Better Horses Mod (v1.2) Looking for horse armour texturers!

[Njiekovic]

saregona,

I haven't had time yet to work on it at all, but I hope I'll have some time next week. I'll give that convex profile a try. That's a great idea.
Once I get the rigging right I'll give those other ideas a try too.

I'll keep you posted!

Niek

[Kuen1314]

I have downloaded the file
but I can't open it
it said the file is damaged or in other unknown format??

[Letum]

How about docked tails on the cheaper horses.
Typically, work horses would have their tails docked to prevent entanglement in ropes etc.

[saregona]

Kuen - what did you try to download? The new horses are just pictures...

Letum - Hmm, yeah, that is true. But the tails on the M&B Meshes aren't that long anyways really. I'd love to see a proper mane on them... I have a mesh for a mane that'd fit them, but I wouldn't know how to stick it on.

[Kuen1314]

Kuen - what did you try to download? The new horses are just pictures...

Letum - Hmm, yeah, that is true. But the tails on the M&B Meshes aren't that long anyways really. I'd love to see a proper mane on them... I have a mesh for a mane that'd fit them, but I wouldn't know how to stick it on.

I download from this link http://rapidshare.com/files/170071041/Better_Horses_Pack.zip

[Archevious]

WOW! I love the horse skins you made! They are awesome!

[Captain Reech]

Yes, good skins and I really enjoyed them in game. Looking forward to a 'beefed up ' horse, try using the dimensions of a Percheron as these are authentic destriers but not too tall so the skeleton wouldn't need too much modification.

[Soil]

Beefed up horses are a bit problematic and probably won't come until a new version of BRFedit is out.

Anyway, nice textures!

To put manes on the horses you have to connect the two meshes in a modelling app, re-rig the horse again and import it into BRFedit.

A small suggestion, how about spec maps for horses so the hairs are shiny? Might look pretty awesome on a black horse, for example.

[saregona]

Yeah, I'm hanging out for that new version... *mmm*

I have so many things I want to do to the horses, I just need all the skeleton information. Giving them a mane, tweaking the body conformation for each type, better tail, better gait animations, alpha and maybe specular mapping...

*bounce*

All a dream at the moment, so I'll stick to the textures... =D

[Njiekovic]

Beefed up horses are a bit problematic and probably won't come until a new version of BRFedit is out.

Anyway, nice textures!

To put manes on the horses you have to connect the two meshes in a modelling app, re-rig the horse again and import it into BRFedit.

A small suggestion, how about spec maps for horses so the hairs are shiny? Might look pretty awesome on a black horse, for example.

Well it's possible, as long as you don't change the size. Rigging is doable now, but there's an error in BRF that you have to recreate to make it work. I think I can do it, but it would take me hours and hours of mindless vertex painting and still I wouldn't be sure it'd work.

There's a quicker way through rigging by envelopes in 3ds max, but I've never been able to set that program up right, so I can't do it currently. Once there finally is a new BRF edit I'll give it another shot.

[saregona]

Wait... you can rig in 3ds max? Did I mention I am pro with that program!? Someone, tell me how to get the skelly info and I will give it a shot! *is excited*

Also, re the textures, I have two new ones, a red roan sumpter and an awesome dark bay saddle horse, but i'm far too lazy to post pics ^_^ I know you'll all still love me though.

...

Right? =3

[Njiekovic]

Wait... you can rig in 3ds max? Did I mention I am pro with that program!? Someone, tell me how to get the skelly info and I will give it a shot! *is excited*

Also, re the textures, I have two new ones, a red roan sumpter and an awesome dark bay saddle horse, but i'm far too lazy to post pics ^_^ I know you'll all still love me though.

...

Right? =3

Well you definately should try it. First, you can find a few plugins for importing and exporting .smd files here:
http://forums.taleworlds.net/index.php/topic,15272.0.html

First thing to get the skeletal info is to export a Native horse (in .smd format) using BRF edit (be sure to export one from 1.011). That file will hold the mehs, the skeleton and the rigging info from that Native horse. Import that .smd into 3ds max using max script (the plugins I mentioned above). If all is well, you should notice that the rigging is screwed because the current BRF edit is unable to export (and import) it correctly. So the trick is to exactly recreate the error, because then importing it with BRF will nullify the problem. Take a look at pages 75-77 of this thread for more: http://forums.taleworlds.net/index.php/topic,42454.1110.html

Especially take a look at this post: http://forums.taleworlds.net/index.php/topic,42454.msg1368841.html#msg1368841
Following the approach described there should hand you the know how to rig custom horses in "two seconds". I've tried but I've never been able to do any rigging in max (exporting is the problem with me). But Dain Ironfoot has gotten it to work.

If you PM me your email address, I will send you the mesh of my buffed up horse so you can give it a shot.

*is excited too  *

Niek

[saregona]

Re SantasHelper,

Yer, open source I guess, as long as people tell me where they are going to use them via PM so that I can actually see how they're being used (just 'cos I'm a curious little lady), and you don't need to ask permission for the textures. So, yer, open and shizzle  Oh, and thanks for the wuv! ^_^ *is warmed and fuzzied*

HOWEVER.

Big news.

I have a new horse mesh in the works. A sexy horse mesh. Very sexy. Plus equally sensual textures for said horse mesh. If I can get the skelly to fit it and work out the god awful rigging goes (before I stab myself in the eye out of frustration), then I will release this to you all. You WILL have to ask permission to use my new mesh if you wish to do so. This mesh has.

* A proper mane
* properly modelled ears, lips, nostrils, eyes and body shape
* more realistic conformation
* a conservative poly count
* drop dead gorgeous array of textures
* Spec and alpha maps for shiney coat and proper mane and tail transparency (maybe)
* Slightly different meshes for the horse types  (and maybe some different horse types)
* betterness in general

Here are some pictures of the beefed up hunter mesh I've done, based on a Percheron horse --

(click to show/hide)

Ain't he magnificent? All for 1638 polys, only 138 more than the original.

I also want to add bridle and reins, stirupps maybe and slightly altered/new but similar animations to this if I can work out/be told how to get this into game. You see, doing the modelling/rigging/animation isn't hard for me in the least... it's getting it into the game that threatens to blow up my poor brain. I'm all about the creative side, but the technical side gives me the fear like nothing else...

Just like I'm nothing short of awesome at painting textures, but I can't UVW map to save my life...

So, yeah, this is obviously going to be a big project, so please don't be nagging me about it =D

ANY HELP YOU COULD OFFER ME ABOUT GETTING THIS IN GAME OR TEXTURE MAPPING, PLEASE BE GIVING IT! <3

If I can't work out how to get it in, I will promptly not bother and it will just be a mod resource... and that would make the worlds kittens very, very sad.

If you want to partner up on this Niek, I will love you forever. Seriously <3

Bow before Sarrie, your friendly neighbourhood Horse Goddess -- Get it, NEIGHbourhood... har har har... *shoots self in the face*

[Njiekovic]

Hey there!

Looks great! Very nice horse head. Just one comment: it's a bit too big for the body if you ask me. Beefing up the body may fix it satisfactory, but you may have to increase the outer dimensions. As long as you don't make it too much bigger it shouldn't be a big problem with the skeleton. You may shrink the head a bit too of course.

Anyway, tell me what you need. I'm assuming you based this off my beefed up hunter, looking at the feet? Is any of the UV mapping still ok? Also, you have to make sure the mane and the rest of the mesh are one. Custom animations are at current not possible unfortunately, so the mane will have to be static.

Regarding the rigging: do you feel comfortable in copying the BRF export error, so as to nullify it when it's imported again? Otherwise you may have to give that a shot before you put an overly large amount of work in it.

Finally, while you're at it, you may want to change the saddle to something like this, so the horse will be more universally usable regarding other than medieval timeframes.

(click to show/hide)

So, let me know what you need and I'll see what I can do for you.

Niek

[saregona]

Actually, that head, though it seems big, is just how a percheron is. Draught horses have a large, heavy head. I think it looks particularily large though, because you can't really see the full depth to his girth (the, um, tummy) and I think that his hind quarters need to be a little bit more on the heavy side. But, you know, it's going to require tweaking until I'm totally happy with it.

Yep, sorry I forgot to mention before, this is based off of Njiek's altered pony with thicker legs =D So Njiek also deserves some praise for this.

To answer your other questions, no, the mapping got itself killed somehow... at a point some of it was intact, then the next time I checked it was all useless.

I was thinking of having the mane as sort of a risen thing on the horses neck to look like there's hair there, while saving polys, while keeping it static. Maybe on one horse type (sumpter or steppe pony or maybe both) I'll have the mane cropped short so it sticks up, with cropped tail to match on the sumpter. I'll show you what I mean when I get around to doing it.

Rigging.. now there's something I failed miserably at... I tried and did little but confuse myself. I will keep trying though, if you could explain it better to me that would be awesome?

I could certainly give the saddle a shot. Seeing as it looks like I'll be painting mapping entirely new textures anyway... *sighs*

And all I really need from you is rigging help at the moment And input, and ideas and such.