max cheers
Your shader settings are right, I think what your not understanding is what 'add alpha reflect' means, yes? I say this because you haven't mentioned anything about the texture and its alpha layer. I attached a texture, use this for your T1 and see if it works, if it does, note the alpha layer in that dds is white. For 'add alpha reflect' the shade of the alpha layer going from black to white is relative to the 'blend %', with white being 100% and black being 0%.
cheers for your help and patience...yer i had my parts i want chrome white on the alpha layer...just seems they look abit like plastic compared to yours (and still do when i used your dds) thats why i thought it might be in my max settings...ill keep tweaking and see how i go lol
Sounds like it could be a fresnel thing, I'm not too clued up on fresnel yet, so I can't give you much advice there, but if it looks plastic then this could be the culprit, try lowering the values and see if it goes away. It could also be environment reflections, is this a vehicle and have you tried it on other tracks?
parts of a car yes...bumpers,door handles etc...ive been playing with freznel more this arvo and i think you might be right its alot closer than it has been now
You can try this, with your spec map, make it black in the areas where the chrome is mapped to. Is this all in the wccarbody material, or do you have a separate material for the chrome? [ED] belay that last Q, What you might have to do is make a new material for the chrome, because when you start playing with the fresnel it will effect the rest of the car. You can use a wcextra material so that the end user can still paint their own bumpers if you wish to have it that way.
