Difference between revisions of "Blender/Custom Shield"

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Blender/Custom Shield (edit)

Revision as of 20:59, 30 September 2006

440 bytes added ,  20:59, 30 September 2006
Tells the modder how to create a new shield mesh in Blender and get it into the game using Nifskope and the Blender nifscripts.
imported>Sickleyield
imported>Sickleyield
(Tells the modder how to create a new shield mesh in Blender and get it into the game using Nifskope and the Blender nifscripts.)
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You'll also need an image editing program such as Photoshop or my favorite, the GIMP, but I won't be showing you how to make a custom texture in this tutorial.   
You'll also need an image editing program such as Photoshop or my favorite, the GIMP, but I won't be showing you how to make a custom texture in this tutorial.   
'''Important Preliminaries: Configuring the Nifscripts'''


Be sure to configure your nifscripts to version 20.0.0.4.  You can do this by clicking on the little python emblem in the main menu to take you to the scripts screen.  Then click on scripts - system - import/export.  This should allow you to choose your .nif import or export scripts from a dropdown menu.  Make sure it says .nif version 20.0.0.4 and size 10.  (I've heard people say 1, but 10 is what works for me.  If your meshes seem too big or small when exported, this is the setting you change.)
Be sure to configure your nifscripts to version 20.0.0.4.  You can do this by clicking on the little python emblem in the main menu to take you to the scripts screen.  Then click on scripts - system - import/export.  This should allow you to choose your .nif import or export scripts from a dropdown menu.  Make sure it says .nif version 20.0.0.4 and size 10.  (I've heard people say 1, but 10 is what works for me.  If your meshes seem too big or small when exported, this is the setting you change.)
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Now create your new shield mesh near the game one.  If what you really want is just basically a steel shield like the game one, but with spikes, I recommend just taking the game mesh and adding spikes (or whatever) using subdivision and scaling.  This way you will have a nice UV map to work from also.
Now create your new shield mesh near the game one.  If what you really want is just basically a steel shield like the game one, but with spikes, I recommend just taking the game mesh and adding spikes (or whatever) using subdivision and scaling.  This way you will have a nice UV map to work from also.


Important key shortcuts to remember in Blender:
g: grab (lets you pull a vertex around)
g and x, y, or z: lets you pull on just one axis
s: scale:
s and x, y, or z: scale on just one axis
b: bounding box, press twice to get a circle.
r: rotate
r and x, y, or z: rotate around just one axis.  Important because just plane "r" will rotate from the direction you're looking at the mesh, which can have odd results.


::'''Important key shortcuts to remember in Blender:'''
::g: grab (lets you pull a vertex around)
::g and x, y, or z: lets you pull on just one axis
::s: scale:
::s and x, y, or z: scale on just one axis
::b: bounding box, press twice to get a circle.
::r: rotate
::r and x, y, or z: rotate around just one axis.  Important because just plain "r" will rotate from the direction you're looking at the mesh, which can have odd results.
::''And an important warning:''
Reminder: if you're starting from a game mesh, do NOT add vertices or you will mess up the UV map and make texturing very difficult.  The only way to get around this is to select some vertices and click "subdivide" down in the buttons window.  Voila, you have new vertices and faces that are included in the UV map already.
Reminder: if you're starting from a game mesh, do NOT add vertices or you will mess up the UV map and make texturing very difficult.  The only way to get around this is to select some vertices and click "subdivide" down in the buttons window.  Voila, you have new vertices and faces that are included in the UV map already.
'''Preparing for Export'''


If you edited a game mesh, your shield is already in the right position for export.  If not, you need to select the handle of the game shield you imported (remember that?) and then click "select - inverse" in edit mode to select everything BUT the handle.  Now delete.  Now line your new shield up with the handle.  Important: DO NOT MOVE THE HANDLE.  You can go back to object mode and click ctrl-j to join the two objects if you wish.  This may make things a little simpler.
If you edited a game mesh, your shield is already in the right position for export.  If not, you need to select the handle of the game shield you imported (remember that?) and then click "select - inverse" in edit mode to select everything BUT the handle.  Now delete.  Now line your new shield up with the handle.  Important: DO NOT MOVE THE HANDLE.  You can go back to object mode and click ctrl-j to join the two objects if you wish.  This may make things a little simpler.
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If you started from scratch, this is where you need to give the object a UV map, a material and a texture in Blender.  I'm not going into that here.  It's in the tutorials.  If you started from a game mesh, you don't have to do that because it's already been done for you by Bethesda.  Don't forget to use ctrl-a to apply scale and rotation.  I recommend also saving the UV map from the UV map window for texturing use later.
If you started from scratch, this is where you need to give the object a UV map, a material and a texture in Blender.  I'm not going into that here.  It's in the tutorials.  If you started from a game mesh, you don't have to do that because it's already been done for you by Bethesda.  Don't forget to use ctrl-a to apply scale and rotation.  I recommend also saving the UV map from the UV map window for texturing use later.


'''Exporting the Mesh'''
'''Exporting the Mesh and Editing in Nifskope'''


Okay, now export.  File - export - netimmerse/gamebryo.  Choose the folder you want your shield to go into - let's say data files\meshes\armor\mynewshield.nif.
Okay, now export.  File - export - netimmerse/gamebryo.  Choose the folder you want your shield to go into - let's say data files\meshes\armor\mynewshield.nif.
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Open up your nif with nifskope.  It may look odd if you started from a game mesh, since it will have the original texture on it still, but that's not what we're worried about right now.  Be sure and expand the texture node branch to make sure it has the following series of numbers going downwards: 6,1,3,1,1.  If it says 5,2, etc., change it.  Believe me, you'll thank me later.
Open up your nif with nifskope.  It may look odd if you started from a game mesh, since it will have the original texture on it still, but that's not what we're worried about right now.  Be sure and expand the texture node branch to make sure it has the following series of numbers going downwards: 6,1,3,1,1.  If it says 5,2, etc., change it.  Believe me, you'll thank me later.


EDIT for latest nifskope version: With the newest one you only have to change one number.  The very last thing in the texture node is a number 0 that needs to be changed to a 1.
''EDIT for latest nifskope version: With the newest one you only have to change one number.  The very last thing in the texture node is a number 0 that needs to be changed to a 1.''


Now go to file - new window.  Remember the original mesh you chose for its collision boxes?  The one that still has those boxes, because it's the original version that you did NOT save over with a new one?  Load that in the new window.  Find the nitristrips node for the actual shield itself - when you click on it it will be highlighted in the main window.  Right click - block - remove branch.  Now it is gone but its collision shapes (the bhkconvexvertices node) are still there.   
Now go to file - new window.  Remember the original mesh you chose for its collision boxes?  The one that still has those boxes, because it's the original version that you did NOT save over with a new one?  Load that in the new window.  Find the nitristrips node for the actual shield itself - when you click on it it will be highlighted in the main window.  Right click - block - remove branch.  Now it is gone but its collision shapes (the bhkconvexvertices node) are still there.   
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Now save the nif under the name of your shield (do NOT save it as the name of the old one).  Make sure it's in the directory where you want it to be.
Now save the nif under the name of your shield (do NOT save it as the name of the old one).  Make sure it's in the directory where you want it to be.


Now it's time to do some texturing and set up your shield in the Construction Set.  I'm not going to tell you how to make a texture from scratch here, but once you have one, you've only got to type the texture path into the top of the texture node in nifskope next to the little flower symbol.  It will usually look something like data/textures/armor/mynewshield.dds.  This tells nifskope where your texture is.  For now I'll leave it that the texture must be a .dds file and it must have a normal map, which is called something like mynewshield_n.dds.
'''Adding a Texture'''


'''Getting Your New Shield Into the Game'''
Now it's time to do some texturing.  I'm not going to tell you how to make a texture from scratch here, but once you have one, you've only got to type the texture path into the top of the texture node in nifskope next to the little flower symbol.  It will usually look something like data\textures\armor\mynewshield.dds.  This tells nifskope where your texture is.  For now I'll leave it that the texture must be a .dds file and it must have a normal map, which is called something like mynewshield_n.dds.
 
''::Important warning: make sure the slashes in the texture name lean backwards, like this: \ and not forwards like this: / or the game will refuse to recognize the texture.  Nifskope will sometimes try to change this around on you.''
 
'''Getting Your New Shield Into the Construction Set'''


Double click on the construction set icon on your desktop to load up the CS.  If you don't have this icon on your desktop, I urge you to put it there right now.  Now wait for it to load.  This may take a while, and then there will be very few items on the screen.  That's because we haven't loaded any data files.
Double click on the construction set icon on your desktop to load up the CS.  If you don't have this icon on your desktop, I urge you to put it there right now.  Now wait for it to load.  This may take a while, and then there will be very few items on the screen.  That's because we haven't loaded any data files.
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When that is done, click OK.  You'll get a message asking if you want to create a new ID.  ALWAYS SAY YES.
When that is done, click OK.  You'll get a message asking if you want to create a new ID.  ALWAYS SAY YES.
'''Getting the New Shield Into the Game'''


Now your shield will appear in the Armor list.  It will be listed alphabetically by its ID, although you can change the sorting method by clicking the headings of the list.  Now you can drop it into the inventory of a merchant, into your house, or into the street of a random city.  Go to file - save in the main CS menu and give your mod a name.  Close the CS.  This might take a while.
Now your shield will appear in the Armor list.  It will be listed alphabetically by its ID, although you can change the sorting method by clicking the headings of the list.  Now you can drop it into the inventory of a merchant, into your house, or into the street of a random city.  Go to file - save in the main CS menu and give your mod a name.  Close the CS.  This might take a while.
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