amorgun / blender_dow

Blender addon for import and export of Dawn of War models

Blender Dawn of War Addon

Blender addon for import and export of Dawn of War models.

Key features

• Import and Export Functionality: Supports the Dawn of War model format(.whm), including meshes, textures, bones, markers and animations.

• Object Editor support: Allows export to Object Editor model format(.sgm) so you can configure the unit properties, e.g. motions and actions.

• Built-in conversion of textures: Automatically imports .rsh texture files, including all additional layers, and exports all of it back.

Installation

1. Download the latest release from the Releases page.
2. In Blender go to Edit -> Preferences
3. Go to the Addons tab, click Install.. and select blender_dow.zip
4. Set up the Mod folder option to the path to your mod.

Import

1. Open your mod with Corsix's Mod Studio
2. Find and unpack the model .whm file (usually located at Data/art/ebps/races/<race>/troops)
3. Unpack .rsh files with model textures (usually located at Data/art/ebps/races/<race>/texture_share)
   If you missed some textures you can unpack them later following error messages from the addon.
4. Tick the checkbox to enable the newly installed addon.
5. In Blender go to File -> Import -> Dawn of War model (.whm) and select your .whm file.

Export

Often a simple File -> Export -> Dawn of War model (.whm) is enough.
There is a detailed page with a full process of exporting and adding a new model into DoW.

Common problems

Mesh is not visible

Either the mesh has too many vertices or you messed up with force_invisible in animations.

Model is pink

DoW cannot load the texture. Usually it means you forgot to copy a .rsh file to the mod folder.
Check warnings.log inside DoW folder to find the offending file. Sometimes it's caused by the texture being too big.

Model is black

It means DoW doesn't like the texture size. Make sure texture dimensions are both even.
Also try changing the Max texture size option during the Export dialog.

Troubleshooting

Make sure you are using Blender 4.1 or newer.
The addon reports some messages that you can find in Info Editor.
In case it doesn't help feel free to file an issue.

Acknowledgments

• Santos Tools - original import script for 3ds Max.
• Relic-Game-Tool - another script for parsing relic chunky files and importing models to Blender.
• Dawn of War Texture Tool - detailed info on RSH file structure.
• Mudflaps WHM Model Converter Tool

Disclaimer

Not affiliated with Sega, Relic Entertainment, or THQ.