Getting VanillaMod to work

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Having trouble starting the mod on my new PC (Vista, M2TW v. 1.0) ...

I believe I did the instructions, but when I try start VM:
1) click batch file
2) pressed "Run" in 'Open File - Security warning' window
2)The small black window appears, normal (the ...system32/cmd...)
3)Screen turns black, but then returns to desktop (encountered unspecified error and will now exit)
tried deleting all files in VanillaMod then retrying everything

I believe others were able to make it work for Vista*sigh*


A. Download VanillaMod (currently 0.93)
B. Download the hotfix (0.93b, which also includes 0.93a so you don't need to download that)
C. In the directory where your MIITW is located, create a new folder called VanillaMod
D. Unzip the download of VanillaMod, sending the files to that new folder you just created rather than whatever default your unzipping program uses.
E. Unzip the download of the hotfix into that new folder, saying "Yes" to overwrite existing files.
<all check>

1. Find your medieval2.preferences.cfg, which should be in the main MIITW file <check>
2. Make a copy of the file in another folder, such as the VanillaMod folder you just made <check, I ignored the VanillaMod.cfg that was extracted from the zip folder>
3. Rename the copy VanillaMod.cfg <check>
4. Open VanillaMod.cfg in NotePad <check, I assume this is the one in #3>
5. Add the following to the top of the file:
[features]
mod=VanillaMod <check>
6. Save the file and close it <check>
7. Move the file back to where you copied it out from <check, cut and paste to main M2TW folder>
8. Run the mod using VanillaMod.bat (has to be in the same folder as VanillaMod.cfg) that is included in the archive <check, copied the batch file from w/in the VanillaMod folder to the main M2TW folder>
9. Alternatively you can make a shortcut to VanillaMod.bat (which should be in the same folder as VanillaMod.cfg) and then place the shortcut (not the bat file) on your desktop for easy access