using bi-exe

[tigger_t]

how can i use rtw-bi exe with alexander total war?

[Roman_Man#3]

Why do you want to? I believe the Alexander exe is the same as BI, or better.

[tigger_t]

to enable swimming, night battles and the wall shield(not to replace phalanx) and i've heard some people on these forums say it improves the ai alittle. when i try i get the model battle text is maxxed out err.

[Roman_Man#3]

Unless I am wrong, Alexander has all those things. It is an advancement on the BI exe. just as Bi was an advancement on the RTW exe.

[tigger_t]

if thats the case how did you enable swimming and shield wall. i already know how to enable night battles. damn i just wasted $20 on bi

[wlesmana]

You cannot use shield wall, swimming, horde, etc, with Alexander. BI's features are strictly BI's. Alexander instead has its own features: custom general's strat and battle models and portraits, and increased limit in DMB. I don't know what is the limit in DMB for Alexander but I know for a fact it is over 300 (my mod's DMB has 302 entries currently).

So if you want to use BI's exe in Alexander, you'll have to clean up the DMB first and bring it down to under 250 entries. Then you just run the exe with the mod:alexander line and you should be able to use BI's features. Note, however, that Alexander's features like Alexander having unique strat and battle models would be ignored by BI's exe. You may also have to modify descr_strat.txt as the faction_do_not_attack feature is not recognizable and must be ommitted.

[tigger_t]

thanks. that sucks. damn ca

[Roman_Man#3]

But wouldn't it be possible to make an animation for something like shield wall or swimming?

[Makanyane]

I suspect I'm going to regret posting this without checking evidence first but isn't it case that swimming and shield wall can be done in RTW 1.5 ( though hording definitely can't )

wlesmana, have you tested those in alex?

[tigger_t]

yeah but i think you have to use bi-exe to do it in rome 1.5

[Makanyane]

if you use bi.exe you can use hording in RTW 1.5 and everything else, but I thought some other battle things you could activate anyway - if it's critical I'll try and check but if you're happy with alex functions there may not be much point..

[tigger_t]

am happy with alx-exe funtions, but recruiting generals would make a great addition to alexander or any mod really and swimming, wall shield plus hordes would be great, so i could really add onto the barb's in the game. i tried adding swimming and the wall shield the game doen't crash just doen't add them in. i know you can add recruitable generals without the bi-exe. i just don't know how.

[wlesmana]

Yes, I have tested this.
It's simple to test really: just add swimming or shield_wall in Alexander's EDU or 1.5's.
To test Alexander's features: just use 1.5 or BI exe with alexander as the mod folder. It will CTD because of the DMB max. If you used the unique models in 1.5 or BI exe, they will be ignored.

As for shield wall in 1.5, some clever modders managed to replicate this in non-BI by changing the Loose Formation into Shield Wall (the sound is even provided) by making the soldiers gather up closer and then also hitting Guard mode. I doubt the AI could use this well (they didn't in my mod beta based on RTW 1.2) but the appearance is pretty similar but not the effect.

[lt1956]

Yah, I was the one that came up with that Idea for SPQR. The one sad thing is I couldnt give it the bonus that BI gives. But it DOES make a difference in that the more dense formation lasts longer on holding an enemy back that is charging.

Night battles are also possible in 1.5 as well as recruitable general, numbered legions. though IMO numbered Legions using the game engine Slows the campaign down like a hardcoded script in the background keeping count.

What I DID was to just make NEW first cohorts with names and numbers, then add a resource that recruits them in certain provinces. Otehr modders have done the same with Great results.

The AI in BI, Alexander is NO BETTER than 1.5 IMO. And the AI still doesnt do invasions often if at all. :-(

The reason CA added swimming was the birdge battles are bugged, and IMO thats the only REAL reason why they added that feature so bridges couldnt be held by the player like in RTW causing severe lag.

As to Hording that would be a good feature with the barbarians, and more important is dead factions coming back, which is only in BI.exe, to get around this some modders including myself, made a small island in the corner somewhere for Roman Rebels so then when a City or Army revolts it will go to the faction of choice. In BI you didnt have to worry about this.

Loyalty works in 1.5 as well as Religion I believe, though I havent tried that.

Hope this helps.

To sum it up I see no need for BI.exe use since most of what it adds is available in 1.5

Lt

[tigger_t]

how to you add recruitable generals in 1.5?

[wlesmana]

Any unit that has the general_unit trait in EDU and named in EDB as recruitable is a recruitable general.

[Ciaran]

What a horrible mess

An "All-in-One" respectively "one-for-all" exe would have been nice, Hordes, working Senate missions and unique characters...

[tigger_t]

(Any unit that has the general_unit trait in EDU and named in EDB as recruitable is a recruitable general.)


thanks!