Topic: .

[Fallen_Warrior]

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[atheorhaven]

ok i know alot of you hate SFC3 but its the only one i can play my pc doesnt like the others and i try to make my ships for alll the versions of the game i have made a few hundred damage texture sheets for various models all have which have custom damage that flows with the ships not just a picture of flame i have twisted metal and green plasma coming out of them most of them i will release but the new ships i have made them for dont have any damage maps of there own so could anyone either do me the huge favor attaching them in the rioght places or tell me how to do in very simple terms for Milkshape:P

They're pretty simple to put in.. if you have a texture called "hull.bmp" and the illumination texture is called "hulli.bmp", then the texture names to have them show up in SFC 3 will be hullD.bmp for the damage map for the main texture, and hulliD.bmp for the illumination of the damage texture.  Just remember, the last character in the name should be D and the game will recognize it as a damage map.

And it doesn't have to be done in Milkshape.. the main texture and illumination texture would be done there, but the game recognizes the damage texture based off the other two and it's never attached to the model at all. 

[atheorhaven]

is it that simple? i tried something like that and it didnt work
oh well i will give it another shot once the titans lights are attached

It is.. here's a good example direct out of G@W..



All that was needed there was the file named *D.bmp and up they pop on damage.

[Reverend]

So, let me get this straight, I can put any old damage texture in there, name it accordingly, then copy it and name it accordingly for the illumination map, then I will have a working damage texture, essentially?

[atheorhaven]

So, let me get this straight, I can put any old damage texture in there, name it accordingly, then copy it and name it accordingly for the illumination map, then I will have a working damage texture, essentially?

As long as they meet the usual texture requirements of something like 32x, 64x, 128x, 256x, 512x, or 1024x, in a word yup. 

(By that I mean texture sizes something like 128x128, 512x256, 1024x32... whatever works with the SFC engine).

The one thing I'd do?  If you use a SFC 2 damage texture as a basis.. take the damaged section and extend the da,age across the entire texture. 

[Reverend]

I once saw this damage texture that made it look like you had this gaping hole in your ship! It looked hideous, er, really cool.
What difference would it make were I to extend that damage across the whole image? Will it make it look more darstic?
Thanks for the info!!!!

[atheorhaven]

I once saw this damage texture that made it look like you had this gaping hole in your ship! It looked hideous, er, really cool.
What difference would it make were I to extend that damage across the whole image? Will it make it look more darstic?
Thanks for the info!!!!

Keep in mind that wherever the game feels there is damage in SFC 3, that's where it's going to draw the texture.  So you want to have the damage texture able to reflect the area it's drawn on ideally... coils showing in the nacelles, radial structures showing through in a saucer, that kind of idea.  Then if the damage is drawn, it'll really set off the damage.  But if you don't go to that extreme, then a really good overall damage texture is great to see.  And it'll definitely make things more drastic.  Just remember, this is another great oppurtunity to show off your work. 

[Reverend]

Ahh, thank you for explaining it!.. makes perfect sense now!
maybe Ill make a little new thread asking if anyone can make a couple of really nasty general damage maps, like one with a big ol' hole in it..

[markyd]

what about the damage dummy points placed in max.... a1,a2,a3    b1,b2,b3    I place these in an clockwise formation everytime I create a model from fresh as it tells you to do so in the model manual.... should I not bother???? The Damage textures will work without the dummy points?

[atheorhaven]

what about the damage dummy points placed in max.... a1,a2,a3    b1,b2,b3    I place these in an clockwise formation everytime I create a model from fresh as it tells you to do so in the model manual.... should I not bother???? The Damage textures will work without the dummy points?

No, you still need them... it's how the game knows where to place the damage in the first place. 

[Red_Green]

I have done quite a few damage textures now. Some ships dont seem to display damage as well as others.
According to the manual in SFC3 model tools which I recommend people read. It explains damage maps good and even how to go about texturing a little. Basically the game assigns parts of the damage map (it uses different parts but never the entire map at once) to certain  of the different 6 hex sides.  Hence the a1-3  b1-3 c1-3 d1-3 e1-3 f1-3. Sometimes if you add lots of detail. The game might cut off the damge in places that make the detail look odd. Like you might make a hole in the hull but only half the hole gets assigned. 

Where the damage gets applied is affected by where you put the damage points. So its best to place them more on top then bottom. I founf that the fewer maps a ship uses the more even the damage looks. Damage gets cut off abrubtly on ships that use 15 texture maps or more.

What you do to make a map is just take the original and 1st darken the entire map. Things that work are charcoal, crhome  or adding smoke and noise and lowering gamma correction. Then select areas for hull breeches. I use the freehand option and make jagged areas thruogh out the map. Then I might do a fine weave, smoke, fire, glass, chrome fire, swirl and a light orange glow around the edges. No 2 of mine ever come out the exact same.

I wanted to post the part in the manual but couldn't cut it to paste  from the pdf file.

Here is an example of 1 that has some hull breeches detaaled in. This 1 is getting cut off a bit. Its not too bad and is fairly common. Where its getting cut off is where 2 parts are mapped ti different maps. The strut is on 1 map and the saucer/hull is on a different map. If this entire bottom was mapped to a single map, the damage would flow and blend better. Just another consideration. Overall though I prefer how SFC3 handles damage better than OP. Also just want to say that I love SFC3. I have seen people say that the ships look no better in SFC3 than in OP. Thats not true at all (though might be with an outdated video card)