Using Halo 2 Tool to Export Level
Geometry
The Halo
2 Tool structure-new-from-ass command converts level geometry
that has been exported from 3ds Max and stored in an .ass file into
an optimized .scenario_structure_bsp file that the Halo 2 engine can understand and
quickly render. Additionally, if a .scenario file for the level
doesn't already exist, Halo
2 Tool will create one that incorporates the new
.scenario_structure_bsp. Existing .scenario files remain
untouched.
When the level geometry is changed within a modeling program, it
must be exported to an .ass file and then reimported to a
.scenario_structure_bsp file to show up within Halo 2 Map Editor. Because most
Halo 2 level editing
involves the .scenario file for a level and not the structure bsp,
work should not be lost when revised geometry is
reimported.
Note: Some level designers keep multiple versions of their
level geometry while experimenting with different ideas. To do this
yourself, simply export the geometry from the modeling package into
a separate .ass file located alongside your level's main .ass file,
and then import it with the structure-new-from-ass command.
Afterward, use Halo 2
Guerilla to temporarily link the resulting .scenario_structure_bsp
file into the "structure bsp" field of your level's .scenario file
and give the changes a try.
Syntax
C:\<Halo2ArchitectDirectory>\H2Tool
structure-new-from-ass <structure-path> yes
<structure-path>: Name and
location of the .ass file on the disk that Halo 2 Tool will convert into a
.scenario_structure_bsp file. This parameter can be relative
("scenarios\multi\...") instead of absolute (C:\...") as long as
Halo 2 Tool is run from
inside a valid Halo 2
directory structure.
Examples
The following examples demonstrate the use of either an absolute or
a relative path for the <structure-path> input parameter.
Both will result in a .scenario_structure_bsp file that is placed
in the C:\Halo 2 Work\tags\scenarios\multi\gladiator\
directory.
C:\H2Tool
structure-new-from-ass "C:\Halo 2
Work\data\scenarios\multi\gladiator\structure\gladiator.
ass yes
C:\<Halo2ArchitectDirectory>\H2Tool structure-new-from-ass
scenarios\multi\gladiator\structure\gladiator.ass yes
Results Using Halo 2 Tool
If
successful, Halo 2 Tool
will create a .scenario_structure_bsp file in the \tags folder of
the .ass file's base directory, setting up any additional
subdirectories needed along the way. If a .scenario file for the
level doesn't already exist, a new one will be created and placed
alongside the .scenario_structure_bsp file. At this point, the raw
geometry is now a Halo 2
level and ready to be edited in Halo 2 Sapien or Halo 2 Guerilla.
Even when the .scenario and .scenario_structure_bsp files are
successfully created, material and geometry errors may have
appeared during the conversion process. Material errors generally
occur when Halo 2 Tool
cannot match the name of a material used in the .ass file to any of
the Halo 2 .shader files
it has on record. Geometry errors vary, but they usually involve
either missing or overlapping triangles that result in an unsealed
level. A level with material and geometry errors is still able to
be viewed, edited, and playtested, but all issues should be
resolved before the level is published.
In all cases, errors and other notable events
encountered during the conversion process are reported on the
command-line screen. Afterward, a journal of these events is
available in debug.html, found in the base directory of the .ass
file that is being imported.
