Importing a weapon using Zmodeler by TriXigT

[TriXigT]

Hi and welcome to my tutorial on how to import weapons properly with Zmodeler (REGISTERED)!

 

This tutorial might also be useful if you are about to export something else than a weapon for GTA IV

 

You are required to have a little basic knowledge of the program, such as where to find tools etc - Nothing heavy in other words.

 

Tutorial on how to get your weapon properly into GTA IV - For both dummies and pro's, especially the last "tips/things" for the later - You may find something usefull.

 

Step One

 

1. Open up SPARKIV, browse to weapons.img, choose which weapon you want to use as reference, open up it's .WTD, save all textures to a directory of your choice.

 

2. Launch Zmodeler (Preferably build 2.2.2), in the upper bar > Options/Settings, browse to > Services/Textures, click Add and browse to the directory you saved the textures in.

 

3. In the upper bar > View/ToolBars, choose everything and View/Floaters, choose all except User Selection - Also directly under view, choose "Status Bar" and "All views active".

 

4. Import the .WDR of the weapon you chose, be sure to have PNG as preferable texture and to ONLY tick collision, now the model should show up in your view/Hierarchy view (Where w_eagle.wdr should be present)

 

5. Import your model, with the same settings as the earlier import.

 

6. In the tools pad to the left > Modify/Scale, click the box next to scale, be sure to choose "Scale geometry/Scale Normals/Affect children".

 

7. Find your model's name in the hierarchy view, rightclick and choose "find in views".

 

8. Scale the model holding shift, switch between scale/Move in the tools menu - Fit the model to the Rock* one. A tip is to look at the grip when scaling, most guns have a matching scale there.

 

 

Step two

 

Now, this step can be a little more/less complex depending on your model. In the 3D view, get a good view of the gun - Does the shading look wierd/Are the polygons flipped? If so, do all the following steps. If it look as intended, you may jump ahead to step .5 - But i advice you to do the next steps just to be sure!

 

1. In the hierarchy view, hide the Rock* model for now.

 

2. Press 1 (Vertex level), press space (Selected Mode).

 

3. Left click your model (A lot of red dots should show up on it, vertexes), press SHIFT+A (Select All), press C (Calculate normals) - Now your model will reflect surroundings properly.

 

4. Take a close look at your model in the 3D view - Does it look like the faces are flipped? If so, press 4 (Edit level object), press SHIFT+A (Select all), press F (Flip faces). Now your model should look right, if not just undo the steps.

 

5. With the model selected (press 4, press SHIFT+A), press E, Assign material called "b_WEAPONNAME gta_normal_spec" - You should see that there is a texture on your weapon in the 3D view. Read the last part to get more info on zmodeler materials!

 

Step 3

 

1. In the hierarchy view, unhide the Rock* model.

 

2. Find Tools/Modify/Move, click the box to the right of "move - Be sure to tick "move pivot" - Now adjust your weapon's pivot to the Rock* one.

 

3. In the hierarchy, drag and drop your weapon onto w_WEAPON.wdr - Delete your old hierarchy if there is one, also delete the old "0" in the w_WEAPON.wdr's hierarchy.

 

4. In the hierarchy, find W_WEAPON (NOT .WDR), right click and find in views, go to tools/modify/move, click box to the right and check only affect children, Zoom out in the front view until you see the your model, move W_WEAPON to you weaponmodel (Or 0,0,0).

 

5. Be sure to adjust W_WEAPON to the middle of the green dummie

 

6. Browse too tools/modify/move, click box to the right and uncheck everything, in the front view find "gun_muzzle" and move it according to where the muzzle should be on your weapon.

 

7. Be sure that you only have one 3D model (0) and only the root "w_WEAPON.wdr" in the hierarchy view.

 

8. Export your weapon model (File/Export) with the filename of the original file from rock*.

 

9. Import the weapon again with collision and sliced model checked (IMPORTANT) and delete the old hierarchy.

 

10. Now there should not be bones in the scene anymore, only dummies (Blue boxes instead of pink/purple spheres.

 

11. Export it all again with sliced model checked.

 

DONE

 

Now, in the last part I am sure I've missed something, so if you bump in to a problem - Write it so i can update the tutorial!

 

Handy tips/things...

 

You export the model just to import it again as Zmodeler converts the dummies to bones when you import it without sliced model the first time.

GTA IV will use whichever texture you put in your material, even if you uncheck it - So if you do not want a normalmap, remove it instead!

 

In the material the slot who uses a texture ending with "_n" is the normal/"_s" is the specular. If you open up extensions inside the material window, click "user defined...", you are able to adjust parameters in most GTA IV materials.

 

If your model seem to reflect light inverted or simply wrong - Do step 2.

 

In the Rock* model's hierarchy below W_WEAPON (NOT WDR) there are two dummies called grip/grip_2. The grip dummie is preferably not modified, it directs Nico's hand anim - If you placed your weapon along the Rock* one's grip you should not modify it.. It will only mess up the place nico have his hands.

Grip_2 directs how the gun will be hold in a car, whis should neither be modified as the gun will only show up pointing the wrong way - Just like the "grip" dummie.

 

Leave a comment, and if you find something wrong - Write it! - This is my first tut, so I've probably forgot a step or so!

 

[youwillfearme]

Great tutorial.

 

However, your tutorial seems to be missing either specific details and or points.

 

All I can get is a weapon to show up textured in Spark IV, but invisible in-game (although there is a invisible model silhouette when you shoot). I suppose it might have to do with the fact that I only get one Mesh in Spark IV when there's suppose to be two or three. What am I doing wrong?

 

Thanks in advance!

[BWARazor]

I really like your tutorial, it was very helpfull, but i got a big problem, i just don´t get the right position working, all is perfect and made all like you told me but i think it´s a pivot-problem, everything is right, then i exported to convert the dummies, imported again and still everything was in position, then when i exported again for the final export, everything was scaled wrong, i´m almost 100% sure that the problem is something with scale , because when "Scale to pivot (don´t know the exact word) is enabled, and you scale the "original, right positioned model" a little bit down, it´s looking like the one that got wrong exported, so i don´t know how to fix that, tried this for hours, with no success -.-

[Spykeeboy]

THANKS SO MUCH Trixigt! Finally I can put my FAMAS G2 model to good use!

[13-37]

oh yeah my weapon is not invisible anymore but it's in the wrong place? but i exported it correctly

Edited June 8, 2010 by 13-37

[leik oh em jeez!]

Any fixes for the invisile weapon problem? I've got a Halo 3 shotgun I'm trying to get working properly.

[wapeddell]

how do you align weapons right I've got a another method of getting them in game but the position of the weapons is slightly out of place