Basic Usage

This section covers the core workflow for using the Mesh Spline Tool to place static geometry along spline paths.

Getting Started

Opening the Tool

1. In the World Editor, locate the mode bar at the top

2. Click the Mesh Spline mode button

3. The tool window will open with a row of buttons at the top

4. The first button is “Add New Mesh Spline”

Create a New Mesh Spline

1. Click “Add New Spline” in the tool window

2. The mouse cursor sphere on the map will change from red to purple

3. Left-click on the map to place nodes and draw the spline path

4. Continue clicking to add more nodes - the spline will appear as the user draws

Basic Editing

Moving Nodes

• Mouse method: Click and drag nodes directly on the map

• Gizmo method: Press ALT to toggle the gizmo, then use the translation gizmo handles

• Selecting nodes: Click on any node to select it - a special highlight sphere will appear around the selected node and pulse in time

Adjusting Spline Width

1. Hover over any rib handle (left and right spheres which appear beside nodes when a spline is selected)

2. The corresponding node will automatically be selected

3. Drag the rib handles in or out to adjust the spline width

4. This affects the spacing and positioning of meshes along the spline

Node Editing

• Select node: Click on any node (it will be highlighted)

• Drag node: Click and drag nodes to move them around the map

• Adding new nodes: Hover over free space on the map to add nodes to either end of the spline (whichever is closer)

• Inserting nodes: Hover over the spline to see a highlight sphere and text hint - click to insert a node

• Delete node: Select a node and press DEL

Spline Operations

• Looping a spline: Drag the start or end node close to the other end - a hint line will appear with text markup. Hold SHIFT and release to create a loop

• Joining splines: Drag the start or end node of one spline onto the start or end node of another spline of the same tool type - a hint line will appear. Hold SHIFT and release to merge them into one spline

• Splitting splines: Select a node on the spline, then click the “Split” button under the spline list to divide the spline into two separate splines at that point

• Simplifying splines: Use the “Simplify” button to reduce the number of nodes to a minimum while preserving the core shape

• Flipping splines: Use the “Flip” button to reverse the order of nodes in the spline, effectively flipping the direction. This will also flip the meshes left to right

Working with Presets

Starting with the Default Preset

1. After creating the spline, the tool automatically loads the default preset: Concrete Barrier

2. The preset meshes will appear in the Components section of the tool window

3. Meshes will be distributed along the spline automatically, and there are special start/end cap components

Adjusting Spacing

1. In the Properties section, find the Spacing slider

2. Drag the slider to increase or decrease the distance between barriers. Note that it can go slightly negative

3. Lower values = barriers closer together (e.g., tight fencing)

4. Higher values = barriers further apart (e.g., lamp posts)

5. Watch the barriers update in real-time as the user adjusts

Experimenting with Properties

1. Try different spacing values to see the effect

2. Use the Vertical Offset slider to adjust the global height of all meshes in the spline

3. Use the Pre-Rotations radio buttons (0°, 90°, 180°, 270°) to rotate components differently around the Z-axis, as desired

4. Use the Jitter controls to add random roll, pitch, and yaw variations for a more natural, worn appearance

5. Adjust the Random Seed slider to get different jitter patterns

6. Move the spline nodes to adjust the overall path

Switching to Different Presets

Loading Different Presets

1. Find the Presets section (below the spline properties)

2. Choose from the available preset buttons

3. The selected preset will replace the current content of the mesh spline

4. Adjust spacing, edit spline, etc.

Managing Preset Components

1. Each preset contains its own set of components

2. The Components section shows all components in the current preset, and each can be enabled/disabled.

3. The main component (first in list) determines the spacing between all components along the mesh

Distribution Options

1. Round Robin: Cycles through all enabled components in sequence along the spline

2. Random: Uses weights and a random seed to distribute components along the spline

Orientation and Placement

Using Normal Modes

1. The Normal Mode button cycles through three states:

   • Terrain: Uses terrain normal local to each node
   • Local: Uses spline direction and orientation
   • Global: Uses world ‘up’ (0, 0, 1)

2. Start with Terrain mode for natural placement

3. Click the button to switch to Local mode to align meshes to the spline orientation

4. Click again to use Global mode for world-aligned objects

Prerotation Controls

1. Use the Prerotation radio buttons (0°, 90°, 180°, 270°)

2. 0°: Default orientation

3. 90°: Rotate 90 degrees clockwise

4. 180°: Rotate 180 degrees around Z-axis

5. 270°: Rotate 90 degrees counter-clockwise

Start and End Caps

Adding Caps

1. In the Components section, check “Enable Start Cap”

2. Check “Enable End Cap”

3. Select appropriate cap meshes from the component list

4. Caps will appear at the beginning and end of the spline

Cap Configuration

1. Start Cap: First mesh in the spline

2. End Cap: Last mesh in the spline

3. Cap Materials: Caps can use different meshes than main components

Conforming to Terrain

Enabling Terrain Conformity

1. Under the spline list, check “Conform to Terrain”

2. Set Vertical Offset to 0 for ground-level placement (or reset the slider)

3. Meshes will automatically align with the terrain surface

4. Adjust offset if meshes are desired above or below ground

Terrain Adjustment

1. Fine-tune placement by adjusting the vertical offset

2. Check mesh alignment from different camera angles

3. Use the gizmo (ALT key) for precise height control

4. Verify terrain conformity by moving the camera around

Spline Management

Enabling/Disabling Splines

1. In the tool window, find the spline list

2. Use the enable/disable toggle for each spline

3. Disabled splines: No nodes visible, but content still shows

4. Enabled splines: Full interaction with nodes and editing

Recovery System

1. Polygon Selection: Use the polygon selection button in the tool to draw a selection area around meshes

2. Scene Tree Selection: Multi-select compatible objects in the scene tree, then right-click and choose “Convert to Mesh Spline”

3. Object Select: Use the object select tool, then right-click and choose “Convert to Mesh Spline” in the scene tree

4. The tool will add a new spline and estimate all properties including prerotation, distribution, spacing, and more

Profile Management

1. Save profile: Click the “Save Profile” button under the spline list to save the current spline’s properties to a JSON file

2. Load profile: Click the “Load Profile” button to load a previously saved profile from disk

3. Profile contents: Profiles contain spline properties (spacing, jitter, mesh paths, presets) but not the geometry itself

4. Copy profile: Use CTRL+C to copy the selected spline’s profile to the clipboard

5. Paste profile: Use CTRL+V to paste a copied profile to another spline, inheriting all properties while keeping the target’s geometry

Workflow Notes

• Use terrain conformity and terrain normals for natural placement

• Check placement from different camera positions

• Use the gizmo (ALT key) for precise height and rotation control

• Try different normal modes for different effects (e.g., global is more appropriate for lamp posts)

• Experiment with different presets to find the right content for the project

Export to PNG Mask

The tool includes an “Export to PNG Mask” button in the top button row. This exports the entire tool session to a grayscale 16-bit PNG mask, useful for third-party software importing and exporting.

Next Steps

Once comfortable with these basic workflows, the user can explore:

• Custom component setups
• Random variation
• Integration with Master Spline Tool
• Advanced terraforming operations