How would I add extra skins to existing models?

darktemplar

L1: Registered
Dec 11, 2014
17
0
I have a props_manor portrait as well as a passtime_tv_screen.mdl, both of which I have new textures for a specific skin, but I am unable to get them to show up in-game. Instead, the model just simply refuses to even display, likely because I made the new textures the same name as the game uses for the originals. I was hoping it would simply overwrite them but only for when the map is being played were they to be embedded, however I'm stumped.

Can anyone who knows offer some instructions on how I would get an existing model to display a custom skin to it? It's clearly not as simple as creating the new vtf/vmt files and naming them appropriately.

Here's the console error that occurs en masse when the map is loaded up

"Material models/passtime/tv/passtime_tv_screen_projection does not support vertex format used by the mesh (maybe missing fields or mismatched vertex compression?), mesh will not be rendered. Grab a programmer!"

Any help is appreciated
 

Izotope

Sourcerer
aa
May 13, 2013
698
764
You'd have to recompile the model to add new skins.
Or you could place a thin nodraw brush over the portrait and apply your texture on that.
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darktemplar

L1: Registered
Dec 11, 2014
17
0
You'd have to recompile the model to add new skins.
Or you could place a thin nodraw brush over the portrait and apply your texture on that.
That makes me quite salty... I can't do the nodraw brush trick for the tv screen as easily, only the portrait, but I could still make it work.
Out of curiosity, how easy is it to recompile a model? Is it something simple enough that I could just follow instructions and pull it off in 5 minutes with the correct program? Or is it quite involved and I as a layman with that am better off with the nodraw brush trick?
Thanks.
 

VEssex

L2: Junior Member
May 19, 2016
63
83
That makes me quite salty... I can't do the nodraw brush trick for the tv screen as easily, only the portrait, but I could still make it work.
Out of curiosity, how easy is it to recompile a model? Is it something simple enough that I could just follow instructions and pull it off in 5 minutes with the correct program? Or is it quite involved and I as a layman with that am better off with the nodraw brush trick?
Thanks.

It’s rather intermediate.

Grab Crowbar.

Once you have ran it, you essentially decompile the .mdl into several .smd files and a .qc file into a folder using the default decompile settings.

The .qc file can be edited using a text editor so go into that.

Under the $texturegroup parameter, add the name of the .vmt material you will be adding. (If there is none, create one and add the .vmt files the model references.)

Then under the compile tab in Crowbar, compile the model. (With the latest version it should compile to “tf/models” by default instead of a subfolder, maybe wrong, I’ll edit ASAP or tomorrow after New Years)

Then put your .vmt and textures in “tf/materials”
 

darktemplar

L1: Registered
Dec 11, 2014
17
0
It’s rather intermediate.

Grab Crowbar.

Once you have ran it, you essentially decompile the .mdl into several .smd files and a .qc file into a folder using the default decompile settings.

The .qc file can be edited using a text editor so go into that.

Under the $texturegroup parameter, add the name of the .vmt material you will be adding. (If there is none, create one and add the .vmt files the model references.)

Then under the compile tab in Crowbar, compile the model. (With the latest version it should compile to “tf/models” by default instead of a subfolder, maybe wrong, I’ll edit ASAP or tomorrow after New Years)

Then put your .vmt and textures in “tf/materials”
Bummer, that is quite intermediate. Seems it's faster to just do the nodraw brush trick. They look fine enough in-game. Might still need this technique in the future though. Thank you!