arcattackandClaude Fable 5
3c34ae6de6
Adversarially-verified audit (18 agents) against the task #46-#56 landings: MP/current-state understatements, superseded punch readings, retired env gates, dead paths, line-cite drift; env-gate hub table completed. Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
94 lines
6.3 KiB
Markdown
94 lines
6.3 KiB
Markdown
---
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id: rendering
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title: "Rendering — the D3D9 pipeline, materials, sky, beams, performance"
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status: established
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source_sections: "PROGRESS_LOG.md §10 (render-fidelity notes); docs/BGF_FORMAT.md"
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related_topics: [bgf-format, asset-formats, wintesla-port, locomotion, pod-hardware, cockpit-view]
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key_terms: [L4D3D, material-ramp, BSL, LOD, DPL, beam]
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open_questions:
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- "Replacement-LOD for NON-additive multi-LOD models; day/night material path priority (BT_MATPRI)"
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---
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# Rendering
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The port renders via the WinTesla `L4D3D`/`L4VIDEO` Direct3D9 path ([[wintesla-port]]), carrying our
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BT loader (`bgfload.cpp`) + fidelity work. The goal: match the authentic pod footage. Geometry/LOD
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mechanics are in [[bgf-format]]; this topic covers the D3D9 draw path + the fidelity fixes. Full
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detail: `docs/PROGRESS_LOG.md §10`.
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## The IG-board shading model (from libDPL DPLTYPES.H)
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Shading is selected PER-GEOMETRY by vertex type: **no-normal geometry** (terrain/mesas/sky/buildings/
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mech — WHITE baked verts) is UNLIT, colorized by the material's 2-endpoint **[[material-ramp]]**
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(`dpl_SetMaterialRamp` — texture luminance indexes a low→high gradient); **normal-bearing geometry**
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(~150 vehicle/missile files) is LIT by the map light. Applying the ramp to lit geometry = the "dusty
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white blobs" bug (gate on `hasNormals`). [T2]
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Exception: cockpit-frame (`*_cop`) batches are pure-emissive constant colour (0.13,0.12,0.15),
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`BT_COP_FRAME` overrides — see [[cockpit-view]] (task #55; the old `BT_COP_RAMP_L` ramp-index
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approach is retired). [T2]
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## The big render-fidelity fixes (dbase/desert matched to pod footage)
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- **Geometry:** CONN is a flat trilist (not fan); CONN+PCONN coexist — see [[bgf-format]]. Malformed
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fan-garbage was the "faceted mountains" bug. [T2]
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- **RAMP colorize** (default-on `BT_RAMP`) + **day/night material priority** (default-on `BT_MATPRI` for
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the ramps): the `mat\day` libs carry the warm ramps; the generic GEO libs are gray. Terrain/mesas
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render warm tan; the sky's `dsky_mtl` ramp (0→0.99) gives bright clouds. `hasNormals` gate keeps
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vehicles LIT (colored trucks). Ramp tint rule: explicit diffuse + NEUTRAL ramp ⇒ tint; coloured ramp
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⇒ white. [T2]
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- **Sky:** a `*sky.bgf` dome/plane drawn in a dedicated fullbright **PASS_SKY** (LIGHTING off, extended
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far=9000 + world fog); tagged `drawAsSky` at load (the `.x` sidecar path doesn't exist). [T2]
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- **The env pipeline** (`DPLReadEnvironment`→`DPLReadINIPage`, reads **`content/BTDPL.INI`** via
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`L4DPLCFG`): resolves map+time → clip/fog/ambient + a directional sun. Bring-up stubs
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(EnsureValidProjection / per-frame ambient / uninit cloud colours) had clobbered it — now they
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RE-ASSERT the env values. Debug: copy BTDPL.INI → *DBG.INI with `debug=True`. [T2]
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- **Projection / stencil (task #55):** the BTDPL.INI `viewangle=60` is the **HORIZONTAL** FOV —
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authentic 60×47 frustum at 4:3; fovY derived via `BTFovYFromHorizontal` (L4VIDEO.cpp), applied at
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all 5 projection sites (it was mis-applied as vertical). The device depth-stencil is now
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**`D3DFMT_D24S8`** for the cockpit punch stencil-cut (L4VIDEO.cpp:2799; sequence
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L4D3D.cpp:1199-1248) — see [[cockpit-view]]. [T2]
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## Backface culling (default CW, `BT_CULL`)
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The bring-up `D3DCULL_NONE` drew interior/back faces (the "dark wedge" shapes = mesh insides). CW is
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correct for the BGF quad triangulation `[a b c][a c d]`. [T2] Exception: cockpit `*_cop` batches
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default DOUBLE-SIDED (`BT_COP_SINGLE=1` restores single-siding, diag) — see [[cockpit-view]]. [T2]
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## LODs (default: shipping-engine first-LOD + ADDITIVE_LODS; `BT_ADDLOD`/`BT_LOD_SCALE`/`BT_PUNCH`)
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See [[bgf-format]] for the √3 range decode, the ADDITIVE_LODS cumulative rule, PUNCH cutouts, and the
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coplanar-shell submission-order depth bias. Replacement LOD selection for NON-additive multi-LOD
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models is deferred (needs the board's hot-spot semantics). [T2]
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## Mech skins (BSL bit-slice — the rainbow-mech fix)
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`.BSL` is a bit-sliced container (6 grayscale sub-images per file); the BMF `0x18 BITSLICE` tag picks
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the slice. Reading it as RGB overlaid 2-3 gray sheets = the "rainbow/graffiti" bug. Fixed:
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`image.cpp decodeBSL` slice-decodes; `bgfload` threads the 0x18 channel; a cross-library RAMP registry
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resolves the mech-skin `softer` ramp (defined in OTHER libs). Every mech renders authentic gray-metal
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paint now. See [[asset-formats]]. [T2]
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## Weapon beams (the unported dpl_* layer)
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The `dpl_*` beam renderable was never ported → beams are drawn by `BTPushBeam`/`BTDrawBeams`
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(L4VIDEO). The real look is the `ermlaser.bgf` TUBE (native Z 0..−2000, UVs tiled) with the scrolling
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`bexp` grit texture (from the `.VMF` `SCROLL`). ER lasers red, PPC blue, standard yellow. The beam
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origin re-anchors to the live muzzle every frame (can't run out from under your own beam). See
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[[combat-damage]] for fire-rate/muzzle. [T2]
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## Translocation warp (the respawn vortex) — see [[translocation-warp]]
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The death/respawn "blue whirlwind" is `tsphere.bgf` (a 12-facet bicone) spun on-axis with the `bintA`
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cloud through a wide lavender ramp, drawn as SKY. Full geometry/material/lifecycle/env in
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[[translocation-warp]]. ⚠ **Rendering-wide fix that came out of it:** `L4D3D::SetTextureScrolling`
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computed its texture-matrix offset as `scrollDelta × absolute_time`, which grew unbounded and collapsed
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UV float precision → grainy/spoked scrolled textures the longer a session ran. Wrapped with `fmodf(…,
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1.0f)`. This also cleans up the scrolling `bexp` beam grit and any other `SCROLL` material. [T2]
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(Bug class: [[reconstruction-gotchas]] §13.)
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## Performance — the 10fps→60fps fix (~50-80× render speedup)
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The 10fps baseline had THREE stacked causes, all fixed (engine tree): (1) **`D3DCREATE_SOFTWARE_
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VERTEXPROCESSING`** — every vertex transformed+lit on the CPU → HARDWARE first; (2) D3DX `DrawSubset`
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attribute-table scan (our double-sided tris broke OptimizeInplace) → explicit `SetAttributeTable` +
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direct `DrawIndexedPrimitive`; (3) no frustum culling → bounding-sphere culling per frame. ⚠ LESSON:
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the user plays the DEBUG build, but the 10fps was NOT the debug build (RelWithDebInfo identical) —
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split draw-vs-present + check the DEVICE flags before blaming the compiler. Diagnostics kept:
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`[spike]/[loadobj]/[rstat]`. [T2]
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## Key Relationships
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- Geometry/LOD: [[bgf-format]]. Base: [[wintesla-port]] (L4D3D). Shadow/visual-conform: [[locomotion]].
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- Renders on: [[pod-hardware]] (main 3D view).
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