How to make color_mask and gloss_map file?

[[N2]Kami]

As the tittle say, I'm trying to make a color_mask and gloss_map file for my custom unit but I can only make a gloss_map using photoshop dds plugin instead of convert from .tga to .dds by BOB.
Anybody know how to make those texture file for custom unit? I tried mimic the original game color_mask by making a texture with black background and detail's colored by red, blue and green color. But all I get is the black texture for my unit, instead of color mask in colored parts.

[manolops3]

the colour_mask_texture is not to tell the game exactly which colors to use.it is only to tell the game on which parts of the texture the faction colors have to be used.

so to see a difference in Unit Editor,set other colors to be displayed.i hope you get what i mean...if that doesnt help you,feel free to ask again...

and for the gloss_map,i see no problem to make a gloss map using Photoshop...thats the way i do it everytime.

[[N2]Kami]

@manolops3
Oh thank you again for your kiyomasa helmet
I understand that the colour_mask is to tell the game which part of the faction colors is but I can't make something like that All i got is a pitch black texture.

[Shim13]

If I understand correctly what you're talking about, the black texture is saying that no faction colors will be used on this part. If you want to paint out some pieces of the part, you're going to need a UV matte overlay so you know what to paint white for the faction color to show through.

Now if you just want to have custom colors in the texture. Just paint on the diffuse texture.

[Shim13]

Just had a thought. Use the diffuse texture to figure out where the pieces are. Paint a separate layer white over what you want to be faction color. Then paste that over your black texture in the color_mask.

Hope that helps.

[Fujiwara]

like said Shim13, also to play with the thresold tool can help. But the latter will not give the best result(compared to manual way like Shim explained)

If you don't want bother, try this:
-desaturate your texture
-and put the thresold tool to ~~87.
Then paint the white part with blue, red, green like C.A(pick up the color from a vanilla color mask, or if will not work.)
Save either as DTX1ARGB1bitalpha, or DTX3 explicit alpha. Not sure what is the best or if its matter.

I did my own color mask this way for my yoroi shoulders, its works fine.

So thats a possible way with the laced armor, but it can become more complex with clothes pattern, e.g.
I assume that C.A had multilayered working textures, just like multilayer .PSD. It seems a good idea to follow this:
-when you're making a new texture, divide in several layers the different elements: background fabrics, armor, straps/laces, and eventually the superficial patterns you could use either on the armor or on the fabrics.

This will allow you to make very clean color masks, and very quickly. And allow also to make multilayered normal maps(never tested it on Shogun2 by myself, though).

[[N2]Kami]

@fujiwara, shim13
Thank you for your comment, I tried, but something went wrong in the process.
As you can see this is the diffuse texture

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

and color mask

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

and this is the result

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I don't know what's the problem. I cut the color part I want to paint to new layer in photoshop and fill it with red,green,blue then merge them down, and save ass dds.

Update, after paint white the blue and yellow part in the diffuse I have the color I want but the chest armor, which I don't want to have color mask is still broken.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Fujiwara]

Looks like something goes wrong with the format you did used for your color mask;
Did you tried to remove or to add an alpha chanel on your colour mask?

useless to mention that you absolutly need photoshop for saving your textures, other software haven't exactly the same parameters.

[manolops3]

when you absolutely not getting it to work,perhaps you could upload your variant_part_mesh and the textures,so peoples ( like me ) could take a look over it...

[uanime5]

@fujiwara, shim13
Thank you for your comment, I tried, but something went wrong in the process.
As you can see this is the diffuse texture

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

and color mask

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

You've got the colour mask wrong. This file is used to recolour armour with your faction's colours, so you don't need to use it on the parts you've already coloured.

Let's say I have two factions: one faction's "red" colour makes the cloth red, the other faction's faction's "red" colour makes the cloth green. You use the colour mask so that you don't need to make a new diffuse for every faction.

I recommend only using the colour mask for the white parts of your diffuse.

[Gedgorge]

diffuse for every faction.

[mhawari]

why u not coloring the texture_diffuse ?