General noob questions mostly about edges/vertices

[glottis]

Hello I am new to Hammer editor and map making in general, and working on making my first environment. I have some questions if anyone would be so kind as to help me out here:

-How to know which vertex/edge will move to merge to the other one? When I want a vertex to "snap" to another vertex when it merges, how to know which one moves? Is it the first one that is selected is the target, or the second?

-Do vertices automatically merge if they are placed on top of one another? When two edges are exactly on top of each other they could still remain separate and each has a serrated edge, which means we need to merge them to get the single line. When the merge happens, do the vertices at the ends merge as well? I've encountered problems where I go to move faces, and a strange corner pops out from having a vertex only on top of another, where I assumed there was only 1 vertex in that corner.

-Is there a command to just remove/delete the offending face when those red lines appear? Sometimes I select a lot of faces to move and when I see a red line appear, I understand that it's because something is folding over itself, or vertices are crossing that shouldn't. But how can I select those offending edges or vertices after they've become red? They don't seem to be selectable anymore, the only course of action is to Ctrl+Z and then Backspace the edges then re-try the move. But if there's a lot of faces or edges I'm moving I lose the selection just so I can select the offending edges and remove them, then re-select.

-Is there a way to "highlight" all of the outside (serrated) edges? I have been cleaning up my meshes when I come across two that can be merged, but is there a way to see them all so I can fix them?

-Same with vertices, is there a way to highlight all vertices that are on top of each other? As in highlight the vertices where 2 or more are sharing the same coordinates?

-Is there a way to just type in the distance to translate stuff? Seems like the only way is to drag the arrows on the gizmo in the world view itself, the Tool Options panel seems to be for specific face/edge stuff like materials and subdivision, is there no Translate menu or dialog? Sometimes I need to move something like 0.125 and I go back and forth over and under until my hand is steady enough for me to nail the number I want. Please hope there is an easier way.

Edit: I have another question about the Fast Texture Tool. I love it, it's easy to use and very versatile, but is there a way to "zoom in" on it? Making the grid smaller is nice, but sometimes the squares are too small and I can't move the bounds accurately enough. I can't find a way to zoom in, is there a way?

Anyways I really enjoy using this software for the most part, hopefully this is the right place to ask these questions. Thank you!

[Rectus]

Originally posted by HermanToothrot:

Hello I am new to Hammer editor and map making in general, and working on making my first environment. I have some questions if anyone would be so kind as to help me out here:

-How to know which vertex/edge will move to merge to the other one? When I want a vertex to "snap" to another vertex when it merges, how to know which one moves? Is it the first one that is selected is the target, or the second?

They snap to the last vertex you selected.

-Do vertices automatically merge if they are placed on top of one another? When two edges are exactly on top of each other they could still remain separate and each has a serrated edge, which means we need to merge them to get the single line. When the merge happens, do the vertices at the ends merge as well? I've encountered problems where I go to move faces, and a strange corner pops out from having a vertex only on top of another, where I assumed there was only 1 vertex in that corner.

They don't merge automatically. You can set the Merge Range option to Grid or Fixed, select all vertices and click Merge, and it will merge any close or overlapping vertices.

-Is there a command to just remove/delete the offending face when those red lines appear? Sometimes I select a lot of faces to move and when I see a red line appear, I understand that it's because something is folding over itself, or vertices are crossing that shouldn't. But how can I select those offending edges or vertices after they've become red? They don't seem to be selectable anymore, the only course of action is to Ctrl+Z and then Backspace the edges then re-try the move. But if there's a lot of faces or edges I'm moving I lose the selection just so I can select the offending edges and remove them, then re-select.

There doesn't seem to be any automated way. It is still possible to select them, altough edges seem to be harder to select from certain angles.

-Is there a way to "highlight" all of the outside (serrated) edges? I have been cleaning up my meshes when I come across two that can be merged, but is there a way to see them all so I can fix them?

-Same with vertices, is there a way to highlight all vertices that are on top of each other? As in highlight the vertices where 2 or more are sharing the same coordinates?

There doesn't seem to be any way for either of these. Seems like all the selection commands available are in the right click menu.

Selecting multiple close vertices can be done with the lasso tool by middle-click dragging a ring around them.

-Is there a way to just type in the distance to translate stuff? Seems like the only way is to drag the arrows on the gizmo in the world view itself, the Tool Options panel seems to be for specific face/edge stuff like materials and subdivision, is there no Translate menu or dialog? Sometimes I need to move something like 0.125 and I go back and forth over and under until my hand is steady enough for me to nail the number I want. Please hope there is an easier way.

There doesn't seem to be anything for geometry at least. Meshes and objects have transform properties, so you can translate them by changeing the values at least.

It is also possible to nudge anything you have selected with the arrow keys. They move a grid size relative to the closest cardinal directions in the selected viewport, so if you set it low you can do very precise movements with them.

Edit: I have another question about the Fast Texture Tool. I love it, it's easy to use and very versatile, but is there a way to "zoom in" on it? Making the grid smaller is nice, but sometimes the squares are too small and I can't move the bounds accurately enough. I can't find a way to zoom in, is there a way?

It doesn't seem possible apart from making the window bigger.

Anyways I really enjoy using this software for the most part, hopefully this is the right place to ask these questions. Thank you!

I think the Workshop Discussions section is better for it. This section is more for full game deveolpment.

Also, there is a very good WIP guide on Hammer here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/17aFk2Z-C1G2ZYcQRxKx-fEK3m4h0jSw9nqGjC9T1Bx4/edit

[glottis]

It is also possible to nudge anything you have selected with the arrow keys. They move a grid size relative to the closest cardinal directions in the selected viewport, so if you set it low you can do very precise movements with them.

Oh my god!!! This is really good trick, awesome!!! :) Thank you a lot for answering my questions, but if I have any more I'll take it to Workshop Discussion.