CampanaAliquanta Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 (edited) Commonly asked questions, with the answers pulled together from various parts of the forum. INSTALLING MODS The easy way You can use the >> Nexus Mod Manager <<, which will install and uninstall mods with one simple click, and doesn't require manually unzipping files and creating the right folders for them. (Note: this is still in beta). There are other mod managing systems available, such as Wrye Smash, which can be used in combination with the Nexus Mod Manager or by itself. Installing manually Reveal hidden contents The mod should come with a ReadMe.txt file that will explain how to install it. > Installing textures To install textures, place the "textures" folder supplied by the mod in the following folder:steamapps/common/skyrim/Data. You need to make sure the file structure is correct within the textures folder e.g.steamapps/common/skyrim/Data/textures/clothes/robes/farmclothes01. When you place texture files here, the game will take them from this folder instead of from the textures.bsa file. To uninstall simply remove the folder which has the textures in. Note, if you just remove the .dds files but not the folder, when you run the game you will find those textures missing, so you need to remove the folder as well. > Installing plugins (esp files) The main file is called "Skyrim.esm". A mod changes the behaviour of this file by adding an additional plugin file, which has an ".esp" extension. To install, drop the .esp file into the same folder as the .esm file. If the plugin file comes with additional sounds, textures or meshes, you will need to drop these in the data folder, in their appropriate folders. ___________________________________________ CREATING MODS 1) Where do I get the Creation Kit from? Reveal hidden contents This has not been released yet. >> Latest news>> Watch this topic for release info 2) How do I replace textures? Reveal hidden contents Follow the steps below or >> view a video tutorial here <<. a) Extraction: download the Fallout Mod Manager (FOMM) and install - this unpacker seems to work best for Skyrim files. Using the start menu on your desktop, launch the BSA Viewer. Click open and navigate to the steamapps/common/skyrim/Data folder. Click on the Textures.bsa file. Select the textures you want to extract or click on Extract all. This will extract a series of .dds files which contain images for textures. Ideally you should extract these to your documents folders, rather than your steam install folder, where you can edit them without affecting the game. b) Opening .dds files: you need an image editor (GIMP or Photoshop) and a dds plugin. >> Plugin for GIMP << c) Editing: once you have opened the dds file you can repaint the texture.>> How not to texture (TL;DR - when creating HD or high res textures it won't work if you simply resize an original texture to 2048x2048 and apply a sharpening effect.) d) Normal maps: the files called "filename_n.dds" are normal maps. More information here:>> Explanation of what normal maps are, and how it works (with pictures) <<>> Tutorial on normal maps>> How not to do normal maps>> Specularity is important>> How to set object space normal maps vs tangent normal maps e) Importing into the game: Once you have finished editing the texture files, save these as .dds and place them in the file path indicated by the BSA Viewer. For clothing this would be steamapps/common/skyrim/Data/textures/clothes/xxx where "xxx" is the name of clothing you wish to replace. Note: when converting textures to .dds format there are different settings that can be used: >>info on .dds compression<< 3) How do I replace or add new meshes? Reveal hidden contents See 2) for how to extract files. Skyrim mesh files are in .nif format. Tools for converting .nif files: Download >> Nifscope << which needs to be updated with this xml file in order to work for Skyrim. Seem more info in the >> Graphics modding << thread. If you are using blender you can use this Blender Nif Import tutorial to import/export meshes. Tutorials>> How to edit static meshes using tesnip and nifskope>> Changing the size of armour>> Tutorial: 3ds Max Skinned Meshes Into Game>> Video tutorial: how to get custom weapons into skyrim You can exchange some meshes, such as the >> No Spiders << mod which replaces spider meshes with bears. 4) Can I edit audio files? Reveal hidden contents Yes. If you extract the Voices.bsa (see q2) you will get .fuz files, which are the audio and lip sync files packaged together. It is possible to extract these, which gives you "xwm" audio files. These can be converted to wav files, altered, and then converted back to wxm files again: >> Tutorial for extracting audio files to wav format>> Alternative tutorial (with pictures!)>> Converting wav files back to xwm files 5) How can I mod without the Creation Kit? Reveal hidden contents Read the Skyrim.esm file using FNVEdit. Use the FormID references to change the hex values with TESnip (source). Tutorials:>> How to edit the Skyrim.esm file without having Fallout installed >> Tutorial on creating New Recipies>> Tutorial on adding items into the game 6) Information on the lastest patch - mods not working Reveal hidden contents >> The Nov 21 patch>> Fixing Large Address Aware _______________________ I have a problem that's not covered by these FAQ: >> Check this forum here, or start a new thread << I want to request a mod: >> Check here for requests, or post your own << I want to recruit other people to work on a group mod>> Modding Resource - list of people & skills>> Collection of Voice Acting Talent _______________________ If you think a question should be added to this FAQ, post it here. Edited December 17, 2011 by CampanaAliquanta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zilvereyes Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Great post, hopefully those in need do find it and actually read it. Yours trulyZilvereyes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CampanaAliquanta Posted November 25, 2011 Author Share Posted November 25, 2011 Updated with some more links to all the recent "How to mod pre-CK" tutorials, and added some info about installing mods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skyler14 Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 I'm interested in learning how to take some moves that already exist in the game and using them as the basis for some new controls. For example: Make a shield sprint that staggers without the paralysis effect, making a sprinting option for sneaking, and adding a standing roll using sneak roll. Any advice on what to learn about if I'm interested in that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CampanaAliquanta Posted November 26, 2011 Author Share Posted November 26, 2011 The animation files are in .hkx format, so it depends what those can be converted into. I hope that a plugin would be available to import them into blender. I think a plugin already exists to import them into Maya. But I've seen someone mention a free havok tool kit as well. (**Site Not Allowed**) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havikus Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 OK I downloaded the Fallout Mod Manager... and nothing in that program works.. as in it won't allow me to open any files. It actually can't see any files Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CampanaAliquanta Posted November 27, 2011 Author Share Posted November 27, 2011 On 11/27/2011 at 3:23 AM, Havikus said: OK I downloaded the Fallout Mod Manager... and nothing in that program works.. as in it won't allow me to open any files. It actually can't see any files Did you start the BSA browser from the Start menu? It will be in listed as a sub-program under fallout, but you can run it separately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havikus Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 yeah I can look at the files now and when I hit extract to a file I want, it saves them as a dds file. From there I cannot get them to open in Photoshop. I'm not new to modding video games (just this one) and have modded dds files in the past. It has been a few years but it shouldn't be that hard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CampanaAliquanta Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 On 11/28/2011 at 2:29 AM, Havikus said: yeah I can look at the files now and when I hit extract to a file I want, it saves them as a dds file. From there I cannot get them to open in Photoshop. I'm not new to modding video games (just this one) and have modded dds files in the past. It has been a few years but it shouldn't be that hard. Did you install the plugin for photoshop that allows you to open .dds files? Sorry I didn't actually link it in :P I think it's this onehttp://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bali182 Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Hi everyone! I have a few questions, if someone knows the answer please tell me!I want to do some scripting, in Skyrim, but I need some knowledge. So: 1.) How do you initialize VARIABLES (if you can) in Skyrim's script?2.) How do you use conditonal structures, like IF ELSE?3.) How do you use loops, functions, operators? If someone could answer at least a few of this questions, it would be really helpful! Thank you, and sorry for my english! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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