Adding custom sprites
From DoomWiki.org
Adding custom sprites to user-created PWADs allows authors to enhance the game-play or introduce new visual styles that cannot be achieved through the use of Doom's stock sprites. There are several different approaches to this depending on what type of sprites are being added, and which source ports the WAD is intended to be played with.
Inserting and converting[edit]
The first step to adding custom sprites to a WAD is using a WAD management tool, such as SLADE, to insert the graphic into the PWAD and then convert it to a format that the engine can recognize. This can be done within SLADE by clicking "Convert to..." under the "Graphic" menu.
Be aware that converting graphics that stray from Doom's color palette may result in a loss of color detail.
Source ports with true-color graphics modes may not be restricted to these formats, and may support alternatives such as PNG.
Replacing existing sprites[edit]
This is the only option in most source ports, unless using advanced source ports.
The easiest way to include custom sprites is to simply replace the original graphics into a PWAD that have the same lump names as those found in the game's IWAD. Such an approach does not technically add new sprites; it merely replaces components of the present ones.
When adding a completely new monster to the roster using DeHackEd or DoomTools' DECOHack, this should be done by replacing uncommon enemies like the Wolfenstein SS or by using unused frames, like the "raise" state for the pain elemental.
The editable sprites have a four-letter code, a letter key, and one or two rotations. A good example of this are the imp's first walking frame lumps, labeled TROOA1, TROOA2A8, TROOA3A7, TROOA4A6, and TROOA5. Rotation-wise, if a lump adds another rotation to its name, then the opposite rotation is a mirrored image of the same sprite image. See sprite for a more thorough discussion of Doom's rotation and animation system.
Adding new sprites[edit]
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- See ZDoom Wiki's Creating new sprite graphics article
Several DeHackEd extensions have implemented a way to define new sprites, with DEHEXTRA, DSDHacked, and ID24HACKED. ZDoom introduced DECORATE (which has been deprecated) and ZScript, though have seen minimal support outside the ZDoom-family. Currently DEHEXTRA is the most supported of the three DeHackEd extensions.
