newbie going into modding scene

[fegas88]

hi guys, new guy here

so today i'm thinking about going into modding scene.

did some research though, on how to make mods and textures.

maybe seems like google didn't understand what I meant or I don't understand how to.

so the problem is I don't know how to make mod that are separate from original newvegas data, how to make a replacement texture for ingame objects.

 

if anyone had the idea, please share.

[dubiousintent]

Have you seen the wiki "Getting started creating mods using GECK" article? That has pertinent tutorials linked in most sections. It is not "all inclusive" but serves as a starting point.

 

The term "mod" covers a broad range of possibilities. Pick one area that really interests you to get started with (such as making new textures for existing mesh) and focus on learning how to deal with it. Then broaden your scope to related topics as you find the need. Expect the learning process to take lots of time. It is not a "casual" thing.

 

-Dubious-

[madmongo]

If you want to make mods, what you need to do depends a lot on what you are trying to accomplish.

 

The first place to start is with the GECK. This is your main mod creating tool. For example, a simple thing to do would be to place some sort of existing asset into the game somewhere. Stick a fountain in the middle of Goodsprings, for example. The GECK edits Fallout New Vegas, but the GECK can't create assets or textures. It is only for world and item editing.

 

If you want to replace an in-game texture, all you need to do is extract the texture from the game's BSA files, then modify it and place it in the directory in the right place (the same path and file name it has inside the BSA). Fallout New Vegas textures are in dds format. You can edit them with GIMP or Paint.Net. The last time I checked GIMP still needed to have dds support added through a plugin. The latest versions of Paint.net come with dds support without needing a plugin. Most modders prefer GIMP. Make sure you have archive invalidation set, either through your mod manager or through some other means (you can google it), or your texture change won't show up.

 

If you want to create a new object that is just a retexture of an existing object, you will have to extract the model (nif file) as well as the texture from the BSA files. Modify your texture with GIMP (or Paint.Net) then rename your extracted nif or copy it to a different directory and edit the nif with NifSkope to change the texture to your new texture. All textures must be somewhere in the texture folder and all 3d model meshes (nifs) must be somewhere in the meshes folder.

 

If you want to actually create your own assets, you will need a 3d modeling tool like Blender or 3ds Max. Blender is free. The version of 3ds Max that works with Fallout New Vegas is not free. Note that if you use Blender, you will need version 2.49b. See Dubious's link for where to obtain the proper tools. Making your own meshes means learning how to use one of these 3d modeling tools, so there is more learning for you to do here. This is a bit more advanced than just editing textures.

 

Creating more advanced things like animations or world spaces is much more difficult and advanced, and is also very poorly documented in most cases. Don't dive in right away and try to do those or you will end up way over your head.

 

That should give you a rough idea of how to start and what tools you will need. For details, follow Dubious's link and follow his links for all of the details and tutorials.

 

And, most importantly, if you get stuck, ask questions. There are plenty of modders around here who will gladly point you in the right direction.

 

Be aware going into this that the GECK is a bit of a miserable toolset. It is buggy as all heck and is very unintuitive to use. I often say that it's really a secret Vault-Tec experiment to test modder's frustration levels. Don't worry. If you keep plugging away at it, you will figure out how to use it and how to get around all of the things that it doesn't do correctly.

 

FNVEdit is also a handy tool to have.

 

Good luck!

Edited May 11, 2019 by madmongo