How to use hacks in Brawl vault downloads

[jonlynn]

Hi all,

Just found out about this site.  My youngest daughter seen a youtube video of Spongebob characters in the Smash game and asked if I could find them for her.  Well after much research I landed here via the Brawl vault seeing the mods that are made.  I read the noob tutorial on the folder structure but am lost when I downloaded a few hacks.  For instance these are the ones I downloaded:

1) Patrick by Hacksponge.zip - Inside it contains the FitWario00.pac and FitWario00.pcs

2) Spongebob.pcs - This was not in a zip but only a single pcs file.  Do I need the pac file as well?  And from my understanding of the tutorial it would have to be named of a original character, correct?  Does anyone know how I would tell which character folder I would place this in?

3) FitLuigi00.pcs - Also a single file which is suppose to be of Squidward.  Do I disregard that it has no pac file? 

For each of the above mentioned, I understand that since it has no CSP file included  that the character of the spongebob icons will not show until it reaches gameplay? 

Sorry for asking all these questions if it is basic and is covered.  But my youngest daughter keeps pulling the plug on the Wii when her siblings play as she has no interest in the game unless her favorite TV characters are in it. 

Thanks

[windhunter7]

Before you can use the files, first you have to install a program like Riivolution, Gecko, or Project M; then, after installing one of those, and knowing about where the "fighter" directory goes, inside that you'll create folders for each character. All of the following go in that "fighter" folder.

1) Create a folder called "Wario" in the folder, and then put the FitWario00.pac and FitWario00.pcs files in that folder. These will replace the default palette swap.(The one that is first selected when you select your character in Brawl)

2) For this one, first get BrawlBox(You can easily search the forums to find it); after installing it, you can open the Spongebob.pcs, click on the plus on the second "ModelData" and then the plus on the folder, and there should be a name like FitCHARACTERShd, where CHARACTER is what folder you're going to make for the default "fighter" folder. Then do the same thing with the Spongebob.pcs by renaming the .pcs to FitCHARACTER(The name you found out)00.pcs, similar in filename structure to 1). You don't need the .pac if you're only going to use the file to play in multiplayer, which most people do anyways. (Important Note: The Shd I mentioned may have a faulty name; if it's not the name of a character from Brawl, you should right-click and click "Preview" to see who the polygonal thing looks closest to.)

3) Do the same thing as 1), but make the folder "Luigi" instead; also, no .pac needed for multiplayer.

No CSP file means that the standard Brawl character select icon will represent the skin, so yes, you'll only know of it in-game if that's the case. To give the character an icon of some sort, first get a common5_en.pac from the resources and put it in "System". Then, click the pluses on "sc_selcharacter_en" and then "char_bust_tex_lz77". Then if you click the pluses on each of the "MiscData"'s, and then "Textures", you'll see the standard Brawl character select icons; right-click, click replace, find your icon via the browser, and then click "OK" to import it over the current one you want to replace. Make sure that it is exactly 128x160 pixels!

[jonlynn]

Thanks for explaining. Gave me a better understanding of how to figure things out.

By the way, since I would not be able to get pictures on till I get csp made I wanted to ask 2 questions:

1) are the character pac interchangeable? By this I mean would I be able to put the squid ward who is luigi as a skin under wario?  Or is it locked to luigi?

2) I assume the numbers at the end like 00 is the sort order? So would these be the first skin of the character? If not, is the numbers interchangeable?

Basically I wanted to organize them for her since she will be picking blindly until I can get pictures on.

[ABloodyCanadian]

1). You can try to put a Luigi mod over Wario, by putting it in the respective folder, and renaming it respectively. But do note that every character has a different bone set, and these mods work with these in mind. Doing something like that would make character models squished or stretched, and some attacks may not work properly cause of non matching bone values.

2). Yes, the last 2 numbers of the file is the alternate skin you're replacing.

00 = Default
01 = Red
02 = Green
03 = Blue

Anything higher than that will replace the various other recolors a character might have.

2) For this one, first get BrawlBox(You can easily search the forums to find it); after installing it, you can open the Spongebob.pcs, click on the plus on the second "ModelData" and then the plus on the folder, and there should be a name like FitCHARACTERShd, where CHARACTER is what folder you're going to make for the default "fighter" folder. Then do the same thing with the Spongebob.pcs by renaming the .pcs to FitCHARACTER(The name you found out)00.pcs, similar in filename structure to 1). You don't need the .pac if you're only going to use the file to play in multiplayer, which most people do anyways. (Important Note: The Shd I mentioned may have a faulty name; if it's not the name of a character from Brawl, you should right-click and click "Preview" to see who the polygonal thing looks closest to.)

No need for BrawlBox on this one. The Vault should say which character it's over... If not, then what is wrong with them?

[windhunter7]

Just to add to what BloodyCanadian said: Certain characters are portable via just renaming, like Marth and Ike; however, trying that method will not only cause stretching over certain characters, but it can also cause freezing, if it's trying to reference  a bone that doesn't exist.(For example, if you were trying to have a Ness skin over Captain Falcon, it'd probably freeze, as Captain Falcon doesn't have a backpack; you can still port them via importing/exporting/fixing bones, though.)

[jonlynn]

Okay, I think I am getting the hang of brawl box.  Initially through my research I was seeing how I can compress the images but I see that brawl box already does that when I choose replace.  I decided to keep the characters in place as intended as I don't want to mess up the hard work of those who made them.  So far I have managed to get squidward, patrick and loco roco in the game which is great.  I will tackle the CSP tomorrow after my in-law makes me the photos as I don't have photoshop.

On another note though I am having issues with stages.  I tried to get matching stages for the kids characters which I downloaded:

1) Franzea 2 By Hacksponge.zip - This contained 2 folders BRSTM that contained R03.brstm.  The other folder called STAGE has 2 files STGPLANKTON.pac and a Use.rel.txt. 

This one is a Loco Roco stage.  When I load the stage with the one it replaces called Hanenbow, the screen freezes at that point.  After troubleshooting here, I understand the BRSTM is the sound file for the stage.  And what I think is the issue is the rel file.  But the included "Use.rel.text" is blank when I open it in notepad +.  It seems some have said that I need to put some sort of forward in it so it knows which file to replace.  Any pointers on this one? 

And if I can figure out the above, where would I replace the image of the stage icon in the menu selection?

2) Spongebob Stage by Hacksponge.zip - This contained the STGFINAL.PAC

This one I will try later tonight to see if it works as it did not contain a rel file so possibly this one won't need one.

Thanks again for all your pointers and advice.

 

[windhunter7]

You can always create your own CSPs by using MS Paint and Color Quantizer, which is my method; just follow my tutorial!

Pretty sure "Use.rel.text"... just look at the filename; the file extension isn't .rel, it's .text; and the title is saying to use the .rel. I believe the stage .rel converter in the resources of this forum works.

[Persona-Aya]

On another note though I am having issues with stages.  I tried to get matching stages for the kids characters which I downloaded:

1) Franzea 2 By Hacksponge.zip - This contained 2 folders BRSTM that contained R03.brstm.  The other folder called STAGE has 2 files STGPLANKTON.pac and a Use.rel.txt.  

This one is a Loco Roco stage.  When I load the stage with the one it replaces called Hanenbow, the screen freezes at that point.  After troubleshooting here, I understand the BRSTM is the sound file for the stage.  And what I think is the issue is the rel file.  But the included "Use.rel.text" is blank when I open it in notepad +.  It seems some have said that I need to put some sort of forward in it so it knows which file to replace.  Any pointers on this one?  

And if I can figure out the above, where would I replace the image of the stage icon in the menu selection?

2) Spongebob Stage by Hacksponge.zip - This contained the STGFINAL.PAC

This one I will try later tonight to see if it works as it did not contain a rel file so possibly this one won't need one.

Hi there! Looking at this makes me think of when I first discovered Brawl modding - it can be difficult to work out at first but it gets easier the more you get used to it. I'm gonna try and tackle your questions.

1) Make sure you have your file paths set right. The actual stage file (eg STGPLANKTON.pac) goes into a folder called 'melee', and the file path goes like this:

(SD CARD ROOT)\private\wii\app\RSBE\pf\Stage\melee

and the .rel file (eg st_plankton.rel) goes into a folder called 'Module' - the file path is:

(SD CARD ROOT)\private\wii\app\RSBE\pf\Module

Looking at the stage you're talking about, it appears to need a rel for Final Destination (The base stage) over Hannenbow (the stage that will be replaced). I haven't downloaded the stage myself, so I don't know if it contains a .rel file already, but if you need a .rel file, use this site:

http://www.lakora.us/rel/

It'll have two sections: BASE REL (on the left) and TO REPLACE (on the right), as well as options for NORTH AMERICA or EUROPE. Simply click the base stage for the stage you want to put it (In this case Final Destination) on the left side, and the stage you are going to replace (In this case, Hanenbow) on the right, as well as the region of your game (If NTSC-U, it's NORTH AMERICA, if PAL, it's EUROPE), and click download. Put the STGPLANKTON.pac file in the 'Melee' folder, and the st_plankton.rel file in the 'Module' folder, and it should work.

The BRSTM file is indeed the music that will play on the stage, and is put into the 'strm' folder, which has the file path:

(SD CARD ROOT)\private\wii\app\RSBE\pf\sound\strm

R03 happens to be the only track that plays on Hanenbow so just put that in and the music will definitely play when playing the stage.

The stage image icons are located in the sc_selmap.pac file, which has the file path:

(SD CARD ROOT)\private\wii\app\RSBE\pf\menu2

The images are in the 'Textures' folder within the 'MiscData80' brres directory. The small icons are titled 'MenSelmapIcon', and Hanenbow's is 'MelSelmapIcon.31, is sized 64x56, and must be encoded as 'CI4'. The Larger stage preview icon, which appears on the right when a stage is highlighted over or selected, is also in this directory - they're called 'MenSelmapPrevBase', and Hanenbow's is 'MenSelmapPrevBase.31'. These are sized 176x176, so you can use any image that is of the 1:1 ratio and it'll work. These are typically encoded as "CMPR'. The stage names are also located in this directory, if you're interested. Have a look and you'll see them for yourself!

2) STGFINAL.pac goes over Final Destination, so you can simply put the file into the 'melee' folder if you want to use the stage over Final Destination. If you want to use it over another stage, simply use the website I linked above and select 'Final Destination' on the left side, and whatever stage you want to replace on the right, and place the downloaded .rel file in the 'Module' folder.

QUICK NOTE: If you're using the NTSC-U game, the file paths listed above will work. If you use PAL, change the 'RSBE' folder to 'RSBP'

If you have any other questions, ask away! CSP's are really easy to make in actuality - if you don't have Photoshop, or don't want to use the method suggested by windhunter7 (who helped me out when I started to make CSP's - thanks buddy!), download 'Gimp', and you can do it through there. I can teach you how if you want