Setting the position of all faces at once

Support Modeling
1

Hello!

I am having a bit of an issue with my mesh. For the purposes of a game, I need to flatten a terrain model, such that all faces have the Z-value 0, and such that their rotation makes them appear flat. I have tried setting Scale-Z = 0, and while this gives the visual impression of flatness, in fact the mesh contains tiny variations in Z-values (for example, a Z of 0.001) which make it incompatible with the program it is being designed for. I wish I could change the program, but I can’t.

It is also important that the mesh (a grid) retain the exact same faces and contours as the deformed model (a grid deformed using proportional editing), which is why I don’t just create one from scratch. Further, the mesh contains thousands of polygons so I can’t do it manually. I have found that editing the Median Z is not helpful, even on individual polyons, because it preserves their rotation. Also, in case it matters, the Z-scale: 0 mesh still exhibits different grayscale on the quads, the same grayscale they had when deformed.

So here is my question: is there a precise, exact way to set the Z component of all faces in my mesh to 0? That is, to take a 3D mesh and flatten it perfectly into 2D, while having it retain exactly the same contours in the X and Y dimensions?

I much appreciate any and all advice you can give!

2

well select all your faces then S Z 0 keys

this should set all z values to zero !

good luck

3

Put the 3d curser to the the grid (Shift+C)
Set the pivot point to the 3d curser (period key), select all vertices and scale to zero along the z axis (S Z 0)

or if you want the median point to be the pivot point, scale along the z axis (S Z 0) and then in the transform properties panel (N) set the z location to zero.

4

Hm, I had been trying this on the faces, which gave me inexact and faulty results, and didn’t think to try it on vertices instead, since I didn’t think there was a difference. I just did, though, with Richard’s exact instructions, and it worked. I guess there is a difference between S Z 0 on faces, and the same on vertices. I’ll have to remember that. Thanks a bunch!