A few simple questions

I am doing some simple modding and I've encountered some things that I want to ask you all about.

1. If I change my timescale to .5 will I get seasons on the campaign map? How about on the battle map?

2. According to the descr_mercenaries.txt I get gunpowder mercenaries in the year 1400 or when gunpowder is discovered. However, it shows in the descr_events.txt that gunpowder is discovered 210 to 220 years after 1080 AD. That only puts it at 1300 AD.

Why do they make 1400 a trigger? If I change the trigger for gunpowder units in the descr_mercenaries.txt to 1150 will that trigger the discovery of gunpowder?

3. I've all but given up on changing a character name to my own. I've read deRougemont's guide but I cannot find descr_names.txt or names.txt.bin .

I seem to remember another thread as to why these files don't appear but I can't find it now. Do I need to uninstall 1.03 and go back to 1.02 to find these files? Is there a mod out there that will let me change it more easily? All I really want is to create a general with my name and he doesn't even have to be a family member and then carefully use him so that he becomes the king. Kind of like a subplot within the game. If I could make him a captain that would be great too.This is what I really want to do most of all. Honestly I could play the game forever if I could create my own family.

4. If I change my timescale to 4 will that speed up the game and therefore make editing the events and mercenaries files unnecessary? How will it affect the aging of my generals? Is it possible that events that fall within a 4 year period will not occur because that actual year never appears?
I think I've found the answer this question on another thread.

Thanks in advance!

1. No, its still summer/winter. Events happen later as well as those are year bound unless you change that too.

2. Don't know why its 1400 but if you put it at 1150 and require gunpowder discovered you won't get the unit until gunpowder is discovered and it it at least 1150. If you just put 1150, it is available before gunpowder is discovered.

3. You need to unpack those files. Actually you can just change a name at will in the txt.bin file to make it appear differently. Note that any such changes to either file may result in other characters having your name as well randomly.

4. Yes it will speed up events and anything else that is year bound but keep turn bound things the same. i.e. aging still at 0.5