Complete Modeling Tutorial for TF2

HellJumper · 10-25-2010, 06:31 PM

HellJumper's Blender 2.5 Modeling Tutorial

Ever wanted to create custom models for TF2? Hats, weapons, or anything else? Were you ever saddened because you didn't know how to model? All you beginners, look no more... I present my second installation of the Blender Tutorial!

Download the source files used in the video!

This tutorial is more inclusive, more explanatory, and uses the newest version of Blender. It is ultimately easier to follow, and produces better results.

Picture-Based Supplementary Tutorial

I hope people find this picture-based tutorial useful for quick reference. It obviously doesn't go into as much detail as the video does, but it's great for people who watched the video at least once and want to quickly go back to look at things. I have phased out all support for 2.49b tutorials. The videos will remain on youtube, but I will NOT answer any more questions regarding an old version of Blender. Thanks!

HellJumper · 10-25-2010, 06:32 PM

Q: Do I need to install source SDK?

A: Yes. You need it in order to have studioMDL.exe to work properly. Just install it by opening Steam, go to your library, go to the tools tab, and then install the "Source SDK". Once it's done downloading you can use the model viewer which is very useful. Also, you might need to press the "refresh content" button when using it for the first time. Just open the SDK up and there should be a button in the middle for that.

Q: I don't have a sourcesdk_content folder!

A: You must have the Source SDK installed to have access to this folder. Install it via the instructions above, and then run it at least once to ensure your clientside files were unpacked from the SDK gcf.

Q: GUIStudioMDL and MDLdecompiler won't work!

A: You have to put those programs in your C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\USERNAME\sourcesdk\bin\ep1\b in folder in order to work. In addition, MDLdecompiler needs to have all the check boxes unchecked.

Q: GUIStudioMDL refuses to work after I set the correct file paths!

A: Usually this problem can be solved by refreshing the SDK content. Do the following: Close everything > Open the SDK > click "refresh SDK content" > close the SDK > now try setting the paths again.

Q: When I compile my model, the texture won't show up, or it shows up as a purple and black checkerboard.

A: Make sure all your file paths are correct (in the .qc and the .vmt files). Check to make sure your materials are located in the folder designated by the $cdmaterials line in the qc file. Then check to make sure the .vmt is named EXACTLY what you named your .tga file. So if you named your texture 'Blender_Heavy.tga' when you exported it from blender, you must name your .vmt 'Blender_Heavy.vmt'

In addition to the above solutions, make sure your texture was exported properly from Blender. To do this, right click your smd and open it with notepad++. Quickly scan through the lines to see if your texture's name is showing up EXACTLY in the following format: "YourTextureName.tga" If there is a filepath or you are missing the ".tga" or the texture name doesn't even show up at all, your texture won't work!

Q: SMD tools isn't working / Blender won't recognize the files.

A: If you are using the latest version of Blender, download the SMD tools script here and save it somewhere easily accessible. If you are using Blender 2.56, then download this one instead. The SMD tools version must reflect the version of Blender you are using! Open Blender and go to file > user preferences > add-ons > install add-on. Navigate to your saved script and select it. After doing this, click "Save as Default", and delete the script.

Q: How do I remove a preexisting hat from a character model?

A: Import character model > Select character and go into edit mode > Make sure everything is deselected first > Hover cursor over the hat vertices and press "L" > Delete or hide the vertices ('x' or 'h', respectively)

Q: Why does my model export in a weird rotation?

A: First test to see if the model works correctly in-game via the item test map or whatnot. If it is still at an odd angle, then chances are that you accidentally rotated a bone that is parented to your model. Delete any existing bones, import a fresh character model and reassign the bone you need to your model. If the model works fine in-game but is rotated at an odd angle in the HLMV, this is due to the fact that Blender uses a z-up coordinate system rather than the typical y-up coordinate system. It has no effect outside the HLMV if your model exported fine.

Q: How do jiggle bones work in Blender?

A: Thanks to SgtR007_1, we now have an answer. Thanks again, SgtR007_1!

Q: How I model / export weapon models?

A: Modeling / Exporting a weapon is a very similar process to hat making. The key difference lies in the fact that instead of using the bone rig of the character model, we will be using the bones of a pre-existing weapon that we want to replace. So for example, if we wanted to make a Sandman replacement, we wouldn't import the scout model, but rather the Sandman model to see what bones it comes with. The following is a process on how to export a weapon from Blender (c_models):
Start a fresh, blank blender scene.

Extract a model that you want to replace from the team fortress 2 materials GCF (tf/models/weapons/c_models). Make sure to grab the .mdl file and any associated file (.vvd, .phy, etc)

Hex the extracted .mdl file by opening the file with notepad++ and changing the "IDST0" to "IDST,".

Decompile the hexed model file to get your weapon smd file.

Import the weapon smd into Blender.

Make your model without altering the imported decompiled model, and when you are ready, superimpose your model directly on top of the decompiled weapon. Make sure the properties of your model are all normal (you can check this by pressing "n" and making sure your scaling is all 1 and your positions are all 0. If they aren't just make sure you change them, and then reposition your model in edit mode).

Delete the decompiled weapon and assign the remaining bones to your model via the vertex groups panel. You can check to see that you assigned each bone to the appropriate vertex group via weight-paint mode. Melee weapons usually only have 1 bone whereas more complicated weapons will have a variety of bones that may or may not be shared between different groups of vertices. It is probably advisable to start with something simple like a melee weapon and work your way up to a more complicated model such as the huntsman (complicated!)

Now that you have assigned the bones to your model, the process is the same as exporting a hat.

Q: How do I make my hat paintable?

A: Check out this post.

Q: How do I attach particle effects to models?

A: Check out NBC011795's post here. Thanks again, NBC011795!

(coming whenever I have free time-- maybe the summer)

Ls777 · 10-25-2010, 06:37 PM

Woo!

nice to see you back.

AbeX300 · 10-25-2010, 06:42 PM

I really hope you don't get stupidly banned, again...

I'm watching you, BurtonJ, you ♥♥♥♥ing bastard.

Swinetower · 10-26-2010, 11:52 AM

Wilkommen! I was wondering if you'd ever find your way back here.

10-26-2010, 04:37 PM

Nice tutorial! im really interesting in using this one as my "school" lol

i just have a few questions:

in your first video the last 10 seconds or so you mention a versino 2.9...what program is that for i was guessing blender. i cant find a 2.9

also for python, you link us to python 2.6.5 but there is a bug release fix 2.6.6. its ok to use this version yes? (click on 2.6.6 for link)

HellJumper · 10-26-2010, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MoZaiX

Nice tutorial! im really interesting in using this one as my "school" lol

i just have a few questions:

in your first video the last 10 seconds or so you mention a versino 2.9...what program is that for i was guessing blender. i cant find a 2.9

also for python, you link us to python 2.6.5 but there is a bug release fix 2.6.6. its ok to use this version yes? (click on 2.6.6 for link)

Thanks. I think what I meant to say was Blender 2.49. Also, I changed the 2.6.5 to the 2.6.1 version which is meant to be used with Blender 2.49. At the moment this combination works best.

10-26-2010, 05:37 PM

oh ok so ill go download the 2.6.1 version.

EDIT: i made this page my homepage ;D F*** favorites when i can homepage it amirite?

10-26-2010, 06:07 PM

okay a new problem. its with blender and the SMD importer.

it tells me to put the sctipts into my blender directory blender/scripts but there is no scripts folder. i made the folder myself and added the scripts but it does nothing when i go to file > import > its not on the list.

i looked everywhere in my program files there is no other place that blender has installed files. im doign something wrong..

HellJumper · 10-26-2010, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MoZaiX

okay a new problem. its with blender and the SMD importer.

it tells me to put the sctipts into my blender directory blender/scripts but there is no scripts folder. i made the folder myself and added the scripts but it does nothing when i go to file > import > its not on the list.

i looked everywhere in my program files there is no other place that blender has installed files. im doign something wrong..

The way I have Blender installed is in folder form; that is to say, I didn't use the installer, I used the .zip instead. That way it creates a folder not necessarily in your program files. Try that. It's much better, and you can even run blender from a USB drive this way. It's 100 times better than having it install for you.

32Bit: http://www.blender.org/dl/http://dow...9b-windows.zip

64Bit: http://download.blender.org/release/...4-python26.zip

10-26-2010, 07:00 PM

ok have it installed. i added the scripts properly, when i go to import them they dont show up on the list so i manually type the name in and i get this error:

Code:

Compiled with Python version 2.6.2.
Checking for installed Python... got it!
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "C:\Program Files (x86)\blender-2.49b-windows\.blender\scripts\import_anim_smd.py", line 510, in import_SMD_animation
    action.setActive(Object.Get("armature"))
ValueError: object "armature" not found

HellJumper · 10-26-2010, 10:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MoZaiX

ok have it installed. i added the scripts properly, when i go to import them they dont show up on the list so i manually type the name in and i get this error:

Code:

Compiled with Python version 2.6.2.
Checking for installed Python... got it!
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "C:\Program Files (x86)\blender-2.49b-windows\.blender\scripts\import_anim_smd.py", line 510, in import_SMD_animation
    action.setActive(Object.Get("armature"))
ValueError: object "armature" not found

hm... I notice it says you are running 2.6.2. Use 2.6.1, that's the version meant for Blender 2.49. That is most likely your problem.

If all else fails, just export to .obj, and milkshape can do the smd exporting.

10-27-2010, 12:56 AM

wtf..says on my download history that i did download 2.6.1 but it looks like the .zip contains 2.6.2...wierd. fail python lol..

can you please .zip me your python? because i just did it again. went to the stie downloaded 2.6.1 again. even when i run the installation the popup that comes up says "are you sure you want to installed 2.6.1?". but blender keeps showing 2.6.2, whats my problem.

i might have to do it that way with milkshape then hmm?

10-28-2010, 06:56 AM

Today's TF2 update has made it impossible to extract, open or write gfc files with cfg scape because the size exceeded the 4 gb limit...

Any suggestions?

HellJumper · 10-28-2010, 02:55 PM

Alright. Nem (the guy who made GCFscape) sent this e-mail: http://imgkk.com/i/-37n.png

It should be fixed by then.
(Oh and I'm not Geit that is someone else.)

10-25-2010, 06:31 PM	#1
HellJumper Join Date: Oct 2010 Reputation: 4209 Posts: 5,871	Complete Modeling Tutorial for TF2 (Blender 2.5 Series) HellJumper's Blender 2.5 Modeling Tutorial Ever wanted to create custom models for TF2? Hats, weapons, or anything else? Were you ever saddened because you didn't know how to model? All you beginners, look no more... I present my second installation of the Blender Tutorial! Download the source files used in the video! This tutorial is more inclusive, more explanatory, and uses the newest version of Blender. It is ultimately easier to follow, and produces better results. Picture-Based Supplementary Tutorial I hope people find this picture-based tutorial useful for quick reference. It obviously doesn't go into as much detail as the video does, but it's great for people who watched the video at least once and want to quickly go back to look at things. I have phased out all support for 2.49b tutorials. The videos will remain on youtube, but I will NOT answer any more questions regarding an old version of Blender. Thanks! Last edited by HellJumper: 08-10-2011 at 08:23 PM.

10-25-2010, 06:32 PM	#2
HellJumper Join Date: Oct 2010 Reputation: 4209 Posts: 5,871	Frequently Asked Questions and More Q: Do I need to install source SDK? A: Yes. You need it in order to have studioMDL.exe to work properly. Just install it by opening Steam, go to your library, go to the tools tab, and then install the "Source SDK". Once it's done downloading you can use the model viewer which is very useful. Also, you might need to press the "refresh content" button when using it for the first time. Just open the SDK up and there should be a button in the middle for that. Q: I don't have a sourcesdk_content folder! A: You must have the Source SDK installed to have access to this folder. Install it via the instructions above, and then run it at least once to ensure your clientside files were unpacked from the SDK gcf. Q: GUIStudioMDL and MDLdecompiler won't work! A: You have to put those programs in your C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\USERNAME\sourcesdk\bin\ep1\b in folder in order to work. In addition, MDLdecompiler needs to have all the check boxes unchecked. Q: GUIStudioMDL refuses to work after I set the correct file paths! A: Usually this problem can be solved by refreshing the SDK content. Do the following: Close everything > Open the SDK > click "refresh SDK content" > close the SDK > now try setting the paths again. Q: When I compile my model, the texture won't show up, or it shows up as a purple and black checkerboard. A: Make sure all your file paths are correct (in the .qc and the .vmt files). Check to make sure your materials are located in the folder designated by the $cdmaterials line in the qc file. Then check to make sure the .vmt is named EXACTLY what you named your .tga file. So if you named your texture 'Blender_Heavy.tga' when you exported it from blender, you must name your .vmt 'Blender_Heavy.vmt' In addition to the above solutions, make sure your texture was exported properly from Blender. To do this, right click your smd and open it with notepad++. Quickly scan through the lines to see if your texture's name is showing up EXACTLY in the following format: "YourTextureName.tga" If there is a filepath or you are missing the ".tga" or the texture name doesn't even show up at all, your texture won't work! Q: SMD tools isn't working / Blender won't recognize the files. A: If you are using the latest version of Blender, download the SMD tools script here and save it somewhere easily accessible. If you are using Blender 2.56, then download this one instead. The SMD tools version must reflect the version of Blender you are using! Open Blender and go to file > user preferences > add-ons > install add-on. Navigate to your saved script and select it. After doing this, click "Save as Default", and delete the script. Q: How do I remove a preexisting hat from a character model? A: Import character model > Select character and go into edit mode > Make sure everything is deselected first > Hover cursor over the hat vertices and press "L" > Delete or hide the vertices ('x' or 'h', respectively) Q: Why does my model export in a weird rotation? A: First test to see if the model works correctly in-game via the item test map or whatnot. If it is still at an odd angle, then chances are that you accidentally rotated a bone that is parented to your model. Delete any existing bones, import a fresh character model and reassign the bone you need to your model. If the model works fine in-game but is rotated at an odd angle in the HLMV, this is due to the fact that Blender uses a z-up coordinate system rather than the typical y-up coordinate system. It has no effect outside the HLMV if your model exported fine. Q: How do jiggle bones work in Blender? A: Thanks to SgtR007_1, we now have an answer. Thanks again, SgtR007_1! Q: How I model / export weapon models? A: Modeling / Exporting a weapon is a very similar process to hat making. The key difference lies in the fact that instead of using the bone rig of the character model, we will be using the bones of a pre-existing weapon that we want to replace. So for example, if we wanted to make a Sandman replacement, we wouldn't import the scout model, but rather the Sandman model to see what bones it comes with. The following is a process on how to export a weapon from Blender (c_models): Start a fresh, blank blender scene. Extract a model that you want to replace from the team fortress 2 materials GCF (tf/models/weapons/c_models). Make sure to grab the .mdl file and any associated file (.vvd, .phy, etc) Hex the extracted .mdl file by opening the file with notepad++ and changing the "IDST0" to "IDST,". Decompile the hexed model file to get your weapon smd file. Import the weapon smd into Blender. Make your model without altering the imported decompiled model, and when you are ready, superimpose your model directly on top of the decompiled weapon. Make sure the properties of your model are all normal (you can check this by pressing "n" and making sure your scaling is all 1 and your positions are all 0. If they aren't just make sure you change them, and then reposition your model in edit mode). Delete the decompiled weapon and assign the remaining bones to your model via the vertex groups panel. You can check to see that you assigned each bone to the appropriate vertex group via weight-paint mode. Melee weapons usually only have 1 bone whereas more complicated weapons will have a variety of bones that may or may not be shared between different groups of vertices. It is probably advisable to start with something simple like a melee weapon and work your way up to a more complicated model such as the huntsman (complicated!) Now that you have assigned the bones to your model, the process is the same as exporting a hat. Q: How do I make my hat paintable? A: Check out this post. Q: How do I attach particle effects to models? A: Check out NBC011795's post here. Thanks again, NBC011795! (coming whenever I have free time-- maybe the summer) Last edited by HellJumper: 11-25-2012 at 08:57 PM.

10-25-2010, 06:42 PM	#4
AbeX300 Join Date: May 2009 Reputation: 976 Posts: 4,269	I really hope you don't get stupidly banned, again... I'm watching you, BurtonJ, you ♥♥♥♥ing bastard. Last edited by AbeX300: 10-26-2010 at 12:55 PM.

10-26-2010, 05:37 PM	#8
MoZaiX Guest Posts: n/a	oh ok so ill go download the 2.6.1 version. EDIT: i made this page my homepage ;D F*** favorites when i can homepage it amirite? Last edited by MoZaiX: 10-26-2010 at 05:52 PM.

10-27-2010, 12:56 AM	#13
MoZaiX Guest Posts: n/a	wtf..says on my download history that i did download 2.6.1 but it looks like the .zip contains 2.6.2...wierd. fail python lol.. can you please .zip me your python? because i just did it again. went to the stie downloaded 2.6.1 again. even when i run the installation the popup that comes up says "are you sure you want to installed 2.6.1?". but blender keeps showing 2.6.2, whats my problem. i might have to do it that way with milkshape then hmm? Last edited by MoZaiX: 10-27-2010 at 01:04 AM.

10-25-2010, 06:37 PM	#3
Ls777 Join Date: Nov 2009 Reputation: 603 Posts: 1,949	Woo! nice to see you back.

10-26-2010, 11:52 AM	#5
Swinetower Join Date: Jul 2009 Reputation: 24 Posts: 140	Wilkommen! I was wondering if you'd ever find your way back here.

10-26-2010, 04:37 PM	#6
MoZaiX Guest Posts: n/a	Nice tutorial! im really interesting in using this one as my "school" lol i just have a few questions: in your first video the last 10 seconds or so you mention a versino 2.9...what program is that for i was guessing blender. i cant find a 2.9 also for python, you link us to python 2.6.5 but there is a bug release fix 2.6.6. its ok to use this version yes? (click on 2.6.6 for link)

10-26-2010, 06:07 PM	#9
MoZaiX Guest Posts: n/a	okay a new problem. its with blender and the SMD importer. it tells me to put the sctipts into my blender directory blender/scripts but there is no scripts folder. i made the folder myself and added the scripts but it does nothing when i go to file > import > its not on the list. i looked everywhere in my program files there is no other place that blender has installed files. im doign something wrong..

10-28-2010, 06:56 AM	#14
Federal-Foe Guest Posts: n/a	Today's TF2 update has made it impossible to extract, open or write gfc files with cfg scape because the size exceeded the 4 gb limit... Any suggestions?

10-28-2010, 02:55 PM	#15
HellJumper Join Date: Oct 2010 Reputation: 4209 Posts: 5,871	Alright. Nem (the guy who made GCFscape) sent this e-mail: http://imgkk.com/i/-37n.png It should be fixed by then. (Oh and I'm not Geit that is someone else.)

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