Various tech support stuff

[Ender Shadowborne]

Hey there,

I'm pretty new here myself, and I could do with some help with my game.

First and foremost; I've got a slight issue with the game running slowly, I've MOSTLY mitigated the issue by manually changing the engine.ini file to display the game at 1920x1080 resolution, but there's still a small bit in the ship where everything is sow, not laggy, but slow.

Specs:
OS: Windows 10 Pro (Latest)
CPU: Intel i7 10700K 8 physial cores, 16 logical cores @3.8 GHz (Overclock disabled, I don't need it, even though it's available to me)
RAM: 15.83 GB DDR4 apparent RAM (16GB installed)
GPU: NVIDIA GT1030 with about 1.8 GB, or close to 1920 MB VRAM
Motherboard: MSI MPG Z590 Carbon Gaming WiFi (Integrated GPU enabled, but used on other screens)

I've tried going into my NVIDIA Control Panel and limiting the global FPS to 60, with no effect before the file edit, then I've tried limiting it to 30 specifically for THAT program, again, with no effect, then I decided to modify the file.

Secondly; I could really do with a no-CD patch, but I don't want to add any additonal mods (Not right now, that is, maybe after I play the vanilla game once or twice, I'll consider mods) I don't have a disc drive, my case doesn't support any add-on peripherals besides what can be plugged into USB. Even then, I've only the ISO files, and I don't want those constantly mounted, even if they're resting in my E drive, while the game is on the same drive, not on my C drive, due to space saving concerns, and the dreaded access restrictions to program files, where I wish to make edits, which brings to the third point.

Thirdly; all the pages regarding the various cheats capable in the game (Though the pages are also misleading), they're not quite clear on what to do, because when it comes down to the one about copying files, it sounds like just copy the files from where it is, to where it is...

Here's an excerpt:

First copy two files from the /PROGRAM directory into the game directory accrodingly
(i.e. /PROGRAM/seadogs.c into GAMEDIR/PROGRAM and /PROGRAM/CONTROLS/init_pc.c into
GAMEDIR/PROGRAM/CONTROLS). Then just start the game and use the following keys:

Key   Result
------------
Y  -  God mode On/Off
U  -  Shotgun mode (first person mode) On/Off
I  -  +100000 Gold points
O  -  +50 Skill points
P  -  Set reputation with all nations to Neutral

It's not clear on what to do for this, and it's sad, too... I played the game on the XBOX original, and the idea of being able to start off with ridiculous amounts of awesomeness? Absolutely amazing! But with the issues I'm having, it's a bit sad. And what's worse, the game is pretty unstable for the XBOX original, making me wonder if the devs released updates back in the days of XBOX LIVE and patched some things with the game to make it more stable... Not sure, though...

Thanks in advance for your help!

Just to add onto this, there's even one that mentions going into some "cheats console" for certain things... Does it even exist? I've pressed EVERY button I could think of, to no avail

Excerpt:

Cutlass and Pistol Skills:
--------------------------
To unlock all Cutlass and Pistol skills automatically, type "no_honor" (minus the quotes)
into the in-game cheats console.

I believe this is for TLOPO rather than this game, or some other game that may be confused for this one as well.

 

[Baste]

Hi!

Seeing as this is about the stock game, I'll try to help.

Capping the game to 60 FPS in the NVIDIA control panel seems to have resolved issues with running the stock game for me. The Build Mod has weird slowdowns for other reasons, but the stock game runs fine. In my case I'm running on Windows 7, one monitor, integrated graphics not used.

Which version of the game do you have? The no disc crack is different depending on version. If you don't know which version you have, this thread can help you find out: Guide - Information and differences between game versions

For what I find about the cheats, if you don't already have them, here they are.
Place the seadogs.c file in the PROGRAM directory.
Place the init_pc.c file in the PROGRAM\CONTROLS directory.
Might want to make backups of those two files currently in those directories.
Then you can use the cheats with the keys like you mentioned in your post.

There is indeed no console in the stock game. That excerpt in your second post is for another game.

And yeah, the game does have some problems, especially the American versions. The European versions, both for Xbox and PC, were released with some improvements.

 

[Ender Shadowborne]

I'd have thought that capping it in the control panel would've helped, but I still experience that slowdown, which is very odd...

I have the US version (I believe, I got it as abandonware here: Abandonware Games / pirates of the caribbean - Pirates Of The Caribbean I'm otherwise not sure...)

The files were already there as part of the installation process, so that's why it doesn't make sense to me why it wouldn't work...

I didn't think there was a console, thanks for the clarification.

I'll be sure to download the zip file

The file was very helpful, exactly what I needed! Thank you! And I can confirm that I have the US version of the game. I still need to diagnose the slowdown issue, since the NVIDIA control panel isn't doing its job for me...

 

[Baste]

No problem! Though since you said that you downloaded the game helping you with this is a gray area. But, you also said that you played the game on Xbox, which might mean that you have a legal copy of the game in some form. With the game being hard to find maybe that could be considered okay. Could. I'm not saying it is or isn't.
For the purposes of this thread as a disclaimer I'm just saying what can be done, I'm not encouraging anyone to do anything. That is entirely one's own decision.

Other than capping the game to 60 FPS in the NVIDIA control panel I can also mention that I have to run the executable in compatibility mode for Windows 98 because otherwise it takes a long time to start the game for some reason. Seemingly no ill effects from doing so. The current Build Mod starts as could be expected without any compatibility mode, whyever that is. Mentioning it in case compatibility mode could help with slowdowns.

Here is the no disc crack for the US version. Place the XINTERFACE.dll file in the MODULES directory.

Depending on how that download was packed we don't know if it is as the stock US version should be or if something is changed, but something else that might help is adding the engine.ini file from the UK version. Here's mine. The European versions run better and just replacing the file apparently improves performance in the US version as well.

 

[Ender Shadowborne]

Aye aye, I'll give it a whack and get back to you on how it helps.

Good morning from the US, btw

Also, I have the Control Panel set to limit that game's FPS in particular to 30 rather than 60, but both still seem to experience the slowdown, but like I said, I'll try what you suggested and get back to you.

Runtime error upon using Windows 98 Compatibility mode, I don't think it could've been from having the engine.ini set to show the game at 1920x1080, but not good nonetheless

"Abnormal program termination"

Runtime error upon using Windows 98 Compatibility mode, I don't think it could've been from having the engine.ini set to show the game at 1920x1080, but not good nonetheless

"Abnormal program termination"

Turning off the compatibility mode fixed this, it seems the oldest my build will actively support is XP (SP2), which is very strange, needless to say.

No problem! Though since you said that you downloaded the game helping you with this is a gray area. But, you also said that you played the game on Xbox, which might mean that you have a legal copy of the game in some form. With the game being hard to find maybe that could be considered okay. Could. I'm not saying it is or isn't.
For the purposes of this thread as a disclaimer I'm just saying what can be done, I'm not encouraging anyone to do anything. That is entirely one's own decision.

Other than capping the game to 60 FPS in the NVIDIA control panel I can also mention that I have to run the executable in compatibility mode for Windows 98 because otherwise it takes a long time to start the game for some reason. Seemingly no ill effects from doing so. The current Build Mod starts as could be expected without any compatibility mode, whyever that is. Mentioning it in case compatibility mode could help with slowdowns.

Here is the no disc crack for the US version. Place the XINTERFACE.dll file in the MODULES folder.

Depending on how that download was packed we don't know if it is as the stock US version should be or if something is changed, but something else that might help is adding the engine.ini file from the UK version. Here's mine. The European versions run better and just replacing the file apparently improves performance in the US version as well.

The patch worked, however, the UK Engine.ini didn't help the slowdown, at least not in the tutorial, where you start in the ship, I opted to not progress further in the game and just try it in there, because I know that's where the slowdown primarily propagates, minus some of the other areas further down the line. I'm not sure if you'd like me to progress to a given point in the game or not, but if so, do let me know at which point I should conclude testing?

Here's another ridiculous one for you all:

I want to pre-assign ships to officers that I hire from taverns without having to constantly worry about having to hunt for it, I noticed in characters_init.c, there is a thing for ship slots, 1-4 respectively, is this how I can get ships pre-assigned and then assign a captain to them? How would I go about this? I'm not entirely sure.
I also would love to, well, I guess "create" a "random" officer that uses the model of a soldier, such as the English soldier, how would I go about this? Would I have to create this officer as a unique officer who cannot be encountered later on? I'm asking mainly out of morbid curiosity, because I think it'd be a very silly thing to do, but would be worth trying.

 

[Baste]

The difference with compatibility mode might be because I'm using Windows 7 and you're using Windows 10. Does compatibility mode for any other version make a difference for you, such as Windows XP or Vista, or does it have to be off or otherwise the game won't start?

I started the stock US version and had to use compatibility mode for Windows 98 or otherwise it would take a long time to start. Tried it with the US engine.ini. I ran around for a bit and then sailed around on the map and in ship view, and everything ran fine without any slowdowns.
Another thing that supposedly helps with performance in the US version is to delete the memory.mp file. You could try that and see if that helps anything.

I want to pre-assign ships to officers that I hire from taverns without having to constantly worry about having to hunt for it, I noticed in characters_init.c, there is a thing for ship slots, 1-4 respectively, is this how I can get ships pre-assigned and then assign a captain to them? How would I go about this? I'm not entirely sure.

I haven't tried, but I don't think it would work. Those ship slots are for the character, so adding ships there and starting the game would mean that they don't have any officer assigned as the captain, so I'm not sure what would happen or if the game would even start.

I also would love to, well, I guess "create" a "random" officer that uses the model of a soldier, such as the English soldier, how would I go about this? Would I have to create this officer as a unique officer who cannot be encountered later on? I'm asking mainly out of morbid curiosity, because I think it'd be a very silly thing to do, but would be worth trying.

You could do both. In PROGRAM\LandEncounters\LandEnc_init.c there is this at the bottom:

    LandEncounters[n].id = "ENC_OFFICER";

    LandEncounters[n].char1.modelQuantity = 10;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1 = "blackman";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2 = "corsair1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3 = "korsar";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4 = "chameleon";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5 = "man1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6 = "man3_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7 = "sailor3";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8 = "sailor6";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9 = "bocman1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9 = "bocman4";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10 = "Black_Corsair";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.cont = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.pistol = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.sword = true;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.type = "sit";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.Dialog = "Enc_Officer_dialog.c";

If you change any of the current ones there or add a new one you could make a random officer show that uses the model of a soldier, such as this:

    LandEncounters[n].id = "ENC_OFFICER";

    LandEncounters[n].char1.modelQuantity = 12;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1 = "blackman";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2 = "corsair1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3 = "korsar";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4 = "chameleon";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5 = "man1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6 = "man3_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7 = "sailor3";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8 = "sailor6";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9 = "bocman1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10 = "bocman4";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model11 = "Black_Corsair";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model11.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model12 = "soldier_eng";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model12.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.cont = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.pistol = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.sword = true;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.type = "sit";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.Dialog = "Enc_Officer_dialog.c";

That should make it possible for an officer looking like an English soldier to show up in the taverns.

You could also make it as a unique officer, but that would be more complicated and involve deciding where he shows up, how his skills are, which dialog file he uses, and so on.

 

[Grey Roger]

Here's another ridiculous one for you all:

I want to pre-assign ships to officers that I hire from taverns without having to constantly worry about having to hunt for it, I noticed in characters_init.c, there is a thing for ship slots, 1-4 respectively, is this how I can get ships pre-assigned and then assign a captain to them? How would I go about this? I'm not entirely sure.

Which ships? Anything you bought from a shipyard or captured as a prize will already have a captain - you have to assign the captain at the time when you buy or capture the ship. Tavern officers don't have their own ships, that's why they're sitting in the tavern looking for a job! If you want the newly hired officer to replace a captain of one of your existing ships, I can't see any way other than for you to do the replacing, using the "Ship" interface.

I also would love to, well, I guess "create" a "random" officer that uses the model of a soldier, such as the English soldier, how would I go about this? Would I have to create this officer as a unique officer who cannot be encountered later on? I'm asking mainly out of morbid curiosity, because I think it'd be a very silly thing to do, but would be worth trying.

Attack naval ships. Bombard them with grapeshot to weaken the crew morale and hope the captain surrenders. Then hire him. (You can then put him back on his ship, now under your command.)

Or go into a tailor's shop and buy a soldier outfit, then give it to your officer. If the officer is with you as part of your shore party, you can buy it for him right away, otherwise you'll need to tell the tailor to bag it up and then assign it through the "Characters" interface later.

 

[Baste]

Which ships? Anything you bought from a shipyard or captured as a prize will already have a captain - you have to assign the captain at the time when you buy or capture the ship. Tavern officers don't have their own ships, that's why they're sitting in the tavern looking for a job! If you want the newly hired officer to replace a captain of one of your existing ships, I can't see any way other than for you to do the replacing, using the "Ship" interface.

I think he'd like to already have the ships to give to officers later, but as I said I don't think that would work.

Attack naval ships. Bombard them with grapeshot to weaken the crew morale and hope the captain surrenders. Then hire him. (You can then put him back on his ship, now under your command.)

Or go into a tailor's shop and buy a soldier outfit, then give it to your officer. If the officer is with you as part of your shore party, you can buy it for him right away, otherwise you'll need to tell the tailor to bag it up and then assign it through the "Characters" interface later.

Those aren't features in the stock game, though, which is what he's asking about.

 

[Grey Roger]

I think he'd like to already have the ships to give to officers later, but as I said I don't think that would work.

Neither do I. As far as I know, ships don't exist as separate entities. They're stored as part of character attributes, and a character can't have more than one ship. So the player character will have a set of attributes detailing his own ship, plus references to any companion characters who in turn will have attributes detailing their ships.

Those aren't features in the stock game, though, which is what he's asking about.

Ah, my mistake. In that case, where is Rys Bloom defined in the stock game? The quickest way I can think of to have a single, unique officer with a soldier's outfit would be to change his definition to give him a soldier model. I'm pretty sure he exists in the stock game; if I remember correctly, I always recruited him and spent his skill and ability points to turn him into a gunner.

 

[Ender Shadowborne]

The difference with compatibility mode might be because I'm using Windows 7 and you're using Windows 10. Does compatibility mode for any other version make a difference for you, such as Windows XP or Vista, or does it have to be off or otherwise the game won't start?

I started the stock US version and had to use compatibility mode for Windows 98 or otherwise it would take a long time to start. Tried it with the US engine.ini. I ran around for a bit and then sailed around on the map and in ship view, and everything ran fine without any slowdowns.
Another thing that supposedly helps with performance in the US version is to delete the memory.mp file. You could try that and see if that helps anything.

I have tried both to no avail, though as I said, I only test it in the tutorial, as I know that's where a lot of the slowdown is, and I mean in the ship where you start out, I did ask if there was a specific spot that you wanted me to progress to before reporting back.

Compatibility mode between other versions doesn't make a difference, it won't start in 98/ME mode.

I haven't tried, but I don't think it would work. Those ship slots are for the character, so adding ships there and starting the game would mean that they don't have any officer assigned as the captain, so I'm not sure what would happen or if the game would even start.

I tried, and it didn't quite work out the way I intended, that's okay though, I found a pretty neat exploit to use so I can get the Battleship and a bunch of stuff early in the game, so I'm all set here.

You could do both. In PROGRAM\LandEncounters\LandEnc_init.c there is this at the bottom:

    LandEncounters[n].id = "ENC_OFFICER";

    LandEncounters[n].char1.modelQuantity = 10;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1 = "blackman";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2 = "corsair1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3 = "korsar";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4 = "chameleon";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5 = "man1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6 = "man3_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7 = "sailor3";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8 = "sailor6";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9 = "bocman1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10 = "bocman4";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model11 = "Black_Corsair";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model11.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.cont = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.pistol = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.sword = true;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.type = "sit";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.Dialog = "Enc_Officer_dialog.c";

If you change any of the current ones there or add a new one you could make a random officer show that uses the model of a soldier, such as this:

    LandEncounters[n].id = "ENC_OFFICER";

    LandEncounters[n].char1.modelQuantity = 12;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1 = "blackman";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model1.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2 = "corsair1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model2.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3 = "korsar";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model3.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4 = "chameleon";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model4.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5 = "man1_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model5.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6 = "man3_1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model6.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7 = "sailor3";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model7.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8 = "sailor6";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model8.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9 = "bocman1";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model9.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10 = "bocman4";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model10.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model11 = "Black_Corsair";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model11.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model12 = "soldier_eng";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.model12.ani = "man";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.cont = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.pistol = false;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.sword = true;
    LandEncounters[n].char1.type = "sit";
    LandEncounters[n].char1.Dialog = "Enc_Officer_dialog.c";

That should make it possible for an officer looking like an English soldier to show up in the taverns.

You could also make it as a unique officer, but that would be more complicated and involve deciding where he shows up, how his skills are, which dialog file he uses, and so on.

Fortunately for me, I'm more than willing to get my paws dirty and do some coding, I've written in Yarn and in LUA, not sure if I've ever done any C# or C++ barring changing some stats and the starting ship and the more basic stuff, but I'm willing to get my paws dirty. I also have a pretty good idea for where he shows up and some interesting dialogue. Thanks for the tips

Which ships? Anything you bought from a shipyard or captured as a prize will already have a captain - you have to assign the captain at the time when you buy or capture the ship. Tavern officers don't have their own ships, that's why they're sitting in the tavern looking for a job! If you want the newly hired officer to replace a captain of one of your existing ships, I can't see any way other than for you to do the replacing, using the "Ship" interface.

Baste already addressed this, I also don't know how I can replace a captain through the ship interface, I tried when I tried to get the other slots already assigned with ships where they have no captain or crew.

Attack naval ships. Bombard them with grapeshot to weaken the crew morale and hope the captain surrenders. Then hire him. (You can then put him back on his ship, now under your command.)

I hadn't thought of that! Though attacking the English seems like a very less-than-elegant solution, and might very likely cause my relations to them to become... well... bad... But I guess I could do that to the French.

Ah, my mistake. In that case, where is Rys Bloom defined in the stock game? The quickest way I can think of to have a single, unique officer with a soldier's outfit would be to change his definition to give him a soldier model. I'm pretty sure he exists in the stock game; if I remember correctly, I always recruited him and spent his skill and ability points to turn him into a gunner.

He does, I don't remember where he's defined, but it's SOMEWHERE, this much I know, and I thought more of either having a generic officer, or creating a unique one, or is Rhys a former Navy officer?

Or go into a tailor's shop and buy a soldier outfit, then give it to your officer. If the officer is with you as part of your shore party, you can buy it for him right away, otherwise you'll need to tell the tailor to bag it up and then assign it through the "Characters" interface later.

Also, which game was this referencing? Since Bethesda's POTC doesn't have this? Is this referencing TLOPO? A newer Sea Dogs game? Older? Genuinely curious

Found a solution to my slowdown issue, it's not the MOST elegant of solutions, but it seems to work for what I need it for.

I modified engine.ini and turned off fullscreen (The game runs borderless anyway), and I have a program called Cheat Engine running and attached to the game, I set the speedhack for 1.25x speed, and now the speed and pace of everything seems a bit more realistic and best of all, it's nice and quick but not going to plaid (That's x10 speed, and it was funny as Hell.) Again, not very elegant, but one that works for what I need. That, and I can alt tab in and out of the game at will and not worry about a black screen of freezing.

 

[Baste]

All right, seems compatibility mode isn't useful in your case. I can't think of any particular spot to progress to for testing, as I figure a slowdown that shows right from the start wouldn't really improve later. Good to see that you found a solution that works for you! My next suggestion would have been to try windowed mode, as some have better results with fullscreen and some with windowed. If that still wouldn't have worked, the last thing I could think of would be to try turning off monitors connected to the integrated graphics and only have one monitor on. That way the system wouldn't have to render with both the graphics card and the integrated chip in case it would make a difference. The game and integrated Intel graphics chips really don't go well together, so maybe integrated graphics just being on even if not used for the game would be enough to cause problems.

I tried, and it didn't quite work out the way I intended, that's okay though, I found a pretty neat exploit to use so I can get the Battleship and a bunch of stuff early in the game, so I'm all set here.

Editing files can be quite handy to give oneself higher skills and more abilities, better equipment, more money, and a better ship right from the start. If you haven't already discovered, you might even want to give yourself a manowar, which is more powerful than a battleship. Manowars are in the game but are disabled for whatever reason.

Baste already addressed this, I also don't know how I can replace a captain through the ship interface, I tried when I tried to get the other slots already assigned with ships where they have no captain or crew.

At least in the stock game, captains are replaced in the shipyard interface, the same one for when buying, repairing, or selling ships.

I hadn't thought of that! Though attacking the English seems like a very less-than-elegant solution, and might very likely cause my relations to them to become... well... bad... But I guess I could do that to the French.

Talking to a captain who has surrendered isn't a feature in the stock game, so it's not possible to get an officer that way.

Also, which game was this referencing? Since Bethesda's POTC doesn't have this? Is this referencing TLOPO? A newer Sea Dogs game? Older? Genuinely curious

I don't know if the feature is from another game, but it is available in Build Mod version 14, more known as New Horizons, the modpack for Pirates of the Caribbean.

Ah, my mistake. In that case, where is Rys Bloom defined in the stock game? The quickest way I can think of to have a single, unique officer with a soldier's outfit would be to change his definition to give him a soldier model. I'm pretty sure he exists in the stock game; if I remember correctly, I always recruited him and spent his skill and ability points to turn him into a gunner.

Fortunately for me, I'm more than willing to get my paws dirty and do some coding, I've written in Yarn and in LUA, not sure if I've ever done any C# or C++ barring changing some stats and the starting ship and the more basic stuff, but I'm willing to get my paws dirty. I also have a pretty good idea for where he shows up and some interesting dialogue. Thanks for the tips

He does, I don't remember where he's defined, but it's SOMEWHERE, this much I know, and I thought more of either having a generic officer, or creating a unique one, or is Rhys a former Navy officer?

Rys Bloom is indeed in the stock game. He was a sailor on a ship, not an officer. This being the US version, he is defined in PROGRAM\Characters\init\Officers.c.
Using his code block as a template, you could copy it in the same file and edit it to make a new officer with whatever name, ID, model, level, skills, abilities, and so on that you decide, and then in PROGRAM\DIALOGS copy his C and H files and change the copies to have the name of your new character, and then edit them accordingly to fit the new character.
If you search for "VisibleLocatorsGroup" in PROGRAM\Locations\locations_loader.c you'll see some lines for locators with visibility disabled. If you enable the visibility you'll be able to see those locators in the game which can help when deciding where your new character should appear, so you don't place him in an occupied or nonexistent locator.
Unless I'm forgetting something this should make a new character appear in the game.

 

[Ender Shadowborne]

All right, seems compatibility mode isn't useful in your case. I can't think of any particular spot to progress to for testing, as I figure a slowdown that shows right from the start wouldn't really improve later. Good to see that you found a solution that works for you! My next suggestion would have been to try windowed mode, as some have better results with fullscreen and some with windowed.

The game doesn't really have a TRUE "Windowed mode", just the borderless one, I tried that, too, effectively, and it still didn't quite work out too well, Cheat Engine to the rescue, of course... Like I said, not the most ELEGANT, but one that works...

If that still wouldn't have worked, the last thing I could think of would be to try turning off monitors connected to the integrated graphics and only have one monitor on. That way the system wouldn't have to render with both the graphics card and the integrated chip in case it would make a difference. The game and integrated Intel graphics chips really don't go well together, so maybe integrated graphics just being on even if not used for the game would be enough to cause problems.

I hadn't thought of that! Not a bad idea. but I like the convenience of being able to know when someone messages me on Discord, and seeing the message, too! Though that's just me... I'll have to try it, even if sometimes Discord doesn't cooperate...

Editing files can be quite handy to give oneself higher skills and more abilities, better equipment, more money, and a better ship right from the start. If you haven't already discovered, you might even want to give yourself a manowar, which is more powerful than a battleship. Manowars are in the game but are disabled for whatever reason.

Not what I was referring to, I found a way to get that stuff early on for my OFFICERS, that's to use the Shotgun mode in the tutorial, and keep it so that Malcolm doesn't attack you, where he lets you get a feel for the mechanics, and keep telling him that you want to practice more... OR if you're feeling ESPECIALLY daring, let him fight back, but keep shotgunning him until his AI breaks while you're in Shotgun mode, use the speedhack in Cheat Engine to accomplish this the quickest, and keep shooting until you're leveled up to where you want to be. Easy... I also think the Man'O'Wars are disabled because they're meant to be seen as a "specialty" ship, but this is just MY speculation... I think they're only meant to be sold to very specific people (i.e. the governor), but yes, I DID in fact modify the files to give me boosted stats and the like, though for some reason, I don't gain health when I level up, I guess that's to do with Godmode...? I dunno... hard to say, really... Meh... oh well...

At least in the stock game, captains are replaced in the shipyard interface, the same one for when buying, repairing, or selling ships.

That's why it wouldn't work for me, in the Shipyard interface, the ships aren't even registering in there, so that was really weird... Would've been nice to have the Man'O'War as my flagship, the Charger (based as an old iteration of the "USS Charger", my starship from Star Trek), and some of the more lower-ranking ships as part of my four-ship fleet. It'd have been pretty awesome, really... Oh well, I can still do it the long way if necessary

Talking to a captain who has surrendered isn't a feature in the stock game, so it's not possible to get an officer that way.

I know it isn't possible in TLOPO, and I figured that it wasn't possible, because it seems counter intuitive if you think about it...

I don't know if the feature is from another game, but it is available in Build Mod version 14, more known as New Horizons, the modpack for Pirates of the Caribbean.

I really don't like the idea of like... modding the game before having a chance to complete it vanilla first, but I guess when I'm ready, I'll just make a new installment of the game, and THEN install the mods, feels like it'd make more sense to do it this way

Rys Bloom is indeed in the stock game. He was a sailor on a ship, not an officer. This being the US version, he is defined in PROGRAM\Characters\init\Officers.c.
Using his code block as a template, you could copy it in the same file and edit it to make a new officer with whatever name, ID, model, level, skills, abilities, and so on that you decide, and then in PROGRAM\DIALOGS copy his C and H files and change the copies to have the name of your new character, and then edit them accordingly to fit the new character.
If you search for "VisibleLocatorsGroup" in PROGRAM\Locations\locations_loader.c you'll see some lines for locators with visibility disabled. If you enable the visibility you'll be able to see those locators in the game which can help when deciding where your new character should appear, so you don't place him in an occupied or nonexistent locator.
Unless I'm forgetting something this should make a new character appear in the game.

Seems simple enough, but now that I think about it, I *DID* run into an issue, since the soldiers were never intended to be officers, the icon and the character menu portrait is using a fallback since they're otherwise undefined, would I need to make a portrait and an icon for the soldier in this case? And how would I go about it? If possible, that is... It's not a HUGE issue, just a "technical goof". I suppose I should also look into modifying the game files to let me keep playing even after the final quest.

This just got VERY exciting!

Okay, so... How do I use the Visible Locators Group items? The coordinates don't exactly make sense to me... Plus, coordinates aren't visible in game either, hence why I ask... There's all sorts of things I'm curious about, like how to modify the starting equipment, what all possible items are there, things like that, if only there was a list of these items without having to sift through the files, since I have to open them all in Sublime and want to keep them defaulted to Visual Studio... Like... Blade colors? Blade times? All sorts of things I wish I knew what they do and how to change things like that?

 

[Baste]

Not what I was referring to, I found a way to get that stuff early on for my OFFICERS, that's to use the Shotgun mode in the tutorial, and keep it so that Malcolm doesn't attack you, where he lets you get a feel for the mechanics, and keep telling him that you want to practice more... OR if you're feeling ESPECIALLY daring, let him fight back, but keep shotgunning him until his AI breaks while you're in Shotgun mode, use the speedhack in Cheat Engine to accomplish this the quickest, and keep shooting until you're leveled up to where you want to be. Easy... I also think the Man'O'Wars are disabled because they're meant to be seen as a "specialty" ship, but this is just MY speculation... I think they're only meant to be sold to very specific people (i.e. the governor), but yes, I DID in fact modify the files to give me boosted stats and the like, though for some reason, I don't gain health when I level up, I guess that's to do with Godmode...? I dunno... hard to say, really... Meh... oh well...

Possible spoiler about the manowar as it involves the story: Every country has the manowar defined but unused. The only place one shows up is for governor Silehard. Though strangely enough, there is a manowar specifically intended for him but it too is unused, and he instead has a normal manowar.

About the health, you mean that even though you leveled up in the swordfighting tutorial, you still have 40 HP when you go to Oxbay port? That's because of an oversight.
During the swordfighting tutorial your HP is set to 400 so that Malcolm won't kill you, and when you reload to Oxbay port your HP is reset. However, it is reset to the HP you had at level 1 regardless of what your level is.

The stock game is littered with things like that. For example, if you have officers and save and then quit the game, and then start it again and go to load, their pictures will be wrong. Too bad the game was rushed and released unfinished.

Here is a stock US both_reaction.c file with the only difference being that HP is reset according to your level when the tutorial reloads to Oxbay port, following the default parameters of 40 HP at level 1 and 5 HP per level. Place it in PROGRAM\QUESTS.

I really don't like the idea of like... modding the game before having a chance to complete it vanilla first, but I guess when I'm ready, I'll just make a new installment of the game, and THEN install the mods, feels like it'd make more sense to do it this way

I agree with this, I also think it is a good idea to play through the game in its default state first to know how it is and be able to see what is changed in the modpack.

Seems simple enough, but now that I think about it, I *DID* run into an issue, since the soldiers were never intended to be officers, the icon and the character menu portrait is using a fallback since they're otherwise undefined, would I need to make a portrait and an icon for the soldier in this case? And how would I go about it? If possible, that is... It's not a HUGE issue, just a "technical goof". I suppose I should also look into modifying the game files to let me keep playing even after the final quest.

This just got VERY exciting!

Ah, yes, that's right, they don't have any pictures so you would have to create them. For working with graphics in this game you need the TX Converter to convert TGA files and TX files back and forth. You can find it in the downloads section.

In RESOURCE\Textures\INTERFACES\PORTRAITS there are three directories, one for each size. You'd have to create three TGA image files with these sizes:

64 x 64 - The face icon used in the lower left part of the screen.
128 x 128 - The picture used in for example the Passengers interface.
256 x 256 - The picture used on the Character screen.

You'd take them by taking screenshots of the officer in suitable places and angles. For the 64 and 128 files you should extract the frames from existing files, such as face_16 since that is the main character, so your new pictures will be consistent with the rest.
When your TGA files are done they need to have the same name, such as "face_100". Then you convert them to TX files and place those in the respective directories. After that in PROGRAM\Characters\characters_init.c go to where the face IDs are and add a new case with the name of the model, such as "case "soldier_eng": rCharacter.FaceId = 100; break;". While you're in that file you can go up to the stats for the main character and correct the face ID to 16 - it is 31 currently which is wrong.
I think this should be all that is needed to add new pictures for characters.

Nice to see that you're having fun!

Okay, so... How do I use the Visible Locators Group items? The coordinates don't exactly make sense to me... Plus, coordinates aren't visible in game either, hence why I ask... There's all sorts of things I'm curious about, like how to modify the starting equipment, what all possible items are there, things like that, if only there was a list of these items without having to sift through the files, since I have to open them all in Sublime and want to keep them defaulted to Visual Studio... Like... Blade colors? Blade times? All sorts of things I wish I knew what they do and how to change things like that?

In the file we currently have lines like this:

    //VisibleLocatorsGroup("rld", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0); 
    /*
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("reload", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0); 
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("Merchant", 1.0, 15.0, 105, 0, 255, 125);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("camera", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 0, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("characters", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 255, 0, 0); 
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("goto", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("sit", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("item", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 255);
    //*/

    /*
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles_medium", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("chandeliers", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 128, 0, 128);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("torchlightes", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 155, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("outside", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 155, 255); 
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("fonar", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("heaters", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_light", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_sky", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 255);
    */

We just uncomment them like this:

    VisibleLocatorsGroup("rld", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0); 

    VisibleLocatorsGroup("reload", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0); 
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("Merchant", 1.0, 15.0, 105, 0, 255, 125);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("camera", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 0, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("characters", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 255, 0, 0); 
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("goto", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("sit", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("item", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 255);



    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles_medium", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("chandeliers", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 128, 0, 128);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("torchlightes", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 155, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("outside", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 155, 255); 
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("fonar", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("heaters", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_light", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_sky", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 255);

Then we'll be able to see the locators like this:

Move close to them to see their names.

The easiest way to see which items are in the game might be to look in RESOURCE\INI\TEXTS\ENGLISH\ItemsDescribe.txt. There you'll see all the items and their IDs, such as the "Saber" having the ID "blade1". Then in PROGRAM\ITEMS\initItems.c you can search by ID and find the stats for the items.
I don't know what the color and time does, since I haven't seen a difference from changing them.

 

[Grey Roger]

Ah, yes, that's right, they don't have any pictures so you would have to create them. For working with graphics in this game you need the TX Converter to convert TGA files and TX files back and forth. You can find it in the downloads section.

Here's a direct link:
http://piratesahoy.bowengames.com/Cloud/Tools/Modeling+Texturing/TX Convertor.zip

In RESOURCE\Textures\INTERFACES\PORTRAITS there are three folders, one for each size. You'd have to create three TGA image files with these sizes:

64 x 64 - The face icon used in the lower left part of the screen.
128 x 128 - The picture used in for example the Passengers interface.
256 x 256 - The picture used on the Character screen.

You'd take them by taking screenshots of the officer in suitable places and angles. For the 64 and 128 files you should extract the frames from existing files, such as face_16 since that is the main character, so your new pictures will be consistent with the rest.
When your TGA files are done they need to have the same name, such as "face_100". Then you convert them to TX files and place those in the respective folders. After that in PROGRAM\Characters\characters_init.c go to where the face IDs are and add a new case with the name of the model, such as "case "soldier_eng": rCharacter.FaceId = 100; break;". While you're in that file you can go up to the stats for the main character and correct the face ID to 16 - it is 31 currently which is wrong.
I think this should be all that is needed to add new pictures for characters.

Do you have Photoshop, GIMP, or anything else capable of reading Photoshop files? I have a set of three Photoshop files in each of the face icon sizes with a frame as a separate layer. All that is needed is to clip and resize the face picture to the appropriate size, copy it and paste it as a layer below the frame, and you end up with something like this:

Those are for a character I made for the build mod but you get the idea - you can see the frames round the pictures at the different sizes. The frame layers include the shadow just inside the frame so you don't need to add it yourself. If you want, I can upload the blank files so you can make your own picture files with similar frames.

 

[Ender Shadowborne]

Possible spoiler about the manowar as it involves the story: Every country has the manowar defined but unused. The only place one shows up is for governor Silehard. Though strangely enough, there is a manowar specifically intended for him but it too is unused, and he instead has a normal manowar.

Not really a spoiler for me, I knew that Silehard uses a Man'O'War, that was the very ship I prized while playing the XBOX version, that was the ship I set out to use, though what really bummed me out is that I couldn't keep my Battleship to use as the ship under ME, given the MOW is the best ship in the game, next to the Black Pearl (I guess...) In fact, on THIS version, I'm using the version that Silehard WOULD use! So I'm effectively saying "Haha suck it Charger go BRRT!" Not much of a spoiler though...

About the health, you mean that even though you leveled up in the swordfighting tutorial, you still have 40 HP when you go to Oxbay port? That's because of an oversight.
During the swordfighting tutorial your HP is set to 400 so that Malcolm won't kill you, and when you reload to Oxbay port your HP is reset. However, it is reset to the HP you had at level 1 regardless of what your level is.

The stock game is littered with things like that. For example, if you have officers and save and then quit the game, and then start it again and go to load, their pictures will be wrong. Too bad the game was rushed and released unfinished.

Here is a stock US both_reaction.c file with the only difference being that HP is reset according to your level when the tutorial reloads to Oxbay port, following the default parameters of 40 HP at level 1 and 5 HP per level. Place it in PROGRAM\QUESTS.

Ah, had a feeling... I'll put the file to good use, of course, I'll be sure to back up the ORIGINAL file as well... Feels kinda like I'm modding the game already, but without like the MAJOR content additions/changes, the sort of "modding" I don't seem to mind.

I agree with this, I also think it is a good idea to play through the game in its default state first to know how it is and be able to see what is changed in the modpack.

Yes! And since I plan to make an additional installation, I get both the modded game, AND the "original"!

Ah, yes, that's right, they don't have any pictures so you would have to create them. For working with graphics in this game you need the TX Converter to convert TGA files and TX files back and forth. You can find it in the downloads section.

In RESOURCE\Textures\INTERFACES\PORTRAITS there are three folders, one for each size. You'd have to create three TGA image files with these sizes:

64 x 64 - The face icon used in the lower left part of the screen.
128 x 128 - The picture used in for example the Passengers interface.
256 x 256 - The picture used on the Character screen.

You'd take them by taking screenshots of the officer in suitable places and angles. For the 64 and 128 files you should extract the frames from existing files, such as face_16 since that is the main character, so your new pictures will be consistent with the rest.
When your TGA files are done they need to have the same name, such as "face_100". Then you convert them to TX files and place those in the respective folders. After that in PROGRAM\Characters\characters_init.c go to where the face IDs are and add a new case with the name of the model, such as "case "soldier_eng": rCharacter.FaceId = 100; break;". While you're in that file you can go up to the stats for the main character and correct the face ID to 16 - it is 31 currently which is wrong.
I think this should be all that is needed to add new pictures for characters.

Nice to see that you're having fun!

If only my system supported NVIDIA Ansel... (I have an NVIDIA GT1030) Would be a lot easier this way, rather than having to wait for my character to stand still and not wave about, though I COULD set the Speedhack RIDICULOUSLY slow, and that might help? Any good spots for taking pics come to mind? Will I need to use GIMP for this? (Since I don't have Photoshop, but it's pretty close) Because I know I'll also need to give the soldier a background for the Character screen, not so much for the other two interfaces, because I'm pretty sure that's handled by the game itself. (I think?)

In the file we currently have lines like this:

    //VisibleLocatorsGroup("rld", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0);  
    /*
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("reload", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0);  
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("Merchant", 1.0, 15.0, 105, 0, 255, 125);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("camera", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 0, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("characters", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 255, 0, 0);  
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("goto", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("sit", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("item", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 255);
    //*/

    /*
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles_medium", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("chandeliers", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 128, 0, 128);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("torchlightes", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 155, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("outside", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 155, 255);  
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("fonar", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("heaters", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_light", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_sky", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 255);
    */

We just uncomment them like this:

    VisibleLocatorsGroup("rld", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0);  

    VisibleLocatorsGroup("reload", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 0);  
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("Merchant", 1.0, 15.0, 105, 0, 255, 125);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("camera", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 0, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("characters", 1.0, 15.0, 155, 255, 0, 0);  
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("goto", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("sit", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("item", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 0, 255);



    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("candles_medium", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 255, 55);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("chandeliers", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 128, 0, 128);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("torchlightes", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 255, 155, 0);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("outside", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 155, 255);  
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("fonar", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("heaters", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 155);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_light", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 155, 255, 255);
    VisibleLocatorsGroup("incas_sky", 1.0, 15.0, 255, 0, 255, 255);

Then we'll be able to see the locators like this:
View attachment 41623
Move close to them to see their names.

I did that, but there are TONS more markers than what the file shows... I know where I want my unique soldier to be, but without a way to see the coordinates and without knowing what these do, things like that? That's pretty much just it... just a lot of shrugging and scratching my head...

The easiest way to see which items are in the game might be to look in RESOURCE\INI\TEXTS\ENGLISH\ItemsDescribe.txt. There you'll see all the items and their IDs, such as the "Saber" having the ID "blade1". Then in PROGRAM\ITEMS\initItems.c you can search by ID and find the stats for the items.
I don't know what the color and time does, since I haven't seen a difference from changing them.

Understood, thanks

Here's a direct link:
http://piratesahoy.bowengames.com/Cloud/Tools/Modeling+Texturing/TX Convertor.zip


Do you have Photoshop, GIMP, or anything else capable of reading Photoshop files? I have a set of three Photoshop files in each of the face icon sizes with a frame as a separate layer. All that is needed is to clip and resize the face picture to the appropriate size, copy it and paste it as a layer below the frame, and you end up with something like this:
View attachment 41625 View attachment 41627 View attachment 41628
Those are for a character I made for the build mod but you get the idea - you can see the frames round the pictures at the different sizes. The frame layers include the shadow just inside the frame so you don't need to add it yourself. If you want, I can upload the blank files so you can make your own picture files with similar frames.

Don't need the link, I've already got the converter, and yes, I have GIMP, I just posted about that

Greetings from Arizona, btw

Just realized the times in which these were posted...

Here's a direct link:
http://piratesahoy.bowengames.com/Cloud/Tools/Modeling+Texturing/TX Convertor.zip


Do you have Photoshop, GIMP, or anything else capable of reading Photoshop files? I have a set of three Photoshop files in each of the face icon sizes with a frame as a separate layer. All that is needed is to clip and resize the face picture to the appropriate size, copy it and paste it as a layer below the frame, and you end up with something like this:
View attachment 41625 View attachment 41627 View attachment 41628
Those are for a character I made for the build mod but you get the idea - you can see the frames round the pictures at the different sizes. The frame layers include the shadow just inside the frame so you don't need to add it yourself. If you want, I can upload the blank files so you can make your own picture files with similar frames.

So when it comes down to the shadow of the two frames (for 128 and 64 sizes), how would I go about that? Would I just make it myself?

Changed the name of the thread to make it more accurate for what's going on

 

[Grey Roger]

So when it comes down to the shadow of the two frames (for 128 and 64 sizes), how would I go about that? Would I just make it myself?

You can make the different pictures yourself. Attached is a zip file with the blank Photoshop files in each size. The shadows are included in the frame layer, so all you need to do is paste your own picture as a new layer under the frame. The result should then be your picture plus frame and shadow.

 

[Ender Shadowborne]

You can make the different pictures yourself. Attached is a zip file with the blank Photoshop files in each size. The shadows are included in the frame layer, so all you need to do is paste your own picture as a new layer under the frame. The result should then be your picture plus frame and shadow.

Ahh thank you, will make things substantially easier, and keep me from having to figure it out myself.

So... as for good spots to take pics... I can't just spawn a greenscreen, so I'll need some ideas, I suppose I COULD just rely on either lasso select, or if I'm feeling daring enough, select by color, though that might fail on me the worst...

 

[Grey Roger]

Lasso select should work, especially if you use it on the 256x265 picture before shrinking it to 128x128 or 64x64. Any extra bits of the background left in, or small bits of the face clipped off, won't show up as much on the lower resolutions.

Or just leave the background there. As you'll have seen from my example, I didn't bother removing the background, I just clipped and resized the picture to show more face and less body at each lower resolution.

There's another option. The Build Mod doesn't have face portraits as such for soldiers. Their interface pictures are just a soldier silhouette on top of a flag. For example:

 

[Baste]

If only my system supported NVIDIA Ansel... (I have an NVIDIA GT1030) Would be a lot easier this way, rather than having to wait for my character to stand still and not wave about, though I COULD set the Speedhack RIDICULOUSLY slow, and that might help? Any good spots for taking pics come to mind? Will I need to use GIMP for this? (Since I don't have Photoshop, but it's pretty close) Because I know I'll also need to give the soldier a background for the Character screen, not so much for the other two interfaces, because I'm pretty sure that's handled by the game itself. (I think?)

Any place and angle to take a picture is entirely for you to decide. Some ideas might be to take it in a location close to where the character appears, or a location that has something to do with the character. For example, if you're making an English soldier, perhaps town walls and/or town gates could be visible in the background, or perhaps somewhere outside the governor's residence?

There is a way to enable free camera mode that can help with this but I don't remember how to enable it.

The game does not seem to handle the background for the 128 and 64 pictures itself - the background seems to be part of the picture. You could follow Grey Roger's suggestion and leave the background from the screenshot or do something like how it is in the Build Mod, but if you want the background in the 128 and 64 pictures to be consistent with the others you will have to extract the background from the icons.tga.tx file in RESOURCE\Textures\INTERFACES and downsize it as appropriate.

I did that, but there are TONS more markers than what the file shows... I know where I want my unique soldier to be, but without a way to see the coordinates and without knowing what these do, things like that? That's pretty much just it... just a lot of shrugging and scratching my head...

I'm not sure that I understand what you mean. Taking Rys Bloom as an example we can see in PROGRAM\Characters\init\Officers.c that his location is "Redmond_port", his location group is "goto", and his locator is "cityzen_1". Checking this in the game we can see that this is indeed the case:

He has just walked away from it a little. Had I wanted him to instead appear at "goto_3" next to it I would just change his locator to that. So, when you have found a location and locator where you would like a new character to appear you would have to check the file for that area - such as Redmond.c - as well as these files, all in PROGRAM\Characters\init:

Officers.c
StoryCharacters.c
TempQuestCharacters.c
TempQuestEnemy.c

You'd check them to make sure the locator you have chosen isn't occupied. Say you want someone to appear at "goto_3" in Redmond port, you could search for that locator in the files and see if that location and locator is in use by anyone else. If it isn't then you can use it, if it is then you have to pick another locator.

Does this help anything or have I misunderstood what you mean?

 

[Grey Roger]

So... as for good spots to take pics... I can't just spawn a greenscreen, so I'll need some ideas, I suppose I COULD just rely on either lasso select, or if I'm feeling daring enough, select by color, though that might fail on me the worst...

Before you put in too much effort, use TX Convertor to look at "face_47.tga.tx", which you should find in the "128" folder. For some reason, at least in my (European) version of the stock game, it's only in 128x128 resolution, there are no equivalents in the "256" or "64" folders.

However, someone made 256x256 and 64x64 versions for the Build Mod. The attached file contains the whole lot.

The only special English soldier I can think of in the stock game is Lieutenant Harris, the one who challenges you in Clement's lighthouse. He uses the officer model, not the basic soldier model, but that might be more appropriate for a character who is to be your officer anyway.