Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
Finishing the Main Structure
To create the proper structure for the walls and roof, the two elements need to be separated and completed
independently. Having a roof that is separate from the walls enables you to add thickness and cutouts (for
windows and doors) to the walls without affecting the clean geometry of the roof. Likewise, the roof can be
finished more easily when detached from the rest of the model.
Select all of the roof polygons as well as any secondary pieces that are attached to the roof. When the
entire roof is selected, cut it out and paste it into a new mesh layer. With the roof separated, hide it so that
you can turn your attention to the walls. Using the Thicken tool will not produce good results with complex
geometry, so using the Edge Extend tool will be useful for creating the walls. Start by making walls on one
side of the building, as shown in
Figure 10-13
.
This example shows one extension inward to make the top of
the walls and then a series of extensions downward to make the inner wall and the separations for the floors.
Make your way around the model, working on a wall or two at a time. Leave at least one polygon (or
edge) of space between walls as you create them so you will not have to go back and join edges that are not
attached. It is much easier to work on two walls separated by a space and then fill the space by bridging the
edges on either side of the gap, as shown in
Figure 10-14
.
Figure 10-13:
Since the Thicken tool does not work well for complex geometry like this, use the Edge Ex-
tend tool to make walls in small groups.
