Hi there! You are currently browsing as a guest. Why not create an account? Then you get less ads, can thank creators, post feedback, keep a list of your favourites, and more!
Test Subject
Original Poster
#1 Old 27th Oct 2014 at 8:00 PM
Default skin preview in blender
Hello!
I want to preview my / a skin in blender, but everytime I load the skin, looks really bad.
Does anybody do that (using blender to preview skin tones without starting Sims 3)? And what's the magic?

Thanks a lot in advance!
Advertisement
Test Subject
#2 Old 28th Oct 2014 at 4:08 AM Last edited by Blackcatluna : 28th Oct 2014 at 8:24 AM.
It may be because the texture mapping is on "Generated". When you add a new texture to a mesh material in blender and you want it to use the mesh's uv map, you have to go to your texture, scroll down to "Mapping", open it and change the coordinates setting to "UV", then select the mesh's uv map. ( for a Sims3 geom it will be called geom0 )

After that your skin should look like it would be in the game when rendered

You can also preview it in the 3D view through the textured display mode but you will have to set the uv coordinates of the faces on the skin texture first by going in edit mode, selecting all faces and opening your texture in the image editor window.
Test Subject
Original Poster
#3 Old 1st Nov 2014 at 3:47 PM
Oh, thanks, I forgot to do that :-)

Can you import simgeom files in your blender?
I was able to import/export once, then I tried another blender version because of the anim plugin and now nothing works anymore After a lot of intalling/uninstalling I am about to give up, so if you are really able to import and export simgeom file, please tell me what version of blender and which simgeom tools exactly do you use. Esp. the 32/64 bit part gives me a real headache...
Test Subject
#4 Old 3rd Nov 2014 at 1:52 AM Last edited by Blackcatluna : 3rd Nov 2014 at 2:15 AM.
I personally use cmomoney's simgeom plugin, which can be downloaded here . It's only compatible with Blender 2.63a 32 bits though and you can't add or delete any of the mesh's vertices with it or it will break the vertex order, which would make the geom unusable after you save it.
Test Subject
Original Poster
#5 Old 12th Nov 2014 at 10:57 PM
Hi again!
I use the plugin with blender 2.72 and so far no (obvious) problems.
I think the normals are ok, but I never really had a problem with them so I can't really tell.
Do you manage to preview skins with normals and specular in blender?

have a great day
Xan-Kun
Test Subject
#6 Old 16th Nov 2014 at 8:38 AM
I'm surprised that the plugin worked on Blender 2.72, that's interesting.
Congratulations for your success at importing geoms!

For the specular and normal maps, just make sure to set the influences correctly at the bottom of the textures' panels and you should be able to preview them through rendering.
Inventor
#7 Old 16th Nov 2014 at 10:24 AM
Please, forgive my ignorance, a geom is another name for mesh or they are different things?

And what are geostates?
EDIT
Quote:
Geostates are used to display custom ranges of mesh data in the game. A good example are bookcases in the game which fill up with books depending how many are virtually included in them.
Test Subject
#8 Old 16th Nov 2014 at 10:48 PM
A geom file is a base mesh for CAS stuff in general like clothes or accessories for example, with the bgeo files controlling the mesh's morphs.
Inventor
#9 Old 17th Nov 2014 at 8:30 AM
Thank you.
Test Subject
Original Poster
#10 Old 18th Nov 2014 at 1:01 AM
I had a lot of problems until it worked, so gave a detail description in this thread
http://www.modthesims.info/showthre...5#startcomments

BTW, I know, I posted that question in a long gone thread, but does anyone here know how I get a decent heightmap for the skins?
I have the normalmaps from the game (and others) but editing them is nearly impossible..
Test Subject
#11 Old 22nd Nov 2014 at 11:52 AM Last edited by Blackcatluna : 27th Nov 2014 at 12:27 PM.
A tip for making normals for low poly meshes destined to be used in a video game like the sims' geoms...in Blender, you can sculpt an higher resolution mesh then use its normals for a low poly one through baking!

It's all explained in detail on this page : Render Baking
You can do it for ambient, diffuse and reflexion textures too

EDIT : Sorry! I just realised that normals maps can't be converted to bump maps
That means that the normals should be baked as displacement in blender internal instead.

Buhudain also already made some default replacement normals for the sims' skin on his blog : You Are Real Project
They add a few subtile details like skin pores, adam's apple, nipples, etc.
Back to top