I consider myself a competent builder, but something I’ve always had issues with was scaling my buildings correctly. My roofs were too low, or my buildings were too small, hallways were too large, etc.
I’ve tried things like using R6 models, but nothing seems to work. Does anyone have tips or methods to get better at scaling and sizing my buildings? Or, is this something only experience can improve?
Make sure to play your game time to time. That always helps me get a feel for what I’m working on!
Very helpful tip from @Crazedbrick1, I also find that having a ‘size test’ model in whichever scale you’d like (R6/R15) helps too. You can drag the ‘size test’ around to make sure anything you build is to scale.
If you build something which is really off scale, you can always try using the model resize plugin which, as the name suggests, allows you to resize a model.
The most effective method for counteracting this (IMO) is to decide upon the dimensions of whatever you’re building in relation to a simple rig prior to creating it, so you’re able to verify that everything you’re about to create will be of the correct size.
First I’ll determine the width and depth of the building. I’ll often move the rig around just to check the sizes are appropriate.
Then I’ll decide upon the height.
You can then start mapping out important details, for example here I’ll add the door. I would strongly suggest using different colours so you can clearly distinguish between parts of the build so you’ll be able to tell if anything looks off.
If I wanted to add a window, for example, I would make sure it’s placed at a suitable height for if a player was looking through it. In this example, my ‘window’ is placed on the red part just for quickness; when doing this properly I would use several parts for the red section so I could create the gap for the window part, and this would save time in the future.
You can then duplicate these parts and begin to make whatever you’re making around them - in this instance, a door.
Since I now know the door I’ve made perfectly matches those initial dimensions, I know it will fit into the greater build and be of the correct size.
There’s my door.
You would repeat this for each part of the build. I wouldn’t suggest mapping out finer, smaller details (e.g. props) since this would be very time consuming and pretty pointless, but for the main elements of the build this is the process I usually follow.
This was also a very basic example and it lead to a rather funny shaped building. Ideally I would also map out other things such as the roof or any other significant areas.