Q3MAP2 Warnings and errors

2024-12-23 Mapping tutorials kleskby 0 299

Quake III Mapping: Common Compile Errors and Fixes

When compiling Quake 3 maps, a variety of errors can occur due to brush complexity, bad geometry, or improper entity placement. Here's a technical rundown of common errors and how to resolve them.

Misc_model problems:

T16128: FindInvalidDataProcess fails on mesh uvcoords: All vectors are identical
Possibly caused by having one or more UV islands collapsed to one pixel or object having multiple uv maps. Delete all other uv maps.
max_map_draw_surfs (131072) exceeded, consider -maxmapdrawsurfs to increase:
Reduce the amount of geometry or remove the -meta tag from the command line.
WARNING: Validation warning: A specular shading model is specified but the value of the AI_MATKEY_SHININESS_STRENGTH key is 0.0:
This happens when you import FBX mesh with materials and one (or more) materials have specularity set to 0. Set specularity to 0.001 or change type of material to diffuse only.
WARNING: triangle ( -48 192 -482) ( -48 192 -482) ( -48 192 -482) of model.fbx was not autoclipped:
This happens when model has poor topology. Try to optimize model.
--- MapRawLightmap ---

0...1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...#### Error 'Crashed' occurred when communicating with process:
Disable meta triangles on misc model (remove FORCEMETA spawnflag from misc_model) or reduce model complicity.

Geometry & Brush Errors

Bad PointToPolygonFormFactor: Mesh is too close to the skybox. Move it away or simplify the geometry.
ClipWindingEpsilon > MAX_POINTS_ON_WINDING: Too many verts on a brush face. Clip it into simpler geometry.
Degenerate Plane / Bad Normal: A brush has invalid geometry. Use Misc > Find Brush in Radiant to locate and delete it.
FloatPlane: Bad Normal: A plane lacks a valid normal. Rebuild the affected brush.
MAX_BUILD_SIDES / MAX_FACE_POINTS / MAX_EDGE_LINES: Overly complex brush. Clip or simplify.
MAX_MAP_DRAW_SURFS / DRAWINDEXES: Often caused by excessive tessellation in shaders (e.g., tesssize 1). Use reasonable values (128–256).
MAX_MAPFILE_PLANES / MAX_ORIGINAL_EDGES: Reduce brush complexity. Don't apply origin texture unless required.
MAX_PATCH_PLANES / MAX_SURFACE_VERTS / MAX_TW_VERTS: Excessive patch geometry. Split into smaller patches or simplify caps.

Entity & Structural Issue

Entity 243 (misc_model): Entity in solid: Entity stuck inside solid BSP brush.
Entity Leaked: The entity sees the void. Use the leak trace and move the entity or fix the enclosing brushes.
MAX_SUBMODELS exceeded: Limit of 255 brush entities. Remove or consolidate func_* entities.
Mixed CONTENTS_DETAIL and STRUCTURAL: Hint and areaportal brushes must be structural. Fix brush contents.
Mixed Face Contents: Harmless. Caused by different textures on the same brush.

Portal & VIS Errors

Leaf with too many portals: Too many structural intersections. Convert small details (e.g., stairs) to detail brushes.
MAX_MAP_VISIBILITY: Too many portals. Use prtview to inspect. Solutions: Convert complex brushes to detail. Increase _blocksize in worldspawn. Eliminate leaks. Use hint brushes effectively.

PassagePortalFlow (N): Not an error, but slow VIS time suggests optimization is needed. See above.

Compile Failures & Memory

*Error opening .bsp: BSP wasn’t generated due to earlier compile failure. Fix root cause first.
safe_malloc failed: Compiler ran out of memory. Use -lomem or increase system RAM.

Miscellaneous

MAX_MAP_LIGHTING: Reduce total surface area or increase _lightmapscale.
Node without volume / 0 tiny portals: Caused by malformed brushes. Use BobzToolz to clean up.
.prt: No such file or directory: No portal file, most likely a map has leaked.

Tags: mapping, q3map2,