Trying to change Sturdy Caravan Shotgun Model in GECK

[Prenihility]

So i've downloaded the A Better Caravan Shotgun mod by SpamPTRS. He doesn't seem to mind at all that i'm err.... modifying his mod? Only for my personal use, of course. I simply want to take his model of the Caravan Shotgun and make THAT the model for the Sturdy Caravan Shotgun. Problem is, i don't know how. I'm sort of learning as i go along with the GECK. I've loaded the CaravanPack esm in GECK. Found and opened up the Sturdy Caravan Shotgun. I go to Edit, Art and Sound - Model. I browse to Spam's Caravan shotty model .nif and it just says "invalid directory." when i select it.

 

Please help. I'm totally lost.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Prenihility

[YanL]

you seem to be doing everything right. Are you looking for the nif in the file you downloaded or in the file you installed? Try loading the second.

By the way, you need to change the first-person view file as well.

[SKYZOO]

Have you made sure the .NIF is in the Fallout:NV/Data/Meshes/XXX folder where the downloaded file would be initially installed (If used as downloaded, to maintain the texture paths)?

 

The only thing that instantly comes to mind is that it's not in the meshes folder in data, and tells you that its directory is read as an invalid path for that reason.

 

Other than that, I've never heard of that instance of a problem before...

[dubiousintent]

"Invalid directory"? The path to the mesh and/or texture file must be in "relative" format to the "Data" folder (i.e. "textures\<SpecificSubFolderPath>" rather than "absolute" format (i.e. "C:\<PathToGameFolder>\Data\textures\<SpecificSubFolderPath>"). See the wiki article "How to fix hard-coded texture paths in NIF files".

-Dubious-

[Prenihility]

"Invalid directory"? The path to the mesh and/or texture file must be in "relative" format to the "Data" folder (i.e. "textures\<SpecificSubFolderPath>" rather than "absolute" format (i.e. "C:\<PathToGameFolder>\Data\textures\<SpecificSubFolderPath>"). See the wiki article "How to fix hard-coded texture paths in NIF files".

 

-Dubious-

 

That's strange. There is no meshes folder. Data, then a bunch of .bsa files. And some other stuff. I'm looking in the install directory.

 

Mod maker said to install the mod to make it easier. So i did. I just left the .esp unchecked. Then when i go to navigate to the .nif i go into the Mod Organizer folder and find the installed mod and find the .nif in the meshes folder. Still says invalid directory. Which really means nothing to me. It's very vague and unclear what the hell it wants.

[M48A5]

 

"Invalid directory"? The path to the mesh and/or texture file must be in "relative" format to the "Data" folder (i.e. "textures\<SpecificSubFolderPath>" rather than "absolute" format (i.e. "C:\<PathToGameFolder>\Data\textures\<SpecificSubFolderPath>"). See the wiki article "How to fix hard-coded texture paths in NIF files".

 

-Dubious-

 

That's strange. There is no meshes folder. Data, then a bunch of .bsa files. And some other stuff. I'm looking in the install directory.

 

Mod maker said to install the mod to make it easier. So i did. I just left the .esp unchecked. Then when i go to navigate to the .nif i go into the Mod Organizer folder and find the installed mod and find the .nif in the meshes folder. Still says invalid directory. Which really means nothing to me. It's very vague and unclear what the hell it wants.

 

The "meshes" folder is in the "Data" folder. Along with the other "Data" the game needs to run properly.

[dubiousintent]

I'm not an MO expert, but I do know that it works from the concept of an "empty" "Data" folder until you select a "profile" and start the game. Then it puts links (technically "junctions") for the files in use in the "Data" folder that point back to the actual file locations. I have no experience editing mesh/texture files under MO, but that premise suggests to me that if you aren't running your editor tools while in that same MO environment and if those tools (for any technical reason) are not prepared to work with "junctions" (which should look to them like the actual file and location) then you would get that error.

 

You need to research using NifSkope (or whichever tool) with MO. Or how to work outside of MO but with the "Data" folder populated with the needed files.

 

-Dubious-

[SKYZOO]

Okay so the easiest way to do this is to:

 

1. Open the .zip file of the mod and extract it to desktop / a folder on the desktop.

2. Drag the "meshes" and "textures" folder INTO your FalloutNV / Data folder. (ignore the .esp file since it won't be used)

3. Open GECK with FalloutNV.esm and the CaravanPack.esm selected.

4. Go to World Objects / Static / NVDLCPre3 / Weapons / 2HandRifle / 1stPreordCaravanShotgun and click edit. Now go to Edit and find the path to Meshes / Weapons / BetterCS / Bettercaravanshotgun.NIF and select it. You will see the item has changed appearance, now click Ok, then OK again. That takes care of its first-person model for the worldview.

5. Go to Items / Weapon / NVDLCPre3 / Weapons / 2handrifle / WeapPreordCaravanShotgun and click edit. Scroll to Art & Sound and go to Model. Under "Model" and "World Model" click edit and go to Meshes / Weapons / BetterCS / Bettercaravanshotgun.NIF (Select the same one for both and same as the 1st person model you selected earlier).

Since you took care of the 1st person model as the first edit, it will already take effect under the selected item in the Art & Sound / Model / "1st Person Model Object". Click OK and the tab will close.

6. You can now save your file with the name of your choice, and after ticking the box in your mod manager of choice, you'll see the changes reflected in-game.

(I am unaware if the animations are the same for the original and modded models, but it looks quite similar in style)

(You can also make edits easier by using the search function to narrow the name field of the object you're looking for in a category)

It took me longer to type this than to do a simple .NIF swap out for the guns and finish a new .esp, so it shouldn't be too hard if you follow the instructions as laid out.

Edited September 26, 2017 by SKYZOO

[Prenihility]

 

Okay so the easiest way to do this is to:

 

1. Open the .zip file of the mod and extract it to desktop / a folder on the desktop.

2. Drag the "meshes" and "textures" folder INTO your FalloutNV / Data folder. (ignore the .esp file since it won't be used)

3. Open GECK with FalloutNV.esm and the CaravanPack.esm selected.

4. Go to World Objects / Static / NVDLCPre3 / Weapons / 2HandRifle / 1stPreordCaravanShotgun and click edit. Now go to Edit and find the path to Meshes / Weapons / BetterCS / Bettercaravanshotgun.NIF and select it. You will see the item has changed appearance, now click Ok, then OK again. That takes care of its first-person model for the worldview.

5. Go to Items / Weapon / NVDLCPre3 / Weapons / 2handrifle / WeapPreordCaravanShotgun and click edit. Scroll to Art & Sound and go to Model. Under "Model" and "World Model" click edit and go to Meshes / Weapons / BetterCS / Bettercaravanshotgun.NIF (Select the same one for both and same as the 1st person model you selected earlier).

Since you took care of the 1st person model as the first edit, it will already take effect under the selected item in the Art & Sound / Model / "1st Person Model Object". Click OK and the tab will close.

6. You can now save your file with the name of your choice, and after ticking the box in your mod manager of choice, you'll see the changes reflected in-game.

(I am unaware if the animations are the same for the original and modded models, but it looks quite similar in style)

(You can also make edits easier by using the search function to narrow the name field of the object you're looking for in a category)

It took me longer to type this than to do a simple .NIF swap out for the guns and finish a new .esp, so it shouldn't be too hard if you follow the instructions as laid out.

 

 

 

I've been trying, but the GECK just keeps closing on me. "Stopped working" error. Now I remember why I stopped. Ugh... Nothing ever works. Whenever I go to edit a weapon, it crashes.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Prenihility

[dubiousintent]

Did you patch the GECK so it uses 4GB? Please see the 'GECK: Common Problems' and 'Custom items' sections of the wiki "Getting started creating mods using GECK" article.

 

-Dubious-