Quote:
Originally Posted by J0313
I'm have just a basic familiarity with S3D. But I am able to follow instructions well, I think. I would be thankful for any idea you have gap.
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Okay, I can't go into details because as I said I have not NYGM files close at hands, but the following instructions should be generic enough that they can apply to any mod/u-boat:
1. Look in game files for the conning tower fitted on the submarine you are currently commanding. It should be placed in the data\Objects folder.
2. Open the corresponding dat file in S3D, select its main node in the project tree (or any other node), and click on 'Model preview'.
3. At this point you should see a white silhouette of the conning tower you have chosen. For better visibility, I suggest you to zoom in on it, click on the 'Enable diffuse map' button (i.e. the first light bulb in the model preview menu) in order to see a shadowed/textured version of it. Before you go on to the next point I suggest you to have a close look at the conning tower (by dragging the mouse with the middle/right MB you can rotate/pan your view) for making sure that that's actually the turm you want to edit. Note that on the sides of the turm there should be two black squares: those are the faces were emblems get mapped.
4. If your visual check is positive, you should expand the main node (you do it by clicking on the little triangle to the left of the node name), expand again the following child node, and select the 3D model under it. That should be the external turm mesh that you need to tweak. Click on 'Export' and you will be prompted to choose a save location; once you confirm, the next step will be choosing export settings. Usually I let all the options unchecked in 'Geometry' settings except for 'Reverse face winding', Float precision 12, all Material options checked, save to OBJ file:
5. Now you need a 3D editor. My tool of election for most tasks is Wings3D: it is not the most powerful software of its type, but it is easy to use, it is free, and in most cases is more than we need. You can download the last version of it from
this link
6. Once you have installed and run the program, go to 'File' => 'Import' => 'Wawefront (obj)...' and select the file you had previously exported.
7. Once the model is loaded, you should see it in the Geometry window, and a list of all the materials it uses in the Outliner window. Right click on one of the materials and choose 'Select' from the following menu, to select all faces that use that material (by default selected items are highlighted in red). You should do that for all the materials, until you find the one which applies to the emblem area.
8. Once you find the right material, and the polygons where emblems are mapped in game are selected, turn to top or front view (Y or Z key on your keyboard) and unselect the polygons of one side (to do that, press Ctrl on the keyboard while you drag the mouse with the LMB pressed)
9. If everything is okay, rotate the virtual camera around the conning tower to make sure that only the emblem area of one its sides is selected. You do it by pressing the middle mouse button and moving the mouse up/down left/right.
10. next step: right click anywhere on the geometry window (outside the 3D object) and select 'UV Mapping'. When you do that, an 'AutoUV' window will pop up with the projection of the "emblem faces" selected and highlighted in red; click with the RMB anywhere on that window and select 'Flip' => 'Horizontal'
11. When you are done, close the 'AutoUV' window, and export back the model to obj file: menu 'File' => 'Export' => 'Wawefront (obj)...'
12. Go back to S3d and import back the tweaked model. Best import options...
That's it! Don't forget to save before you exit the editor (keeping a back-up copy of the original file would also be a good idea). You might still need to flip your favorite emblem using Photoshop or any photo editing program you are used to, but emblems on both sides of your conning tower should already be facing the same direction. Let us know if it works
