Skin Swapping

[LoBlo]

Hello all.

Lets say that I want to change the skin, and just the skin on a existing model. How would I do it?

I'm trying to take a Shipwreck missile and give it a white skin to represent a RATTLERS missile to replace the TLAM. Should be pretty simple right?...hopefully?

thx
lb

[TLAM Strike]

I could tell you but then I have to kill you...




...in that case I'll tell you! :p









First you need to decompress the 3d.grp (with decompress.exe), find the texture map (DW Edit helpful here), paint said mapt, then put the texture back in using computil.

I don't know where you can get decompress.exe. Maybe one of the old SCX team might still have the link (I think thats where I got it)


Now time to use some of my new found Navy SEAL skills on you...

[LoBlo]

Actually I have the decompress tool, Pirate gave it to me a little while back.... however, I don't know how to use it its a DOS command file right?

[TLAM Strike]

be0ld mI maadd haX0r skillz:

Create a .bat file (use notepad and change the extention.), edit the .bat (right click>Edit) and enter:
decompress 3d
PING www.subsim.com (Just joking about the ping thing...)
save and run. Be advised it will create a big folder called 3D will all the graphics.

[LoBlo]

w0w...ur sk1llz r t3h ownz Thanks

you weren't kidding that is a pretty big folder alright, it will take half a day just to find the skin I'm looking for... this should be fun though...:hmm:

[TLAM Strike]

Originally Posted by LoBlo

you weren't kidding that is a pretty big folder alright, it will take half a day just to find the skin I'm looking for... this should be fun though...:hmm:

DWedit gives you a listing of textures on each model. For the Shipwreck the only texture listed is ss-n-19.dds

[LoBlo]

Good idea. ...errrr, one more question...what program is needed to open .dds files?

[TLAM Strike]

Originally Posted by LoBlo

Good idea. ...errrr, one more question...what program is needed to open .dds files?

http://msdn.microsoft.com/archive/de...fileformat.asp

[LoBlo]

errrr...this is starting to look like more trouble than worth it... sounds like something that needs photoshop to edit with...

[LoBlo]

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

I First you need to decompress the 3d.grp (with decompress.exe), find the texture map (DW Edit helpful here), paint said mapt, then put the texture back in using computil.

Hey TLAM, can you tell me where I can find this "computil"?

[TLAM Strike]

Originally Posted by LoBlo

Hey TLAM, can you tell me where I can find this "computil"?

Any of the repaints from Subguru or Orionworior.

[OneShot]

Check out the MOD section of the CADC, there is a sticky there with the files you will need.

[LoBlo]

Thanks OneShot.

Would it be possible to list a quick "how-to" for the cmpUtil. I've been trying to put a rattlers.j3d and rattlers.dds into the game but whenever I try to run the cmpUtil nothing happens.

[TLAM Strike]

Time to go hacking again, make and run a .bat with this:

cmpUtil 3d rattlers.j3d
cmpUtil 3d rattlers.dds

[LoBlo]

Aha! Thanks once again. These things aren't obvious to us non-programmers. After hours of head scratching and hard work I.... still can't this this darn thing to work! ... ... ...

Its not the .bat its the .dds. I downloaded a quick 30day trail of photoshop and installed a .dds plugin, but the .dds files I'm producing aren't being read right. The .dds file view aren't even recognizing them as .dds files....

...hm... what's going wrong here...:hmm: ...*sigh* this is going to take a while to figure out.