Those Ash Zombies Again (by "MerricksDad")

[Legacy_MissJaded]

               

I started a post here not long ago, reporting of the graphical Problem I was having with the ash zombies by MerricksDad.

 

http://forum.bioware...phical-problem/

 

It has been a while, but I have come back with an update, as I have found that the graphical problem lies with some of the files in the cep, which I have found to be changed from what they originally were, when the hak was first made.

 

I don't know if anyone else has had a chance to check out which files they are, but since I have all the current cep hak files (for 2.60) downloaded to my pc, I took it upon myself this evening to have a look through the zombified '> files in the cep and check them against the original zombified files in "MerricksDad" hak. (this is with nwn 1.71 update installed)

 

Okay, so I used the hak editor in my nwn "utils folder" to open the current cep hak files, and of course the original MerricksDad one too. I have found that the (wrong) changed file types are in "cep2_core6.hak" and I'm just going to list the files and the ones that have been changed for reference. 

 

"appearance2da"

"c_zombieash02.mdl"

"c_zombieash03.mdl"

"c_zombieash02.mdl"

"tx_hotcoals04.txi"

"tx_moltmetal3.txi"

 

The above files are fine. No need to change them.

 

The following in my list are the ones that have changed : 

 

"fxpa_fire21" - This has been changed from .tga (the original file type) to .dds

"tx_burnedskin" - Has been changed from .tga to .dds

"tx_hotcoals04" - Has been changed from .tga to .dds

"tx_hotcoals06" - Has been changed from .tga to .dds

"tx_lava12" - Has been chaged from .tga to .dds

"tx_moltmetal3" - Has been changed from .tga to .dds

 

 

And lastly.... there is also a missing zombie file which I cannot find in the cep.

That file is : "fxpa_cinder01"

 

 

So to this conclusion, it looks like some of the file types have been changed to .dds since nwn 1.71 and I think, possibly 1.69 too.

I have no idea why some of these file have been changed, but what I don't quite understand is why the .txi ones haven't and are still the same? I am assuming those are texture files though, right?

 

Anyway, I thought it might be of some use to anyone using the cep, and of course MerricksDad himself, to know this for future reference.

Whatever happens with these files next will of course be left up to MerricksDad and/or the cep team.

I hope it is of some use. '>

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Pstemarie]

               

TXI files are reference files used for textures to tell the game engine about specific processing methods to be used on the corresponding TGA file (i.e. the TGA file that shares the same name as the TXI file). What you want to do is eliminate the DDS files and replace them with the original TGA files supplied by Merricksdad.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MerricksDad]

               

Does DDS not work with TXI? I don't tend to convert ANY of my textures, that way I can continue playing with them as needed until that day sometime in 3020 when I can call everything I made "completely done". Yes I plan to live til at least then, possibly as a program I constructed '>

 

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Pstemarie]

               

Does DDS not work with TXI?

 

 

I've never gotten a definitive answer either way, but if you look at the original NWN source, you'll see that any TXI file always has a like-named TGA file, but not a DDS (at least not one that I've been able to locate). AFAIK, it is standard practice in the CC Community to use only TGA files with TXI files.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Zwerkules]

               

I've never gotten a definitive answer either way, but if you look at the original NWN source, you'll see that any TXI file always has a like-named TGA file, but not a DDS (at least not one that I've been able to locate). AFAIK, it is standard practice in the CC Community to use only TGA files with TXI files.

You can use dds for any texture that isn't animated by txi. For procedural type textures you not only need them to be tga, but also no bigger than 256x256. Cycle animations work at least up to 512x512.

So if you have lava, water or something like that, it has to be 256x256 tga. If you have a magic mouth it can be 512x512 tga. Everything else that isn't animated by the txi and just has 'blending', 'alphamean' or similar lines can be dds.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MerricksDad]

               

Cycle animations work on HUGE files. See my animated water textures extracted from TL2.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MissJaded]

               

You can use dds for any texture that isn't animated by txi. For procedural type textures you not only need them to be tga, but also no bigger than 256x256. Cycle animations work at least up to 512x512.

So if you have lava, water or something like that, it has to be 256x256 tga. If you have a magic mouth it can be 512x512 tga. Everything else that isn't animated by the txi and just has 'blending', 'alphamean' or similar lines can be dds.

 

I felt I had to read your reply over 2 or 3 times, as I'm not quite sure what you mean when you say "procedural type textures" and "Cycle animations"

They are new to me. An animated magic mouth (as you stated) by appearance is smaller than the animated water and lava et al. But it does sound like it uses bigger textures...... I think. (I'm not 100% sure there)

 

Other than that, it does seem, (if I'm right on what you're saying) by simply saying.... that anything at all really that isn't animated, (for e.g. a placeable tree or fence) it can use .dds with .txi, but anything that IS animated in any way, (for e.g. animated water, lava placeables, or infact the ash zombies) it has to take use of .tga (aside with .txi) to be able to work correctly.

Again, I'm not 100% sure, but to some extent, I think that's how it works.

 

Please feel free to correct me though if I'm not quite right on anything I've said. '> 

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MissJaded]

               

I know there are a couple of other npc creature types made by MerricksDad that went into the CEP with wonky textures and/or animations that I'd read in the other thread (via my original link in my 1st post here) that had been reported by someone. (for e.g. the white looking gorilla creature from 'gorillas and gorillons' - HERE

 

I think I'd like to take a look at those as well, as I'm in no doubt they have been changed into dds too. Also the skeleton creature with missing textures that I noticed someone in the other thread had reported. I think that was the tomb guardian, but I'm not 100% sure.

I'll have a look around I think. 

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MerricksDad]

               

I went back and updated the hak files for both the Male & Female skeletons, and the Skeletal Tomb Guardian. There were 3 missing textures in the Tomb Guardian, not one. The other textures I think make the eyes glow, and modify the soul flame inside the creature.

 

I still need to go back and fix all the modules I released with the "examplearea" reference. That could take some time, so don't expect it anytime soon. Also where CEP is related, they don't need the mod files for these. Anything released after some time in mid 2014 when I was working heavily on my NwToolkit will have that examplearea reference, since I put that ARE file in the override directory, which I now know is a big no-no.

 

Next I'll repack the gorilla & girallon files. I see I released separate updated animation models for those. It also seems like the Bar-Lgura has a glowing eye texture I need to make sure exists in the file.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Zwerkules]

               

I felt I had to read your reply over 2 or 3 times, as I'm not quite sure what you mean when you say "procedural type textures" and "Cycle animations"

Procedural animations look like this and are typically used for water, lava, etc:

proceduretype arturo

channelscale 8

0

0

0

0

    

channeltranslate 8

0

0

1

0.5


distort 4

arturowidth 64

arturoheight 64

distortionamplitude 8

speed 16


defaultheight 64

defaultwidth 64


downsamplemin 0

downsamplemax 0


alphamean 0.1

 

Procedural type animations on textures bigger than 256x256 always crash the game for me.

 

 

A magic mouth is an example for a cycle animation. You have 4x4 (8x8 and so on) images in one tga which show a mouth with the lips opened more or less and sometimes closed. That way you'll get a mouth that looks as if it is talking. I had tested a cycle animation with a 512x512 tga. MerriksDad confirmed that they can be even bigger.

 

Other textures with a txi file which doesn't include procedural or cycle animations can be dds.

 

What doesn't work as dds are loadscreens. They always have to be tga or they won't be displayed.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MerricksDad]

               

We really just need to write a book on all these topics, starting with the custom content guide 3.0 as the base layout.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Tarot Redhand]

               

Maybe I just did it wrong but with the (only, so far) type of visual effects I've made (as seen in my Micro Maps 2 package) I found that they too had to be tga and not dds.

 

TR

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Tarot Redhand]

               

@MD A list of links to all the various tutorials on YouTube would be useful as well. I think I've found yours and OTR's but I've got a nagging feeling that there are others that I haven't found by doing searches on there.

 

TR

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_boodah83]

               

What doesn't work as dds are loadscreens. They always have to be tga or they won't be displayed.

 

Just a (kinda useless) footnote to that statement: dds loadscreens actually show up in-game, but won't be displayed in the toolset (found that out when six's wildlands tileset which comes with dds loadscreens was added to PQ).

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Pstemarie]

               

Just a (kinda useless) footnote to that statement: dds loadscreens actually show up in-game, but won't be displayed in the toolset (found that out when six's wildlands tileset which comes with dds loadscreens was added to PQ).

 

It's just the smaller loadscreen which needs to be TGA to have it appear in the toolset. I'll have to make sure those are showing up for Q.