Essential mod making tools

Whether you are interested in dabbling in mapping or making a full-blown mod, we have a few tools that will help you along the way.

Mapping

• Valve Hammer Editor, originally known as Worldcraft, is a map editor for Half-Life. It is considered the standard map editor. Ships with support for most major mods, including Counter-Strike and Team Fortress Classic.
• Zoner's Half-Life Tools are essential for building maps. These tools are better optimised and more functional versions of the map compiling tools included with Hammer. See the PlanetWON2 wiki page.
• QuArK, like Hammer, is a map editing tool. It is more of a Swiss army knife of mapping, hence the name Quake Army Knife, including support for games other than Half-Life. See the PlanetWON2 wiki page.
• Winbspc allows you to decompile maps, making them viewable in Hammer and QuArK, in order to see how the map works. Do not use for the purpose of stealing the map and passing it on as your own.

Modelling

• MilkShape 3D is a commonly used modelling program for Half-Life. Although the official site for it seems to have vanished, you can still get it from several sites.
• Half-Life Model Viewer lets you view models from Half-Life outside of the game.