RA1 replacing an image/shp help!

[Snijboer]

Hello all!

 

I love playing RA1! I play it often and i like it! But now today i was getting a little bored with using Rules.ini in RA1 and messing around and stuff. So now i want to do more then just using the rules.ini.

So i thoughed i want to replace an unit/building with my own created custom unit/building. So i'm using some programs i have downloaded today and i need some help.

My goal is that i want to make a new sprite/.shp and replacing that to a building. I already have the perfect one to change that.

I use XXC and shp builder to make it.

 

I'm going to tell how i did this so you can follow me if i'm doing it good or wrong. I have problems with XCC mixer and shp builder so here we go!

 

- I use XCC mixer and go to Red alert 1 folder and opening up "EXPAND.MIX" to find the ANTS buildings and units.

- I see "LAR1" to be good building to replace a new texture that i'm going to make on SHP builder.

- I EXTRACT LAR1 on my desktop so i can open this file on SHP builder.

- I open SHP builder and open LAR1.shp and it worked.

- In shp builder i use "Palette-->RA1--> Egopal.pal to see the normal color on the image from the building.

- Now i start drawing on the lar1 and create my own thing i want to make.

- When it's done i "SAVE" LAR1 and "EXIT" shp builder.

- Now i need to backup the orginal "EXPAND.mix" just in case!

-I go to XCC mixer again and open "EXPAND.mix" in the RA1 folder and then i drag/drop it in the xcc so LAR1 is REPLACED in expand.mix.

- Now i go to the Rules.ini file and search LAR1 and make it buildable and to make him shoot and using an armor etc..etc..

- Thats it! I start up the game! LAR1 can just stay in the rules.ini file as an image because i only replaced it.

-I go to skirmish and play the game and try if it works.

 

But when i did this it didn't work! He just uses the old LAR1 image and didn't saw my replaced one? What was wrong? What did i do wrong? I also tried opening up my LAR1.shp with shp builder but i even can't

open it! It even gives me this message: "Warning Open Source SHP Builder 3.36 is unable to open this file."

now i can't open it anymore and i need to start all over again to create my own custom building!

So did i missed something?

 

Here was the thing i tried replacing the lar1 image.

 

Its just a test if i could see this building ingame.

 

Thanks for reading!

[Allen262]

First SHP builder won't save in RA1 shp format right. You need to save your lar1.shp as SHP (ts) than use XCC mixer to convert it to PCX, PNG or TGA via Copy As PCX, PNG or TGA (Make sure you set the palette first to interior.pal, snow.pal or temperat.pal but not egopal.pal. Egopal.pal is missing a number of colors.)  You now should have lar1 000 to lar1 002 that end with PCX, PNG or TGA.  Now convert lar1 000 to shp via Copy as SHP in XCC Mixer.

 

Now you have a usable .shp for RA1. Also you need to put your new lar1.shp into EXPAND2.MIX

 

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[AchromicWhite]

Also, don't know if you have them, but you'll need nyerguds "purple palettes" to convert the colors properly, else your black colors will turn transparent as during the time of them being converted as any regular picture file, the new file will just read black as one color.

 

  -Liam

[Snijboer]

First SHP builder won't save in RA1 shp format right. You need to save your lar1.shp as SHP (ts) than use XCC mixer to convert it to PCX, PNG or TGA via Copy As PCX, PNG or TGA (Make sure you set the palette first to interior.pal, snow.pal or temperat.pal but not egopal.pal. Egopal.pal is missing a number of colors.)  You now should have lar1 000 to lar1 002 that end with PCX, PNG or TGA.  Now convert lar1 000 to shp via Copy as SHP in XCC Mixer.

 

Now you have a usable .shp for RA1. Also you need to put your new lar1.shp into EXPAND2.MIX

 

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Thanks for your reply! Okay i´ve found that you can save it as shp (TS) and i did this. And after that i copied it as PNG. Now i opened it up in shp builder.

I also use expand2.mix now too. I've setted the palette to temperate.pal. But i'm stuck at about lar1 000 --> lar1 002? What do you mean about this?

And i'm also stuck about what you said with (Now convert lar1 000 to shop via copy as shp in xcc mixer) Do you mean to save it in shp builder? or batch conversion? or exporting it as shp sprite sheet/images?

[Allen262]

SHP builder can NOT save a SHP that RA1 can use at all. It is bugged and since SHP builder was made with TS/RA2 as its primary use and no one has gone back and fixed this bug.

 

When you Copy as ____ In XCC Mixer the Copy as ____ files will be saved in the 2nd window. See 1st attachment.

 

Now navagate the 1st window to the same place as the 2nd right click on lar1 000.png and Copy as SHP.  See 2nd attachmentNow a lar1.shp should be made in the same place.

[Snijboer]

Okay a question.

 

The Lar1 has 6 images..do i need to copy my own creation and paste them in all of the frames? since the lar1 doesn't animations i don't need to to it right?

 

I saw the .png files that were made and now i copy the lar1 000 and here is a screen.

 

 

As  you can see it clearly my creation is in the right bottom there with red color. Now how do i put that image back to the EXPAND2.mix?

 

I'm sorry if i ask to much. I just want to do this properly.

[Allen262]

Your geting close but a few things are wrong with XCC mixer and you may have used the wrong Copy as SHP. First start XCC Mixer and go to Convertsion and make sure Combine shadows is check marked AND Split shadows is NOT check marked. Click on them to check mark or uncheck mark . Next it looks like XCC Mixer is not using the right palette. That is the Tiberian Sun palette XCC Mixer is using.

 

Go to View than Directories. In the window that pops up you need to tell XCC Mixer were your Red Alert folder is by putting the Directory of Red Alert in the box next to RA:. My Red Alert is at c:\westwood\redalert\ Once you have added the Directory of Red Alert close XCC Mixer and than restart it.

 

Now go to View-Pallet-Red Alert. Find redalert.mix - local.mix - temperate.pal and click on it. There should now be check mark next redalert.mix - local.mix - temperate.pal if you go back to it.

 

Lar1 should only be 3 frames. Delete Lar1 003 to Lar1 005. XCC made 3 exta frames do to Combine shadows and or Split shadows being wrong. Lar1 is a building like any other in RA1 it just dosn't look like one. Frame 1 is normal. Frame 2 is the damage frame. It used when the Lara is at or below 50% health. The last is used right before the Lar1 belows up and is offten a copy of the damage frame.

 

Now what I do is set XCC Mixer up like I said to above. Delete Lar1 001 to Lar1 005. Copy and paste Lar1 000 twice and rename the 2 copied that you just made of Lar1 000 to Lar1 001 and Lar1 002. Now all 3 frame will be the same.

 

Now right click on Lar1 000 and go to Copy as SHP. Do Not Use Copy as SHP (TS). Copy as SHP (TS) is for Tiberian Sun and Red Alert 2 only. Now you should have a new Lar1.shp.  You can put this one in your EXPAND.mix and EXPAND2.mix

[Snijboer]

It worked! I don't know what i really did actually but with your help i've managed to put it in. I checked the view-->palette redalert.mix and checked convertestion.

I've deleted all the .png files from the lar1 001 to 005 and only 000 was the only one left.

 

The only thing i've encountered is that the color is not right. How do i let it see the colors?

 

Here is a screenshot how it looks like ingame:

 

 

It worked, but only the color is not right.

 

EDIT: I also have founded out is when the bunker is getting at 50% damage the image will vanish but it's still there.

[Allen262]

The color is wrong because you used the wrong pallet at some point. The image is vanishing because Lar1.shp must be 3 frames. You are only using one frame.

[Nyerguds]

The other frames must include the damage frames... lar1 is a building after all.

[Snijboer]

Okay now so far so good but now i tried it all over again and now i can't get it to work anymore. I would like to have it as a step by step instruction how to replace this lar1. and then i properly will understand this. a step by step guide will be really helpful for me.

I don't mod RA1 really long, i do this for a few days now.

 

So in recapitulation...how do i replace it step by step? I would really gladly would have it that way so i can easily follow it and understand how it works. It's sad that RA1 is the only game that needs to do it in a "tricky" way and that makes it hard for me as a beginner heheh.

 

Please accept that i've just began learning it, so it's for me a little complicated this way. Perhaps step by step?

 

Thank you!

 

[Nyerguds]

[edit]

 

Split off my post and put it in the Tutorials section, since it seems like a useful thing for everyone:

 

Basic Guide to Graphics Modding (RA1/C&C1/TS)

[Matt]

https://github.com/OpenRA/OpenRA/wiki/Pixelart might also be helpful for you.

[Nyerguds]

It doesn't seem to cover the issues of remap and special colour corruption, though.

[DarkVen9109]

Actually what I do is this, I load raprconv.pal , then start making. Finally upon the end of the construction of my custom shp file I'll export it  through SHP > Images, then save it as PNG file. Finally, I'll select an shp file (let's use Airfield) then copy afld 000.png as SHP and the result is just fine

[Allen262]

Threads are a bumping tonight!