Blender - Read This 1st

[LHammonds]

Blender is a free 3D modeling program that can create models, textures, UV Maps, image and movie renders, etc. Blender can import and export a variety of formats and for those formats not natively supported, you may be able to find plugins that allow for more formats to be supported...such as the NetImmerse/Gamebryo NIF format use by games like Oblivion and Fallout 3.

 

How do you install Blender and all the other software in order to import and export NIF files? Easy, just follow the instructions on the How to Install Blender page.

 

Here are some tutorials that anyone new to Blender should read:

 

• Blender 3D: Noob to Pro
  

Here are some game-related tutorials related to modding with this tool (might be separated into their own pinned threads one day):

 

• Oblivion - Blender bow import and export
  
• Oblivion - Blender bows with modified geometry
  
• Oblivion - Blender bows with new geometry
  
• Oblivion - Blender import and export armor
  
• Oblivion - Blender rigging and skinning
  
• Oblivion - Avoiding Blender animation pitfalls
  
• Oblivion - Game Units (measurement)
  
• Oblivion - Custom Sword in Blender
  
• Oblivion - Custom Shield in Blender
  
• Oblivion - Custom Cuirass in Blender Part 1
  
• Oblivion - Custom Cuirass in Blender Part 2
  
• Oblivion - Blender Video Tutorial - Adding Textures
  
• Oblivion - Blender Video Tutorial - Convex Collision
  
• Oblivion - Weapons with Multiple Collision Objects
  
• Oblivion - Custom Helmets
  
• Oblivion - How To Make Swords With Scabbards
  
• Oblivion - Split Oblivion Meshes
  
• Fallout 3 - Rigging / Skinning, VATS Dismemberment and Export
  
• Fallout 3 - Creating a sword
  
• Fallout 3 - Creating armor - Part 1
  
• Fallout 3 - Creating armor - Part 2
  
• Any - UV Mapping: An Explanation
  
• Any - Making square UV maps in Blender
  
• Any - Create basic clothes in 5 minutes
  
• Any - Creating a belt using Blender
  
• Any - Creating a cape with Blender
  
• Any - Making a round hole in your mesh
  
• Any - How to Re-Topologize a Game-Ready object in Blender
  
• Any - How to Create Bows by Nicoroshi
  
• Any - LHammonds' Blender Shortcut Tips
  
• Any - Easy Rigging in Blender
  
• Any - Mastering Low-Poly Design for Gaming - YouTube Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
  
• Any - Character Modeling Process - Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
  
• Any - Modeling A 3D Human Head
  
• Any - Creating a Stylized Dragon in Blender 2.5 - Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
  

Here are some locations to find more tutorials related to this tool:

 

• Free3DTutorials.com
  
• Blender - How to have two versions of Blender installed on the same system (2.49b + Nifscripts and 2.53 BETA)
  
• Blender.org
  
• BlenderCookie.com
  
• BlenderGuru
  
• BlenderNation
  
• BlenderArtists.org
  
• BlenderArt Magazine (Magazines and Tutorials)
  
• Super3boy Blender Tutorials
  
• Greybeard's Tutorials
  
• BioRUST.com
  
• OTO the cleaner
  
• cogfilms.com
  
• Blender 3D tutorials
  
• Faint Media Community Tutorials
  
• Ingie Bee Tutorials
  
• KatsBits
  
• Blender Hotkeys
  
• Pagoda Productions Tutorials
  
• Geneome Blender Tutorials
  
• BlenderCourse.com
  

Related sites of interest:

 

• GraphicAll.org - Optimized builds of Blender
  

[LHammonds]

Feel free to reply here and let us know of any additional tutorials or tutorial sites that are out there in the wild that we do not know about.

 

Also, feel free to post any requests for tutorials. I will try to keep a compiled collection of requests on the 2nd post. Bare in mind that requests are generally for ANYONE to complete...not specific to an individual.

 

List of requested tutorials (number on the end is how many times it has been requested)

 

• Fallout 3 - Custom melee weapon tutorial (model, texture, geck) (Request by BlackSampleAdmin / Sept 2010)
  
• Fallout 3 - Custom gun + clip weapon tutorial (model, texture, geck) (Request by BlackSampleAdmin / Sept 2010)
  
• Fallout 3 - Clothing tutorial for custom bodies (model, custom body adjustment, NIF export) (Request by BlackSampleAdmin / Sept 2010)
  
• Fallout 3 - Importing a 3ds model and exporting to a static NIF (Request by lostone1993 / Sept 2010)
  
• Oblivion - How to create NPC statues with modded content such as hair, wings, armor / clothing, weapons and poses. (Request by dunmermaiden / Dec 2010)
  
• Oblivion - How to modify interior and exterior building structures (models). (Request by dunmermaiden / Dec 2010)
  

[BlackSampleAdmin]

a weapon tutorial for fallout 3 how to make the mesh give it textures and every other bit to making a complete and Successful weapon for fallout 3 one melee weapon tutorial and one gun tutorial. and also a clothing tutorial for any body replacer specially for type 3 thanks LHammonds.

 

-BsA-

[LHammonds]

Requests added to listing.

 

NOTE: some parts of the request may be answered by specific tutorials...such as how to export custom clothing/armor or how to assign textures. If so, I will add a link in the request showing that a particular step is already covered.

 

EDIT: I also threw in my own desire to see a tutorial on how to have a production-use version such as Blender 2.49b with NifScripts installed and working...along with the latest BETA version of Blender and not have it interfere with the stable version. This would allow models to be created in either version but the 2.49b version could still export NIF files. Maybe even have Blender 2.49b (32-bit) + NifScripts running with another installation of 2.49b but as a 64-bit version...and still be able to switch between both...that would allow models to be created in the 64-bit version but when ready to export, jump into the 32-bit version to open the model and go through the NIF exporter. It is quite possible such a tutorial already exists somewhere or I may even end up writing if time allows but just thought I'd throw it out there since it is quite possible many others want a similar setup of a stable version that works with plugins and another that is on the bleeding edge.

 

Thanks,

LHammonds

[BlackSampleAdmin]

This Step By Step How to install Blender 2.49b with Nif Scripts & 2.5 has been moved Here Enjoy!

[OuijaU]

Very excellent idea!

 

Personally, I would love to see a nice step by step tutorial on how to do armor conversions from one body mod to another for Oblivion. Anything I've found hasn't be real helpful in altering armors already made.

[LHammonds]

This Step By Step How to install Blender 2.49b with Nif Scripts & 2.5 has been moved Here Enjoy!

Thanks...thread updated.

 

Personally, I would love to see a nice step by step tutorial on how to do armor conversions from one body mod to another for Oblivion. Anything I've found hasn't be real helpful in altering armors already made.

There is a tutorial on that subject for using a lattice but many people have found it to be a bit to advanced for them or simply cannot get good results for whatever reason.

 

What I've done is quite simple (although probably not the best method). I simply turn on the Proportional Editing, select a vertex and use the Grab key ("G"). Once in grab mode, use the middle mouse wheel to adjust how large the area-of-affect is and start pushing/pulling.

 

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee11/Conan_Lon/Blender/ProportionalEditing.jpg

[danielsaccount]

i dont belive this has been said but a tut on how to convert files to nifs

[LHammonds]

i dont belive this has been said but a tut on how to convert files to nifs

Convert "files" to NIFs? Like MS Word to NIF? What files are you talking about...I don't have a clue and don't think any tutorial can target that request.

 

Are you talking about just exporting Blender models to a NIF file? When you select the NIF export option, the Blender NIF scripts export screen is fairly simple to grasp so if you are talking about Blender models to NIF format, I could guess you are talking about what "has" to happen to an object to be correctly exported to NIF...which is quite a bit different depending on what the target object is. Is it a sword, a shield, helmet, armor, creature, animation, etc.?

 

LHammonds

[BlackSampleAdmin]

yeah neither i have seen how to export object into a nif after all there are dozens of options when trying to export and one simple thing could tell you its not possible if there just was an exporting tutorial for various items such as weapons items.... and all the materials like metallic,plastic,shiny.... and other options that would go great... just saying as blender is confusing in export... Edited September 15, 2010 by LHammonds
Added a few FO3 requests