Hardpoints

If you mean the red arrows that you attach items to in the ship designer (rather than the capacities that some also refer to mistakenly as hardpoints lately), those can't really be added in so simply. They're actually part of the models and can only be added in a 3d modelling program (the models used to be in a readable format, but they're no longer manually-moddable).

Nope, I mean the amount of weapons/modules one can fit to a model. I assumed it was the line that says "size" since, for example, a Tiny hull size is 16 (as in I can fit 16 points of weaponary, defence and/or engines). So I changed it to 26 as a test but upon starting a new game the size of a tiny hull was still 16. In order to create new hull sizes, I need to be able to change the size of the hull.

Does this make more sense?

If you changed the timy hull for, say, the Terran ship style, but were playing with the Drengin ship style, your change would not have shown up for you.

You can alter the available hull size by modding your miniaturization, or by changing the sizes of particular hulls. But you have to make sure that you are using the style of hull that you mod if you mod the hull size directly.

The actual hardpoints, which as Kryo said are the red arrows on the hulls for attaching components, can be increased in number with Kryo's Hull System Mod.

In case you're wondering, the Terran style ships are the ones using the S0_ prefix, while the Drengin ship style uses the prefix S3_.
S99_ is the prefix for a hull that is available to all races.

Have you read CariElf's modding guide?
WWW Link

It is a great help to new modders.

Ah, that's probably why although I thought it was S0 I modded but I'll check later, thanks  

In that case you were doing the right thing. Though there are three or four entries for tiny hulls in GC2Types.xml, so if you only changed one, you probably looked at the others when you got in-game.

If you simply want to increase sizes across the board, you can also just give your race a natural miniaturization bonus in the .customracexml or .raceconfig (depending if you're playing Da or DL) file in the game's folder under My Documents\My Games.

I don't want to unbalance the game, I just want to introduce new hull sizes for my own personal pleasure (I'm not a "professional" modder). So what are the other entries I have to use, please? I can't find anything in the tutorials that covers this specific type of modification.

All of the hull definitions are in GC2Types.xml. Adding new ones (so long as you're not also looking to add new models) is basically just a matter of copying an existing hull entry there and changing values as you like. If you scroll up a bit in the page that Moosetek linked above, you'll find the section there about hulls and other components.

That's the point mate, I did. I read that tutorial before attempting to mod and it doesn't cover Hull Sizes. He skips over that part of the tutorial on hulls so that guide doesn't really help me on this issue. Nor do any of the others I've seen.

Now I have tried creating a new hull which doesn't show in game, even when I change the required tech two that of a tiny hull, start a new game and research the relevent tech. I also tried to increase an existing hull size but that doesn't work either. No other files I can find relate to hull sizes, neither do any other lines in GC2Types.xml.

So, what am I doing wrong, please?

If it wasn't working, then post the xml of your addition here and we can have a look (search and replace all < with &lt; first so the forum doesn't eat it).

The modding guide does cover hull entries, though. It's the third part under Ship Components.

N.B. The values are test values only for the purposes of trying to get it to work.

* I thought this might be the problem so changed it to Tiny but that didn't work either.

As you can see, it's just a copy/paste of a Huge Hull with a basic tech level so it should in theroy appear at the begining of the game (again for testing purposes).

Sorry, dunno why it's all multicolored...

Looks like you lost the </ off the description closing tag.

Hm, I'll check that out but it still doesn't explain why simply modifying the size on existing hulls doesn't work...

Try keeping the 'Category' as Huge.

There are a limited number of tabs available for the hull types. 'SuperHuge' simply may not fit, especially so if you have not also created a tech to go along with it (in which case you will never have the required tech to let the hull show up).

And if you do make a SuperHuge hull tech, it will remove another hull size if it does show up.
And don't forget, in your new game you will have to have SuperHuge hulls researched before any SuperHuge hulls will show up ingame.

Better to leave it at Huge.


You can't just go at it adhock - if you introduce a new hull category, you also have to create the tech in TechTree.xml to go along with it. Then you either have to research it, or give it to yourself.
If you want to see it immediately, you will have t give it to yourself.

I did. I know it's gone somewhat pearshaped but if you take the time to copy/paste my xml into a text editor, and cross reference against my n.b., you'll see I tried Huge and Tiny because I thought that might be a problem. It didn't work.

I must be doing something wrong and I'm at a loss to know what. Take for example the suggestion above to give my race a natural miniturization. Whilst I don't want to unbalance things, I tried this anyway and it did not work. I tried shrinking weapon sizes as another test and that did not work. I've followed things in the modding guide/s and they do not work.

Would the fact I own Gal Civ 2 Gold addition have anything to do with it?

If you're editing DL's GC2Types and playing DA, or vice-versa, yes. The actual modding is pretty much identical but you do need to be changing the right file for the game you're playing!