Dragon Age 2
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Quenched_Steel

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QuenchedSteel

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About this mod

Alpha version of a Blender to DA2 mesh exportation script. Bit of a quick and dirty mess with some limitations right now, but suitable for hairstyle and armor editing. Testers wanted.

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UPDATE AS OF THURSDAY, JULY 21, 2016

I now have a provisional DirectX11 compatible exportation script as well.

To use this version, you will be running "da2exporter_hardcoded_dx11_fix_alpha" instead of "basic_gui". The msh functionality has also been split into "m" msh files for characters the game engine treats as male and "f" files for characters the game engine treats as female, as this was necessary to fix an issue with the knees and feet of full-body meshes appearing oddly due to slightly different bone ordering between the varieties. The rest should be fine.

ETA: Oh my god I accidentally saved over my main file with one of the exported XML files when I was testing to make sure it all worked before uploading this. Fortunately, I keep backups for a reason - the actual script should now be in there.

Hey there, and welcome to the DA2 Mesh Exportation Alpha!

I'm not going to bother with the giant preamble this time, because I've put it into a lovingly formatted PDF tutorial attached herein. Ignore at your own peril.

Feedback welcome, unless your entire feedback is "This code is really super messy," because yes, I know, that's why this is an alpha and not a finished product. I'm mostly looking for some stress testing while I figure out a more robust bone exportation.

Many, many thanks to the numerous Lightwave users who provided me with example .msh.xml/.mmh.xml files created by the Lightwave exportation script, without which this would have been effectively impossible. You guys rock.

I'm open to collaboration, but please don't create new versions of this code while I'm still playing with it, as version control will be a mess otherwise. If I ever drop out of the fandom down the line and you wish to create an updated version, however, feel free.

Otherwise, please put this thing through its paces, toss any bugs, odd functionality or suggestions for improvement my way, and enjoy!

COMMON ISSUES:

Q: I'm trying to run your script, but Blender keeps telling me "No module named da2exporter_hardcoded_bones"!
A: This error occurs when your scripts are not installed in Blender's default script filepath. You can see the default script filepath by dragging down the bar at the top - please either install your scripts there or edit this to point to the folder where you have the scripts installed.

Q: My replaced mesh just looks the same as the original!
A: There's probably something wrong with your naming or your filepathing - make sure that you have your .erf folders organized according to the filepath you're using and that all names match up to the reference .msh and .mmh of the file you're overriding.

Q: Neither the original or my replacement mesh show up - the area where there was supposed to be a mesh is completely blank!
A: Make sure that your object is in the right position and orientation - meshes that aren't properly oriented will frequently do this. If you're sure it's right, please post here, because that may be a bug with the script.

Q: My mods keep turning into a weird exploded mess in DirectX11 but not DirectX9!
A: Make sure you're using the newest version of the script. The older versions had this bug, but it should be fixed in the newest one. If you're absolutely sure you're using the newest one and are still experiencing this issue, drop me a line, because something may be broken on my end.

Q: My mesh is stretched halfway across the room even in DirectX9!
A: This typically occurs when your bones are improperly weighted. Please make sure that all of your vertices are assigned to at least one vertex group and that your vertex group names all match up to the names from the reference .mmh

Q: My mesh shows up, but it's floating in place and keeps flashing red to black!
A: This is an issue that occurs when an object cannot find its .mao. Check your .mao filepath and make sure that it lines up to the .mao you're using. Check the .mao section of the PDF if you have trouble, and feel free to post here if you're still having issues!

Q: My mesh shows up, but it's just white/weirdly textured gray!
A: Your .mao is in place just fine, but the game can't find your textures - make sure that the filepath and name in the .mao you're using match the texture you're using.

Q: My mesh shows up with textures, but the texture is totally wrong!
A: Your texture may not be aligned with your UV map. Import your image into the UV pane in Blender and make sure it lines up.

Q: My mesh shows up and the texture looks right, but a bunch of it is randomly invisible!
A: Your normals have probably been inverted. Normals tell the game which side of each face to show the texture on - if it's on the wrong side, the game doesn't know what to do! Import your texture into Blender and view it in textured mode - the parts where the texture doesn't appear should be selected and have their normals flipped.

Q: My mesh has a skin tone component, but the skin isn't changing when I change the skin tone!
A: First - make sure that you have a (yourfilename)_0t.dds file hooked up in your .mao under mml_tTintMask. This file puts the skin tone tint over every area that's painted in black, so just paint the skin tone areas in black on a transparent area and export that (alone) to your file, then make sure it's hooked up there. If you have done that, make sure your mesh part is named the same as in the reference file you're using - yes, I know, but it seriously does affect things. I once fixed the most baffling skin tone tint issue by renaming "armorm1" to "bodym1." I donno why the game does it that way, man; I just know that it works.

Can't find the answer to your question here? Still confused? Feel free to post your questions here and I'll do my best! Remember, your bug and UI feedback are essential to the eventual release of full import/export functionality!