P-51 Double Trouble Two - with PSD source files

[Rampant8]

This is in reference to this skin:

https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3318427/

 

To use as-is

• Extract to C:\Users\[your user]\Saved Games\DCS\Liveries\P-51D
• You can delete source folder if desired (or keep it, it won't hurt anything)

 

To use Photoshop source files
As I am quite new to DCS -- but definitely not to Photoshop, I wanted to setup a PSD file with the following objectives:

• Make changes to the paint and roughmet files in the same source file
• Control different elements of the roughmet individually (took a lot of trial and error to learn about roughmets in general (first time working with them). Since the P-51 is so sensitive to metallic textures, this became very important. Other planes won't need as detailed source files.
• Setup multiple options to invasion stripes/etc for simple toggle/masking/un-masking changes
• Make it as easy as possible to make changes to the paint, and export paint and roughmet files from the same source

 

Because of this, however, I admit the source files might be a bit overwhelming and confusing to use for those who are not very experienced in Photoshop, so I wanted to give a few tips/notes.

 

Using layer comps
The main premise of the source files are to use layer comps to control the visibility of different layers/groups. This let me separate out all the elements I wanted to control in the roughmets and use clipping mask color layers to edit each one individually. But, it makes for a lot more layers in the source file.

If you open the layer comps window, you can show the "Paint" layer comp and see/export the paint DDS, and switch to the "RoughMet" layer comp and see/export the roughmet layer comp. Simple. Export, change layer comp, export -- done.
 

One thing that is very important to remember is if you change the visibility of a layer/group/mask in the paint layer -- when you switch to the "RoughMet" layer comp, you will have to make the same layer/group/mask visibility changes. The layer comps remember visiblity -- but nothing else.

BTW, it is a good idea to update the layer comp before you switch to the other one -- otherwise your changes won't be saved. To do this, select the layer comp, then right-click on it again and select the update option.

Changing Squadron/Aircraft Codes through Smart Objects
Most of the things you will want to change (except invasion stripes, for example) probably won't need much editing of the layer comps however as they use smart objects. To change a smart object, you just double-click on it and edit it as if it were a different file.  Because it is a smart object, you shouldn't need to update the roughmet visibilities at all. Simply export, change to the roughmet layer comp and export that. The changes to the smart object will automatically be reflected in the roughmet layer comp.

 

Changing Invasion stripes

The invasion stripes are setup as two different groups -- one for single stripes, one for full stripes. You can show/hide these as needed to create the look you are after. For example, you can have a single upper stripe and full lower by showing the full stripes group, but hiding the upper wing stripes, and keeping the single stripe group visible.

 

Please note, if you make changes to the visibility of these groups, you will have to make the same changes when you switch to the roughmet layer comp before exporting.

 

All the rest

The rest is relatively basic Photoshop stuff. You can change colors of paint elements that exist, use one nose stripe or two. Just play around and make your favorite squadron or your own custom fantasy squadron.

 

I also included some PNG files of the letters and numbers I used so you can copy/paste whatever squadron/aircraft codes/serial numbers you want.

 

Editing the RoughMet layers

I am no expert in RoughMets, and there are a lot of great tutorials on YouTube, but I setup the files so you could edit the roughmet elements individually if you wanted. You will want to show the channels panel, as that is how they files are used

• Red channel: black = darker shadows
• Green channel: black = more glossy
• Blue channel: black = less metallic

 

Export the DDS files

Obviously, as will all other skins, you will need a DDS plugin to export the Photoshop files to the DDS. Just make sure you enable the Mipmap option when exporting.

 

Change the aircraft name in the description.lua file
The first thing you will want to do when creating your own skin is edit the description.lua file to change the name of the skin that gets selected inside DCS. Open the file in Notepad++ and scroll to the very bottom to change the name = "352nd Double Trouble two" to whatever you want. This will be what DCS shows you when selecting the skin.

When you export the DDS files, you could overwrite what is there and everything will work fine. However, if you change the names of the DDS files, you will also have to change them in the description.lua file to point to you new names. The best thing to do is edit the _USAF352-B in the file name so something like "_mySkin". Then you can do a fine/replace inside Notepad++ and  replace "_USAF352-B" with "_myskin" (without the quotes).

 

 

 

 

Fwew, that was a lot.

If you made it this far, I applaud your perseverance. I know it looks daunting, but in practice, it is quite simple to use once you get the hang of it.

 

If anyone has questions, please let me know.
if there is enough questions/interest, I might make a video about it -- but I am no YouTuber.