Unpacking Full Game Files!

[ahedgpe]

I was able to unpack the data folder in the Full game a few minutes ago. I used the unpacker from the demo but in the revision code that you must copy and paste into Python, you have to modify this line:

def parseArgs(args):
pack = packFile('demo1.pack','unpacked')

into

def parseArgs(args):
pack = packFile('name of file.pack','unpacked')

By replacing the "demo1" and adding the correct file name to unpack, it works!

[Kewpur]

How much space does this take up?

[Gwyn ap Nud]

awesome work dude!

Now I just need the full game...

Must... wait... until... tomorrow...

[ahedgpe]

I did just get a crash on the 3rd turn in the Road to Independence game. Not sure if it is related though...going to do some more testing with it.:hmmm:

[sgt_melin]

I did just get a crash on the 3rd turn in the Road to Independence game. Not sure if it is related though...going to do some more testing with it.:hmmm:

let us know, I hate those loading times.

[Fjodin]

It will be great if it will affect loading!

[Lucius Tiberius Vorenus]

yes please an update for unpacking the full game would be much appreciated.

I beg you to dumb it down as much as possible, my experiences with manually unpacking have always ended in total disaster.

An "auto execute" unpacker would be awesome. I do recall a couple of mini mods in the past that did everything for me.

[deathblow]

where is the unpacker ?
i have installed demo but where is?

[Xerces]

Its working very well I have to say. I am trying currently though to open the .emf files, but so far no joy. Anyone else worked it out?

[Andcus]

anything that looks like a descr_strat or something else that can unlock other factions?

[Xerces]

anything that looks like a descr_strat or something else that can unlock other factions?

I am trying to open startpos.emf. As it may contain certain simularities. There is no such simular type of file as decr_strat in all of the pack files, as I have unpacked all of them and found nothing! Bah!

[IndoPruss]

I am trying to open startpos.emf. As it may contain certain simularities. There is no such simular type of file as decr_strat in all of the pack files, as I have unpacked all of them and found nothing! Bah!

Should be somewhere with .xml extension? It's impossible CA for hardcoding them.

[sgt_melin]

Do the game load faster when you have unpacket it?

[Ketzerfreund]

Did the unpacker ask if any files were to be overwritten?
I've only unpacked main.pack so far, and there it's not the case, and my campaign loads and functions properly as far as I could see after a quick glance over it all.

If you're unpacking any other of the packs and you're asked whether files shall be overwritten, try saying "no", while "yes" would've been the right choice in the case of the demo. There may be reasons why certain files are not packed; I'd presume that these were altered at the last-minute.

[PopBot]

Hey, do we know if Steam will correctly patch updated files? I don't even want to think what it would be like to have to unpack/repack just to get patches.

[Ketzerfreund]

The first patch got it's own *.pack files. Patch.pack and patch_ge.pack (for German version, I suppose).

[Korvus77]

The first patch got it's own *.pack files. Patch.pack and patch_ge.pack (for German version, I suppose).

nuh uh! it is patch_en.pack! Probably matches up with local_XX.pack didn't look at it. But thinking about it might explain why my changes to the scenario files didn't work if they are in that patch.pack.

[Iaius Statius Laurentius]

So I unpacked ui.pack to a separate directory, found the custom portrait for George Washington and I replaced him with another portrait, and then recreated the same directory structure back into the data folder but with the new george_washington.tga--and it worked! I didn't need to move ui.pack or anything, the folders seem to override the packs by default--unlike in MTW2.

That's very good news.

EDIT: Hm, only partial success. I was playing around with the portraits for the ministers, and while it's possible to change their small portraits, the large ones you get by right-clicking on them don't seem to be altered by the file replacement. Odd.

EDIT2: So the .tgas in the "cards" folder are the ones that work. The .jpgs in the "info" folders don't work.

[Ketzerfreund]

But at least there's some hope now that some of the first few minimods won't need to have pages long readmes to explain unpacking etc. Some mods will be able to just provide some files to be dropped into E:TW's data dir.

[Kaelic]

I was exploring through the EXE in a hex editor to see if I could find some command line parameters and came across this.

"Add a mod to the startup list...mod <file name>.mod.Import all mod packs....import_all_mods.Too many boot packs - only one is allowed...The boot pack has dependencies..Could not load the boot pack....Could not load the release packs....Could not load the patch packs..Could not load the bink packs...Could not scan the data directory...Could not create the pack handle....Could not load the mods"

Presumably these are console/debug output lines for development. Their purpose aside, it seems to suggest there is a unified method for handling mods in Empire we are not aware of yet.