Skybox Basic Details

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How to create sky:

  1. Go to File -> Load Prefab, navigate to the prefabs folder and select tdm_sky_starry1.pfb.
  2. Check the Texture Lock status, it must be enabled. Lock textures on the prefab by pressing S, or the moon texture may get out of alignment.
  3. The loaded prefab is already selected, so move it out of the way of your normal map geometry. The exact place doesn't really matter, just move it where it doesn't get in the way later.
  4. In your map, texture the inside facing sides of your sky brushes with textures/smf/portal_sky, by selecting them with CTRL+SHIFT+Click the left mouse button.

Finished. When you load your level, you will see an attractive night sky with clouds, moon and stars.

How to change the moon

Go to the loaded prefab, and hide everything until you find a very tiny brush. This brush has the moon texture on one side, and the placement of this brush changes the place of the moon on the sky.

Background information

To get good performance, you have to create spaces that are separated by Visportals from each other.

Therefore the outside area of your building should be a series of corridors around the building with the brushes designated skybox stretching from the outside wall or buildings forming the border of your level, to the highest point of the building you want to be visible, to the top of the roof.

This enables the use of visportals stretching from the skybox to the ground at key corners, so that when you are standing on the north side of the map, you won't be seeing the south side at the same time.

The sides of the brushes which face outside the level have to textured with anything that is solid and a valid texture, people often use caulk, but as long as it's not no_draw, you're fine.