It's a nice first model.
Modding for FS roughly involves the following steps:
1) Build & texture the model (Obviously this is the part that takes the longest period of time)
2) Set the model and especially the hierarchy up ready for conversion
3) Export the ship in (typically) the DAE format if at all possible, as support for that in PCS2 is rather good now.
4) Open the model in PCS2 and save as a POF.
5) Still in PCS2, add all the appropriate data to each 'chunk' such as gunpoints, subsystems, paths, glowpoints etc.
6) Create or copy and modify a table entry for the ship, typically using a TBM (modular table).
7) Test thoroughly.
If you want me to expand on any particular step let me know.
Though you don't need to worry about them until after the conversion, textures are handled like this:
(All textures should be in the DDS format for efficiency purposes, though the DXT subformat should be correct for each texture component)
Diffuse map: ExampleTexture.dds (DXT1a unless you need an alpha channel, in which case it should be DXT5. This is the only compulsary map)
Glow map: ExampleTexture-glow.dds (DXT1a ALWAYS)
Shine map: ExampleTexture-shine.dds (DXT5, since the alpha channel controls the environment mapping level)
Normal map: ExampleTexture-normal.dds (DXT5_NM. If it was generated correctly it should appear green and gray when you view it normally)
A basic final release of a ship should consist of:
- The POF file (the model)
- All the DDS map files (the texture images in the DDS format)
- The TBM file (The table entry specifying the stats of the ship)
- Optionally the IBX & TSB cache files generated from the model in-game and stored in Freespace\mod_dir_if_applicable\data\cache.
For the modellers available:
=== Sketchup ===Sketchup is free and very intuitive, and that makes it a good way to learn the concepts of 3d, but it gets to the point where you begin to be quite restricted by that same intuitive toolset. At that point you will need to recognise you've hit the limits of its abilities and switch to a more capable application.
Conversions from Sketchup to PCS2 readable COBs is possible, but I don't think it's easy or clean.
=== Blender ===I use Blender because it's free and VERY powerful. It will be able to do everything and anything you could want to use it for in building ships for FS. (I even use it for animating weapon effects and cutscenes.)
The downside is that it's got a scary interface, but following any of the thousands of tutorials and realising that the
real interface is easy-to-learn keyboard shortcuts will fix that and you'll find it's an immensely efficient workflow.
=== 3DS Max ===Well it's not free, but if that's not a problem (one way or another) it's certainly a powerful application. Many people use it for ship building, and with the DAE exports you have a conversion avenue equal to that in Blender. I didn't like the interface much nor the actual modelling process, but there are plenty of online resources with which to learn it.
=== Truespace ===Let me make one thing clear here: I am only mentioning this to tell you to never ever ever ever use it or even go near it. I could write a book on the things I loathe about truespaz - and those things run a lot deeper than 'I don't like the interface'. (To any potential TS defenders; disagree with me
quietly because I will take a peverse pleasure in ripping it apart for you. Ye be warned.
)
The above modellers (mainly Blender and 3ds Max) are clearly not all that are out there, but they're the main ones that have the ability to save convertable files and so are the ones I consider to be the most important.
