[Need help] How can i make different 20 parts into 1 in one nif file.

[Zaselim]

Hey guys, I wanted to convert some high heel boots and one boots' nif file (boots0/1.nif) has 20 parts in it, all of them using single texture file.

So is there a way to make these 20 parts in boots_1.nif into one or two parts(one for the left and one for the right boot or one for both), so when i edit it I only need to edit 1 part(as a whole boot) instead of 20 parts(which makes it one boot)

[Bootaka]

assuming you already have the nifs working ingame, open each nif with nifskope, select the NiTriShape and copy branch, paste each branch into a single nif, make sure all the biped slots are aligned, save, done.

[Zaselim]

Sir there is only one nif, one boot, which has 20 parts in it. Like one for laces, one for sole, one for the leg part etc.

I want them to be one part for a whole boot so instead of 20 i only have to edit one.

[lostdaywalker]

The only way I know How to do that is with 3ds max and the collapse function.  I don't think Nifskope is capable of doing that. I could be wrong though, Nifskope can do a lot of stuff. 

[Zaselim]

i use 3ds max, how do i do that collapse thing to work? can you plz tell me?

the most important part comes after that, let say i'll be able to do what i want to do then how do i fix the entries(bslight) in nifskope?

[lostdaywalker]

It's simple.

 

Be aware that you will have to reweight them but weighting boots is easy.

Also keep a watch on your vert count. you cannot export anything over 64,000 verts to a nif so if they are really hi poly, you may have to keep it in two parts.

 

If you are using 2 sets of boots for body_0 and Body_1 you will have to do this twice. Although I think you are better off doing the body_0 and then adjusting it to fit body_1. Less chance of a vert mismatch.

 

• Have you skeleton and body set up in max and then import the boots.
• Pick any part and select a edit modifier.  (Did that part move? If it did than add a smoothing group#2 above the edit mesh to every part then select all boot parts and export selected to a new file.  Hit the delete key once its done and then re import the boots you just exported. Now it mated to the skeleton you are using.
• Add a smoothing group #2 to each part above edit modifier and delete all skin modifiers and BSDismember ( max will sometimes crash with all that stuff it does not understand up there. )
• select all the parts of the mesh you want to join. (Control+L Click)
• Above you modifier dropdown list you will see a hammer icon. These ate tools. Click on that and you will see Collapse about half way down. Click on that and more info will pop up and look further down and you will see a button Collapse selected.  look a little further down and make sure output is set to mesh and collapse to is set to single object. Click on collapse selected and then click close.
• You now have one object. and a single edit mesh. add smoothing group #2 again and then export, delete and re import. It should import as one mesh. 
• add a smoothing group#2, skinwrap to the body, and foot if desired copy the BsDismember from the foot and paste on top, select the BSDismember and highlight the entire mesh and export.
• Done.

Did I mention how import smoothing groups are?

 

[lostdaywalker]

http://docs.autodesk.com/3DSMAX/16/ENU/3ds-Max-Help/index.html?url=files/GUID-1244162D-A063-486C-BD9B-168466F6488B.htm,topicNumber=d30e593128

 

 

That explains it better than I can. If it had not been applied before you got the mesh, or sometimes even it it has, when you export it, the mesh will break apart so instead of having a  nice 5000 vert mesh you end up with a 30 thousand vert mesh. 

[Zaselim]

Thanks, i will check it, and what about the nifskope part (copying and pasting branch), because in the original we have 20 parts to copy branch from and on the 2nd we have one part (we made out of the 20)

[lostdaywalker]

Most of the time they are all identical. Check them to see if there are any differences between them. (environmental mapping and what not.) If there are differences, Join together the ones that are the same. All the leather together, Metal together ect.  2,3 or for parts is better than 20. 

[canderes]

If the nif is using more than one texture the pieces will need to be separate. If you go and use 3ds max the only way you will be able to fuse everything into a single mesh is if you bake all the textures onto one map and join all the pieces as one object or two in this case. What I would recommend is taking all the textures, taking them to a lightly slower resolution and copying them all together onto one high res map. You will have to mess with the UV layout to line them up on this new texture, it isn't very difficult, you just scale the pieces down and put them on the right part of the texture, but it is time consuming. If you just fuse everything into one mesh without redoing the UV layout, and making a texture it will crash the exporter.

[Zaselim]

No its already using one texture file, there 3 files in tex folder, boots.dds, boots_n.dds and boots_m.dds