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Newstream
10-27-2007, 02:01 AM
Hi

I've run into a small Mograph problem when using the Spline Wrap Object.

Attached is a scenefile with a bunch of cloned arrows that are slowly moving along a rail path. Hit play to see what I mean. Along the path are a series of "hotspots" (symbolized by the red spheres) As the arrows come in proximity to these hotspots, they are supposed to get "warmed up" and change from their default light blue color to a red color which is set by several Plain Effector Objects in the same position as the hotspots, (set to spherical falloff) As the cloned arrows move away from a hotspot, they gradually regain their default light blue color.

The color change effect to red works just fine without the Spline Warp Object.
(Test this by turning off the Spline Warp Object and moving either the cloner object or any of the plain effectors to see the proximal / falloff effect in action)

To give the arrows a more snaky appearance / movement as they bend around curves, a Spline Wrap Object was inserted into the same hierarchy as the cloner object. Unfortunately the Spline Warp Object seems to cancel out the desired proximal red color shading effect caused by the plain effector objects as the arrows come close to the hotspots.

Am I missing something here? or is there a some setting to get this to work together with the Spline Warp Object?

Input & Tips Highly appreciated

/ Alex
Newstream
10-27-2007, 08:42 PM
hmm.. must be a bug.
Per-Anders
10-27-2007, 09:08 PM
No not a bug, The cloner is generating, and during it's generation it applies the effectors, and then the deformer is applied afterwards to the mesh from the cloner. You're just not moving the arrow particles themselves (which you would do with the spline effector, or by just cloning on the spline itself), just their meshes.

It's deforming the end result, the MoGraph particles themselves though are only going to be staying in their original position, only the Matrix object allows the particles themselves to be deformed, and even there effectors are applied before deformers so you have to clone on the matrix object and then apply effectors to the second matrix/cloner to change that order.

For doing what you want here without changing your current setup, use the proximal shader on the clones instead and a series of nulls where the effectors are.
Newstream
10-28-2007, 12:44 PM
Thanks Per!

Actually, my initial thought was to use the proximal shader but I wanted to first see if I could pull this off by using only MG. Your explanation makes it clear now. Will try both the proximal and maxtrix object approach.

Cheers / Alex
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