.dds texture problem, my .dds is stretching my mesh??

[Writhes]

I've assigned other in game textures to the same object to make sure its not a weighting problem. This model works in game with other textures, but not the one I made for it.

Just wondering what could possibly cause this to happen.

[DM8954]

Well, the only thing that I think could do this involves missing one step in generating the texture.

I'm not exactly sure what it's called but every texture file on an object in oblivion has the main texture and many 'distance' versions of the same texture all in one file. Generally, the main texture is square. Just to the right of the main texture (and aligned to the top of the file) you put an identical copy of the main texture, except it's exactly 50% of the main image size. The same thing is done for the second distance texture, another new copy is placed to the right of the second, aligned to the top, that is 50% of the second (or more accurately 25% of the main) and the process is continued until you've got 16 or so smaller versions of the original.

The final file will be exactly twice as wide as the original texture graphic because of all the 'distance' versions. Oblivion does this to avoid using a high-res texture on a very distant object. As you get further away from something you're looking at in Oblivion, the game engine seamlessly fades one version of the texture out and replaces it with the next lower resolution version.

Now, what this means for you, as a modder, is that you have to create these for any textures you make from scratch. I think there is a way to generate these automatically when you save to .dds format but I can't remember off the top of my head which setting that is. [I've done this for mine both manually and automatically at one point or another.] So, if this is where the problem is coming from (sorry to have assumed but the symptoms fit) then what Oblivion is doing, is taking only the left half of your texture and stretching it as if that's all it's supposed to be using.

As a test, if you just expand the canvas by double to the right and resave it, the texture should look fine up close but as soon as you walk away it will become the same color as the background of your image. Let me know if this turns out to be the problem and I'll try to find out what setting it takes to do this the easy way. If not, we'll have to figure something else out. We might need more info at that point.

[Writhes]

the mip map things? Photoshop makes them automatically.

[DM8954]

Yeah, MIP maps are what I meant. I always get the terms mixed up between that and a few other things.

So, you did open the file back up after saving to make sure it actually did it? It's a setting that has to be turned on and off, otherwise it can generate a MIP map on an image that already has one, which I've also done before. (probably using Save As instead of Save, though)

Hmm. Well, if that's not it, then... I'm not sure what would have happened. Are you retexturing an existing item or did you make one on your own? If it's a retex, did you use the original texture as a guideline for the new one?

The problem with these things is that there are so many things that could go wrong in minor ways, that it can sometimes be hard to help without much information... and I can't even think of what info to ask for. Anything you could add would be great.

[Writhes]

I figured out what it was. The name had a _ in a bad place. I didnt know they could cause such disasters till a few mins ago ><

[DM8954]

Ahh yes.

You've got to be careful on using those in the naming because of the normals maps and other add-on images that use _ in their format. Be careful about using those in folder names too, it can be just as bad.

Sorry we couldn't be more help before it was too late.