"Portraitless" leader graphics

[Paul Roberts]

Just a quick suggestion about the image for leaders with no portrait:

Right now, with the new leader/division rules, a leader with no portrait is shown as a HQ-type soldier. This is true whether he is alone or already heading a division. However, I find that this image looks a little too much like the usual standing-soldier images that all infantry units use. I sometimes miss a leader because he looks too much like an infantry unit. Would it be possible to change the portraitless leaders to something that stands out more?

I would actually prefer the old "question mark" portrait to the HQ-type soldier portrait for leaders. Is this something that I could easily mod back in?

[Stonewall]

Its definitely moddable. Easy, yes. Tedious, even more yes.

All you have to do is open the model file for each leader and change the line that says "Portrait = Unit_USA_HQDiv1.png" or "Portrait = Unit_CSA_HQDiv1.png" to "Portrait = Unit_USA_generic.png" or "Portrait = Unit_CSA_generic.png" respectively.

[Paul Roberts]

Its definitely moddable. Easy, yes. Tedious, even more yes.

All you have to do is open the model file for each leader and change the line that says "Portrait = Unit_USA_HQDiv1.png" or "Portrait = Unit_CSA_HQDiv1.png" to "Portrait = Unit_USA_generic.png" or "Portrait = Unit_CSA_generic.png" respectively.

Hmmm. I wondered if I could simply copy the "generic" face graphic and rename it to "HQDiv1" as appropriate for each army (backing up the originals, of course).

Well, I tried it and it worked! Since the HQ Division doesn't exist in the game as a unit anymore, nothing is lost by copying the generic portrait graphic to that filename as well. (Fortunately, Army HQs have a different portrait, so there's no overlap.) This change took me about three minutes to do for the USA, CSA, French, English, and Mexican armies. Now my Divisions all have face portraits instead of soldier images, which (IMO) makes it easier to pick them out.

[McNaughton]

A bit of advice, make a backup of the old graphic, just in case!

[Paul Roberts]

Oh, yes--definitely back up the old graphics. Don't do what I'm about to suggest without saving copies of all the original files!

Clarification and instructions:

This is for people who want to replace the new HQ soldier unit used for unportraited leaders (and their divisions when they get divisions) with the old generic face unit. I find that this makes it easier for me to pick out my leaders and divisions in the game, as they no longer look as much like regular line soldiers.

In order to make this change, it is necessary to change *two* sets of files.

In the folder "ACW\Graphics\Units" you will delete all files that end in "HQDiv1" and replace them with the "generic" portraits. For example, delete "Unit_CSA_HQDiv1" and then save a copy of "Unit_CSA_generic" as that name ("Unit_CSA_HQDiv1"). You will do this five times, for the CSA, USA, ENG, FRA, and MEX files.

Then, in the folder "ACW\Graphics\Armies&Fleets" you will do this (again five times) for the files with names like "Army_MEX_HQDiv1," replacing them with a copy of (for example) "Army_MEX_generic."

The first set of files are the unit portraits for the unit bar at the bottom of the screen. The second set of files are the unit portraits that appear on the map itself.

Remember: BACK UP YOUR ORIGINALS!

[Stonewall]

Hmmm. I wondered if I could simply copy the "generic" face graphic and rename it to "HQDiv1" as appropriate for each army (backing up the originals, of course).

Well, I tried it and it worked! Since the HQ Division doesn't exist in the game as a unit anymore, nothing is lost by copying the generic portrait graphic to that filename as well. (Fortunately, Army HQs have a different portrait, so there's no overlap.) This change took me about three minutes to do for the USA, CSA, French, English, and Mexican armies. Now my Divisions all have face portraits instead of soldier images, which (IMO) makes it easier to pick them out.

You could do that as well. Probably many less files to modify.