TosaInu,
Scott's information has indeed been removed from the web.
I have emailed him and asked for help

It is beginning to look like the text files are a blind alley.
And hard coding is the problem.

I have not yet disassembled the executable to check this thoroughly,
even if i did it would take me a loooong time to decifer - i am not a hard core programmer, just a 'dabbler'.

I have, however, 'watched' the shogun executable initialise, it loads the SamS bif at least twice,and performs a number of seek and reads on the file.
I assume once each for SamS, Nags and Ashi-X.

Shogun is a very messy executable
- it also attempts to load huge (and i mean HUGE!!!) number of files that are NOT included with the release!
(explains the looong load time)
(at least the developers were smart in allowing shogun to ignore load errors)

Perhaps if i could source a pre-release version - ah well...it is to dream!

Anyway, I need to know what the index is inside the bif file, and how shogun calls the index- what does shogun use it for?
what are the first 2 digits in each line of the text file, and so on and so forth
- complicated it is, hmm?

hard coded problems are a big nuisance for me, I really need the help of a C++ expert for this, given time i will sort it out for myself, by time i mean eons... LOL

Sadly it may require 'patching' the executable to look at the nag file's in the nag folders - something that would take a lot of experimentation - unless target is still around and willing to help...

I also understand that part of the reason for using the same sprites for multiple units has to do with memory limits, but perhaps if shoggy was not wasting time trying to load useless non-existant files,
AND did not load the entire unit set during initialiseation, but rather only when required by the units selected for a given game...
Dreaming again I know...

So far we HAVE replaced the constipated clown during army select, training in campaign and unit cards in battle
- all we are left to do is figure out how to successfully replace the men on the battlefield...

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DoragonBarocca of Clan Doragon

[This message has been edited by barocca (edited 06-11-2002).]