Problem with subsurface map (Hook5 Basic version)

[onevision]

I'm in the process of reproducing a specific model (one of veryslow's) using HDB skin as base layers, and its shared face preset. I aim to retain as much as possible the original look of the model, obviously, but so far I haven't found the correct use for face details (supposedly contained in the file femhead_bl.dds). Please note that this dds file has alpha channel...

Initially I thought of using the file as subsurface map (the natural choice), but doing so results in an unpleasant dark tone applied to the whole face, I don't know why. I know alpha channel of stage4 is used for displacement in Pledge version, but I'm using Basic so tessellation (and with it, displacement) is not even possible. Changing the DisplacementStrenght parameter is irrelevant in my case - as expected.

So, I tried a different approach that previously worked with tanlines. I placed this subsurface image as diffuse map of a separate head layer, setting DiffsueBlendMode (just like that!) to 3, leaving blank lines for normalmap, specular and subsurface. Unfortunately it doesn't help either. No matter how high I set the DiffuseStrength value, I see no difference.

Any ideas?

[Driver]

I'm glad I didn't delete this sheet explaining how hook4 shader works which was written and posted by Pervokpetr himself. Said file, femhead_bl.dds, is so called bump-low that is to be set at stage2, and bump-high (normally shown as xxxx_bh.dds) at stage3.

That said femhead_bl.dds contains data of bump large details in its alpha, which needs to be converted to normalmap that hook5 handle, meanwhile hook4 use simple hight map.

[onevision]

@Driver

So... basically I can get the h5 normalmap from femhead_bl.dds simply using Alpha as source for the filter.

Based on your sheet, from the same file I can extract also the subsurface data (changing alpha channel to white/full opacity).

The dark tone makes sense now... I just need to use the same tecnique to obtain normals and subsurface for the other body parts.

A ton of Thanks!

[Driver]

9 hours ago, onevision said:

@Driver

So... basically I can get the h5 normalmap from femhead_bl.dds simply using Alpha as source for the filter.

Yes, alpha channel of bump low is simple hight map, you can convert it to normal map with any applications. 

9 hours ago, onevision said:

@Driver

Based on your sheet, from the same file I can extract also the subsurface data (changing alpha channel to white/full opacity).

Of course you can, but the subsurface map which is in RGB of bump low file is the same one as hook5's default subsurface files, so I think you can save your time about that. Hook4's SSS is a special option available only for those who had supported Pervokpetr through patreon (in the time of hook4!), that means the user were highly limited.

[onevision]

@Driver

I went a little further and included in the normal map also the fine details from bump high (using "Overlay" as blend mode for the second layer). The idea is not bad, looks a little like pores, but it would require very high resolution maps to make it worthwhile (see image).

 

[Driver]

I think you're going in the right direction. Merging high detailed map into the map from bump low is good idea, but personally I would recommend to use normalmaps from morokei's skin set to give it a detail, because hight map obtained from bump high has far less quality than generic h5 normalmap.