minnow 2 of 4

meshula · October 14th, 2000, 08:53 PM

highly overcompressed, when all 4 are ready, I'll save them uncompressed in the ftp repo -

October 15th, 2000, 02:41 PM

Sorry, I have to mention the lighting again. Minnow is in shadow on the top, suggesing the light's coming from below. In contast, the planet's visible face is in full illumination suggesting the light is directly behind us. I think it would look better with a little weaker lighting or lighting from an angle, or both.

meshula · October 15th, 2000, 09:23 PM

All right Masao, this one's fer you! Amusing note, the 1st image is a Hubble telescope photo, this re-render has a geometry version of Saturn with painted rings and a procedural atmosphere.

(Of course I'll redo it without the copyright message when it comes time to post it on glads)

[This message has been edited by meshula (edited 10-15-2000).]

skyhawk223 · October 16th, 2000, 02:21 AM

The extruded windows are an interesting idea. How did you come up with that concept?

Also, is that a shuttlebay in the rear?

meshula · October 16th, 2000, 08:49 AM

I assume the extruded windows you mean are the eight black things sticking out the bottom?

Those aren't actually windows - they're part of the compact warp system prototyped for this class of vessels.

The warp core is configured like an inverted V8, and those 8 blocks do double duty as external maintenance tunnels and as breach valves. There are 8 very small matter-antimatter reactions occuring in round-robin sequence in order to achieve the power density required to drive the small nacelle to high warp.

The radical reactor was necessary because there are no long nacelle pylons that help form the warp geometry by putting the nacelles up high, and also there is no distance to condition the plasma on its trip from the warp core to the nacelles.

Also, those "solar cells" are actually huge electron aspirator piles. Although they can collect energy in an emergency, their main purpose is to dynamically balance and stabilize the compact warp field generated when the nacelles are so close to the main mass of the vehicle.

As to the actual windows, they're transparency mapped to show the interior of the vessel (which you can sort of see in the other image with the suns).

And yes, all my vehicles have crazy big back stories!

meshula · October 16th, 2000, 02:32 PM

I don't know about those! They're whatever they are on the Enterprise. I'm sure they're not windows because they don't really line up with any decks, and being in the front like that they always struck me as being sensors of some sort.

I extruded them a bit because the Minnow has got sensors every bit as powerful as the Enterprise's, but a lot less space in the hull, so I figured the sensor platform would stick out a bit to make more room.

Plus, when they were just pasted on and not extruded, they didn't really hold up in extreme close up views - they just looked like bright CG disks and I wanted something more interesting than another donut light holder, so I made up an excuse for what I was doing!

skyhawk223 · October 16th, 2000, 10:26 PM

I see. What about 3 three extruded cylinders on the bow? What are those for?

I like backstory. Gives the ship some personality.

skyhawk223 · October 17th, 2000, 02:22 AM

That's cool. Reminds me, I need to put some sensors on the Seattle. It is a science ship afterall.

October 17th, 2000, 02:45 PM

Thanks. That's better. But I think it would be more interesting if the light was coming from a different angle rather than straight on.