[TEC] Mod Tools, HowTo

[urfisch]

Originally Posted by piri_reis

It's weird, Menu editor, Script Manager and AI debugger works but the terrain geometry and object editors will not open..

just near land and in the game!

[maerean_m]

This menu is meant to be used only in patrol (I just didn't have the time to fix it being available in the menu editor):

[maerean_m]

Here are some basic steps to start with the modding (tools):

* do a back-up copy of the data folder. you'll thank me later for this (you'll have a backup to help you undo changes and be able to create a installation kit for your mod using a comparing tool (Beyond Compare etc)).

* configure the game to run in window mode in a resolution smaller than your Windows desktop

* change the main.cfg file in MyDocuments\SH5\data\cfg:


* there are several types of editors for SH5:
** standalone (Mission Editor and GoblinEditor, the descendant of Kashmir) are executables placed in the same folder as sh5.exe. You use the editor to edit data, close it and then start the game to test the changes. Closing the editor is very important because it frees important system resources that will, otherwise, be locked and the game may crash because there's not enough memory (RAM or video).
** used while the game is running so you can see the changes in real-time (terrain editors, python scripts manager, menu style sheets)
** using the game engine but not the game itself (the Menu Editor). This is the way it has been done for SH3 and while it has its advantages, it also has its drawbacks (but there's never enough time to fix this).

* with the game running (but NOT while there's a loading screen), right click on the window's title bar to show this menu:

With the Windows versions that have the standard task bar, this menu also appears if you right-click the application's button in the task-bar. That's not true for Windows 7 since it has a new API for the task-bar buttons.

* although it doesn't say in the menu, the terrain editors also require the game to be "in patrol mode". As a basic rule, you can't edit something that has not yet been instantiated. So this is also true, you can start the script manager to edit the python scripts while you're in main menu but you can't change the script for the default HUD (since, duh, it's not yet instantiated). You have to be in patrol and the HUD to be running to be able to apply changes you do it (yes, it's something like Edit & Continue).

* the GoblinEditor is used to attach and edit behaviors (controllers) to the structure of every 3D object in the game. This is the way the GDS engine works (the one in the kernel.dll). There are literally hundreds of controller types in the game and can be edited visually using a property grid.

* [very important]setting up the GoblinEditor means typing the folder where the sh5.exe is located in the ActorsDirectory property in the Tools\Options window (e.g. K:\Games\Silent Hunter 5). The actors are the .act files in the SilentHunter5 folder and are the ones holding the code for all the controllers.

* This is a use case for the GoblinEditor:
** Open a GR2 file (the one with the 3D geometry, G stands for the Granny engine). You'll see the object being rendered and its structure in the GDS Scene Tree panel.
** Merge the files containing the controllers (.sim, .dat, .chr, .cam, .val, .zon). The sim file contains the controllers for the simulation (see, SH5 is a simulation after all ) and the cam file contains the controllers for the camera parameters.
** let's try it. open data\Objects\Guns\Deck_Gun_GE88mm.GR2 and merge the Deck_Gun_GE88mm.sim and Deck_Gun_GE88mm.cam files. Open the Controller Editor (Ctrl+E) in the Tools menu. A window is displayed (you may have to resize it the first time) and click on the StationController to see the properties for the controller handling the situation when the player uses the deck gun as a station. The actual gameplay associated with the gun is handled by the wpn_Cannon controller.
** click on the 3D representation and move around with W,A,S,D,Home,End keys and holding the mouse right button.

* Now, a little about the folder structure. You can find GR2 files in many folders (Library, Objects, Submarine, Sea etc). The Library folder is special (hard-coded) and contains the objects that are always needed (e.g. torpedoes_g7a-e.gr2). All the other folders contain files loaded on-demand (e.g. there's a text configuration file indicating that the file is to be loaded).


Consider this the first episode of the series. There will be others following this one.


It strikes me that this info could be also stored in a SH5 wiki.



This is a generic thread, so post your questions here so all the modders can read the answer. I think this is much better than answering on every mod's forum thread.

Mihai

[CCIP]

I agree, a Wiki would be great. Neal, any chance Subsim could host some sort of info repository like that?

And oh, thanks for the info Mihai, looking forward to more

[maerean_m]

Nothing official or anything, but maybe Ubisoft could help with the Wiki.

[karamazovnew]

Thanks Mihai, I never would've thought to use the game in window mode .

Edit: I'm having trouble with the drop down lists (for example when I try to select the Dial Type) in the Granny Editor. They open for just a second and then close and reset my values to a null value. And is there a way to open the Menu Editor while the game is running?

[maerean_m]

Originally Posted by karamazovnew

Thanks Mihai, I never would've thought to use the game in window mode .
Edit: I'm having trouble with the drop down lists (for example when I try to select the Dial Type) in the Granny Editor. They open for just a second and then close and reset my values to a null value. And is there a way to open the Menu Editor while the game is running?

* I've just tried the drop down list in the Goblin Editor and it works fine. Try using the arrow keys to change the value. (maybe you are opening a list that has so many values that it gets taller than the screen and closes itself).
* The menu editor is started after setting MenuEditor=Yes and clicking on sh5.exe. You'll be asked if you want to start the Menu Editor. That's the (only) way it works. You can change the behavior (the script) while the game is running.

[urfisch]

so, whats the goblin editor for? changing animations? link animations to certain situations? changing the 3d model (this doesnt work, i think)?...i tried to deal with this editor for some hours and still havent learned what it was designed for...

please leave some thoughts on that! thanks.

[jimimadrid]

Originally Posted by maerean_m

Here are some basic steps to start with the modding (tools):


* with the game running (but NOT while there's a loading screen), right click on the window's title bar to show this menu:

With the Windows versions that have the standard task bar, this menu also appears if you right-click the application's button in the task-bar. That's not true for Windows 7 since it has a new API for the task-bar buttons.

Mihai

This do not work for me. WindowsXP Prof. I do not get the menu by right click.

I only get the "Do you want to activate Menu Editor?" Question at start.

[karamazovnew]

Originally Posted by maerean_m

* I've just tried the drop down list in the Goblin Editor and it works fine. Try using the arrow keys to change the value. (maybe you are opening a list that has so many values that it gets taller than the screen and closes itself).
* The menu editor is started after setting MenuEditor=Yes and clicking on sh5.exe. You'll be asked if you want to start the Menu Editor. That's the (only) way it works. You can change the behavior (the script) while the game is running.

Got it to work by changing the W7 theme to Windows Classic. Roger on the Menu Editor thing. I love that I can see each script in the game when I click buttons. By the way, is there a "published" list of possible commands in SH5?


However I'm getting an error in Granny when I try to merge *.prt files (I got the following when merging the ROOM_CT.prt file:



Then the editor exits.



@Jimimadrid: as m_maerean said, open the game in Windowed mode. For me it worked at a resolution of 1024*768.

[urfisch]

is it possibe, to edit the particles.dat with a preview in goblin? this would be much easier, than editing it in s3d and trying it in the game...

i already tried to load it into goblin, but it says there are actors missing...dlls. where can i find them and what is meant with actors? and i see no preview of the different effects in the window of goblin. it simply does not work anything with the particles.dat in goblin. it just shows it file structure.

@kara
i also had this exit due to writing in protected memory.

[jimimadrid]

Originally Posted by karamazovnew

@Jimimadrid: as m_maerean said, open the game in Windowed mode. For me it worked at a resolution of 1024*768.

I do it. This is what i get.

[piri_reis]

[QUOTE=jimimadrid;1297445]I do it. This is what i get./QUOTE]

Did you modify your main.cfg to enable the dev.tools?
The cfg file in MyDocuments\SH5 not the one in the game folder.

[maerean_m]

Originally Posted by jimimadrid

This is what i get.

That happens because you right-clicked the task-bar button while the game was loading, during which it doesn't process the messages from the OS. So when Windows asks which options are enabled, it doesn't get an answer in a timely manner so it disables all of them.

In short (as specified in the 'big' post), right-click on task-bar only when there is no loading bar on the screen.
I know you may get impatient with all the loading times, but let the game do its job when it's loading (and don't touch the mouse )

[karamazovnew]

Originally Posted by urfisch

is it possibe, to edit the particles.dat with a preview in goblin? this would be much easier, than editing it in s3d and trying it in the game...

i already tried to load it into goblin, but it says there are actors missing...dlls. where can i find them and what is meant with actors? and i see no preview of the different effects in the window of goblin. it simply does not work anything with the particles.dat in goblin. it just shows it file structure.

@kara
i also had this exit due to writing in protected memory.

Start the Damage editor and you'll see the animations. Not sure how much that helps, I've never modded particles.