Cross-Platform Civ3 Editor

Cross-Platform Civ3 Editor 1.50

This Civ3 BIQ editor allows additional features that are not possible with other editors, and works on Mac and Linux as well as Windows.

To run it, you will need to have Java 8 or later installed, with Java FX. Please read the spoiler below to make sure you have a compatible version of Java.

Spoiler Java Requirements :

The editor requires at least Java 8, with JavaFX. In practice, that means you should download Liberica Java, or Azul/Zulu Java; specifically, Oracle Java will not work.

It doesn't really matter if you choose Liberica or Azul/Zulu. They are from different companies but are compatible. Liberica has been around longer and has been tested more, but Azul/Zulu works too.

Liberica

You can download Liberica from https://bell-sw.com/pages/downloads/#jdk-8-lts; this link is to Java 8, but 11, 17, 21, and 22 are also tested and work. Make sure you click the drop-down next to your operating system, and choose the "Full JRE" or "Full JDK" option.

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Azul/Zulu

You can download Azul/Zulu's Java from https://www.azul.com/downloads/?package=jre-fx#zulu . Note that this link is to the "JRE FX" version; you need either that one or "JDK FX" in order to have JavaFX, which the editor requires.

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JRE or JDK?

If all you want to do is run the editor, "JRE" is smaller and does the job. If you want to develop something with Java yourself, you need the JDK. In other words, unless you are a software developer yourself, "JRE" is the way to go (but choosing the JDK won't hurt anything).

8, 11, 17, 21, or 22?

In short, so long as you start with "launcher.jar", it doesn't matter. If you want to double-click "Conquests Editor.jar", choose Java 11. Otherwise, the latest version should be fine, but if it isn't, try 21.

You need version 1.49 or later of the editor, and to launch with the launcher, to run Java 17 or later, but it should work and is tested through Java 22.



It is highly recommended that you start the editor by double-clicking "launcher.jar", which is included with it. This sets the Java environment up in a compatible way, whether you are running Java 8, 11, 17, or 21.

Screenshots

Spoiler :

The editor features a translucent overlay grid (Ctrl+Shift+G), in addition to the standard grid (Ctrl+G) to aid in precision map work, and shows you the cumulative defensive bonuses of the improvements in a city. New in version 1.45 (January 2023).
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GOOD Filtering.png

Select tabs feature powerful filtering capabilities, allowing you to effectively search for items among long lists, or view a subset of related items. You can even combine queries with "and", "or", or parentheses - try "Type=Bonus or Commerce>2" on this tab.

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The map tab features full parity with the Firaxis editor, but with a different layout. Precision river work is easy with the NW/NE/SW/SE buttons.

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SelectUnitIcon_Haiku.png

The editor showing off its cross-platform credentials by running on Haiku via its Legacy version, showing off the Unit Selection screen. No more having to memorize or calculate which icon you want, just select it visually.



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After many months of work, the long-rumoured Mac editor is (I believe) ready to be unveiled! Offering the ability to do nearly anything pertaining to Custom Rules or Custom Player Data that you can do with the Windows editor, the hope is that this editor can allow Mac Civ3 fans the ability to at last rely on their native platform for a good part of their Civ3 editing.

Broadening its appeal, the editor also provides some new options for Civ3 modders regardless of platform in the form of configurable Safety Levels. These allow the user to bypass Firaxis's limits on the values any field may have, thus making it possible to, for example, have buildings that produce in excess of 100 culture per turn, or experiment with buildings that cost negative maintenance. While this doubtless will allow many new ways to create invalid BIQs, it should also break down many of these long-unchallenged barriers.

All Conquests BIQs work with the editor, and there is halfway decent BIC/BIX support (but the save is always to BIQ format, so you cannot use this as an editor for Vanilla/PTW scenarios).

It also is possible to extract BIQ files from SAV files with this editor. The same general restrictions apply. At this point only the rules part of the BIQ (not the map) can be recovered from SAVs.

Post any bugs in the thread (not here - I only see this when I upload a new version), and they will be fixed as time permits.

For those of you who are adventurous and would like to explore the actual (rather that Firaxis-imposed) limits of the Civilization III through the editor, please post your results so that the actual boundary conditions can be added to the editor. Also make note of whether you are using the Windows or Mac version of Conquests.

As always, backing up your files before editing them is recommended. It is not believed that there remains any way that files could be overwritten or corrupted without human error or opening multiple files, but this cannot be guaranteed. Fortunately, the editor does provide an autosave functionality that may save you if something does go wrong. As of 0.89, it also provides an auto-archive function that will (optionally) save the previous version of your BIQ with the date and time as part of the name when you make a new save.

Spoiler Operating Systems Supported :

To run the editor, you must be running one of the following operating systems:

  • OSX 10.8 or later.
  • Windows XP and later (32-bit and 64-bit for all versions)
  • Linux, most recent versions (exact requirement unknown)

Older editor versions (0.98 and earlier) support OS X 10.4 through 10.7 (PowerPC and Intel), and Windows 98, ME, and 2000.

You must also have Java (see above). You must also have Civilization III installed, or its files manually copied over. Finally, it is highly recommended that you have a 1024x768 or higher screen resolution (also the minimum for Civ3), although lower is workable with increased scrolling.


Spoiler Historical Info :

These were new at one point, but have long since become standard functionality.

Versions 0.71 and later allow some map editing. If you plan to do map editing, please read the post about version 0.70.

Thread here.

As of version 0.81, the documentation is now included with the editor download, but as always, you can ask questions in the thread.


As of version 0.91, it is no longer necessary for the BIQ to have custom rules.
Author
Quintillus
Downloads
25,815
Views
25,815
First release
Last update
Rating
4.73 star(s) 11 ratings

More resources from Quintillus

Latest updates

  1. Version 1.50

    Changes: - Fix the map pane freezing up if you scroll down too quickly (new bug in 1.49) -...
  2. 1.49 - With Correct Launcher

    While firing up the editor to do some editing tonight, I realized that the old version of the...
  3. Version 1.49 - Java 17+ Compatibility Update

    Version 1.49 has now been released! Changes: The editor can now be run on Java 17 and later...
  4. Version 1.48

    Version 1.48 focuses on defeating pesky editor-launching issues, which have re-emerged in recent...
  5. Version 1.47

    Version 1.47 has the following new features: - The 256 building type limit is now enforced if...
  6. Version 1.46

    Version 1.46 is now available! This update focuses on modifying Civ Colors, following a post by...
  7. Version 1.45

    Version 1.45 is now available! This version adds one new feature and fixes several issues that...
  8. Version 1.44

    Version 1.44 contains three bug fixes: Units assigned to tiles that already have a "hard"...
  9. Version 1.43

    Version 1.43 includes the following updates: Added the Ctrl+G shortcut to toggle displaying the...
  10. Version 1.42

    Version 1.42 includes a few fixes: Civilizations with fewer than two starting units will no...

Latest reviews

Good & Extensive Civ3 Editor! Thanks for the Updates.
Great updates, thanks Quintillus!
Essential C3C tool
This editor is the main reason I still play civ3.
This editor is an excellent work! The enlarged 180 K cultural victory in CCM2 wouldn´t be possible without this editor and the import of maps with a different order of resources with the same name for me worked like charm.
Excellent Work
Excelente, um editor muito poderoso. Vale a pena fazer o download.
Excellent, a very powerful editor. Worth to download.
Very excellent resource, easy to use. Quintillus provides updates, and information, and is the only editor I use nowadays
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