FS25 Texture Guide

Overview

Texture conventions and formats for FS25 modding. GIANTS Engine uses DDS textures with specific format requirements.

When to Use

• Creating or converting textures for a mod

• Choosing the right DDS format

• Setting up material textures (diffuse, normal, specular)

• Debugging texture issues (pink/missing textures)

DDS Formats

Texture Type Format Suffix Notes

Diffuse/Albedo BC1 (DXT1) or BC3 (DXT5) _diffuse

BC3 if alpha needed

Normal map BC5 (ATI2/3Dc) _normal

2-channel (RG), NOT BC1

Specular/Gloss BC1 (DXT1) or BC3 (DXT5) _specular

R=specular, A=gloss (if BC3)

Mask/Alpha BC4 (ATI1) varies Single channel

Important: Normal maps MUST be BC5. Using BC1/DXT1 for normals causes visible banding artifacts.

Naming Conventions

myVehicle_diffuse.dds myVehicle_normal.dds myVehicle_specular.dds myVehicle_vmask.dds # vehicle color mask myVehicle_dirt.dds # dirt overlay

Base game patterns:

• store_ prefix for shop images

• _ao suffix for ambient occlusion

• _vmask for vehicle color mask (paintable areas)

Resolution Guidelines

Asset Type Typical Resolution

Large vehicle 2048×2048 or 4096×4096

Small implement 1024×1024 or 2048×2048

Placeable building 2048×2048

UI icon / store image 256×256 or 512×512

Terrain layer 1024×1024 (tiling)

• Always use power-of-two dimensions (256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096)

• Generate mipmaps for all 3D textures

• Store images do NOT need mipmaps

Material Setup in I3D

<Material name="vehicleMat" materialId="1" customShaderId="2" customShaderVariation="colorMask"> <Texture fileId="1" /> <!-- _diffuse.dds --> <Normalmap fileId="2" /> <!-- _normal.dds --> <Glossmap fileId="3" /> <!-- _specular.dds --> </Material>

Shader Variations

Variation Use Case

default

Standard opaque material

colorMask

Paintable vehicle (uses vmask)

alphaTest

Cutout transparency (foliage, fences)

alphaBlend

Smooth transparency (glass)

mirror

Reflective surfaces

Color Mask (Vehicle Painting)

The _vmask.dds texture controls which areas are paintable:

• R channel: Primary color area

• G channel: Secondary color area (if supported)

• B channel: Tertiary / detail area

• White = fully paintable, Black = not paintable

Common Issues

Problem Cause Fix

Pink/magenta texture Missing or wrong file path Check <Files> paths in I3D

Blurry at distance Missing mipmaps Regenerate DDS with mipmaps

Normal map looks flat Wrong format (BC1 instead of BC5) Re-export as BC5

Shiny/dark patches Wrong specular format Check specular is proper format

Texture seams UV island padding too small Add 4-8px padding between UV islands

Tools

• GIANTS Editor: Built-in texture preview and material editing

• Paint.NET / GIMP: With DDS plugin for texture creation

• texconv (DirectXTex): Command-line DDS conversion

• Compressonator (AMD): DDS compression with preview