Behold NPC !

how about making an NPC special file and making it a PC class?
using the special NPC class as a unknown NPC type obj and using it as
a PC class

instead of hard coding a new race or class, create an NPC special
and link it to proto's

example elmo
make it another type appearance and use it as a PC
after you had created your PC
you would link it with the new NPC model

 

Here's a more detailed process of what I'm talking about.

 

I haven't tried that yet, I'll tell you when I gathered the results. But I can foresee again the results, the materials.mes can be the problem again... Anyway I'll try it.

 

I was able to get this to work as far as the model goes

for the material, thats another story

I made a half-elf character,
and in the proto's
changed her model id to [111]
and loaded the game.

the materials loaded was that defined in the
materials.mes file for human female

thinking maybe, I can change the mdf pointer and try again
I heard somewhere, and know from programming
you might need to
add the NULL character to the end of the string
null = 00 h

meshes.mes
-----------------------
// PC Base Body Types 100-999
{100}{PCs\PC_Human_Male\PC_Human_Male}
{101}{PCs\PC_Human_Female\PC_Human_Female}
{102}{PCs\PC_Dwarf_Male\PC_Dwarf_Male}
{103}{PCs\PC_Dwarf_Female\PC_Dwarf_Female}
{104}{PCs\PC_HalfOrc_Male\PC_Halforc_Male}
{105}{PCs\PC_HalfOrc_Female\PC_Halforc_Female}

//additional temp races
{110}{}
{111}{PCs\PC_Drow_female\PC_Drow_female}


-------------------
discription file never used in tests

//XV X1 additional PC's
{13106}{Drow Male}
{13107}{Drow Female}

I will get back too this if I get a successful MOD for this,
we need to get rid of that base: class mdf pointer
if we cant be rid of it, we would need too add alot
to the materials base's ; too much work!

dont forget you need the txt and ska files for this to work


i will attach an example so its clear


Um seeing above diagram ^
maybe changing HEAD AND OTHERS WITH HEX EDIT (sorry_):

too
XEAD
XOOTS
XHEST
XLOVES

just to see if they arent getting confused with the other references in the
materials.mes

then updating those in the materials.mes ref's
DONT KNOW IF THIS WOULD WORK EITHER...

 

edit:
notice the
casting_ref
base_human_male
#cloth_bone

before the material def inside the PC SKM's?
maybe that reference has something to do with it calling
the materials.mes file for when the player is switching equipment.



I have the answer to your prayers

hahaha

ok I changed those like I said

to X.... blabla


i put those X... blabla
without an extension er go I delete it ".mdf"
inside the data directory

and blaaaaam



as you can see the reason for the materials mes file
haha

hmm what a duziey
back too the drawing board they say

but you could always make this a sorta perminate equipment type
for what happens with the materials, when you change equipment

I guess that you have allready done this?

you can always make new humanoid type NPC's from this example though
, they usually dont change equipment.


maybe you could also try the TEMPMAN model, see what happen there
I also notice
the viewer ready skm files, where they had the MDF def inside
TOEE1\art\meshes\PCs\ViewerReadyPC's\Human_Male
maybe those are more friendly to work with

 

That was so cool, but what are those left-overs PC_Drow_Female.skm.tmp and temp.gde. And how did you make those .tgas to be read @ when the .mdf is missing. What is the temp file folder doing?

Yeah, the equipments are not readable except for the addmesh. Anyway, that's not a real boots but a feet looking boots! That's pretty understandable that the addmeshes will be viewed but the material.mes is not. Cloak is a pure addmesh so that's why it can be seen.

No the HEAD, BOOTS, CHEST, GLOVES attributes are the main .MDF pointers of that model. If we slice them there's no texture model to be loaded, but I'm intrigue that the hair is still afloat in the air, I'm also searching from where its calling it's hair, I assume that, it's calling through protos.tab but the offsets are nowhere to be found.

 

thee tmp and gde files open with note pad or wordpad (prefered)
they both contain HEX, editable text I use to convert som of the data
the names X....

it opens them because the mdf files are in root /data/ (without extensions)
and they have no extesnion, so it opens them because I say so, hahah

maybe you neglected to notice the raw files in the data folder,
all names start with X
those are the mdf files without extension, you need those there (/data/)
or you get the

 

Lol, did you change something else besides the XHEST thing?

 

Not much, I changed the MDF names, and place them in the root data folder
inside them they point path too the new drow folder
they have no extension

(data/)

folder data
-
xhest
xoots
xead
xeet

files need to go into [data] folder (a.k.a. root ;no extensions)


inside the drow skm the mdf names was change by the X precede

my module carried the links for discription, meshes, and protos

and that was that

the thing about it is some equipment wont change the material like it should
so a permanent texture for the equipment would need to be painted to the mesh
for chest hands feet

only the independent add mesh equipment will be updated,
much like your example

 

Damn! So they will end up again as diablo mercenaries... too bad. Oh well, we can set them to wear rings hoods, gloves, weapons, but not robes and armors lol. :roll:

Did you already examined the work of Cujo, the drows in the protos tab? I thought of using the same idea on NPCs and I'm already tracing its every connections. Might want to create another section of material.mes. I don't know how'd he set them. But still it's a crafty work.

 

Anyway, we can maximize his work by implementing this research to them. I think he's not using an addmesh (literally) so we must or I need to discover the on how'd he implemented them in a goodie manner.

 

Alright, I'd trace them from the past I remembered. Their hands and feet are made with gloves and boots. His head is made of somekind of mask. And his hair of course is vanilla long white.

So to tell, it's only the workable method in the past. But today I'l like to improve it and much like want it to become easier... I need to walk the talk, but I'm doing it now! But it still doesn't work. :dizzy:

Anyway, that's a good technique in calling those XEAD, XHEST etc on NPCs since I cannot produce one for the NPCs only for the Temp Char and PCs. So it's been completed! Alas, we need to find a workaround on how the hell'd we'd override the race path in .SKM...

I haven't tried changing the equipment of the temp man thing since it's birth on the first post... But I'll look into it. )

 

I would like to tell you that it failed again. We cannot [ever] show the textures of material.mes, if we don't register it inside the material.mes. We need to add the line {14} and let be read by the .SKM file, though we don't have any other options but to look endlessly on the symbols of .SKM file... :sadblinky

Of course we need to add/change those .SKM registers to match against the newly added line {014}.

This is only my assumption: Inside the .SKM file there are # of registers i.e. {000}{001}{002}{003}{004}...{013}, which is quite similar to materials.mes then if we modified the NPCs race like the race_human in protos.tab, upon start of the game, the .SKM file will automatically point to {000} in .SKM registers, and match it to materials.mes {000}.

We don't need to install a new race, since, there are other races that are built in, but automatically redirects to their similar types when called i.e. Derro race to Dwarf race; for instance I will create a proto of Derro 13065, which is the number in stat.mes {065}{Derro}. Then I will register it to the .SKM file, added {065} to it. Then we will again register the # to materials.mes which is the line {065 or NOT; depends on the # of male and female}. The model mesh ID {165} of race_derro in meshes.mes will be automatically acknowledged by the .SKM file. It is also depends on the race of the said NPC.

 

HOhoho, I guess I've found out what to do next... and this will be terrifically successful but limited!!!!

This will only add 3 additional skins or 6 depending on its usage. Kinda a type of loophole to me. I really visualize what Cujo's thinking on this atm.

EDIT Blegh! It doesn't work too... Even though the default model mesh id of half-elf is 100 in protos.tab, it does not call it its human male original texture but it calls it skins from materials.mes which I pointed to my custom skin...

 

Try to see what you can do with PC viewer ready models SKM

TOEE1\art\meshes\PCs\ViewerReadyPC's\




these were more nice

they have a long mdf path inside
they are not using the material.mes pointers

I think these are used during character creation