Milkshape Armada 2 Exporter
===========================

This exports Armada II SODs.

As milkshape does not support hardpoints, you will need
to use the UTMV (from assimsoft) to add them to your SODs.

Make sure you only use uncompressed 24bit TGA files. The
alpha channel, if there, is for glow.

To install, just copy into the Milkshape folder with the
other DLLs.

To force the lighting model for different materials to be
other than the default "lambert" model, put the word
"!lambert_", "!constant_" or "!phong_" before the name
of the material. I myself am not certain on how the
different models work, and how the settings affect them.
I leave this as an experiment.

To force a different texturing type for meshes, put "_!"
followed by the texturing type required, at the end of the
material name. The default texturing type is "default".
To do this sort of thing with the MAX exporter you create
specially named points and make put them below the mesh you 
want to affect in the hierachy. Valid texturing types:

 default - default (=opaque in reality)
 noalpha - a special one put in by me that sets the default,
            but also turns off the alpha channel.
 opaque - use the alpha channel for glow, not transparency
 additive - Use additive blending
 translucent - Semi transparent 
 alphathreshold - Use for objects using alpha channel 
  'cut outs' - alpha channels will have hard edged 'threshold' 
  but objects will be drawn quickly.
 alpha - Uses entire alpha channel. Object will require 
  sorting, so will have performance implications.
 wireframe - Use wireframe graphics.


For example: a material named "!lambert_whatever_!opaque" 
will use lambert lighting and an opaque texture type. 
A material named "whatever" would use the default lighting
model and texture type.

Have fun!

------------------------------

by Chris Graham of Assimsoft
 - www.assimsoft.com

Making open source trek games.