How do you make metal shine?

[HSovieticus]

Is it possible to make metal shine in fallout? And if so, how would one do such a thing? What type of material would one use? What is the process or technique? Does it only work for certain types of content?

[sagittarius22]

You may look into normal maps.

[HSovieticus]

But a normal map doesn't give shine, just shadows. Or is there a special technique to making metal shine with a normal map?

[CaBaL120]

use envmap -mask

http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=10174

 

http://wiki.tesnexus.com/index.php/Photoshop_cube_maps_in_Fallout_3

http://wiki.tesnexus.com/index.php/Photoshop_environment_mapping

 

 

ty again Ghogiel :)

[FavoredSoul]

HSovieticus,

 

In the Fallout games, Metal is made shiny using the Alpha Channel of your meshes Normal map. This map is called the Spec Map. In essence (but not necessarily proper practice), the Spec Map is simply a black and white version of your meshes main texture. Make one in photoshop or gimp, load your Normal Map, and paste it into the Alpha Channel.

 

Then edit the Map using the lasso/mask tool to select various areas and alter their brightness/darkness.

WHITE: corresponds to maximum shine.

BLACK: corresponds to no shine.

GREY: Typically, you're entire map will be neither white nor black, but varying shades of grey.

 

 

Additionally, there are some special 'Effect' textures available in the fallout games which can make your objects even more shiny/reflective. They are:

textures\effects\chrome_e.dds

textures\effects\bronze_e.dds

textures\effects\shinybright_e.dds

textures\effects\shinydull_e.dds

 

These textures already exist. To apply one of them to your mesh, paste one of the lines listed above into the FIFTH texture slot in Nifskope. There may be more, but these are just the ones I can remember. Test them out at your own leisure to see what they can do.

[MonsterMonkey]

These textures with a lil' "_e" are environment maps better known as *Cube Maps".

It uses 6 images, Right, Left, Front, Back, Up, Down, to simulate reflection on meshes.

It makes cool effects, and you can find some crazy Cube Maps on the net, even those from other games may work ( i uses Skyrim ones, and have some home made too)

But it's not the specular here,, there is 2 ways to had specular maps in Fallout, First yiou use the normal map alpha channel( white=Shiny, black=No Shine, grey levels= shine levels)

 

Or the second way is, to delete the alpha from the normal map and you let the nimaterial property from the mesh making it.

You can controle it levels in Nifskope.

Note the second way is always overriden if you have a normal map with alpha channel.

Last thing... cubemaps go along with another texture that got "EM" Or "em" or "m" at the end (Ex: armor_em.dds) these are environment mask (not map) it works exactly like the alpha from the normal (white=Shine, Black=Flat).

To have it working you have to open the Mesh in Nifskope thgen go to "BSSshaderPPLightingProperty" and in the Shader flags enable "Environment Mapping"

Then under "BSShaderPPLightingProperty" open "BSShaderTexture Set" and there you'll see "texture" word on the left, and if you stay with the mouse arrow on it, you'll have an help, explainig what lines to put your textures here.

Don't forget to allways put "textures\" at the beginning of the path of each lines , as an exemple if you put "armor\helmet.dds" the game will not find your textures and you'll have Blue or black meshes ingame.

The right setting is for exemple "textures\armor\helmet.dds"

 

Cubemaps are also affected by the fake 3D effect of the Normal map, (the reflection follow the relief emboss, holes etc...), wich can make great effects.

Edited October 4, 2012 by MonsterMonkey