SC2Mapster

@IronPelvis: Go

I only see one attachment point in your screen shot. The rest might not have exported with it, so you may have to do that again. You can always try just linking it to the bones instead.

@LastRavager: Go

I can't view the model right now but the Stand Ready animation should be working. Unless I made a spelling mistake. I didn't put a stormstrike animation on the model either, you might be mistaking it for the deathstrike one.

Ready is group applied/removed whenever any weapon starts/stops attacking. This is already on most actors I've seen, if it is not, it will NEVER use the ready animation. It looks like this.

Turn On

Abil.attack.ReadyStart

AnimGroupApply Ready

Turn Off

Abil.attack.ReadyStop

AnimationGroupRemove Ready Instant

@ViruSSofT: Go

There are some things from WoW that can't be imported and/or exported properly with the 3DS Max scripts. Usually it has something to do with the animations. Try making them .obj instead.

If want to cut out an area using alpha just create the texture pretty much the same as above. Instead, switch the Blend mode to Alpha Blend and on the same texture as the diffuse create the alpha mask and set it to render alpha only.

@Sanguinax: Go

The name of the animation must be Stand Ready. This is what your export window should look

@Sanguinax: Go

The name of your animation is "Ready", not "Stand Ready". It won't work until you rename it. Make sure when you're in the model export options that you rename it to that. Also make sure to hit apply. You can also rename it in 3DS Max if you have it.

Step 4 – Importing into Starcraft 2.

Open up your map and go to Import. Hit import and find your files. I usually import all of the textures first. After I import them I will make sure their path is Assets/Textures/. I then save the map and return to the import window. Then Import the .m3 exported from 3DS Max. The textures should be visible on the model once you import it. If not save your map, exit the editor, and reload your map. If it still is not working be sure the Internal Texture path matches the path you put in the editor.

Step 5 – Doing the same thing with Buildings from WoW.

There is a slight difference from Buildings and units in WoW. Most WoW buildings are WMO files. In WMV you can change to WMO files from the drop down menu in the button left corner. Be aware though that WMV likes to crash when viewing WMO files and may cause nerd rage.

We cannot export these files as .m3’s with animations so we will export them the same way we exported the items from our character. Go to File  Export  Wavefront Obj. Edit the textures you wish to add team colors to just like we did above. And for the rest just save them as a .dds.

Note: A lot of the buildings share the same textures. It is best to keep them the same name as to save yourself space if you plan on having a lot of structures.

Go to 3DS Max and import the structure just like we did with the items. File  Import  Find the Wavefront Obj.

Some buildings have a lot of useless insides. I gutted all of my structures so just have the outside walls to reduce the file size. Walkable paths do not get imported so it’s pretty much useless to keep them anyway.

Attach the textures and attachment points like did up above. It may take a little guessing but eventually you’ll get the job done.

Step 3 – Adding Textures, Gear, and Attachment Points to our character.

Use this image as a guide to find buttons, tabs, etc. Right click > view image to see the full image.

The first thing we need to do if you haven’t yet is to get the .m3 scripts ready for 3DS. If you haven’t already followed Nintoxicated’s guide on how to do this please refer to this link which was also posted above: http://www.sc2mapster.com/assets/m3-export-plugin-3ds-max/

If you haven’t set it up to load the scripts when 3DS opens go to Utilities -> MAXScript -> Run Script and find the M3 Import and Export scripts. Select them from the drop down window. Before we import our model we need to get the loading path for the textures. While this doesn’t apply our textures it will apply the .tga files that were originally exported with it. This is useful for models that use an alpha mask to cut out certain areas of the texture. It will retain the original textures information and make it easier for you.

Go to Customize -> Custom User Paths -> External Files. Click add, and go find the folder in which the original textures were located. Do not select the folder they are currently in as the path or it will not work. Rather select the folder that houses that folder. Hit Use Path and then hit Move Up until it is all the way at the top.

Now go to the m3 import window in the utilities tab and click open. Search for the character .m3 we exported from WMV. Once you have selected it hit import. Our character model will now get loaded into 3DS Max. I window may still prompt saying that it couldn’t find some textures. If it includes Body.tga and/or several others then your User Path is incorrect.

We will now add the other pieces to the model. Go to the 3DS Max Icon in the top left corner (I will refer to it as File). File  Import. Find the Wavefront Obj’s we exported from WMV. Click Import again. You will get a window prompt that tells you it couldn’t find the texture. You can choose whether or not you want to search for it. If you wish to they should be in a folder named Item. It should now import the model. Go ahead and move it of the way and import the rest of the items.

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Now that we have everything we need model wise we’re going to start attaching our .dds textures to them. I like to hide the Bones and Helpers while doing this part. To do this go to Display button and check off Bones and Helpers. Open up the Material Editor and select the piece you wish to add a texture to. Notice in the material editor when you select something it will highlight the texture in the material editor. Use this as a guide as to chose which textures to apply to that selection.

Items will be listed as a Standard texture. So we will go ahead and change it to a Starcraft 2 texture. We will then select Diffuse Map. Scroll down and select Starcraft 2 Bitmap. Click where it says None, hit Ok, and find the texture you wish to apply. If you wish to add team color on the texture check Render Alpha as Team Colour. With your selection made hit Assign Material to Selection. Don’t freak if it doesn’t show. If it doesn’t hit Show Standard Map in Viewport. Your texture should now be applied to that portion of the model. Go ahead and do this for every piece.

Now that our model has textures we can now start to resize them and attach them to the character. One thing to note is that not every attachment point gets imported into 3DS Max. However, the most important ones generally do. Resizing the items is fairly easy. I like to resize the items to about 40%. It is up to you to decide what looks good.

Once you have resized them we will start attaching them to the character. If you hid bones and helpers now is a good time to show them again. Move each item around until it is in a position that you find suitable. Then hit Select and Link. Select the item, then click and drag to an attachment point or bone. I link the shoulders, helmet, and weapons to attachment points.

Now that our we have attached our items we want to check to be sure they are attached properly. Go to the Utitlies. Go the .m3 sequences. If it doesn’t show click it from the same drop down window where we added the .m3 import and export.

The first thing you will see is a drop down window that will have a list of every animation the model has. I always keep it on Stand when attaching pieces. Go ahead and change the animation to see if the items look like the are moving correctly. If they aren’t then set the animation back to Stand and re-attach them or attach them to something different. If they are attached to attachment points they should generally be fine.

Now that our items are attached to our character we need to add a few more attachments points that weren’t imported with the model. You can add whatever you like wherever you like it. Just be sure to attach it to a bone or another attachment point so it follows the animations.

To add a new attachment point we are going to go to Create. Click the helpers button and select Starcraft 2 Objects from the drop down menu. Click Attachment and in the Attachment Parameters select the type of Attachment you want it to be. I usually add a Ref_Center, Ref_Damage, Ref_Overhead, and Ref_Target or Ref_Origin. For me Ref_Target is usually located at the feet of my model and if you do not move it all missiles will be fired at the models feet. Go ahead and move the attachments where you would like them to be and link them to a bone or another attachment point which is already linked to a bone.

Once you have completed all of these steps you can now export your model. Go to Utilies and scroll down to the .m3 export. Go ahead and hit Export and save it as whatever you would like to call it. The default Texture path is Assets/Textures/. You can change that if you would like before exporting the model.

Step 2 – Saving textures as .dds and adding team colors.

Find each of the textures that were exported with your models and open them up inside photoshop. Some textures will not require any editing, such as the hair textures. However you should still save it as a .dds file. Select each texture you would like to add team colors to and save the others you don’t want to add colors to as a .dds. You can name the file whatever you like because we will be applying that texture in 3DS Max. When you select .dds a window will prompt you to select the format. We will be using DXT5 ARGB 8 bpp | interpolated alpha, 2D Texture, and No MIP maps.

Now for the textures we will apply team colors to go ahead and start to outline the areas you wish to add the colors to. I use the magic tool until the lasso is needed for the finer details. You can add a new layer if you wish incase you make any mistakes. Once you have outlined the area you wish to add color select the channels tab and select Alpha.

Select your paint brush and fill in the area. When you’re done it will looks something similar to this. Go ahead and save it as a .dds just like above.

Now that we have added an Alpha Channel to our textures we can go ahead and move on over to 3DS Max.

This tutorial is outdated. For a newer method on adding team colors check out this link.

http://www.sc2mapster.com/forums/resources/tutorials/69058-textures-creating-team-color-textures/

You can view some of my older models in my signaure.

Before you can begin here is a list of programs you’ll need.

WoW Model Viewer

http://code.google.com/p/wowmodelviewer/downloads/list

Photoshop

Nvidia DDS plugin

http://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop

3DS Max !!!!2011 DO NOT USE OTHER VERSIONS!!!!!

Nintoxicated’s scripts

http://www.sc2mapster.com/assets/m3-export-plugin-3ds-max/

World of Warcraft

Step one – Creating your unit in WoW Model Viewer

The first thing you’re going to do is open up WoW Model Viewer, I will refer to it as WMV from now on. You will be asked if you would like to load World of Warcraft, do it. Go ahead and select which model you would like to use. For the purpose of this tutorial I will be making a unit I still need for my map.

On the right side of WMV you will notice several buttons that say Head, Shoulder, Shirt, Chest, and etc. This is where you select what your model will be wearing. Be aware that you cannot put armor on non-character models. You can however give them weapons. Although there is no reason to do so because Weapons, Shoulders, and Helmets currently do not get exported with the models.

After you have selected what you want your character to wear we will now have to select which animations to export with it.

Go to Options and select Export Options and go the M3 tab. It is important that you rename animations to fit with Starcraft 2. When determining animations names you need to take into account Animation Groups. For instance if I want my Berserker to change from his normal Walk animation to a Stealth Walk I will rename Stealth Walk into Walk A. When I apply group A any another animations such as Attack A or Spell A will be used as well. Once you have selected all of the animations and renamed them set an export path and hit apply.

If you wish to follow me here is the names of my animations and what they use.

Walk - Run [2]

Stand - Stand [0], Stand [26]

Stand Ready - Ready1h [3]

Stand A - ReadyTrown [84]

Stand B - Stun [9]

Stand C - Cower [151]

Stand D - Knockdown [113]

Stand E - Strangulate [154]

Stand F - Fall [20]

Stand Left - ShuffleLeft [43]

Stand Right - ShuffleRight [44]

Death - Death [7]

Attack - Attach1H [86], Attack1H [87], Attack1HPierce [104], AttackOff [89], AttackOffPierce [90], Special1H [88]

Attack A - Stormstrike [173], Mutilate [149]

Spell - ReadySpellDirected [32]

Spell A - ReadySpellOmni [33]

Spell B - SpellCastDirected [81]

Spell C - SpellCastOmni [80]

Spell D - BattleRoar [118]

Spell E - DragonStomp [146]

Spell F - Kick [85]

Spell H - ChannelCastDirected [119]

Spell I - ChannelCastOmni [122]

Spell J - Whirlwind [120]

Spell K - Dodge [94]

Spell L - Parry1H [93]

Now that our character has animations and armor we can go ahead and export it. Go to File -> Export Model -> M3. When you export the model all the animations and armor it is wearing will be exported into texture files and an .m3 file.

Before we do anything else to the model we need to find it some matching Shoulders, Helmet and Weapons. On the left side of WMV minimize everything so you can find + Item. In here you will see a list of Ammo, Head, Shield, Shoulder, Weapons and etc. Search for the specific pieces you are looking for. This may take you awhile if you haven’t play WoW very much. A couple things to consider are if the items are acquired via PvP that they generally have PvP in the name unless they are Burning Crusade items. In that case that will be under the PvE gear with a different texture.

I am using the following items.

lshoulder_plate_d_04

rshoulder_plate_d_04

sword_1h_short_c_02

Once you have found the Shoulder, Weapon, Shield, or Helmet you want to use go ahead and go to File -> Export ->Wavefront Obj. We will do this for each piece. For shoulders will need to do both the Left and Right ones.

Now we should have everything you need to move onto the next step.