Drawing Tool

Drawing Tool (make new Vertices, LineDefs, SideDefs and Sectors in one step)

DeePsea's drawing tool provides precision drawing without the extra steps required by vertex first editors that require many extra steps to create the Linedefs and Sectors or prefab only editors that require continuous merging and splitting of lines to get anything done - plus avoiding all the mistakes that introduces.

You draw the lines on the screen. What you see is exactly how the lines will appear. No guesswork!

Have a plan in mind to minimize having to redo areas. Since DeePsea permits detailed control of level creation, it is possible for beginners to draw without considering the rest of the construction criteria.

If you haven't done so yet, please review the definitions of Vertexes, Linedefs, SideDefs and Sectors. It is important to understand these terms, since sooner or later you will delete parts here and there and have to fix these area to keep the sector closed.

For a discussion of sector not closed, refer to Sector not Closed. Please review how areas should look. Once you understand how areas look, the rest is easy. Your reward will be attractive levels made with minimum fuss.

Intelligent Inference Drawing (IID) examines the context of the area you draw in. Sectors and SideDefs are made for you as you progress. Be sure to check your work, since improper pre-existing areas (even ones made on purpose) can mislead the drawing tool and create references you need to adjust. Intelligence has the drawback of making mistakesJ

Different methods of starting Drawing Tool mode

1.    From any mode press Ctrl+D

2.    If in Vertex mode: Pressing Ins starts drawing mode

3.    Quick double Left button click starts drawing mode in all modes except Things.

4.    Quick double Right button click and select drawing mode from the popup menu.

5.    Use the Prefab Tool Bar and click on the drawing button (this is one of the easiest!)

Once you are in Drawing Tool mode, buttons and key functions

Left button

Create vertex, move the mouse some, then Left click again.

Right button

End drawing an area. Continue to draw more by Left clicking again. Quit by Right clicking again (or pressing Esc).

Shift+Right button

End drawing area. Extends an area using the same Sector number as a shared line or the current sector where you are drawing an object. Uses the same Sector number as the area drawn in if not connected to an existing linedef. Continue to draw as above.

Esc

Ends drawing area. No "last closing" line drawn. Attempts to assign sector references per area context. Quit by pressing Esc again (or pressing Right button).

Ins

Force 1-sided LineDefs (and draws the last line).

F1

Brings up help for the control methods available

+ / -

Zoom map control

Cursor Keys

Move the map (as well as having the mouse hit the "edge" of the map.

Some basic drawing guidelines

Drawing outside of any existing Sector

1.    Drawing clockwise in a new area makes 1-sided lines - the type that typically surrounds a level.

2.    Drawing counter-clockwise outside of an existing sector is normally NOT valid.

Drawing inside an existing Sector and not drawing around any other lines

1.    Draw clockwise in an existing area to make 2-sided lines.

2.    Draw counter-clockwise to make 1-sided lines.

3.    Press Ins to always force 1-sided lines.

Drawing inside of an existing Sector and drawing around other lines

1.    Draw counter-clockwise around an object makes 2-sides lines around the object(s).

2.    Draw clockwise around an object makes 2-sided lines around the object(s).

3.    Press Ins to force 1-sided lines in either case.

You CAN draw across existing lines. Turn on Automatic Draw Intersections (F5) and you can draw exactly on top of LineDefs, split them with vertices or you can cross LineDefs without stopping, continuing on the other side! Although any intersections are always supported, it’s possible for certain angled crossings to have some invalid Sector references created. Overall, this can save you a lot of work!

Complex areas that you connect with line drawing may require adjustment to some LineDefs that are either joined or overlap in geometric coordinates.

Edit the textures and sidedefs to make it impassable, etc. Clicking on the flags on the bottom of the screen is the quickest way (press the shift key when you move the cursor to keep DeePsea from following the cursor).

Some complex areas may not be made exactly the way you intended. This becomes a trivial thing to fix using either the various precise editing functions available.

For the beginner sector not closed can be frustrating at times, but once you understand how the parts always fit, it's duck soup. So be sure to see how sectors/linedefs always (well, unless you are doing tricks) fit together.

Understanding the basics really pays off big time.