Unique ship textures in-game

@Bejaymac:

It’s called a CRC conflict and happens when you try to ‘copy’ an FL item and give it a new texture, if it reads the original hash code first then every item with that code gets the same texture reguardless of MAT file.

You need to ‘clone’ the CMP & MAT giving them new internal component names to stop the conflict. It’s a bit of a drawn out process and requires the FlModelCloner, UTF_Edit & something to calculate hash codes (FlModelTool & CRCcalc do just fine), and if you want to get the wireframes working you’ll also need a hex editor.
You might also be able to do it with LS’s CMP editor but I haven’t tryed it myself yet to see if it’s possible.

I’d write a “how to” but I don’t have the time right now (got a family gathering today) so it’ll probably be tomorrow before I can (unless someone beats me to it :P)

Thanks the guideline Bejay, im waiting for your tuts, when you have time.

@Mindhunter:

Get the Freelancer model cloner
HERE -> http://the-starport.net/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=22&Itemid=43

Load your CMP and MAT files and rename alle model groups and texture groups, i normaly just place a nu_clone01_ in front of each name, than save your mat and cmp as new model and replace the ones in your mod with them, thats its…

Thanks the quick answer and the link Mindhunter, i have already done what you wrote step by step for each ships i re-textured, true, without using CRC and modelcloner, so im gonna try that. Is there any relation between faction activity and their levels in systems? Because this “CRC confusing” appears in that 2 systems i wrote.
The “unique” textures came from the vanilla ones, only a couple of color, saturation, etc… modifications, i have .dds and .tga formats as well.

@Mindhunter:

I would like to take a look at your mat file.
Can u upload it somewhere or add me to your msn? my msn is [email protected]

I dont have msn account at the moment, but i can send my mat, sur, and cmp files via email. May i send to that msn email adress?

@Mindhunter:

I would like to take a look at your mat file.
Can u upload it somewhere or add me to your msn? my msn is [email protected]

Message has been sent via email.

Thanks in advance,

@Legion:

You’ve forgotten something here… Using the modelcloner alone isn’t enough! You need to use the UTF editor and rename the respective nodes there too!

I used UTF editor and all of the unique textures have unique name at the nods.

@Legion:

@Davis:

@Legion:

You’ve forgotten something here… Using the modelcloner alone isn’t enough! You need to use the UTF editor and rename the respective nodes there too!

I used UTF editor and all of the unique textures have unique name at the nods.

Ah okay… Oups! Might have misread something!

Never mind m8

The only thing i dont understand, in couple of systems it appears with right textures that i added, and in some other systems doesnt. I have no clue.

@Mindhunter:

OK i’ve looked into your .mat file and into the border_world.mat and the texture names are totaly edentic!!!

M8 u need to make unique, here is the shortest and fastest way todo it!

-Open up your cmp and mat in the FL model cloner and rename ALL model group! for example:
bw_elite_lod1020911031436.3db  becomes
crease01_bw_elite_lod1020911031436.3db

and so on…

-do the same to the texturenames
Import the original cmp model within textures into ms3d modifie your texture names in the same way as u did in the cloner (SAME NAMES),

-export your renamed textures as mat and move the to the same folder as the cloned cmp, open up the cmp in hard cmp and see if all textures are there (if not than u did not use the same name in the modelcloner and ms3d.

Well thats it, i know its not very detailed but i hope u know what i mean.

Greetz
Mind

I thought its enough to add unique names for the textures at the nodes.
A bad thing is i am by no means an expert on milkshape, except i imported ms3d files to 3ds, but it was a trial version, and it has expired.
I save this tutorial you wrote into a text file, its enough detailed to understand, and when i can, i will do it.

Thanks your time to check my files

Problem has been fixed…. Dont ask how All what ive done to make one more entry in the levels of npc_ships.
My first was: d1-8, d9-19. The new one: d1-8, d9-10, d11-19. The ship’s texture is right no bug, or ctd. Ive spotted the problem of texturing appeared in that two system when the faction level is 10.

Howsoever, thanks to everyone for the replies,

I checked many things tonight, and the problem has appeared again. It seems, when i have saved slot that base where the ship could be found it appears with unique texture.
If i start new game, and fly there, the ship has vanilla texture.

@Mindhunter:

Well i tell u again (plz trust someone who has converted over 100 ships into FL):

Change the freaking modelgroup names and the texture names, if u dont do so u will get various bugs again and again!!!
In FL every and i mean EVERY modelgroup and textur MUST have a unique names!!!
This applies for ALL cmp 3db sph txm mat etc. files!

Ive done that, i made unique texture names and unique modelgroup names, the whole texture has gone only a solid gray body could be seen.
I did it manually as you wrote in your post at the first page.

U can also edit your mat by hand but this way is easier cause u only need to change 1/3 as in utf.

@Mindhunter:

When u got a grey material instead of your texture than something in your texture is wrong maybe its a tga file inside a MIPS node or a dds in a MIP0 node.
Might also be a wrong name, remember that the the textures libary uses the same name as the nodes in the material libery for example:
Material library:
-bw_plate01 <-thats the name u need to enter into your cmp NOT the name from the texture library
–Dt_name (enter here your texture in this example it should be bw_plate01.tga)
–Dt_flags
–Type

Texture Library:
bw_plate01.tga
-MIPS (MIPS means it inlcudes a dds texture panel, if its tga it must be MIP0)

Yes, i tried both tga, and .dds, these textures were in use before.
As you advised, i opened the mat library, and at the names there is a little window at the right side name is ASCII
and there i can not modify manually the original name.
And one more thing: it seems when i rename the lods in the cmp the model itself dissapears.