Modding ship

Want to edit the game, build your own craft and missions? Here you'll find help, tools, guides and people to discuss with.

Modding ship

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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Sun Nov 14, 2021 6:38 am

Hi everyone .
I would like some help because I would like to know how to add a new ship (among other things) in the star wars x-wing alliance game.
Are there tutorials or software to help achieve this project.
Because I must have noticed that after several research I did not find much.
Thank you in advance for your help .
cordially .
cashgrany.
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CupcakeFS
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Post by CupcakeFS » Sun Nov 14, 2021 11:43 pm

The ship editor is MXvTEd v4.2, though it's an over simplification to say that. The XWA EDITING TOOLS COLLECTION post has a lot of good resources:

https://www.xwaupgrade.com/phpBB3/viewt ... =9&t=12335

I don't know much about it either, so I can't be of much help. Good luck!

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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Mon Nov 15, 2021 4:14 am

Super thank you for this link to these software; your help is great; but apparently they are used to edit ships.
What I'm trying to do is add new 3d models with textures and new cockpits; Is there such software or tutorial to achieve this?
cordially .
cashgrany.
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Mon Nov 15, 2021 1:38 pm

I managed to get by by refining the research but did not have that yet.
I am in OPTech v2.0 but when I import my mesh (dxf) I end up with only one mesh while my model contains 19 ??
And one last thing, how do you apply the texture?
Regards .
cashgrany.
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blue_max
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Post by blue_max » Mon Nov 15, 2021 6:35 pm

I don't know about OPTech, but you can create new ships and cockpits using XwaOptEditor. I expect the same should be possible using OPTech...

For XwaOptEditor, you need to create the model using additional software, like Blender. You apply your textures and split your meshes using Blender. When you're ready, you export the meshes as OBJ files and then you import them using XwaOptEditor. You need to be careful when naming the textures as we tend to follow a naming convention (TEX00000, TEX00001, etc). Once in XwaOptEditor, you place lasers and other things using Hardpoints. There's plenty of Hardpoint examples in the OPTs from XWAU, so you can use other crafts as guide.

Actually, it's probably better if you start by modifying existing ships to learn how this all works, since there's details like scale and axis orientation that I'm glossing over. If you do modify existing OPTs for personal use, that's fine. But if you intend to distribute any modifications, you need to ask for permission from the original authors first.

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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Tue Nov 16, 2021 5:11 am

Frankly I applaud you, it looks a lot easier with this software.
I manage to have my textures.
thank you so much ; you are great .
Regards .
cashgrany.
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Tue Nov 16, 2021 5:41 am

I got out of it; thanks again .
Do you know how to combine the cockpit and the ship and then add them into the game?
Kind regards.
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Tue Nov 16, 2021 9:54 am

i dont understand how to create the correct shp file for my opt.
In MXvTED I don't quite understand how it works, for example so that my opt is displayed in opt.
Please help.
Regards.
cashgrany.
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Wed Nov 17, 2021 5:21 am

seriously there is no one to help me?
I went through almost 100 pages of the forum without really figuring out how to do it.
I saw that we often talk about a darksaber site but I can not access it.
Regards .
cashgrany.
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Vince T
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Post by Vince T » Wed Nov 17, 2021 9:09 am

Darksaber's site is no longer available.
SHP files are only used to make ships usable on other computers. If you want to create an OPT yourself and load it into the game, you don't need to save one but instead use the WRITE button on the upper right.
1) Select an empty slot via the Craft No. list on the right
2) Enter stats and descriptions
3) For Cockpits: The Cockpit must be a separate OPT must have the same name as the OPT.
--> If the craft is called TIEFighter the cockpit must be named TIEFighterCockpit
--> To assign a cockpit to a ship in MXvTEd, enter the name of the OPT (TIEFighter) into the Cockpit field under the Cockpit tab
4) Finally, click WRITE on the upper right to save the ship and make it usable ingame.

For a more in-depth look how MXvTEd works, see this Wiki Article
Your ship, Captain. I need a drink. - Vince Trageton
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Wed Nov 17, 2021 9:40 am

I thank you very much for your answer.
I didn't know that we didn't have to have shp to put in the game.
great i found my ship in play but the game crashed and i don't know why?

In Xwe OptEditor I get these two error:

Warning Meshes This opt requires the opt limit hook to work.

Warning Textures This opt requires the textures size patch to work.

edit : I checked a random opt (tie bomber) and it has the same error as me, except that it works; I would like someone to explain to me why?

Regards.
cashgrany.
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Vince T
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Post by Vince T » Wed Nov 17, 2021 12:43 pm

A few Questions
- Do you see your ship in the Craft Library?
- Can you try the "Compute Hitzones" function in OPT Editor?

It's kinda hard to tell the problem from afar. Can you make your OPT available somehow?
Your ship, Captain. I need a drink. - Vince Trageton
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Wed Nov 17, 2021 12:52 pm

No I don't see it. And i try computer hitzone but it doesn't do anything special.
That is to say to make available? If I can download it?
Regards.
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Vince T
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Post by Vince T » Wed Nov 17, 2021 7:25 pm

Wait, is it a ship you created or a ship by someone else?
Your ship, Captain. I need a drink. - Vince Trageton
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Wed Nov 17, 2021 8:01 pm

I have a lot of ships to recover in games; such as battelfront; battelfront 2, squadron; the old republic, etc ... (including this one, I don't remember what game it came from)
I would like to implement them in x-wing
Best regards.
cashgrany.
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Thu Nov 18, 2021 8:34 am

Vince T, anyone? To help me ?
cordially.
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Vince T
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Post by Vince T » Thu Nov 18, 2021 10:20 am

If it‘s from Battlefront or Squadrons, there‘s a good chance the model is too complex for the old XWA game engine to handle.

If XWA can handle models whose level rates from 1 to 10, the models from newer games rank at about 1000
Your ship, Captain. I need a drink. - Vince Trageton
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Thu Nov 18, 2021 12:36 pm

Ah ok, I did not know he could handle complex models.
Do you think this is because my models aren't showing up in-game?
Cordially.
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DTM
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Post by DTM » Sat Nov 20, 2021 5:55 pm

Hello. Some advices:

1. Be patient. It takes many hours, days of trial and error to learn how to create new models for XWA. It is not easy and you have to respect some old rules. There is no school. We are all self-taught.

2. XWA is an old game and cannot work with models that come from more modern games. From experience everyone can testify that it is easier to create a model from scratch, rather than trying to make a model that is too detailed work.

3. To understand the ideal level of detail for XWA it is useful to consider this parameter: maximum 50 mashes, each with a maximum of 200 quad-faces or 400 tri-faces. You will notice that the number of faces I'm talking about is 10-100 times less than the models you are trying to import.

4. Textures are very important in XWA models. Highly detailed textures can make up for the lack of detail in 3d models.

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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:04 pm

Hello everyone ; I found a model with little polygon; but here is the problem in XwaOptEditor it appears like this:
mauvaise_dans_xwaopteditor.png



whereas in blender it appears like this; does someone have any idea?
bonne_sous_blender.png
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Vince T
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Post by Vince T » Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:38 pm

Looks like most of the faces in the model are flipped, i.e. the face normals are facing the wrong way - inside out.
As far as I know, OPT Editor does not have the option to flip face normals, therefore you will have to do that either in blender or in OPTech.

I can't tell you how it works in Blender, but I can tell you how it works in OPTech:
- Save your model as an OPT
- Start OPTech
- Run File > New OPZ
- Run File > Import OPT
- Select all meshes from the list
- Switch to Face mode (The button with the red square above the preview window)
- Select all faces from the list
- Click the "Flip Normal" button

While you're at it, also run the following commands from the "Calculate" Menu
- Face Normals
- Vertex Normals
- Hitzones
- Software Vectors
DO NOT recalculate Texture coordinates

For a more in-depth guide on how to create an OPT using OPTech and what is required to make it playable, see this article

Finally click on File > Create OPT
The OPT file will be created within the project folder that was created in your OPTech directory.
Your ship, Captain. I need a drink. - Vince Trageton
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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Thu Nov 25, 2021 5:49 pm

Thank you very much Vince, that must have been a very good idea but here is the problem is that when exporting the opt I have this error:
---------------------------
System.ArgumentOutOfRangeException: Index was out of range. Must be non-negative and less than the size of the collection.
Parameter name: index
at System.ThrowHelper.ThrowArgumentOutOfRangeException(ExceptionArgument argument, ExceptionResource resource)
at OPTech.MainWindow.optxwacreatemenu_Click(Object sender, RoutedEventArgs e) in C:\projects\optech\OPTech\OPTech\MainWindow.xaml.cs:line 4928
at System.Windows.EventRoute.InvokeHandlersImpl(Object source, RoutedEventArgs args, Boolean reRaised)
at System.Windows.UIElement.RaiseEventImpl(DependencyObject sender, RoutedEventArgs args)
at System.Windows.Controls.MenuItem.InvokeClickAfterRender(Object arg)
at System.Windows.Threading.ExceptionWrapper.InternalRealCall(Delegate callback, Object args, Int32 numArgs)
at System.Windows.Threading.ExceptionWrapper.TryCatchWhen(Object source, Delegate callback, Object args, Int32 numArgs, Delegate catchHandler)
---------------------------
OK
---------------------------
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Vince T
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Post by Vince T » Thu Nov 25, 2021 5:55 pm

That's beyond my understanding of the program.
@JeremyaFr when you come around, could you take a look at this?
Your ship, Captain. I need a drink. - Vince Trageton
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the_stag
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Post by the_stag » Thu Nov 25, 2021 7:37 pm

I used to use netfabb (https://service.netfabb.com/) to fix these errors. It was really good at fixes like that. It doesn't look like it's a free online tool anymore, so that's unfortunate. There may be others out there, or something will come along to fill that void. Unless you already have Fusion 360, then you can still use it.

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cashgrany
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Post by cashgrany » Thu Nov 25, 2021 7:43 pm

hi stag; I have already tried netfabb but my model simply does not appear in blender anymore.

Another problem ; i have another model that looks good i create an opt and all; but when i add it in flightmodel; I just can't find it in the list of ships whereas before with a complex model I found it anyone has any idea ??
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