Static meshes (nonfiction)

Static meshes are polygon meshes which constitute a major part of map architecture in many game engines, including Unreal Engine, Source, and Unity. The word "static" refers only to the fact that static meshes can't be vertex animated, as they can be moved, scaled, or reskinned in real-time.[1]

Static Meshes can create more complex shapes than CSG (the other major part of map architecture) and are faster to render per triangle.

Characteristics

A Static Mesh contains information about its shape (vertices, edges and sides), a reference to the textures to be used, and optionally a collision model (see the simple collision section below).

Collision

There are three ways for a Static Mesh to collide:

• No collision: a static mesh can be set not to block anything. This is often used for small decoration like grass.
• Per-polygon collision (default): individual polygons collide with actors. Each material (i.e. each part of the Static Mesh using a separate texture) can be set to collide or not independently of the rest. The advantage of this method is that one part of the Static Mesh can collide while another doesn't (a common example: a tree's trunk collides, but its leaves don't). The disadvantage is that for complex meshes this can take a lot of processing power.
• Simple collision: the static mesh doesn't collide itself, but has built-in blocking volumes that collide instead. Usually, the blocking volumes will have a simpler shape than the Static Mesh, resulting in faster collision calculation.

Texturing

Although Static Meshes have built-in information on what textures to use, this can be overridden by adding a new skin in the Static Mesh's properties. Alternatively, the Static Mesh itself can be modified to use different textures by default.

Usage

In maps, Static Meshes are very common, as they are used for anything more complex than basic architecture (in which case CSG is used) or terrain.

Additionally, Static Meshes sometimes represent other objects, including weapon projectiles and destroyed vehicles. Often after rendered cutscenes in which, for instance, a tank is destroyed, the tank's hull would be added as a static mesh to the real-game world.

Adding collision

To add collision to your InterpActor static mesh in Unreal Tournament 3 (Unreal Engine 3), you need to open the Static Mesh Editor and generate a collision mesh. Because you converted a BSP brush directly into a static mesh, it does not automatically inherit the solid properties of the original brush.

Here is the fastest way to fix this:

1. Open the Static Mesh EditorSelect your InterpActor in the viewport.Press Ctrl + E (or right-click the asset in the Content Browser) to open the Static Mesh Editor.

2. Generate the Collision MeshInside the Static Mesh Editor, look at the top menu bar:Click on the Collision menu.Select 6DOP Simplified Collision (since your object is a simple box, a 6-Directional Oriented Polyhedron is the most efficient choice).You will see a red wireframe box appear around your mesh. This is your new collision boundary.Save the asset and close the Static Mesh Editor window.

3. Check InterpActor SettingsBack in your main viewport, ensure the InterpActor actor itself is set to block players:Select your InterpActor and press F4 to open its Properties.Expand Collision.Set Collision Type to COLLIDE_BlockAll (or COLLIDE_CustomDefault).Ensure bBlockActors is set to True.

• Google AI @ YouTube

External links

• UnrealWiki: Static Mesh

References

• "ED ENVIRONMENT". cm-lewieg. Retrieved 2024-11-22.