Introduction

In addition to the RGB channels, textures can optionally use the alpha channel for wear durability and masking.

Each weapon uses a special texture to determine what parts should be painted. This texture also influences how quickly the finish wears off different features on the weapon.

The original or "weapon base" texture underneath is called the substrate. Some paint styles can modify how the finish reveals the substrate by storing additional data in the pattern's alpha channel.

Supported Paint Styles

The following Paint Styles support the use of the alpha channel to control wear:

• Hydrographic Style
• Anodized Multicolored Style
• Custom Paint Style
• Gunsmith Style
• Animated Style
• Chromatic Style

Usage

You should only use the alpha channel to control wear if:

• Your pattern design requires more wear coverage than provided by default
• Your pattern design requires more of the substrate to be revealed
• Important features in your pattern design wear too quickly or;
• Important features in your pattern design should never wear to the substrate.

All paint kits should be available in all wear values from Factory New to Battle Scarred with few exceptions. That said the wear values do not have to be the full range between 0.0 and 1.0

Wear Value Ranges

• Factory New: 0.00 - 0.07
• Minimal Wear: 0.07 - 0.15
• Field Tested: 0.15 - 0.37
• Well Worn: 0.37 - 0.44
• Battle Scarred: 0.44 - 1.0

Example

As an example how this works, we'll take a look at Valve's M4A4 | Bullet Rain skin.

This weapon paint uses Custom Paint Job style, and fits 1:1 with the weapon's UV map, which is enabled by setting "Ignore Weapon Size Scale" in your paint kit options.

The alpha channel contains two important pieces of information. It contains a mask to determine if some areas of the weapon should not be painted and the wear durability mask.

In this example, it was decided it was best for the magazine and grip to not be painted.

If you look at the monster graphic on the buttstock, it's in an area that wears too quickly and would subtract from the design of the finish. Since this is an important feature of the design, they have made that portion more durable so that it can be seen even in the worst worn states.

Values ~196 in the alpha channel subtract from the painted areas of the weapon. We find the barrel, grip and magazine in these areas.

Both 128 and 255 have no effect, so the finish wears using default behaviour in these areas

Values below 128 in the alpha channel increase the durability of the finish. The darker the value, the more durable the paint is. This is the area where we find the monster.