Blender
- See Category:Blender for tutorials.
Blender (download) is a free and open source 3D modeling package that can be used to create models for Source.
Contents
SMD scripts
| Blender | Import | Export |
|---|---|---|
| 2.4x | Jon Moen Drange's 2.44+ | Dvondrake's 248.1+ (Support) |
| 2.6x | Blender SMD Tools 2.60 | |
Script/Addon Installation (2.4x)
Blender uses a UI-driven addons system as of version 2.5. But if you're still using 2.4x, installation must be done by hand:
Note: Before you can use any Blender 2.4 script your system must have the appropriate Python runtime. Blender will tell you which version it needs when it starts up.The .py script file(s) should go in:
- Vista
%userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\.blender\scripts\C:\ProgramData\Blender Foundation\Blender\.blender\scripts\- XP
%userprofile%\Application Data\Blender Foundation\Blender\.blender\scripts\C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender\.blender\scripts\- Linux
~/.blender/scripts- Mac OS X
Blender.app/Contents/Mac OS X/.blender/scripts
Under Windows, whether you install to %userprofile% or Program Files/ProgramData depends on which you chose to use when installing Blender. The active folder will exist and be filled with existing .py files.
Under Mac OS X, right-click Blender.app and click Show Package Contents to see the rest.
Learning Blender
Blender has a very unusual interface that takes some getting used to. Matters aren't helped by its preference of hotkeys over of visible buttons. Nevertheless, learning it is quite achievable:
- Official help portal
- Blender 3D: Noob to Pro (Wikibook)
- Blender Basics- 3rd Edition (printable classroom textbook released under Creative Commons BY NC SA)
Blender and Source
- Dvondrake's SMD export video tutorial covers creating, texturing and exporting a simple static object
- The Blender Modelling Walkthrough is a complete, step-by-step guide to creating exporting a static model with Dvondrake's plug-in.
- See Animation in Blender to learn how to rig and animate in a way that survives SMD export.
- You can store as many models as you like in the same .blend file. Use scenes and/or layers to easily manage the different elements.
- This is simply a modeling tip: If you intend scaling the model or the armature, do this in Edit Mode. This can help not having problems with dimensions.
