Finding XSI Exports Exasperating??

You need

Doc Slaor's New and Improved Much Easier Way To Make BZ2 Stuff
(AKA XSI's Made Easy, The Transplant Method, 11 Steps to a Happier You, The "Get f**ked it can't be that easy!" XSI Xport Xperience)

Providing YOU the modder with the easiest and quickest transition from brain to game in the known BZ universe.

Requires:
A computer
3D Exploration with XSI exporter
Threed
Lithunwrap (optional)
Working knowledge of each of the above (optional)
Coffee
Pizza

1: Build new model ensuring maximum possible coolness. Use 3D program of your choice. When exporting from your 3D program, group all objects under a small parent dummy object to make it easier later. Sort the object hierarchy now too if u must but it's also easier to do later - please yourself. Before you save it check model again and make sure it's suitably cool. If it's not quite cool enough, repeat step 1 till it is.

2: UV wrap cool new model. Always use the wavefront.OBJ file format when exporting from Lithunwrap .OBJ format automatically rewelds vertices that are seperated during the UV process and is widely compatible. I find it a reasonably sound practise to stick with .OBJs as much as possible until you start messing around with skeletals. And before you ask, this method may or may not work with skeletal models, expect the unexpected. If in doubt, apply pizza and coffee. For purposes of this demonstration we will call our new model coolnew.OBJ seeing as how it's cool and a .OBJ and all. If it's not cool enough, go back to step 1. If it's not an OBJ don't whinge at me when it AVs (see disclaimer).

3: Open coolnew.OBJ in 3D Exploration. Save as coolnew.XSI with 'Add indents' and 'Add top level frame' ticked. Yes i know it isn't BZ2 compatible but we're about to fix that...also check the vertex count - if it's ridiculously high then go back to step 1 and use OBJ's this time.

4: Click Here to download dummy.XSI. This used to be an ISDF Extractor, just has all objects stripped away except for the top frame - HP_dummyroot. You can make this yourself easily enough from any stock XSI with a HP_dummyroot object. The main thing is that you have a blank BZ2 compatible root object to mess with. This will form the BZ2 compatible basis for a new tank or a bad guy or a pretty tree (see step 1) If you are making a building u can likewise steal a frm_terrain object from a stock building XSI - in fact its the best way I can think of to get tile geometry spot on. Make that template yourself if u want it using Threed to delete unneeded frames. Any stock base building will do.

5: Open dummy.XSI in Threed.

6: Open coolnew.XSI, also in Threed.

7: Using the copy and paste functions transplant each frame from coolnew.XSI to dummy.XSI. I sort out the object hierarchy at this point. Don't subgroup objects if you don't need to - makes editing easier. If your models orientation is wrong, you can fix it here by rotating objects so they are correct relative to the dummyroot. If you added the small dummy parent object to coolnew model as described in step 1, then its a simple matter of pasting the whole coolnew model into dummy.XSI then rotating your little parent object to fit; everything grouped under it (ie: the actual cool model parts) will follow. You can also paste in objects from other XSI's - an easy way to do eg: Guntower pivot points is just copy/paste the HPs in and duplicate the hierarchy from the stock ISDF Guntower. Edit materials in here too. Use stock XSI's as a guide to specular and ambient and diffuse colours. 200 shininess is a good setting for a light chrome sheen, dunno why. For pretty trees and stuff this should be set at 0.

8: Close coolnew.XSI. Its long journey is nearly finished, it will shortly be transmogrified into something even more useful.

9: Save dummy.XSI (now with added coolness), overwriting original coolnew.XSI. If you've done everything right then what you should now have is your coolnew.XSI geometry from 3DExploration painlessly transplanted into a BZ2 compatible stock XSI frame header, all neatly grouped under a stock HP_dummyroot.

10: Write or pilfer ODF. Remaining Coffee and Pizza may be safely applied beyond this point.

11: Go kill stuff.

Post Mortem:
Apparently the top header of an XSI pretty much defines version numbers etc etc which is what BZ2 wants to know when it reads one in. 3D exploration XSI's haven't got the right headers so BZ2 hates them. However the actual geometry data is the same, that's why Threed can display it. Threed thus allows you to copy (ascii) geometry from a 3D Exploration XSI into a stock .XSI file with the correct header - which can be obtained free of charge from any stock BZ2 XSI as long as you don't play around with the HP_dummyroot. You can do the same thing in Notepad but why the hell bother - that's what Threed is for.

Happy Maiming! Disclaimer: Doc Slaor is not a real doctor. Performing actual transplants on live patients using the above methodology may result in gore and death and lawsuits. Doc Slaor Inc accepts no responsibility for loss or injury incurred while modding or playing Battlezone2. Doc Slaor accepts no responsibility for mental anguish and chronic eyebleed caused after 6 months or so of doing XSI exports the other way. Doc Slaor does not endorse excessive pizza and coffee consumption. No guarantees are expressed or implied as to the relevence, accuracy or coherence of Doc Slaor's New and Improved Much Easier Way To Make BZ2 Stuff.