How do I save pack files so the game can read them?

**Fallen851** · June 04, 2016, 08:41 AM

I thought editing Warscape files was easy, or so it seemed. I can't seem to find a tutorial for WTW, and the ones for RTW2 and such are quite old, so much so that their picture links are broken.

Anyway, so I've got the latest version of pack file manager, and I open a pack (in this case the data.pack) and then extract the table I want to work on. After editing the table (in this case, the land_units_tables by copying the animation file from the Knights of the Realm and putting it on the Grail Knights) I then create a new pack and add the data from the directory I extracted it from. Then I save the mod pack, and it has a little lock on its icon (unlike the mods I downloaded from Steam). When I try to run the game, it doesn't work, regardless if I run it as an administrator or not.

I've also tried creating a pack by first creating a new pack, then adding the table from the data.pack directly and editing it from there. Still, no luck. Seems to crash the game when I make it via this process.

Finally, I added a user.script.txt to the C:\Users\Alex\AppData\Roaming\The Creative Assembly\Warhammer\scripts directory, with the name of the mod in it and it saved with unicode encoding. Makes no difference. And each time I've of course click Enable out of date mods and selected my mod when running the game.

I have a feeling I'm missing something simple. How do I save my pack files so the game can read them?

**Mooncabbage** · June 04, 2016, 08:54 AM

Magnus has an excellent youtube tutorial on how to get started editing files for WTW. RTW2 ones are still good enough to give you the right idea, although WTW is much more heavily scripted.

First of all, I assume you are using PFM to edit your tables? You could ofcourse export it to CSV/TSV and bulk edit in Excel or similar, but there are better ways. Regardless, the best approach is to use PFM to add the table to your mod, avoiding any possible translation errors. The Magnus video covers it all pretty nicely, and I strongly recommend watching that.

Could you if possible post a download link for your mod .pack here somewhere? Or at the very least, provide us verbatim with the file structure of your .pack. The more info you give, the more people can help. Atleast, it sounds like you've tried most of the things I would have, so without more it's hard to say what's going wrong.

One guess: Are you using a single row file with the Grail Knights change, and giving it the same name as the core file, such as data__core, instead of data__grail_mod or similar? The loading behavior overwrites files of the same name rather than appends them, which could be causing your problem.

**Fallen851** · June 04, 2016, 10:16 AM

Here is the link to one of my attempts: http://www.filedropper.com/optimizednoflame

It crashes the game for me upon startup.

Literally the only change to the table is to copy and paste of the animations from the Knights of the Realm to the Grail Knights. I've tried deleting all the other rows that don't have affected data (everything but the Grail Knights row), and though it doesn't change the fact the mod won't work, I do realize that is the preferred method.

**Commissar Caligula_** · June 04, 2016, 07:21 PM

You have to add a prefix to every table name to distinguish it from vanilla. Eg Sebidee's unit creation guide for Rome 2 added "Seb_falx_" to the start of every line. To do this, in PFM click Postprocess up the top, Rename, Rename All.

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...-Unit-Creation

**Fallen851** · June 04, 2016, 11:25 PM

Thanks, I did that and the game no longer crashes, but it doesn't work still. I also changed the sound of the Grail Knight in this file so that I'd have another way of realizing if the mod isn't working. Please let me know what else it needs, I watched several videos, but they taught me nothing I didn't already know.

http://www.filedropper.com/grailknightsnoflame

Thanks so much.

**Mooncabbage** · June 05, 2016, 02:17 AM

Try this one (I haven't really changed anything, just cut it down to almost nothing, so if there is an error, it should be easier to debug). Make sure you're launching Steam as admin, not just TW, and that you have out-dated mods enabled.

GrailKnightsNoFlameFix.zip

**Fallen851** · June 05, 2016, 11:56 AM

It does not work sadly. What is weird is that the sounds change doesn't work either.

**Fallen851** · June 06, 2016, 12:30 AM

Oddly enough, I figured something out that may help us.

I was able to get the changes to work when I download the Better Units for Bretonnia mod, and mod that file pack so that it mirrors the change I want. But if I created a new pack for my own mod, it doesn't work at all (yes I had enable outdated mods on and my mod was checked off). There is something about pack creation or saving packs or something that is making my mod to not work.

**daniu** · June 06, 2016, 01:40 AM

There are two things I can think of right now.
First: are you starting Steam as Administrator? My WH will not apply mods if I start them as my normal user, and it will if I started Steam as Admin (which will also start WH as that user).
The thing is, if I install a mod as a normal user, then start WH as Administrator, it deletes the pack I copied to .../data/.
This is a serious problem for me (and everybody using PFM in extension because it hinders me from tracking down some issue crashing the game for packs containing certain tables).

Second, try setting the mod type to "Movie". IIUC, those always get loaded.

**Fallen851** · June 06, 2016, 02:10 PM

I am starting Steam as an administrator. As for installing the mod, I just place the pack I create in my /data directory and when I go to mod manager, I see the mod, but need to enable out of date mods in order to check it. I'm not really "installing" it. Maybe that is what I am missing?

**geala** · June 07, 2016, 08:22 AM

Enabling outdated mods is normal for the Steam manager and no problem. On my Steam at least there is no method to set a load order although some reported such a possibility, so I manage the load order in the data folder. You don't have to install mods other than clicking them "on" with a tick in the Steam manager.

How is your mod and are the files in it named? I try to
- name the mod so that it is loaded prior to the data.pack, i.e. it has to be higher than the data.pack in the TW:Warhammer data folder (use @@@@@11111____myMod.pack) to be sure

)
- name the data file in the tables differently from the data.pack files , so my_data_core instead of data_core
- make sure that when several mod packs contain files of the same tables that in the mod intended to load later than yours there is no file with a name that has a starting letter prior in the alphabet than your renamed file name (because aa_data_core under projectiles_tables (as example) in a mod named zz_mod.pack is seemingly used before bb_data_core under projectiles_tables in a mod named aa_mod.pack and intended to load first).

**Funktasticmo** · June 07, 2016, 07:27 PM

Originally Posted by geala

- make sure that when several mod packs contain files of the same tables that in the mod intended to load later than yours there is no file with a name that has a starting letter prior in the alphabet than your renamed file name (because aa_data_core under projectiles_tables (as example) in a mod named zz_mod.pack is seemingly used before bb_data_core under projectiles_tables in a mod named aa_mod.pack and intended to load first).

This part of your explanation is very confusing... can you use pictures to aide your description please. Thanks

**geala** · June 08, 2016, 12:49 AM

Yes, it's confusing.

I don't have pictures, sorry. I can describe what happened, an example may make it more clear. I use KAM's battle mod, it contains a projectiles_tables folder with a file named kam_data_core. Because I don't like parts of the changes, I changed it myself and put the file in my own mod (which also contains several other changed tables) under the projectiles_tables folder, I named the file woz_data_core. So you have simply two mod packs each with a projectiles_tables folder and the data file in it. My mod pack is first in order and so should load first completely and overrule all later packs. I thought the game would read all tables of my mod because it is loaded first, and don't read any tables in a later mod for which a table is in my mod. It did so in TW:Attila etc. as far as I see.

Then I saw that my changes were not in the game. I thought it were a display bug, that the unit card did not show the correct setting. But that was wrong. The game read the projectiles_table in KAM's mod although it was second in load order. The other changes of my mod in other tables were in the game. My only explanation is that the game reads the files in the tables of all additional (!) packs if they contain the same tables. The load order is than the alphabetical order of the file names in the tables. Because the file in KAM's projectiles_tables was named kam_data_core and the file in my projectiles_tables was named woz_data_core the game read KAM's file although it was in a mod later in load order.

**Funktasticmo** · June 08, 2016, 05:22 PM

Yeah I think I understand what you were meaning better now.

Interesting as I ahve never had to do that. And still don't with warhammer XD how awkward >.<

**daniu** · June 09, 2016, 01:38 AM

Originally Posted by geala

Yes, it's confusing.

I don't have pictures, sorry. I can describe what happened, an example may make it more clear. I use KAM's battle mod, it contains a projectiles_tables folder with a file named kam_data_core. Because I don't like parts of the changes, I changed it myself and put the file in my own mod (which also contains several other changed tables) under the projectiles_tables folder, I named the file woz_data_core. So you have simply two mod packs each with a projectiles_tables folder and the data file in it. My mod pack is first in order and so should load first completely and overrule all later packs. I thought the game would read all tables of my mod because it is loaded first, and don't read any tables in a later mod for which a table is in my mod. It did so in TW:Attila etc. as far as I see.

Then I saw that my changes were not in the game. I thought it were a display bug, that the unit card did not show the correct setting. But that was wrong. The game read the projectiles_table in KAM's mod although it was second in load order. The other changes of my mod in other tables were in the game. My only explanation is that the game reads the files in the tables of all additional (!) packs if they contain the same tables. The load order is than the alphabetical order of the file names in the tables. Because the file in KAM's projectiles_tables was named kam_data_core and the file in my projectiles_tables was named woz_data_core the game read KAM's file although it was in a mod later in load order.

It sounds to me like that's a different issue than what OP is encountering.

AFAIK, load order of files contained in packs is not specified.
"It always worked this way" does not mean "will always work this way".
"Is specified to work this way" does (well actually it means "should always work this way", but if it doesn't it's a bug).

Actually, there is a feature enforcing load order, but that is intended for CA patches. PFM does not offer the capability to edit this (and I'm not planning on implementing it for several reasons).
If you want to edit a mod like you do, the best way is probably to just edit the mod file instead of keeping a separate file with your changes.