Need Help Creating Custom Weapon REtextures for weapon CK?

[SammyEversong]

Hello guys, i am relatively new to the forum and just got into modding. My goal is to to eventually be able to make a transformation,but i decided to start off "small". and by that, create a weapon in CK, but have my own retextures of it. Like i said, i am very new to modding and i have been searching on google all day to find tons of misleading or irrelevant information. I know i need an Archive Utility program or something. i currently have FOMM, but i have seen others use FO3 Archive Utility; and i was wondering which is better? i have gimp and the dds plugin, i might get an Nvidia dds plugin for photoshop since i have Photoshop elements 10 (hopefully that works). i got NIfskope, and so far that is all i have. i do not know what else i need or don't need and i don't know the process of how i would create a custom retexture for a weapon i have made in CK.

i know this is a lot to read and i appreciate anyone reading and answering this very sincerely. If anyone is willing to post links to relevant and easy to understand, and helpful tutorial videos, thanks; or type in the steps. lucky for me, i am a quick learner. And thanks everyone, i hope i can get good with this modding and perhaps post some stuff on Nexus.

Edited February 22, 2014 by SammyEversong

[ghosu]

Required:

 

- FO3 Archive Utility or any other tool to open/extract .bsa archives

I've never used FOMM, so i'm not sure which one is "better", though the process of archive extraction is quite simple so i guess there won't be much difference.

- Photoshop or Gimp

- Nvidia DDS Plugin

 

Optional:

- Sculpting/Texturing software like Mudbox, zBrush or Sculptris

- Nifskope

- Creation Kit

 

Workflow:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOWJTYxRAYo&feature=youtu.be

 

1. Open Skyrim - textures.bsa with FO3 AU, select the weapon texture you want to edit (like weapons\daedric\daedricsword.dds) and in the menu above extract it to the correct path on your harddisc (like ...\Skyrim\data\textures\weapons\daedric\daedricsword.dds) or somewhere else - though, you have to move it to the correct path after you edited it so the game recognizes it. Of course you can directly extract all textures as well if you're going to edit several ones and/or need them as reference.

 

2. Install Nvidia DDS plugin and start Photoshop, it might open a window when you load your extracted .dds file so just select default settings. Now you see the texture (aka diffuse map) in the image editor. Now it's time to create your retexture, but that's another story and you should check google/board/youtube for suiting tutorials if you have no clue 'bout image editing. Once you're done you have to save the file as .dds, i would recommend to simply use the DXT5 ARGB 8bpp | interpolated alpha profile by default.

 

Some textures use an alpha channel, you can change to the alpha channel in the window that shows you layers...on the right side is a tab for channels, there you go. The alpha channel defines which parts of the texture will be invisible on the 3D modell, black = transparent, white = visible. Some models with naked body part below clothing/armor or fur use that. But don't bother with that yet, if you just do retextures it won't be of big interest. The above mentioned profile saves the alpha channel as well...if you're sure that there is no alpha channel you could use the first profile (DXT1 4bpp no alpha) as well, though i guess the compression will be higher and the image quality reduced, might not be the best choice for HD retextures, common ones should be fine. I use DXT5 by default myself.

 

If you want to add an alpha channel to a texture/model that didn't use one before you have to add NiAlphaProperty to the model's .nif as well...but that's more advanced/optional stuff so i would just ignore that atm.

 

As mentioned before, once you've saved the retexture you have to make sure it's in the correct path so the game favours it. Normally the game picks the textures from the .bsa archives, but if there is a .dds extracted to the correct path it favours it. To undo the retexture you simply have to delete/move the file.

 

That's all!

 

 

Now 'bout the optional tools...that's a bit further advanced so i would recommend to avoid it in the beginning!

 

ROUGH overview: Sculpting/Texturing software is used to paint directly on the 3D model, not on the flat texture like you do with photoshop. But for that you have to extract the 3D model from the Skyrim - meshes.bsa, open it in NifSkope and export the model as .obj so the software can handle/load it. Then you have to load the texture to the program as well and can retexture it.

 

Nifskope is used as well if you want to adjust the shader settings of the 3D modell...lets say you pick a glass weapon, it uses a shiny cubemap and high glossiness settings - if that doesn't fit your retexture you could change that as well. Or if you want a custom path for your retexture if you make a standalone version...and many other things.

 

Creation Kit can be used if you want to make a new standalone version of an item using your retextures. As mentioned before you could do that in combination with NifSkope or use a TEXTURESET form in CK - that sets up the new path to your retexture so the duplicated item doesn't use the vanilla texture. BUT as said, THIS OPTIONAL STUFF IS MORE COMPLEX i just mentioned it to give you a quick overview.

 

My video tutorial in the signature is about another topic (weapon creation), but it contains some/most of the mentioned/optional workflow as well.

 

greetings

Edited February 22, 2014 by ghosu

[SammyEversong]

thank you so much, i followed your steps one at time and i was able to create a custom retexture of the ebony sword. however, i am wondering, is there any easy way to make it that only my custom made sword has the retextures and not the other ebony swords?? but thank you so very much, it almost doesnt matter. just curious.

[ghosu]

Maybe i can record a video 'bout that later...you simply have to make a standalone version of the sword using your textures in the CK.

[ghosu]

http://youtu.be/h2yCY1Fg6CA

Edited February 22, 2014 by ghosu

[SammyEversong]

i just want to say thank you so much! i mean this very sincerely and respectively. i have started the process and it is going smoothly, i haven't finished it yet, but soon. i figured i will start learning how to do custom rextexturing of weapons before i go into making my very own custom meshing and textures. my final, end result (after i become more familiar with modding) is to create an unique form. but i figured i need to learn how to make retexturing first, of weapons (i assume armor is the same, except with more pieces?) and then go into making my own stuff from scratch. but again, i am grateful that you are spending some of your time with my petty trifflings on basic modding.

[ghosu]

Hello, no problem and yeah - armor is pretty much the same. The forms in CK differ a bit and if you repath the new model to the textures using the .nif method as shown in the video you have

 

to extract more models since each armor uses several ones, like:

daedriccuirass_0 and _1 = model

daedriccuirassgo or gnd = world model

1stpersondaedriccuirass_0 and _1 = first person view model

 

0 = skinny/light version, 1 = fat/heavy version. Some model come with a female version as well.

 

And the forms would be...

ArmorDaedricCuirass (contains values, paths to the world model and AA, also know as armor attachment)

DaedricCuirassAA (armor attachment, contains paths to models)

Recipe and temper are the same

 

In fact you have to copy the forms once again and change the paths/values without touching the race settings.

 

When it comes to armor it might be easier to use a TEXTURESET in the CK to repath to your new retextures...if i remember right there should be a few tutorials around, i posted one once or twice in other threads as well. You should find plenty of informations when you search the board for TEXTURESET

 

greetings

[SammyEversong]

alright, i am going to try that out once i get this weapon made. hmm....it seems like i did something wrong here. are you suppose to be able to see your retextures in the CK? for example when you were inputting the model data, i saw that your retextured appeared. however, my will not appear. i followed your video very closely however, my new texture will not appear on the weapon in-game. i can make my custom retextures appear, but wen i try to do a stand-alone version, the stand alone version has the textures of the default. i hate to bother you, but this is bugging me. do you have any ideas what i could have done wrong?

the weapon model that i am using is the daedric sword.

1)i extracted the corresponding meshes and textures for the daedric sword with FO3 Archive Utility.

2) i went into nifskope and loaded the daedric sword, and went into textures and replaced the top texture with the new one that i made. i could see the textures i created for he sword before i erased all entries before textures.

3)i opened CK, and got the daedric sword files i needed, 1st,Daedric,Recipe, and Temper.

4) i opened the 1st person and put my new .nif file in the model data entry ( i noticed that my custom texture was not showing up on the window)

5) i opened daedric, and went to art and sound and place my 1st person model in the 1st person model section, and then i put my .nif model in the .nif section below. i proceeded with the tempering and recipe (which worked just fine)

6) i opened skyrim and when i was viewing the weapon in the forge, it looked the same as a normal daedric sword, i made it just to make sure and it was the same...as i feared.

 

this is probably just a noob mistake, as i am just getting into modding, but i did followed your standalone video to the T. i am thinking i must have made a mistake or placed the meshes and textures in the wrong places (though i did put it in data-textures-weapons-[weapon name], for textures and data-meshes-weapons-[weapon name] for meshes)

 

sorry if this is confusing, i do not want to seem like i am complaining. i am just a little crestfallen that it isn't working :(

[ghosu]

Uhm i heard of a familiar bug once cause as you see in my video it should work...but i'm not sure anymore, could be another simple error was well. I would recommend you upload the whole mod (nif,dds,esp) so i can check it.

Edited February 23, 2014 by ghosu

[SammyEversong]

would it be fine if i can have your email? it seems that i cannot upload my files as they are too big. either way this is my email

[email protected]