LE TextureSet is missing a rim lighting map

[Noggog]

I'm working on a project dealing with TXST replacements.

Specifically, I'm testing a TXST replacement for Bellyache's wolf textures. I've created a TextureSet(TXST) record for them, but no matter what tweaks I do, I always seem to get an error saying it is "missing a rim lighting map", and the wolves glow purplish.

 

The TXST settings so far are:

Diffuse: Bellache's wolf.dds

Normal/Gloss: Bellyache's wolf_n.dds

Environment: Bethesda's wolf_sk.dds

Backlight Mask / Specular Map: Bethesda's wolf_b.dds

 

I've tested almost all combinations of ticking facegen texures/has specular map/has model space normal map checkboxes, but I always seem to still get this "missing a rim lighting map" error.

 

It's confusing as there are no more textures in Bethesda's textures/actors/wolf/ folder that I haven't plugged into the TXST record. I'm not sure what is missing and/or I can tweak to get this looking right without errors.

 

Any pro texturers/modelers know what's causing the error?

Thanks ahead of time!

- Lev

[Ghogiel]

Without looking into it I would say putting the _sk texture in an environment slot sounds wrong to me. Those would be for cube maps. I would hazard the correct slot would be skin/tint. you'll probably want facegen textures enabled for that setup.

 

However looking briefly at these things, it appears that if you use the non facegen texture set, the correct slot for the _sk is glow. leave that set up and try that, or try dropping the _sk map entirely and see what happens.

 

You definitely do want specular map, and definitely do not want model space normal map.

 

There appears to be many a ways to set it up.

 

If none of that works, I would guess it is a shader flag/type in the nif that enables the backlight maps properly.

[Noggog]

Thanks! I figured it out poking around some more with your suggestions.

 

I was confused because I was basing it off the nif file ordering. In the nif file, the BSShaderTextureSet node lists them like this:

 

[68][0m:8s][9] [AV_Nif] 0: textures\actors\wolf\WolfBLACK.dds

[69][0m:8s][8] [AV_Nif] 1: textures\actors\wolf\Wolf_n.dds

[70][0m:8s][8] [AV_Nif] 2: textures\actors\wolf\Wolf_sk.dds

[71][0m:8s][7] [AV_Nif] 3:

[72][0m:8s][7] [AV_Nif] 4:

[73][0m:8s][8] [AV_Nif] 5:

[74][0m:8s][7] [AV_Nif] 6:

[75][0m:8s][8] [AV_Nif] 7: textures\actors\wolf\Wolf_b.dds

[76][0m:8s][8] [AV_Nif] 8:

 

So I assumed TX00 - TX07 were assigned in this order as well, with maybe 8 being discarded as not used? Anyway, I see now that this ordering doesn't directly map to the TX00-07 records. 8( Gotta break out some more sophisticated code, it seems.

 

I still don't know what Wolf_b.dds is for. Would it be the detail map, maybe? That's the only other available field in TextureSet

 

Thanks again!

[Ghogiel]

There are 2 setups that have a different list.

 

with and with out facegen

 

It was worse in fallout as the order in the shader in the nif was different to the order they GECK set them out, and when nifskope was updated with the definitions for those slots, they just copied the order that was in the GECK, which was wrong, it was like that for a year, :confused:

 

_b does apparently go in the backlight slot though. there is a wolf texture set that uses it, I assume correctly.