So I'm getting antsy again about making some meshes. Probably nothing fancy, especially since I suck at costumes and hairs. (Might finish a Centurion helmet I gave up making for New Vegas though, as that probably doesn't require fancy rigging or animation.) But, you know, some extra sofas or dressers can't hurt. Maybe some columns and fences too?

I understand that the meshes and all are compatible with TS3, but I never modded that one either, so I'm still a complete newbie at that.

Can some charitable soul point me at some tutorial or something about exporting a mesh from, say, Blender and into a TS3 or TSM object please? And at that how much a length unit is?

I make three dimensional furniture and avatar accessories for two online virtual worlds, so the meshing of new items itself is the easy part. But I am also in the dark about what program to use to export it into a file format compatible with the sims medieval. I like plug-ins but if it's an external program then exporting out of the meshing program in it's own file type and running it through a converter would be the answer? One of the sites I belong to does that. Anyway if we want interest to grow in the game I think their should be more custom content to download, after all the gameplay mods we like are installed. TS3 has thousands of items, and TSM could really use new decor. If this sort of thing is possible this early on, I would also like to know all the steps required to make it show up and work properly in game...after the actual mesh is completed. Moraelin, it sounds like you are saying you need a tutorial for how to make things in blender, before the export. There are lots of Blender tutorials out there and most likely on the site. It's after that, we both need a helping hand or a knowledgeable users opinion/links.

I made skins (clothing) for sims1 and sims2, if someone can figure it all out I'd be happy to pitch in with creating stuff (time allowing), I totally agree that what we're missing now is shiny new things to put in the game.
I never meshed though, there was always a plentiful amount of excellent meshes around to retexture. I wouldn't mind learning though, I love TSM and am sad it hasn't attracted more from the creator community.
I'll probably be a bit rusty though, I took my website down around 2007, so it's been a while.

Last edited by ChickieTeeta : 10th Sep 2011 at 01:28 PM.

I think TSM uses a similar mesh to TS3. However, I still haven't been able to get one to load correctly in Milkshape. I think it's because of the slight differences in TSM meshes.

Still, interested people should look for TS3 meshing tutorials's. There are several.

Hmm, well, if an experienced modder like you had problems loading the format, that doesn't bode well for newbies like me.

So Milkshape can read and write that stuff? What about Blender? Is there a plugin for that one?

Milkshap has TS3 and TS2 mesh files loadable by default. I'm not sure about Blender.

Honestly, I haven't messed with the meshes much. I was looking into them for male pregnancy. One can load a mesh, but problems seem to arise with either morphs or bones. The most base level of the mesh seemed fine. I haven't tried objects, but I wouldn't see why they would have morphs or bones, so they may load fine.

Ah. Thanks for the info.

I will learn how to make meshes for TS3, since I play that too and once I know my way around I can see about TSM.
Right now I am just interested in objects, so I hopefully they load fine when I get there. Thank you.

Sims 1 and Sims 2 didn't have an in-game pattern or coloring system so clothes were drawn and painted onto a flat nude skin file in an art program, which wrapped around the named mesh when loaded into the game, which allowed for a surprising amount of variations on the same mesh.

TS3 with it's pattern system did away with the need for skinners, and is, IMO, limited, since you're told which parts color or pattern can be added to, and it's always in the same part combination.
Although TSM doesn't allow pattern usage, I'm assuming the color system in CAS means it works more like TS3.

I was just thinking, if meshes can be skinned it would allow for numerous designs for each mesh rather than just recoloring the same one over and over, which would help make up for the lack of patterns in CAS.
I have the sneaking suspicion it will be like TS3 though but without patterns it will be even more limited.

Someone will obviously get meshes into the game long before I even figure out how to make one, so if there's a way to skin them could you please let me know.

TS3 clothing (and hair) can be loaded into TSM after changing some details in S3PE. The only differences between the games that I can see is width, I 'm not sure about height.
The clothing leaves a noticeable break in the neck where the 2 don't line up, and the hair leaves gaps round the head....it also looks like it sits too high, so there might be a difference in height too.
It also makes the coloring weird if you try to change the color on them (overly dark, overly light or shiny), I don't know why that would be though.
If it could be made to size as a TS3 file and the problem with coloring it can be sorted then clothing can be made playable in TSM.
I tried getting a couple of TS3 beds to show but haven't had any luck at all with objects....has anyone else managed to get objects to show?

Hair is editable in Milkshape. I just resized one, and loaded it into the game. It will probably take some work to get it to fit right, but it work's. Clothing I have no info for yet.

This is a TS3 clothing item I loaded in. (I assume you've seen the difference between TSM and TS3 clothing already Grim, but for anyone who hasn't.)
The dress comes from the TS2/TS3 website - All About Style - (to give proper credit) it also makes the arms a little weird, and some meshes make the arms bend at really weird angles, so I'd imagine the clothing will be more than just resizing (a highly uninformed opinion of course LOL).
I'd assume the split in the neck comes partly from a difference in height, and the neck does look kind of elongated to me.

When I tried two Sims3 dresses in TSM, one child and one adult, they looked almost OK as your screeny shows. But when the sims started walking, their arms were pinned behind their backs permanently in strange fashion. So I gave up on the idea right then, I think it is a dead end. I don't know enough about clothing resources to know this, it's just my opinion based on what I saw.

What's needed is a Package Editor and similar programs fixed or created for TSM, such that TSM clothing and objects can be made from TSM resources.

LOL I was just about to ask if this would need it's own plug-in etc.
I agree in a way, well I agree mostly, but my illogical love of new clothing forces me to persist :P
I tried 10 different outfits when velocity grass first put up the CASPart wrapper.
3 didn't show at all
5 worked fine but with the split in the neck (which is an horrendous gash when they look up) and only a very slight crick in the arms, which was forgivable, but noticable once you spot it.
2 had the arms bent behind them in CAS, like you mentioned.

I wouldn't know where to start figuring out what makes those meshes different from each other, but I made a rough guess at the time....
the ones that didn't show were shorter skirts without feet on the mesh, I assumed this was the problem.
The only difference I could see between the ones that 'worked' and the ones where the arms were bent was on the sleeves.....
The 5 that were like the screencap had nothing changed on the arms
The 2 where the arms bent awkwardly, one had puffed out sleeves at the top of the arm and the other had flared sleeves at the bottom.
Of the 5 that displayed okay, 3 couldn't be colored properly (too dark, too light or annoyingly shiny) which I assume is nothing more than the texture that was applied to the mesh.
The dress in the screenshot works fine in the game except for the cut throat and the slight crick in the arm, and another one worked fine too, no problems with the awkwardly bent arms problem during game play....or in CAS.
Do you not think the ones like that would benefit from being resized until something better can be done?
I do agree 100% it needs it's own programs, especially if things are going to be put up for download, but who's to say how long that will be, if ever.
I don't think it should be given up on completely without them, since some of what's available could possibly be made workable.
And that would conclude my argument to support my illogical need for new clothes LOL :P

Actually, ChickieTeeta, the image you show probably could be fixed by scaling the mesh. If the body mesh were scaled larger, but the head remained in the same place, most of that long neck would be hidden.

The arm issues probably are due to new bone added to TSM meshes. If one could reassign the mesh to the proper TSM skeleton it would probably work, but it would be easier to modify existing TSM meshes.

Thanks for the info on fixing the mesh.
I'll give it a shot the way you suggested.
I really just want to play around with milkshape, I haven't used it before, and I'd like to play with something that has a chance of working so I can see in game that I'm doing it right (or not), and also so I end up with something, hopefully, worth the time I'll no doubt spend trying to do it.
It's not possible to modify existing TSM meshes yet, is it? (genuinely wondering if I've misunderstood something, since this is all still above my head at the moment)
Once it is I'll give up on the TS3 ones because it will be pointless at that time, but I'll hopefully have learnt something from this by then.....
Playing with the TS3 ones, for me, is more for the learning experience than anything else.
Thank you again for the solution to the long neck.

I'm loading a lot of TSM meshes in Milkshape. I've now loaded some clothing sucessfully (including morphs), but have yet to make an edit and try it in game. I'll let you know when I do.

:O ..... =D

Wow, I'd jump up and down but then everyone in my livingroom would look at me funny lol.
That's so exciting. *keeping fingers crossed*
Of course, I still have no idea what I'm doing. If you're close though, I might leave the TS3 meshes alone and wait for the real thing.

Ok, I've been working some things out, and have managed to do some more complex things with meshes. Namely adding polygons to the nude mesh. I'm not ready to do a full tutorial, but I thought I'd share some of what I've figured out.

TSM meshing for clothes and hair is nearly the same as meshing for TS3. Many of the same tools can be used, but others don't like the new file formats. I can verify the Milkshape can load clothing, skin, and hair meshes from GEOM files exported from S3PE. You can also use TS3's MorphMaker to create BGEO files for complex edits.

Since the particular mesh I modified is a somewhat adult mesh, I'll have to find another piece of clothing to modify for a tutorial.

Also, the mesh I made adds 3D nipples to female bodies. I'm assuming I'm not allowed to post it here, but I'm not sure. If someone knows for sure please tell.

Hmm. Guess I'll have to buy a milkshape license after all. I used my trial a long time ago, in the Fallout 3 days. Seemed like a decent program, but then I discovered Blender and it was free. Ah well.

Thanks for the info, in any case.

LOL I'll take that through e-mail if you're handing it out and not allowed to post it :P

It still works fine, just without some familiar tools that might be missed or might make it feel like a work around method....is that right?
If so, I never meshed for TS3 (or any other game lol) so I wouldn't feel hampered by that since this all new to me, and the other 2 who expressed an interest as well haven't either.
Or are there some things that maybe can't be done due to the lack of similar tools?
I realize you're busy, so there's no rush for a reply, I'm just curious.

For CAS objects (clothing, hair, accessories, etc...) the biggest problem I've had is that the tools don't recognized the new TSM file formats. The CASP for example make the CAS Texture Tool unusable. This in itself makes it hard to determine each file you will need for a new clothing object. It also helps collect your files back together, and makes some small changes to where certain files point. However, the tools just make these processes easier. One can take the time to track down the files, and minor changes can be done in a Hex Editor. Actually, I can probably write a quick and dirty tool to muck with them.

Objects themselves so far I've had no luck. These will probably take either a new tool, or updates for TSM. Tools are built into Milkshape to work with sims 3 object meshes, but they seem to need to be extracted first, and the extractor doesn't work for TSM.

If I can figure anything more out I'll post.

As for my model, I know other's really want this kind of thing, if you know a place I can upload it for free let me know. I looked on sexysims2, but hey have no forums or Medieval mod's section that I know of.

Ah, having had no experience with meshing, I think that would be beyond me. I was obviously a bit hasty when I said before that not having the same tools probably wouldn't hamper me since I never meshed for TS3. I take that back lol.

I have free webspace that I'm not using anymore, the problem is my ISP have messed up on my account details for getting into the site to activate it, and since I don't use it anymore I've never bothered sorting it out, my e-mail and internet work fine so it's never been a real issue. I'll give them a call on Monday and get it sorted, but it might take a while since I'd imagine new details will be mailed out. I'll let you know when it's sorted, unless someone offers to host it before then.

Meshing itself is a very complicated and time consuming process. Especially when you include bones. If you are capable of creating meshes with a 3d editor, texturing and skinning them, then editing a couple of hex bits is trivial. The other stuff takes time, but certainly not as much time as the actual 3d edit.

All of my edits yesterday showed up in game, but had bone errors even with no edits to the mesh. If I can figure out the problem I'll have edited a skin, an outfit, a hair, and a hat mesh. Afterwords I'll probably do a step by step write up for basic edits.

As for hosting my mesh, that's not the real issue, but I appreiciate the offer. I could put it up on my fileserve account, but if I can't post the link here how can I get people to know it's there?

Well the issue could perhaps be solved by me putting my web address in my sig. It wouldn't be a direct link to the file, and if I put other stuff up eventually, even character files to start with, it would be a legitimate TSM site. I assume people here read most new posts, so hearing about the mesh, I imagine, wouldn't be a problem....unless of course hosting a more adult file would make it against the rules to list my addy??