I have a quest for a pair of hardy souls to undertake, if it be of interest to thee.
We shall give life to the unliving, through the dark art of… ANIMATION!! (thunder and lightning)
First, you must proceed to the storehouse known as Dropbox. Within, you shall find a folder marked with the inscription “Animation” and within it, another folder marked “Animation Tests”.
A series of images lies within the forsaken folder. From my studies I have come to believe that, assembled correctly, these images may unlock the final stages of the Great Work to which I have devoted what seems like a lifetime. If I am correct, then nothing will stand in our way to conjuring the sorcery known as Three Beards! (evil laughter)
But yes, the quest. First, you must take these images and find some way of forging them into a Sprite Sheet. Word tells of a mystical Sprite Packer by the name of Shoe Box. Locate this Shoe Box, or something akin to it and craft ye a Sprite Sheet.
Assuming you live to tell the tale, proceedest thou to learn what you can about Sprite Dlight. Do not be fooled. This is no elven ice-cream parlour, nor a fairy brothel as the name may suggest. It is in fact an engine of shiny magic and lights with which we will dazzle the WORLD.
Tinker with great heroism within Sprite Dlight, and on completion, export the Normals. For extra XP, you can also attempt to export the Occlusion and other maps. This is not crucial to our needs for now however.
With your unholy workings in your possession, go yonder through the gates of Unity. It is there you must assemble the pieces you have collected on your quest. Beware, there are many traps and snares which will undo all but the most wily and cunning of adventurers here.
Within Unity, you must Slice your Sprite Sheet in the Sprite Editor. The dimensions by which you must do thy slicing should be determined by the dimensions by which I have exported the frames.
You must also weave together the Sprites, Normals and Material, before conjuring a Light to illuminate our scene. To learn the intricacies of this truly alchemical process study the teachings of Youtube which I have referred to you in a previous missive on the topic of Sprite Dlight.
You may also need to scale the Sprites to fit the screen dimensions. Your judgement will serve you in this matter.
Finally, and at long last, place the sprites into the River of Time, which to mere mortals is known as the Timeline. At this point, roll a D20. If you roll 18+ restore your health to full: Time heals all wounds.
If you truly believe you are the Chosen One, you may also animate some basic movement in the light to show the dynamic application of our Lightomancy.
Now, the moment has come to fulfill thy destiny. Gird your loins*. Open the Game screen and press Play on the Timeline.
If you have been meticulous in your preparations, you will be immediately rewarded with the living spark of ANIMATION!!
If you have been sloppy and careless, you will open a portal to the 7th layer of Hell and immediately be transported there to wallow in your inadequacy for eternity.
In either case, let me know how you go.
Yours truly,
Luke
*Loin Girding instructions attached.
three beards devlog 