Re: ETW Mods Recommendations & Queries Here
Welcome, tseesen. Your English looks good to me and you posted in a sensible place.
You're right, on this forum the standard (un-modified) version of a game is often called 'vanilla'.
If you would like to duplicate your game files before adding a mod, here's what to do. You will simply need to make copies of two folders. Both folders are large (you will need about 20 Gb of storage space, possibly more, to copy both folders). Simply copy and paste the following folders:-
1. C:/ProgramFiles(x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Empire Total War
2. C:/Users/[your user name]/AppDate/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire
(Those are the locations of the folders on this Windows 7 PC. If your computer is not a PC or uses a different operating system then the location may vary.)
If these files are too big to copy (if you do not have enough storage space), you could try deleting some saved games from C:/Users/[your user name]/AppDate/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire/saved_games. (Saved games are very large, I often have about 5 Gb of saved games.)
It sounds like you will want to try a few different mods, to see which one is best for you.
Would you like to be able to switch between mods (or between a mod and vanilla) without having to un-install and re-install mods?
If you have enough hard drive space, it is even possible to set up parallel folders so that you can switch from playing one mod to another or to switch between vanilla Empire Total War and modded Empire Total War. For example, you could have:-
C:/ProgramFiles(x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Empire Total War (Imperial Splendour)
C:/ProgramFiles(x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Empire Total War (Vanilla)
You would start by making a second copy of the game's folders (explained above). To play the game you would need to remove the part of the folder name which is in brackets - when you start the game, the game will use whichever folder is called C:/ProgramFiles(x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Empire Total War. So, if you have enough hard drive space, you can switch between mods without needing to un-install and re-install them.
To do this, you would also need to ensure you were using the correct user script file (if you were using a mod and if that mod uses a user script file to activate the mod files). The user script file goes in C:/Users/[your user name]/AppDate/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire/scripts. So, in addition to renaming the folder which you wanted to use to C:/ProgramFiles(x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Empire Total War, you would also need to ensure that the user script file in your Empire/scripts folder was correct for the mod which you are using.
You asked about over-heating issues: I have not experienced this problem, so I cannot advise. If you are concerned about this, you might want to try using a mod such as Empire Optimized, although I do not know whether it would help.
You mentioned that you use an old computer: if the game runs slowly, you might want to try my suggestions here.
If you would like more challenging battles: there are mods which improve battle AI (Artificial Intelligence), which is sometimes called BAI. These mods include Bran's Empire Campaign AI, Empire Realism, Imperial Destroyer, Imperial Splendour (with the battle AI tactical enhancement sub-mod, or the Campaign Overhaul sub-mod which is currently being tested by a number of players), Empire Total Factions and DarthMod. If you would like a vanilla experience with improved battle AI, Luntik's battle AI mod is available here. In addition to any of these mods, you could try Bran Mac Born's Preferences Script Setting for Better AI behavior, here. As far as I know, none of these mods can avoid all foolish mistakes by the AI on the battlefield, but I have seen the AI use their units much more effectively with mods.
If you would like a more active map: there are mods which improve the campaign AI (Artificial Intelligence), which is sometimes called CAI. The mods listed above in the 'If you would like more challenging battles' paragraph offer improved campaign AI, either in the mod itself or in a sub-mod (except for Luntik's battle AI, which only improves the BAI - it does not affect the CAI).
If you would like to play with minor factions: big mods (e.g. Imperial Destroyer, Imperial Splendour and DarthMod) often allow players to play at least some minor factions, if not all of them. It is unusual for mods to allow players to use emergent factions in the Grand Campaign (such as Norway and the United States); if you would like to try that, I recommend Empire Total Factions (which is available from the StartPos Mods part of the Hosted Mods forum) or Sturm und Drang (which is available from the same place and allows players to use new small factions such as Haiti and Brazil). You mentioned that you would like minor factions to be stronger so that they can resist larger countries better. The obvious mod to try would be Minor Factions' Revenge (from the 'compilations and overhauls' part of the Mod Threads forum). Alternatively, you could try a unit pack (from the 'unit packs' part of the Mod Threads forum) such as Pom's Italian States Mod - I had a lot of fun playing Venice using that mod, using the extra units. You could even try my Early American Revolution mod, which makes extra units available to minor and emergent factions (there's a link in my signature.)
To transfer your saved games when changing PC: you will find your saved games in C:/Users/[your user name]/AppDate/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire/save_games
Can a player install more than one mod at once? This is not normally possible with the (a) the big mods in the Hosted Modifications forum (e.g. you cannot install both Imperial Destroyer and Empire Realism on the same copy of Empire Total War) or (b) the overhauls and compilations mods in the Mods Forum. However, with smaller mods it is often possible to combine mods. I list a number of mods which I use together in the opening post of my Ireland AAR, for example. Some mods provide information on which other mods they are compatible with. If a mod is not compatible with another mod, then the game will often crash when you try to start it - if that happens, simply remove the latest mod.
If you would like to extend the map a little bit, the only mod (which I know of) which extends the map is Imperial Destroyer (available from the 'compilations and overhauls' part of the Mod threads forum)
If you change the mods which you use, sometimes this can cause crashes. For example, saved games can become corrupt (the game crashes when you load them) or the campaign can crash at the end of 1703, each time you start a new campaign. I have three suggestions for fixing such problems:
Stage 1: Remove your preferences script file. Here's how:-
- Find your scripts file. On my Windows 7 PC, this is in: C:/Users/[my user name]/AppData/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire/scripts
- Make a copy of the preferences_empire_script.txt file and put that copy somewhere else in case you ever want to put it back (I never have, but it seems wise in principle to copy a file you are about to delete)
- Delete the preferences_empire_script.txt file
- Start the game normally; you don't need to replace the preferences_empire_script.txt file beforehand, because the game should automatically detect that you don't have a preferences file and should create a new one for you.
(If you use a modified preferences script file, e.g. Bran Mac Born's Preference Script Settings for better BAI behavior, then I suggest: (a) removing your preferences script as above, (b) starting a new game, (c) in the game, choosing the options which you prefer, e.g. not to receive help from advisors, (d) exit the game and make the changes to your new preferences script.)
If Stage 1 does not work, then I suggest this:
Stage 2: Uninstall your mod (or mods), verify the integrity of your game files, start the game and play a couple of turns of the vanilla game, then re-install your mod(s). Here's how to verify the integrity of your game files:
- Double click on the 'Steam' icon on your computer
- Right-click on 'Empire Total War' and select 'Properties'
- In the new box which opens, select 'Local Files' from the tabs at the top
- In the list of options, select 'verify integrity of game cache'
Steam will then check that you have the correct game files. If any game file is missing or has become corrupted, Steam will replace it with the vanilla file. (That is why you need to uninstall your mods first - if you do not uninstall your mods first, Steam will often replace modded files with vanilla files which will stop your mod from working.)
If neither stage 1 not stage 2 fixes the problem, then I suggest:
Stage 3: seek help by posting on the relevant mod forum
If no-one replies with a solution, then I suggest:
Stage 4: Back up your Users folder, then delete both Empire folders and re-install the game
This is the last resort - I would only suggest doing this if you have tried Stages 1 to 3 without success.
- Back up your Users folder means: make a copy of your C:/Users/[your user name]/AppDate/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire folder to another location. That will give you a back-up copy of saved games, replays, your user script and preferences script files, etc.
- Check the contents of your game folders:-
1. C:/ProgramFiles(x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Empire Total War
2. C:/Users/[your user name]/AppDate/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire
You are about to delete these two folders; if there anything (e.g. your only copy of a mod) which you want to copy and put somewhere else before you delete these folders?
- Delete the two game folders:
1. C:/ProgramFiles(x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Empire Total War
2. C:/Users/[your user name]/AppDate/Roaming/The Creative Assembly/Empire
- Re-install the game using Steam and then decide which mod(s) you would like to install
Last edited by Alwyn; January 24, 2015 at 11:51 AM.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Scipio236
Mods with wide variety of units?
