Need a iff editor

[tosc]

I'm trying to edit the skill.iff file, but can't because I need an .iff editor, and I can't find one. The link for SIE doesn't seem to be working.

Does anyone have a link for it or an alternative to use? I heard SIE can do more than just iff files, and is it not being used as much anymore in favor of something else?

 

[Borrie BoBaka]

Have you tried looking at the resource for SIE? It's the lifeblood of SWG modding and the soul of this very site, so there is always a link somewhere.

https://modthegalaxy.com/index.php?resources/sie.1/

It'll be able to do what you want to do with ease.

 

[tosc]

I have looked a the link but realized there was a huge download button. do I have to download it to my swg folder?
Also, is it supposed to put an icon on my desktop? because if it is, I'm not seeing it.
Finally, can I access it from within the server? i'm using ZonamaDev VM

 

[Borrie BoBaka]

SIE can stand alone in its own folder. Just extract the files you've downloaded to any folder you desire. It will not create its own shortcut desktop icon because it is a manual installation (i.e., you just put it where you want it.)

As for your final question, that's a bit of a loaded question. You might not be fully understanding what IFF files are, or what SIE does. It's completely fine, entering this modding community can be really quite overwhelming, but SWG can be understood with some time and research.

To give a real answer: There isn't really anything server side that SIE will do for you, as there are no IFF Files on the server-side except for the ones that are inside the TRE files you provide it. Unless you're an advanced user, you'll want your TRE files on the server to match the TRE files on your client. Because SIE is an executable (exe) file, I do not believe it will even run on a Unix/Linux based machine. But it doesn't need to.

An IFF File (Interchangeable File Format) is a versatile file type that can be many different things for the client to use. It is a raw collection of data organized into chunks that can be modified with SIE's Hex and IFF Editors. SIE will be able to open your skills.iff file as an excel-like spreadsheet, as it is a data table. You can make your changes, then use SIE to create a TRE for which the new file can be put into and transferred to the server.

I hope this helps. I'll check back and answer as best as I can periodically if you have additional questions.

 

[tosc]

Thanks for the feedback. I know ive bitten off a huge chunk of info im not eqipped to inderstand, but o love learning this kind of stuff.

Would you say experience in programing would be benificial? I know a basic level of C+, but my wife has a background in all types of programimg languages and says she can tell whats going on but wouldnt know how to change or edit it in any meaningful way.

Thx again

 

[Borrie BoBaka]

Would you say experience in programing would be benificial? I know a basic level of C+, but my wife has a background in all types of programimg languages and says she can tell whats going on but wouldnt know how to change or edit it in any meaningful way.

It depends on what you're looking to achieve. If you're doing client-based editing of files and data, then you won't need any prior programming knowledge. Files are just a long series of bytes, and SIE has several editors that can make sense of the data as it is organized in an IFF file. Whenever it doesn't have an editor, you will get a HEX Editor where you can look at each chunk in a file individually. I highly recommend you just pop open the TRE files with SIE and just explore. It's both fun and educational.

If you're looking for server-based editing, then you're going to want some programming know-how. You can create scripts for content (like dungeons, or surface level logic) using Lua. Lua is also used to provide server-side template files for objects, mobiles, etc.

If you want to change something in the source code of the server, then you'll want experience in C++, as it is the language that is used in roughly 90% of all source-based code. I believe there's a little bit of Java in there, but it's mostly for certain headers. Before you start to dig deep into SWG's source, however, I would recommend reading up on and understanding object oriented programming a bit, and understanding headers.

 

[tosc]

Some context;

Im an early release og swg player who loved the pre cu era. I got a silent holocron after grinding my 3 prof ( i had mastered scout and swords previously), i ended up grinding out 3 more profs before the village. At the village i got all but one tree unlocked.

So, i wanted the full hologrind experience so i learned how to install swgemu on my local backup pc and have been having a blast with friends. So o thought id try to modify the code to allow the original jedi unlock system, and started running into problems almost instantly.

It seems like the code for the hologrind unlock system is trying to push me to a fs quest, but it looks like it wasnt fully finished. Also when you unlovk jedi, your character doesnt change, you get to unlock a force sensitive character slot but this code doesnt do that
When i complete the hologrind, i get a message to go meditate. And when i log oit and log back in i can meditate, bit thats as far as it goes. No other options.

After doimg some checking, the skills.iff file is somewhat disabled for jedi, but im not sure how to tie that to my hologrind character or activate the fs character slot.

TL;DR,

I played swg during live and want to recreate the hologrind jedi unlocking system

 

[Borrie BoBaka]

I appreciate the context and description of what you're trying to achieve.

In Core3 as it stands, there are different options as to how you want Jedi to be unlocked, be it the village from the point that Core3 is trying to emulate, to the original hologrind that you're looking to achieve. Core3 created its own hologrind which ties in with the new system for Jedi that Publish 9 implemented. The hologrind will skip the village and put you right where you'd be as if you just defeated Mellichae at the end of the Village quests.

If you are looking to perfectly recreate the Pre-Publish 9 Jedi experience, you're sadly out of luck. The very client executable file itself was modified that did away with the concept of unlocking a Jedi-specific slot for which you can create a new character. Until the distant and unlikely day that the client itself can be fully reverse engineered and decompiled, we will never be able to unlock a Jedi slot. The character who unlocks Jedi will be the Jedi that you have. This is because the code that allowed for you to have a Jedi slot was removed by SOE back in the day. We do not have a way to edit this back in.

If you're looking for the Pre-Publish 9 Jedi gameplay of having a long line of class trees instead of different options like it does now, you can re-implement that, but it might take some work, tweaking, and know-how of how skills, commands, skill mods, and abilities work. It can be done, but it does need some elbow-grease to get working. However, as I said before, it'll never be perfectly the way that it was, because the functionality of a special Jedi slot was removed.

As a quick aside though: Nothing is quite stopping you from creating your own Jedi unlock system from scratch, if you felt so inclined!

 

[tosc]

I did notice in the hologrind unlock manager file that right after mastering the last prof, i get a popup box saying to go and meditate, and by clicking ok, you start on fs intro quest, but nothing else happens. Even after meditating at a shrine. And i cant find any trace of this intro quest anywhere.
(Can i even search for a file in zonomadev?)

I was thinking, after doing the last prof, and clicking ok, then the system just grants jedi state 1 or 2, which ever is the state after the mechiela (sp) fight., and just comment out everything else.

 

[tosc]

As a quick aside though: Nothing is quite stopping you from creating your own Jedi unlock system from scratch, if you felt so inclined!

I wouldnt even know where to start. Its basically my first day in coding, i can only do what i can read and modify not adding any new code. I know my my html daya, syntax is very specific and precise. (I mean old school html not the new much more user friendly code).

 

[Borrie BoBaka]

The hologrind in Core3 might not be fully operational, as its more of a fun inclusion than a serious integration into the server, due to Core3's desire to perfectly emulate a time when the hologrind was no longer in use. So it might be broken in places. When it says to meditate at a shrine, you're supposed to kneel infront of the broken pillar infront of a shrine and use a radial option on the shrine itself. It should then begin you on the Padawan Trials, if memory serves correctly.

If you're looking to search for files within Core3, I recommend going to the Core3 Github Repository, and searching there. There are many ways to search for files, but that one might be the most accessible to you as a newbie to SWG modding.

 

[tosc]

Im aware of the requirements to mediatate at a force shrine, i do that but the most i get are one of the 15 insperational quotes... (do or do not there is no try, for example) and nothing else.
Im going to look for the shrines in the code, maybe there is something in the about checking if i finished the village quests, because i surely did not.

 

[Pastafreak]

Im aware of the requirements to mediatate at a force shrine, i do that but the most i get are one of the 15 insperational quotes... (do or do not there is no try, for example) and nothing else.
Im going to look for the shrines in the code, maybe there is something in the about checking if i finished the village quests, because i surely did not.

Not sure if this was ever solved but as I was working on this very problem I came up with following solution.
Go to bin/scripts/managers/jedi/hologrind_manager.lua and make the following adjustments to the awardskill section.

-- Award skill and jedi status to the player.
-- @param pCreatureObject pointer to the creature object of the player who unlocked jedi.
function HologrindJediManager:awardJediStatusAndSkill(pCreatureObject)
local pGhost = CreatureObject(pCreatureObject):getPlayerObject()

if (pGhost == nil) then
return
end

awardSkill(pCreatureObject, "force_title_jedi_novice")
awardSkill(pCreatureObject, "force_title_jedi_rank_01")
PlayerObject(pGhost):setJediState(1)
awardSkill(pCreatureObject, "force_title_jedi_rank_02")
PlayerObject(pGhost):setJediState(2)
end
The order is specific I stumbled through a few different orders before getting it right. Now i get my unlock message and skills without having to relog. I can equip a robe and even the find my trainer command is working. For me it was the not having to log out and back in that was the unexpected bonus