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Thread: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

  1. #1

    Default How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    I need some help here from experienced artists out there. Unlike large.tga, ensign_denmark_diffuse.dds in the naval textures directory does not seem to work with transparent areas - they show up as pure black around the flag. Any idea how to solve this?

    My .dds file has an alpha channel that specifies transparency, and I save it using DXT5 compression - this all works for the campaign and battle flags, but for some reason, not for the naval flags. It might have something to do with the program looking for the alpha channel in another file - there is an ensign_alpha.dds file in the pack - but making a separate alpha file following this naming convention hasn't worked so far (ensign_denmark_alpha.dds, to go with ensign_denmark_diffuse.dds).

    Any help would be appreciated.

    Last edited by Spanky; April 05, 2009 at 09:51 AM.

  2. #2

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    Hmm. No ideas on the problem? I'm still stumped.

  3. #3

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    I think it may to do with the ensign_density.dds file. I seem to remember seeing it when poking around in there. Just a thought

  4. #4

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    Thanks. I'm not sure it does, though; that file is a different shape from the other ensign files, it's square... Not sure what to make of it.
    Last edited by Spanky; April 06, 2009 at 09:13 AM.

  5. #5

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    Mayby the problem is in the ship-models. There is a hint to the ensigns in the rigging files of the models and i find at variants two files called capstana..
    I'm not sure, but if this one is for the mast and the flag, there is a black dummy-texture, which would explain your problems and which can't be solved till we get modelling tools.
    Bladerunner
    Koeniglich Preussische Marine
    Sealords Virtual Fleets

    Sealords Minimod: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=274322
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  6. #6

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    Thanks. Yes, I'd be grateful for any hints on this one. A capstan, though, according to wikipedia is:

    a rotating machine used to apply force to another element, notably used on board ship and on dock walls, for heaving-in or veering ropes, cables, and hawsers.
    Not sure they would put the flag in the same model?

    I discovered yesterday that the british ensign also had a "_normal.dds" file, but I'm assuming that is used for bump mapping or something similar.

    There must be some way to get transparency into these flags. Naval flags are those most frequently having swallowtails.

  7. #7

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    i think you may be right with the capstana-file, but you really should take a look into the rigging.xml files. there are two sails (001 and 099) which have the texture ensign.
    Bladerunner
    Koeniglich Preussische Marine
    Sealords Virtual Fleets

    Sealords Minimod: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=274322
    Sealords Total War Mod: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=246265

  8. #8

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    Yes. I've noticed that it varies from ship to ship: the sloop has the ensign for sail 18. Is that a brig you have it from? If so, the two sails are probably the ensign at the stern, and the jack at the top.

    You might have hit on something with that idea. Maybe a file somewhere needs to specify that a particular ensign has a corresponding alpha file?

    Meaning: since the british ensign has not only ensign_britain_diffuse.dds, but also ensign_britain_gloss.dds and ensign_britain_normal.dds, maybe this is referred to in a file somewhere? So this file would need to contain an entry saying that for the Danish ensign, the engine must refer to ensign_denmark_diffuse.dds, but also ensign_denmark_alpha.dds?

  9. #9

    Default Re: How do I enable transparent areas in the naval flags?

    Gone through some file and found those rigging file directly combined with the model_naval file in DB-folder. it seems to read the xml-information and transport it into proper format for the engine, which seems to use the navalsail.fx-file to know, where to look for what kind of information.

    As these informations are heavily encrypted for know, i don't know if this helps out. mayby you take a look into those files, to learn more about the format and mayby find, where to alter the alpha chanel.
    Bladerunner
    Koeniglich Preussische Marine
    Sealords Virtual Fleets

    Sealords Minimod: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=274322
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