Introduction

This page will tell you everything you need to know about the Texture Viewer so you can start creating texture mods as soon as possible.

Texture Viewer Window

1. Save Button

Saves your edits into the TextureMap file and, if the game requires it, into the CompiledMip files (RawAsset files in Assassin's Creed Shadows and Black Flag Resynced). If you remove the CompiledMip dependencies first, everything is saved into the TextureMap file only.

2. Save As Button

Allows you to save the TextureMap as either TextureMap formats for other supported games or other image formats, such as DDS, JPG, PNG or TGA.

3. Replace Button

Allows you to select an image which will replace the current TextureMap image data. The process of replacing the image is discussed in more detail here.

4. Tools Button

This button houses an extra set of tools for editing the Texture Maps. These are discussed in more detail here.

5. Texture Info

This part of the viewer shows extra information about the TextureMap file. The most important value is "Pixel Format", this is what you should try to match when editing textures. Note: DXT1 and DXT1A are treated the same by the game.

6. Info Enums

These categories are not very important. You should edit them only if your texture ends up looking darker ingame compared to the preview.

7. File ID

This is the ID of the TextureMap file which is used to reference it in TextureSet and Material files.

8. Vertical and Horizontal Flip Buttons

These buttons allow you to mirror the texture either vertically or horizontally without the need of exporting it and editing it in an external program.

Opening Textures

Simple TextureMap files

Double click a TextureMap file in the Game Explorer.

TextureMap files with CompiledMip files

Some games store parts of the textures in separate "CompiledMip" files. These are generally found in separate data files in the same forge file as the TextureMap files, without them the texture cannot be exported. Double click a TextureMap file in the Game Explorer and the Texture Viewer will ask you to load these files if the game requires it.

TextureMap files with RawAsset files (Assassin's Creed Shadows and Black Flag Resynced)

Assassin's Creed Shadows and Black Flag Resynced store the largest mips of a texture (up to 4) in .RawAsset files. These aren't inside any data file. They sit loose in the forge itself, next to the data files, and are named by their ID (e.g. 878D995BF6300000.RawAsset). When you open a TextureMap, the Texture Viewer looks for its RawAssets automatically in the current folder and the two folders above it, so a data file unpacked inside its original forge folder will find them on its own. If they can't be found (for example, when the data file is in your own custom forge), it will ask you to select them. Browse to the unpacked original forge and select the requested .RawAsset files. The dialog title lists the IDs it needs.

If you're putting your texture mod into a custom forge, you should remove the CompiledMip dependencies before saving, so you don't have to copy the RawAssets too. The full workflow is covered in Texture Modding in Custom Forges.

Replacing the Image

It is recommended to replace the image with another DDS image file, as that allows you to control the Pixel Format, but basically any image format will work. There are two ways of replacing the image in the Texture Viewer. The first one is by clicking on the Replace Button and selecting a new image file. The second one is drag & dropping a new image file onto the Texture Viewer window.

Extra Tools

Convert an Assassin's Creed III Remastered Normal Map to a Standard Normal Map

Convert an Assassin's Creed II/Brotherhood Normal Map to a Standard Normal Map

Convert a Standard Normal Map to an Assassin's Creed II/Brotherhood Normal Map

Remove CompiledMip dependencies

Removes the TextureMap's links to its CompiledMip/RawAsset files and turns it into a standard TextureMap. The next time you Save, every mip, including the large ones that came from the CompiledMip/RawAsset files, is stored inside the TextureMap itself, and the CompiledMip/RawAsset files are left untouched. Use it after opening the texture, once its CompiledMip/RawAsset files are loaded, so the viewer has the full-resolution image to save. The data file will be larger than the original, because it now carries the high-resolution mips. This matters most for Assassin's Creed Shadows and Black Flag Resynced custom forges. Without it, saving writes your new high-resolution mips into the RawAsset files, and you'd have to copy those into your custom forge as well. See Texture Modding in Custom Forges for the full workflow.