From Blender to Fallout 3 - Tutorial - Part 1

[Liiiaara]

there were no microphone and voice recording back in 2009 ?

[XZXMCPROXZX]

im trying to texture a scar-l and i cant get the uv image editor thing to work

[Taurshien]

Hey what if I wanted to take an object out of Fallout 3 and bring it into Blender? Preferably a character model or more precisely some armor or clothes?

[TheArtisten]

@Taurshien Follow the video from 0:30 and outward, select the object you want to extract instead of the ashtray. You may also want to extract the appurtenant textures. With basic knowledge of the working of Blender, you should be able to apply the textures accordingly for render or similar use. Just remember they are under copyright of Bethesda.

[Kickasss119]

im having a bit of an issue, im new to texturing and the model im trying to texture has a LOT of faces. When i try ot paint it, sometimes the paint wont show up, or it paint other parts of the mesh as well, and im doing the 3d paint not the UV paint

[TheArtisten]

@Kickasss119 First, I would advise you to not try to texture a highpoly model to be used in a game, you'd need to make a low-poly version anyways, and the usual practice is to paint on the low-poly model instead. When you say 3d paint, I assume you mean vertex painting? I can only give a few pointers, usually a textured UV-map is preffered to vertex paint as V-paint is meant to aid the shading of the model, and depends greatly on the vertex density.

[Kickasss119]

thank you, been lookin around for a way to texture things in blender.

[YangPanang123]

I seem to be having an issue with my mesh file... It has two separate parts, that should have separate UV maps/textures. When importing into Nifskope, one part is untexturable, and just stays pure white... Though the other mesh textures fine. I'm really lost, could you offer any advice?

[qwertypopo100]

how do you delete all stuff in the beginning

[BlackxPanther]

I wish people would release updated video tutorials of Fallout meshing.

Particularly armor meshing. Oh well, a guy can dream...

[JordansBeans]

Alright, if i made a weapon with a detachable magazine, would i have to make the mag separate?

[TheArtisten]

@JordansBeans yeah, it has to be a separate object if you want it to animate.

[JordansBeans]

@TheArtisten same with the trigger and bolt too, right?

[TheArtisten]

@JordansBeans yep, although the setup may differ with different weapons.

[foodgarbage]

have you noticed? this is probably the ONLY tutorial

[BlenderBug]

did you see this? fallout3nexus_ _ com/downloads/file . php?id=6107

it has your name on it :)

[TheArtisten]

@BlenderBug yeah, Miaxismus (the author) did a splendid job on that training manual! :) Oh, I'll put that link in the description, I think it'll help a lot more than my poor try at tutorial. :)

[foodgarbage]

1:24 i can't seems to find "nif" in my import options

[TheArtisten]

@foodgarbage this tutorial is outdated, find another one. And I reckon you didn't read the description and followed the instructions? You need the blender nif scripts.

[foodgarbage]

@TheArtisten i have nifskope and blender

[TheArtisten]

@foodgarbage you still need the blender nif scripts...

[foodgarbage]

does it also work for retexture?

[TheArtisten]

@foodgarbage Yes, although this would't be the approach I'd use to retexture an object. The best method is to simply create new textures based on the old ones, and instead of replacing the model, you can use texture packs to apply the new textures to the same model from within the Geck. ;) There are heaps of tutorials that explains that subject, I recommend Miaximus' tutorial "Fallout3 Training Manual on Blender GIMP NifSkope and GECK".

[foodgarbage]

why ashtry? so the new mod "replace" the ashtry?

[TheArtisten]

@foodgarbage nah, I just chose the ashtray for the sake of this tutorial. ;) However, this tutorial was created a long time ago from when I was modding FO3 actively, so I'm pretty sure it's outdated and hopefully better tutorials have replaced it. For instance I found a nice one by WolfR on a quick search.

[foodgarbage]

@TheArtisten thanks for the reply, and you also did a wonderful job. thank you for explaining and the tutorial.

[TheArtisten]

@foodgarbage Thanks for the kind words, but as I said there are probably better guides out there by now, as this one was made for quite an old version of the NIF scripts. ;)

[tonyanubis]

4:29 how do i make the mesh on the left become like the uv test grid thing on the left?

[TheThePotatoes]

Will this work for Fallout:New vegas?

[TheArtisten]

@TheThePotatoes as far as I know, yes. don't think the nif structure is different from NV and FO3.

[Colorzize]

I don't have the option to insert .nif files.

D:

How'd you get it?

[z4ckyr]

I need voice ;(

[megamatt111]

Thank you so much. This tutorial helped me put a Dalek in FO3. Now i am one step closer to making a Doctor Who quest. Tell me if you like Doctor who and I could keep you posted on my progress.

[Dracofell1]

my fomm dosent have the bsa unpacer option



[z4ckyr]

@Dracofell1 It has under file or open

[SiliconeSlave]

Great tutorial. Thanks! :D

You wouldn't happen to know how to make a custom creature for Fallout 3? I've looked everywhere and can't really find a tutorial. Thanks again.

[TheArtisten]

@SiliconeSlave Wish I could help, but I haven't gotten into creature creation (nor character animating) for Fallout 3, so even though I know it's possible I don't know of any specific tutorial for that. But unless you use a duplicate of a already existing armature, re-creating hundreds of animations can get a little tedious. Best luck!

[SiliconeSlave]

@TheArtisten Oh well.. So the search continues. ;)

Thanks anyway! Oh, one more thing. Would this tutorial of your work for static objects as well, like a cabinet or table, and just substituting in the appropriate .nif file for an existing object ingame? I've been meaning to make some new furniture. So domesticated, I know. lol

[TheArtisten]

@SiliconeSlave yeah, although it may not be an straight-forward copy paste in some cases, one should take care not to mess up any animation data when modifying animated furniture like lockers and the like, and sofas and chairs have special "sit"-markers for the players position which are viewable on the model from within niofskope or the geck (you know, those blue character poses on furnitures).

[TheArtisten]

@TheArtisten char limit reached :p

But basically, finding the nitristrip/shape-branch with nifskope and replace the data and collision accordingly should work. :) This tutorial is by the way somewhat outdated, with the current version of the blender nif scripts many types of models should be possible to export straight from blender to a working nif, or at least require less awkward substitution. :p

[SiliconeSlave]

@TheArtisten I'll keep that in mind when making containers and chairs/beds with the markers. I think I'll start with basics like bookshelves, tables etc, just play around with the basics and move up from there. Still have to master blender though, but I'll let you know if I'm having any trouble. Thanks! ;)

[djhackersunited]

i can't find an option to import a .nif file into blender like you did at 1:23. the option doesn't show up. can you help me out?

[TheArtisten]

@djhackersunited you need blender nif scripts, read the descriptions

[mikle130]

in #2 of this series thing i cant get my creation in to nifskope pleasse help

[mikle130]

what do u do at 1:57 because im stuck there cos im new

[painkilleredx]

this is way to complex...

I just want to:

extract a .NIF>convert it with blender into a .OBJ>edit it with another program>convert it back to a .NIF and export it with blender.

So i have EVERYTHING texture and model..i just dont know how to export.

[ronrico0710]

that thing netimmerse i dont have it what is that????

in my ashtray says bethesda art file

[ronrico0710]

well i unpack to where???

a new folder or the folder .blender where my project name is??

[TheArtisten]

@ronrico0710 unpack the .nif to wherever you want it to be :p

[Essence5299]

i cant import Nif. files on mine either any help?

[mikle130]

@Essence5299 i had the same problem but i figured it out

u need to download pyffi or somethin and blender_nif_scripts

[mic112211]

on mine i can't import nifs can u please tell me y.

[TheRealNumeroid]

I can't find the ashtray.nif, any idea where it might be? I only see mod nifs...

[TheArtisten]

@TheRealNumeroid You have to unpack it with Fallout Mod Manager, as seen in the beginning of the video.

[ronrico0710]

@TheArtisten i try to unpack but i cant find it whats the name of the carpet

[TheImmortalDimebag]

When I go to view there is no Paint Tool selection, it instead has Curves tool.

[TheArtisten]

@TheImmortalDimebag curves tool? never heard of, sounds like you added a curve or something.. Are you sure you changed to "Texture Paint" at the right place?

[TheImmortalDimebag]

@TheArtisten yes, I am talking about in the UV Mapping panel, you switch to Paint Tool, right above that is Curves tool. on mien paint Tool is missing.

[TheArtisten]

@TheImmortalDimebag I think you must enable texture painting in the UV/Image Viewer, the icon is a drawing pencil, it should be just left for the gift package icon.

[TheImmortalDimebag]

when I go to View to go to "paint tool" it is not there, Curves tool is there instead.

[KittenKiller]

Nevermind.

[KittenKiller]

How do you set up the grid for Fallout?

[BL00F0X]

I see you doing all these other things and I don't know what they do. I'm also having trouble navigating Blender's (not so user friendly imo) interface.

[BL00F0X]

I wish you would explain things better. :(

[KAKOROTH]

Ok here's my problem. I didn't have the import script for the nif files soooo. I looked at f3nexus and found the nif scripts. Downloaded but said I needed these two like python things. Ok went to download them installed, then installed the nif scripts. Went to blender and saw the nif scripts in the import area. Woohoo, or so I thought, turned out as soon as I clicked on it it said Could not find 1 of the python things and the other had script error. WTF!! I need help bad it P.0s me off bad. thx

[TheArtisten]

check the niftools forum, this ain't a helpdesk.

[poopskinTheLiar]

This'll be nice, i want to make a robot follower that'll have a unique model.

[JohnnyBoyPacheco]

where do u extract the file to?? in the beginning??

[JeremyLeroy96]

this will be perfect for "repositioning" the clips!

[slowmoron7]

I'm just really impatient when it comes to computers which makes a prick, admitedly, and I didn't want to be bogged down with loads to do when I just want to get on with it. It just seems that I'm more rubbish with a computer than what I thought I was and I maybe should have stuck to Fallout 3 and left the Geck to the pro's. Thank you for your advice though.

[TheArtisten]

It's always hard in the start, with a lot of new things to get used to, but eventually things will hopefully just sink down :) I wish you luck in modding, and if you should get stuck then I suggest the forums at BethSoft or Fallout3Nexus, youtube isn't exactly suitable for modding help ;)

[KittenKiller]

Hey, I was wondering if you could help me. It seems I've ran into a bit of a problem.

When I try to export from blender, it gives me some thing about not supporting non-uniform scaling on an object called "cube.002".

Thing is; this object doesn't exist. If I select all and delete everything in the scene, it still says there is a "cube.002". I have two objects in the scene, and neither of them go by the name of "cube.002".

[TheArtisten]

Try to go to the outliner, and find the object there. Select it and press Ctrl-A to apply all scaling. The object may be on another layer, so you should check them too.

[KittenKiller]

I was never able to find it, not even on another layer, but I just exported it as something else and imported it back.

[slowmoron7]

Actually, just a quick one, how do you put sodding files from fallout 3 into the nifskope programme? (And PLEASE dont tell me that you have to download summut else cuz otherwise i'll just scrap the whole thing) Or is that a three hour process as well? It's just that I can't be arsed with trying to enjoy myself andI've godda figure stuff out... really winds me up

[TheArtisten]

@slowmoron7 First, if you want to use sound in the game, you could either use the geck to make a sound file or if you want to add the sound to the .nif file for some reason, then you'd have to add animation to the process. I have made a (new) video about animation, but youtube didn't take it so I've uploaded it on Fallout 3 Nexus, if you want to check it out you can see the link in the description and follow the link in the "Update 2" area. But you should check out Miax audio holotape tutorial.

[slowmoron7]

I tell you what, Bethesda couldn't have made a more difficult process could they? Fuckin hell, download the geck then you've godda download nifskope or get Adobe photoshop... I just lost interest, Bethesda should have just like stopped when they'd made they dlc's... This geck bollucks is too much like hard work. It's like being back at fuckin school in an I.T lesson, godda learn how to use every-fuckin-thing jesus christ Im gunna stop there cuz there's no point... no point....

[TheArtisten]

@slowmoron7 So you blame Bethesda for giving the Geck away, for free, and also creating helpful tutorials for us? Sorry, but I lost your point there, it's no secret that you need to learn how to mod the game before you can mod it, and IMHO Bethesda have done great things to support modders. You need to work on your attitude if you want to mod the game, if you get tired only by downloading the assets, then you should find something else to do. But remember that you can get help in the BGS forums.

[luckybill5]

mt blender import menu doesn't give me the option to import a .nif file

[TheArtisten]

Read link in description, you need the blender nif scripts

[trent1542]

How come when I try to open up .nif files in Nifskope the model doesn't load

I get a little window with a list of errors

[TheArtisten]

make sure you have downloaded the latest version of Nifskope, currently it's 1.0.20

[luckybill5]

does it matter were i save it

[TheArtisten]

Keep it under the meshes folder, preferably under a separate folder for your mod.

[PlayThGame]

okey, also. After you created the UV map and went back to the model, why/how do the model get a kinda "texture"?

[TheArtisten]

That was the UV test grid texture button at 4:24

[PlayThGame]

After 4:30 I didn't know what you were doing :S

[TheArtisten]

I recalculated the normals in edit-mode with Ctrl-N before export

[prowokator]

Is there some good reason why the normals should be flipped? Is it only in Blender that this should be done or..?

[TheArtisten]

In Blender, if you look closely before the normals are flipped, you can see how distorted the object looks, especially when rotating the view. It should be enough to do it in Blender, although Nifskope also has that capacity.

[prowokator]

I'm using 3dsMax and I didn't flip normals at any point. Model looked good both in Max and in NifScope. I am actually trying to make a new building model, so is using ashtray nif as a base a good idea?

Also, I noticed that when you saved your model for the last time in NIFscope, it changed the BFSFadeNode value from "ashtray1" to "pillar_prep", but in my case it stayed as "ashtray1". Will this be a problem, and how to change it manually?

THANKS for these tutorials! Now for the GECK phase :)

[prowokator]

Ok it works ingame. But man I think I should have used a static mesh as a base for a building :)

[TheArtisten]

Yeah, it's best to work out from what you want to make. Recalculation of the normals should only be necessary if the object in question have problems, that can occur while modeling. The BFSFadeNode value is the name of the block, and it shouldn't matter what it's called, unless you plan on animate it (.kf files need correct name). I guess you should check the panel at the bottom if you want to change it. Congrats with your new model :)

[aestin]

is this a tutorial for people who already know a bit how to use nifskope..coz i really couldn't follow it .lookin at what you wrote and following the dot..only got one pair of eyes.

[TheArtisten]

Yeah, I realize it was a little unclear at that point, you should check out Miax's guide, it is very detailed and I'm sure it will be helpful to you. You don't have to have any experience with nifskope, as log as you can find the same places I modified. Good luck.

[helicopter0009]

FFS i dont even know how to do the first step how do i delete everything????

you go way to fast for me :(

[TheArtisten]

Delete all objects in Blender by seecting everything with 'a' and press 'X' or 'del'.

Miaximus made a very detailed guide about this process, you should check it out, the link is on the Fallout3Nexus page.

[kingofbobland]

when i went on the GECK and made a new weapon and pick the Nif. file that i made in blender and it was just a error maker. Plz help

[demolitionman8]

Great tutorial so far, but at about 4:55 or so seconds in... Well, somewhere around there, you say "Do this as well". What did you do. It just looked like you hovered over the UV section and then clicked on the model to make it white... It's kind of unclear...

[TheArtisten]

First I went into texture mode (that happen when the pillar got the texture) with Alt-Z. As you can see, it looks a little odd, something that was clearly shown when I rotated the view a little. So I went in editmode, selected all with 'A', and Pressed Ctrl-n to recalculate the normals. So far so good. Then I selected the other mesh, the collision mesh. It was completely white in 'texture view'. I just popped into edit-mode and recalculated the normals for the collision, and popped out again.

[KittenKiller]

Perhaps a link to the program you used to import and export the .nif? The production files are completely fucking useless to me.

[TheArtisten]

The scripts name (you know it if you read the descriptions in the file link) and google should be enough for you to find the download page yourself. And if the production files are useless, don't bother use them then.

[nuttyape]

in the GECK i can not see my model do you know what i am doing wrong?

[TheArtisten]

I don't. Try to repeat the steps.

[kingofbobland]

i unpacked it and when i went to import it, it wasnt there? help!

[TheArtisten]

where did you unpack it to? Can you see the file in the regular file explorer?

[oberonfamily]

when i open textures with photoshop they have a normal image then a smaller one and so on till its so small you cant see it... like a holodosk, do i have to edit all the pics or just the bigest one...im really lost why its like that

[TheArtisten]

What you see is the mipmaps, a technique for more optimized viewing of textures. In the gimp plugin, you can choose to skip the import of mipmaps, I don't know with PS though. I guess you can be safe with deleting those layers, and just edit the biggest image. Good luck ;)

[oberonfamily]

kk ima try takin out the others

[Blutasper]

Thx for this great tutorial !

[BlackSabbath612]

Hey is there a video tutorial on how to compiling NifSkope? I haven't had much luck. I did everything the instructions on that Niftools website told me, but still nothing. Help?

[TheArtisten]

You could check this wiki page:

niftools . sourceforge . net/wiki/NifSkope/Compile

(remove spaces)

I can't help you further, since I haven't tried to compile it myself.

[BlackSabbath612]

well, there goes my help then...that was the tutorial site I was using. Thanks anyway.

[shadowsparrton]

i need some help, my computer will not let me run the .nif opeaner for some reson. it says the pyffi is not there but it is. got a tip that may fix that if u do thanks

[monsterhunter99]

ok question...how do u install the nifscripts...do u need python...pyyif(btw,this is for oblivion)

[trent1542]

How come when I try to import the ashtray it won't let me import .nif files?

[TheArtisten]

What program do you want to import it to? If it's Blender, have you installed the Blender NIF Scripts?

[trent1542]

I'm using blender but now I got the NIF scripts thanks :)

[wiremod]

well i got the scripts and it says that python is not installed i installed python what do i do?

[TheArtisten]

You could for example try to use the scripts?

[re6ter]

Will these models work in Morrowind as well?

I know there .nif files but are they compatible?

[TheArtisten]

I highly doubt the same files will work, as they use a newer version if Netimmerse files. But you can try to select Morrowind instead of Fallout 3 when exporting, and try to work your way from there. You would be best of with a tutorial for Morrowind, since, obviously, the setup would probably be much different, and I will not provide any support for Morrowind.

-Artisten

[re6ter]

I see thanks.

[ultrasuperbox]

hey cool vids! 5 stars! we make blender stuff too! check out our animations! and mabye subscribe too :D

[unclechoo]

i dont know if it is just my computer but some of you links on nexus seem to be broken

[TheArtisten]

Thanks, fixed!