Making the Final Adjustments
If you completed all the preceding tutorials in this section, you should by now have created all the components that make the soldier. Still, as you look at the results in the viewports, the objects look faceted. Some modifiers that fix this issue, such as MeshSmooth and TurboSmooth, do so by adding geometry to the objects, which defeats the purpose of low-poly modeling. It is best to keep the face count low by adjusting smoothing groups on the objects.
In a nutshell, two adjacent polygons that do not share the same smoothing group appear separated by a visible edge, giving the shading a faceted look. If the two polygons share the same smoothing group, the edge becomes invisible, giving the illusion of a smooth, curved surface. You can use the Smooth modifier to quickly adjust smoothing groups without adding geometry.
In this tutorial, you will learn how to:
Skill level: Beginner
Time to complete: 20 minutes
All the files necessary for this tutorial are provided on the program disc in the \tutorials\low_polygon_modeling directory. Before starting the tutorials, copy the \tutorials from the disc to your local program installation.