Arcane University: Nif Implementation
This is the main page of the Beyond Skyrim Arcane University Nif tutorials. It serves as hub for the standard workflow and pointers to detailed specific tutorials for Nif Implementation. The Implementation department is structured in three sub-departments:
- Quest Implementation
- Nif Implementation (you are here)
- Mechanics Implementation
Overview
In Beyond Skyrim projects, 3D artists are expected to be able to export their own meshes to nifs, if they are simple enough. However, for more complex objects, like animated objects, or those with particle effects, it may fall on an implementer to bring this into Skyrim. Other partner projects of the AU may have the entire responsibility of bringing a mesh from fbx to in-game fall to the implementation team. Therefore, the first thing you should know is how to export to nif from a 3D program or from a predefined format like fbx.
Other subjects covered will be:
- animation
- polishing (UV, shader faces, tangent spaces, sanitize, correct names...)
- special effect nodes
For the basic process of asset implementation, see Intro to Asset Implementation
Basics
Nif properties are the leverage to modify meshes in certain aspects as intended. Take your time to have a look at the specifics of the Nif data format. Topics of interest are especially
- Collision and physics settings
- Hinge Constraints
- Shader settings
- Effect properties
- Animation
- BSX Flags
- Inventory marker (changes how the item is shown in the inventory)
- UV map fixes
- Changes in rendering the Mesh (Smooth or blocky, shader type, texture sets, flip faces, ...)
- The common sanitize spells
- update tangent spaces
- renumber NiTriShape objects
- fix incorrect names
- Change structure of nodes (add / remove nif nitrishapes to have additional effects or only parts of an existing mesh available)
- Change scale
Specific topics tutorials
Volume physics
- Nif data format and its structure: NIF Data Format
- Adjusting size, scale and position of NiTriShapes in NifSkope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9rlBDrfSP8
- Animate Static Objects: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lkrX3HYSDc
- Animate Static Objects via NiTransformController: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYcAA09yygI
- Shader implementation (Fire on a hut): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGO0gwFwnLs
- Moving the node centers to fit an animated mesh: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H11Kokvqk0&t=24s
Surface rendering
- DDS texture format
- Editing the UV map https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1u51yDEGzmQ
- Placing textures on a NiTriShape via NifSkope including UV map adjustments: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbnE5MZhdOE
