Difference between revisions of "User:PharaohHound/Tutorialtest"

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(Created page with "==Introduction== This tutorial will show you how to create pet markings for TS3. *What this tutorial will teach you to do: **Clone the right CAS part **Export it and import th...")
 
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*An image editing program capable of working with DDS and PNG files.  For this tutorial, I am using Adobe Photoshop CS5 with [http://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop Nvidia DDS tools].
 
*An image editing program capable of working with DDS and PNG files.  For this tutorial, I am using Adobe Photoshop CS5 with [http://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop Nvidia DDS tools].
  
===Planning===
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===Preparations===
 
Before we start doing anything, we need to plan what our marking will be.  Start by figuring out why you are creating your marking.  For me, I am looking to supplement the game's lacking selection of spotted markings.  I use books and a Google images search to find good reference pictures of markings like the one I want to make.
 
Before we start doing anything, we need to plan what our marking will be.  Start by figuring out why you are creating your marking.  For me, I am looking to supplement the game's lacking selection of spotted markings.  I use books and a Google images search to find good reference pictures of markings like the one I want to make.
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 +
Creating markings can result in a mess of files, I would strongly recommend you create a project folder to keep yourself organized.
  
 
===Cloning===
 
===Cloning===
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Now, all markings actually work with all species, so it really doesn't matter which you clone from (this is not true for Regional Markings).  I would suggest finding the marking that matches what you want to make as closely as possible, it makes determining the proper scale easier.  In my case, I am cloning adMarkings_spotsDal.  Select that CAS part, then click "Clone or Fix".  
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Now, all markings actually work with all species, so it really doesn't matter which you clone from (this is not true for Regional Markings).   
 +
 
 +
Certain markings have multiple recolourable channels, you can see this in-game; some markings have multiple palettes to recolour, while some only have one.  If you already have experience working with multichannel DDS images, feel free to make a marking with multiple channels. If you are not, I would '''strongly''' recommend starting with a single-channel marking.  I will not be specifically detailing how to make a multichannel marking.  Whatever you decide to do, clone a marking that has the same number of channels as the marking you want to make.  In my case, I am making a single-channel marking, so I will be cloning adMarkings_spotsDal.  Select that CAS part, then click "Clone or Fix".
 +
 
 +
You will be met with a screen that asks you to choose options for your cloned file.  Tick "Include thumbnails" and "Renumber/rename internally".  Below "Renumber/rename internally", there is a text box for "Unique name".  Change it to a simple, descriptive name of your marking, with your creator name if you want.  In the upper right of the screen, change the text under "Unknown1" to a short, descriptive name of your marking.  Press "Start", select your project folder, and s3oc will clone the marking and place it in the folder.  You can now close s3oc.
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===Exporting the Resources===
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Fire up s3pe and open your cloned package.  You will see a list of resources that should look like the following image.  The two resources that are particularly relevant to us right now are selected.  The first one is the DDS file that contains the actual texture for the marking, it has an _IMG tag in s3pe.  If you have DDS preview enabled in s3pe (look in the "Settings" menu), you will see an image of the marking in the preview window.  The colours will look strange, this is normal.  The background is black, and the marking will be red.  If you have cloned a multichannel marking, other colours will appear.
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The second resource we need right now is the thumbnail that you see in the Create-a-Pet screen, both in the list of markings, and on the "flat pet" that we place freeform markings on.  There should be three resources with the "THUM" tag.  Click on all three in turn, you should see that they are three different sizes, large, medium and small.  We need the large thumbnail, the rest can be ignored. 
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Select both the DDS and the proper thumbnail using Ctrl, then right click on one.  In the menu that pops up, mouseover "Export", and select "To file...".  Select your project folder, and export the resources.
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 +
We are done in s3pe for the moment, however, leave it open but minimized, we will need it again.
  
You will be met with a screen that asks you to choose options for your cloned file.  Tick "Include thumbnails" and "Renumber/rename internally".  Below "Renumber/rename internally", there is a text box for "Unique name".  Change it to a simple, descriptive name of your marking, with your creator name if you want.  In the upper right of the screen, change the text under "Unknown1" to a short, descriptive name of your marking.  Press "Start", and s3oc will clone the marking.
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===Image Editing===

Revision as of 21:51, 24 February 2012

Contents

Introduction

This tutorial will show you how to create pet markings for TS3.

  • What this tutorial will teach you to do:
    • Clone the right CAS part
    • Export it and import the texture files into your imaging program
    • Reassemble all of the new texture files in s3pe
  • What this tutorial will not teach you to do:
    • Create pets in TS3
    • Hand-paint textures in your imaging program
    • Create Regional Markings

You Will Need

  • s3pe.
  • s3oc. You must have version 12-0204-2341 or later
  • An image editing program capable of working with DDS and PNG files. For this tutorial, I am using Adobe Photoshop CS5 with Nvidia DDS tools.

Preparations

Before we start doing anything, we need to plan what our marking will be. Start by figuring out why you are creating your marking. For me, I am looking to supplement the game's lacking selection of spotted markings. I use books and a Google images search to find good reference pictures of markings like the one I want to make.

Creating markings can result in a mess of files, I would strongly recommend you create a project folder to keep yourself organized.

Cloning

Once you've decided on a direction for your marking, you will need to clone a premade EA marking to base your marking off of, using s3oc.

Open s3oc and select "(experimental) CAS Part", wait patiently for it to load all of the parts.

You will be greeted with a very long list of files, organized alphabetically. Files are organized as follows, I have included Regional Markings for reference.

Dog Cat Horse
Marking adMarkings acMarkings ahMarkings
Regional Marking adRegions acRegions ahRegions

Now, all markings actually work with all species, so it really doesn't matter which you clone from (this is not true for Regional Markings).

Certain markings have multiple recolourable channels, you can see this in-game; some markings have multiple palettes to recolour, while some only have one. If you already have experience working with multichannel DDS images, feel free to make a marking with multiple channels. If you are not, I would strongly recommend starting with a single-channel marking. I will not be specifically detailing how to make a multichannel marking. Whatever you decide to do, clone a marking that has the same number of channels as the marking you want to make. In my case, I am making a single-channel marking, so I will be cloning adMarkings_spotsDal. Select that CAS part, then click "Clone or Fix".

You will be met with a screen that asks you to choose options for your cloned file. Tick "Include thumbnails" and "Renumber/rename internally". Below "Renumber/rename internally", there is a text box for "Unique name". Change it to a simple, descriptive name of your marking, with your creator name if you want. In the upper right of the screen, change the text under "Unknown1" to a short, descriptive name of your marking. Press "Start", select your project folder, and s3oc will clone the marking and place it in the folder. You can now close s3oc.

Exporting the Resources

Fire up s3pe and open your cloned package. You will see a list of resources that should look like the following image. The two resources that are particularly relevant to us right now are selected. The first one is the DDS file that contains the actual texture for the marking, it has an _IMG tag in s3pe. If you have DDS preview enabled in s3pe (look in the "Settings" menu), you will see an image of the marking in the preview window. The colours will look strange, this is normal. The background is black, and the marking will be red. If you have cloned a multichannel marking, other colours will appear.

The second resource we need right now is the thumbnail that you see in the Create-a-Pet screen, both in the list of markings, and on the "flat pet" that we place freeform markings on. There should be three resources with the "THUM" tag. Click on all three in turn, you should see that they are three different sizes, large, medium and small. We need the large thumbnail, the rest can be ignored.

Select both the DDS and the proper thumbnail using Ctrl, then right click on one. In the menu that pops up, mouseover "Export", and select "To file...". Select your project folder, and export the resources.

We are done in s3pe for the moment, however, leave it open but minimized, we will need it again.

Image Editing

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