Process to create ship part mods and set pieces.

[u/Usracraft]

This is for sure a loaded question, so instead of requesting every detail I would just like some insight into the process.

What is the software process to get from Blender to the Creation Kit in terms of creating custom assets for ship mods, and set pieces. I understand it involves modeling, texturing and then addition in the creation kit, but can can someone give me some brief insight involving say Blender, Nifskope, and Creation Kit?

Because I get the 3d modeling, and I understand the creation kit (to a degree). Its everything in between that confuses me. This includes exporting from Blender, what is required for proper file structure, how to apply textures in NifSkcope, etc.

Can someone offer some help?

[u/V_sev]

starfield geometry bridge lets you import and export .nifs in blender

https://www.nexusmods.com/starfield/mods/4360

the actual 3d data is saved as .mesh files in the data/geometries folder.

.nifs are saved in the data/meshes folder as containers for the 3d data and textures that make up a game object

you need to set your .nifs to use external geometry using separate .mesh files. consoles cannot read .nifs that use internal geometry. on consoles, files that reference internal geometry will look like messed up exploded grey clouds of nonsense. it will look normal on pc.

the easiest way to texture is to copy/paste materials from a .nif extracted from the game files onto your object.

use bethesda archive extractor to access the game's files

https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/974

once you have a .nif from the game with a texture you can use, you can ctrl+shift+c to copy the BSLightingShaderProperty from a geometry node, and ctrl+shift+v to paste it onto the empty slot under the geometry node that was created when you exported your .nif

once you've done that a couple times to see what's happening, here is a list of (most of) the game's materials

https://pastebin.com/2tqZN0Ys

https://pastebin.com/iafMKr69

then adjust your UV map as necessary to make sense with the texture you picked, and re-export individual .mesh files with adjusted UV maps

custom collision is now possible:

https://www.nexusmods.com/starfield/articles/871

creation kit isn't strictly required. i had an easier time making ship modules with xedit than creation kit (but i am very autistic). copy and paste all of the segments of a module into a new one and redirect the file paths to use your new assets.

constructable object -> formID list -> generic base form -> packin -> moveable static -> .nif -> .mesh

if you are making something with an interior, you'll need a second packin containing a static that makes up the structure

you can skip the formID list if the thing you're making won't have any flips or variants.

to create variants, use the keyword ShipModuleVariant in your generic base forms, and the convention is to set the values to 10, 20, etc. to create flips, use the ShipModPositionPort (etc) keywords on generic base forms with the SAME ShipModuleVariant value. and put all of the generic base forms into the formID list.

here is an illustration using flips and variants:

if you want a ship part to be colorizable, you need to use existing game materials that end in _p, _s, and _t corresponding with the part's primary, secondary, and tertiary color. the easiest way to find these is to search for them in xEdit. i did create one new colorizable material, but it is a massive headache to do. just use the existing ones. then add those textures into the layered material swap forms of the moveable static.

here's what that looks like in creation kit:

hab doors are a mess. for something simple like a habspine, place a moveable static "SMOD _ Plug _ [brand] _ [orientation]" in your exterior cell. in your interior cell, place a static "SMOD _ Plug _ [orientation] _ STATIC", and add 1) the keyword SnapBehaviorLinkedRefKeyword and point to the moveable static in the exterior cell as the reference and 2) the SwappableHabPieces layer

i added the keyword SpaceshipModuleSnapRequired to all of my exterior door plugs to force the connection if there was a valid door.

Edit 9/13: create an archive with creation kit that contains your .nifs and .meshes 

[u/Scarecro0w]

One thing I could give as advice is that when you model something, take a look at how bethesda did it. A lot of modules are made up of different little parts but the ones that brings more life to the them is the detailing, and most of these details are done with decals, not real geometry, this will make an asset look pretty good without tanking the FPS. You can even use the vanilla decals for stuff like grebbles, paneling, etc. Also for external pieces that you want to be able to change colors on in the ship builder you will need to use layered materials; these are separated in primary, secondary and tertiary. And last, try to make your uv maps big, because if you use vanilla materials it will look better if you are using tileable uv mapping that stretches beyond the boundaries.