Custom Skins

[Masaq]

Found a post on the RoF forums (russian section, god bless Google Translate) about custom skins.

It is possible - you need to place a .dds of the skin in the following folder:


Program Files/Rise of Flight/data/graphics/skins/
"skins" probably won't exist, and as yet I only know the correct name for the Albatros; which is "albatrosd5".

As yet no-one seems to have a template file set up; the one I've found that was posted was a complete skin in .DDS format, not a nicely prepared template with layers - which makes editing it except very superficially a right pain in the arse. In effect I can make tweaks to it, but actually changing the colour of the aircraft's whole body etc is impossible to get good results on.

So, without any further ado, here's the results of fifteen minutes' work in photoshop:

http://www.christies.org.uk/images/maslivery.jpg

[Katash]

Nice

[SqnLdr]

Can you link to the skin you found? :D
And the premptive: Which dds channel format should I save it as? :D

[cyberzomby]

Now that is awesome! Does everyone need to have that skin to see it tho?

[epoch]

The T&T bit looks shit.

Having your name on is good though .... even if it means you'd be singled out as a target!

Perhaps we need to decide upon a logo or some other decal that we'll all have on our planes, along with our name.

[Masaq]

Can you link to the skin you found? :D
And the premptive: Which dds channel format should I save it as? :D

Mwuahaha, boy did I ever have fun trying to work that one out.


The link is here: http://narod.ru/disk/11867852000/albatrosd5.rar.html

You need to copy the numbers on the left-hand side into the text box below them, then hit the green button to confirm you're a human, then click the link on the next page to start the download. (It's clean and secure, I did a good check.)

I opened them in photoshop, retaining image size (and importantly) - retaining the MIP maps.

I ended up with a sheet that was fairly massive, with copies of the aircraft texture 2048x2048, 1024x1024, 512x512, 256x256, 128x128, 64x64 and 32x32 on it - I'm assuming they're textures for varying levels of texture settings and LOD levels.

I copied the main 2048x2048 texture into a new file and edited it there, left my add-ons in layers, saved, then flattened the image and copied the 2048x2048 back into the original. I then kept reducing the new file by half and copying the smaller version into the main texture each time.

Then I spent a frakking age trying to find the right DDS settings - ended up exporting from Photoshop using the nVidia DDS Plugin as:

DXT5 ARGB 8bpp | Interpolated Alphawith

Use Existing MIP Maps | ALL
Then select the preview and check that the texture is laid out correctly - when I selected the wrong settings, it would either show the colours distorted from a dodgy alpha layer, or it would have the whole texture cut and laid out badly. I should have taken a screenshot of when I ended up with the texture all over the place on the plane - "MA" on the tailplane, "SAQ" on the engine cowling, "[T" on the wings and "+T]" on the belly of the plane - wood and dappled canvas effect all over the place lol.


With regards to the T&T - the ampersand looked too weird on the wings - + looked much better. Yeah, the [T+T] isn't great and I'll be tweaking it - this was a quick rush job as a proof of concept to check it could be done. Let me know how we'd like it and I'll set up a template with a decent T&T and some kind of logo/decal. I'd like to see one that was stylistically appropriate to WW1, ideally :)


A name or some other way of easily identifying each other should be on there, to my mind - colour schemes were a big deal to the aces of WW1, who had their own paint schemes firstly so that their wingmen could identify them easily but also to scare the hell out of the opposition. Yeah it means we'll target each other but that's precisely what happened!

We could also do with checking if everyone needs everyone else's skins installed to play online, or if the client informs the server of their skin and it sends it to everyone else even if it's not installed. We can check that easily enough, and if it's like Lock-On and requires everyone to have the skin installed, get a repositry of custom paintjobs from T&T together so we can easily recognise each other :)

[MadTommy]

from a Dev, i think, on Rof forums..

....there are problems with user-made skins during multiplayer. When these problem will be solved - you'll get all needed information. Initially, DiFiS posted scheme for painting, however mentioned higher issue was found and he removed all links from his post.

* whisper of somebody else *
meanwhile - you may use this link http://narod.ru/disk/11867852000/albatrosd5.rar.html
as one of Albatros skin examples (well for old model... so skin may not fit well). Skin is stored in .dds format.

To add it to game you need create {ROF folder}\data\graphics\skins\albatrosd5\ folder and place here your skin

Don't play with user-made skins in multiplayer.

I think i'll wait...

[Masaq]

I think I'll shift [T&T] onto the left area of the upper wing, and also onto the left of the underside of the lower wing, so it can be seen from below and above.


We could then use the right hand side for a flight number - position with the 'squad', for example:

MadTommy - 1
epoch - 2
Me - 3
Sqdnldr - 4

And so on, in the order that we purchased the game... just a thought. It'd be nice to have everyone with their own paint schemes but a unified [T&T], decal and number, say :)


from a Dev, i think, on Rof forums..



I think i'll wait...


Ah! Good thinking, in that case...

[SqnLdr]

Roman Numerals instead of a big 4?
Ta for the info - just what I need for a late, bored night :)

[epoch]

MadTommy - 1
epoch - 2

:disgust:

Back to the drawing board Masaq ....

[MadTommy]

I was waiting for that...I just knew that would get your goat :megalol:

[epoch]

Well .. now I've got a streak, and you haven't, so 'ner'.

[SqnLdr]

I still haven't shot anything down, even on singleplayer with invincibilty. I'm just -that- skilled, you see.

[Masaq]

Well .. now I've got a streak, and you haven't, so 'ner'.

Lol, how about we do a two-numbers thing...

X-Y

X being your join number to the RoF group, and Y being your highest streak hehehehe....


Squaddie - we could maybe use tutonic script for German planes and roman numerals for the allied planes. Nice big tutonic/gothic numerals look good!



What kind of image do we want as a logo/insignia? Something nice and bright and simple would be good - two Ts and some kind of emblem or animal, maybe in a shield or a circle?

[Masaq]

Couldn't get to sleep, decided to skin. Nicer, methinks.


http://www.christies.org.uk/images/newscheme1.jpg
http://www.christies.org.uk/images/newscheme2.jpg

[cyberzomby]

haha that is so cool! If your going to put your names on it with the numbers and all! Nice skin there! Not very camouflaged tho :)