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Another version is the rehash of the original LoL Skin tool, which an be found here: http://forum.leaguec...opic=31502&st=0
Spoiler
Due to changes to the new Riot client skin modification is in the rediscovery process. The most popular solution right now can be found in the link below, but I can assure you that this method will change as people continue to work on the issue and make discoveries.
ItzWarty's Solution
Due to changes to the new Riot client skin modification is in the rediscovery process. The most popular solution right now can be found in the link below, but I can assure you that this method will change as people continue to work on the issue and make discoveries.
ItzWarty's Solution
Spoiler
Original tutorial by Vampyroteuthis:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Original tutorial by Vampyroteuthis:
Quote
For my 1001'st post you get a tutorial on how to install skins - and in addition to Najena's great guide this one will have pictures which - hopefully - will help you get this done right. (Najena's post has 570 answers. This should not be as the instructions are solid and a bit of logical thinking might get you the rest of the way, but apparently there is a great lack and so this one will hopefully get rid of that.)
First of: The basics.
Default US client path: C:\Riot Games\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
Default EU client path: C:\Program Files\Riot Games\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
Mac Users, here.
You can find your game here or somewhere else, if you put it somewhere else during installation.
For you guys to better understand what custom skinning is and how it works (and to differentiate this guide from Najena's) we start off with
SKIN REPLACEMENT
Seriously. Every 3rd day or so someone writes 'I can't switch this skin and that' in the helpforums. So here's how it's done:
First locate your heropak_client.zip. This file contains almost all the relevant game information that is save to edit.
To do so you need to browse to your game folder (as seen above) and then go into \game\ where the heropak_client.zip is located.
Picture:
Open it. You can then browse to the champion you want. They are located in your DATA\Characters\xxx\ folder inside the heropak_client.zip.
Picture:
Some of the Characters have other names (working names) then in the game itself.
These are
the rest are named pretty forward.
These folders contain the information about the characters. skn is the model information, skl the skeleton, dds an imageformat (loadscreens, textures ('skin'), icons (seperate folder) and so on), anm the animations and some scripting files.
Custom skinning works by substituting an edited file for the real one.
So pay attention because this is the part that gets asked so very very often.
The files in the champions folder match the skin - for this example we'll take Jax (armsmaster) and substitute PAX Jax for the normal one.
To do this we keep the heropak_client.zip open, and (in another explorer window) go to C:\...\League of Legends\game\DATA\Characters (create the folder if it doesn't exist) and in it create a folder called 'Armsmaster' (Jax's name. Refer to the list above)
Picture:
That way we won't have to destroy the heropak_client.zip and make the game unpatchable.
Next we take PAX_Jax files - depending on the skin there might be more or less files. Many are simply different .dds files, some are different models/skeletons. If you are unsure what .dds files belong to which skin, you can open them, using IrfanView with the plugins installed. Mostly they are pretty self-explanatory, but every now and again they are a bit more difficult to understand.
Picture:
Copy those files. Also, if you look into the 'Animations' folder, you will notice that PAX JAX has his own animations. If you didn't look and the Character looks like he's exploding in game, this is probably what you forgot.
So create an 'animations' folder in the game\DATA\Characters\Armsmaster\ folder (> game\DATA\Characters\Armsmaster\animations\) and copy the files.
Picture:
Next we need to make the game think THOSE files are the default ones. That is a client sided change. Which means:
Only YOU can see the edited skin, everyone else see's the basic skin
You CAN'T get banned for it, riot turns a blind eye to this
IF you want to replace a DIFFERENT skin you need to rename them accordingly. but for this one we'll rename PAX Jax to the default Armsmaster (Jax's basic skin)
Picture:
If you wanted to replace Angler Jax with Pax Jax, you'd have to rename the jax_pax stuff to armsmaster_fisherman. < This is important. I don't want any more threads concerning this. You know how to do it now! Switch on your noggin' it's more than a pretty body-topper!
This is the basics of how this stuff works, learn it and you'll get 90% of the stuff done that you want to achieve
Now then. That was how you switch skins made by Riot.
If you want to put up custom skins from Leaguecraft, this is what you do:
Picture:
Download the skin.
Picture:
Open it. If it's zip it won't be a problem, if it's .rar you will need either WinRAR or 7Zip
Refer to the steps above and create a folder in your game\DATA\Characters\ folder, with the name of the character. Often this has been done for you and you simply need to drag and drop the folder provided into the League of Legends older or Character folder. If not, you know now how to do it yourself.
Next place the files contained in the download in the folder
Picture:
If something is wrong in game, check if the naming is consistent with the one from the heropak_client.zip. It might be the author didn't check his spelling or didn't name correctly.
It might also be possible that the skinner used a different model as basis, but forgot to put it in. If the .dds was made for one of the character's skins, refer to the first part on how to get those files you need to substitute.
(You need to do this when you still have the normal model, but the skin on it is all distorted and wrong. It is probably that the skin doesn't match the model)
You can now enjoy your custom skins.
If the download contains particles, they go into League of 'Legends\game\DATA\particles' - Just throw the .dds's and sco's in there. No need for a character folder.
If the download contains AIR-files MAKE A BACKUP OF THE AIR FILES before you replace them, because you can't get them back so easyly. Then drop the provided airfiles in the correspondant folder. Usually this will be League of Legends\air\assets\images\characters\
Uninstallation
To uninstall skins, simply delete the character's folder you created. In our example you'd delete the folder 'Armsmaster' from your 'League of Legends\game\DATA\Characters\' folder.
To uninstall particles, you delete the correspondant .dds files from 'League of Legends\game\DATA\particles'
To uninstall air-files you will need to delete the new ones and put the back-ups back in.
That is all for now, Enjoy custom skins and I hope this tells you about the basics enough so you can figure out how to do what you intend to.
First of: The basics.
Default US client path: C:\Riot Games\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
Default EU client path: C:\Program Files\Riot Games\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
Mac Users, here.
You can find your game here or somewhere else, if you put it somewhere else during installation.
For you guys to better understand what custom skinning is and how it works (and to differentiate this guide from Najena's) we start off with
SKIN REPLACEMENT
Seriously. Every 3rd day or so someone writes 'I can't switch this skin and that' in the helpforums. So here's how it's done:
First locate your heropak_client.zip. This file contains almost all the relevant game information that is save to edit.
To do so you need to browse to your game folder (as seen above) and then go into \game\ where the heropak_client.zip is located.
Picture:
Spoiler
Open it. You can then browse to the champion you want. They are located in your DATA\Characters\xxx\ folder inside the heropak_client.zip.
Picture:
Spoiler
Some of the Characters have other names (working names) then in the game itself.
These are
Spoiler
Armordillo - Rammus
Armsmaster - Jax
Bantam Trap - Teemo's Mushroom
bear - Annie's Mr. Tibbers
Bowmaster - Ashe
CardMaster - Twisted Fate
ChemicalMan - Singed
Chronokeeper - Zilean
Cryophoenix - Anivia
DarkChampion - Tryndamere
FallenAngel - Morgana
GemKnight - Taric
GreenTerror - Cho'gath
H28GEvolutionTurret - Heimerdinger's Turrets
Jester - Shaco
Judicator - Kayle
Lich - Karthus
Minotaur - Alistar
Pirate - Gangplank
SteamGolem - Blitzcrank
Voidwalker - Kassassadin
Wolfman - Warwick
XenZhao - Xin Zhao
Yeti - Nunu
Armordillo - Rammus
Armsmaster - Jax
Bantam Trap - Teemo's Mushroom
bear - Annie's Mr. Tibbers
Bowmaster - Ashe
CardMaster - Twisted Fate
ChemicalMan - Singed
Chronokeeper - Zilean
Cryophoenix - Anivia
DarkChampion - Tryndamere
FallenAngel - Morgana
GemKnight - Taric
GreenTerror - Cho'gath
H28GEvolutionTurret - Heimerdinger's Turrets
Jester - Shaco
Judicator - Kayle
Lich - Karthus
Minotaur - Alistar
Pirate - Gangplank
SteamGolem - Blitzcrank
Voidwalker - Kassassadin
Wolfman - Warwick
XenZhao - Xin Zhao
Yeti - Nunu
the rest are named pretty forward.
These folders contain the information about the characters. skn is the model information, skl the skeleton, dds an imageformat (loadscreens, textures ('skin'), icons (seperate folder) and so on), anm the animations and some scripting files.
Custom skinning works by substituting an edited file for the real one.
So pay attention because this is the part that gets asked so very very often.
The files in the champions folder match the skin - for this example we'll take Jax (armsmaster) and substitute PAX Jax for the normal one.
To do this we keep the heropak_client.zip open, and (in another explorer window) go to C:\...\League of Legends\game\DATA\Characters (create the folder if it doesn't exist) and in it create a folder called 'Armsmaster' (Jax's name. Refer to the list above)
Picture:
Spoiler
That way we won't have to destroy the heropak_client.zip and make the game unpatchable.
Next we take PAX_Jax files - depending on the skin there might be more or less files. Many are simply different .dds files, some are different models/skeletons. If you are unsure what .dds files belong to which skin, you can open them, using IrfanView with the plugins installed. Mostly they are pretty self-explanatory, but every now and again they are a bit more difficult to understand.
Picture:
Spoiler
Copy those files. Also, if you look into the 'Animations' folder, you will notice that PAX JAX has his own animations. If you didn't look and the Character looks like he's exploding in game, this is probably what you forgot.
So create an 'animations' folder in the game\DATA\Characters\Armsmaster\ folder (> game\DATA\Characters\Armsmaster\animations\) and copy the files.
Picture:
Spoiler
Next we need to make the game think THOSE files are the default ones. That is a client sided change. Which means:
Only YOU can see the edited skin, everyone else see's the basic skin
You CAN'T get banned for it, riot turns a blind eye to this
IF you want to replace a DIFFERENT skin you need to rename them accordingly. but for this one we'll rename PAX Jax to the default Armsmaster (Jax's basic skin)
Picture:
Spoiler
If you wanted to replace Angler Jax with Pax Jax, you'd have to rename the jax_pax stuff to armsmaster_fisherman. < This is important. I don't want any more threads concerning this. You know how to do it now! Switch on your noggin' it's more than a pretty body-topper!
This is the basics of how this stuff works, learn it and you'll get 90% of the stuff done that you want to achieve
Now then. That was how you switch skins made by Riot.
If you want to put up custom skins from Leaguecraft, this is what you do:
Picture:
Spoiler
Install custom skins
Install custom skins
Download the skin.
Picture:
Spoiler
Open it. If it's zip it won't be a problem, if it's .rar you will need either WinRAR or 7Zip
Refer to the steps above and create a folder in your game\DATA\Characters\ folder, with the name of the character. Often this has been done for you and you simply need to drag and drop the folder provided into the League of Legends older or Character folder. If not, you know now how to do it yourself.
Next place the files contained in the download in the folder
Picture:
Spoiler
If something is wrong in game, check if the naming is consistent with the one from the heropak_client.zip. It might be the author didn't check his spelling or didn't name correctly.
It might also be possible that the skinner used a different model as basis, but forgot to put it in. If the .dds was made for one of the character's skins, refer to the first part on how to get those files you need to substitute.
(You need to do this when you still have the normal model, but the skin on it is all distorted and wrong. It is probably that the skin doesn't match the model)
You can now enjoy your custom skins.
If the download contains particles, they go into League of 'Legends\game\DATA\particles' - Just throw the .dds's and sco's in there. No need for a character folder.
If the download contains AIR-files MAKE A BACKUP OF THE AIR FILES before you replace them, because you can't get them back so easyly. Then drop the provided airfiles in the correspondant folder. Usually this will be League of Legends\air\assets\images\characters\
Uninstallation
To uninstall skins, simply delete the character's folder you created. In our example you'd delete the folder 'Armsmaster' from your 'League of Legends\game\DATA\Characters\' folder.
To uninstall particles, you delete the correspondant .dds files from 'League of Legends\game\DATA\particles'
To uninstall air-files you will need to delete the new ones and put the back-ups back in.
That is all for now, Enjoy custom skins and I hope this tells you about the basics enough so you can figure out how to do what you intend to.
Old method by the great Najena, founder of HeroesMod (the original source for custom skins):
Spoiler
Preferred method (non-zip; no backups for patches required!) thanks to BananaBoy
1. Download the skin from http://leaguecraft.com/skins, it will be called <Champion Name>.dds
2. Go to Riot GamesLeague of LegendsgameDATA and open the Characters folder, if it does not exist create it.
3. Open the folder called <Champion Name>, if it does not exist create it.
4. Paste your <Champion Name>.dds in that folder and enjoy the Skin ingame.
e.g.:
Ashe skin, called bowmaster_clr.dds goes to
Riot GamesLeague of LegendsgameDATACharactersBowmaster
LoL will check these folders (DATACharacters or DATAParticles etc.) before opening the HeroPak_client.zip!
PS: As discussed in other threads: There are some skins, which are not located at the Characters folder, e.g. Sion's skin when he uses Enrage.
Check the DATAParticles folder for these kind of skins (search for the name of the champion or skill, you will find it in that folder as it has no subfolders).e folders (DATACharacters or DATAParticles etc.) before opening the HeroPak_client.zip!
Alternative method Note: Requires backing up or using our backup file to patch! *update* Please do not use this method, if you have problems, refer to our Help Desk instead as this method just causes problems. This method should only be used for the desperate
1. Download the skin attached to the post
2. Open C:Riot GamesLeague of LegendsGameHeroPak_client.zipDATACharacters<Name of Champion>
3. Make sure to make backups of the file you're going to replace
4. Replace <Champion Name>.dds with the one you just downloaded
DONE!
NOTE:
- You may have to create a folder with the name if it doesn't already exist.
- Every patch you must download the backup and replace before you can patch!
- Mac users should refer to here.
- Default US client path: C:\Riot Games\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
- Default EU client path: C:\Program Files\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
- Files will be in .rar or .zip, for these files you must use a program that can extract these files. The recommended program is Winrar. Once downloaded, just right click and click Extract here.
Champion names for modification that differ from folder name
Annie = Annie
(Tibbers = bear)
Amumu = SadMummy
Anivia = Cryopheonix
Ashe = Bowmaster
Blitzcrank = SteamGolem
Cho'Gath = GreenTerror
Corki = Corki
Gangplank = Pirate
Jax = Armsmaster
Karthus = Lich
Kassadin = Voidwalker
Kayle = Judicator
Morgana = FallenAngel
Nunu = Yeti
Rammus = Armordillo
Shaco = Jester
Singed = ChemicalMan
Taric = Gemknight
Tryndamere = DarkChampion
Twisted Fate = Cardmaster
Warwick = Wolfman
Zilean = Chronokeeper
If the champion you're looking for doesn't exist in this list, their folder name is equal to their actual in-game name!
Example:
Annie = /Characters/Annie
Udyr = /Characters/Udyr
Preferred method (non-zip; no backups for patches required!) thanks to BananaBoy
1. Download the skin from http://leaguecraft.com/skins, it will be called <Champion Name>.dds
2. Go to Riot GamesLeague of LegendsgameDATA and open the Characters folder, if it does not exist create it.
3. Open the folder called <Champion Name>, if it does not exist create it.
4. Paste your <Champion Name>.dds in that folder and enjoy the Skin ingame.
e.g.:
Ashe skin, called bowmaster_clr.dds goes to
Riot GamesLeague of LegendsgameDATACharactersBowmaster
LoL will check these folders (DATACharacters or DATAParticles etc.) before opening the HeroPak_client.zip!
PS: As discussed in other threads: There are some skins, which are not located at the Characters folder, e.g. Sion's skin when he uses Enrage.
Check the DATAParticles folder for these kind of skins (search for the name of the champion or skill, you will find it in that folder as it has no subfolders).e folders (DATACharacters or DATAParticles etc.) before opening the HeroPak_client.zip!
Alternative method Note: Requires backing up or using our backup file to patch! *update* Please do not use this method, if you have problems, refer to our Help Desk instead as this method just causes problems. This method should only be used for the desperate
1. Download the skin attached to the post
2. Open C:Riot GamesLeague of LegendsGameHeroPak_client.zipDATACharacters<Name of Champion>
3. Make sure to make backups of the file you're going to replace
4. Replace <Champion Name>.dds with the one you just downloaded
DONE!
NOTE:
- You may have to create a folder with the name if it doesn't already exist.
- Every patch you must download the backup and replace before you can patch!
- Mac users should refer to here.
- Default US client path: C:\Riot Games\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
- Default EU client path: C:\Program Files\League of Legends\Game\DATA\Characters\
- Files will be in .rar or .zip, for these files you must use a program that can extract these files. The recommended program is Winrar. Once downloaded, just right click and click Extract here.
Champion names for modification that differ from folder name
Annie = Annie
(Tibbers = bear)
Amumu = SadMummy
Anivia = Cryopheonix
Ashe = Bowmaster
Blitzcrank = SteamGolem
Cho'Gath = GreenTerror
Corki = Corki
Gangplank = Pirate
Jax = Armsmaster
Karthus = Lich
Kassadin = Voidwalker
Kayle = Judicator
Morgana = FallenAngel
Nunu = Yeti
Rammus = Armordillo
Shaco = Jester
Singed = ChemicalMan
Taric = Gemknight
Tryndamere = DarkChampion
Twisted Fate = Cardmaster
Warwick = Wolfman
Zilean = Chronokeeper
If the champion you're looking for doesn't exist in this list, their folder name is equal to their actual in-game name!
Example:
Annie = /Characters/Annie
Udyr = /Characters/Udyr
Edited by tazmcfly, 30 December 2012 - 05:12 AM.
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