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redrob41 last won the day on January 25
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96 Jedi Grand MasterAbout redrob41
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- Birthday July 19
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wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
no, just characters. The full list is in the spreadsheet linked in the first post. Hopefully it is easy to open, I see that it has been download 6 times. -
wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
I just want to double check my thank you section for software tools that I use: KOTOR Tool – Fred Tetra mdlops (used version 7a2) - cchargin NWMax – Joco Replacer - Taina tga2tpc - ndix UR KotOR/KotOR2 Savegame Editor v3.3.2 - tk102 Hex-editor XVI32 2.55 - Christian Maas Hopefully I've got all the correct names there. -
wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
No worries. I was just trying to remind readers what my scope is, so that they don't get their hopes up. I want to keep expectations realistic. Why's that? It's been a long while since I've been out of the loop. Did I miss something important about Steam mods? Something else that I was unaware of. While its nice to know of more tools for Mac users, this mod won't need it. On another note, I think that I will try uploading multiple download options for each game. The third option is to address the issue that Snigaroo pointed out (which I haven't actually tested myself): KotOR: 4x tga version. Highest resolution, the typical texture is now 2048x2048 pixels which = 16MB. This version is a total 5.2GB, hopefully it isn't too large or cause problems for some PCs. This version is also the best choice to use as a modder's resource. 4x tpc version. Created by running full size tgas through tga2tpc which compresses the 2048x2048 pixels to 5.5MB. This version is a total of 1.8GB, so it should be easier on PC systems, with no noticeable loss of visual fidelity. 2x tpc version. Created by reducing full size tgas by half, then running them through tga2tpc which compresses them to 1.4MB. This version is a total of 530MB, which should be much easier on PC systems. TSL: 4x tga version. Highest resolution, the typical texture is now 2048x2048 pixels which = 16MB. This version is a total 7GB, hopefully it isn't too large or cause problems for some PCs. This version is also the best choice to use as a modder's resource. 4x tpc version. Created by running full size tgas through tga2tpc which compresses the 2048x2048 pixels to 5.5MB. This version is a total of 2.4GB, so it should be easier on PC systems, with no noticeable loss of visual fidelity. 2x tpc version. Created by reducing full size tgas by half, then running them through tga2tpc which compresses them to 1.4MB. This version is a total of 700MB, which should be much easier on PC systems. While doing it this way does mean that many texture files will be duplicated if a person downloads both KotOR & TSL versions of the mod, it should be easier for users to install the correct files into the correct Override folder. As for the screenshots, I have scaled them down by half. While viewers won't get the full effect of how much the texture resolution has changed, the pics will at least illustrate where I've made some artistic choices that are beyond just upscaling the original textures. I haven't taken screenshots of every texture I've fixed (that would end up being over 500). So far there are 36 pics specifically for KotOR (total 31MB); 90 pics specifically for TSL (total 94MB); and 71 pics that are common to both games (total 77MB). The question I have is: can I attach the common screenshots to the TSL mod page and the link those photos into the KotOR mod page such that they are saved in only one place on Deadly Stream's servers (thus taking up less space); or do I need to attach them to both mod pages, thus duplicating the space taken up on the server? OR is that still too many screenshots to host on Deadly Stream? -
wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
My goal was to improve the original files without spending too much time on them. This is an upscale plus mod, not a full on remaster. I focus mostly on perfecting the UVW maps. The most that I'll do to a mesh is push around a few XYZ coordinates if it really needs it, but nothing that is going to require re-compiling it (which cutting pieces from various meshes would certainly require). One sample is Canderous' clothes model has arms that are skinnier than his underwear model, so I adjusted them to match. Another is Disciple's eyes were a bit wonky, so I adjusted them to be more symmetrical. Another simpler one is the Lite Sith Soldier: the feet were clipping into the ground, so I moved all vertices upwards. I'm sure that there are some replacement mods out there that swap higher poly models for the lite versions, but this isn't going to be one of those. I'm trying to do everything without needing to patch the 2da files. That way, even mac users can just copy and paste the skins and models, and it should make it more compatible with Steam mods. -
wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
Thanks for the explanation. I wasn't really familiar with the details of issue, just that some HD mods have a tpc version to improve performance and reduce download size. I'll keep it in mind for the future. I assume you're referring to these ones (and the others similar): I have kept the original models' shape but fixed the uvw maps. For the textures I have taken my 4x commoner clothes and scaled them down, with some touch ups for the lite version. As for the faces, I have rebuilt them using parts of commoner heads and player heads, with some manual painting around the eyes. The weird thing to deal with the model is that the faces have an indent /flat spot for where the eyes are painted on, rather than separate eyeball/eyelid meshes. It makes for odd textures when unwrapped. I have also done similar process for other lite versions (Sith soldier, Republic officers, female Twi'leks, etc) and plan to continue for the ones that I haven't gotten to yet. Details are in the spreadsheet I've attached to the first post -
Hi Kexikus, I was just wondering about file storage for your screenshots on the High Quality Skyboxes mod's thread. Were they uploaded directly to DeadlyStream, or are they stored on a third party file hosting site and just linked here? I used to save images on a third party site, but I think it shut down. I'm planning on releasing a large mod with lots of screenshots, so I'm looking for ideas on the best way to do that.
Thanks in advance.
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Which screenshots are you referring to exactly?
The one in the mod section, in the mod description or in the support thread? -
Probably the ones at the top of the mod description. Recently I started a new WIP thread for my upscale mod, and DarthParametric suggested "You'll have to create an off-site gallery somewhere. Imgur maybe, or you could create a Github repo and use their Sites functionality (have a look at Kex's skyboxes mods for an example of how it is done)."
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Those at the top of the mod description are just uploaded here to Deadlystream.
But with the number of screenshots you want, DP probably refered to these comparison galleries: https://kexikus.github.io/HQSkyboxes_TSL_Comparison/They are hosted on github.
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wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
I'm going to re-tool and re-organize my files & Read-Me so that there will be separate K1 & TSL downloads. I was planning on doing tga (higher resolution, easier for modders to use as a resource) & tpc (lower file size) versions for each; would they be uploaded independently or somehow joined in the thread? It gets confusing so: KotOR tga version KotOR tpc version TSL tga version TSL tpc version Also, during upload there will be questions and check boxes about compatibility with other existing mods, but I can't remember which ones they are? I'd like to double check because I'm almost certain that there will be duplicate files, and users will need to know which characters that they'll have to decide when to overwrite files or not. At this point I'm almost superstitious about my setup 😆. I'm running Windows 10 on an iMac through bootcamp, and it can't run Win11. The last time I tried to use MDLOps V1.0.0 and KotorMax it caused problems that I just didn't want to deal with. I also had to revert back to 3ds Max 2011 because my 2016 version developed problems. Since I prefer the old school Taina's method, for now I'm just not going to mess with what's working for me. -
wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
I've been using 3DS Max 2011 for years because I don't want to pay for yearly subscriptions. Besides, it still works great for these old mdl files. I've never tried Blender before. Yeah, I plan to release what I've got so far, and hopefully not take another 2 years to finish what's left 😆. Over the last two nights I have made some XYZ changes to PFBF & PFBH models for both games, so hopefully it is similar enough to what K1 CP had done for them. If there are any other weird little model glitches that you know of, that I haven't already addressed in my spreadsheet, please let me know. I can add it to my long list for someday. -
wip 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
redrob41 replied to redrob41's topic in Work In Progress
I have a few answers: I haven't looked at other other mods/fixes as I've been focused on getting as much of my mod done as I can. I have just taken a quick look at K1 CP, and I will probably tackle the female armour collar clipping on my model versions (since it looks like a simple XYZ fix to me). I haven't looked at any of the rest yet. If any of my models and textures work for the K1 CP, feel free to incorporate them. I am specifically saving the head models until last, since some of them are really messed up (like the one you mentioned). Some day I hope to get to it. I know that in recent years the community has relaxed its view on "porting" between K1 & TSL, but when I started this mod I deliberately decided to keep them separate. My main reason is that I prefer the Taina's replacer method of fixing UVW & XYZ coordinates, since it preserves the smooth groups. However, if anyone else wants to modify some files to work in either game, I'm not opposed to it. It is inevitable that there are going to be incompatible files with other mods. My Revan robes models, for example, make significant changes to the UVW map of the hands and boots, so they will be slightly off when used with a flowing cape mod. As far as I know, in order to add the animations it would require compiling the ascii model using mdlops, which would break the smooth groups (unless that's been fixed in recent years and I don't know). I didn't sweat it because there are so many other HD Revan textures out there that users will pick and choose to mix and match the ones they like best. -
redrob41 started following 4x Upscale+ Character Textures & Model Fixes for KotOR & TSL
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Hello KotOR modding community. It has certainly been a long time since I've posted here. While life has been busy and can get in the way of modding, I have been working on a big project in secret. For the past few years I have been chipping away at my own version of an A.I. Upscale 4x mod for most of the default character files in both games. Because it has been slow going, I didn't want to get distracted by constantly responding to "when is it going to be ready?" prompts when I could be spending time on the files. I also didn't want to get anyone's hopes up about it, only to then keep delaying because I'm often too much of a perfectionist. But after so much time has elapsed, I keep thinking that I need to put something out, even if it is incomplete in my books. To give you an idea of how big a project this is, I have completed 329/475 textures that are common to both games, 71/214 textures for K1, and 184/419 textures for TSL. That makes for a grand total of 584/1108 textures or 52.71%. I'm using the textures as the basis for completion, but there are also 459 models for K1 and 648 models for TSL completed so far. I've attached a spreadsheet with a list of all the files involved. The reason why it is so slow going is that this mod is more than just a simple process of running all the character textures through an A.I. upscaling program. The purpose is to increase the size and fidelity of the character textures while maintaining the painterly style of the original game artists. I have also been attempting to fix many of the UVW mapping errors, lighting errors, and some XYZ errors that the original model .mdl & .mdx files may have had. One problem of upscaling textures that I've found is that the model seams become glaringly obvious at higher resolution, so I've been painstakingly painting those to look seamless. Anyone who is familiar with my previously released mods will know how much I try to fix those pesky model errors. The other thing about A.I. upscaling software, is that I haven't found one that gives perfect results. Instead of relying on one result, I usually run texture files through an A.I. upscaling program multiple times using different settings. Some settings result in "crunchy" textures (high contrast, sharp edges). Some result in "soft" textures (smooth gradients, lower contrast, blurry edges). Some result in better straight/parallel lines. Early tests used Vance AI; Deep Image; ImageUpscaler; or Let's Enhance. Eventually Topaz Labs' Gigapixel AI was chosen and used on the majority of textures. Then I combine textures in a multi layered Photoshop file, using layer masks to isolate the best parts of each upscaled image. This allows for some portions to be smooth (like skin, glass, metal or tubing), others to be sharp (like burlap, skin folds, hair, scratches, etc). Then I manually paint away errors, fix seams, and make additional changes. At any rate, the reason for this WIP post is that I've been out of the loop for so long, that I don't know the best way to package and upload the mod. I usually use 7zip, so that's not the problem. I currently have 378 tga, tpc, & txi files (4.09 GB) that are common to both games; 459 mdl, mdx, tga, tpc, & txi files (1.07 GB) specifically for K1; 648 mdl, mdx, tga, & txi files (2.90 GB) specifically for TSL. I was originally planning on packaging them up all together and letting the user to put them into their respective override folders, making the common files only needing to be downloaded once. The other option is to make two download packages, one for each game, where the common files are included in both packs. This would result in having to download the largest batch of files twice, but it would be easier for installation. To complicate it further, I would also make download packages for a tpc only installation (for smaller file sizes and easier to run in-game). The other questions I have are: which upload method do users prefer: single download for both games (smaller size overall), or two files (one for each game makes installation easier)? how many screenshot images can be uploaded to showcase the contents of the mod? I currently have 197 pngs for a total of 561 MB, and would like to make more. I've attached a few to sample a range of the types of changes the mod tackles. are there any samples for the Read Me file regarding Permissions and Credits? I want to make the tga version into a modder's resource. Where is the best place to put a link to my "Buy me a Coffee" tip jar? I'm hoping to use any funds towards software upgrades for future modding. I don't know if I'll ever actually finish this mod, but I need to share what I've got before the universe jumps in again and makes something impossible for me. Anyway, happy New Year. I hope to continue more of this work in 2025. Screenshot samples: KotOR upscale completed list v0_52.xlsx
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Thanks. Yeah, it was really frustrating to be so close when Windows 10 decided to make the old tools stop working. I'm really glad that the modding community here is still so alive. The new tools are working great, and I should be able to actually get something done 😄. Hopefully you won't have to wait years again for the next one 😉.
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If you are looking for something to do, Carth could use a hand - https://deadlystream.com/topic/5529-a-new-look-for-carth/
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View File Party Model fixes and HD Bastila The main purpose of this mod is to fix many of the party models that have uvw errors. Some of these errors may be too small to see in-game, but most become glaring when using some of the HD texture mods here on this site. The only HD texture that I have included here, is for Bastila Shan's head model (P_BastilaH04) which is now 2048x2048 pixels. I have tried to remain true to her original look. The models that I have fixed, and are included, are: default clothes models for Bastila Shan Canderous Ordo Carth Onasi Jolee Bindo Juhani Mission Vao HK-47's whole body model head models for Bastila and Carth HD head texture for Bastila head texture for Jolee (to fix the mustache) two additional clothes textures for Carth Each of these character's files can be used separately, so that the user has the option of mixing and matching with other mods. Many of the screenshots are animated with before/after scenes that flip every 7 seconds. There are included text files with much more detail as to what has been fixed in each. There are also a few files included that other modders can use for helping their own texture mods (some uvw maps and a few Photoshop psd files with multiple layers already separated). Submitter redrob41 Submitted 06/09/2018 Category Skins K1R Compatible Yes
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Version 1.0.0
28,406 downloads
The main purpose of this mod is to fix many of the party models that have uvw errors. Some of these errors may be too small to see in-game, but most become glaring when using some of the HD texture mods here on this site. The only HD texture that I have included here, is for Bastila Shan's head model (P_BastilaH04) which is now 2048x2048 pixels. I have tried to remain true to her original look. The models that I have fixed, and are included, are: default clothes models for Bastila Shan Canderous Ordo Carth Onasi Jolee Bindo Juhani Mission Vao HK-47's whole body model head models for Bastila and Carth HD head texture for Bastila head texture for Jolee (to fix the mustache) two additional clothes textures for Carth Each of these character's files can be used separately, so that the user has the option of mixing and matching with other mods. Many of the screenshots are animated with before/after scenes that flip every 7 seconds. There are included text files with much more detail as to what has been fixed in each. There are also a few files included that other modders can use for helping their own texture mods (some uvw maps and a few Photoshop psd files with multiple layers already separated).- 5 comments
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Is it ever. I know I disappeared for nearly 2 years, but it's a great feeling that the modding community here is alive and well! I've been downloading and trying out the new tools, and is it my imagination, or did someone figure out how to get bumpmapping to work? That would be amazing!