Quote from walropodes on June 24, 2011, 1:24 am

Hey!

For this tutorial you'll need:

1. Notepad++
2. Squirrel syntax highlighter for Notepad++, installation instructions should be on the linked article
3. GCFScape
4. The latest version of VTFEdit, so you can edit Portal 2's textures

Navigate to your steamapps/common/portal 2/portal2/ folder, and open pak01_dir.vpk with GCFScape. Navigate to models > npcs > turret, then extract the turret.* files into your portal2 folder (preserving the structure, so you should make a models/npcs/turret/ folder for the extracted turret)

Now, rename them to something unique. I'll rename them to turret_red, so turret_red.mdl turret_red.vtx etc.

Then extract materials > models > npcs > turret from the VPK into your Portal 2 folder, preserving structure like with the model file.

The texture file I want to edit right now is turret_casing.vtf, so we do a crucial step: renaming it. The new name of the texture MUST be the same length as the old name. I'll call it turrrt_casing.vtf, be sure to rename turret_casing.vmt, and edit it so it points to the new texture name;

Code: Select all

VertexLitGeneric
{
$baseTexture "models/npcs/turret/turret_casing"
$surfaceprop solidmetal
$phong 1
$phongexponent 50
$phongfresnelranges "[5 1 2]"
$phongboost ".6"
$basemapalphaphongmask 1
}

would become:

Code: Select all

VertexLitGeneric
{
$baseTexture "models/npcs/turret/turrrt_casing"
$surfaceprop solidmetal
$phong 1
$phongexponent 50
$phongfresnelranges "[5 1 2]"
$phongboost ".6"
$basemapalphaphongmask 1
}

Now we're ready to edit the model. Open turret_red.mdl in Notepad++ and search for "turret_casing", then edit it to "turrrt_casing". If you do not pick a name that is the same length as the old one, the model will break.

Edit turrrt_casing.vtf/vmt to your heart's content. Here's what mine looks like:

Now for the next part: the VScripts.

Navitate to portal2/scripts/vscripts, make a folder called "modelchanger" then in there make a file called "turret_red.nut" and put this text in and save:

Code: Select all

function ChangeTurrets(){
   Entities.FindByClassname(null, "npc_portal_turret_floor").SetModel("models/npcs/turret/turret_red.mdl");
}

Now for the Hammer step.

Load up a map you wanna put a custom turret in, and place a prop_dynamic somewhere you don't think a player will see it and give it the custom turret model. This loads the model into memory so the vscript is able to change the turret's model.

Then place a logic_script, name it something and point it to the vscript we just made. (modelchanger/turret_red.nut)

Make a logic_auto, give it an OnMapSpawn output, tell it to make the logic_script execute the ChangeTurrets() function.

Compile, run then you should have a custom turret! Here's my red turret right beside a console-spawned turret:

Note: The turret has more textures than turret_casing.vmt, so you'll have to edit those too. You should also be able to use this method with other ents you can't normally skin, like npc_personality_core
If you have any questions or ideas on how to improve this tutorial, fire away