ROM Hack Fire Emblem Fates: ROM Hacking General Thread

[thane98]

Actually, the correct way of having a new unit join you at the end of the chapter, like the game would normally do is, you make a spawn block for the unit you want in the dispos file, however, all 4 coordinates need to be set to FF, so, FF FF FF FF as spawn coordinates, and the spawn flags need to be 40 17.
You can look at the paralogue 1 file and notice both Kanas have a spawn block like that.

That doesn't sound too difficult to do, actually. Setting this up with the amiibo characters should be straightforward.

 

[DeathChaos]

Well, I updated the Rev buff patch to not use GameData.bin anymore, so that should make it compatible with every other hack that relies on it.

In other news, @RainThunder added some really nice python scripts to the fefates-tools repository;
https://github.com/RainThunder/fefates-tools/blob/master/gamedata_module.py
https://github.com/RainThunder/fefates-tools/blob/master/gamedata.py

I feel like this flew under the radar considering how big and useful this is, since it allows us to add stuff like new chapters to the game seamlessly.

Now this won't account for stuff like map data, dispos file, the cmb script, the person file, etc, but editing GameData is probably at least the second "hardest" part considering how easy it is for a small mistake to cause a crash.

 

[thane98]

Well, I updated the Rev buff patch to not use GameData.bin anymore, so that should make it compatible with every other hack that relies on it.

In other news, @RainThunder added some really nice python scripts to the fefates-tools repository;
https://github.com/RainThunder/fefates-tools/blob/master/gamedata_module.py
https://github.com/RainThunder/fefates-tools/blob/master/gamedata.py

I feel like this flew under the radar considering how big and useful this is, since it allows us to add stuff like new chapters to the game seamlessly.

Now this won't account for stuff like map data, dispos file, the cmb script, the person file, etc, but editing GameData is probably at least the second "hardest" part considering how easy it is for a small mistake to cause a crash.

The best part is that he didn't just create something for editing the GameData file, he actually created a library for editing any .bin file in Fates. You could write a script for editing just about any of the .bin files as long as you know the format.

 

[Dylos]

Well, I updated the Rev buff patch to not use GameData.bin anymore, so that should make it compatible with every other hack that relies on it.

In other news, @RainThunder added some really nice python scripts to the fefates-tools repository;
https://github.com/RainThunder/fefates-tools/blob/master/gamedata_module.py
https://github.com/RainThunder/fefates-tools/blob/master/gamedata.py

I feel like this flew under the radar considering how big and useful this is, since it allows us to add stuff like new chapters to the game seamlessly.

Now this won't account for stuff like map data, dispos file, the cmb script, the person file, etc, but editing GameData is probably at least the second "hardest" part considering how easy it is for a small mistake to cause a crash.

That looks like something that can be used to convert the Custom DLC characters to being innately in the game, allowing them to have S rank supports.

Also, would the Rev Buff patch work with thane's randomizer?

 

[thane98]

That looks like something that can be used to convert the Custom DLC characters to being innately in the game, allowing them to have S rank supports.

Also, would the Rev Buff patch work with thane's randomizer?

The randomizer doesn't use the handover files like it should right now, so the effects of the patch wouldn't be seen in most cases. Everything would randomize correctly, but the patch would have less of an effect than it would on a normal game.

 

[EmblemCrossing]

That looks like something that can be used to convert the Custom DLC characters to being innately in the game, allowing them to have S rank supports.

Also, would the Rev Buff patch work with thane's randomizer?

S rank supports you say? Time to write.

I was actually going to ask if any progress has been made on that front.

 

[Dylos]

S rank supports you say? Time to write.

I was actually going to ask if any progress has been made on that front.

Not only that, it allows the ability to create custom children characters for some of the women, complete with their own prologues.

 

[EmblemCrossing]

Not only that, it allows the ability to create custom children characters for some of the women, complete with their own prologues.

You mean I can add a daughter for my OC? Oh boy. This is complicated.

I edited this like three times before getting it right..

 

[Dylos]

You mean I can add a daughter for my OC? Oh boy. This is complicated.

I edited this like three times before getting it right..

Yes, that is exactly what I mean, and I believe I'm going to attempt to make a random child just to see how difficult it would be (probably have Felicia or Mozu as the mother just for quick testing) assuming I can figure everything out.

 

[thane98]

Not only that, it allows the ability to create custom children characters for some of the women, complete with their own prologues.

If you want to go as far as building custom maps I'd also recommend taking a look at the dispo editing tool that @TildeHat released yesterday.

 

[EmblemCrossing]

Yes, that is exactly what I mean, and I believe I'm going to attempt to make a random child just to see how difficult it would be (probably have Felicia or Mozu as the mother just for quick testing) assuming I can figure everything out.

I already wrote out my plans for a child unit of my OC, and earlier today was like "huh.. I wonder if it would be possible to tie a new character/prologue to the game. I mean, we know how custom characters work, and we sorta understand custom maps.."

 

[GreekDudeYiannis]

Hello there! It's my first time really digging through this thread and I was wondering: Is it possible to edit a class heavily? I know we can add in new textures, but is there a way to switch one series of animations for another, and allow access for different weapons? I want to edit the Tactician class since I'll never be using it and turn it into a Valla Noble sort of thing (unless someone has already done that).

 

[Omegablu]

Hello there! It's my first time really digging through this thread and I was wondering: Is it possible to edit a class heavily? I know we can add in new textures, but is there a way to switch one series of animations for another, and allow access for different weapons? I want to edit the Tactician class since I'll never be using it and turn it into a Valla Noble sort of thing (unless someone has already done that).

Yes. There was a script that could do that for you a couple of posts up.

 

[Omegablu]

For those of you who are interested, I forked RainThunder's Nightmare modules and started modifying some of them to work with dedicated files like the ones in the Person, Class and Item folders instead of GameData. I'm not finished, but feel free to try them out if you know what you are doing.
https://github.com/Omegablu/fefates-tools

 

[GreekDudeYiannis]

Classes are a bit odd because you're basically limited to the files already in the game. I've made a working manakete class though I'm not satisfied with it at this point and I haven't released it yet.

There are no tutorials on making the custom dlc at this point in time.

Hey Dylos, I'm not sure how to PM you on this site, but would you mind telling me how you did this? I want to create a Valla Noble class, and while I'm grasping that the way to do it is to replace pre-existing features within the game, I'm not entirely sure where to begin.

 

[Dylos]

Hey Dylos, I'm not sure how to PM you on this site, but would you mind telling me how you did this? I want to create a Valla Noble class, and while I'm grasping that the way to do it is to replace pre-existing features within the game, I'm not entirely sure where to begin.

You can use the python script in RainThunder's FEtools to extend the class list to have an additional class, then you can use the nightmare modules to make that class do things. You'll need to then have other files so that the game knows what the class is and how to create it's model, a lot of the information you'll need is in the OP of this thread.

 

[GreekDudeYiannis]

You can use the python script in RainThunder's FEtools to extend the class list to have an additional class, then you can use the nightmare modules to make that class do things. You'll need to then have other files so that the game knows what the class is and how to create it's model, a lot of the information you'll need is in the OP of this thread.

Thank you very much, good sir.

 

[Dylos]

I got the following error when trying to use the gamedata_module.py I'm pretty sure I inserted the right command and I'm using python 2.7.13

gamedata_module.py:116: Warning: 'with' will become a reserved keyword in Python 2.6
  File "gamedata_module.py", line 116
  with open(os.path.join(data_type, data_type + '.nmm'), 'r+') as file:
  ^
SyntaxError: invalid syntax

 

[thane98]

Well, there's been a lot of news concerning tools recently, so I might as well show off some utilities that I've been working on.

First up, I've started creating a modified version of Nightmare for use with @RainThunder's tools (including the scripts for adding to GameData). The interface offers quick options for opening modules without going through file dialogues which makes for quick editing. Additionally, you can add new characters/classes/etc. directly through the editor. Holistically, these features allow you to add new entries to GameData.bin and configure them without the need for a hex editor or multiple utilities. Between now and release I plan to add in a couple quality of life changes to fix some of the things that annoyed me about Nightmare as well as a section for editing handover files. I might try and add in editors for other .bin files using the library provided with the nightmare modules, though that might need to wait until I'm done with some other projects.

Next up is Fates Map Editor for dispo file editing. This tool isn't quite as useful now that we have tools for turning dispo files into plain text, but it still has some things to offer. With it, you can view and edit map spawns from a grid so that you can see where units are relative to each other. You can move spawns around by simply selecting them from the list and clicking on where you want them to go on the grid. Additionally, you can drag in terrain files to see where units are located on the tile map. The editor also offers features like cloning spawns to make building new map spawns as quick as possible. I don't really no when this will be ready for release as I might try and build a version for editing the text files from fe14dispotools instead of directly editing the dispo files.

Finally we've got Fates Script, an editor for .cmb files in Fire Emblem Fates. I showed a .NET version of this tool way earlier on in this thread, but this version has been completely rebuilt from the ground up. With the editor, you can decompile .cmb files to a text format which makes it easy to add in new events like battle conversations, cutscenes, or terrain effects without the need to rebuild events in a hex editor. This version improves on the original by offering a cleaner interface with support for things like editing multiple scripts at once and highlighting keywords. The new code for compiling and decompiling is also significantly improved. In fact, map scripts recompiled through the current rendition are actually completely identical to the originals! I have a bit more testing to do with this program to ensure that everything is ready to go before I release it. I also plan on releasing a small set of tutorials along with the editor to show you how to create basic events like a conversation between two units.

I don't know when I all of these will be ready to go, but it shouldn't be too long. Fates Script and the modified version of Nightmare are pretty close to a release state, but the map editor needs some work. I plan to start hosting all of my utilities in a single thread to avoid spamming the forums with a bunch of different threads.

I'm open to suggestions about features if anyone has something they'd like to see added to these tools before release.

 

[EmblemCrossing]

Well, there's been a lot of news concerning tools recently, so I might as well show off some utilities that I've been working on.

First up, I've started creating a modified version of Nightmare for use with @RainThunder's tools (including the scripts for adding to GameData). The interface offers quick options for opening modules without going through file dialogues which makes for quick editing. Additionally, you can add new characters/classes/etc. directly through the editor. Holistically, these features allow you to add new entries to GameData.bin and configure them without the need for a hex editor or multiple utilities. Between now and release I plan to add in a couple quality of life changes to fix some of the things that annoyed me about Nightmare as well as a section for editing handover files. I might try and add in editors for other .bin files using the library provided with the nightmare modules, though that might need to wait until I'm done with some other projects.

Next up is Fates Map Editor for dispo file editing. This tool isn't quite as useful now that we have tools for turning dispo files into plain text, but it still has some things to offer. With it, you can view and edit map spawns from a grid so that you can see where units are relative to each other. You can move spawns around by simply selecting them from the list and clicking on where you want them to go on the grid. Additionally, you can drag in terrain files to see where units are located on the tile map. The editor also offers features like cloning spawns to make building new map spawns as quick as possible. I don't really no when this will be ready for release as I might try and build a version for editing the text files from fe14dispotools instead of directly editing the dispo files.

Finally we've got Fates Script, an editor for .cmb files in Fire Emblem Fates. I showed an earlier version of this tool way earlier on in this thread, but this version has been completely rebuilt from the ground up. With the editor, you can decompile .cmb files to a text format which makes it easy to add in new events like battle conversations, cutscenes, or terrain effects without the need to rebuild events in a hex editor. This version improves on the original by offering a cleaner interface with support for things like editing multiple scripts at once and highlighting keywords. The new code for compiling and decompiling is also significantly improved. In fact, map scripts recompiled through the current rendition are actually completely identical to the originals! I have a bit more testing to do with this program to ensure that everything is ready to go before I release it. I also plan on releasing a small set of tutorials along with the editor to show you how to create basic events like a conversation between two units.

I don't know when I all of these will be ready to go, but it shouldn't be too long. Fates Script and the modified version of Nightmare are pretty close to a release state, but the map editor needs some work. I plan to start hosting all of my utilities in a single thread to avoid spamming the forums with a bunch of different threads.

I'm open to suggestions about features if anyone has something they'd like to see added to these tools before release.

So this modified nightmare could essentially make it easy to test custom DLC characters without compiling them as a CIA everytime?