Quick Modding Questions Thread

[need my speed]

I am really curious about what kind of amalgamation you created from the Inca, Mali, and Sumeria. Tell us more?

 

[R82]

I am really curious about what kind of amalgamation you created from the Inca, Mali, and Sumeria. Tell us more?

Probably nothing spectacular, from the perspective of people who play at higher levels and with more skill than me, but let's just say it serves my purposes:

The leader, who is named "Imas" as an unoriginal acronym, has Huayna Capac's FIN/IND combo. FIN probably needs no explanation. IND might be more controversial, but right now, I'm simply a lot into certain wonders.

The UU is the Skirmisher. Perhaps not a popular choice, but I actually prefer them to Quechuas. A Skirmisher stands a decent chance against a Spearman, which a Quechua doesn't. They are simply useful early defenders if I can't get copper or iron connected fast enough for the initial Barb attacks.

Now the weirdest part: The UB is the Ziggurat. Not within most people's first ten choices, I know, but I think if you're not ORG, getting a quarter of the hammers off on a Courthouse is simply very useful. A Courthouse that I actually built helps me more than one that I always put off building because it seems like it would take forever to built.

The general look-and-feel is copied from Mali. Even Leader Imas, despite having Huayna Capac's traits, has Mansa Musa's leaderhead. That's mainly to keep his looks from clashing with the Skirmisher.

The city name list alternates the three civs' city names in the order Mali-Inca-Sumeria. And the name of the whole thing is "Suinc Mal".

I might post it once I've played a full game without running into hidden bugs.

 

[<Nexus>]

I have encountered a strange thing: I Future era limited to one tech only? I have added more techs to it but those don't appear. Previously those techs belonged to an other era and had shown up fine.

 

[PPQ_Purple]

I have encountered a strange thing: I Future era limited to one tech only? I have added more techs to it but those don't appear. Previously those techs belonged to an other era and had shown up fine.

Aren't there like 4 techs in that era? IIRC it's: Stealth, Genetics, Fusion and Future Tech

 

[<Nexus>]

Aren't there like 4 techs in that era? IIRC it's: Stealth, Genetics, Fusion and Future Tech

You are right, in NextWar there are several techs in the future era. Yet, in my mod only Future Tech shows up with future era

 

[LPlate2]

Another way of doing it would have been to leave the civs in but make them unplayable by either human or AI,
<bPlayable>0</bPlayable>
<bAIPlayable>0</bAIPlayable>
That’s just editing a couple of lines per civ and you wouldn’t need to mess with other xml files.

 

[PPQ_Purple]

Is there a tag in the XML that lets units have a bonus vs barbarians like they can vs animals?

 

[<Nexus>]

Is there a tag in the XML that lets units have a bonus vs barbarians like they can vs animals?

AFAIK there is one only in HandycapInfos. But I guess that's not what you want

...now having a second thought: IIRC platyping had conjured some python magic for a Promotion, Wonder or whoknowswhat. If I were you, I'd look around in FFH2. Maybe it has something useful that you could convert for your liking.

 

[LPlate2]

IIRC, in FFH (or possibly RifE) there are promos that give bonuses against certain races. If you give every barbarian a promo that identifies them as a barbarian, then a similar promo giving bonuses against such units could be used.

 

[PPQ_Purple]

Thanks. I'll figure it out at a later date than.

 

[need my speed]

You could make different unit classes (e.g. 'Barbarian Melee' instead of 'Melee'), copy all units that you want to be possible to spawn as barbarians, give them one of the new unit classes, and make promotions similar to Shock but then for these new unit classes. You can then give the barbarian civilisation these new units as unique units in CivilizationInfos. You'd probably also want go through every existing unit and promotion that has a unit class modifier, to add the new barbarian variant to that. Sounds like a lot of boring-ish work, but hey.

 

[TheHeirofNiketas]

What are good graphics / UI mods to modernize Civ 4 to make it look better on modern systems and easier to understand? I'm a first time player (played V and VI) looking to play Fall From Heaven II and Caveman to Cosmos.

Is there also a way to create mod profiles (e.g., Fall From Heaven Mods + Compatible Graphics as Profile 1)

 

[need my speed]

What are good graphics / UI mods to modernize Civ 4 to make it look better on modern systems and easier to understand?

I think (personally I don't use any graphics mods) that Blue Marble is the go-to recommendation for graphics.
And BUG (et al.) most definitely for the UI - bùt as you say that you come from Civilization V/VI and are looking for something that makes Civilization IV easier to understand... That baffles me a bit? Civilization IV has by far the easiest and most intuitive UI (this is objective fact if you consider things such as the amount of mouse clicks, the amount of empty space, the amount of information displayed to you literally and unhidden, et cetera), and BUG follows in that vein by allowing you to see even more information. So if that is your question (and also if it isn't ), BUG. But you mentioning 'easier to understand' makes me wonder whether this is the answer you're looking for - or even the game you want to play.

Is there also a way to create mod profiles

No, you cannot mix and merge mods like that.

 

[TheHeirofNiketas]

I think (personally I don't use any graphics mods) that Blue Marble is the go-to recommendation for graphics.
And BUG (et al.) most definitely for the UI - bùt as you say that you come from Civilization V/VI and are looking for something that makes Civilization IV easier to understand... That baffles me a bit? Civilization IV has by far the easiest and most intuitive UI (this is objective fact if you consider things such as the amount of mouse clicks, the amount of empty space, the amount of information displayed to you literally and unhidden, et cetera), and BUG follows in that vein by allowing you to see even more information. So if that is your question (and also if it isn't ), BUG. But you mentioning 'easier to understand' makes me wonder whether this is the answer you're looking for - or even the game you want to play.

No, you cannot mix and merge mods like that.

Thanks for the speedy reply. I wasn't clear on what I meant by "easy to understand". What I meant was whether there was a way to make the UI look nicer especially at higher resolutions since I got a big screen (whether through mods or some Ini settings). Are the BUG and Blue Marble mods compatible with the C2C and FFH2?

No, you cannot mix and merge mods like that.

I take it's safer for me to have 2 different installs of civ IV for the different mod set ups (e.g., one instance for caveman to cosmos)

 

[need my speed]

Are the BUG and Blue Marble mods compatible with the C2C and FFH2?

I take it's safer for me to have 2 different installs of civ IV for the different mod set ups (e.g., one instance for caveman to cosmos)

I think you might be misunderstanding how modding works in Civilization IV.

You have a folder /Mods, and each folder therein represents a mod.
In-game, or using a Steam launch parameter, you can select which mod (one) you want to run.
Luckily, most mods have integrated things such as BUG and Blue Marble (but perhaps optimised for their own purposes, e.g. C2C and FFH2 add many different mechanics that would have an impact on the UI and thus impact BUG).

So no, you cannot download BUG, Blue Marble, and C2C, and combine all of these to make them work together.
But you can simply download C2C, which will have integrated and/or improved the versions of BUG and Blue Marble meant for vanilla Civilization IV.
If that makes sense?

 

[TheHeirofNiketas]

I think you might be misunderstanding how modding works in Civilization IV.

You have a folder /Mods, and each folder therein represents a mod.
In-game, or using a Steam launch parameter, you can select which mod (one) you want to run.
Luckily, most mods have integrated things such as BUG and Blue Marble (but perhaps optimised for their own purposes, e.g. C2C and FFH2 add many different mechanics that would have an impact on the UI and thus impact BUG).

So no, you cannot download BUG, Blue Marble, and C2C, and combine all of these to make them work together.
But you can simply download C2C, which will have integrated and/or improved the versions of BUG and Blue Marble meant for vanilla Civilization IV.
If that makes sense?

Makes sense! Thanks for the tip. Any suggestions for a vanilla plus or vanilla like modpacks that have QoL features (incl. UI) and bug fixes? Looking to knock some vanilla playthroughs before I do a total conversion.

 

[need my speed]

Makes sense! Thanks for the tip. Any suggestions for a vanilla plus or vanilla like modpacks that have QoL features (incl. UI) and bug fixes? Looking to knock some vanilla playthroughs before I do a total conversion.

That would be BUG for the interface (I am unaware of any bugs or features the AI can't use or such in Civilization IV - I mean, this is Civilization IV, not V or VI that require huge community patches and even then are left with an incompetent AI ).

I >think< - but I really don't know, I could be completely wrong! - K-Mod enhances the AI and includes a nicer interface and some fitting features that still feel vanilla? But I could honestly be completely wrong here.

 

[Set]

Advanced Civ is probably the best BTS+ mod. It focuses on small gameplay and balance changes, improved AI and incorporates BUG for better UI. Some people also like other mods like Realism Invictus, but these add a great deal of new content and YMMV on whether this is a good thing. Graphically, BAT is just BUG plus the more popular graphics mods (I personally am not a fan of all the graphics changes though). But despite liking Advanced Civ I find myself returning to the base game most often.

IMO, the real treasure of Civ 4 modding is complete conversions such as the Rhyes and Fall of Civilization mod family, including the one that comes with the game but also Sword of Islam and DoC. Sengoku and FFH (use the MNAI modmod for UI and AI improvements) are also worth playing.

 

[TheHeirofNiketas]

That would be BUG for the interface (I am unaware of any bugs or features the AI can't use or such in Civilization IV - I mean, this is Civilization IV, not V or VI that require huge community patches and even then are left with an incompetent AI ).

I >think< - but I really don't know, I could be completely wrong! - K-Mod enhances the AI and includes a nicer interface and some fitting features that still feel vanilla? But I could honestly be completely wrong here.

I have a noob question. How do I scale the UI to be bigger? It seems too small for me to read.

 

[spqkfk]

Do you make models for future units?
If then, can I request a model for drones?