Tool for modding db values easily

**LtChambers** · March 09, 2009, 02:06 PM

I have an idea for a tool that works from a set of tuples (that could be configured from a simple text file) and enables a lot of tweaking to happen very quickly and easily. Each tuples is like:
name of field to edit, filepath, hex offset, field type (i.e. byte/short/long/float/double)

A simple GUI app would read the tuples and present them in a sensible way; it could even look up the current value. It would allow the user to specify a new value, and upon saving it would apply any changes and the user's ready to see them in game.

Would there be a lot of interest in this? I suspect it would tide a lot of people over until CA releases their mod tools. Using absolute hex offsets means that it'll break if string lengths are changed or elements are added, but that probably won't be an issue for most people. The edits can occur straight to the pack files. It would probably mostly occur on the patch.pack file since that overrides most of the db files in the main.pack. And all the offsets will probably change when a new patch is released, so it might be worth considering a smarter method to find the values, but it could still be a lot less complex than a full decoding of the db files.

**SkyShadowing** · March 09, 2009, 02:57 PM

Yes.

I want to experiment with the factions file, and alas, we cannot do that until we have a converter. I know alpaca made one that converts to txt, but not one that converts back yet.

**Rodrigo The Scarred** · March 11, 2009, 04:55 AM

Originally Posted by SkyShadowing

Yes.

I want to experiment with the factions file, and alas, we cannot do that until we have a converter. I know alpaca made one that converts to txt, but not one that converts back yet.

Can you post url for his convertr, please?

**cptrios** · March 10, 2009, 07:00 PM

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! I am a man with less than zero programming skill and even less knowledge of hex editing (and also for whom the .Net framework does not feel like installing and therefore cannot use your pack file manager), so anything you could do to make things easier for us would be ridiculously well-appreciated. If I could do anything to help I would!

**Captian Barbossa** · March 10, 2009, 07:14 PM

I too would be interested in this, I just hope that when CA release the tools they promised, that they'll patch the game to allow mods via a Mods folder in the main game directory, or in the data directory.

**compound** · March 10, 2009, 09:07 PM

just posted something like this in the db tools thread, if it was in c++ id be up for helping with it..... was thinking it in 3 parts, a hex viewer wher eu specify the data type of the hex offset, spefify a "field" and output it all to xml or something, with a guyi editor for the data, would be tedious getting the info together for what it actually is, but minimal effort when its done!!!

**Korvus77** · March 10, 2009, 09:09 PM

Is the Pope Pol-er-German?

This would be great.

**LtChambers** · March 10, 2009, 10:56 PM

We're working on something like this, although it's not really like what I described in the original post. That idea wasn't tractable.

**Porphyr** · March 11, 2009, 06:40 AM

Originally Posted by LtChambers

We're working on something like this, although it's not really like what I described in the original post. That idea wasn't tractable.

May I ask what your problem was? I'm actually working on something very similar and had no problems so far.

**badger1815** · March 11, 2009, 08:11 AM

no, i see no use for this whatsoever....

**solecist** · March 11, 2009, 09:55 AM

i agree. let us never speak of this again.

**Captian Barbossa** · March 11, 2009, 10:13 AM

Why not? Hex editing is the worst, most mistake prone, and most difficult form of modding, which is why it's always used as a last resort.

If these guys can cobble together a tool that will allow us to easily translate, edit, and recompile the db files, Then I say to them:

Go for it!

It would at least tide us over until CA release something, (IF they release something to edit the db files), and if they don't, then we've got this modding tool already on hand.