This is just a tutorial to accompany the second part of
my self illum tutorial. Most of you know how to do this, but some do not. This is for those who don't.
Today I'll be showing you how to apply textures to a BC model in
Max 9. There are to be two parts to this tutorial, part one will go over the basics (diff, illum, and spec,) and part two will go over animated maps.
Before we can start, you will need to head over to
SourceForge and
download NifSkope. This will enable you to import and export BC's native .nif model format.
Now that you have that taken care of, let's import a .nif. Today we'll use
CG's Sovereign.
Ok, first go up to file>import.
And load up the nif.
Your import settings should look exactly like this.
Now let's open up the "Material Editor" (m) and get to work.
Use the "eye dropper" tool to assign the material from that particular section to the slot. We'll start with the nacelle grilles.
First, scroll down to "Shader Basic Parameters" and change it from "Niftools Shader" to "Blinn."
Now, open up the "Maps" tab and you will notice that the illum map is already assigned. We will, however, need to make some adjustments to make it display properly.
Tick the "Alpha" box in "Mono Channel Output," "Alpha as Grey" in "RGB Channel Output," and "Image Alpha" in "Alpha Source."
Now we'll go back and apply the diffuse texture. Click the button next to "Diffuse" and select "Bitmap."
Locate the folder where the model's textures are and select the one you have assigned as the illum texture. (In this case grille_glow.)
Now, tick "RGB Intensity" in "Mono Channel Output," "RGB" in "RGB Channel Output," and "None (Opaque)" in "Alpha Source."
Congrats you have successfully applied your texture so that is it self-lit. Now on to speculars (also known as "shine" maps.)
The nacelle grille doesn't have it's own specular texture, so we'll be applying the saucer texture now. Follow the same steps above to apply the illum channel. Then, click the box next to the "Specular Level" and select bitmap, just like the illum map, only this time we'll apply the _spec or _specular file.
And there you are!
Once you have applied all of the textures, you should have a nice, textured model.
