A modding legions remover

[zeuxis the mighty]

i think pre-marian skins in XGM are the same from RTR because I played that for a while and i noticed in XGM they looked similar. I personally don't like the principes, they don't really match the hastati and triarii.

[Warmaster]

OK, final note: I uploaded it to the TWC download server. So I edited the first post with A NEW link. Hopefully it's all done now.

i think pre-marian skins in XGM are the same from RTR because I played that for a while and i noticed in XGM they looked similar. I personally don't like the principes, they don't really match the hastati and triarii.

Really? I think the principes look like alright, myself. And I never played RTR so I wouldn't be able to tell you whether they are the same or not. I'm sure someone here will know, though...

[atraps]

so this little mod changes the skins of all the units of the Roman faction to the vanilla skins?

if so thats great. i dont really like the skins of the Romans in XGM, in my opinion they look ugly (and for some weird reason the preatorian cohort skin reduces the frame rate on my comp considerably when i zoom up close to them)

but i have a couple of questions

1.) does this change the skins for all the roman units? (including roman rebels)

2.)does reinstalling XGM uninstall this mod?

3.)does this work with XGM version 5.6.7?

[Warmaster]

Damn sorry I forgot about this thread with it locked in the sub-mod section of XGM. I'll answer your questions even though it's probably too late to be helpful .

1.) does this change the skins for all the roman units? (including roman rebels)

Yes. Although, it actually changed the colour of the rebel roman units to red (instead of blue like it should be). But the rebels have identical colouring to non-rebel romans with ML anyway so its not really any worse in that respect. Unfortunately I couldn't find a way to get rebels blue without making the download a lot bigger, if memory serves.


2.)does reinstalling XGM uninstall this mod?

Yes.


3.)does this work with XGM version 5.6.7?

I'm pretty positive it works with all of the newest XGM versions. I've been following the changelogs and it doesn't look like there have been any changes to Roman units in a while. So yes, it'll work .

[atraps]

thx for answering my question

p.s. better late then never

[visphilos]

You should include both, types of archives, Warmaster.
That way, so that folks can chose what they want. Some of us are technical and like to know what's going on. Some of us even decompile .exe installers, so that we can still know what's going on.

The decompiling is a nuisance, and not everyone is techy enough to be willing or able to do it. Providing both forms, then would be an appreciated courtesy.

As an aside, I sometimes change te way a mod installs, so that it is more compatible with other mods and vanilla, than the modder(s) knew how to make it. One of many reasons that some folks would prefer a hands-on approach, while still being glad for the .exe installers for folks who need or want that ease of installation. :-)

[Warmaster]

All my installer is doing is copying certain files over the top of existing ones in your XGM directory. It doesn't do anything other than copying over said files, so if you were to decompile the .exe you'd get a folder which you could drop into your XGM install and it will have an identical result as using the .exe.

Long story short, I can host the remover as a single folder which you copy yourself to overwrite if you like, but decompiling the .exe will give you the exact same files anyway.

[visphilos]

That's true. You are right. Thank you for your promot acknolwdgement of my concern.

I mistakenly deleted a line from my post that pointed out that it is a nuisance to have to decompile .exe wrappers, and that many folks don't know how to do so, but could still benefit from managing their own install process. I added it back, based upon your thoughtful response.

Freedom is a wonderful thing, and hosting two files costs no more than hosting one. It doesn't have to cost you anything, really. There are plenty of free file-servers out there. I've been thinking of running a cluster of them myself, for the viral-marketing value. I may be in poverty, but, I do have a network on an adequate connection. The computers are paid for, and I lease the broadband connection instead of leasing auto insurance, at about the same price. It's a good trade, as I couldn't afford the fuel for driving anyway, these days, heh.

[Warmaster]

Hey I don't mind hosting the files if you really want them . I've just been too lazy to find a file host that will host the file long enough to mean I don't have to re-upload it all the time. Anyway, here you will find a megaupload link to a .rar containing the old format. And I've updated the first post for everyone else who'd prefer it this way.

[atraps]

let me show u guys something weird i noticed

i installed this and it changed the legions to how they looked like in vanilla, but for some reason the legions in XGM look "fuzzy", they also still fight different like they did b4 with the modded legions

take a look for urself

Vanilla Triarii


XGM Triarii


notice the fuzzy apperance (this isnt for triarii only all roman troops look like this)

Vanilla Legions (in ready position)


XGM Legions (in ready position)


notice they hold there sword different in XGM then in vanilla

Vanilla Legions (fighting)


XGM Legions (fighting)


again, notice how they hold their sword different in XGM

why are they like this in XGM (after the ml remover), is there anyway to make the roman troops look and fight exactly like in vanilla (rep to any1 who helps me figure this out)

p.s. the graphics settings are the same in both vanilla and XGM

[DimeBagHo]

You need to change the animation used in descr_model_battle.txt. Open the file with notepad and do a search and replace to change 'fs_s1_slow_gladius' to 'fs_slow_swordsman'.

The "fuzzy" look might be due to the wrong gloss files being used. Warmaster - you might want to check whether your mod removes or replaces the gloss files that come with XGM.

[atraps]

thx Dime

is there a way i can change the skins myself, maybe then they will look better (i want to give the praetorian cohorts the urban cohort skin from vanilla, and make the rome(rebels) look blue instead of red)

can sombody tell me how to do this? i will be very grateful

[visphilos]

atraps asked, on May 26, 2008, 11:53 AM Re: A modding legions remover:
"is there a way i can change the skins myself,..."

Might "Skin Modifier in 3dsmax", be what you are looking for?

[atraps]

not exactly, i just want to take the roman unit skins from vanilla and put them in XGM (i know the the ML remover does this but for some reason the units are "fuzzy")

i think its just some files i have to change (like a matter of copying and pasting), but i need to know which ones

[Warmaster]

OK guys I wasn't aware of any 'fuzzy' problem up until now. I'll heed DBH's advice and try and see whether the gloss files are the issue. So please stand by while I try and get this done.

@atraps: When I first made the ML remover I tried to make it so that the Roman Rebels were blue and the normal Romans were red. I remember there was some problem I encountered that meant I couldn't get it to work properly. Unfortunately it was a while ago now, and I forget what the actual problem is.

So yeah, gimme a couple of days and I'll get back to you with a new (and hopefully improved) version.

[atraps]

ok cool

[Warmaster]

Ok, an update: I remembered why I can't make the Roman Rebel units to appear blue. DBH has got the descr_model_battle.txt files written so that the Julii and Scipii use the same texture files for each unit. Which makes sense as there is only one colour under the ML pack (hence the Romans and the Roman Rebels look the same in XGM). For example, both the Romans the Roman Rebel hastati use "unit_roman_hastati_julii.tga", the ML hastati texture.

This means that the only way, under the current XGM system, to get the units for the rebels to appear blue is to edit each of their entries in the .txt file so they use look for a different texture file. I put a big effort into getting the ML remover to be compatible with every XGM version, and the only way that really works is if I don't touch the descr_model_battle.txt, as this gets changed pretty much every version.

@DBH, there is a way to fix this, but it'll involve making the file size of each XGM a bit bigger. We could change the descr_model_battle.txt file so that the julii and scipii look in different places for their ML texture files (one would be julii, one scipii), but the actual texture files they look for are identical to each other. This means the XGM download will have two of each of the ML texture files, so it's slightly bigger. Doing this would allow me to get the installer to drop a different texture on top of both the julii and scipii textures so the rebels can have blue units. Is this OK with you? I don't mind doing the grunt work in changing the descr_model_battle.txt file.

@atraps, I'm still working on the gloss files. Its a pain trying to figure out which one is which since they all have completely different names in XGM compared to RTW.

EDIT: Sorry guys I'm going to have to put this on hold. I was waiting until 5.7 came out to see if there were any major changes. And now I've got my exams coming up in a couple of weeks and I really can't afford the time it'll take me to sort out this gloss files business. It will be continued, but give it a bit of time now please

[atraps]

Warmaster, Im not sure if you still check on this sub-mod, but Dime has included the ML unit cards and has given the Rome Rebels a seperate ML skin. So I think this Modding Legion Remover needs updating.

1.) The unit cards need to be switched back to vanilla.
2.) I know before you couldnt give the Rome Rebels the Scipii skin, but now I think its possible as Dime has given the Rome Rebels a different ML skin. If its possible, I think it should be done as the Rome Rebels are going to be used as a major faction in the future in a provincial campaign.
3.) Also, what do you think about giving the Praetorian Cohort from XGM the vanilla Urban Cohort skin? Imo, I think they would look better.

Oh, and one more thing, I figured out how to fix the fuzzy apperence of the skins simply by unchecking the "Reflections/Glints" option in the video options.

[atraps]

I have made a new ML Remover that is compatible with the newer versions of XGM. It will change Roman units' skins, models, sprites, unit info, and unit cards to how they were in vanilla.

Installation Instructions-
1.) Download the attached file below.
2.) Extract the Installer from the zip file.
3.) Run the installer. Install directory should be aimed in the "xgm" folder.

Enjoy

Issues-
-For some reason the vanilla gloss files dont seem to work with XGM, so it is adviseable to turn off "Reflections/Glints" in the video options to remove a fuzzy apperance from the units.

-Another issue I have noticed is that the vanilla models and the XGM Gladius animation dont work together. The units will switch back and forth between the Gladius and vanilla animations. This is most noticable when the units walk (units will hold their swords up like in vanilla when they walk, but put their swords down again when they are idle). If you find this annoying, to fix it open the descr_model_battle (DMB) text file (which is found in the XGM Data folder) and run a search of "s1_gladius" replace that with "swordsman". Save the changes, and restart XGM.

-Also the sprites (2d models the game uses when zoomed far away from the unit) for some units may be incorrect. Im still working on these.

-The unit card and unit info for the roman slingers are incorrect as vanilla doesnt have these.

-Some rebel, and merc units have a roman unit which is a scipii color, or vise versa. This is because vanilla didnt have the correct skins so I had to improvise.


p.s. If there are any other problems(bugs) please notify me here.

[atraps]

Added Installation Instructions, and Issuses.

p.s. Was in hurry when I uploaded the file.