normal maps

[AlexTee]

sorry for the topic but i cant find any answers on saving normal maps. i noticed in every helmet folder the paints are just named skin.pnt
but how do you save a normal map?
any help would be much appreciated.

[𝖙𝖋𝖈]

http://docs.piboso.com/wiki/index.php/Track_Creation_Rules

I know it says 'track creation rules' but the principal is the same..

Scroll down to the part titled 'Shaders' and read that.

Basically, before running your helmet through fbx2edf, add a text file with the same name as your texture for example helmet.tga would use helmet.shd. put the norm in the same folder and update the file name in the shd. Then run fbx2edf and it should be included.

[AlexTee]

h o l y fuck.
so extreme just for a normal map though?
ill pass on that lol

[Vortex_Damien]

its not that complicated

[AlexTee]

it is compared to naming something skin_norm haha
is there really no other way?

[Vortex_Damien]

Look at the link tfc provided, name it the same as your default skin
but yes name it like bike_n.tga
the .shd he is talking about is a notepad ++ file that you save as bike.shd

[𝖙𝖋𝖈]

Notepad++, notepad, it's just a TXT file. It's really easy..

You're used to MX sim so I understand it's totally different, but people here are generally pretty helpful. All most people ask is that you read whatever documentation there is.

Hell I wish there were guys around to ask like there are now back in beta 1/2 when we had to figure it all out for the first time

[AlexTee]

yeah im a total noob at this and feel bad for asking about everything but i just wanna get into it. i always try to dig around and read as much as i can but ive read that link 50 times and dont even know where to start. when i do it once ill be fine but without being able to see an example its hard to understand. and yeah i use notepad++ a whole lot when i do tracks for sim but i just cant wrap my brain around this lol. i just need to see an example i guess. much appreciate the replys/help from everyone

[𝖙𝖋𝖈]

Normals are handled the same on tracks and bikes. Download the example track and you should have your example

[AlexTee]

so i save the textures as pnt files.
but for the code i just leave it like this? (for a helmet)

bump
{
map = normal_map.tga
}
specular
{       
shininess = 6
}

or do i rename the 'normal_map.tga' as helmet_n.pnt?

[Vortex_Damien]

you want your textures to be .tga format aswell,  bump = normal map

[𝖙𝖋𝖈]

This is all done before the pnt is made. All in one folder I.e helmet/

Step 1, get your texture I.e helmet.tga

Step 2, get your normal I.e helmet_n.tga

Step 3, make a text file. Change its name to the name of your texture and rename the extension to SHD, I.e helmet.shd.

Step 4, tell the shd what normal to use I.e:

bump
{
map = helmet_n.tga
}
specular
{       
shininess = 6
}

Step 5, compile your PNT file.

Step 5 for you could also be running fbx2edf, since your model will then use these textures as the base.

[AlexTee]

and i have a pnt in the paints. but even when i open up the game it doesnt read the helmet skin. its just empty. also cant see the helmet
idk

[𝖙𝖋𝖈]

If you can't see the helmet in game, how do you know it's not loading the skin?

Is the helmet at the origin in Blender? The origin serves as the connection point between the helmet and the body. From the screenshot you posted, it's at the center of the 3d cursor but not the origin of the world. Obviously not sure what your project looks like but that's the first thing to check.

Also, is the helmet real world scale? For example, if you check the scale in Blender and find out the 3d model is only 3 inches x 3 inches, that's how big it will be in game.

If you've only included the paint when packing the model for the first time through fbx2edf, the base helmet paint wont show up as a PNT in terms of being able to select it from the bike choose screen, to see paints there you will need to create specific paints and put them in the Helmets > Yourhelmet > Paints folder.

Patience mate, it all makes sense, you can't expect to know it all from the get go.

[AlexTee]

i just thought the pnt would atleast show up in the helmet paint in the bike menu is what i meant sorry.
i actually didnt even think about the scale being different to mxs. probably completely off?



only ever had to deal with scale being 1.0
is it different for mxb?
(thanks for the replys)