This post is due to Benpark
First thing.
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Unlike most editors out there for player use, the editor in use by graviteam (apos/sabow) does not easily allow you to edit an exsisting campaign. While I beleave it could be done, it will probably require alot of cut and paste in the files. Personally I have zero interest in even trying. However, If all you want to do is add/change units to the reserves/active squad of a compiled campaign its not to hard. Also an excellant way to kick the tires and see how things work.
Rule number one with messing with files.............back everything up! I have 2 installs of game. Ok actually one install and one copy paste. But when I mess with stuff I always do it to just one of them. The other always stays original. If you screw up bad its alot easier this way.
Ok doky.
1. Under users in game folder create a modwork folder, in that modwork folder make a my_addon folder. This is also stated in manual. Copy paste campaign into modwork folder.
2. In docs/modwork are all the tools you need to do well, everything short of modeling stuff. But your after flatwork folder. In it you find a windows .cmd file called unflat. Click it, then go find your copy pasted campaign you want to edit and unflatten it (SET TO VIEW ALL FILES). You are doing this to the copy pasted one right? Otherwise refer to the giant rule number one.
3. So now you should see 5 or 6 files in there. Ignore everything but desc.loc_def and div_pool.loc_def. Your doing a simple hack N slash job on a campaign right? Don't mess with the other files unless you sort of know what your doing or when you go to repack it all.....who knows. Oh take note of the file with the extention !flatlist. Your going to need that file later.
4. Notepad is your friend. Every windows OS has this basic but super duper text editor. If you try and open desc.loc_def and div_pool.loc_def now you'll notice thats is all scrambled N crazy. So dont yet. Go back to doc/modwork and find the folder cfgtext. You'll see 4 different windows cmd files. You want the 1st one cfgp2pd (read all about it in the manual you downloaded....or not). Run that on both desc.loc_def and div_pool.loc_def. Now you should have a total of 4 files.
5. At this point you can delete the 2 .loc_def files and KEEP the 2 .engcfg2 files. Or a safer thing would be to move the desc.loc_def and div_pool.loc_def file somewhere safe (just in case).
6. Ok now you get to do stuff. Open both .engcfg2 files. Look, you can read them! Now study them for a couple minutes. When the editor makes a campaign it compresses all the config files into desc.loc_def. Im pointing this out because I know you want to make a campaign someday. But in this case the important part is taking note that the div_pool file is almost a copy of a large part of the desc file. Your just adding stuff right? So ignore frames and ai orders and all that.
7. Refer to the editor manual you downloaded for unit types and such. Don't go crazy changing stuff. BUT MAKE SURE YOUR DIV_POOL AND DESC files match up when you add stuff. You can have up to 8 squads per platoon. Oh and save! make sure your file extentions are right and dont save as a txt file. Will not read that.
8. All done? Now we have to go in reverse to repack everything. Go to docs/modwork/cfgtext and use pd2cfgp (the 2nd from top). Look magic, it back to the way it was. Only BETTER.
9. Ok now things get retarded. The mkflat command does not work like unflat did. Now if you put your folders where The Manual and I said......do this. In flatwork folder (it can be anywhere in game folder) make a copy of mkflat. Open your mkflat copy in notepad (or download notepad++ its great by the way).
Now the easy way is paste that
starter.exe root\programs\mkflat.progpack, users\modwork\my_addon.flatdata, users\modwork\my_addon.!flatlist
Save as a flashburn_is_awesome_Mkflat.cmd or a .bat file. This is where we find out how old you guys are.
. ok you dont have to call it flashburn is awesome. Hell you can leave it mkflat copy. Doesent matter.
10. Run flashburn_is_awesome_Mkflat.cmd and it will ask you for that !flatlist file. Now this file simply tells mkflat what to pack in a file. In this case graviteam set it up that when you unpack edit then repack same files you dont have to change anything in that file. Cool yes? Now if your doing a mod or something youll have to make it but your not. So dont worry about it.
11. Ok your almost done. There should be now be a .campack2 file there. thats your edited campaign. Now if I where you I would make a folder called OUT in main directory if its not there. Its not in SABOW....remember this works for both..........er should
Now you could just drop that new campack2 file from where you got it. You have a back up right? or rename it and put it next to where you got it. Or make a new folder in campaigns and throw it in there. It should now show up in your campaigns.
Last thing, according to the manual you can change just the divpool file and though addpack add it to game. When I tried this in SABOW before beta patch it did not work. this is why I know how to do this in this way. I will attempt to do the addpack in future but I recommend this way if you really want to learn the editor. All the data you need to make a campaign is in those two files desc and divpool.
Please let me know if this works out for you folks. Any questions just ask.
