While examining several merchant photos I noticed that paint schemes on ships were less uniform than they seemed. Therefore I've decided to try to give the ship hulls more of a textured feel. I redid the semi-transparent rust layer that I apply to my ships and added new features - stains, blistering, and varied paint thickness (to represent where the crew painted over rusted spots, old lettering, etc). I also have some high-contrast plate textures that are overlaid on the hull to keep it from looking like a single solid object. This particular skin was designed for a bulk freighter that will be in the Merchant Fleet Mod; however, I would like to try using the new skins on the default SH3 ships, too. I've been thinking about which types of weathering are appropriate for which vessels:
Liners - Clean, Moderate Weathering.
Merchantmen - Some Clean, mostly Moderate or Heavy Weathering
Bulk Freighters - Moderate and Heavy Weathering, plus Cargo Stains
Major Warships - Clean, Moderate Weathering
Escorts - Mostly Moderate and Heavy Weathering, especially as the war drags on.
I've also begun working on the deck cargo; here's a new skin for the truck:
I would really like to find out how to add new cargos to the game, as well as multiple skins for the cargos, even if it is difficult - does anyone have an idea how to do this?