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Special:Badtitle/NS100:Texture Editor

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Populous Texture Editor

Populous Texture Editor

by Toxicity


Populous Texture Editor is a program created by Toxicity (2020), and allows the user to create a custom texture very quickly (5-15 mins) - it generates all the required texture files with the click of a button - but first, the user should create bigf0 (water/land) and sky0 (sky) bitmaps.

The program can also be used to preview existing textures (by loading .dat files);

Or to export .dat files as BMP image files.

And to change the sky, land, fade, alpha, ghost and/or cliff of a existing texture.


Requirements

  • .dat texture files, or bitmap images.
  • For the bitmap images, a image manipulating software (photoshop/gimp/etc) is required.




Bitmap to Texture

Example of 256x1152 bigf0 BMP
  • Create a bigf0 .BMP (bitmap), by using Photoshop or any other software. The dimensions are 256x1152, where to top 128 pixels are the water, and the rest is the land (from low ground to high ground).

It should be indexed (112 colors).


  • Create a sky0 .BMP (bitmap), by using Photoshop or any other software. The dimensions are 512x512, but the colors should be carefully picked, since the palette will only use 16 colors for the sky.

It is also ideal that the sky is seamless, since it will repeat on the sky - thus, avoiding ugly lines or clear repetition pattern.

It should be indexed (16 colors).

Example of 512x512 sky0 BMP















In game outcome of above bigf0 and sky0 example
  • After having both BMP files ready, the user should open Populous Texture Editor and load the big0 bitmap on the BigFade tab (clicking add to palette after).
  • The user should now load the sky0 bitmap on the Sky tab (clicking add to palette after).
  • The user can now preview things such as the fade, and edit things such as the alpha colors, ghost's opacity (update preview once yoy load bmps and after changing values), and cliff (regenerate cliff once you load bmps)
  • Finally, on the Palette tab, the user should pick a texture ID (index 0-Z), and click generate everything. (or generating only some of the files, if the user wants).
  • All the (up to) 7 .dat files will be created inside the folder named "output".
  • Place the files inside DATA folder (populous directory), and test a level containing the same texture ID.




Preview Existing Textures

This program can also be used to preview existing textures (and later modify one or more of the 7 attributes (pal, bigf, sky, fade, alpha, ghost, cliff).

  • Open Populous Texture Editor. The user should have the .dat files (of a texture to preview) ready.
  • Load one of the 7 tabs, and click Load *** (first option). To preview the right colors of bigf0 or sky0, loading the matching palette is required.
  • After previewing, the user can also do the reverse, and export the previewed .dat files and .BMP.


Notes

The texture ID's (0-Z) can be later changed manually, by changing all the name of the files from the same texture number at end (example: bigf0-3 to bigf0-t; an then all other files ending with 3 should become t)


Download Populous Texture Editor Here.

Youtube Video Guide (using example above)


Tutorials
Matchmaker: MatchmakerEnabling BetaCoop vs AISubmitting MapsUltimate Populous Guide
Map Making: Creating a SP LevelCreating a MP LevelMaking a Map
AI Scripting: AI ScriptingCreating a SP Level
Mod Making: Sprite EditingTexture EditorTox Sprite Editor
Misc: Installing a CampaignSupport