Request for a complete tuto for PFM

**Matthias the great** · August 04, 2011, 03:17 AM

Hello,
I try to make a mod i would like to have an exhaustive tuto for PFM. I know how to extract, convert and convert back db files, but when i want to pack my modded files, it don't work. I don't see what is wrong..

So what are exactly all the places to click precisely from the begining to the end.??

Thanks for your futures answers, because i'm a bit lost with PFM..

**Chrysantheme** · August 04, 2011, 04:40 AM

pfm doesnt work with the actual version. everyone has to wait until someone can update the pfm...

**DaVinci** · August 04, 2011, 07:31 AM

Originally Posted by Chrysantheme

pfm doesnt work with the actual version. everyone has to wait until someone can update the pfm...

That's wrong. Only some certain db files can't be read by the recent PFM 1.6.6 due to CA's last patch updates.
Some mods are stuck atm. because ie. the very relevant db unit_stats_land belong to those non-accessable files.

As for a basic tut of PFM i recommend to look at the ETW mod workshop, there should be something in this regard.

**Matthias the great** · August 04, 2011, 05:39 AM

Damn..!!! but i saw several updated mods since the begining of this month, i don't understand.. Or it works to edit existing files in mods but not to create new.??

**davidlallen** · August 04, 2011, 08:52 AM

I learned how to use pfm from this tutorial, with some straightforward adjustments to the TWS2 directories:

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=340047

**Jace11** · August 04, 2011, 04:58 PM

New mods maybe using old tables for unit_stats_land

**Matthias the great** · August 04, 2011, 06:01 PM

yes it helps.. for now, no ctd and no error message in pfm... My tweaks are not in game, but it's a begining... For now we can only use the "movie" mod.pack in pfm, not the mod.?

**davidlallen** · August 04, 2011, 10:33 PM

It is more convenient, for simple mods, to use movie format. These get loaded in an arbitrary order, after all patch files. It is better for maintainability to use patch format, but then the user must create a user script file to specify the load order.

**DaVinci** · August 05, 2011, 07:12 PM

Originally Posted by davidlallen

It is more convenient, for simple mods, to use movie format. These get loaded in an arbitrary order, after all patch files. It is better for maintainability to use ~~patch~~ mod format, but then the user must create a user script file to specify the load order.

I have slightly changed your explanation - patch format is not recommended for mods, afaik no mod project is using this format.

Imo. there is no reason to not use movie format, i personally can't really see the advantage of mod format vs. movie format, rather vice versa, because no creation (and adjustments) of a user.script is needed. We use movie format since we modify ETW for major mods.

**Capt. Caveman** · August 05, 2011, 03:57 PM

A video tutorial would be the best thing ever! Step by step maybe make a series of it. How to make a unit. How to edit textures...etc

**davidlallen** · August 05, 2011, 07:44 PM

Thank you for the correction. The drawback to movie format is the possibility of conflict between multiple mods. If a user has several movie type mods, the order in which the mods are loaded is undefined. So, if two mods change a particular table in different ways, the result may be that both mods fail to work as expected.

**DaVinci** · August 05, 2011, 08:46 PM

Originally Posted by davidlallen

Thank you for the correction. The drawback to movie format is the possibility of conflict between multiple mods. If a user has several movie type mods, the order in which the mods are loaded is undefined. So, if two mods change a particular table in different ways, the result may be that both mods fail to work as expected.

Hm yes that's right, but concerns merely mod users, who have absolutely no idea what they are doing, ie. applying mods with the same contents.

In my experience new mod users have more issues to create/use a (personalised) user.script properly - thus using movie format mods is easier for them.
But that's just only my opinion and impression, since we are doing ETW/NTW modding, and now TWS2 - we started with mod format mods and went over to use movie format, just to make it easier for everybody, this concerns merely the usage of major mods (not simple mini mods, as you said above), we just give a list or idea of compatible mods, and good.

**Ishan** · August 26, 2011, 03:11 AM

Thread moved out of the tutorial section, please report a misplaced thread, Tutorial section is not for asking a modding related question as we already have specified categories for it in the mod workshop.