Generate LightMaps in T3d ?

#1 Only way is to bake it in your modeling program.

#2 As @Duion says.

Or PureLight a slightly expensive alternative is also an option.

Have a look: http://www.garagegames.com/products/purelight

#3 Has anyone ever tested that and can tell if purelight is still up to date and a working solution?

#4 @Duion

You take a collada(or 3d max) model and work with that model in PreLight and PureLight. I have not played with it for some time but I remember having fun making strong light beam lights shine through temple windows and seeing the pattern from those windows getting baked into the floor of my secret temple. Awesome looking in Torque 3D when I dropped the collada file and the texture into the shape folder.

It is actually nice to work with and the documentation is well done as well. A good plugin for Torque tech but might be rather expensive for some people as well :O)

Yes it worked when I tried it out in Torque 3D MIT 3.5(I think that was the version if I am not mistaken) :O)

On a side note then now many game engines comes with this feature built into their editors(but the price is not free).

The strength of baking your lights(using static shadows for example) is that you can use less advanced/dynamic lights in the level, use less memory and still make the level/interior awesome. You can even make bright strong colors as well(screens etc.).

Also I never actually succeeded in making the demo version work so I took a chance and look at what other had done with PureLight before picking it up. Well I liked what I got my hands on :O)

#5 Do they lightmaps have to get added to each separate model as a texture layer in the material editor?

#6 Ahhh... @Duion do you have to ask that as I am drinking my second cup of Nescafe? :O)

I think this link(official PureLight tutorial series) will at least answer some of your questions(watch the all and not just the first):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EESbT4_ShnM

When I used the baked models in Torque 3D all I did was to drop it(the model and texture that was baked together) into the shape folders. Their might be more advanced stuff that can be done but I kind of took an Unreal 4 arrow to my knee before I got to use it more than just testing it out. I guess one can say that the newly baked texture replace the old one.

Simply bake the model and texture in PureLight and then drop it into your shape folder if I remember it right. It is simple and straight forward.

The baking process can take less or longer time depending on what results you wish to get on the model.

Do NOT bake whole scenes and levels with separated models exported from Torque 3D at once and then re-import them into Torque 3D as that will scatter all models and props in weird offset locations(it is a real mess to behold).

Make a landscape(the raw part) in a 3d program(if you MUST use PureLight on that that is... I would only use PureLight on interiors and 3d buildings or props), bake it in PureLight, use it in Torque as a huge 3d collada model, Then do the same on every 3D model and then drop them into the shape folders as well. Use, design and create your good looking level with some dynamic lighting here and their.

I think that Ivan Mandzhukov from liman3d is pretty good at using PureLight and also Steve Acaster is pretty experienced with PureLight as well. Drop them a PM and ask if you wanna be sure :O)

You can also ask the PureLight designers.