Command & Conquer Gold v1.06c
Revision 3
Created by Nyerguds <nyerguds@gmail.com>
Release date: April 5, 2012
http://nyerguds.arsaneus-design.com/cnc95upd/cc95p106/
This patch will update Command & Conquer Gold to version 1.06c revision 3. This version includes several program bug fixes, graphics updates, mission fixes and new features, like higher resolutions, an expandable language system, and lots of new options for making missions and mods.
This is not an official patch. It is created by Nyerguds, who is not responsible if this patch somehow manages to ruin your game, eat your hard disk or cause martians to land in your back yard.
This file is getting way too big, so this should help you find your way around:
Table of contents:
1. What's new in 1.06c revision 3:
The new changes of patch 1.06c revision 3:
- A bug has been fixed that messed up the start locations detection in multiplayer maps for languages other than English
- A bug preventing mods from loading their own custom music, rules.ini and mouse cursor files has been fixed
- Added SkirmishPlayers=[1-5] key in conquer.ini, and as option in CCConfig under "Multiplayer".
- Fixed the option to enable or disable the special credits music
- The last frame of the SSM Launcher's turret graphics without missiles is now coloured to house colour correctly.
The most important older changes of patch 1.06c:
- The game now correctly supports maps for less than 6 players.
- The game can run in any resolution now, without restriction to the inbuilt 640x400 / 640x480 / 1024x768 modes
- Added a new setup tool (CCConfig.exe), with integrated options for CnC-DDraw's advanced settings and windowed mode support
- Videos, score screens, mission selection screens etc no longer have black lines in them, and can be stretched to fullscreen in hi-res using CnC-DDraw
- A new language system allows people to make their own language addons
- The original Japanese language from console versions (unit and EVA speech only, no text)
- The dinosaur campaigns no longer need Funpark mode; they are added as two single items (one for GDI, one for Nod) in the New Missions list
- The New Missions menu will now list missions with numbers up to 999 instead of 99
- The Multiplayer maps will now list maps with numbers up to 255 instead of 99
- The SAM site now has a sound when firing its rockets
- The Advanced Communications Center is no longer capturable internally, since it caused it to be capturable in multiplayer games and by the AI
- A load of custom mission options have been added, including mission-specific radar logos, side colours and building capturability
Older upgrades in 1.06a/1.06b:
- The original unused Nod-specific map and score screen music is added to the game
- The Red Alert 1 snow theater has been added for mission making
- The unique missions from the Playstation and Nintendo 64 versions of C&C are added to the game
- No-CD controls are added to the conquer.ini configuration file
- The game starts with a different theme in every mission
- High resolution available through the config tool
- Covert Operations added, and playable with any C&C CD
- Up to 6-player LAN available
- Dinosaurs are no longer invisible outside the special 'Funpark' game mode
- Skirmish play available by starting a LAN game without human players but with AI players enabled
- The ability to easily choose one of four LAN game modes by clicking on the "Bases" button
- Missing team 0 bug fixed: all teams from 0 to 9 can be assigned and used now, like it was in DOS C&C
2. Known bugs:
- The game has some minor problems with missions that are smaller than the game resolution. This will cause some graphical errors.
- When playing in any resolution higher than 640x400, you can't place buildings with a placement height of only one cell on the lowest row of cells on the map.
3. FAQ:
Q: Does this work on The First Decade / The Ultimate Collection?
A: Yes, it does. It works on all PC versions of C&C95. That includes The First Decade, The Ultimate Collection, the C&C95 ISOs which EA has released and the original CDs. When the patch is installed on a First Decade or Ultimate Collection installation, it will automatically enable the game's ini-controlled no-CD mode.
Q: Do I need the music upgrade pack from the website?
A: It depends. If you have The First Decade or downloaded the full game pack of C&C95 v1.06b or v1.06c, then you definitely don't need it. If you have the Covert Operations, you can just copy "scores.mix" from the Covert Operations CD to your game directory to get the same effect. If you have none of those, then yes, it's advised to download the pack, since it will add a vast amount of music and remixes which were made for the game but were never enabled before.
Q: After installing the patch, I don't get videos anymore!
A: This means you enabled the No-CD mode when installing the patch. Which is a pretty stupid thing to do if you want to keep seeing videos, since those happen to be on the CDs. You can disable the No-CD mode in the setup tool, or download the videos pack from the website.
Q: The high resolution doesn't work correctly! When I start the first GDI mission, the map is simply put in a small box with black around it.
A: Increasing the game resolution does not magically make the missions bigger. The first campaign missions are simply smaller than the high resolution. This gives a few odd graphical bugs, but if you just touch the side of the screen with your mouse cursor, and then open and close the main menu, most of these errors will disappear. Since C&C missions get bigger as you progress through the campaign, these problems will be completely gone after mission #3.
Q: I see the whole playing field twice in the first mission! why does this happen?
A: See the previous question.
Q: I don't like the high resolution... is it possible to switch back?
A: Of course. With the configuration tool CCConfig.exe, you can switch to any resolution you want, as long as it doesn't go below the original 640x400.
Q: There are only 8 icons on the sidebar, when you can clearly fit in more. Why don't you expand that?
A: I don't know what to edit to change that, sorry. If I find it, I may be able to change it, but at the moment, I can't.
Q: When I select the GDI Funpark campaign, I get Nod briefings and Nod units, just like in the Nod version. Is that normal?
A: Yes. There is technically only one Funpark campaign, with one missions set, and one briefing video. The side choice only affects which helicopters you get, and what you can build in mission #4, the only one where you have a base. You don't actually play with Nod; your units and buildings are simply gray, and you get units from both sides.
Q: I have a monitor which can't switch to 1024x768, but does have a 1024-pixel wide video mode with a different height. Can I still play in high-res, in the video mode my monitor can use?
A: Yes! You can use CCConfig.exe to set any custom resolution.
Q: After installing the patch, the "saveg_hi.###" savegames don't show up in the list!
A: Starting from 1.06c revision 2, all savegames once again use the original name format "savegame.###" (### being a number from 000 to 999). The older 1.06 versions used the format "saveg_hi.###" for high resolution, but since 1.06c revision 2 can load savegames from all resolutions, this is no longer needed. The installer should automatically rename all hi-res savegames to the original name again when installing, though.
Q: After loading a mission, the game seems to be locked in a smaller playing field than the full resolution. How can I fix this?
A: This happens when a savegame saved in a lower game resolution without an opened sidebar is loaded in higher resolution. Simply opening the sidebar (press [Tab] or the Sidebar button) fixes this.
Q: I can't capture the Advanced Communications Center in Nod mission 12!
Q: I'm supposed to capture a helipad with an Orca fighter in Nod mission 7, but the Orca fighter doesn't stay on the helipad!
A: This happens when loading old savegames. In 1.06c, all special behaviour in missions has been changed to become mission-specific options. If you load savegames from older versions of the game, these options are not saved in it, or not saved on the correct spot. You will have to restart the mission after loading the savegame to fix this, sorry.
4. Additional credits:
These are the people whose work made this patch possible:
- Scorpio9a, for his LAN patch
- CNCVK for the 1.05 patch
- Komfr, for the stealth crash fix and the original hi-res patch
- Rambo (from the CNCNZ forums) for finding the hidden beta options
- Arsaneus and Reaperrr, for uncensoring the German mission briefings
- Reaperrr (again), for fixing the chem warrior bug, restoring the β characters in the German briefings, and for giving some other suggestions for fixes
- Darin, for reporting the bug in the original 1.06 release that caused all campaign savegames to ask the Nod CD
- MrFlibble, for fixing the game's briefing font, fixing some mission bugs, and giving me some fixed icon graphics
- burton6747, for reporting that playing single player missions affected the multiplayer tech level configuration
- Rich Nagel, for identifying the 'Scrolling' option, allowing me to fix the code behind it
- AuthenticM, for suggesting the idea of making campaign starting music adapt to the mission number, like in the N64 version of C&C
- Zéphyr and Arsaneus, for the French and German translations of the briefing text of the PATSUX mission from the Playstation
- Rusty Le Cyborg, for giving me tools to extract files from the Playstation C&C CDs
- Devalaous, for telling me about an unfixed mission border in the Funpark campaign
- Zenix, for doing the Spanish translation of the game, and for finishing practically all translations within a day
- Jafet Kackur, aka 'Jk', for converting the Snow theater from Red Alert
- Grimson, for reporting a small graphical bug in the chainlink fence
- Pichorra, for his research on the radar crash related to the tree type T13
- realcatgirllover (from YouTube), for giving me the files I needed to complete the japanese language set
- Kilkakon, for giving me the idea to make it possible to modify the house color schemes in a mission
- N3tRunn3r, Kelevra, Arsaneus, Reaperrr, Bullet and AlexB, for the German translation of this manual
- AuthenticM, Merilith, MartinMb and Kamikave, for the French translation of this manual
- Iran, for updating CnC-DDraw to allow the videos to be stretched to fullscreen with the GDI software renderer
With special thanks to:
- CCHyper, for his constant help with the disassembly process, and for creating the enlarged exe file and its hi-res exe icons. I would never even have started this project without his help, and I would never have gotten this far without his continued assistance.
- pd, for his brilliant assembler tool which allows me to quickly convert assembler code to byte code.
- KoFFiE (my older brother), for advising me to use InnoSetup and providing me with the code examples I needed to get started with it.
- Myg, for creating CnCNet
- hifi (Toni Spets), for making the latest version of CnCNet, and for creating CnC-DDraw
- cncfan (Joachim Henze) for starting with the video stretching addition in CnC-DDraw
Project donators, in reverse chronological order:
- Kane000, Ormond, Apo, soundbyte, Nicolas Evrard, Delphi, Kamikave, AlexB, Maggifixxx, FIL, TheSovereign, Anderwin, ssanzing, EpicElite, Kavamura, Operon, Martin Möller, hellbound2001, Reckneya, NathanCnC
Beta testers:
- Tore
- El_Nazgir (my younger brother)
- godly-cheese
- Pichorra
- AlexB
5. Notes on the new resolutions:
Resolutions that are higher than the size of the playable part of the map cause some odd problems. Because of this, the use of resolutions higher than 1024x768 is entirely at your own risk. Don't even bother trying ridiculously high resolutions like 1600x1200. Since the maximum size of a C&C map is only 1488x1488 pixel, that would cause problems on pretty much every C&C map.
Specific issues:
1. Small mission maps:
The first campaign missions for each side will be smaller than the screen resolution, which gives some odd graphical bugs. Most of these are fixed by just touching the edge of the screen with your cursor (to scroll) and then opening and closing the main menu.
2. Savegames:
Some strange bugs may appear when loading savegames saved in a different resolution. These are usually fixed by opening the sidebar.
3. Lowest cell row build bug:
A small bug I've recently discovered in the new resolutions is the inability to place down buildings on the lowest row of cells on the map. Since the actual position where a building is placed is the top left cell of the building, this only affects buildings with a height of one cell though. This means you can't build fences, SAM-sites, turrets or Guard towers there. Advanced Guard Towers and Obelisks of Light are technically 2 cells high, so they don't have this problem. I'm still looking into the cause of this problem. I hope I can fix it soon.
6. Notes on the Funpark missions:
As most of you probably know, C&C contains a hidden mini-campaign involving dinosaurs; Westwood's little tribute to Jurassic Park. To access these missions, you originally needed to start the game with the command line parameter "Funpark". However, because using command line parameters in a Windows environment is rather annoying, and because the whole Funpark mode had tons of problems, I have decided to remove it from the game completely.
This obviously doesn't mean the missions are gone, of course. In fact, they are loads easier to access now. In v1.06c, they are simply put in the New Missions menu, together with the Covert Operations missions.
To start the dinosaur campaign, simply click New Missions on the main menu and choose the Funpark Dinosaur Campaign entry at the top of the list. There is one for both GDI and Nod, so just scroll down to find the Nod one; it's also on top of the Nod missions list.
Note that the entire campaign is just one item in the list, and not one for each mission. When you finish the first dinosaur mission, the game will NOT go back to the main menu; the new addon campaigns system will make sure you will go on to the next mission automatically.
The only difference with the original dinosaur missions is that this system removes the bug that sometimes allowed you to build both GDI and Nod stuff in mission #4.
7. Notes on the new options:
7.1. Conquer.ini options:
All of the options added in conquer.ini have been included in the new configuration tool CCConfig.exe. You can find it in the game directory.
7.2. Language addons:
Now here's a fun part... actually adding new languages to C&C. The only thing needed for a language pack to work is a lang_XXX.ini file (preferably inside a lang_XXX.mix file) with that language's settings in it.
The basic layout of the language ini file, for a hypothetical language "XXX", is this:
[Language]
MisNametag=NameXXX
MisBrieftag=BriefXXX
StringsExt=XXX
Brieffile=miss_XXX.ini
CDDir=XXX
MIXSpeech=speecXXX.mix
MIXTalk=talkXXX.mix
MIXIcnh=iXXX.mix
SHPPips=pipsXXX.shp
SHPRepair=reprXXX.shp
SHPSell=sellXXX.shp
SHPMap=mapXXX.shp
For more information on that, see the guide at
http://nyerguds.arsaneus-design.com/cnc95upd/cc95p106/language/
Note that the CustomStringsFile option (see modding options) is also available for languages, allowing it to be used to create small language variations without needing an entire strings file.
7.3. Modding options:
7.3.1. Rules.ini:
First of all, there's rules.ini. That's right, the good old rules.ini is back. Nothing too special in there, though; I just made it to separate the user settings from the actual games settings. You can extract this file from updatec.mix with a program like XCC Mixer, but most of the values in it will cause multiplayer compatibility problems.
The [General] section contains all options that were previously in conquer.ini's [Advanced] section, and before that in my old CCOptions.exe program. These are mostly unused beta options. Most of these can be enabled as mission options now anyway.
The [Music] section contains all music-related settings. This can be used to change which themes the game uses as default start theme and for the score, map and menu screens. The values for these are the filenames of the AUD themes, without extension.
This file does NOT contain unit/structure information. Just basic internal game settings.
7.3.2. Themes.ini:
This is the first result of putting game settings into moddable format. The music is no longer an internal list in the game exe, but is now an ini file, meaning music settings can be changed, music can be added, and the entire list can even be completely replaced if you want that. Though it's advised to fix the names of the special scene themes specified in rules.ini then. Like rules.ini, this file is located in updatec.mix.
As you can see in themes.ini, the file contains two parts. The first one is a list of all themes under [Themes], from 0 to whatever the last one is. Each item on that list is the filename of an AUD format file, without the extension. After that you'll find a section for the settings of each of the themes in the list.
Basic syntax:
[FILENAME] |
|
|
NameID= |
|
Name ID number in the strings file to use as name to show in the playlist. |
Name= |
|
Name to show in the playlist (overrides the NameID when specified) |
FirstMission= |
|
First mission on which this theme appears in the playlist |
Length= |
|
Length of the theme, in seconds |
ShowInPlaylist= |
|
Show this theme in the playlist? (Yes/No) |
HasAlternate= |
|
Does a .var remix of this theme exist? (Yes/No) |
AlternateLength= |
|
Length of the .var version, in seconds |
7.3.3. The mod launch system:
1.06c offers an entirely new modding system. Mods can be started by starting the game with parameter "-mod:modname" (without the quotes). This will cause the game to read a mixfile called modname.mix, and then read the mod settings file modname.ini from that mixfile.
Mod installers are advised to generate a desktop shortcut with that parameter.
The mod ini-file has much of the same options as the language system, but under a [Settings] header.
Here's the Settings section of the Star Wars mod, as example. The title screen options and the icons replacement I use are simply the same as in the language settings. See the language addon guide for more information on that. The added options are MouseCursor, to specify a filename for the mouse cursor file, and CustomStringsFile, to replace certain strings in the game by replacements specified in an ini file.
[Settings]
MIXIcnh=star.mix
MouseCursor=swmouse.shp
CustomStringsFile=sw_text.ini
Another section of the mod's ini is the MixFiles, in which you can specify additional mixfiles that need to be read by the mod. This list can be as long as you like, but will only read consecutive numbers; once a number is missing, the reading will stop. Also note that you can't pad the numbers with leading zeroes.
[MixFiles]
1=starmain.mix
2=starscen.mix
3=starvocs.mix
4=starmusc.mix
5=starvids.mix
7.3.4. String replacement:
The file specified by the CustomStringsFile option in the mod ini-file contains replacements overriding the strings file IDs. This way, mods can change certain strings in the game without needing an entire replacement of the strings file, which also improves compatibility with later game versions, since the size of the strings file could change. The basic format is this:
[Customstrings]
Last=711
110=Transport
711=Covert Operations
"Last" will specify how many string replacements the system has to try to read. After that, a list of numbers offer replacements for name IDs in the strings file.
This example will replace the name of the APC by "Transport", and the New Missions menu item by "Covert Operations".
The only way for mods to have multi-language support is to add a replacement of the lang_eng.ini/lang_ger.ini/lang_fre.ini/... inside the mod mixfile. For this reason, the CustomStrings system has also been made available in the language options.
Note that this system currently has no support for messages that span multiple lines though. Because of this, it is not yet possible to replace all strings in the strings file. In the future, the ` character will probably be reserved as "new line" for these, since it's normally never used.
7.4. Mission options:
Since version 1.06b, C&C95 also has the ability to use some special options in specific missions. 1.06c adds a bunch more. I have taken great care to make sure all of these options will be saved and loaded correctly from savegames, and disabled when a different game is loaded or started.
Note that special options from 1.06b savegames will not be carried over to 1.06c, since they are now loaded from a different place in the savegame. Any savegame from v1.06b with special options (like the patsux Orcas) will not keep its special options when loaded in 1.06c.
7.4.1. General mission options:
These are enabled by adding them in the [Basic] section of the mission ini file. Note that for boolean options (true/false), other indicators like yes/no and 1/0 can also be used.
|
|
Will force the game to read and use this mission's BuildLevel setting in the campaign, even if the global CustomBuildlevel option in rules.ini isn't activated. Normally, the game always uses the mission number as buildlevel in the campaign. Note that the option is enabled by default in rules.ini. |
|
|
Show true names for civilians and civilian buildings |
|
|
Build helipads without helicopters, for only $300 |
|
|
Construction yard undeploys to MCV when you sell it |
|
|
Disable concrete foundations under buildings |
|
|
Laser Orcas. Special upgrade implemented for the PATSUX Playstation mission. Note that the Laser graphics can't be shown on Orcas. |
|
|
Makes AI helicopters remain on their helipad just like the player's helis. Note that this is not the same as "Sleep" mode: if you attack the helicopter it'll still retaliate. |
|
|
Makes sure no score screen is shown after this mission. |
|
|
With this, you can override the default GDI or Nod radar logo shown in a mission. I made this option to be able to show the T-rex radar logo in the Funpark minicampaign. The value given to this option is actually the file extension for the SHP file it tries to load as radar logo (HRADAR.*). Existing ones in the game are GDI, NOD and JP (the dino logo), but the system can perfectly load custom ones added to the game by putting them in a mod mixfile. The way this is used in the Funpark minicampaign is simply "RadarLogo=JP" to load "HRADAR.JP". |
7.4.2. Briefing options:
Since v1.06b, briefings can have forced line breaks in them. This means you don't have to mess around with spaces to put text on a next line. This system is already used in the Covert Operations mission "Infiltrated":
[Briefing]
1=Infiltration!##
2=Nod has breached our base in Eastern Sudan and has begun taking it
3=over! Recapture the base and reestablish our military dominance
4=in the area.
The ## at the end of the first line will make it break off the line after "Infiltration!". Note that the ## code only works at the end of a line.
7.4.3. Building options:
For these to work, you need to add a header with the name of the structure (e.g. [TMPL]), and add the key under it. This works exactly like mission-specific building options in RA1 and later games. The only option available for now is Capturable (and to be honest, there are no plans to expand that due to the large amount of space this system needs to be stored in savegames). To make the Temple of Nod capturable, all you need to do is add this:
[TMPL]
Capturable=True
Note that this can also be used the other way around. You can perfectly use this to make the silos uncapturable:
[SILO]
Capturable=False
All buildings for which the option isn't specified in the ini file are left as they were, of couse. As with all options, use of savegames causes no bugs whatsoever; the changes all save and load correctly.
7.4.4. House options:
With 1.06c, you can also change the colors of the houses, with new options for the house sections ([Goodguy], [Badguy], [Neutral], etc.).
The following keys are available:
|
|
Makes this house use a different color scheme (see list below). Each color scheme is a complete set of unit color, building color, unit radar color and building radar color. All the following keys will add exceptions to that basic profile. |
|
|
Makes the house use a different color scheme for its buildings, like Nod does. You can use 'None' to disable Nod's secondary color, but do note that the (metalic grey) Nod will still have red radar colors then. It's probably better to just put the normal ColorScheme to Grey or Red. |
|
|
Makes this house use the radar colors from a different color scheme |
There's also these two, but they're expert features... only usable if you know some stuff about the C&C color palette:
|
|
Specify a specific palette index as unit radar color. Overrides the RadarScheme setting. |
|
|
Specify a specific palette index as building radar color. Overrides the RadarScheme setting. |
Here is the list of color schemes. A color scheme includes the general remap color, the secondary color used for buildings, and the radar colors.
|
|
GDI yellow. Has slightly different radar colors than multiplayer yellow. |
|
|
Nod's scheme, with grey units, red buildings and red radar colors. |
|
|
Multiplayer yellow. |
|
|
Multiplayer red. |
|
|
Multiplayer teal (blue/greenish). |
|
|
Multiplayer orange. |
|
|
Multiplayer green. |
|
|
Multiplayer grey (metallic / urban camo). |
|
|
Standard yellow, but with grey radar colors. Used by [Neutral] and [Special]. |
|
|
Standard yellow, but with red radar colors. Used by the [Special] side dinosaurs in the Funpark missions. |
|
|
New added dark grey scheme |
|
|
New added brown scheme |
|
|
New added bright yellow/orange scheme |
|
|
New added pale brown scheme |
7.4.5. New Triggers:
This might be expanded more in future versions, but for now, I've simply added 3 clones of the trigger destroy actions:
Triggers can normally be destroyed with a trigger action of the type Dstry Trig 'XXXX'. Unfortunately, the name given in that trigger isn't variable. Only three trigger actions of this type exist, to destroy triggers called XXXX, YYYY and ZZZZ. In 1.06c, three clones of this type have been added, to also allow destruction of triggers called UUUU, VVVV and WWWW.
These three triggers were mainly added for multiplayer purposes: when experimenting with multiplayer scripting, it turned out that giving the multiplayer houses timed benefits (like reinforcements) could be used to create nice multiplayer enhancements. However, these reinforcements should obviously only happen for the players that are actually on the map. The only way to do this is to check with the All Destroyed trigger on each of the houses, and make that trigger remove the reinforcing trigger. But since there are 6 multiplayer-houses, this obviously only works if 6 triggers can be destroyed.
7.4.6. Addon campaigns:
As you may have read already, the Funpark campaigns are offered as one item that offers all 5 dinosaur missions. This is made possible by the addon campaigns system implemented in the New Missions menu.
Command & Conquer missions are of a general format that's basically SC(enario)[SIDE][NUMBER][East/West][A/B/C]. For example, SCG04WB is GDI mission #4, West side of the map, choice B.
The New Missions menu doesn't have the variety of alternates that the campaign has though; only missions ending on EA are used.
To put these extra endings to use, 1.06c contains a system that will make Covert Operations missions automatically look for the next alternative after finishing a mission. This means SCG20EA will continue to SCG20EB, then to SCG20EC, etc. It will continue until no more missions are found.
The full list of all alternates has been expanded too though. 1.06c can have up to 15 missions on each mission number this way. The ending letters are:
EA, EB, EC, ED, EE, WA, WB, WC, WD, WE, XA, XB, XC, XD, XE
Warning: Because of the way file names are saved in the game's .mix archives, the system that reads these files has problems with names that are only 2 letters different from each other. This problem has caused the addon campaign missions beyond the EA one to show up on the real list as different number, as if they are EA missions. Because of this, it is strongly advised to only use numbers below 100 and above 899.
8. Notes on Skirmish and LAN play:
8.1. Skirmish play:
Skirmish games can be played by starting a network game without additional human players, but with the "AI players" option enabled. Older versions didn't allow LAN games to start without human players, but v1.06 makes an exception if AI players are used instead.
To start a skirmish game, go to Multiplayer Game -> Network and click New to start a new LAN game. On the Network Game Setup screen, select the map and game options you want, enable the AI players option and start the game by clicking the OK button.
You can change the number of opponents in skirmish games in the CCConfig tool, in the Multiplayer section.
When playing in this mode, you must keep these things in mind:
- The AI players have no base, just units. These will attack you one by one, giving you a constant stream of attackers to fend off. You win the game when all enemy units are destroyed.
- If Bases are enabled, you must set starting units to at least 1, otherwise the game will finish right away, since the AI players have no MCV.
- Unless you enable the ParanoidAI option in rules.ini, the AI players will not attack each other. They will team up against you.
- Since this is really just LAN without players, skirmish games can not be paused or saved. So keep in mind that opening the main menu will NOT pause the game.
8.2. New game modes:
Since v1.06b, another enhancement to LAN gameplay is available: you now have easy access to four game modes. Two of those were very hard to find in the original version, and couldn't be combined with AI players. This change allows you to use all four of them in Skirmish games.
You can access them by clicking on the Bases button in the Network game setup:
| | Normal game. Build your base, crush the enemy bases. |
| | Steal the enemy flag and bring it to your own flag pedestal to win. |
| | No bases, just a large army on each side. Use it wisely. |
| | See that little vehicle? YOU are inside it. Protect it at all costs. |
Note that AI players will get a Mobile HQ in Capture The Flag mode too, since the AI never has a base, and technically the Mobile HQ mode is simply CTF mode without bases.
For skirmish mode, Capture The Flag mode is advised, since it allows you to build your base and do tactical strikes against the AI's Mobile HQs. It makes skirmish against 5 enemies actually possible.
8.3. Sandbox mode:
If you want to familiarize yourself with the tech trees, and basically go nuts with it without having to fear any enemies, you can play in Sandbox mode by enabling AI players, setting the game mode to Capture The Flag and the amount of units to 0, and starting the game without additional players (=skirmish mode). This way, you have an MCV and can build a base, but the AI players only have defenseless Mobile HQ vehicles. The game will keep going until you go out to destroy all of the enemy MHQs. They will never come to you.
Do note that spawned visceroids often destroy the defenseless MHQ, but since they always go for the most northern target, they should be easy to intercept.
9. Full changes list:
v1.06c revision 3: (April 5, 2012)
External addons / fixes:
- Updated CCConfig to set compatibility mode on C&C95.exe when CnC-DDraw is disabled
- CCConfig now allows disabling the "Back Buffer in Video Memory" option if CnC-DDraw is enabled.
Code updates:
- A bug has been fixed that messed up the start locations detection in multiplayer maps for languages other than English
- A bug preventing mods from loading their own custom music, rules.ini and mouse cursor files has been fixed
- The first letter of the side prefix added before missions in the New Missions menu is no longer used to determine whether the chosen mission is GDI or Nod.
- Added SkirmishPlayers=[1-5] key in conquer.ini
- The 'UseCreditsMusic' key now works correctly
Graphics updates:
- The last frame of the SSM Launcher's turret graphics without missiles is now coloured to house colour correctly
v1.06c revision 2: (December 11, 2011)
External addons / fixes:
- Added a new configuration tool (CCConfig.exe), to support CnCNet online play, and CnC-DDraw for windowed mode and advanced resolution settings
- CnC-DDraw now has an option to stretch 640x400 scenes to fullscreen; this affects the videos, the score screens, the globe animations and continent maps for mission selection, the Select Transmission screen when starting a new game and the final Nod ion cannon target selection screen
- The newest version of CnCNet has been added to the game; launch the game through CnCNet.exe to go to the online lobby
Code updates:
- The "GDI" and "NOD" prefixes before missions in the New Missions menu are no longer hardcoded in the game, meaning they can now be modified by language packs and mods.
- Having a map that is much smaller than the game resolution no longer crashes the game when it tries to draw the radar minimap
- The maps in multiplayer now show the amount of players allowed on each map
- The maximum amount of players possible for a map will now be detected by the game, preventing bugs that occurred when there were less than 6 starting positions on the map
- The Safe Scrolling option will no longer become enabled for other players in a multiplayer games when one player has it enabled
- The game can run in any resolution now, without restriction to the inbuilt 640x400 / 640x480 / 1024x768 modes, and as a result of this, the 640x480 mode now uses the full screen area
- A crash that happened in multiplayer games with a high number of players and a high amount of units on the map has been fixed
- Automatic network timing negotiation has been enabled for LAN, to allow smooth online play with CnCNet
- The player can now choose how the game fills in the in-between lines when stretching videos and other 2x-stretched content, to remove the black lines
- The sidebar positions are reset when loading a savegame, allowing the same savegames to be used in all game resolutions
- The radar minimap is no longer zoomed in by default
- Sending a message in multiplayer now plays a beep sound
- Music settings moved back into conquer.ini
- Added a BaseLanguage option in conquer.ini to specify which language to use to fill in the defaults under partial language packs like Japanese
- Some positioning errors in the sidebar elements were fixed
- The game now correctly checks if a theme exists; it was accidentally set to check if the theme length setting was 0 instead
- To make sure the BaseLanguage system works correctly, the three basic languages (ENG, GER, FRE) are no longer partial languages using the English default as base; defaults should only be used for missing pieces in a language pack
Graphics updates:
- All game fonts have been updated to correct errors
- The colours of the map of South Africa on the mission information screen of the final nod mission are no longer messed up; it now uses its own stretching table instead of using that of the (significantly different) Bosnia scene
- All water animations in the graphics of the rivers and shores of the snow theater have been fixed
- Snow theater water crossings no longer look like they are two cells wide while only one cell is passable
Mission/map updates:
- scb30ea.ini (N64 Special Ops Nod #2): The tiberium in the upper right corner was removed, because it prevented the AI harvesters from working correctly
- scb22ea (Covert Ops "Deceit"): An unbuildable cell south-east of the southern Nod base entrance was removed
- scm04ea (multi map "River Raid"): An impassable cell and an unbuildable cell were removed from the south-west player position
- scm52ea (multi map "Cactus Valley"): The visceroids were removed so they no longer gang up on the north player from the start
v1.06c revision 1 hotfix 1: (October 3, 2010)
Code updates:
- Fixed the bug that caused all buildings to become uncapturable in multiplayer if a multiplayer game was started right after starting the game
v1.06c revision 1: (October 1, 2010)
Code updates:
- Removed experimental units that were made buildable by accident
- Removed experimental change of the nuclear weapon's warhead which prevented it from doing specific fire-based damage to some objects
v1.06c: (September 30, 2010)
External addons / fixes:
- Funpark launcher program is removed, since the dinosaur missions no longer need Funpark mode to be played
- In Windows Vista and Windows 7, DirectX compatibility mode is enabled for the game, to fix the weird colours that appear as a result of the system overwriting the first and last 8 colours of the game's palette by those of the standard Windows 16-colour palette
Code updates:
- Changed default credits for multiplayer games to 5000
- Changed the fact helicopters stay passive in Nod mission 7 to an option in the mission's ini file, so people can use it in their own missions
- Made it possible to change the colors of the houses in missions with new ini controls for the mission files
- New language system that is 100% independent from settings in the exe file, allowing anyone to add new language addons. This system allows the names of multiplayer maps and missions from the New Missions menu to be overridden by the ones specified in the briefings file
- Added 3 new destroyable triggers for mission programming, bringing the total up to 6. You can now destroy triggers named UUUU, VVVV, WWWW, XXXX, YYYY and ZZZZ. This should facilitate multiplayer scripting since it's possible to make one destroyable trigger for each multi-House (typically, for "All Destroyed")
- Addon campaigns of up to 15 missions: missions started from the New Missions menu will now try to continue to their other variants (SC?##EA continues to SC?##EB, EC, ED, EE, WA, WB, WC, WD, WE, XA, XB, XC, XD, XE, as long as a next file exists)
- NoEgoScreen option (to disable the score screen after the mission) can now be added in the mission file
- Radar logo can be overridden with a setting in the mission file
- Specified building types can now be made capturable in specific missions
- The Advanced Communications Center is no longer capturable in multiplayer games
- The computer opponent can no longer capture your Advanced Communications Center
- Player-controlled visceroids now respond using dinosaur voices instead of normal unit voices
- Removed the special dinosaur death sound logic from the game, and linked the death sound to their dying animations instead
- The steel crate pickup animation now plays for both sides
- Fixed the firing sound of the SAM site
- Fixed reading order of mixfiles, so sc*.mix mod addons can override the updat*.mix files added by the patch
- Moved all special options from the [Advanced] and [Music] sections in conquer.ini to a new rules.ini (inside updatec.mix), to separate user settings from game settings
- The damage percentage calculated on armour is no longer 255/256 when it should be 100%. Note that this means an Ion Cannon now instantly kills an Advanced Power Plant
- Removed the ability to start a multiplayer game with a random theme, since it caused game desynchronization errors
- People can now change the music of special scenes (score/map/menu screens) in rules.ini
- The highest multiplayer map number read by the game has been increased from 99 to 255
- The New Missions menu will now show missions with numbers up to 999
- Using the arrow keys on the main menu now lets you go through the options in the right order
- For prerequisites, the Advanced Communications Center now also counts as Communications Center
- RemoveBuildExceptions option for a mission removes all restrictions the game puts on single player build trees. This unlocks the Nod helipad, APC, MLRS etc, and allows captured construction yards to produce the other side's superweapons. Note that even with this key, normal build level restrictions still apply
- Added the ForceBriefScreen option for missions, which forces the game to show a text briefing screen
String updates:
- Added numbers before the multiplayer game mode, so people see there are 4 of them (for example: "[2/4] Capture The Flag")
Spanish:
- Spanish language was removed because it is unofficial, but will be available as language addon pack
Mission/map updates:
- Dinosaur campaigns added as two addon campaigns (one for GDI, one for Nod), and put at the top of the New Missions list
- Renamed the Covert Ops and Special Ops mission files so they all have consecutive mission numbers, so fan-made missions can't show up in between the official ones
- Changed music settings in the dinosaur missions from "Untamed Land" to its internal code "J1", so it will still play the correct theme if the game is set to a language in which the theme names are translated
Sound updates:
Japanese:
- Added the official Japanese units and EVA sounds from the console versions
Spanish:
- Spanish language was removed because it is unofficial, but will be available as language addon pack
v1.06b revision 2: (October 27, 2009)
External addons:
- Funpark launcher program fixed so it doesn't trigger virus scanners (it wasn't a virus though; just some code that looked like one to some scanners)
Code updates:
- Fixed a crash that occurred on temperate/winter/snow maps when showing the tree type 'T13' on the minimap after saving the game
- Assigning unit teams to numbers (with [CTRL]+[number]) now works for the number 0 too, like in the DOS version
- The box that appears in network games when the game tries to (re)connect to players is now centered in high resolution
- Fixed the fact that the "Start New Game" function crashed the game if either of the campaign starting missions had no starting videos configured in the mission file
v1.06b revision 1: (April 14, 2009)
External addons:
- Funpark launcher program no longer has an inbuilt No-CD mode, since the added theater updates would always make it run in no-CD mode
Code updates:
- Funpark savegames no longer ask the Nod CD. They can now be loaded with all C&C CDs
Graphics updates:
- Added the missing Winter theater update needed for the Covert Ops mission "Ground Zero". Two tiles from the Temperate theater were converted to Winter theater
- Moved black border tiles for maps to the theater files (they were in updatec.mix before)
- Added more tiles to the Snow theater. It now supports all tiles available in Temperate theater
- Fixed a small bug in the chainlink fence, at the south-to-west connection
String updates:
German:
- the alternate name of the CHAN unit, "Wissenschaftler", is now spelled correctly in the game
v1.06b: (April 11, 2009)
External addons / fixes:
- Funpark launcher program replaced by an exe file (funpark.exe)
- The C&C95.exe file is put in Win95/Win98 compatibility mode for better stability.
Code updates:
- Added a method to control the starting theme, so the game doesn't start with Act On Instinct every time. This system can either just take the default theme (which can be specified by the user), play a random theme or (campaign only) choose a theme based on the mission number
- The ingame playlist now shows the correct length for remix themes instead of just using the normal theme's length
- Dr. Chan's true name is now shown in Nod mission #10, or with TrueNames enabled. In any other case, the unit will still be called "Scientist"
- Special characters in multiplayer map names will now be converted to upper case correctly
- Fixed reading of ZOUNDS.MIX (See sound updates)
- "Surrender" and Multiplayer "Abort Mission" dialogs are now centered vertically too
- Added a full language control system, which uses the previously-unused Language setting in conquer.ini. All three official language releases and an added Spanish language are now available to anyone using this patch
- Added the RA1 snow theater to the patch as fourth theater
- In multiplayer mode, the names on the ingame statistics in the sidebar are only abbreviated if they are longer than the allowed length, and not when they reach the allowed length (for example, the french AI player name "Ordinateur" was abbreviated to "Ordinateu.")
- Fixed problems related to the beta option that disables the concrete bibs under buildings: the option only changes when (re)starting a mission now
- Fixed a power-related bug with the Construction Yard. The building will now produce 15 power units, but not use any.
- Changed the method used to disable multiplayer music, so it no longer mutes the music volume for the entire game.
- Fixed the savegame-related problems with Funpark savegames. The game will now actually save which campaign a savegame is from, instead of just saving the player side. Note that as a side effect of fixing this bug, any pre-1.06b savegame of which the player side is not GDI or Nod will be identified as a Funpark savegame.
- Finishing a mission where the player side is set to something else than GDI or Nod no longer crashes the game because it can't find a score screen for that side. It will now simply skip the score screen.
- The game now actually reads the names of the first videos of the campaigns from the mission files rather than using the hardcoded video names "GDI1" and "NOD1PRE".
- Missions ran from the New Missions menu can now have an additional Intro video before the briefing and action sequence, just like normal campaign missions.
- The default multiplay tech level is now always 7, even after playing a normal mission (that value got changed because singleplayer and multiplayer build levels are stored at the same memory location)
- Fixed the bug where remix (.VAR) themes didn't show up unless an original (.AUD) file was present, even if that original was disabled in the playlist
- Modified the method that controls which themes appear in the playlist to allow modders to use the "theme first appears on mission ##" setting, and to prevent remixes of looping themes (like the GDI score theme) from appearing on the playlist. (this was previously done with individual exceptions)
- Fixed the code behind the Scrolling option (which prevents scrolling up when your mouse is on the Options or Sidebar button) so the button width is seen as 160 pixels instead of 80 pixels (which is the old DOS C&C value). The option is called SafeScrolling in conquer.ini
- Fixed the bug that causes the game to hang when no music can be found when starting a mission (a common problem with NoCd setups without added music)
- Fixed the bug that causes the game to hang when trying to start another music track when only one theme is available in the playlist and Shuffle mode is activated
- Added an option in conquer.ini to allow buildlevels in campaign missions to be read from the mission file, instead of just using the mission number.
- Added an option in conquer.ini that enables the new map and score themes (the Nod variants and the credits theme)
- Added an option in conquer.ini that determines the way the game picks the first music track to play when a mission starts
- Added ini controls for controlling the game's no-CD behaviour
- Changed the names of some of the new settings in conquer.ini (TrueNames, RemixScores, BetaSounds...)
- Added a separate [Music] section for all of the music-related options added by patch 1.06
- Added ini keys for missions, to enable certain special options in just that one mission
- Fixed CCSetup.exe so you can use the keyboard to go through all options in the correct order (in 1.06a there were problems with the added 1024x768 option)
Graphics updates:
- The ü and Ü characters in the font are fixed, and β is added
- The Ion Cannon icon is replaced by a much nicer version created from a render released by Westwood
- The Red Alert 1 snow theater has been added to the game. Temperate missions can now be transformed to Snow by changing the Theater setting in the mission's ini file from "Temperate" to "Snow"
Spanish:
- Added icons with Spanish text
String updates:
- Dr. Chan's name is put back in the game, though he'll still be called "Scientist" in any mission besides Nod #10
- The two cactus types are now actually called "Cactus" instead of "Tree"
German:
- β characters restored in the German briefings
- The Technology Center is no longer called "Zielgebäude" ("target building")
- String for "Prison" fixed. It now says "Gefängnis" instead of "Gefängis"
- The information on the map selection screen now shows surface area in km² instead of square miles
Spanish:
- Complete Spanish language added
Mission/map updates:
- scb07ea (destroy village and GDI): fixed map error west of start location
- scb09ea (retake Egypt): fixed the trigger that removes the airstrike after destroying the Communications Center
- scb10ea (assassinate Chan) this mission now works as it was originally intended: you have to destroy the Tech Center to get to Dr. Chan
- scj02ea (Funpark mission 2): filled the map border with black tiles, for hi-res play
- Added all Playstation and Nintendo 64 missions
- scg62ea (PSX Special Ops GDI #3): fixed a bug in the mission programming that prevented a flare from showing up
- scg40ea (Covert Ops "Ground Zero"): is now in Winter theater, for more variety
- scg52ea (N64 Special Ops GDI #2): is now in Snow theater, for more variety
Sound updates:
- Added the previously-unused Nod map and score themes
- Added 'Outtakes' credits theme from Frank Klepacki's site (played on the score screen of the last mission)
- Added the remix (Music options, "RemixScores") of "Just Do It Up" from the console versions of C&C
- The beta sounds are now in zounds.mix instead of update03.mix
- Enabled the beta-version of the grenade throw sound if BetaSounds is enabled
English:
- Restored the full-length DOS version of the Commando's "You got it!" voice
Spanish:
- Complete Spanish language units and EVA voices added. All voices were taken from the Spanish version of Tiberian Sun. Any missing EVA voices were reconstructed
v1.06a revision 1: (September 21, 2008)
Code updates:
- Fixed a bug in the original 1.06a patch which corrupted the side info in savegames, causing all GDI campaign savegames to ask the Nod CD.
v1.06a: (September 21, 2008)
External addons:
- Scorpio9a's LAN patch (thipx32.dll)
- Funpark launcher program (funpark.bat) for playing the dinosaur missions
Code updates:
- VK's 1.05 patch (fixes top-of-map reconnaissance crash, adds native XP compatibility)
- Komfr's stealth crash fix (fixes a crash when the stealth animation is played on the right half of the bottom edge of the screen)
- Fixed the "/?" help parameter
- Fixed the empty error box when the game fails to set the video mode (which can happens when setting the game resolution to 640x400)
- High resolution available, with centered menus and a large version of the title screen for a more finished look (no centered vids yet, sorry)
- LAN play expanded to six players
- Default multiplayer tech level set to maximum (7)
- Skirmish mode enabled (note that AI players don't have bases, only units)
- Capture The Flag multiplayer games with AI players are now possible. The "Bases" button now has 4 states: Bases On, Capture The Flag, Bases Off and Mobile HQ (note that AI players get a Mobile HQ in normal Capture The Flag mode too)
- Enabled music in multiplayer (was originally disabled because it was streamed from slow CD-ROM drives, which could cause lag/desyncs)
- Campaign missions will now show briefing text at the start of the mission if no briefing video can be shown
- Fixed a bug that prevented the music from starting when a mission from the New Missions menu had a Briefing video set
- Dinosaur graphics are always visible, even outside of Funpark mode
- The end of the funpark dinosaur campaign no longer exits the game, but goes to the main menu instead
- Chan's name is shown (it now shows "Scientist" instead of "Civilian")
- The Hospital's name is now always visible to the player, even if it is owned by the enemy
- The Hospital can no longer be sold. It wasn't sellable in the original C&C; this was a bug in C&C95
- A primary building can be selected for helipads, so people can prevent newly built helicopters from flying to their base from the edge of the map
- Civilian buildings no longer decay for no reason
- Fixed the Rocket Launcher graphics bleed
- Fixed a Chem Warrior behaviour bug; for some reason it had the civilian behaviour to make it randomly walk around
- When the multiplayer colored sides are used in single player missions, they no longer show up as grey on the radar
- The missions in the New Missions menu can now be played with any C&C CD
- Added "update*.mix" reading system for updates (same as "sc*.mix" addons)
- Added "updatr*.mix" reading system which disables the read files in the game instead of adding them (same as "ss*.mix" addons)
- Made the hidden beta options editable in conquer.ini, in a new section called [Advanced]
- Added an option in conquer.ini to disable score screens
- Added an option in conquer.ini to enable funpark dinosaur campaign mode
- Added an option in conquer.ini that allows disabling the music in multiplayer (like it was originally)
- The game now uses the strings "Yes" and "No" on the Abort Mission message, instead of "Abort" and "Cancel" (mainly done because of language compatibility issues. Both in French and in German, "abort" and "cancel" translate to the same word)
- Added black tiles for fixing map borders of small missions in high resolution
- Changed internal strings management to read certain previously-hardcoded strings from the external strings file instead
Graphics updates:
- Shadow of the Construction Yard fixed, so it remains like it is at the end of the MCV deploy animation
- The Rocket Launcher now has its launcher aimed 45 degrees up, as it should
- Nod logo restored on the Hand of Nod
- Several buildings which showed side-sensitive color instead of real yellow are now fixed:
- Civilian Oil Derrick (V19)
- Advanced Communications Center
- Tiberium Silo
- Barracks
- Fixed green line refresh error on top sidebar icons
- Ion cannon icon rotated so the satellite fires from the correct side
- Fixed Civilian Oil Pump building (ARCO) to fix the bug where the damaged state doesn't show up
German:
- Added icons with german text
- Blood in Infantry and civilian graphics are no longer censored
French:
- Added icons with French text
String updates:
- Changed "Dr. Chan" to "Scientist", because the unit can spawn from a destroyed tech center. Chan's original name was never visible anyway
- Changed "Attack Helicopter" to "Apache"
- Changed "Transport helicopter" to "Chinook Transport"
English:
- Changed "Med. Tank" to "Medium Tank"
- Changed "Stegasaurus" to "Stegosaurus"
- Changed MCV from "Mobile Construction Yard" to "Mobile Construction Vehicle"
- Changed "Obelisk Guard Tower" to "Obelisk of Light"
- Added some of Frank Klepacki's original track names to the music list
- Added all world map animation strings to the strings file (for language compatibility)
German:
- Unit names are no longer censored
- Translated the "Analysing" string to German ("Analysiere")
French:
- Changed "Stégasaurus" to "Stégosaurus"
- Changed "Obélisque tour de garde" to "Obélisque de Lumière"
- Changed "Entrepôt de Tibérium" to "Silo de Tibérium", to correspond with the EVA voice
- More song names translated to French
- Map animation text "Analysing" translated to French ("Analyse en cours")
Mission/map updates:
- Added the Covert Operations missions
- Added the updated dinosaur missions included in the Covert Operations pack
- Edited the maps of all missions where you could see beyond the map border in 1024x768 so they show black outside the border instead of unreachable terrain
- Fixed some mission files that didn't play their videos due to mistyped video names
- Fixed some missions where the AI's production wasn't started, so it didn't build anything
- scg05ea: re-enabled the Ukraine mission, which was replaced by a duplicate of one of the choices from Germany
- scg08eb (Moebius hospital mission): removed the blossom tree in the village so the "lose when ## civilians are killed" trigger is less random
- scb08ea (capture abandoned GDI base): Moved the build location of the refinery to a place where the AI can actually build it
- scb10ea (destroy mammoth prototypes): fixed map error near start location
- scb13ea (Nod end mission): fixed a mission programming setup that could crash the game
German:
- Mission descriptions are no longer censored
- Mission descriptions are not in capital letters anymore
Sound updates:
- "Right Away!" infantry response fixed; was not played due to a mistyped string
- Grenade throw sound restored
- Added the remixes (Music options, "RemixScores") of the tracks No Mercy and Deception (aka "We Will Stop Them") from the console versions of C&C
- Added the beta sounds (which can be enabled in the [Advanced] options)
- Enabled all hidden music (note that some tracks are only available because of the option "RemixScores", and will disappear if you disable that)
German:
- "Einsatz abgebrochen" EVA voice added
- Death screams are no longer censored