Modding Raceconfigh.xml

Creating a new race

Hello everybody,

I hope somebody can help me out here. I have taken WAY too much time to create a new race.... I have made new techs, new weapons, new improvements, and an entire tech tree in Open Office. I would really really like to take this race to the next level and put them into the race config file. I tried doing it the way I have done all my other mods by editing the file in Notepad, and copying it to the mods folder but the game crashes as soon as it tries to load the races screen. I thought it might be the graphics so I went through and changed all those to match my custom race data but no go. So I went and replaced the section of the raceconfig file for the Korath... and still the game crashed. I did make sure my race had the same id number as the Korath as well. Still crashes.

My question is how do I make my custom race available in the premade race list? Oh and if its not too much trouble I'd like to put my tech tree onto a proper GCII background that I can save.

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MarvinKosh

Join Date 08/2005

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Here's an example you can use.

Note that you do not have to edit raceconfig.xml to add custom races. You can save them like this one in the Data\CustomRaces folder of your current mod folder, as an XML file (not raceconfigxml extension).

Initially your custom race may not be available for the human player to load in at the custom race creation screen, until they are customised on the opponent screen. The game has to generate a raceconfigxml file (basically a working copy of the race definition in the XML file) for you to do that.

All custom races should take RaceID 12.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1" standalone="yes"?>
<Races>
   <DataChecksum NoParse="1">
       <Ignore>FileID,DisplayName,Description,Homeworld,Homestar,RaceLeader,ShortEmpireName,Portrait,DefaultTradePortrait,DefaultTradeMovie,FriendlyTradeMovie,UnfriendlyTradeMovie,UnitedPlanetsMovie,Logo,SmallLogo,RaceColor,ShadowColor,UndefendedStarColor,DefendedStarColor,SectorColor,BaseColor,TrimColor,EngineColor,InterfaceColor,ShipStyle,ModuleStyle</Ignore>
   </DataChecksum>
   <Race Name="Zylon Empire">
       <ConfigVersion>27</ConfigVersion>
       <RaceID>12</RaceID>
       <CivType>4</CivType>
       <DisplayName>Zylon Empire</DisplayName>
       <Alignment>25</Alignment>
       <ShortEmpireName>Zylon</ShortEmpireName>
       <RaceLeader>JX-1014</RaceLeader>
       <Homeworld>Procyon</Homeworld>
       <Homestar>Custom Star</Homestar>
       <GeneratedDescription>0</GeneratedDescription>
       <Description>The evil Zylons rose to power by annihilating their organic creators with nuclear weapons. Typically they attack with seemingly-endless waves of ships.</Description>
       <AIPersonality>8</AIPersonality>
       <DialogueTag>Zylon</DialogueTag>
       <Portrait>Gfx\Race\RaceImageT6.png</Portrait>
       <DefaultTradePortrait>Gfx\Race\RaceImageT6_Trade.png</DefaultTradePortrait>
       <DefaultTradeMovie>RaceImageT6_neutral.bik</DefaultTradeMovie>
       <FriendlyTradeMovie>RaceImageT6_happy.bik</FriendlyTradeMovie>
       <UnfriendlyTradeMovie>RaceImageT6_angry.bik</UnfriendlyTradeMovie>
       <UnitedPlanetsMovie>RaceImageT6_Small.bik</UnitedPlanetsMovie>
       <RobotMovie>NewsRobot_Alien</RobotMovie>
       <RobotImage>gfx\Message_Alien</RobotImage>
       <RaceMusic>Race05</RaceMusic>
       <Logo>D:\GalCiv2\Gfx\Race\RaceLogo53.png</Logo>
       <PoliticalParty>2</PoliticalParty>
       <RaceColor>255,206,0,255</RaceColor>
       <ShadowColor>41,0,0,255</ShadowColor>
       <UndefendedStarColor>255,255,0,255</UndefendedStarColor>
       <DefendedStarColor>255,255,0,255</DefendedStarColor>
       <SectorColor>255,206,0,255</SectorColor>
       <BaseColor>185,163,100,255</BaseColor>
       <TrimColor>57,0,0,255</TrimColor>
       <EngineColor>255,121,0,255</EngineColor>
       <InterfaceColor>255,255,0,255</InterfaceColor>
       <ShipStyle>Zylon Style</ShipStyle>
       <ModuleStyle>0</ModuleStyle>
       <TechTree>Zylon_TechTree</TechTree>
       <Tech>HyperDrive</Tech>
       <Tech>StellarCartography</Tech>
       <Tech>Plague Cure</Tech>
       <Tech>Disease Cure</Tech>
       <Tech>FusionReactors</Tech>
       <Tech>Cybernetic History</Tech>
       <AIAbilities>100</AIAbilities>
       <Aggression>75</Aggression>
       <FinancialResources>100</FinancialResources>
       <CPUUsage>100</CPUUsage>
       <AbilitiesDescription>
+ Strong manufacturing
+ Ground combat
- Weak diplomacy</AbilitiesDescription>
       <SuperAbility>3</SuperAbility>
       <ResearchAdvantage>Industry</ResearchAdvantage>
       <ECONOMICS>10</ECONOMICS>
       <Ability0>0</Ability0>
       <WEAPONS>0</WEAPONS>
       <Ability1>0</Ability1>
       <DEFENSE>0</DEFENSE>
       <Ability2>0</Ability2>
       <SPEED>0</SPEED>
       <Ability3>10</Ability3>
       <MORALE>0</MORALE>
       <Ability4>20</Ability4>
       <POPULATIONGROWTH>0</POPULATIONGROWTH>
       <Ability5>0</Ability5>
       <SOCIALPRODUCTION>0</SOCIALPRODUCTION>
       <Ability6>0</Ability6>
       <MILITARYPRODUCTION>40</MILITARYPRODUCTION>
       <Ability7>0</Ability7>
       <RESEARCH>0</RESEARCH>
       <Ability8>10</Ability8>
       <INFLUENCE>0</INFLUENCE>
       <Ability9>0</Ability9>
       <TRADE>0</TRADE>
       <Ability10>0</Ability10>
       <DIPLOMACY>-10</DIPLOMACY>
       <Ability11>0</Ability11>
       <HITPOINTS>10</HITPOINTS>
       <Ability12>0</Ability12>
       <REPAIR>0</REPAIR>
       <Ability13>0</Ability13>
       <SENSORS>0</SENSORS>
       <Ability14>0</Ability14>
       <ESPIONAGE>0</ESPIONAGE>
       <Ability15>0</Ability15>
       <SOLDIERING>30</SOLDIERING>
       <Ability16>0</Ability16>
       <INTERESTRATES>0</INTERESTRATES>
       <Ability17>0</Ability17>
       <PLANETQUALITY>0</PLANETQUALITY>
       <Ability18>0</Ability18>
       <TRADEROUTES>0</TRADEROUTES>
       <Ability19>0</Ability19>
       <CRIME>0</CRIME>
       <Ability20>0</Ability20>
       <CABINET>0</CABINET>
       <Ability21>0</Ability21>
       <RANGE>40</RANGE>
       <Ability22>0</Ability22>
       <LUCK>0</LUCK>
       <Ability23>0</Ability23>
       <COURAGE>0</COURAGE>
       <Ability24>0</Ability24>
       <CREATIVITY>0</CREATIVITY>
       <Ability25>0</Ability25>
       <GOVERNMENT>0</GOVERNMENT>
       <Ability26>0</Ability26>
       <LOYALTY>60</LOYALTY>
       <Ability27>0</Ability27>
       <LOGISTICS>6</LOGISTICS>
       <Ability28>0</Ability28>
       <MINIATURIZATION>10</MINIATURIZATION>
       <Ability29>0</Ability29>
       <HOMEPLANETQUALITY>0</HOMEPLANETQUALITY>
       <Ability30>0</Ability30>
       <COLONIZEHEAVYGRAVITY>0</COLONIZEHEAVYGRAVITY>
       <Ability31>0</Ability31>
       <COLONIZEWATERWORLD>0</COLONIZEWATERWORLD>
       <Ability32>0</Ability32>
       <COLONIZETOXIC>0</COLONIZETOXIC>
       <Ability33>0</Ability33>
       <COLONIZEBARREN>0</COLONIZEBARREN>
       <Ability34>0</Ability34>
       <COLONIZERADIOACTIVE>0</COLONIZERADIOACTIVE>
       <Ability35>0</Ability35>
       <WARPROFITEERING>0</WARPROFITEERING>
       <Ability36>0</Ability36>
       <PERSISTENTTRADEROUTES>0</PERSISTENTTRADEROUTES>
       <Ability37>0</Ability37>
   </Race>
</Races>

Racial tech trees: Data\TechTrees

Ship components: Data\ShipComponents or Data\

Improvements: Data\

Assuming that everything is situated where the game can read it, the tech tree is the first thing to look at. It needs to have its own internal name (this is defined very close to the top of the file, it should be easy to spot) and technologies cannot have a circular dependency ( A -> C -> B -> A) or the game will crash.

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