Author Topic: A Lesson Learned: PLT Mapping  (Read 470 times)

Legacy_The Amethyst Dragon

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A Lesson Learned: PLT Mapping
« on: November 26, 2013, 06:10:43 pm »


               Some minro information that might help out other custom content makers in the future.

If you are making a model, and you are using existing .plt files as the texture...export ALL of the files you will be using, then pull them into Photoshop/GIMP/whatever and adjust material/channel colors for the .tga you're using for model work.

I am making some armor/body parts for my PW, and figured I'd stick with existing .plt files since I don't want colors to change for existing armors and PC outfits.  Things have been working out well, and for the most part the things look good.

However, I discovered today something I should have taken into account when I started.  When browsing with NWN Explorer, .plt images that look identical are not.  They may use different color channels in the same spots, which can really mess with things when you go to map a model with those textures.

I've got hand models with shiny metal bits where they shouldn't be, some leather where it shouldn't be, and some skin where it shouldn't be.  The ones I did the actual mapping with the exact textures look good, but ones that (based on the preview of the .plts) should look good, don't.

Now I've got to go back and figure out exactly which models need texture adjustments, then remake the racial/phenotype variants for those.

Lesson learned.
               
               

               
            

Legacy_MerricksDad

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A Lesson Learned: PLT Mapping
« Reply #1 on: November 26, 2013, 08:42:51 pm »


               good advice. This conversation came up while my group was working on the skinned pc's junk we never finished.
               
               

               
            

Legacy_The Amethyst Dragon

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A Lesson Learned: PLT Mapping
« Reply #2 on: November 26, 2013, 10:19:35 pm »


               And a related lesson:

Check to make sure that the .plt files you intend on using aren't already overridden by a hak file lower down in your content list (which means it's still higher priority than the default resources).

I'm looking at you, cep2_core7.hak.
               
               

               
            

Legacy_Grymlorde

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A Lesson Learned: PLT Mapping
« Reply #3 on: November 27, 2013, 05:03:35 pm »


               Thanks for the tip, AD. This should be stickied.