LuvToBuild
Prince
Version 0.00 - [Currently Under Construction Pre-Release WIP - Please overlook the mess
]
PREFACE
The intent of this guide is to be an addendum to Kael’s original guide for creating Civilization 5 mods. This document is not intended to replace the fine work done by Kael in his original modder’s guide. I highly recommend that all modders start with his guide as it contains a lot of useful information and insight that I do not intend to rehash in this guide. Most of the information he presents is still relevant. This guide is not intended for expert modders. Much of what is covered within this guide is information provided by those same modders in response to questions in the main Civ5 - C&C forum. It is the author’s intent to help other newbie modders who are struggling to mod Civilization 5. Some of the problems encountered are due to the fact that Kael’s mod is out of date and doesn’t cover everything. Several things have changed since the time Kael wrote his original modder’s guide. This is due to the addition of two expansion packs, as well as various Steam updates and game patches, all of which have changed the way mods have to be created in order to work properly. A new modder can become very frustrated just trying to create something as "simple" as a new civilization and leader if they are not aware of all the little things that have to be just right. The “solution” to this is to search the forum and/or ask a question. While searching the forum will sometimes provide an answer, it usually involves pouring through a lot of irrelevant posts and threads in order to find the few that are actually relevant to your common problem. It is also possible that the answer is out dated as well, which leads to even more frustration for the newbie modder. Because I have struggled with this myself as a newbie modder, I have decided to produce this addendum to the original guide by Kael in the hopes of helping other newbie modders.
Note: This guide was created with the assumption that you are creating a mod for the Brave New World expansion on a PC using the Sid Meier's Civilization 5 SDK available from Steam. If you are creating a mod for the original version of the game or just the Gods & Kings expansion, several things will be different, so proceed with caution. I will try to make special notes regarding this as we go along. If you are using a Mac, this guide might not be as helpful. You will need to seek additional help from other modders who use Macs. You can find this help in the Civ5 - Macintosh forum.
MUST HAVE REFERENCES - CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE
Kael's Modder’s Guide to Civilization 5 - The guide that started it all. Outdated but still a good read regarding the general concept of modding. Well worth the time for every newbie just starting out.
Civilization Modding Wiki - A good reference for many different aspects of modding Civilization 5. Experienced modders are encouraged to add to the wiki in order to help grow the available knowledge base.
whoward69’s [TUTORIAL] How to enable logging - An absolute must read for the newbie modder. One of the first things that you will want to do is enable logging. It is the only way to quickly troubleshoot XML syntax and parsing errors.
whoward69’s XML data files for Standard Civilizations (inc DLC) - The MyNewCiv template files used in this mod are based on the layout and file structure used by whoward69 in his template files.
whoward69’s [TUTORIAL] DDS Texture (Image File) Creation and Usage for Beginners - This thread covers many of the details and potential problems that a newbie modder will encounter when adding new icons and images to the game.
BoomerSooner76’s (Tutorial) How to add Civ Icons with Gimp 2 - A great tutorial on creating basic icons for new civilizations.
Irkalla's "Firaxis-Like" Civilization Icon Tutorial - A great tutorial for creating civilization icons that more closely match the ones produced by Firaxis.
whoward69’s [REFERENCE] File attributes/properties - Is that VFS, InGameUIAddin or UpdateDatabase? - A must have reference regarding the different settings required for different types of files. This thread helps to sort out some of the confusion regarding when to use what.
jpbar81’s New Leaders Spreadsheet
TABLE OF CONTENTS
IN THE BEGINNING - This section covers installing the SDK from Steam, downloading and installing the MyNewMod template, and preparing the template for your changes.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW CIVILIZATION - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new civilization using the MyNewCivilization.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW LEADER - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new leader using the MyNewLeader.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW TRAIT aka UNIQUE ABILITY (UA) - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new trait using the MyNewTrait.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW UNIQUE BUILDING (UB) - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new building using the MyNewBuilding.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW UNIQUE UNIT (UU) - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new unit using the MyNewUnit.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW ICON ATLAS FOR YOUR CIVILIZATION - This section provides a tutorial for using Paint.Net to create a new icon atlas. It also covers getting the icon atlas files into your mod project.

PREFACE
The intent of this guide is to be an addendum to Kael’s original guide for creating Civilization 5 mods. This document is not intended to replace the fine work done by Kael in his original modder’s guide. I highly recommend that all modders start with his guide as it contains a lot of useful information and insight that I do not intend to rehash in this guide. Most of the information he presents is still relevant. This guide is not intended for expert modders. Much of what is covered within this guide is information provided by those same modders in response to questions in the main Civ5 - C&C forum. It is the author’s intent to help other newbie modders who are struggling to mod Civilization 5. Some of the problems encountered are due to the fact that Kael’s mod is out of date and doesn’t cover everything. Several things have changed since the time Kael wrote his original modder’s guide. This is due to the addition of two expansion packs, as well as various Steam updates and game patches, all of which have changed the way mods have to be created in order to work properly. A new modder can become very frustrated just trying to create something as "simple" as a new civilization and leader if they are not aware of all the little things that have to be just right. The “solution” to this is to search the forum and/or ask a question. While searching the forum will sometimes provide an answer, it usually involves pouring through a lot of irrelevant posts and threads in order to find the few that are actually relevant to your common problem. It is also possible that the answer is out dated as well, which leads to even more frustration for the newbie modder. Because I have struggled with this myself as a newbie modder, I have decided to produce this addendum to the original guide by Kael in the hopes of helping other newbie modders.
Note: This guide was created with the assumption that you are creating a mod for the Brave New World expansion on a PC using the Sid Meier's Civilization 5 SDK available from Steam. If you are creating a mod for the original version of the game or just the Gods & Kings expansion, several things will be different, so proceed with caution. I will try to make special notes regarding this as we go along. If you are using a Mac, this guide might not be as helpful. You will need to seek additional help from other modders who use Macs. You can find this help in the Civ5 - Macintosh forum.
MUST HAVE REFERENCES - CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE
Kael's Modder’s Guide to Civilization 5 - The guide that started it all. Outdated but still a good read regarding the general concept of modding. Well worth the time for every newbie just starting out.
Civilization Modding Wiki - A good reference for many different aspects of modding Civilization 5. Experienced modders are encouraged to add to the wiki in order to help grow the available knowledge base.
whoward69’s [TUTORIAL] How to enable logging - An absolute must read for the newbie modder. One of the first things that you will want to do is enable logging. It is the only way to quickly troubleshoot XML syntax and parsing errors.
whoward69’s XML data files for Standard Civilizations (inc DLC) - The MyNewCiv template files used in this mod are based on the layout and file structure used by whoward69 in his template files.
whoward69’s [TUTORIAL] DDS Texture (Image File) Creation and Usage for Beginners - This thread covers many of the details and potential problems that a newbie modder will encounter when adding new icons and images to the game.
BoomerSooner76’s (Tutorial) How to add Civ Icons with Gimp 2 - A great tutorial on creating basic icons for new civilizations.
Irkalla's "Firaxis-Like" Civilization Icon Tutorial - A great tutorial for creating civilization icons that more closely match the ones produced by Firaxis.
whoward69’s [REFERENCE] File attributes/properties - Is that VFS, InGameUIAddin or UpdateDatabase? - A must have reference regarding the different settings required for different types of files. This thread helps to sort out some of the confusion regarding when to use what.
jpbar81’s New Leaders Spreadsheet
TABLE OF CONTENTS
IN THE BEGINNING - This section covers installing the SDK from Steam, downloading and installing the MyNewMod template, and preparing the template for your changes.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW CIVILIZATION - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new civilization using the MyNewCivilization.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW LEADER - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new leader using the MyNewLeader.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW TRAIT aka UNIQUE ABILITY (UA) - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new trait using the MyNewTrait.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW UNIQUE BUILDING (UB) - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new building using the MyNewBuilding.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW UNIQUE UNIT (UU) - This section provides a tutorial for adding a new unit using the MyNewUnit.xml template found in the MyNewMod project.
HOW TO CREATE A NEW ICON ATLAS FOR YOUR CIVILIZATION - This section provides a tutorial for using Paint.Net to create a new icon atlas. It also covers getting the icon atlas files into your mod project.