R_SPEEDS
See also: Poly Count Blues - Troubleshooting - Compilers - Compiler Errors - Editors - Level Design -
Updated July 30, 2003
New May 2003: R_Speeds tutorial by Andy

R_Speed

R_speed is a measure of how many polygons the game engine render at any given time. Polygons are triangles, the simplest possible shape. The engine draws the triangles to the screen.

There are two types of polygons:

wpolys (world polygons)

epolys (entity polygons)

Wpolys: all brushes (including brush-based entities like doors) increase wpolys. This value is typically used to describe r_speeds. When you compile a map, the compiler generates a list of wpoly triangles based upon the brushes in the map.

Epolys are the polygons in any model-based entity like players, monsters, items, weapons.

To display your r_speeds

• Run HL using the -dev flag (for "developer" mode)
• In the console, enter r_speeds 1
• Display includes:
  • Wpoly = World Polygons
  • Epoly = Entity Polygons
  • ms = ping (in miliseconds)
  • fps = framerate

Links to Resources

• R-Speeds by @ Frank Clan
• R-Speeds @ 69th Vlatitude
  "Keep your Wpoly under 400 and Epoly under 900 at all times. Reduce detail to get Wpoly down, and reduce the amount of entities for Epoly reduction."

Miscellaneous R_Speed Notes

"Quick way to judge game lag --
Pick up an RPG, shoot it out of rockets, and when you have 0 ammo, press the firing button and keep it pressed. The smaller the interval between the clicks, the less the game lags."

- Heikki Juntunen

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"Try out the r_drawflat 1 in software mode to see the face splitting -- helps to see what causes the high r_speeds"

- Mordor

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"I discovered a bug in half-life today that actually worked to my advantage when testing levels. If you type kill once at the console, you die, right? Well, if you type it again before closing the console, your body won't fall down, it'll just lean in the air. I found this very useful for testing visibility in dimly lit rooms."

- Anonymous