American Civil War Game Club (ACWGC)

Then what is the purpose of including the OOB files in your mod packages? And with that in mind, if one player is using a stock OOB file -how can it be compatible with the OOB file included in your own package that the other player might be using?

In other words if you haven't changed any information in the OOB file, then why would it be there? My guess has always been because you wanted to use more slots for your image sets than what was allotted in the stock package. I'm more interested in the technical side of what you've done there as much as anything else.

_________________
~Retired~

The OOB's that the Banshee team include in each download have been re-written but only to change the picture(s) called out for use for each Leader & Unit image. It ONLY alters the appearance of the game and we are careful not to do anything to change any of the "technical" values. So we don't touch quality or unit/weapon type or add/remove anything fromm the OOB as originally written.
The practice of one player using a modified OOB versus another using an original OOB has no effect at all. We HAVE totally changed the OOB's (to get more images basically) BUT we haven't touched anything beyond the pictures used.

For example:

Union A Army of the Potomac
Begin
L 4 4 60 MajGen G G Meade
U 60 4 C C 78 0 Oneida N.Y. Cav
B Provost Guard
Begin
L 3 3 49 BrGen M R Patrick
U 417 4 I R 109 13 80th New York
U 265 3 I R 51 13 68th Pennsylvania
U 240 3 I R 51 13 114th Pennsylvania
U 337 5 C C 37 0 3rd Pa Cavalry
U 109 4 C C 72 0 C&D 1st Mass Cav
End

The above is a small piece of original OOB. The numbers in colour refer to the image used on the Units Bitmap in game (found in the Info folder).
Now, to change the appearance means substituting the original number with a new one (to call out another picture) like so:

Union A Army of the Potomac
Begin
L 4 4 60 MajGen G G Meade
U 60 4 C C 252 0 Oneida N.Y. Cav
B Provost Guard
Begin
L 3 3 49 BrGen M R Patrick
U 417 4 I R 240 5 80th New York
U 265 3 I R 242 5 68th Pennsylvania
U 240 3 I R 244 9 114th Pennsylvania
U 337 5 C C 254 0 3rd Pa Cavalry
U 109 4 C C 256 0 C&D 1st Mass Cav
End

Now, you'll also notice that I have changed some other numbers between original & modified? Again, this only uses a different 3D Unit picture (Bitmaps found in the Map folder) and doesn't alter the type or quality of the unit involved.
The strength, quality, unit & weapon type are the numbers and letters on the left and we do not touch those. That way the appearance is drastically altered but the game itself remains unchanged?
For all the Campaign games in the series so far, from Corinth onwards the OOB's have been "locked". That is, all the values in an OOB add up to a grand total (Checksum) and changing this number at all means that the OOB will not work and the game won't run. Whatever you do to an OOB to alter the appearance you HAVE to keep the final Checksum number the same. This is where planning and method becomes important!

I hope my (admittedly limited) explanation answers the questions you asked?

_________________
Brigadier-General Jim Wilkes.
2nd Brigade, Cavalry Division, XX Corps.
AoC. U.S.A.

For more information on the various files used by the HPS games see http://home.comcast.net/~acwco_engineering/

_________________
Gen. Ken Miller



The McKeesport Union Guard

3/1/II
Chief of Staff
AotP

I appreciate the answers- as it was something I don't think I ever found while skimming your site, and I hope your answers give anyone with reservations the information that they need to know in order to make a more informed choice.

I sort of figured that was what the answer would have to be- as I think I am playing at least one club member using your mods and I am not having any technical issues.

Wishing you guys all the best.

_________________
~Retired~