tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21475425760634899052024-02-19T02:55:38.914+01:00Otte's workshopOttemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-76867310494367122422017-03-07T22:37:00.004+01:002017-03-12T18:37:26.601+01:00My mods and the A.L.O.T. Texture Packs<div class="tr_bq">
This blogpost is dedicated to why my mods are no longer featured in the ME2 or ME3 A.L.O.T. packs.</div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #45818e;"> Why this statement?</span></h3>
Since I revoked permission and the bulk of my files were pulled from the A.L.O.T. Packs in August of 2016, I am frequently pelted with comments, questions, demands and threats on this subject on Tumblr, in project comments on the Nexus or over Nexus PM. These are not just users that purely wonder what transpired, these are largely users looking to reflect their dismay about the situation onto me. They blame me for the situation. Some gems include:<br />
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Now frankly I've never been too bothered by anon hate or entitled users but it costs energy to keep responding to the same questions.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e;"> The story</span></h3>
Back in August 2015 Creeperlava contacted me over Nexus PM requesting permission to include all ME3 my mods in his upcoming texture overhaul pack for ME3. I had just had a baby and was largely away from the modding scene. Despite my deep distrust of pack mods as a general rule, I agreed as long as he followed my permission rules, which were:<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e;">PERSONAL USE<br />You can use assets for your personal projects as long as you don't share them publicly. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #45818e;"><br />PUBLIC RELEASE<br />You can use assets originating from my projects for your own and release them if: </span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #45818e;">You FIRST ask me about using assets originating from my projects before hosting them. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #45818e;">You properly credit me by linking directly to the original project the assets were taken from. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #45818e;">Any monetization is absolutely prohibited. This includes hosting projects using assets originating from my projects on sites that have donations enabled and/or ask for any type of compensation to use/download said content, or for the continued support of creating said content (don’t profit off my work). </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #45818e;">Your project will adopt these conditions upon release to further protect my assets.</span></li>
</ul>
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Fast forward to August 2016 when I happened to check the A.L.O.T. project now live on Nexus, to find out he broke my permission rules by turning on donations. Seeing that at this point A.L.O.T. featured almost exclusively work by other authors, this is something that is frowned upon, as any donations should be split among the original asset creators. In my case, I had even explicitly discussed this with him twice over PM and he had ensured me he had no intention of ever monetizing a year earlier.<br />
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I addressed the issue with Creeperlava over Nexus PM, giving him the opportunity to explain himself. At the same time, I took a closer look at the A.L.O.T. project page to discover overall credit/documentation was shoddy or altogether lacking, and I learned of the release of the ME2 A.L.O.T. pack. This version of ALOT featured mods of mine he'd never acquired permission for, and therefore, essentially stole.<br />
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At that point I decided to pull permissions for use of all my assets, as Creeper had lost my trust. When I did this, he revealed that he had no way of knowing which files belonged to which author because he never kept track and removing my files would be difficult. This troubled me not only for my own files, but also concerning other authors. At that time, I did not pursue this as there was no concrete evidence of foul play apart from his mishandling of my assets. He assured me that my files would be removed from the next version release of A.L.O.T. ME2 and ME3 and I chose to trust him to do just that.<br />
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However, in December 2016 I was spurred to take up the monumental task of checking the A.L.O.T. packs for the complete removal of my files, as I had run across some user submitted screenshots that might suggest otherwise. I downloaded both packs and hand checked thousands of textures to find out at least 24 of my assets were still left in ME2 A.L.O.T. and 41 in A.L.O.T. ME3. That's when I decided to contact a Nexus administrator. Creeperlava would deal with the Nexus directly instead of me, but he would not receive an official warning for his misconduct. I did this in recognition of the massive popularity of the A.L.O.T. packs, and to give him one final chance at rectifying the situation. I provided the Nexus with a complete list of all textures left in the packs so there could be no confusion about which assets belonged to me. After the pull request from Nexus Administration and Creeper's update of both packs, I downloaded the mods again to check if those assets had indeed all been removed. They had not.<br />
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I then contacted Nexus administration again to discuss this and we learned Creeperlava released an "update" for the current versions of both packs that would replace all assets belonging to me with vanilla assets, but left my assets in the main download for both packs.<br />
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This is when I decided to put in an official report against the A.L.O.T. packs that would go on record.<br />
I included an accumulation of verifiable data since August 2015, and added my concerns about the treatment of assets by other mod authors and doubt about his credit and permission using assets from the authors still left in the pack. In response, Nexus set both projects to “Hidden”, and their return to public status was based on two factors. They required Creeperlava to provide:<br />
1. proof of permission from all featured authors, and<br />
2. clear documentation as to which asset belonged to which author. <br />
Creeperlava then rebuilt both packs and provided this proof for all files in the new build, and this is where things stand today.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e;"> Why didn't more mod authors complain?</span></h3>
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Most weren't here to notice. They're not here to grant or deny permission for use as 95% of them retired from the scene years ago. Others simply didn't care or granted permission regardless. And yet others may still not know, since they haven't been paying attention.</div>
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As nearly all my mods were featured in both A.L.O.T. ME2 and ME3, hundreds of my assets were involved. My mods represented a core part of the pack. That means the impact of his misconduct weighed a lot heavier on me as it might have for other authors. I wouldn't have been as bothered either, if he'd just featured one or two of my mods, or if I'd never particularly cared about the mods I had released for these games, but I do. And I care for everyone else as well because that's what you do as a community. You have each others' backs.</div>
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<span style="color: #45818e;"> Will you reconsider?</span></h3>
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No. I no longer trust Creeperlava to take proper care of anyone's assets, especially not my own.</div>
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I recognize the convenience of such packs to users, which is why I granted permission in the first place, but it proved a very bad decision that I plan to never repeat. My mods are still available on the Nexus, please enjoy them as they are offered.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e;">Will you comment further?</span></h3>
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No, I will not comment further. This will be my last word on the situation. I will no longer respond to PM requests on any site and comments on my Nexus threads related to this topic will be deleted.<br />
Anyone who continues to verbally harass me will be blocked from downloading my mods altogether and reported to Nexus administration.<br />
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Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-88084459190774930772015-10-29T02:44:00.000+01:002015-10-29T03:23:41.723+01:00Guide: DA:I Normals explainedHello again for another episode of textures with Otte!<br />
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While I covered normals briefly in my "<a href="http://ottemods.blogspot.nl/2014/01/guide-texture-information-for-aspiring.html" target="_blank">Guide: Texture information for aspiring modders</a>", I opted to go into more detail now and really highlight the issues with the DA:I native normalmap format and how to work with them.<br />
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As I explained in the first guide, DA:I normals are in ATI2 (3Dc) format, it has two channels (X/Y instead
of R/G/B). The DDS plugin decompresses the X/Y blocks and
stores them in the R/G channels (the wrong way around).<br />
I will be working with "<i>DA3/Actors/BaseHeads/Inquisitor/Textures/hf_hed_inq_n</i>" for this example.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqIKsya4UfEvBHFdJ1Cc3twNmuqSLyk-xEFUWVavKxpZVTPuLd4guNkTnpQBmFm25xevUO-LKpFZuazO243jTKC4uekIpSnwuBCx7thvoSgc7lPXJB6V3JhS0pA5WZ5c-ji3ZaK0-e0-jl/s1600/normal_guide01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="576" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqIKsya4UfEvBHFdJ1Cc3twNmuqSLyk-xEFUWVavKxpZVTPuLd4guNkTnpQBmFm25xevUO-LKpFZuazO243jTKC4uekIpSnwuBCx7thvoSgc7lPXJB6V3JhS0pA5WZ5c-ji3ZaK0-e0-jl/s640/normal_guide01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you can see, opening your file in <span style="color: #990000;"><b>Photoshop, Gimp</b></span> <b>and</b> the <span style="color: #990000;"><b>Compressonator</b></span> nets you flipped channel data! Now Photoshop has the added problem that, when the opened texture is flagged as a normal by the plugin, R/G/B is reconstructed from the R/G channels. As you can see, it messes up the normal. Here's how you fix it:<br />
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<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Open your extracted normalmap in Photoshop. </span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">In the NVidia DDS Read Properties window select "Convert images to 32bits"</span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Upon opening, go to "Image </span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">→ Mode </span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">→ 16 bits/Channel". </span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Select "Exposure and Gamma" from the dropdown and hit "OK".</span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Go to "Image </span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">→ Adjustments </span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">→ Levels..." and change the center value from 1.00 to 0.45<br /><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"> </span></span></span></span><i><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">< This workflow was taken from </span></span></span></span></i><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><i><a class="u regular username" href="http://mediasylum.deviantart.com/journal/DAI-Normal-maps-in-Photoshop-548193645" target="_blank">MediAsylum</a><a href="http://mediasylum.deviantart.com/journal/DAI-Normal-maps-in-Photoshop-548193645" target="_blank"> on DeviantArt</a>, go call them a rockstar! ></i></span></span></li>
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<span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Et voila, Photoshop falls in line with the rest:</span></span><br />
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<span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"></span></span><br />
Seeing the 3dc/ATI2 <i>export</i> flips the channels back correctly, if you'd just import and export your normals in your texture program without editing them, they'll come out right when you import them back into ModMaker. However, if you generate a new normalmap to overlay elements like you normally would without having flipped its channels, your details could end up the wrong way around ingame (extruded vs indented for ex).<br />
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To flip your channels in Photoshop: <br />
<ul>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Go to </span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">"Image </span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">→ Adjustments </span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">→ Channel Mixer" and switch the red and green channel
info (select red in the dropdown, change red 100% to 0 and green 0% to
100, then do the opposite for the green channel).</span></span></span></span></span></span></li>
</ul>
And in GIMP:<br />
<ul>
<li>Go to
<span class="guimenu">"Colors</span> → <span class="guisubmenu">Components</span> → <span class="guimenuitem">Channel Mixer" </span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">and switch the red and green channel
info (select red in the dropdown, change red 100% to 0 and green 0% to
100, then do the opposite for the green channel).</span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">You
can now generate and edit as you normally would. Before you save your
edited normal, be sure to flip the channels back again.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<ul>
</ul>
Alternately you can also flip the channels on your generated normal before merging it with the original normal.<br />
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<span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">That's it for my normal advice. Hope you find it useful.</span></span></span></span></span></span>
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<br />Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-33767677933180181962015-01-01T03:41:00.000+01:002015-01-01T03:41:14.969+01:00DA:I - Male Elf sliderset "Deyvin"Someone on Tumblr asked a question on how to create good looking male characters in DA:I.<br />
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My response was quite short, as it really just takes a bunch of messing around, no real 'trick' to it.</div>
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I figured I'd offer some premade characters people can straight up play as is - or use as a base for further customization. So, for those that don't like to spend ages in a CC and appreciate a sliderset over a save-game, preserving the ability to create your own with the Keep, this is for you!</div>
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No credit is necessary although obviously a link to the source would be appreciated if you are ever directly asked =) Redistribution prohibited, if I want to share this preset on other mod and/or sharing sites, I'll do this myself.</div>
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I plan to do more of these over time so keep an eye on my <a href="http://ottemis.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Tumblr</a> or my blog here to stay up to date.</div>
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Some ingame shots of Deyvin:<br /></div>
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And here are his slider settings:<br /></div>
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And that's that, have any questions, shout, otherwise GAME ON.</div>
Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-4735718409525519242014-06-14T13:52:00.000+02:002014-06-14T13:52:02.213+02:00ME3Explorer: Using TPF/DDS Tools 2.0In order to apply your Texmod TPF permanently to the game, the developers of ME3Explorer have created a nifty little thing called the "TPF/DDS Tools". It will allow you to load in any TPF, check it's file formats for validity and if valid, apply it directly to the game as you would a .mod. You can also create your own fresh .mod for the textures with this tool.
This means that downloading a fixed format TPF will ensure you never have to pay attention to the Revision a texture-mod was built with in relation to the version you are using.<br />
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Here's how you apply TPF's straight into the game:<br />
Launch ME3Explorer, go to "Tools" and pick "TPF/DDS Tools" in the dropdown menu.<br />
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<a href="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools049cjp4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools049cjp4.jpg" /></a></div>
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In the window that pops up, click "Load TPF" and browse to the TPF you want to install.<br />
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<a href="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools05z7jg4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools05z7jg4.jpg" /></a></div>
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Once you've opened it you'll see that the textures are listed now as is the texmod definition file (def). The definition file will help tell the game where these textures belong.<br />
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<a href="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools02upso2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools02upso2.jpg" /></a></div>
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Every texture has it's own unique hex id or hash number (0xDB481023 for example), the game uses these to match them to the right textures in the game files. Texmod definition files provide the link between the filenames and the corresponding hex id's automatically when the tool can't find these id's in the filename itself.<br />
Now down at the bottom it'll tell you the Hashes were generated, click the "Analyse with Texplorer" button to let it scan if the formats are fitting for permanent replacement.<br />
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<a href="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools061zk42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://abload.de/img/tpf_tools061zk42.jpg" /></a></div>
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<br /><br /><br /><br />Once it's done it'll say "Finished Matching!".
You can now hit "Install valid" to permanently install all valid textures to your game.<br />
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Now sometimes you might run into TPF's that are not in the right format and/or cannot be matched to their ingame counterparts. For these and other such issues I suggest you check out the more expansive tutorial on the <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/using-the-tpf-tools-t937.html" target="_blank">TPF Tools by KFreon</a> and the guide on <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/tutorial-using-the-new-texplorer-mod-functions-t607.html" target="_blank">fixing format issues with TPF's by KFreon</a>.Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-85176497753242695752014-01-13T04:27:00.000+01:002015-10-17T02:50:05.359+02:00Guide: Texture information for aspiring modders<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Prologue</span></h3>
My background lies in traditional and digital art. This guide is meant for people like me, who don't have a background in game- or 3D design and won't inherently understand how things tie in together in this particular field. In retrospect, had I known what information to look for before beginning, I'd have had a less difficult time understanding how textures work and how they could be manipulated.<br />
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The Mass Effect series was created with an custom version of the Unreal3 Engine.
The engine much determines how textures work and while there is some
nuance between games, the general setup is
largely the same. As an example, I've also done some modding for "<i><b>Remember Me</b></i>" and was easily able to with knowledge acquired modding the ME series. <br />
I've experienced the same with "<i><b>Dragon Age: Inquisition</b></i>", which was built on the Frostbite 3 engine. So, while this guide was initially written for ME(3) texture modding, I've noticed that for DA:I specifically, the principle carries over with the exception of specmap material functions seeming more consistent and normal maps having a different format. The most important thing to remember is that most textures won't make sense until you view each channel separately and to <i><b>always</b></i> mirror against the channel usage of the original texture.<br />
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I've sat on this tutorial for a while, having it almost completed and <a href="http://forum.bioware.com/topic/460803-hr-textures-meshmods-by-ottemis/?p=16613881" target="_blank">it's sister sitting in my ME3 modding thread</a>, with the rise of DA:I (texture) modding I figured it a good time to give a final edit and release it.<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br />Texture maps </span><span style="color: #0b5394;">in ME3 and beyond</span></h3>
The following information might not bring anything new to some but it helps to start from the
beginning so we can better understand what ME3 (or most any game for
that matter) does with their textures and how things tie together.
Working with textures for any game isn't so much about <i><b>knowing</b></i> exactly what they've done as it is about <b><i>learning to recognize</i></b> why and how they've done it. Lets take a look how Mass Effect works with texture maps and what you are likely to run into.<br />
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Remember that the way a texture functions is determined by the material and cannot be changed on the fly from the texture itself, as such it's important to look at the original closely when planning to edit a texture yourself.<b> </b><br />
<span style="color: #073763;"><b><br />Diffuse map</b></span><br />
The diffuse is the most frequently used texture mapping method. It's a bitmap image wrapped directly onto the 3D mesh while displaying its original pixel color. This means that you can use any image as diffuse map to represent photo realistic quality. While some diffuse textures in Mass Effect will indeed hold colour information, others will be greyscale diffuse maps that get their colour information from a separate <i><b>tintmap</b></i>.<br />
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Function can be linked to all the different channels on a texture. Any
single texture has up to 4 channels, R (red), G (green), B (blue) and, A
(alpha). When you
use the R/G/B channels together you can create a texture that holds it's
own colour information. Most diffuse textures will also not have a
functional alpha (or lack it entirely) and as such are most often a DXT1
without alpha to save on diskspace (file format). Those with alpha are DXT5. There are
exceptions where colour is not put in the diffuse directly and the
diffuse can be fit onto one channel rather than needing all three and
that's where it can get confusing<b>.</b><br />
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<i><b>When creating a custom diffuse map</b></i> I use both brushes and images for textures.<br />
Good to remember is to avoid images that have lighting effect in them.
While some highlighting and shading is done in the diffuse, most of it
is controlled through the specmap and when you put it in the diffuse
where it wasn't originally, it'll look all kinds of wrong.<br />
On the flipside, if your diffuse does have lighting or shading in places
put it back in! If it's in there, it's in there for a reason! I get
this is hard for people working with a mouse but a lot of people don't do
this and you end up with a flat diffuse that actually makes the whole
look less realistic. This is also the reason I would
suggest to anyone looking to seriously start texture modding to buy a
drawing tablet. It doesn't have to be big, a bamboo is absolutely fine,
it'll make this kind of work TONS easier. A big chunk of work I do on a
diffuse will be manually painted on, having a tablet is a must for me.<br />
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If you are looking to introduce more detailing on a flat surface with
little to no texture, you can use layer style screen or overlay to more
easily add structure to it without having to recreate the entire
surface. Be careful that you don't overuse this! There's really
only a handful of places I've been able to use it where it worked,
instead of making the surface look like a bleeding mess. It's not an auto-win button, but <i><b>when</b></i> it works, it saves time. Very situational.<br />
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Some tips:<br />
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<ul>
<li>Use 3DS! Load in your mesh and your diffuse texture so you can
see what you are doing without having to take your texture ingame.</li>
<li>Group your materials together. Metal with metal, cloth with cloth. It'll make it easier to create the specmap later on.</li>
<li>Use masks to add colour to elements. This makes it easier to create recolours for your retexture later.</li>
<li>Put shading and highlighting on a separate layer and/or use masks for this as well.</li>
<li>Shading and highlighting, put it back on the diffuse when you retexture!</li>
<li>Learn how to use the pen tool, I can't express how important this tool is.</li>
<li>Make sure your patterned areas are the same size on each element.
Element wrap sizes differ so having them all the same size on the
texture does not mean they are the same size on the model, quite the
opposite.</li>
<li>Take your time finding free stock (seamless) textures you can work
with. You can make smart use of content aware fill in Photoshop (CS5+)
to make a texture larger than it originally was. It's success depends on
the textures structure, but be sure to look into it. The quality of a retexture halfly hangs on the quality of the stock used and smart texture selection.</li>
</ul>
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Find common diffuse maps below to get an idea of what one might look like:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1vGPi76njrOlRY2Ymhzi3uyaUuzX6pM4tX_vgEMLeAOiyl_n5rcQ7TMH8x1KZ3rkBj_7XLUTCOvQj-4CFZH4hE1j_hxKqy4_6XCCzXsTCapNvOS9WhY9QelY55pZS1fBoxmq1WSyQ_Wx/s1600/Texture_Guide_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1vGPi76njrOlRY2Ymhzi3uyaUuzX6pM4tX_vgEMLeAOiyl_n5rcQ7TMH8x1KZ3rkBj_7XLUTCOvQj-4CFZH4hE1j_hxKqy4_6XCCzXsTCapNvOS9WhY9QelY55pZS1fBoxmq1WSyQ_Wx/s1600/Texture_Guide_02.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #073763;"><b><br />Specular map</b></span><br />
You use specmaps to define the shininess and highlight colour of a surface.
The higher the value of a pixel (from black to white), the shinier the surface will appear in-game. Therefore, surfaces such as dry stone or fabric would have a very dark specular map, while
surfaces like metal or plastic would have lighter specular maps.
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The specular map is a peculiar thing in Mass Effect and has confused quite a lot of people in the past. Specmaps are inherently grey-scale, though in Mass Effect they won't look like they are.<br />
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While a diffuse needs the R/G/B channels you don't need those channels on a specmap. A DXT5 for example has 4 possible channels (R/G/B and alpha) and seeing the information held in a texture's channels is in essence just grey-scale information it's often so that these channels are independently used to map different functions. So, while Mass Effect and us modders call these textures the specmap, they are always a combination of several different maps spread over the channels of one texture which will <i><b>include</b></i> the specular map.<br />
Putting all these different functions in channels of the same texture is
essentially a filesize consideration. A texture with R/G/B and a
functional alpha will be a DXT5 with interpolated alpha. Because this
holds information for what would otherwise be 4 unique R/G/B channels
(thus textures) and a DXT5 is about twice the size of a DXT1, they are
saving half the diskspace (roughly put) while gaining flexibility.<br />
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Seeing a specular map is in essence grey-scale you'll sometimes see that the information on the R/G/B channels is identical resulting in a desaturated image. However, when you map things per channel the channels together make quite a colourful whole. Check out the specmap for this torso piece:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6EUx7xI5zk3PxOxTBUjl28T4tHTA9K54Y4bveVVAv-0_6FzeFOWOdrKTnXWRuPomDBCCn_gwtATQb0Jx__fjaBfOjCwGo5SOr_7ZVhQF_CkMSKpfRuIGQ3eWONT7JBezdDJHMMuO2JjNl/s1600/Texture_Guide_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6EUx7xI5zk3PxOxTBUjl28T4tHTA9K54Y4bveVVAv-0_6FzeFOWOdrKTnXWRuPomDBCCn_gwtATQb0Jx__fjaBfOjCwGo5SOr_7ZVhQF_CkMSKpfRuIGQ3eWONT7JBezdDJHMMuO2JjNl/s1600/Texture_Guide_01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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In this case the "typical" specmap most definitely sits on the green channel; as you can see it's a logical grey-scale with the fabric being slightly darker (less reflective) than the metal and carbon elements. The red and blue channels both completely black out certain elements which means these are both not a traditional specmap but are more likely to be glowmaps or maps that control sheen. The alpha channel clearly maps lights here.<br />
<br />
While Mass Effect will often use the same colour channels for the same
kind of functions, they're not completely consistent about their
channels usage and that is really the hardest part of working with a
specmap and creating a custom one. Finding out what function they've
attached to each individual channel through the material itself and how
to manipulate them to get the effect you desire. It's good to remember
that, because any channel information is greyscale knowing that white is
positive and black is negative, making a channel completely white will
flood it's particular function across the surface the texture maps,
alternately make the channel black to cancel out the effect it controls.
It can be an effective way of finding out what any one channel
effectively controls and how it makes elements <b><i>look </i></b>ingame.<br />
<br />
Now the function attached to a specmaps channels isn't something you can
manipulate via the texture itself, somewhere in the game (material) they hardcoded which channel maps
which effect. This means that when you replace a mesh with another you
might have to redo the specmap as the channels might not be hooked up to
map and control the same functions.<br />
Here are some of the functions that you can encounter mapped to one of the specmap's channels:<br />
Glow, (coloured) Sheen, (coloured) lights, colour overlay, glossiness, transparency, material overlay effects (like glass for visors), animation frames (for instance animated text overlay cutoff points).<br />
Basically every channel has it's own 'setting' in the material that determines exactly what kind of overlay effect it's tracking, all to make different material types like metal/leather and cloth look as realistic as possible in the engine.<br />
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Now sometimes you'll run into diffuse textures that don't seem to have a specmap to go with them, an example of this are the Mass Effect facial textures. Let's look at one of them:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_ekE2rIMw_4nJWqd4Ds3cGz0dTAB9INH-H9v89b5P6zcbadxbor2OMWYmf9K7NhrDqHRxPs7qM3ld1OzUCX8nFKoEfA4LF_3ZHjxy4JKecvjG0J_J0oEpRsY0u97vhbU-8V8olrK5r0_t/s1600/Facial_example_geto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_ekE2rIMw_4nJWqd4Ds3cGz0dTAB9INH-H9v89b5P6zcbadxbor2OMWYmf9K7NhrDqHRxPs7qM3ld1OzUCX8nFKoEfA4LF_3ZHjxy4JKecvjG0J_J0oEpRsY0u97vhbU-8V8olrK5r0_t/s1600/Facial_example_geto.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The game needs a specmap to process an object in the lighting-engine, here it's actually hiding in the diffuse alpha. When an object doesn't need a lot of functions mapped to it, the number of channels/textures needed naturally drops where sometimes the separate specmap isn't necessary anymore. Most specmap textures will be DXT5 including an alpha, very rarely you'll encounter a DXT1 spec without alpha or a DXT1 with a 1 bit alpha.<br />
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<span style="color: #073763;"><b>Normal map</b></span><br />
Normal Maps provide 3D detailing to an object. They are generated from
the original high poly count 3D model of the mesh in question. As such, it's useful when creating a new normal map to work off the base
of the original. Usually I upscale the original, depending on the
object about half the size of the diffuse/spec unless it maps a
full-body surface in which case I sometimes end up going up to 4096 on
the diffuse and normal map alike. I then use the diffuse and <a class="bbc_url" href="https://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop" rel="nofollow external" title="External link">Nvidia's normal map filter for Photoshop</a> to generate a normal map.<br />
I only tend to replace the original normal map in places where I changed
the textures to such an extend as it being unavoidable. All other times
I will smooth out the jagged edges on the original and overlay
detailing generated with the Nvidia normal map <i><b>preserving</b></i> the original normal map.<br />
ME3's normal maps are V8U8's. I save my edited normal maps as a BMP in
Photoshop, then use the Direct X texture tool to convert to V8U8 and
generate MIPs. Using a different file format will wreak havoc on your texture seams ingame. If you are modding a different game you can assume the same applies for it's native normalmap format and replacing it with one in a different format.<br />
<br />
Some tips:<br />
<ul class="bbc">
<li>Using the Photoshop normalmap filter, dark elements are automatically indented
and light elements extruded. If you are trying to generate a map for a
metal surface with white scratches, on default settings the filter will
extrude them instead of indent. Flip the Z axis if you want to reverse
this. You can cut and paste bits together with the axis inverted or
normal depending on what kind of material surface you are dealing with.</li>
<li>You
can run the filter several times on different hardness (5-60) settings,
then overlay each layer on a percentage to get a nice and fluid normal
map with more depth.</li>
<li>If your normal map becomes too pitted and
irregular due to the diffuse detailing, consider running a gaussian blur
over the diffuse before you run the filter.</li>
</ul>
Find common normal maps below to get an idea of what one might look like:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnuJHFUXgYip_IcAmoy7nJdbTQQ0YcX9CAjVelYI2PF57y9wNdok-Bmqc10u3UYwo1SDULVQp1tSe0eglflc2TQXO9dItK5JlGmJsmJflsdKX7DyJTd0yd1povM5dsjWXfCMG2FC5J1BOe/s1600/Texture_Guide_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnuJHFUXgYip_IcAmoy7nJdbTQQ0YcX9CAjVelYI2PF57y9wNdok-Bmqc10u3UYwo1SDULVQp1tSe0eglflc2TQXO9dItK5JlGmJsmJflsdKX7DyJTd0yd1povM5dsjWXfCMG2FC5J1BOe/s1600/Texture_Guide_03.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I am adding a little note here in regards to DA:I normal maps as these have a different native format and will need to be edited differently. DA:I normals are in ATI2 (3Dc) format, it has two channels (X/Y instead of R/G/B). The Photoshop DDS plugin decompresses the X/Y blocks and stores them in the R/G channels (the wrong way around mind you). When the opened texture is flagged as a normal, R/G/B is reconstructed from the R/G channels. Unfortunately, this makes the normalmap look 'wrong' upon import into Photoshop.<br />
Now I used to eyeball the changes necessary to convert the opened normal back to what it should be by manually switching the red and green channel and messing with the contrast for those channels. However, I've recently stumbled across <a href="http://mediasylum.deviantart.com/journal/DAI-Normal-maps-in-Photoshop-548193645" target="_blank">this workflow by </a><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><a class="u regular username" href="http://mediasylum.deviantart.com/journal/DAI-Normal-maps-in-Photoshop-548193645" target="_blank">MediAsylum</a><a href="http://mediasylum.deviantart.com/journal/DAI-Normal-maps-in-Photoshop-548193645" target="_blank"> on DeviantArt</a> which makes the process entirely foolproof. Go thank them for being awesome. Here's a step by step:</span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Open your extracted normalmap in Photoshop. </span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">In the NVidia DDS Read Properties window select "Convert images to 32bits"</span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Upon opening, go to "Image - Mode - 16 bits/Channel". </span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Select "Exposure and Gamma" from the dropdown and hit "OK".</span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Go to "Image - Adjustments - Levels..." and change the center value from 1.00 to 0.45</span></span></li>
<li><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Go to </span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">"Image - Adjustments - Channel Mixer" and switch the red and green channel info (select red in the dropdown, change red 100% to 0 and green 0% to 100, then do the opposite for the green channel). </span></span></span></span></li>
</ul>
<span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">Et
voila. You can now edit your normals as you're used to. When you're
happy with your changes, save it as a 3Dc through the DDS plugin.</span></span></span></span><br />
For reference, below you'll see a normal as previewed in the tool, after
export/opening in Photoshop, before flipping the channel info and after applying ALL changes as mentioned
above. Note that an extracted normal opened in the Compressonator also has switched R/G channels (3rd image).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ4OEHGHIFXROXFJGO3mQBaAHb16_CAKboyRVATnqzYyTnEULZeU9E-u-87q1Ky0hMyhKTotOTHzxRzr9Bt6-pEs988IE8qKEstCXxOSZ0CrUW_goZu4Zh6ihvrWStru9rrIy_SvBBX1Mg/s1600/Texture_Guide_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ4OEHGHIFXROXFJGO3mQBaAHb16_CAKboyRVATnqzYyTnEULZeU9E-u-87q1Ky0hMyhKTotOTHzxRzr9Bt6-pEs988IE8qKEstCXxOSZ0CrUW_goZu4Zh6ihvrWStru9rrIy_SvBBX1Mg/s640/Texture_Guide_05.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><b>NB:</b> If you previously got rid of the </span></span></span></span><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u"><span class="name"><span class="username-with-symbol u">NVidia DDS Read Properties dialog popup (like I did), you can get it back by saving a random image as a DDS and pressing "Read Config..." in the save dialog window. This'll pop it back up and you can recheck the box to re-enable the dialog.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #073763;"><b>Tint map</b></span><br />
Tintmaps are used to add colour to a surface with a greyscale diffuse. They function as a colour overlay on-top of the diffuse greyscale
information (much like a colour overlay layer works in Photoshop) preserving all detail on the diffuse itself and making it possible to have multiple colours of an item without needing a custom diffuse for every variant.<br />
In essence these are function maps, with information either positive (white) or negative (black).<br />
Tintmap channels all mask function dictated by the material. As an example:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcw4teQTx4JAOdQzrR_nO-e4JEzFMFngcghbnQ24Z_qGGFRGJ0daBPzm3Ze5MueP5jiBuRdg0MzxmDKilNzV_RHTGGFMVu0TQXAHUDCmBhIOGOiM6fc2U2cd3Ml9Q5AmhWkm7IAPaS0kEi/s1600/tur_hed_pro_tat1_512xtqu4s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcw4teQTx4JAOdQzrR_nO-e4JEzFMFngcghbnQ24Z_qGGFRGJ0daBPzm3Ze5MueP5jiBuRdg0MzxmDKilNzV_RHTGGFMVu0TQXAHUDCmBhIOGOiM6fc2U2cd3Ml9Q5AmhWkm7IAPaS0kEi/s1600/tur_hed_pro_tat1_512xtqu4s.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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You can see how the R/G/B data together looks and how the channels separately look, if an alpha is present it would hold the same kind of black/white data as on the R/G/B, masking parts of the texture surface for material control. You can't manipulate the function each channel maps from the texture, this is determined by the material itself.<br />
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<span style="color: #073763;"><b>Stripe map </b></span><br />
Stripemaps are used to add pattern-colour to a 3D model with a greyscale diffuse and tintmap.
They function as a colour overlay on-top of the diffuse greyscale
information<b>, </b>much like the tintmap.<b></b>Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-56302903816360825422013-09-25T18:33:00.004+02:002013-09-25T21:09:18.899+02:00The Kuwashii Challenge: .MOD script manipulation<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Kuwashii visor has been a sore sight to many since it's introduction in Mass Effect 2 due to the position of it's rotating reticule in relation to the eye. There have been several modders in the past that have released reticule position fixes for the visor for both ME2 and ME3, which was unfortunately only possible at the expense of it's <i><b>dynamic</b></i> reticule. This is because we as modders cannot influence the position of the animated texture overlay and are left with no option but to "clear" it and to paint a static reticule on the main visor texture instead.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdcQ_A9G-TmbYv3IhvAWqCvlo8OUGlLfBo71tUwrgpf0af_9jYNcwkXMWj3LbHfFQIfwnrQibe1YEM0_rga9cVHeL_7sd8a6m4diIPY5kahllPdbZnkVqt7hbRS-VUiEzJedCWQpDWz5Hv/s1600/Kuwashii04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Kuwashii_1" border="0" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdcQ_A9G-TmbYv3IhvAWqCvlo8OUGlLfBo71tUwrgpf0af_9jYNcwkXMWj3LbHfFQIfwnrQibe1YEM0_rga9cVHeL_7sd8a6m4diIPY5kahllPdbZnkVqt7hbRS-VUiEzJedCWQpDWz5Hv/s640/Kuwashii04.jpg" title="Kuwashii_1" width="640" /></a></div>
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I wanted to release my own visor/reticule fix combined with a re-textured framework to fit with my armor-sets, unfortunately I ran into an additional problem as it seems the dynamic reticule is shared with Garrus' visor which causes the reticule fix to indiscriminately break the dynamic reticule for both Shep and Garrus alike. Texmod and ME3Explorer use the hex identifiers for images to automatically match it's replacement across the board. For Texmod this is something that can't be manipulated and as such the situation for Garrus can only be resolved by sorting a static reticule directly onto his visor texture.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnMwH1AN8FkooMySkdjZ_ei1QZag2Ndb92ftPv6vveijBRmAGHSndmxEHOOdvvmo3efAMq380av1ICy63KdrmsBo7TJhKqj3Mj0eGS3BLpSB8BUjkraJsc6wYNSjKuaxKH65E8NJJwSUTd/s1600/Kuwashii03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Kuwashii_2" border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnMwH1AN8FkooMySkdjZ_ei1QZag2Ndb92ftPv6vveijBRmAGHSndmxEHOOdvvmo3efAMq380av1ICy63KdrmsBo7TJhKqj3Mj0eGS3BLpSB8BUjkraJsc6wYNSjKuaxKH65E8NJJwSUTd/s640/Kuwashii03.jpg" title="Kuwashii_2" width="640" /></a></div>
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We do have some options using ME3Explorer while creating a texture replacement .MOD as we can manipulate the automatically generated mod script to skip certain PCC file references and only apply our modded textures to a selection of our choosing. Because this is (not yet) an automated process this has to be done by hand by going into an automatically generated script and adjusting the PCC references and IDs belonging to the texture instances.<br />
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You would assume that if Garrus and Shepard are both affected by a .MOD, the fix would be as simple as adjusting the replacement script for the reticule to only apply to PCC files associated with Shepard. <br />
To do that you'll first have to create a .MOD, what I did here was feed the TPF straight into <b>Texplorer's mod generator</b> and let it create a .MOD.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_bFOjy3OI-4wMIRIF8Xwe-_BvSYucW7CC4KBVT-T6RE3kmzC89V8PFzklctnjh4u4zGIrMmvFMBiTY6eAuvUmjD6sMu4UObs1q7shHc6-tfi90q_s2hUeck9jSNxmTMGAdpB2cbsoJBse/s1600/Kuwashii05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Kuwashii_3" border="0" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_bFOjy3OI-4wMIRIF8Xwe-_BvSYucW7CC4KBVT-T6RE3kmzC89V8PFzklctnjh4u4zGIrMmvFMBiTY6eAuvUmjD6sMu4UObs1q7shHc6-tfi90q_s2hUeck9jSNxmTMGAdpB2cbsoJBse/s640/Kuwashii05.jpg" title="Kuwashii_3" width="640" /></a></div>
When you do this Texplorer will automatically match all instances of a texture and create a list of PCC files and IDs to replace in the script for every texture.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx4LE4_07RuogOzgCItLZAN0FMwVsjuhNMxEzI9gPESdU6oVJabnHoDBXEFznbaSyf1BdOmKoUuTqLA2Hgb7Uf_0u2zc03HJMISxoKkgwBuGgDl7z_CatB7-rot6v7nnrtF5tXQvfDY1pB/s1600/Kuwashii06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx4LE4_07RuogOzgCItLZAN0FMwVsjuhNMxEzI9gPESdU6oVJabnHoDBXEFznbaSyf1BdOmKoUuTqLA2Hgb7Uf_0u2zc03HJMISxoKkgwBuGgDl7z_CatB7-rot6v7nnrtF5tXQvfDY1pB/s640/Kuwashii06.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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You'll notice that when I selected the dynamic reticule (TUR_HED_PROGarrus_Holo_Diff) in the list in ModGenerator that the info tab shows all PCC files and associates IDs it will add to the script. <br />
I can't change that list from here but I <b>can</b> load in a generated .MOD through ModMaker and preview the script for the texture replacement jobs from there to edit them.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2JnMFx97XugSYwK9_13rtKNqwQcLXDm2lldM3IcjaAHsT74sZWuuONj3vvzK4hHfBobRCqJ0dIRppuLKZtTrYit3yWsSEvyv00GPfLormLrdxX4FEbPp2yrsTGn5P2DG_AGj6MKKV5fxA/s1600/Kuwashii07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2JnMFx97XugSYwK9_13rtKNqwQcLXDm2lldM3IcjaAHsT74sZWuuONj3vvzK4hHfBobRCqJ0dIRppuLKZtTrYit3yWsSEvyv00GPfLormLrdxX4FEbPp2yrsTGn5P2DG_AGj6MKKV5fxA/s640/Kuwashii07.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
As you can see, the script lists 8 PCC files total and the highlighted 2 are clearly associated with Shepard. I removed the 1st and 4th through 8th line here, only keeping the 2nd and 3rd.<br />
Scrolling down a little I did the same on the ID's. Similarly there are 8 ID's listed, so I'm keeping the 2nd and 3rd and removing all others. The script repeats this list a bit further down, so I applied the same changes to that section. After editing the lists looked like this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDGmuAly4Yq6yVlLCgf-PB_L1lIe3uF1i8vd_S0Oc0xYBQKNSHS__qytLM7zH328ZaDcayvzfrdd0ahNuaKL-ya7yxN4n-gsn1PeympO-4nlzMXEYmIUqE2jJajvVT2GJijkRAggfwfk6g/s1600/Kuwashii08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDGmuAly4Yq6yVlLCgf-PB_L1lIe3uF1i8vd_S0Oc0xYBQKNSHS__qytLM7zH328ZaDcayvzfrdd0ahNuaKL-ya7yxN4n-gsn1PeympO-4nlzMXEYmIUqE2jJajvVT2GJijkRAggfwfk6g/s640/Kuwashii08.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
After having edited the script, I hit save changes on the preview windows and re-saved the .MOD so it would include the changes I made to the script.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGD7NXERMinM2CKssHOjE5h-LIIOAEc_ls_gzjZ9MThji_rds5NrpGcgNiefOI5ZV1Am88V7aPhKf21OIHZB-Lsd5ldbk3hEOCObtMcURLAUiAIf2pnx9I7lOkaP-hUvGy0oETLatJYaKY/s1600/Kuwashii09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGD7NXERMinM2CKssHOjE5h-LIIOAEc_ls_gzjZ9MThji_rds5NrpGcgNiefOI5ZV1Am88V7aPhKf21OIHZB-Lsd5ldbk3hEOCObtMcURLAUiAIf2pnx9I7lOkaP-hUvGy0oETLatJYaKY/s640/Kuwashii09.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
In a perfect world the issue would now be resolved, unfortunately it showed through ingame testing that out of the 6 PCC files associated with
Garrus, 4 use a material reference that ties in with Shepard. This
meant that in practice, the script manipulation only worked for Garrus
on the Normandy and the dynamic reticule was preserved there, but it
stayed broken in Explore mode. As such I figured I would add a texture
replacement job for a version of his visor including a static reticule like in the texmod version, but only for the
instances in which his dynamic reticule was broken.<br />
<br />
The method for this change is exactly the same as the one detailed above, with the exception of me keeping different PCC files in the list this time around. The edited script for Garrus' visor (Visor_Frame) ended up looking like this.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOOMPePkRX_h-vIt_tILJDcnNKAZiXRPTU-jnd0Rvj_29CFdPmQmvm6Z0b7cPckvi70MAdldgGXcGc1rJEpX7_T3QR4IIRtbdgivFgX25GicgPnQtd-AB3a14HQtPqXqisL0Fk9s-bsLgv/s1600/Kuwashii10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOOMPePkRX_h-vIt_tILJDcnNKAZiXRPTU-jnd0Rvj_29CFdPmQmvm6Z0b7cPckvi70MAdldgGXcGc1rJEpX7_T3QR4IIRtbdgivFgX25GicgPnQtd-AB3a14HQtPqXqisL0Fk9s-bsLgv/s640/Kuwashii10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Et voila!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicJoP5-0DzriBec81EVYWBUCyxvDEzslsrMNsXnLvYg3JzFNuxn3bS3xPjJPjwYsWczyEgsX0MrCuxCwDU4gkih8XIvbwDxh2hu8lg7G8ptbOAAquVJwYRGphWxEFHUc1HiBYBVAnTj5Kn/s1600/MassEffect3+2013-09-25+15-54-47-46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicJoP5-0DzriBec81EVYWBUCyxvDEzslsrMNsXnLvYg3JzFNuxn3bS3xPjJPjwYsWczyEgsX0MrCuxCwDU4gkih8XIvbwDxh2hu8lg7G8ptbOAAquVJwYRGphWxEFHUc1HiBYBVAnTj5Kn/s640/MassEffect3+2013-09-25+15-54-47-46.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Script manipulation is not the only tool available to us when trying to achieve a certain effect.<br />
You can adjust meshes through a 3D editor, adjust the UV map (texture wrap), manipulate the texture through a photo/image editor like Photoshop or change the material assignment through Meshplorer. Which method serves your specific problem best often comes down to trial and error. In this case, after having tried all other options available to me, I settled on script manipulation as the best solution. I hope this will prove helpful to some.<br />
<br />
The completed Texmod TPF and ME3Explorer .MOD for the Kuwashii Visor are featured in <a href="http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/368/index/16260765/1" target="_blank">my BSN Thread</a>.<br />
<br />
<br />Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-14617970784320202132013-09-01T05:33:00.000+02:002014-07-29T22:03:38.286+02:00Guide: ME3Explorer first time setup information<h3>
<br /><span style="color: #134f5c;">What is ME3Explorer?</span></h3>
ME3 Explorer is a fan-built toolset used to mod the Mass Effect Trilogy. Several features are still under development and new features are still actively being introduced. With it you can decompress, load, edit and save PCC files. You can mesh and texture mod and create content mods for ME3 within the constraints of the tools and the limitations of the game itself. The toolset is useable for mod creators and for those that simply want to apply already created mods.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Why this guide?</span></h3>
This guide is specifically meant for people looking to start using ME3Explorer
as a means of permanently replacing textures and meshes in <b>Mass Effect 3</b>. I might add information specific to the
tools for ME1 and ME2 as well at some point but this guide is not
specifically tailored towards modding the older games. <br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">First things first</span></h3>
Backup your vanilla install files in the Mass Effect 3 folder. The tool does not
affect game saves or other Mass Effect 3 files except the ones listed
below: <br />
<ol>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;"><i><b>Make a backup</b></i></span> of "<i><b>PCConsoleTOC.bin</b></i>" and "<b><i>PCConsoleTOC.txt</i></b>" in "<b><i>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BioGame</i></b>". You can rar/zip them up together and mark them as your vanilla backup.</li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;"><i><b>Make a backup</b></i></span> of your entire "<i><b>CookedPCConsole</b></i>" folder (all PCC and TFC files) in "<b><i>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\CookedPCConsole</i></b>". Mark it as your vanilla backup. </li>
</ol>
<ol>
</ol>
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Which version should I install?</span></h3>
You can choose to download and install ME3Explorer one of two ways.<br />
<ol>
<li>You can use the latest <b>SVN</b> release. It is used by the coders behind the project. Releases are referenced by their revision (REV) number. SVN is a <i>Revision Control System</i>: a repository of files, often the files for the source code of
computer programs, with monitored access. Every change made to the
source is tracked, along with who made the change, why they made it,
references to problems fixed or enhancements introduced by the
change. You can decide to use this version to be completely up to date and to help test bugs in the newest revisions of the program.</li>
<li>You can use the latest stable release from <b>Sourceforge</b>, which is often shorthanded to the "SF release". The SF is the latest SVN REV the creators deemed stable enough to transfer over. It will offer a choice between a Source and Binary release, you'll want to grab the latter. This version is specifically meant for those looking for the most stable solution that are not interested in bug-testing and helping development. It is always going to be slightly outdated. While most stable, this version is not necessarily bug-free.</li>
</ol>
As of this writing (updated Juli 29th, 2014) the most recent SF release is Version 0109k <abbr title="2013-08-09 13:31:20 UTC">(Jul 7th, 2014)</abbr>. This the counterpart of SVN REV 653. The most recent SVN REV is currently 657. <br />
Seeing this information is transient, it is <b>always</b> advised to check the bug report section on the ME3Explorer boards to make sure there are no mayor bugs with recent releases reported. It is also always good to simply ask if you are unsure how to proceed.<br />
<br />
I normally always advise using the SVN as you will not be able to receive any support using older versions of ME3Explorer due to it being in constant development.At the moment however, my advice is to use the latest SF or SVN rev 653.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/me3explorer/" target="_blank"> ME3Explorer on Sourceforge</a> <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/tutorial-using-svn-t252.html" target="_blank">Tutorial on using SVN </a> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/bug-reports-f13.html" target="_blank">ME3Explorer Bug report section</a> <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/news-updates-f26.html" target="_blank">ME3Explorer version release News</a><br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Installation and first time setup</span></h3>
<div style="text-align: left;">
When downloading the SF you can place the Binary folder anywhere you find convenient (the SVN download is explained in the tutorial I linked above). <br />
Now you'll want to navigate to the following locations to start up "<i><b>ME3Explorer.exe</b></i>": "<i><b>..\Binary\</b></i>" (SF) or "<i><b>..\ME3Explorer\bin\Debug\</b></i>" (SVN). </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
ME3Explorer doesn't conventionally install so when you doubleclick the exe, the program will simply open. It is not yet ready for use though, as it needs to go through a one time setup procedure that will allow it to create and scan some necessary files in your game's install folder.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
To start that process we'll have to start up Texplorer which is located under "<i><b>Developer Tools</b></i>".</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
You'll get a popup asking you if you want to edit DLC content as well.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhelj9tegtTrX-XrI-W-9XxBAaa6m_nxeqXB8_446Fyyzfp_e_6vkZJbWD8Bt3-h6BZLtWp-v0QkHQrC4kvCHiObsTH_snUPNcnNhCmv3BO8MgNKztqRpqJ5XHe4MOjly2bFF0ptfGHAJjW/s1600/ME3Ex_Guide_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhelj9tegtTrX-XrI-W-9XxBAaa6m_nxeqXB8_446Fyyzfp_e_6vkZJbWD8Bt3-h6BZLtWp-v0QkHQrC4kvCHiObsTH_snUPNcnNhCmv3BO8MgNKztqRpqJ5XHe4MOjly2bFF0ptfGHAJjW/s640/ME3Ex_Guide_01.jpg" height="276" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
This prompt allows you to pick whether you would like to mod the basegame only or the DLC content as well. While you might think there's no harm to include the DLC, there are several considerations before deciding which way to go with this so please carefully read the following section.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Why do we get this option at all?</h4>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Due to Origin's frantic DLC checking, it is impossible to mod DLC content without it throwing authentication errors once it's checked. As such, when you mod DLC content, you are forced to use a 'fix' that spoofs the DLC check communication for you and validates your DLC. <br />
Download the DLC fix here: <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/me3-dlc-patcher-t374.html" target="_blank">ME3 DLC Patcher</a>. Simply copy the two provided files into <b><i>"..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\Binaries\Win32\" </i></b>and say yes when prompted to overwrite.<b><i><br /></i></b></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<br />Scan without DLC </h4>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Texplorer will create a tree-structure file (me3tree.bin) of about 6mb in "<i>.<b>.\ME3Explorer\bin\Debug\exec\</b></i>" (SVN) or "<b><i>..\Binary</i><i>\exec\</i></b>" (SF) that it can (re)use to visualize the game's file-structure and to enable you to browse through and manually replace texture files. Upon running your first mod Texplorer will additionally create a file called “<b><i>CustTextures0.tfc</i></b>" in "<b><i>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\CookedPCConsole</i></b>" and it will create an entry for that file in your "<b><i>PCConsoleTOC.bin</i></b>" that tracks it’s size. The scan will take about 15 minutes to finish depending on your setup. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Scan with DLC </h4>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Texplorer will create a treestructure file (me3tree.bin) of around 20mb in "<b><i>..\ME3Explorer\bin\Debug\exec\</i></b>" (SVN) or "<b><i>..\Binary</i><i>\exec\</i></b>"
(SF) that it can (re)use to visualize the game's file-structure and to
enable you to browse through and manually replace texture files. It will scan the basegame and will unpack parts of the DLC SFAR contents in theie respective DLC folders. These files are necessary for DLC modding so you can't delete them once Texplorer is done generating the treestructure file. Upon running your first mod Texplorer will additionally create a file called “<b><i>CustTextures0.tfc</i></b>" in "<b><i>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\CookedPCConsole</i></b>" and it will create an entry for that file in your "<b><i>PCConsoleTOC.bin</i></b>" that tracks it’s size. The scan can easily take up to 2 hours to finish depending on your setup. <br />
<br />
<b>Note:</b> Seeing DLC is unpacked during a scan it's a good idea to back up your unmodded DLC folder, though optional as you should create a backup of the unpacked state as well after treescan has completed.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<h4>
After the scan</h4>
Texplorer generated your treestructure file called "<b><i>ME3Tree.bin</i></b>" in "<b><i>..\ME3Explorer\bin\Debug\exec\</i></b>" (SVN) or "<b><i>..\Binary</i><i>\exec\</i></b>"
(SF). To avoid unnecessary rescanning when something goes wrong for whatever reason, <span style="color: #cc0000;"><i><b>make a backup</b></i></span> of your treestruct. You can mark it basegame or DLC, whichever is appropriate, and be sure to add the revision number it was created with as well. <br />
You can do this by hand, or use Texplorer's tree export functionality introduced in SVN REV 628.<br />
<br />
If you opted to scan with DLC, <span style="color: #cc0000;"><i><b>make a backup</b></i></span> of your entire DLC folder so you preserve the vanilla post-scan state of the folders to again avoid unnecessary rescanning.<br />
When scanning with REV 623+, <span style="color: #cc0000;"><i><b>make a backup</b></i></span> of your entire DLC folder after treescan is completed as it's in unpacked state after so to vanilla compatible with your new tree you'll need a backup.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Formats Explained </span></h3>
<span style="color: olive;"><b>.PCC </b></span><b>-</b>
The PCC format is what Mass Effect uses to package the game's content.
As
PCC files are the entire package, they can overwrite any changes made
to the same file before replacement, AKA PCC mods should always be
applied first as .MODs and TPFs can do specific replacements inside
these modded PCC files keeping previous changes intact as long as they
don't overwrite the same object inside them.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: olive;"><b>.SFAR </b></span><b>-</b>
The SFAR format is what Mass Effect uses to package the game's DLC
content. Every individual DLC has it's own default.sfar located in
uniquely named folders at "<b><i>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\DLC\</i></b>".<br />
<br />
<span style="color: olive;"><b>.MOD </b></span><b>-</b>
These are packages created by ME3Explorer that can hold binary, object
and PCC replacement jobs. Because scripts used for the replacement jobs
are included in the .MODs these are revision sensitive while the toolset
is still under development, pay attention to which revision a .MOD was
created with. <br />
<br />
<span style="color: olive;"><b>.TPF </b></span><b>-</b> Texmod is a utility to browse, extract, save and modify textures in
Direct3D 9 applications. In order to share and distribute texture
modifications, TPFs (Texmod Package Files) can be created which are
compressed to prevent further modification. This modding method allows
you to temporarily replace any texture in your application without the
need to use an application specific modding tool or replacing any files
in your application's installation. Using ME3Explorer, you can convert
Texmod TPF's to the ME3Explorer .MODs format or you can load them in
directly using the 'TPF/DDS Tools 2.0' and apply them to your game
permanently. <br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">.mod Compatibility</span></h3>
Be aware that<b> DLC mesh .mods</b> and <b>basegame/DLC texture .mods</b>
created between REV592 and REV622 will no longer inherently work on REV623. This means
the current SVN (628) is not compatible with the latest SF (600). TPFs still work as
before through TPF/DDS Tools. In simple therms: Make absolutely sure .mods you are downloading are documented to be compatible with your version of ME3Explorer, be it SVN or SF release. Older mods can
cause errors and/or simply won't apply correctly or at all.<br />
<br />
You can use .mod fix capability in ModMaker post REV 628 to automatically fix the script for that .mod to work with the newer REVs. While this <b>might</b> work, we can't guarantee it will and best practice is always to seek out mods that are inherently compatible with the revision you are using. <br />
We do recognize this isn't always possible.<br />
<br />
To avoid issues with texture .mods caused by REV changes, you can opt to download .tpf files instead. The TPF/DDS Tools included in the toolset allow you to either directly apply a .tpf to the gamefiles as you would a .mod, or you can turn your .tpf into a .mod for your current revision.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Selecting mods</span></h3>
Any .MOD that was
created with a DLC struct can be used to apply to basegame content, but
whether it'll replace DLC content depends on your personal setup in
regards to the treestruct you are using. Any .MOD that was created with a
basegame struct is completely incapable of replacing DLC content,
whether or not you are using a DLC struct yourself.<br />
<br />
Sources for pcc / mod / tpf downloads:<br />
<div align="center">
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/me3-new-compilation-of-hr-tex-mod-fixed-tpf-t610.html" target="_blank">Antarius' New Compilation of HR Tex (.MOD & fixed.tpf)</a></td>
<td> Varied texture mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="topicTitle"><a href="http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/368/index/16260765/1" target="_blank">HR Textures by Ottemis </a></span></td>
<td> Varied texture & mesh mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="topicTitle"><a href="http://ottemods.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">OTTE MODS </a> </span></td>
<td> <span class="topicTitle">Hair mesh mods</span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://elemods.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">ELE MODS</a><a href="http://elemods.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"> </a></td>
<td> Varied texture & mesh mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://farkas4ever.tumblr.com/search/ele+mods" target="_blank">ELE's Tumblr </a></td>
<td> <span class="topicTitle">Hair mesh mods</span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://nerdykani.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Kani Hime's All Thumbs Production (PCC)</a></td>
<td> Varied texture & mesh mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://voodoo-season.tumblr.com/tagged/mods" target="_blank">Voodooseason's Tumblr (PCC & .MOD)</a></td>
<td> Varied texture & mesh mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://rana-e.tumblr.com/tagged/Mizzy-Mods" target="_blank">Rana's Tumblr (PCC)</a></td>
<td> Hair mesh mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://wildeatheart27.tumblr.com/tagged/my-mods" target="_blank">wildeatheart27's Tumblr (PCC)</a><span id="goog_35412640"></span><span id="goog_35412641"></span></td>
<td> Hair mesh mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://nameislooney.tumblr.com/tagged/me3-hair-mods" target="_blank">nameislooney's Tumblr (PCC & UPK)</a></td>
<td> Hair mesh mods</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><br /></td>
<td><br /></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Applying .mods</span> </h3>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Applying .MODs is done using ModMaker, it's located under "<i><b>Tools</b></i>". </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I personally always load through "<i><b>Jobs</b></i>", "<i><b>Add Jobs to list</b></i>" but you can also go through "<i><b>File</b></i>", "<i><b>Load Jobs</b></i>". To start applying your loaded mods, go to "<i><b>Run</b></i>", "<i><b>Run all</b></i>". </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
While applying mods ME3Explorer can run both hot in memory (but up to a shared cap of 4gigs) and hot on the CPU (up to 100% load on all cores), as such it can go unresponsive at times and lock up your system. You should be able to see it cycle through saving PCC files and applying the mod jobs in the debug window. Heavy mods are not just recognizable by the number of texture replacement jobs, they are also those in which a texture replacement job has a lot of instances in the game's PCC files and ends up having to use multiple threads to save each PCC file with. These are the mods that will spike your CPU usage and overburdening your system while these run is ill-advised. Should your program crash during mod installation, don't worry! Try re-applying the mods in question by loading in less at a time or go one by one and you should be able to reapply the mods without issues. You can also go through "<i><b>Run</b></i>", "<i><b>Run Some</b></i>" to check loaded jobs on and off. That way you can manually split an already created job list.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Applying .TPFs</span></h3>
In order to apply your Texmod TPF permanently to the game, the developers of ME3Explorer have created a nifty little thing called the "TPF/DDS Tools". It will allow you to load in any .tpf, check it's file formats for validity and if valid, apply it directly to the game as you would a .mod. You can also create your own fresh .mod for the textures with this tool.<br />
<br />
This means that downloading a fixed format TPF will ensure you never have to pay attention to the Revision a texture-mod was built with in relation to the version you are using. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
Launch ME3Explorer, go to "Tools" and pick "TPF/DDS Tools" in the dropdown menu.<br />
In the window that pops up, click "Load TPF" and browse to the TPF you want to install. <br />
Once you've opened it you'll see that the textures are listed now as is the texmod definition file (def). The definition file will help tell the game where these textures belong. <br />
<br />
Every texture has it's own unique hex id or hash number (0xDB481023 for example), the game uses these to match them to the right textures in the game files. Texmod definition files provide the link between the filenames and the corresponding hex id's automatically when the tool can't find these id's in the filename itself. Now down at the bottom it'll tell you the Hashes were generated, click the "Analyse with Texplorer" button to let it scan if the formats are fitting for permanent replacement.<br />
Once it's done it'll say "Finished Matching!". You can now hit "Install valid" to permanently install all valid textures to your game.<br />
<br />
Now sometimes you might run into TPF's that are not in the right format and/or cannot be matched to their ingame counterparts. For these and other such issues I suggest you check out the more expansive tutorial on the <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/using-the-tpf-tools-t937.html" target="_blank">TPF Tools</a> by KFreon[/url] and the guide on <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/tutorial-using-the-new-texplorer-mod-functions-t607.html" target="_blank">fixing format issues with TPF's</a> by KFreon.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Applying PCC mods </span></h3>
Some modders prefer to release mods by making a modded PCC file available for download rather than creating a .MOD file for mesh releases. ELE08 has written a nice <a href="http://elemods.blogspot.nl/2013/07/general-post-how-to-install-pcc-file.html" target="_blank">guide on how to install PCC mods</a>. <br />
Be aware that PCC mods overwrite all other edits made to the PCC in question via regular mod application so always replace these first before you mod any other method. The same goes for content mod installers but they have their own install guides so I advise you seek them out and read them if you plan to use them. <br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Creating .MOD files from TPF </span></h3>
Texplorer was recently expanded with the ability to automatically
generate a .MOD from it's base Texmod TPF as long as the file formats
are correct.<br />
This is usefull for all the TPF's that haven't been converted to .MODs yet, the recreation of old .MODs from their original TPF's and for people that experience issues with premade .MODs due to language version incompatibilities. <br />
Unfortunately there are not a lot of active texture modders
left and most released TPF's will have format issues for compatibility
with ME3Explorer. Users like Antarius have made great contributions by creating fixed
format TPF files with .MOD repacks by inactive modders to ensure people
can easily use and repack their .MODs in the future. Here's a <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/using-the-tpf-tools-t937.html" target="_blank">guide by KFreon</a> on how to work with the TPF Tools.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Troubleshooting</span></h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><i><b>When applying a .mod I am getting the following error:</b></i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4rk3qJnUYMGzApQ9L4mP6HSHoXXPekb3-6RyEgFbK0YAs6urStvpkPaRCqZjeLml0Uft4YwbWSVwUGDM08030nCldVtOm9X35vUqEi9AeXEbA2ef77r9OInCLGprzNSX3c56ObjiDgyC/s1600/script_error.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4rk3qJnUYMGzApQ9L4mP6HSHoXXPekb3-6RyEgFbK0YAs6urStvpkPaRCqZjeLml0Uft4YwbWSVwUGDM08030nCldVtOm9X35vUqEi9AeXEbA2ef77r9OInCLGprzNSX3c56ObjiDgyC/s1600/script_error.jpg" height="297" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b><i><span style="color: #0c343d;"></span></i></b>
Your version of ME3Explorer is newer than the .mod you are trying to apply and it is no longer compatible. Contact the .mod creator.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><i><b>When applying a .mod, changes do not show up ingame, why is this?</b></i></span><br />
If you are using REV623 or above, DLC mesh .mods created prior to that REV will no longer apply even though they don't throw a visible error. If this is your problem the debug window will show the following warning when cycling through the jobs it wants to apply:<br />
"<i><b>Error : Index was outside the bounds of the array."</b></i><br />
If you encounter this, please alert the mod creator. Report any other issues to the bug report forums.<i><b><br /></b></i><br />
<br />
<b><i><span style="color: #0c343d;">I'm getting a DLC authentication error after modding my game, how do I fix this</span></i></b><i style="color: #0c343d;"><b>?</b></i><br />
As earlier mentioned in the guide, you will need to download a 'patch'
that will enable you to mod DLC files while avoiding the authentication
issue. <a class="postlink-local" href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/me3-dlc-patcher-t374.html">Go here and download the files</a>, copy the two provided files into "<b><i>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\Binaries\Win32\</i></b>" and click yes when prompted to overwrite.<br />
<br />
<b><i><span style="color: #0c343d;">I'm getting a DLC corruption message after modding my game, how do I fix this?</span></i></b><br />
When you apply mods to the gamefiles and they apply to DLC, they add to
the overall size of the SFAR for the DLC in question. When these SFAR
grow beyond 2gigs in size individually, they will start throwing
corruption errors because the game can't process them properly anymore.
To counter this you have two options. <br />
1. Easy method, check which DLC have grown above 2gigs and vanilla them by copying your backup back.<br />
2. Hard method, use the process described here: <a class="postlink-local" href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/post8640.html#p8640">post8640.html#p8640</a><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span>
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>I vanilla'd my gamefiles through Origin
update or repair but Texplorer still claims I have files </b></i></span><span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b><span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>modified after Juli 2013 </b></i></span>and
my treescan fails? </b></i></span><br />
Unless you throw out all modified files and
redownload them from scratch or copy a backup back over that you know
with 100% certainty was created right after a fresh install, just using
update or repair via Origin will not work. If that is what you have done, you
won't be able to see which files were originally modified because it
seemingly resets the creation date back to where it should be. Still
they are not kosher and you run risk of treescan falling over them.
<br />
You can check the debug output
for Texplorer to tell you which files treescan is complaining about and
vanilla them properly to try again.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>How do I vanilla my game and update my ME3Explorer installation so I can start fresh?</b></i></span><br />
<b>Vanilla basegame:</b> Start by <b><span style="color: red;">manually throwing away</span></b> your "<i><b>PCConsoleTOC.bin</b></i>" and "<i><b>PCConsoleTOC.txt</b></i>" in "<i><b>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\</b></i>", and any basegame file in your CookedPC folder that has a date newer than 4/25/2012. Alternately copy in a vanilla backup by hand, more viable for people with slower internet.<br />
<b>Vanilla DLC: </b>Copy in the DLC backup you created AFTER you did your DLC treescan. If you never did a DLC treescan you don't need to do anything.<br />
<br />
"<i><b>Check for Update</b></i>" by rightclicking ME3 in your Library in Origin, it will reodwnload any missing files. Now, throw out your entire <i><b>ME3Explorer</b></i> folder, you should already have a backup of you ME3Tree.bin! Download the latest SVN of ME3Explorer and put your old "<b><i>ME3Tree.bin</i></b>" back in the <i><b>exec</b></i> folder. When you launch Texplorer, it should tell you it found an existing tree and it won't trigger a rescan. </div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>How do I vanilla my game to basegame and get rid of ME3Explorer completely?</b></i></span><br />
If you have no interest in using ME3Explorer anymore and you want to vanilla, start by manually throwing away your "<i><b>PCConsoleTOC.bin</b></i>" and "<i><b>PCConsoleTOC.txt</b></i>" in "<i><b>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\</b></i>" Now go into "<i><b>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\CookedPCConsole</b></i>", sort by modified date and throw out any files that don't have a modified date of <b>4/25/2012</b>. Be sure to include "<i><b>CustTextures0.tfc</b></i>". Now you'll want to "<i><b>Check for Update</b></i>" by rightclicking ME3 in your Library in Origin.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Alternately you can vanilla your PCC
files by copying in a backup first, if your game is extensively modded and
your internet connection speed is not amazing, this might be the better
option for you as it won't have to redownload as many files. If you modded
your DLC, you'll want to copy those over as well or manually undo
changes by restoring the backups created by Texplorer. Method is
described further down the troubleshoot section.</div>
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b><span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b> </b></i></span> </b></i></span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>How do I avoid a rescan of the ME3Tree.bin in between updates?</b></i></span><br />
You
can at any given time update or completely refresh your version of
ME3Explorer. To ensure that you don't have to unnessecarily rescan your
Treestruct anytime you do, you'll want to hold on to a copy of your
modified "<i><b>PCConsoleTOC.bin</b></i>" and the "<i><b>me3tree.bin</b></i>" and if you scanned DLC as well, a copy of your DLC folder. Remember that you cannot rescan the tree on a modded game, so this can save a lot of time.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>I have copies of both treestructs, but switching doesn't seem to change anything.</b></i></span><br />
This
only applies since the REV 490 fix: Be sure to run Texplorer once
between switching your treestruct and trying to apply .MODs to make sure
the program is aware of the change.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>I am trying to run a .MOD or manually replacing textures, why do I keep getting the following error? </b></i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0UYZg9SnjCEeeNGfYJWqifryevflSnfYNIYNS6AUvhJHeAlxZqLbNIjYUx-V3o6lz25dZBx2dnljTZ8bI4igb7KgcCdUJgdslX-XKX8utgntLHXtvWgNb8FRY7ZDIibSCadxruMCAMVA5/s1600/ME3Ex_Guide_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0UYZg9SnjCEeeNGfYJWqifryevflSnfYNIYNS6AUvhJHeAlxZqLbNIjYUx-V3o6lz25dZBx2dnljTZ8bI4igb7KgcCdUJgdslX-XKX8utgntLHXtvWgNb8FRY7ZDIibSCadxruMCAMVA5/s640/ME3Ex_Guide_05.jpg" height="140" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
When you first set up ME3Explorer and run your first mod, it will create "<i><b>Custtextures0.tfc</b></i>" and create an entry for that file in your "<i><b>PCConsoleTOC.bin</b></i>". Some mods seem to fail at generating this entry at times. If you followed this guide to the letter you will have a backed up copy of your modded TOC.bin which you can place back over the vanilla version to restore functionality.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>How do I undo changes to basegame files made by a .MOD I just ran? </b></i></span><br />
You can most easily spot which PCC files were altered by going into your <i><b>CookedPCConsole</b></i> folder and sorting list by<i><b> modified date</b></i>.
Any unaltered basegame files will have a modified date of <b>4-25-2012</b>.
Replace the PCC files with the appropriate modified date with the
vanilla backup you have for them. Alternately, throw the modified files out manually and redownload through Origin.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>How do I undo changes to DLC files made by a .MOD I just ran? </b></i></span><br />
You can use the debug window to check which DLC files were edited while applying the .MOD:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3PIFHl1hEOXm18Hek0w0y9NoTEg3LhvvXKnyDL-nPK9VatfBxs9gMklum3qOyCaL7IBaG5n-ywI8kpxRtNRpqTTtwohHfJhoRVVckZ4Okcm96H3NagNtykVGzty7DKBsS0ne5-QdkpURD/s1600/ME3Ex_Guide_02.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3PIFHl1hEOXm18Hek0w0y9NoTEg3LhvvXKnyDL-nPK9VatfBxs9gMklum3qOyCaL7IBaG5n-ywI8kpxRtNRpqTTtwohHfJhoRVVckZ4Okcm96H3NagNtykVGzty7DKBsS0ne5-QdkpURD/s640/ME3Ex_Guide_02.jpg" height="60" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
In this example, <i><b>DLC_HEN_PR</b></i>
was edited and as you can see, the program notes that an automatic
backup was created while editing it. To revert changes all you have to
do is go to "<i><b>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\BIOGame\DLC</b></i>" and open <i><b>DLC_HEN_PR</b></i>, delete "<i><b>Default.sfar</b></i>" and rename "<i><b>Default.bak</b></i>" back to "<i><b>Default.sfar</b></i>". You can also copy your backup over the edited DLC folder.<br />
<br /></div>
<br />
<span style="color: red;"><b>ANY additional errors or problems should go directly to the official bugreport forums, NOT here.</b></span> <br />
This post is merely meant to catch most common issues to alleviate the pressure on the mods and admins on the ME3Explorer forums and to weed out known issues and newly discovered bugs that are yet to be resolved.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/me3explorer-texplorer-issues-bugs-compilation-t303-180.html" target="_blank">ME3Explorer bug report Forums</a><br />
<br />
Now go forth and mod to your hearts content.</div>
</div>
Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com72tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-67951853901578186302013-08-29T04:27:00.001+02:002014-06-30T02:57:44.777+02:00MOD: Braided hairstyle for ME3<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Note that this mod is PC only! You can't replace Meshes on the consoles. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLC_rmoUVmR9Hk5ox4YogF82hUUIIkqUKwDOiRbXooIHJthkhnqkeQfds8VDqZ9Er4MhA839zx4F8vU1SNfEAOwZJwk_wZW_d3_VuzaWgasEY9If60dsgnKxxC_8u5dA34OAUOU8knq98I/s1600/FemBraided01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLC_rmoUVmR9Hk5ox4YogF82hUUIIkqUKwDOiRbXooIHJthkhnqkeQfds8VDqZ9Er4MhA839zx4F8vU1SNfEAOwZJwk_wZW_d3_VuzaWgasEY9If60dsgnKxxC_8u5dA34OAUOU8knq98I/s640/FemBraided01.jpg" height="328" width="640" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2w-H93iHjB8-AmX1lF2KV9Z7oJ_9AiMG5rPf-p8ge13ayqm4Qcna9v-31AxTjlsVqte7cgBMhouD3lWTWL2WrxL4IXbzGgSTidegb99kneTYbcP9OHyJNcIU5ilamPfKkhDV8QczxqneQ/s1600/MassEffect3+2013-07-15+07-17-04-72.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">This .MOD will include
the permanent replacement of the Mohawk Mesh only. You will have to run
texmod to apply the textures. TPF is also included in the download. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.nexusmods.com/masseffect3/mods/55/?" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.nexusmods.com/masseffect3/mods/55/?" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7DKJiBigE0mWwBNXQwMkHTaBjg4c2jDoP94Cm4aSGWDiJUwu-LgiI4ridxh2Q9lGyVPPb7Wzmemm7kRo_eC3hfKEGgFAHK_ofbUJ2Sv6E9XMkXt1TK5CtldOPMEttTvybD-TSBN_wVnz/s1600/download.png" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">To use this hairstyle on Shepard, do not forget to edit the following values with Gibbed:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Mesh: BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Mohawk.HMF_HIR_Mhk_MDL </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Hair_diff: BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Short02.HMF_HIR_PROShort_Diff</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Hair_mask: BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Short02.HMF_HIR_PROShort_Diff</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">If
you have never used Gibbed or ME3Explorer before and/or are running
into issues here are several useful guides you should definitely check
out:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Gibbed - <a href="http://svn.gib.me/builds/masseffect3/" target="_blank">download</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.masseffect2faces.com/index.php?show=tutorials&tutorial=mass-effect-modding" target="_blank">Modifying faces in Gibbed</a> </span><br />
<a href="http://elemods.blogspot.nl/2013/06/basics-modding-hair-via-gibbed.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Basics: Modding hair via Gibbed</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="http://elemods.blogspot.nl/2013/06/scalar-vector-texture.html" target="_blank">Scalar / Vector / Texture </a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">ME3Explorer - <a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/me3explorer/" target="_blank">download</a> </span><br />
<a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/post2180.html#p2180" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Tutorial on how to install .MOD files</span></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">For those of you that absolutely can't run with texmod but really do want to use this hairstyle no matter what, I'll include a texture replacement .MOD below.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Two things to note though:</span><br />
<br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">This can currently only be replaced as a DXT1 with 1bit alpha, this means I have no gradual alpha and things are either transparent or they're not. This differs from the texmod that includes a DXT5 which features much softer edges. I'll be asking around to see if this is something the guys over at ME3Explorer can do anything about but 0 promises. <a href="http://www.abload.de/img/masseffect32013-08-29l0smx.jpg" target="_blank">As it stands that means it will look different from the texmod version</a>.</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Seeing as the </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Short02.HMF_HIR_PROShort_Diff texture is the one all hair mesh modders use, if you want to switch hairmods, you'll have to either revert BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.pcc or run a permament texture replacement .MOD over this one to overwrite it. <i><b>You can't use texmod on a permanently replaced texture.</b></i></span></li>
</ol>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/1eantruyo88q2gt/ME3_FemBraided_Texture_Ottemis.rar" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7DKJiBigE0mWwBNXQwMkHTaBjg4c2jDoP94Cm4aSGWDiJUwu-LgiI4ridxh2Q9lGyVPPb7Wzmemm7kRo_eC3hfKEGgFAHK_ofbUJ2Sv6E9XMkXt1TK5CtldOPMEttTvybD-TSBN_wVnz/s1600/download.png" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #073763;"><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Troubleshooting:</span></b></span><br />
<i></i>
<i><span style="color: #20124d;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I have tried the .MOD but it causes my game to crash to desktop.</span></span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><b>a: </b>My advice would be to revert your <b>BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.pcc </b>to vanilla and try again. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">If you keep experiencing issues</span> make sure you're using rev 472 or above. </span><br />
<br />
<i><span style="color: #20124d;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I can
load un-modded saves but modded saves crash to desktop.</span></span></span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>a:</b> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">This i</span>s likely a
Gibbed save error. Make sure there are no extra spaces before or after
the codes you have changed.</span> </span><br />
<b><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="topicTitle"><br />Disclaimer: </span></span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="topicTitle">My support begins and ends with the functionality of my mods. I do not cover the inner workings of the tools you'll need to get acquainted with to use mods beyond giving some general troubleshooting tips. Further problems with them are best discussed on their respective websites or support forums.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="topicTitle">Do NOT repack or redistribute these files without permission.</span></span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Credit:</span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Much thanks to Apachii from the Skyrim Nexus (<a href="http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/10168//?" target="_blank">ApachiiSkyHair</a>) for providing permission to use and share this hairstyle =) </span>Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-52465483891532425292013-08-19T01:38:00.000+02:002017-02-17T03:55:21.735+01:00Guide: Creating Texmod Package Files (TPF) for ME Series Games<h2>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">What is Texmod?</span></h2>
<div>
<br /><span style="color: #134f5c;"></span></div>
Texmod is a utility to browse, extract, save and modify textures in Direct3D 9 applications. <br />
In order to share and distribute texture modifications, packages can be created which are compressed to prevent further modification. <br />
<a name='more'></a>This modding method allows you to temporarily replace any texture in your application without the need to use an application specific modding tool or replacing any files in your application's installation. Download Texmod <a href="http://www.fileplanet.com/205418/200000/fileinfo/Texmod-v0.9b" target="_blank">here</a>. For Mass Effect it is the natural counterpart to <a href="http://me3explorer.wikia.com/wiki/ME3Explorer_Wiki" target="_blank">ME3Explorer</a>, which allows for permanent texture replacement.<br />
<br />
The application interface offers three modes:<br />
<ol>
<li><b>Package mode</b>: If you're looking to run Texmods created by others, this is the correct mode. Add package files to a list and load them into the selected application. Packages on top of the list are loaded first. </li>
<li><b>Logging mode</b>: If you are looking to extract textures, this is the correct mode. Choose between several options and start in logging mode. You can browse through all loaded textures of the application and save the selected one in the output folder.<br />
You can also use this mode to test textures as you are creating them, without having to build a .tpf to test between edits or restarting your application.</li>
<li><b>Package Build mode</b>: If you are looking to create a Texmod package file, this is the correct mode. Create a package by selecting a definition file (.log) and entering your name and a comment.</li>
</ol>
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Supported Formats</span></h3>
<div>
While Texmod supports most all file formats used in the ME Series, it can't extract nor load the ATI2N / 3DC / BC5 format that is used for normal maps in both ME1 and ME2.<br />
Loading in or creating a tpf that contains them will not return an error, it will simply not display these textures when loaded in-game.<br />
<br /></div>
<h3>
</h3>
<h2>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">How to launch Mass Effect (1/2/3) with Texmod</span></h2>
Before you can use Texmod, you'll have to load the target application .exe properly ("Target Application" box in the top left corner). Depending on which game you want to launch and which Client you own them on, the technique for loading an exe correctly and launching with Texmod differs.<br />
<br />
For the <b>Origin / boxed copy of ME1 and ME2</b> you can launch "texmod.exe" and manually browse to the target application exe file ( "<i>..\Mass Effect\Binaries\MassEffect.exe</i>" and "<i>..\Mass Effect 2\Binaries\ME2Game.exe</i>") and select them. Simple.<br />
<br />
Alternately, you can use a batch-file to automate the renaming process when launching through Origin.<br />
1. Download <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/file/m27t0025r8903xx/ME2_Texmod_Batch.rar" target="_blank">this .rar</a> containing both "texmod.bat" and "Texmod.exe" for ME2.<br />
2. Place "Texmod.exe" and "texmod.bat" in the "<i>..\\Origin Games\Mass Effect 2\Binaries</i>" folder.<br />
3. Launch "texmod.bat" and follow the instructions in the prompt in the correct order to go through the entire renaming process. Be sure to select "ME2Game.exe", NOT "MassEffect2.exe" in Texmod.<br />
Unlike the renaming process for the Steam version of ME1/ME2, you will need to do this every time you launch.<br />
<br />
For the <b>Steam version of ME1 (and ME2)</b> it's a little more complex the first time around:<br />
1. Place "Texmod.exe" in the Binaries folder.<br />
2. Rename "MassEffect.exe" (or "MassEffect2.exe") to anything you want (example: "MassEffectOriginal.exe").<br />
3. Rename "Texmod.exe" to "MassEffect.exe".<br />
4. Launch "Masseffect.exe" (=renamed Texmod) through Steam.<br />
5. Point Texmod to your original "Masseffect.exe" (now renamed) <br />
This renaming process is only necessary the first time you set up, you can leave it like this and every time you launch ME1 or 2 through Steam (whichever you set up) it will launch Texmod instead and you can start the 'real' .exe through Texmod (example: "MassEffectOriginal.exe").<br />
<br />
For <b>ME3</b> you'll need to use a batch-file to automate the renaming process required when launching through Origin.<br />
1. Download <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/60iaah90co7zd7k/texmod.rar" target="_blank">this .rar</a> containing both texmod.bat and "Texmod.exe" for ME3.<br />
2. Place "Texmod.exe" and "texmod.bat" in the "<i>..\Origin Games\Mass Effect 3\Binaries\Win32</i>" folder.<br />
3. Launch "texmod.bat" and follow the instructions in the prompt in the correct order to go through the entire renaming process. Unlike the renaming process for the Steam version of ME1/ME2, you will need to do this every time you launch.<br />
<i><b><br />
<span style="color: #ea9999;">Tip</span>:</b></i> It is advised you manually browse to and select your .exe under "Target Application". Not doing this can cause Texmod to stop functioning on occasion.<br />
<br />
<h2>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Logging mode explained</span></h2>
<div>
Once you've successfully added the .exe to "Target Application" you'll notice the checked options in Logging Mode are no longer grayed out. How you ultimately set this up is up to you. I'll give you some information on each option below.</div>
<div>
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="color: black;"><br />
</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixiJtHJ_K7Mzas65L0eB3FkSYWksAscIGO-eeLWpl58FB7EnkUlID0RzBrU-m6H3EBSZ13y3uWUZnth-OvIXEjsLEx42IUfh2k_8PXch5AGvOSuSeDFFm4dQweKOONk2Y5yeuuqNfERbQa/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixiJtHJ_K7Mzas65L0eB3FkSYWksAscIGO-eeLWpl58FB7EnkUlID0RzBrU-m6H3EBSZ13y3uWUZnth-OvIXEjsLEx42IUfh2k_8PXch5AGvOSuSeDFFm4dQweKOONk2Y5yeuuqNfERbQa/s640/Capture.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br />
</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<i><b>Draw control and Texture info:</b></i> This shows text information and controls in red in the top left corner of your screen.<br />
<i><b>Show texture in upper left corner:</b></i> Speaks for itself, texture cycle overlay position is the top left corner expanding to the bottom-right.<br />
<i><b>Replace Texture:</b></i> This applies a green overlay to objects a diffuse applies to when cycling over them using + and -. The overlay colour will be different for spec-maps (with and without alpha) and normal maps.<br />
<i><b>Alternative Method:</b></i> Unknown.<br />
<i><b>Translucent: </b></i>Lowers the opacity of the texture overlay.<br />
<i><b>Output format: </b></i>Variety of formats available, I strongly advise using "<b>DDS</b>" to preserve alphas.<br />
<i><b>Log with: </b></i>Key used to extract textures. Defaults to "<b>Enter</b>".<br />
<i><b>Output folder: </b></i>Every successfully extracted texture will be saved to this folder.<br />
<i><b>DefFile:</b></i> Location for the definition file you want to use. If you leave this open, Texmod will create a new definition file in the Output folder you selected whenever you extract a texture.<br />
<br />
Basic controls for Logging mode in-game:<br />
<b>Numpad +</b> Select next texture<br />
<b>Numpad -</b> Select previous texture<br />
<b>Enter </b> Default logging key<br />
<b>* </b>Turns filter mode on. With filter mode on, only textures current visible on screen will<br />
be cycled through.<br />
<b>/ </b>Turns filter mode off. With filter mode off, all loaded textures can be cycled through.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Extracting textures</span></h3>
When extracting a texture the naming will always be similar to this:<br />
<b>MASSEFFECT3.EXE_0x487289A3.dds</b><br />
<b><br />
</b> The first part will reflect the application the texture was extracted from, the second part is the hash that is used to identify that particular texture with (<b>0x487289A3)</b>. Texmod will also generate a file called "Texmod.def" in the same folder, but you don't really need it. I'll explain how to create these from scratch later in this guide.<br />
<br />
While it's tempting to change the name of textures completely, I'd advise keeping the hash in there so you have an easy time creating manual definition files for Texmod Packaging and the textures can also be picked up in ME3Explorer TPFTools for matching.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Testing new textures in-game</span></h3>
You don't actually have to build a new .tpf every time you're looking to test a texture. You can also use Texmod logging mode to do this without having to restart your application.<br />
<br />
When you launch in logging mode and have <b style="font-style: italic;">Draw control and Texture info</b> turned on, you will see the following message at the top of your screen:<br />
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As you can see, it tells you the key to reload replacement textures is the comma ( , ), but this has never worked for me. Instead I need to use the period ( . ) key on my NumPad.<br />
<br />
When you select a definition file under Logging Mode that includes textures you want to test, Texmod will automatically load these in whenever you launch with Texmod in logging mode.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwSwNtbB8cJqgVGYqvDpBFoOkSQofgSeVR_yxD5odk_mBFUt2JkVbe9tFhKwkGENUMdsqURKFm1CsaLNaXOvT1rbaUOmUW4lg1InxEKnS4K3MaK3lrJKWXO3R-vI1SON2XiqMn5qb6Bf7T/s1600/Capture3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwSwNtbB8cJqgVGYqvDpBFoOkSQofgSeVR_yxD5odk_mBFUt2JkVbe9tFhKwkGENUMdsqURKFm1CsaLNaXOvT1rbaUOmUW4lg1InxEKnS4K3MaK3lrJKWXO3R-vI1SON2XiqMn5qb6Bf7T/s640/Capture3.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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</div>
If you then make changes to the loaded definition file or the textures linked in the definition file, you can reload these changes <i><b>without</b></i> leaving the game by hitting the period ( . ) key on your NumPad. The game will lock up momentarily as it reloads and changes become visible.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Creating a Definition File (.log)</span></h2>
To build a Texmod TPF using Package Build Mode or to test textures in Logging Mode, you'll need to create a definition file. Definition files list the hash for the texture you are going to replace and point to the location of the texture that is supposed to replace it. An example:<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: lime;">Hash</span></span> -<span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: blue;"> </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">Separator</span><span style="color: blue;"> </span></span>-<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="color: #274e13;"> </span><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Texture location</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: lime;">0x487289A3</span><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">|</span></b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">D:\Projects\Texmod\Out ME3\skin\</span></span><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">MASSEFFECT3.EXE_0x487289A3.dds</span></span><br />
<br />
Now the texture location can be inserted relative to the location of the definition file as well, but I prefer using absolute paths to avoid any issues while building. To create one from scratch you can simply create a new text document (.txt) using notepad or wordpad.<br />
Every texture should be defined on a new line in this file, so counting the number of lines counts the number of added Texures Texmod should return when you build your TPF with this definition file selected.<br />
<br />
When you save the file, change the extension from .txt to .log. Feel free to give it whatever name is convenient for you.<br />
<br />
<h2>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Package build mode explained</span></h2>
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<b><i>Definition File:</i></b> Definition file location for the mod you are planning to build.<br />
<b><i>Creator Name:</i></b> Your name goes here, it will be visible when loading the tpf under Package Mode.<br />
<i><b>Comment:</b></i> Specify what your Texmod does, also visible when loading the tpf under Package Mode.<br />
<br />
When you have selected your definition file, filled in your name and added your comments, hit <i>'Build'</i>. While processing, Texmod will display <i>'Started...'</i> under Build Status and when completed it will pop up a save dialogue box for the TPF and it will show you under Build Status how many textures it packed into this newly created TPF.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAc1XwyRIR18vPPgunDS-jwglWRIASY2Fsh5CWIUNZGsnSzPtrlixVer5hVBC7R4-tLlqbaclNIcUfKIFuc9kU77I9A_NmDExhe7qRaWVBN2F82Dp8WJdehhOtZO-ED9Dkc2yba0coMcFZ/s1600/Capture4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAc1XwyRIR18vPPgunDS-jwglWRIASY2Fsh5CWIUNZGsnSzPtrlixVer5hVBC7R4-tLlqbaclNIcUfKIFuc9kU77I9A_NmDExhe7qRaWVBN2F82Dp8WJdehhOtZO-ED9Dkc2yba0coMcFZ/s640/Capture4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
This is a good way to double-check if Texmod packaged all your textures. If it hasn't, be sure to recheck the paths in the definition file.<br />
<i><b><br />
<span style="color: #ea9999;">Tip</span>:</b></i> If you are unable to view file extensions in Windows, this can be changed in your folder options. While you have your folder selected, press <b>"Alt+T"</b> followed by "<b>o</b>" (aka in the menu go through Tools, Folder Options). Open the <b>"View"</b> tab and under<b> "Files and Folders"</b> un-check the box next to "<b>Hide extensions for known file types</b>".<br />
<br />
<i><span style="color: #ea9999;"><b>Tip</b></span><b>: </b></i>If you have trouble opening DDS files, make sure that you have installed the appropriate plugin. While it might seem more convenient to work with other file-types, I personally advise against it as Mass Effect uses DXT1 and DXT5 compression for all textures apart from normal maps. To save as DXT you will need the DDS plugin. For Photoshop, it is located<a href="https://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop" target="_blank"> here</a>.<br />
<br />
<h2>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Troubleshooting</span></h2>
<ul>
<li><b><i>Q: I get an error message with the text "D'OH". What should I do? </i></b></li>
</ul>
This is a general error message used for nearly all exceptions. You can check several things here:<br />
- Make sure you manually browse to the .exe for the game you are looking to launch.<br />
- A TPF you are trying to load is corrupt<br />
- A TPF you are trying to load is no longer in the location where Texmod expects it to be. Reload it.<br />
- Your virus scanner has blocked TexMod's access to the target application executable file. Turn your virus scanner off, then launch TexMod. Once you are ingame you can turn your Virusscanner back on. You can also add texmod to your exception list. Some Virus scanners allow you to temporarily turn them off, after which time they turn back on automatically.<br />
- Try running TexMod as an administrator, especially for Windows Vista or Windows 7.<br />
<div>
<br />
<ul>
<li><b><i>Q: My anti-virus/anti-malware software claims that Texmod has a trojan in it. Is it safe to use it?</i> </b></li>
</ul>
If your anti-virus/anti-malware program uses heuristic detection, a program's ability to modify the way another program works, it might detect TexMod as a trojan. This is a false positive. You are safe to use Texmod as long as you make sure to download it from trusted sources only.<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b><i>Q: I can't get Texmod to work (anymore). It won't load tpf's changes and logging mode doesn't show draw information or allow for texture extraction. </i></b></li>
</ul>
- You changed or recently updated Antivirus software and it requires you whitelist Texmod again.<br />
- You have software installed that provides an overlay effect in game. Texmod will not function with another overlay effect active. This includes (but is not limted to) Origin Ingame, steam overlay, voicechat overlays and AMD Gaming Evolved.<br />
- You loaded in the wrong exe. For instance MassEffect2.exe instead of ME2Game.exe<br />
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<div>
Happy Modding!<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12.7px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12.7px;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></span></div>
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Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-72004624847075319262013-07-20T01:30:00.000+02:002017-03-08T12:42:07.358+01:00MOD: Fauxhawk Hairstyle for ME3<br />
<br />
Note that this mod is PC only! You can't replace Meshes on the consoles. <br />
<br />
Mesh replacement is still young, use at your own risk =) <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfPj4vayghjNN46UEiuq7C-khHjQ26dJfSo4SSZ5uNQr1DWTlcyXkEj3-bVryOI-1jY7Lar0lPXceLwxMdJpVSThalPhwqItaAsa7U8d6wcixWQoCZEEVtRIrfU9w1G2u_X9JqP4VNIaI2/s1600/fauxhawk.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfPj4vayghjNN46UEiuq7C-khHjQ26dJfSo4SSZ5uNQr1DWTlcyXkEj3-bVryOI-1jY7Lar0lPXceLwxMdJpVSThalPhwqItaAsa7U8d6wcixWQoCZEEVtRIrfU9w1G2u_X9JqP4VNIaI2/s640/fauxhawk.jpg" /></a><br />
<br />
This is the Female Hair PCC which includes the permanent replacement of the Mohawk Mesh only. Make sure you run AutoTOC in ME3Explorer after copying the PCC into your CookedPC folder. You will have to run texmod to apply the textures. TPF is also included in the download. <br />
<a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/zk23e7y0o7odvkc/Female_FauxHawkPCC_Ottemis.rar"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7DKJiBigE0mWwBNXQwMkHTaBjg4c2jDoP94Cm4aSGWDiJUwu-LgiI4ridxh2Q9lGyVPPb7Wzmemm7kRo_eC3hfKEGgFAHK_ofbUJ2Sv6E9XMkXt1TK5CtldOPMEttTvybD-TSBN_wVnz/s1600/download.png" /></a><br />
<br />
This .MOD will include the permanent replacement of the Mohawk Mesh only. This mod was created with SVN rev 466. It should return 2 updates after you run the job.<br />
You will have to use Texmod to apply the textures. TPF is also included in the download. <br />
<a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/ag9vs19u7ao59pr/Female_FauxHawk_Ottemis.rar"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7DKJiBigE0mWwBNXQwMkHTaBjg4c2jDoP94Cm4aSGWDiJUwu-LgiI4ridxh2Q9lGyVPPb7Wzmemm7kRo_eC3hfKEGgFAHK_ofbUJ2Sv6E9XMkXt1TK5CtldOPMEttTvybD-TSBN_wVnz/s1600/download.png" /></a><br />
<br />
Lastly, for those that would like to pick which mesh to replace themselves or that have issues installing via the above methods: I have also uploaded the UPK for manual replacement. Hair texture is also included in the download. <br />
<a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/i05c1lrhhm5rm3i/Female_FauxHawk_UPK_Ottemis.rar"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7DKJiBigE0mWwBNXQwMkHTaBjg4c2jDoP94Cm4aSGWDiJUwu-LgiI4ridxh2Q9lGyVPPb7Wzmemm7kRo_eC3hfKEGgFAHK_ofbUJ2Sv6E9XMkXt1TK5CtldOPMEttTvybD-TSBN_wVnz/s1600/download.png" /></a><br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #e69138;">Installation</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="color: #e69138;"><br /></span></div>
To use this hairstyle on Shepard, do not forget to edit the following values with Gibbed:<br />
<br />
Mesh: BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Mohawk.HMF_HIR_Mhk_MDL <br />
Hair_diff: BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Short02.HMF_HIR_PROShort_Diff<br />
Hair_mask: BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Short02.HMF_HIR_PROShort_Diff<br />
<br />
If you have never used Gibbed or ME3Explorer before and/or are running into issues here are several useful links and guides that can help you out:<br />
<br />
Gibbed - <a href="http://svn.gib.me/builds/masseffect3/">download</a><br />
<a href="http://www.masseffect2faces.com/index.php?show=tutorials&tutorial=mass-effect-modding">Modifying faces in Gibbed</a> <br />
<a href="http://elemods.blogspot.nl/2013/06/basics-modding-hair-via-gibbed.html">Basics: Modding hair via Gibbed</a><br />
<a href="http://elemods.blogspot.nl/2013/06/scalar-vector-texture.html">Scalar / Vector / Texture </a><br />
<br />
ME3Explorer - <a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/me3explorer/">download</a><br />
<a href="http://ottemods.blogspot.nl/2013/09/guide-me3explorer-first-time-setup.html">Guide: ME3Explorer first time setup information</a><a href="http://ottemods.blogspot.nl/2013/09/guide-me3explorer-first-time-setup.html"> </a><br />
<a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/post2180.html#p2180">Tutorial on how to install .MOD files</a><br />
<a href="http://elemods.blogspot.nl/2013/07/general-post-how-to-install-pcc-file.html">Tutorial on how to use PCC mods</a> <br />
<a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/tutorial-importing-skeletal-meshes-over-udk-t502.html">Tutorial on manual mesh (upk) import </a><br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #e69138;">Troubleshooting</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="color: #e69138;"><br /></span></div>
<b><i><span style="color: #e69138;">I have run the .MOD but I'm still seeing the old Mohawk mesh ingame.</span></i></b><br />
a: Run the .MOD again. It will likely return with another AutoTOC update and work afterwards.<br />
<br />
<b><i><span style="color: #e69138;"> I have tried the .MOD but it causes my game to crash to desktop.</span></i></b><br />
a: My advice would be to revert your BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.pcc to vanilla and try again. You can also try manually throwing away your modded PCC files and repair your install via Origin. This will force a redownload to revert your PCC's to vanilla state. Now overwrite your PCConsoleTOC.bin with your modded backup, then run the PCConsoleTOC.bin updater through ME3Explorer and try again. If you keep experiencing issues make sure you're using rev 473 or above, or consider the PCC release. <br />
<br />
<i><b><span style="color: #e69138;">I have tried the PCC but it causes my game to crash to desktop.</span></b></i><br />
a: Make sure you ran AutoTOC in ME3Explorer after having copied and replaced the PCC file. If you have, try overwriting your PCConsoleTOC.bin to your modded backup, then run AutoTOC through ME3Explorer. If you keep experiencing issues make sure you're using rev 473 or above, or consider the .MOD or UPK release. <br />
<br />
<i><b><span style="color: #e69138;">I have tried the PCC but it causes my game to get stuck on loading.</span></b></i><br />
a: This is most likely a PCConsoleTOC.bin error. Try overwriting your PCConsoleTOC.bin to your modded backup, then run AutoTOC through ME3Explorer. <br />
<br />
<span style="color: #e69138;"><i><b>I can load un-modded saves but modded saves crash to desktop.</b></i></span><br />
a: This is likely a Gibbed save error. Make sure there are no extra spaces before or after the codes you have changed. <br />
<br />
<i><b><span style="color: #e69138;">I have tried to replace a mesh with your upk but it causes my game to crash / does not work.</span></b></i><br />
a: The UPK itself is tested and works. If you've watched the tutorial I linked above, and followed all steps to the letter I can not help you, visit the ME3Explorer forum and ask for help there.<br />
<br />
My support begins and ends with the functionality of my mods. I do not cover the inner workings of the tools you'll need to get acquainted with to use mods beyond giving some general troubleshooting tips. Further problems with them are best discussed on their respective websites or support forums.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #e69138;">Credit</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="color: #e69138;"><br /></span></div>
Many thanks to Apachii from the Skyrim Nexus (<a href="http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/10168//?">ApachiiSkyHair</a>) for providing permission for me to use and share this hairstyle =) <br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #e69138;">Permissions</span></h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
All permissions are specific to this mod. These permissions do not extend to any of my other mods.<br />
This mod contain assets from other authors and can't be redistributed without permission from these authors.<br />
<br />
1. You MAY alter this mod for personal use.<br />
2. You MAY NOT redistribute (upload/share) this mod.<br />
3. You MAY NOT use these assets in other mods.<br />
4. You MAY NOT release compatibility patches for this mod.<br />
5. You MAY NOT release localisations for this mod.<br />
6. You MAY use this mod in other creative works (YT videos, 3D Renders, etc) that are subject to ad revenue.<br />
The description of said work must mention that I am the creator of this mod and link to it's project page.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;">DISCLAIMER</span><br />
MOD: Fauxhawk Hairstyle for ME3 is not associated with BioWare Corp. or Electronic Arts, Inc. This mod is supplied for free; I make no money from this project. This mod comes without any warranty, to the extent permitted by applicable law. This means you use it at your own risk; I am not responsible for any damage to your game or PC by use of this mod.<br />
<span style="color: red;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: red;">COMMUNICATIONS</span><br />
All inquiries regarding this mod must be directed to Ottemis via the following locations:<br />
http://www.nexusmods.com<br />
http://me3explorer.proboards.com<br />
http://daitools.freeforums.org/<br />
ottemis@hotmail.com<br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;">AUTHOR ABSENCE</span><br />
All permissions associated with this mod must be continued to be observed regardless of my presence or absence. If any permissions in this document are dependent upon contacting me, then those permissions are revoked in my absence.<br />
<br />
BioWare Continuity Network may keep a copy of this mod within their archives for historical purposes, provided all authorship and credit information is retained and the contents of the mod are not altered in any way.<br />
<br />
<br />Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2147542576063489905.post-71107237104601384732013-07-15T22:58:00.000+02:002015-01-29T19:42:04.454+01:00Tutorial: Porting hairstyles using 3ds 2012To the effect of being able to edit and successfully import hairstyles into Mass Effect 3, ELE has taught me the basics of using 3dsMax 2012. This tutorial covers what she's taught me, and what we've learned about hair conversion since. <br />
Now obviously the use of 3dsMax is no picnic, so it is very conceivable this won't make much sense to you the first time you try and you will be fiddling with the controls quite some. Be bold!<br />
If you encounter start-up issues, give it some time. Look up some more advanced tutorials etc. What I'm about to put down here will be extremely basic and will expect you to take initiative in getting to know the program.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Getting started</h3>
Depending on the source, your hairstyle will have a certain extension. Start by installing the <a href="http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/5622/?" target="_blank"><span class="header-name">3ds Max Nif Importer-Exporter</span></a> (Bethesda) and the ActorX <a href="http://www.gildor.org/projects/unactorx" target="_blank">Importer</a> AND <a href="http://www.gildor.org/smf/index.php?topic=1221.0" target="_blank">exporter</a> for 3dsMax 2012(Mass Effect).<br />
<br />
Note: I am using Bethesda files as an example, but any mesh works on
the same principles. The nif importer plugin only works for 3DS versions 2012 or below. <br />
<br />
Once you've started up 3ds this is what you will see. I advise you click and watch the first link in the startup screen, it's only a few minutes worth of video.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQO2mRus2rYWH861fmujjLJzMGzo8NA3l_HDqAcnQhpPSThiav87PXsxsp7vl8UmuQt6WKlbdB8Y07olQk0tGgHNWjA_tfTMs3B57QTLH8Z0YCpSwVI0WBU0CkXSPum8zjPoF8sDzw46QG/s1600/startup1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="startup1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQO2mRus2rYWH861fmujjLJzMGzo8NA3l_HDqAcnQhpPSThiav87PXsxsp7vl8UmuQt6WKlbdB8Y07olQk0tGgHNWjA_tfTMs3B57QTLH8Z0YCpSwVI0WBU0CkXSPum8zjPoF8sDzw46QG/s640/startup1.jpg" height="360" title="startup1" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
What we're going to do first (though this is completely optional) is revert to one viewport instead of the standard four. Go to <b><span style="color: #073763;"><i>view, <span style="background-color: white;">viewport configuration</span>, layout</i></span></b>. Click the first option, <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>apply, ok</i></b></span>.<br />
<br />
Let's import a model. Seeing as we're looking into editing hair, how about we grab the female head from ME3, we'll need it to align new hair to later. To make this easy I've uploaded the file <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/vb96iyou8u9or43/HMF_HED_PROCustom_MDL.psk" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
This is a psk file, so we'll need to use the ActorX importer you installed. <br />
Go to <i><b><span style="color: #073763;">MaxScript</span></b></i> in the top navigation bar, select <b><i><span style="color: #073763;">run script</span></i></b> in the dropdown menu. Browse to the location where you saved <b>ActorXImporter.ms</b>, select it and hit <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>open</i></b></span>.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijPopveUmQn_00kwWhfE771HI4AgPya2UJB1-PY0ABDD5aN1qdUusPAzTn69KTSods8Jpvvz7dVjw0l_jqKYWpGw7yrv9Av7_-Bcq8UiEvyG_qqle-4aygpoeY9Fdjh2-xMBd4lHS61Haq/s1600/startup2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="startup2" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijPopveUmQn_00kwWhfE771HI4AgPya2UJB1-PY0ABDD5aN1qdUusPAzTn69KTSods8Jpvvz7dVjw0l_jqKYWpGw7yrv9Av7_-Bcq8UiEvyG_qqle-4aygpoeY9Fdjh2-xMBd4lHS61Haq/s640/startup2.jpg" height="360" title="startup2" width="640" /></a></div>
Now, in the window that pops up, hit <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Import PSK... </b></i></span>and browse to the location where you saved the female head, select it and hit<i><b><span style="color: #073763;"> open.</span></b></i> You'll be treated to a top view of the model.<br />
<br />
Try moving around the mesh. You can click and hold the left mouse-button to drag your screen and use the scrollwheel to zoom in and out when the viewport is active. In the top right corner of the viewport you'll see a cube that lists all faces, click the faces to snap to them or hold and drag on a corner to rotate and tilt manually. With the wheel under the cube you can rotate view. Try clicking next to the head to deselect it and then re-selecting it and play with the rotation and zoom controls. Take some time to get familiar with it =)<br />
In the top left corner of your viewport you'll notice it says <i><b><span style="color: #073763;">
[Top][Realistic]</span></b></i>, click on them to change them (personally I use
<i><b><span style="color: #073763;">[Perspective]</span></b></i> but vary on the second). You can try different ones and see how they affect the model. <br />
<br />
Before we continue past this section, change your view/position to something similar to this:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuUKr1IrSADxN0RZwzkhEW7V1ibaLyR73wQRhhFfH8rBPlRD5In3XMXmZ0W2gJfyAB3gGVHAHZlwa4jRXkWXI5vdfbe6DtbsyMqnDQyRzqn0N-IsrsDGmLyebA2DKpyvHJrmHPIBYE99vN/s1600/startup3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="startup3" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuUKr1IrSADxN0RZwzkhEW7V1ibaLyR73wQRhhFfH8rBPlRD5In3XMXmZ0W2gJfyAB3gGVHAHZlwa4jRXkWXI5vdfbe6DtbsyMqnDQyRzqn0N-IsrsDGmLyebA2DKpyvHJrmHPIBYE99vN/s640/startup3.jpg" height="360" title="startup3" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
Picking a hairstyle </h3>
As we've installed an importer for nif files we're going to limit search to Bethesda game mods. This would include Skyrim, Oblivion, Morrowind and the Fallout Series. Most of these mods use ported hairstyles that originate from other games, most commonly the Sims franchise. Conveniently, you can browse the Nexus sites for these games to check available mods. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/searchresults/?src_cat=26" target="_blank">Skyrim Nexus</a><br />
<a href="http://oblivion.nexusmods.com/mods/searchresults/?src_cat=26" target="_blank">Oblivion Nexus</a><br />
<a href="http://fallout3.nexusmods.com/mods/searchresults/?src_cat=62" target="_blank">Fallout3 Nexus</a><br />
<a href="http://newvegas.nexusmods.com/mods/searchresults/?src_cat=62" target="_blank">Fallout New Vegas Nexus</a><br />
<br />
I'm going to use the Skyrim <a href="http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/10168/?" target="_blank">ApachiiSkyHair Pack</a> for purpose of this tutorial. Specifically I'll be working with hairstyle number 21 which is a long female hairstyle with a braid and ponytail. Download whichever hair you want to work with, or use the same one I'm using if that's easier for you.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Importing and editing</h3>
Files with the .nif extension you can import using 3dsMax's import function. Click the '<span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>start</i></b></span>' icon in the topleft corner on the navbar and simply pick <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>I</b></i><b><i>mport</i></b></span>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8Ym2QEYdr4ORnP_E2QN1TR8uqkNWYVw1J9UKF5VOzBsQq893mAV-cw8n7Q6fXhAvg8p_jSWwI9YAun253lX9ikI8t9y5sPoTZ2zhyphenhyphenhayyCXVU_gyOE5Tm0l8FSE0ep3GDFnSPnuVU0VC/s1600/hair1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="hair1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8Ym2QEYdr4ORnP_E2QN1TR8uqkNWYVw1J9UKF5VOzBsQq893mAV-cw8n7Q6fXhAvg8p_jSWwI9YAun253lX9ikI8t9y5sPoTZ2zhyphenhyphenhayyCXVU_gyOE5Tm0l8FSE0ep3GDFnSPnuVU0VC/s640/hair1.jpg" height="360" title="hair1" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Browse to the location of the mesh you want to import and select the correct file, in my case that's: <i>..\ApachiiSkyHair_v_1_5_Full-10168-1-5-Full\ApachiiSkyHair_v_1_5_Full\Data\meshes\actors\character\character assets\hair\apachii\female\hair21.nif</i><br />
<br />
Now on the popup window for nif import, uncheck <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Import Skeleton</i></b></span> and hit <b><i><span style="color: #073763;">Import</span></i></b>. Your viewport will now realign itself with the newly added mesh! It should show up screen-filling. If you're wondering where the head mesh went, select your viewport and scroll to zoom out:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05GcFTlDI2EqjdUOoq5s7lbJU-ITy-CxHQh5KgDDvyxqAd5MQMEJjuXEGrkAkamwnDAl3QSU8kmsT-ahAEw2iGOBIy5OJkZPmTbMjjUUZGmA2hk_QbrWSaITDlxRO6AxCbDMpQakat0j7/s1600/hair2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="hair2" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05GcFTlDI2EqjdUOoq5s7lbJU-ITy-CxHQh5KgDDvyxqAd5MQMEJjuXEGrkAkamwnDAl3QSU8kmsT-ahAEw2iGOBIy5OJkZPmTbMjjUUZGmA2hk_QbrWSaITDlxRO6AxCbDMpQakat0j7/s640/hair2.jpg" height="360" title="hair2" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Now there are several things to note here. The orientation of the mesh is important! As we are modding Mass Effect, the hair needs to be aligned with the position of the head.<br />
Note: The difference between location of the hair and head
completely depends on which game the hair was meant to work with. If you
for instance port Sims hair, it's conceivable the initial location is different from what I'm showing you here. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip8Mdhq-JOO9-SnZJslyi9jfx3i2iMfXMAgnshYLD0aPAXgfZFhdPuiqbxwcu6K2y65Vq7IG_SARMn00WM6EKP5nzUsvZd4VndaYKkCfVCo79zFY4v8VJRaSFTEyGLIi4yHudcsuC2Wpa-/s1600/hair4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip8Mdhq-JOO9-SnZJslyi9jfx3i2iMfXMAgnshYLD0aPAXgfZFhdPuiqbxwcu6K2y65Vq7IG_SARMn00WM6EKP5nzUsvZd4VndaYKkCfVCo79zFY4v8VJRaSFTEyGLIi4yHudcsuC2Wpa-/s200/hair4.jpg" height="147" width="200" /></a></div>
Before we start moving the hair though, we will be removing the skin attached to the hair mesh. We will have to regenerate the skin later, but for now it can interfere with the edits we are about to make so it will have to go.<br />
Select the hair and on the right side of your interface, you'll notice it says skin, above editable mesh.<br />
Right-click and select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>delete</b></i></span> in the dropdown menu.<br />
Note: If you'd rather not reskin from scratch and are working with a Mass Effect mesh, right-click and select <span style="color: #073763;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><b>cut</b></i></span></span> in the dropdown menu instead. You can <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>paste</b></i></span> it back in when you're done editing the mesh.<br />
<br />
Navigate around the meshes to get a better view of their position relative to each other. As you can see, the hair is:<br />
1. too small in comparison to the head<br />
2. facing the wrong way<br />
3. at the wrong height <br />
<br />
What I've noticed is that when you scale up a mesh, it will
automatically move up. So we're going to tackle these three
discrepancies in the order they are listed to make sure we don't do
unnecessary double work. <br />
To scale up the hair, select it by left clicking it, right-click to open the drop-down menu and select <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Scale</i></b></span>. Your cursor will change icon to a tiny triangle. Now in the viewport ontop of the hair mesh, left-click and hold while moving your mouse up, you'll notice the hair will both scale up and move up simultaneously. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-d_7BHT7LvkY8i2MSpYcau8Qbm9fVlDzECBHZwt1hgA5xjNoRzJd0pTATE6mXF6IaaeyTt4_TuBv2rjG6Zt9GxpG7omSzV8RNbWJ18EmKsdeV8w6_jSLWr_4PIukQuixUFhxB2THsvNp/s1600/hair3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="hair3" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-d_7BHT7LvkY8i2MSpYcau8Qbm9fVlDzECBHZwt1hgA5xjNoRzJd0pTATE6mXF6IaaeyTt4_TuBv2rjG6Zt9GxpG7omSzV8RNbWJ18EmKsdeV8w6_jSLWr_4PIukQuixUFhxB2THsvNp/s640/hair3.jpg" height="360" title="hair3" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now to rotate the hair, select it then right-click to open the drop-down menu and select <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Rotate.</i></b></span> Left-click and hold on the mesh and move your mouse to the left or right to rotate.<br />
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To move it along the X/Y/Z axis, select it then right-click to open the drop-down menu and select <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Move.</i></b></span> You can try to reposition the mesh with your mouse but I would advise using the X/Y/Z boxes at the bottom of the viewport. There are little arrows next to the input boxes so you can easily move along any axis in small increments.<br />
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Use all three (<span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Move, Rotate, Scale</b></i></span>) to reposition the hair until you are happy with it's location. You'll want to rotate your view often so you can check for clipping issues more easily (note the ears) and to see how big the gap between the hair and the skull is at several points.<br />
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Note: You shouldn't touch the location of the head. If you accidentally move it at any point revert with <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>control-z </i></b></span>or select the headmesh, right-click and select <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>move</i></b></span> in the drop-down menu, then enter 0 (zero) for X,Y and Z on the bottom navbar. <br />
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On my example below you can see I switched to <b><span style="color: #073763;"><i>[Perspective][Realistic]</i></span></b>,
as it emphasizes the shadows nicely on the edges of the mesh, so I can easily see the distance between elements. Note how nicely the mesh
wraps around the ear. This isn't always the case, I'll cover
repositioning of individual elements below this section.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt2FcgNrlIoSngetPZ4EbZ8eR4Xrosi_9Yu7Wbwe96s-odjBDwrIJmcWSjVxie-G-xC-kw9jEuusVzS4MWZCQX39CKVZiOGRHBWpH3XGyn3DAk5N3jpnXWh31EKg-SiuJuBe5_5euGe-5o/s1600/hair5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="hair5" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt2FcgNrlIoSngetPZ4EbZ8eR4Xrosi_9Yu7Wbwe96s-odjBDwrIJmcWSjVxie-G-xC-kw9jEuusVzS4MWZCQX39CKVZiOGRHBWpH3XGyn3DAk5N3jpnXWh31EKg-SiuJuBe5_5euGe-5o/s640/hair5.jpg" height="360" title="hair5" width="640" /></a> <br />
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Having done what you can just moving and rescaling the entire mesh, it's time to rework individual parts to fit around the head better.When you have the mesh selected you'll notice on the right of the viewport the selection menu is visible. At the top it shows icons for five ways of selecting parts of your mesh. <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Vertex, Edge, Face, Polygon</i></b></span> and <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Element</i></b></span>. For now select <b><span style="color: #073763;"><i>Element</i></span></b>. When you click through the various parts of the mesh, you'll notice entire strands lighting up bright red as you select them. You can move them over any axis using the arrows that show up in the middle of the selected element.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqjDJ5lLLgrTGAM5fDBXSpgQAsMdc5UuUahXL_CArk-q_FK9fgCc7LG-YQ8ix6d9DwQvw2bV4PLlBOd1JdI8C3pjZ3SmaWJhmcwUBKixceqYJUgvDEa8B-F2TDbAWHpN-_lqY-1TMCiVA7/s1600/hair6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="hair7" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqjDJ5lLLgrTGAM5fDBXSpgQAsMdc5UuUahXL_CArk-q_FK9fgCc7LG-YQ8ix6d9DwQvw2bV4PLlBOd1JdI8C3pjZ3SmaWJhmcwUBKixceqYJUgvDEa8B-F2TDbAWHpN-_lqY-1TMCiVA7/s640/hair6.jpg" height="360" title="hair7" width="640" /></a></div>
Whenever you would like to move certain parts of an element, it is advised to pull that particular element out, then select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>vertex</b></i></span> under selection to move the vertices. This way you don't run risk selecting vertices on different elements than the one you're looking to alter. You can select multiple points by either left-click dragging your mouse over an area or by clicking individual elements while holding <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>control<span style="color: black;"></span></i></b><span style="color: black;"></span></span>.<br />
If you would like to push or pull an entire area of the mesh out, you can do this by using <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>soft selection</b></i></span>. The number belonging to <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>falloff </i></b></span>under <i><b><span style="color: #073763;">Affect Backfacing</span></b></i> determines how much of the surrounding area is affected. You can see how big the area affected is when you pick <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>vertex</i></b></span> under selection. The colour the vertices of the surrounding area determines how much they are influenced. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij0fvLHZ-fwv2fLugdimW3qfrVPtgOg8HD3_R4eBKzn6bVIddn-rTgFITDXLjGkH5BenOjm_jelCZ1Jn2Rx46gnx9895-pzyxL-nlp1dhJWUk8L0yoCMaxDALXycdR9zl3PykU4AbM9QmD/s1600/hair8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij0fvLHZ-fwv2fLugdimW3qfrVPtgOg8HD3_R4eBKzn6bVIddn-rTgFITDXLjGkH5BenOjm_jelCZ1Jn2Rx46gnx9895-pzyxL-nlp1dhJWUk8L0yoCMaxDALXycdR9zl3PykU4AbM9QmD/s640/hair8.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here I'm using <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Polygo</i></b><b><i>n</i></b></span> selection to push in an area of the mesh closer to the skull, closing the gap by using the y axis arrow. I'm using a <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Falloff </i></b></span>of 5. This is trial and error depending on the area you want affected. Result is on the right.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcOQJtOzKo-gjekrOu6FKdFhb90n4wSLEgvbmxg8sGhRtFStL_TTc_YifLe3CsEnjDOboflBLhF_ErdftsOblkbucz2ZYE-NNXH7A2lejq_mx0IeyQmdI5-H1clggYi-KHPN0R3TeHvzi/s1600/hair7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcOQJtOzKo-gjekrOu6FKdFhb90n4wSLEgvbmxg8sGhRtFStL_TTc_YifLe3CsEnjDOboflBLhF_ErdftsOblkbucz2ZYE-NNXH7A2lejq_mx0IeyQmdI5-H1clggYi-KHPN0R3TeHvzi/s640/hair7.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></div>
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By selecting a vertex or element and pressing <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>delete</i></b></span>, you will completely remove it. Note that this might look weird on the textured mesh ingame. There are some instances however where this is necessary, which I'll illustrate later in this tutorial.<br />
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<h3>
Texturing your mesh </h3>
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<h4>
Adding a diffuse and normal </h4>
<span style="font-weight: normal;">Some might prefer to edit meshes with it's textures applied so I'll add a little section on how to do this. While having your mesh selected press <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>M</b></i></span></span>. This will open up the <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Slate Material Editor</i></b></span>. Double-click your mesh name under <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Scene Material</b></i></span> (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>1</b></span>), this will open up the Navigator and fill View1. You'll want to move the active area in View1 via the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Navigator</b></i></span> (<b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">2</span></b>), position it so the red/green blocks are visible. Now in <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>View1</b></i></span>, double-click on the top box (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>3</b></span>) that has "textures" and "bitmap" in the name. This will open up the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Bitmap Parameters</b></i></span> (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>4</b></span>). When you click on the texture path right under the header, this will open a file-picker (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>5</b></span>). Browse to the textures that came with the mesh download. In the case of my hair the path would be:<br />
<i>..\ApachiiSkyHair_v_1_5_Full-10168-1-5-Full\ApachiiSkyHair_v_1_5_Full\Data\textures\actors\character\hair\apachii\Raonjena\</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvdQtR5ynXS6oQE75yEV3wkWXoSuYZeIE6evZRTvIh7f_l_PzZa0q2p457bUfR9gbP_KAl_JbWJmwXVQBjPLyImh_4b6hZpqaOZrVz4xBG7Mw3Y6gbnELHPjv5k1KJcfxRSdF4haADyfCi/s1600/texture1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="texture1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvdQtR5ynXS6oQE75yEV3wkWXoSuYZeIE6evZRTvIh7f_l_PzZa0q2p457bUfR9gbP_KAl_JbWJmwXVQBjPLyImh_4b6hZpqaOZrVz4xBG7Mw3Y6gbnELHPjv5k1KJcfxRSdF4haADyfCi/s640/texture1.jpg" height="360" title="texture1" width="640" /></a></div>
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Once selected, you'll notice the little icon in <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>View1</b></i></span> changed, but no textures are applied to the mesh yet. Now, double-click the box that has "Norm" in the name from <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>View1</b></i></span>. Click the texture path behind "<span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Normal:</b></i></span>" in the <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Parameters</i></b> </span>box. This will open another menu in the same area that looks exactly like the one you just saw for the first texture (<b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">4</span></b>). Again, click the texture path directly under <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Bitmap Parameters</b></i></span> and browse to the texture location. This should be the same as the first one, and it should default to that location now. You should now see the texture applied to your mesh!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilp_oeAuj3PlendgmZcCby60TUYrkuV4qRtjShgaClY6ixOA9ARuEuEEmqwyhH_bYmzkVpA3pDpXuqKyUooitpAaPE0U5WMQCVSV9c-n8SuEBxhrGNCJI7Jlk8MLsvH_wE6njAUHco9GT4/s1600/texture2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="texture2" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilp_oeAuj3PlendgmZcCby60TUYrkuV4qRtjShgaClY6ixOA9ARuEuEEmqwyhH_bYmzkVpA3pDpXuqKyUooitpAaPE0U5WMQCVSV9c-n8SuEBxhrGNCJI7Jlk8MLsvH_wE6njAUHco9GT4/s640/texture2.jpg" height="360" title="texture2" width="640" /></a></div>
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<h4>
Adding a working alpha </h4>
Open up the Material Editor again with<span style="color: #073763;"><b><i> M</i></b></span>. Double-click the<span style="color: #073763;"><i><b> main box</b></i></span>, select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Blinn</b></i></span> in the dropdown menu under <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Shader Basic Parameters</b></i></span> and check <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>2-Sided</b></i></span>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsj5PXwMJ1joH4Lh8MMytH4kBLaox3nRsQxCLdTKkKZCquiudQ6SrYn767HoMWas-pDVc9Mmje64-rVSgbQV_tbzYgXpHhSPfMpCl08Ue7cHx5uSuX2H74l9GD4Rq4fymKoTeGnVYeAYCW/s1600/alpha3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="alpha3" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsj5PXwMJ1joH4Lh8MMytH4kBLaox3nRsQxCLdTKkKZCquiudQ6SrYn767HoMWas-pDVc9Mmje64-rVSgbQV_tbzYgXpHhSPfMpCl08Ue7cHx5uSuX2H74l9GD4Rq4fymKoTeGnVYeAYCW/s640/alpha3.jpg" height="360" title="alpha3" width="640" /></a></div>
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On your diffuse texture box, check <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Image Alpha</b></i></span> under <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Alpha source</b></i></span> (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>1</b></span>). Select the box for the diffuse texture, hold shift and drag and drop to duplicate it (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>2</b></span>). <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGQ466eF02PcP4ChtqKXbYoHZb58J17mVNhIjHwNKlqpL7fyBVkANtQaoRmD6jlrabcUiJQl4UUPx3-qhJ5Gsx0_e4YwcyB_lXM8K1_u16Ja0Ja4ZUp0h5nhnjv04TpVXHFOocGbDEtVB7/s1600/alpha1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="alpha1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGQ466eF02PcP4ChtqKXbYoHZb58J17mVNhIjHwNKlqpL7fyBVkANtQaoRmD6jlrabcUiJQl4UUPx3-qhJ5Gsx0_e4YwcyB_lXM8K1_u16Ja0Ja4ZUp0h5nhnjv04TpVXHFOocGbDEtVB7/s640/alpha1.jpg" height="360" title="alpha1" width="640" /></a></div>
Now drag and drop a <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>ColorCorrection</b></i></span> box (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>3</b></span>) from the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Material/Map Browser</b></i></span> into <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>View1 </b></i><span style="color: black;">(<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>4</b></span>)</span></span>. Doubleclick it and change the dropdown values for all the channels to <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Alpha</b></i></span> on the right under <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Basic Parameters</i></b></span> (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>5</b></span>).<br />
Click and drag the bubble on your duplicate diffuse (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>6</b></span>) and connect it to the bubble on the ColorCorrection box (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>7</b></span>). Now connect the other bubble on the ColorCorrection box (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>8</b></span>) to the bubble on the main box next to Opacity (<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>9</b></span>).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAX-RWYtMK8hOp-sQJim4sD19JbUrCvGVlRvjsyI_OqHZ53mA5gJJXBerBlxvUA2p5eGAyf53SSFmYLt7n1b7MRoPVWL4a5f5lvBrdB-GFh61UfOXY-JT6_tShEjW452csBPOCHoV-_Ekm/s1600/alpha2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="alpha2" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAX-RWYtMK8hOp-sQJim4sD19JbUrCvGVlRvjsyI_OqHZ53mA5gJJXBerBlxvUA2p5eGAyf53SSFmYLt7n1b7MRoPVWL4a5f5lvBrdB-GFh61UfOXY-JT6_tShEjW452csBPOCHoV-_Ekm/s640/alpha2.jpg" height="360" title="alpha2" width="640" /></a></div>
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<h3>
Weighting your mesh</h3>
<h4>
Basic</h4>
Now for the fun part. Remember when we removed the skin at the beginning of this tutorial? We'll be adding it back in now. <br />
It's function is weighting the mesh down according to the bones your mesh is linked to. <br />
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You
can use whichever mesh you plan to replace ingame and take it's bones
for your project. This way the mesh will import without issues and cause
no crashes ingame. <br />
The game can become unstable when the number of
bones on the mesh you are replacing isn't equal to your new mesh and
meshplorer currently does not allow it anymore and will throw an error.
Knowing that, use either the human skull, any of the CC hairstyles or
for instance Allers hair to steal bones for your weighting dependent on
which mesh you plan to replace ingame.<br />
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Now on most hairstyles we can simply add a 'head' bone that will automatically affect the entire mesh. <br />
This
means that when the characters' head animates, the hair will move with
it at the same angle. This is fine for short bobs and updo's but can
cause clipping on longer styles. It's also adequate for testing purposes, as we'll need to go ingame a couple of times and test out our hair and subsequent changes on (an unwilling) Shep. <br />
Select your mesh. Above <span style="color: #0c343d;"><i><b>Editable Mesh</b></i></span> on the right of the viewport you'll notice it says <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Modifier List</b></i></span> with a dropdown arrow. Click it and type in "skin". This will jump you down, select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Skin</b></i></span> there. Now under Parameters press the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Add</b></i></span> button next to "Bones:", highlight <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Head</b></i></span> in the popup window and press <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Select</b></i></span>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgubRoq_BYWvwaGyTiPVGFXOL_IWKlOWsRe1Mb-wRUiBIG6opJbE-xhdXdXWIk1qYQTfxTKQbi_Xv2N7JqVD-weMmSo3Yc2RTWKDDgFd-CAjfX248oD8I02DHuFTKGRjd75kZQxy0YG3fok/s1600/weighting1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="weighting1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgubRoq_BYWvwaGyTiPVGFXOL_IWKlOWsRe1Mb-wRUiBIG6opJbE-xhdXdXWIk1qYQTfxTKQbi_Xv2N7JqVD-weMmSo3Yc2RTWKDDgFd-CAjfX248oD8I02DHuFTKGRjd75kZQxy0YG3fok/s640/weighting1.jpg" height="360" title="weighting1" width="640" /></a></div>
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To actually see what just happened, press <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Edit Envelopes</b></i></span> right under <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Parameters</b></i></span>, you'll see the entire hair mesh turn bright red. Red indicates that it is fully affected by the selected bone, which in this case is the Head bone. You'll notice it also displays the actual bone inside of the mesh with axis arrows attached to it.<br />
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<h4>
Intermediate</h4>
Using skin-wrap we can copy the weights of another mesh onto the one we've created. In terms of meshes that generally have the same shape and are not horribly complex, this method will do nicely.<br />
What we want to do is find an existing mesh that has about the same length, let's say.. Allers hair. To make this easier, I have uploaded the hairstyle <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/m82h2g2pxyefnbs/HMF_HIR_PROJessica_MDL.psk" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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As explained earlier, psk files are opened through the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>ActorX Importer</b></i></span> under <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>MAXScript</b></i></span>, <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Run Script</b></i></span>. Import the hair you just downloaded. Now select your own mesh. In the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Modifier List </b></i></span>type in "skin" and select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Skin Wrap</b></i></span>.<br />
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Under <i><b><span style="color: #073763;">Parameters</span></b></i>, you'll see an empty box with an <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Add</b></i></span> button below it. Click it and select the other mesh. In this case it should add <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>HMF_HIR_PROJessica_MDL</b></i></span> to the previously empty box now.<br />
Click <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Add</b></i></span> again to remove the highlight, make sure <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Weight All Points</b></i></span> is checked, then click the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Convert To Skin</b></i></span> button at the bottom of the Parameters box. You'll now have skin and skin wrap listed above editable mesh, you can remove <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>skin wrap</b></i></span>.<br />
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<h4>
Advanced</h4>
For the masochists among us, manual weighting explained in short. I want to use the bones that come with the Allers mesh, so I'll be opening that one again and deleting the hairmesh. As before, <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>ActorX Importer</b></i></span> under <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>MAXScript</b></i></span>, <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Run Script</b></i></span>.<br />
We'll add the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Skin</b></i></span> modifier, then add two bones to the envelope: <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Head</b></i></span> and <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>LeftCollar</b></i></span>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_7VE6sWuO3ba4Ts4HZGIoUVmL2GB5dEpE1iR3HNZc-bFaSUUAMN-3Fad63XYoxYLwfxieDGWKYpRC_zaHqE_tMDVSTqu5fze67cbZLByAMUD8LNPSyTG8oU2p9V26NUnc-6Q96THcD3rz/s1600/weighting4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="weighting4" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_7VE6sWuO3ba4Ts4HZGIoUVmL2GB5dEpE1iR3HNZc-bFaSUUAMN-3Fad63XYoxYLwfxieDGWKYpRC_zaHqE_tMDVSTqu5fze67cbZLByAMUD8LNPSyTG8oU2p9V26NUnc-6Q96THcD3rz/s640/weighting4.jpg" height="360" title="weighting4" width="640" /></a></div>
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Select Skin above Editable Mesh, In the list of Bones, select <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>Head</i></b></span>. Click on Edit Envelopes so you can see which area of the mesh the bones affect. As you might have noticed, the Head bone affects the entire mesh, we'll want some of the lower parts affected by the Collar-bone so we minimize clipping, so select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>LeftCollar</b></i></span> now. See where the bone is? Right on our ponytail.<br />
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Scroll down to <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Weight Properties</b></i></span> and uncheck <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Paint Blend Weights</b></i></span>. Now you'll see a little wrench-tool icon there, click on the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Paint Weights</b></i></span> button right under it. When you move your mouse over the mesh now, your cursor will change. There are two ways we can adjust the brush: in size and strength/opacity. To adjust the size, hold <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>control</b></i></span> and <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>shift</b></i></span> while you drag and hold your <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>left mouse-button</i></b></span> up or down. You'll notice the brush changing size and it affecting the displayed radius number. To change the strength of the brush, hold <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>shift</b></i></span>, <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>control </b></i></span>and <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>alt</b></i></span> while you drag and hold your <span style="color: #073763;"><b><i>left mouse-button</i></b></span> up or down, you'll notice the value for strength changing.<br />
Now let's paint some weights! Red is fully affected, yellow less so, blue etc. A softer brush will allow you to create smoother transitions. You can switch between head and leftcollar if you make a mistake. You'll notice that whichever area you painted over on the leftcollar is now reflected on the head. Aim for something like this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjArmjNuYVsPlIa1vUs_HhuzgwEi65OuqiJxNEEegZrJNYyu9nc2kUHIP6xlZw-rdCqnCe2CAt3d1akf8NS4a2O25T3-uGslBmiq8TyDIRKQ_HJbeip8pLmP4nFq9ZtCNPqj1axb1iufJwE/s1600/weighting5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="weighting5" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjArmjNuYVsPlIa1vUs_HhuzgwEi65OuqiJxNEEegZrJNYyu9nc2kUHIP6xlZw-rdCqnCe2CAt3d1akf8NS4a2O25T3-uGslBmiq8TyDIRKQ_HJbeip8pLmP4nFq9ZtCNPqj1axb1iufJwE/s640/weighting5.jpg" height="360" title="weighting5" width="640" /></a></div>
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<h3>
Exporting and testing your mesh ingame</h3>
First, delete the head mesh out of your project, you can leave the bones. Just select the head and hit delete. Now to export your hair, click the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>utilities</b></i></span> tab on the right navbar.<br />
Click on <span style="color: #073763;"></span><i><span style="color: #073763;"><b>More...</b></span></i>, select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>ActorX</b></i></span> and hit <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>OK</b></i></span>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzEBefd-j8C1_u_4C4B5SZPe1y7NsQybaaVcqj9W3wkQLC9JGUcDYpTbt5bF7VU5_VtxCZhL_60tey5omNKJYr0VfrUc8MfGQrQfjpNEvwN41vMmcnkM8bhzPN3PPioaziy1jBAzgNaljD/s1600/export1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="export1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzEBefd-j8C1_u_4C4B5SZPe1y7NsQybaaVcqj9W3wkQLC9JGUcDYpTbt5bF7VU5_VtxCZhL_60tey5omNKJYr0VfrUc8MfGQrQfjpNEvwN41vMmcnkM8bhzPN3PPioaziy1jBAzgNaljD/s640/export1.jpg" height="360" title="export1" width="640" /></a></div>
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This will open an export menu in the right navbar. Select an <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>output folder</b></i></span> and type in a<span style="color: #073763;"><i><b> name</b></i></span> for your mesh. Scroll down and uncheck <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>bake smoothing groups</b></i></span>, now you can hit <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Save mesh/refpose</b></i></span>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUqq3WkGSvNhyKvChjM896gMryGEVo_tFP95RBvI5aoOxs_epGmnyg58UvuxbZBsBQzmrdIrEagQzi1rf712_YWVlJwkl7S1tYj8LNUe_DOuoW8zm8v8Ft0R0nZKu-YI_TNHKrjqyAouDG/s1600/export2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="export2" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUqq3WkGSvNhyKvChjM896gMryGEVo_tFP95RBvI5aoOxs_epGmnyg58UvuxbZBsBQzmrdIrEagQzi1rf712_YWVlJwkl7S1tYj8LNUe_DOuoW8zm8v8Ft0R0nZKu-YI_TNHKrjqyAouDG/s640/export2.jpg" height="360" title="export2" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now watch <a href="http://me3explorer.freeforums.org/tutorial-importing-skeletal-meshes-over-udk-t502.html" target="_blank">the following tutorial</a> by WarrantyVoider for the remaining steps on how to get your mesh into the game. For reference, the PCC files containing the hair are as follows:<br />
<span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>BIOG_HMM_HIR_PRO_R.pcc</b></i></span> (male) and <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.pcc</b></i></span> (female)<br />
<span class="deprecated"><i><b><br />Note:</b></i> Do <b>NOT</b> skip a step
when importing and saving va the UDK. You will need your mesh to be a
UPK package, not a PSK when you import into the game via ME3Explorer. </span><br />
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<h3>
Converting the hair texture </h3>
I use photoshop for this. As Mass Effect uses it's own system for the recolouring of hair to conform to CC colours, you'll need to convert your texture to work correctly in the engine.<br />
There's a simple way of doing this. Open the texture in Photoshop, add a new layer and paintbucket it <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>#008e00</b></i></span>. Now doubleclick the layer and select <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Multiply</b></i></span> as the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>blend mode</b></i></span>.<br />
Save as a DDS: DXT5 with integrated alpha. If you can't you're probably lacking the plugin, you can <a href="https://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop" target="_blank">get it here</a> =)<br />
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To create a texmod .TPF for the hair, the identifier to replace the <span class="deprecated">deprecated</span> ME2 custom cute hair textures is <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>0x487289A3</b></i></span>. For a tutorial on creating a texmod .TPF, <a href="http://ottemods.blogspot.nl/2013/08/guide-creating-texmod-package-files-tpf.html" target="_blank">check here</a>.<br />
To use the custom cute textures on the Shep that's testing the Mesh, use <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Gibbed</b></i></span> and change the texture values for <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Hair_Diff</b></i></span> and <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Hair_Mask</b></i></span> to <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>BIOG_HMF_HIR_PRO.Hair_Short02.HMF_HIR_PROShort_Diff </b></i></span><br />
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<i><b>Note:</b></i> If you have any transparency issues ingame, you'll have to check the alpha channel on your texture. It might be that the contrast is too low and your white's not really white in which case the game will make the entire hair slightly transparent.<br />
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<h3>
Troubleshooting texture problems</h3>
When you go ingame to check your mesh, there are several potential problems with mesh-imports that aren't always easy to spot in 3dsMax.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxyOYn6P9LFIrQQQz3EUYuCsq2omoTVgmzo7HKzJoX-e9Q1Up9Ov0zA4v2Llj4uuo1h3YB_BkKbnb43VsBho-7RnWxXlLr81UMksJeiAc3RjVw8snHYp3-ziwddC36rsbNF03x0gJCvypV/s1600/MassEffect3+2013-07-15+05-46-23-75.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="ingame1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxyOYn6P9LFIrQQQz3EUYuCsq2omoTVgmzo7HKzJoX-e9Q1Up9Ov0zA4v2Llj4uuo1h3YB_BkKbnb43VsBho-7RnWxXlLr81UMksJeiAc3RjVw8snHYp3-ziwddC36rsbNF03x0gJCvypV/s640/MassEffect3+2013-07-15+05-46-23-75.jpg" height="360" title="ingame1" width="640" /></a></div>
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This picture shows the first I want to cover nicely. This weird lighting issue you are seeing has to do with duplicate strands overlaying eachother in the mesh. There are a few tricks to spotting these early and ways of fixing the issue. <br />
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In 3dsMax, when you have enabled the alpha texture layer, you might have noticed a weird transparency issue with some of the elements. It's easy to spot on this particular mesh as the elements are quite large on the top of the head.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjILkVEwXbcX1zJbQH4EuVPXKHIzFaw06j3Sb1y7tdMX7nM_XC9Z-XZbnbF7ylROPBvmakNdr0H9oxnTq1JYKmqeIxr0-pEiQ5WwmZGyJVb-9owxbvmemPZN83HfuIAX3n4BfHYRdgZ-hmF/s1600/troubleshoot1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="troubleshoot1" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjILkVEwXbcX1zJbQH4EuVPXKHIzFaw06j3Sb1y7tdMX7nM_XC9Z-XZbnbF7ylROPBvmakNdr0H9oxnTq1JYKmqeIxr0-pEiQ5WwmZGyJVb-9owxbvmemPZN83HfuIAX3n4BfHYRdgZ-hmF/s640/troubleshoot1.jpg" height="360" title="troubleshoot1" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you haven't applied textures at all, switch to <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>[Perspective][Consistent Colors]</b></i></span> and you might notice weird blotchy spots on the mesh. It SHOULD be evenly tinted in either white or grey per element.<br />
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Thirdly and consistently, when you select the mesh and use the <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Element </b></i></span>selection tool, you'll notice when clicking some strands that they are in fact dark red instead of the normal bright red. I'll emphasize the difference with an image comparison below:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWdZHESq4GrpTHF5H2GLK4kCMpVplV2waTXsxINIcXFV5Ip0mqJQfn2wLualgCPf3EjRzndDKLrDZFqCR8_gQC0f2oY2WdP36PB8_L2AzhciULb4eZuepZBcIryE0zHr7ci0hyaAYBlPF/s1600/troubleshoot2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="troubleshoot2" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWdZHESq4GrpTHF5H2GLK4kCMpVplV2waTXsxINIcXFV5Ip0mqJQfn2wLualgCPf3EjRzndDKLrDZFqCR8_gQC0f2oY2WdP36PB8_L2AzhciULb4eZuepZBcIryE0zHr7ci0hyaAYBlPF/s640/troubleshoot2.jpg" height="360" title="troubleshoot2" width="640" /></a></div>
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From what I can gather, the darker colour indicates the back of an element. When the back is exposed in Mass Effect 3's engine, the lighting on it sort of inverts itself which causes the weird blackness. It can also cause weird streakyness in thinner strands with alpha transparency. Seeing how some strands will either curl around and reveal all sides from one perspective or show it's back some other way, you'll have to decide on a case by case basis whether to completely remove or simply edit elements when trying to fix this issue.<br />
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Simply click on an element and it will cycle through both overlayed elements. Select the darker red one and hit <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>delete</b></i></span>. You'll need to be careful you don't create any bald spots while deleting strands.<br />
Also check out the following method of dealing with these strands <a href="http://andrastessanctifiedgirdle.tumblr.com/post/60866141168/how-i-deal-with-flipped-normals-in-3ds-max-when" target="_blank">by andrastessanctifiedgirdle on Tumblr</a> who explains how to easily flip them as an alternate to deleting or moving them. <br />
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If you still see some areas of the hair ingame where the strands don't look right, make a couple of screenshots so you know where this is happening and go back into 3ds.<br />
In much rarer cases you'll notice that when you pull a strand out, it will be weirdly connected and stretch another strand as you pull! <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>Control select</b></i></span> the second strand as well, then <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>pull</b></i></span> them both further out. You'll want to switch from <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>element</b></i></span> to <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>polygon</b></i></span> selection and select those stretched bits and <span style="color: #073763;"><i><b>delete</b></i></span> them. They are sometimes connected to another normal strand but not always, if they are let the normal elements be. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfpr-cXNW9OwSGXzr5iX24gu4ditL-31BgAhU14CAaF6O2063mf5XGcAysoVJ3QDp9neveLWtgz6_DpU4RwP4bCZGfptFwx6Fml5mlidYQDoXPzf-IhhTF-G8D0-91tMwDWj2r2yQcF4GY/s1600/troubleshoot3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="troubleshoot3" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfpr-cXNW9OwSGXzr5iX24gu4ditL-31BgAhU14CAaF6O2063mf5XGcAysoVJ3QDp9neveLWtgz6_DpU4RwP4bCZGfptFwx6Fml5mlidYQDoXPzf-IhhTF-G8D0-91tMwDWj2r2yQcF4GY/s640/troubleshoot3.jpg" height="360" title="troubleshoot3" width="640" /></a></div>
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Note: Save your project as a max file, so you preserve the skin and weighting settings between exports. This will be better to load in inbetween small edits then working with your exported mesh.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY-lQG9dSbk-Dv2MDQ2uho3nU5FZCsk5VwQ1AZ-T_L8nhUeY08Uzvl-XZHyiZIrKsFXUfMhosI0n3O8RhzO8BGha3P1nkokBJnW8TB7lmt_Kabd63y8FvD0wz3W9ekdCWCTmm8UIjPfo-J/s1600/MassEffect3+2013-07-15+20-44-59-00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="ingame3" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY-lQG9dSbk-Dv2MDQ2uho3nU5FZCsk5VwQ1AZ-T_L8nhUeY08Uzvl-XZHyiZIrKsFXUfMhosI0n3O8RhzO8BGha3P1nkokBJnW8TB7lmt_Kabd63y8FvD0wz3W9ekdCWCTmm8UIjPfo-J/s640/MassEffect3+2013-07-15+20-44-59-00.jpg" height="360" title="ingame3" width="640" /></a></div>
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Fixed!<br />
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Have fun and good luck =)<br />
<br />Ottemishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00816302438519189111noreply@blogger.com49