Is there a way to add a drop shadow with a very tight gradient along grouped objects as a whole? Failing that, is there a way to drop a 3D effect in there to make the armored plating look 3D by making it appear "thick?" I'm not really getting the results I want with drop shadow, and these plates are in rings overlapping each other. Any suggestions would be appreciated. The effect below would work if there was a way to connect the corner nodes so it doesn't just look like a sloppy duplication.
With all the objects grouped you should be able to apply a transparent drop shadow to the group.
The problem I'm running into is that the gradient is not even and will be darker in some areas and lighter in others. I'm probably not using the settings correctly.
Send me a sample and I'll see how it works. You got the address.
Thank you!