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Emitter / EnCorona not functioning consistently

UnrealEd 2.1 (227i) and UnrealEd 2.2 (227j), for Unreal 227. With many additions, bugfixes and improvements. Ask mapping related questions, or give hints, tips and tricks.
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Yautja (Predator)
OldUnreal Member
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Oct 04, 2011 5:45 am

Emitter / EnCorona not functioning consistently

Post by Yautja (Predator) »

Hello all,

Haven't posted in literal years. I am currently going through final polish passes on a package of maps, and making sure everything looks nice.

I have been adding EnCorona's to particles like bright sparks and such to give them a little more 'flare' when you are up close to them. However I can't seem to understand why sometimes the EnCorona appears with the emitted particle properly and sometimes they simply do not in game.

bActorsBlockSight: True
bCheckLOS: True
bParticleaCoronaEnabled: True
CoronaFadeTimeScale: 2 or greater.
CoronaMaxScale: 2
CoronaScaling: Typically small numbers (0.4-0.12)
CoronaTexture: GenFX,SpaceFX.utx
CoronaMaxDistance: Smaller numbers for 'flare' effect (sub 512)

On one map I have a custom Firetexture lava drip texture emitted particle system that works fine with the EnCorona, displays nice and slow fading corona when close to the players sight in game, but on another map I have quick moving animated textures (UnrealShare.DEFBurst) that does not render the EnCorona outside of the editor. It will render in the editor's dyanmic viewport running in real-time but not in game through the player's vision.

I cant seem to figure out, I thought it might be tied to EnFade but those values even when defaulted don't render the EnCorona in game. I also use zone extensive DistanceFog if that effects it at all? None of the emitters are tied to logic i.e. triggers, and are free spawning. A lot of the maps are almost bursting at the seams with BSP hell but thats pretty normal towards the end of my level design, not sure if there is like an invisible BSP zone issue that is forcing the EnCorona to not render or something strange like that.

Any advice would be helpful or if anyone has come across the same issue.

Thanks in advance,

-Predator
someone else got the Predator username, but I've been lurking around unreal for 11 years as that name
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Yautja (Predator)
OldUnreal Member
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Oct 04, 2011 5:45 am

Re: Emitter / EnCorona not functioning consistently

Post by Yautja (Predator) »

Upon further experimentation it appears that the culprit is bActorsBlockSight: True. bCheckLineofSight is used to block coronas from rendering behind solid brushes, but the bActorsBlockSight block the corona's from rendering behind decorations and pawns.

This seems all kind of redundant as far as I can tell the Emitter itself is acting as probably an Actor and is blocking the corona's from rendering on its particles.

I'm not out right confirming this but this is my guess. I'm going to keep tinkering on a simple test map to see if I can manage a work around in the emitter properties to prevent the emitter from being an actor and render the EnCorona's with bActorsBlockSight still applicable.
someone else got the Predator username, but I've been lurking around unreal for 11 years as that name
User avatar
Yautja (Predator)
OldUnreal Member
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Oct 04, 2011 5:45 am

Re: Emitter / EnCorona not functioning consistently

Post by Yautja (Predator) »

Okay I found the issue..

For Emitters using EnCorona with bActorsBlockSight: True; the corona will render correctly on the emitted particle itself when there are no obstructions of actors to its line of sight. This means that the variable bActorsBlockSight only functions correctly when the player is either dead, ghosting or has no collision properties.

This makes the EnCorona and in conjunction with using the variable bActorsBlockSight: True, all but useless in map design, unless someone is rendering a cinematic fly-by and the playerpawn has no collision properties associated with him or her.

I think the Emitter with EnCorona's enabled should ignore the playerpawn's collision properties. Perhaps that is asking a lot as right now the bActorsBlockSight feels like a 'blanket' setting that blocks corona rendering on all collision-ed actors. Definitely the easier option but one that is flawed.


someone else got the Predator username, but I've been lurking around unreal for 11 years as that name
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