I've never been able to get gloss/specular maps to work with stuff I've exported from 3ds Max. I've tried adding the gloss maps in the Nif Viewer, and also direct from max but neither worked.

Here's one of the units I need the gloss maps for:
http://img85.imageshack.us/img85/8410/untitled11ox3.th.jpg (http://img85.imageshack.us/my.php?image=untitled11ox3.jpg)
As you can see the main body has a gloss map (it's the maceman's body) and the head and shield I added from max have no gloss showing (though I have made the map and applied it in the Nif Viewer).

Do you use civ4 shader?
by default max use shade if i remember well called Blinn
change to civ4 shader and in maps put texture for gloss (for me i had problem with to much gloss but i think i wasn't to patient to find optimal number)

That might be it.. thanks I'll try that and see how it goes :)

Edit: It didn't work :( This is what I have:

http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/8691/okkk2.jpg

Has anyone got a gloss map to work on custom models exported from Max?

You will also need an environmentlight that will project light on the scene. Check out seZereth's units to see how to do it with the nifviewer.


For Max this is what Rabbit wrote to me once I couldn't explain it better:

Setting up gloss is fairly easy...

When you make your object, first of course you'll need to have a gloss map applied in addition to the regular texture. I don't know how it's done in blender but in max it's just like diffuse map, it's just called gloss.

The other thing you need is an environmental light - the easiest way to get it is to merge it from one of the example files, I usually use either praetorian or the tank. Again, if you're working with blender then you'll need to ask Roland about it. You can also change the texture that the light uses - there is a bronze metal reflection, grey metal, etc.

Btw, in max, once you put that light on the object turns completely black in perspective view, I don't know how to get rid of that, anyway...

One thing you must do with the light if you merge it from praetorian (it could be the same for tank, but if you create it from scratch there's no need to do this), is to open its include list and switch the right side window to exclude (when it's set as include and the list is empty, it includes nothing ).

The last thing is to make sure you export lights when exporting to nif. And that's it. If you done everything right then the part with the gloss will be marked by pink in nif viewer.

Only thing to keep in mind is that when you do this, you'll need to attach the whole scene node when attaching objects to units, not just the mesh node.

WR

Thanks! I'll try looking at the enviroment light maps. I haven't used them before so hopefully this is what's stopping it from showing in game :) I'll download one of the example files as well.

With the example files... I have 3ds Max 6.0 and when I try to open them it gives me a missing dll error - which I think is because they were made in a newer version of Max :cringe:

yup in v. 7.0

yup in v. 7.0

How much data is lost by exporting as .3ds ? If it still keeps the lights and the materials maybe you could help me asio? :)

edit : nevermind I found a workaround..

Thanks guys got it to work alright :D One strange thing though, instead of being pink in the Nif Viewer it is actually glossy there... but the map works fine.

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/3665/untitledmp8.jpg

What's your workaround? Im allways interested in other possibilities.

btw the model looks nice. What is it?

What's your workaround? Im allways interested in other possibilities.

btw the model looks nice. What is it?

I followed what you posted actually (merging the light from the praetorian) maybe it's different because I don't use teamcolour..

The unit is going to be an Easterling, from the lotr movies:

http://www.tuckborough.net/images/easterling3.jpg