In this tutorial, we're going to make a Star Trek saucer dish part vaguely analogous to the complex ones found on the /Akira/-class.

Keep in mind these simple hotkeys:

F1: side view
F2: top view
F3: front view
F5: three-quarters perspective view

Ctrl+A: select all
Ctrl+D: deselect all

Left mouse: select
Right mouse: hold to rotate
Middle mouse: hold to pan
Middle wheel: zoom

Okay, we want to make a dish. First thing, we see the construction space with its grid and its coordinate axes. The blue axis (Z) points towards the front of the model. The red axis (X) points to the port side of the model. The yellow axis (Y) points up.

First thing we need to do is to create a primitive shape we will then modify. Because we are making a dish, and it is already mostly curved, we're going to edit a sphere. Just go to the buttons on the right and find "Primitive" under "Create." Then ratchet up the number of divisions until you get a nice, smoothish-looking sphere shape. I like U and V to both be 20, because it's a small enough number that there won't be a jillion faces at rendering and yet there's enough to prevent the model from looking jagged.

Once everything is set up, click Create.

You now have a sphere. We're not making a /Daedalus/ or an /Olympic/-class, though, it needs to be sort of /Akira/-ish. So what we're gonna have to do is "scale" it along its vertical axis in order to squish it. Limiting the scaling to the vertical axis will allow it to retain its circular planform from the top, but if we wanted something elliptical like the Ent-D saucer we could do that in this step too.

Select all with Ctrl+A and then find "Scale" on the buttons to the right. A widget will show up, which is a smaller coordinate system located at the centroid of your selection (REMEMBER THAT FOR LATER) with its axes aligned to the primary coordinate system and following the same color scheme (blue fore, red port, yellow dorsal). We want to squish the sphere, only distorting it vertically, so we want to limit things to the up/down axis. To do this, carefully click on the yellow box on the widget and move it up and down. You should see the sphere stretch and flatten as appropriate. Squish it until it's about as flat as you like, turning it from a sphere to a M&M shape (Skittles are about too fat).

This is what you should have when you're done. Now ever since the Ent-D Star Trek ships have liked being mostly flat on the bottom, so what we need is to take the bottom of that oblate ellipsoid and flatten it. The first instinct would be to just delete those parts, but that'll actually be inconvenient; you'll see later. What we're going to do is align the lower half to the XZ plane, but first we need to select the entire southern hemisphere of the sphere, including the equator.

To do this, use the "Rect" button underneath "Select." This is your usual draw-a-rectangle-to-select-everything-inside tool.

Just like this.

Now all the southern points are selected. Go to Selected -> Align Vertices as shown in the screen capture, and the Align Vertices dialog will pop up as shown. Note how the X, Y, and Z labels follow the same color scheme. We want to constrain these vertices along the vertical (yellow, Y) axis, so they'll form a series of coincentric circles all on the XZ plane. This will be useful later.

Make sure the "Apply" box for whatever alignments you want to make (in this case Y) are checked, then put in the value you wanted them aligned at. In this case, we want everything to be aligned with the equator, which we included in our selection for one thing: the "Max" Y value from the data set listed in the buttons is 0, that of the equator. You could put in any arbitrary value you wished, but for now click the Y Max button. The number in the position box will go to that value (0). Click OK.

And this is what you end up with. Note how the points are still selected.

This view just shows that, yes, they've all been aligned along the XZ plane but their XZ coordinates haven't changed. Just like taking the photograph of the top of a globe, we have a series of cocentric circles and spokes.

Now to make the obligatory Starfleet Notch in the front of the saucer. Go to the top view with the F2 key and then use the rectangle tool to select a few points at the front of the saucer--the part pointing along the blue line. Note that when you delete points (vertices), the planes defined by those vertices are also deleted, which means you always cut off more than you indicate. Press the delete key.

See how large the notch is in comparison to what you selected? Planes (in computer graphics) require four points for definition, as opposed to three for triangles. Metasequoia is primarily a plane-based system for interoperability with Doga, although you can triangularize things should you wish. I wouldn't recommend it for Doga work; for exporting game models, on the other hand, yes, triangulation is good.