General
A1. Can you provide us with screenshots and/or a list and description of the various tools that you use and that may be made available to modders?
- Scene editor
- Mesh editor
- Material editor
- Model/Animation viewer
- Skeleton editor
- Replay editor
- Particle editor
- Atmosphere Editor
- Cloth editor
- Path editor
- Resource Browser
- Runtime performance profile tools
A2. Will modding tools be made available prior to release and/or as part of an early access?
Not decided.
A3. Will we have a TW developer working with the community to support modding (learning, tools, tutorials, feedback, etc.)?
We will share a documentation site and we are planning to make some tutorial videos. Also, we will be taking feedback and engaging with users on our forums.
A4. With Warband the list of hardcoded features lessened as time progressed. Will this be the same for Bannerlord as you decide over time what should and shouldn't be hardcoded?
Most probably.
A5. Will there be an in-game/engine tool/camera to create FMV sequences?
We will provide a replay editor.
A6. Will we be able to launch/select several mods (like elder scroll games) or it will be one module at a time (like Warband)?
The game will support multiple mods at the same time.
A7. How will (texture) folder structure be handled? Is it still a single folder like in Warband with all textures placed together or will it have subfolders for things like ground textures, armours and such? And if so will the subfolders name and structures be moddable?
You can use any number of folders for resources but it is a flat system, so we don’t support subfolders within folders.
A8. Would it be possible to make the player, as well as the bots, swim when they are in enough deep water, given that they are not heavily armoured and thus weighed down?
Unfortunately, we don’t have a swimming system in the game.
A9. Since the game is played through Steam, will it be possible to get the users' steam IDs in multiplayer?
Technically possible.
A10. Does the game still use the BRF format for resource storage?
No, we use a different resource file now. There will be no need for the modders to create viewer for it. In our editor, modders will be able to view and change them easily.
A11. Will modding be handled through Steam workshop?
Yes, Steam workshop will be integrated as an option for downloading mods.
A12. Will we be able to mod the game in a way we can completely remove death and disable aging, heir system and random characters?
To some extent, you probably will be able to remove death, manipulate heir system and random characters but disabling aging could be tricky. It is too soon to say if that would be modifiable or not. However this is subject to change.
A13. Regarding the record of movie clips, will it be possible to arrange events/triggers directly on the timeline? And is it possible to switch between cameras?
Yes, you can have different clips with different timelines. Also, you can have camera curves which are smooth or like a step like blend throughout the timeline.
A14. Are we able to make a map with pre-made companions only (I understand the majority of the companions are generated). What about the city notables (business owners, quest givers...)?
Companions, business owners, lords are added through their own campaign behaviours. Modders will be able to disable existing campaign behaviours and/or add their own if.
Coding
B1. What language will be used for modding?
We are using C# as the scripting language. Data files are generally formatted in XML.
B2. Which IDE will have support (like Visual Studio Express) from TW?
You can use any version of Visual Studio 2015 (e.g. Community edition)
B3. How is the code split between hard-coded (engine) and modsys (open to the modding community)? What level of access do we have to the game UI code, AI, etc.? Could you provide us with an example of what will likely remain hard-coded?
Unlike Warband, the vanilla game scripts will not be directly modifiable by modders. However, it will be possible for modders to add new scripts as plugins and also have modifications for XML data files. In Warband, we had the problem that, whenever we released a new version or patch, almost all existing mods would immediately become incompatible with the new version and modders had to go through the lengthy process of reapplying their changes on the new version’s scripts. Moreover, it was impossible for players to run multiple mods in conjunction. The new system will make modders’ lives much easier and also support multiple mods.
By changing XML files, it will be possible to modify or add/delete most types of game objects such as items, characters, factions etc. Of course it will also be possible to add new assets such as meshes or textures.
Modders will be able to add new campaign behaviours, mission behaviours and quests. Campaign behaviours are executed while the player is spending time on the campaign map, whereas mission behaviours are executed when the player is in a scene. For example, if you want to create some extra bandit parties every few days, you can do that with a campaign behaviour.
Modders will also be able to change most of the formulas used in the game. For example, if you want to add a special item that makes you move faster on map, you will add the item through an xml file, and also modify the formula for campaign map speed so that it returns a higher number if a party is in possession of the said item.
Modders who want to change an existing behavior (like party members deserting when morale is low) will have two options: Either they will modify the default formula, or if that’s not adequate for some reason, they will be able to disable the default behavior entirely and add a new one from scratch.
B4. Will we be able to seed a randomized number? This is highly important in order to seed a randomized process and utilize pseudo-data. Is it possible to procedurally generate the terrain/towns/castles/villages/NPCs?
You can use random seeds and any kind of random number generator.
B5. How has the Dialogue system been improved? Is the Dialogue system dynamic?
There is a very powerful string processing system, (you can pretty much embed programs into the string itself.) Dialogs, game menus, and everything text related can make use of that.
B6. How many factions can this system support? Are there easy mechanisms to create/modify factions?
You can add as many factions as you like. Technically, creating factions is just a method call, but of course making them interesting would be the harder part!
B7. Will battlefield AI (Both the troop AI and the strategic AI) be accessible or hardcoded?
Lowest-level troop AI is hard-coded, but you can customize it somewhat by changing aggressiveness, maximum speed etc. You can also give AI target movement points.
Formation AI and overall battle AI is extendable and modders can add new tactics and AI behaviours.
B8. Will troop and party pathfinding AI be accessible or hardcoded?
Pathfinding will be hardcoded. You can turn faces on/off in a navigation mesh though, so there are ways to control path-finding behaviour.
B9. Assuming that the AI takes into account terrain - will we be able to translate this understanding of the battle scene into a graphical representation? In other words, while you decided against a minimap in the main game, do you intend to provide us with a framework and/or operations that will enable us to generate a simplified visual representation of unit locations, terrain details and possibly even AI strategy?
It will be possible to draw graphical primitives on screen. Also, one can render multiple scenes on the screen for other uses. (As long as they are lightweight, they won’t affect the overall performance that much).
B10. Will there be greater control over the core variables and Booleans of the core combat mechanic? For example, will we be able to directly edit the code used for horse charge damage, hit detection, AI movement and so on?
It will be possible to change certain variables, but a lot of constants may remain hard-coded.
B11. Will it be possible to alter where the AI aims with ranged weapons?
You can give them an entity to target.
B12. What is the file format of replays? Can replays be converted to other formats?
We have two different formats for replay. First one is a lightweight one which can only be played forward. In the editor, we have another tool that converts this information to a bigger sized replay format, in which the changing agents are recorded frame by frame. That replay file can be used to play, pause, jump to specific frames, re-wind etc. Also, the camera paths can be constructed and modified in the later replay file.
B13. Can you do PInvoke a DLL?
Yes, modders can pinvoke a dll similar to Unity3D.
B14. Is it possible to attach Bannerlord process and step through managed code?
When you select your mod’s DLL through the Launcher, it will be loaded and specific functions will be run there. You can attach Bannerlord to your debugger and debug the functions in your mod.
B15. How do you code the UI?
It is very similar to WPF. UI Layout is defined from xml files and the data preparation is done from C# code.
B16. Would it be possible to add a "natural" and somewhat realistic animal life in the different environments, such as birds flying around, squirrels climbing the trees, moose etc? By this I mean that animals would be entities moving around, making noise and maybe even reacting to the player as well as interacting.
Flying and climbing animals would require the usage of the regular entities instead of agents with a default AI. But there is no limit in what you can do with the scene entities. You can animate them (also with skeleton if necessary) and move them around the 3D space however you like.
Other animals like moose can use the default agent system. Agent AI can be overriden by giving them a target location to move to.
B17. Are we able to add different music/sound effects to be played when the player is specifically passing through a certain area on the campaign map?
One can add our sound emitter scripts with different collision boxes like sphere, box etc. When the camera enters these zones, those ambient (continuous) sounds will be played.
B18. Assuming C#/.net integration:
Will it be proper .NET integration (as in we can build and inject our own dll into the game in some way) or just the syntax of C# and the compiling will be done by some bannerlord tool instead?
Yes it is. The game runs on .NET 4.7.2 on Windows.
Debugging
Scenes
D1. Is it possible to combine designed elements with procedurally generated elements into the same scene?
Of course. Script components can be used to add, alter or remove stuff from the scene. Materials, other scripts, physics and polygon attributes can be changed at run time.
D2. How does the AI pathfinding work? Will sceners have to create AI meshes for their scenes?
Yes, scene makers will need to create navigation meshes. The scene editor has a tool to create the nav-mesh automatically but results vary and we generally prefer to create them manually.
D3. Is there an inbuilt method to voxelize the scene in order to use cheap ray-tracing for global illumination?
No.
D4. Are seasonal effects generated or will they have to be manually added? Will it be possible to preview them in the editor?
You can definitely preview what the scene will look like in different seasons and different atmosphere settings in the editor. You can set alternative terrain materials and alternative foliage for different seasons. It’s all very customizable.
D5. Will it be possible to make caves/ tunnels in the map/scene editor? Will it be possible to alter terrain during play and/or will modders have the tools to enable/alter such a functionality?
For tunnels and caves you need meshes, the terrain system does not support them. We do not currently support dynamic changes to terrain height-maps during the game.
D6. What is the biggest scene the editor can handle?
Depends on the power of the computer and available RAM. Our typical scenes are not too large because we want scenes to load quickly and not take an excessive amount of hard disk space. We experimented with larger scenes on a few occasions but this is not something that’s a priority.
D7. Do you think the level editor will support multi-user working? I.e. Cooperative scening over a server.
No. The editor does not support that.
D8. Will we be able to simulate the flow of time in a scene without forcing a re-entry? (Morning-Noon-Evening-Night)
The atmosphere system is not designed to update in real-time, so you cannot simulate that without stutters. Maybe you can darken the screen, change the atmosphere and then do a fade in.
D9. How will scene files be organized and managed in Bannerlord? Will terrain codes and scene prop files remain separated?
We divide scene files into two groups. One is the editable data for the scene editor (some binary, some text) and the other one is loading time optimised binary files.
D10. Can we have some indication of how long it takes to create all the scenes for a town for example, including baking in lighting etc. Scening in Warband was tedious, but Bannerlord scening looks infinitely more time-consuming.
With design, visual details, siege mechanics, and sound, it takes 3 weeks to complete a town scene, which is our most complex scene that we use for various civilian and combat missions. This includes 3 levels of towns for both civilian and siege usage.
There is also a couple days of gameplay tests and fixes. It covers anything from siege missions to walking around to small gang fights in back alleys
Items/Textures/Animations/Shaders/Sounds/Etc
E1. How will movable scene props/objects be handled? Will they meet the same limitations as they currently have in Warband (e.g. polycount, collision detection, etc.)?
The physics objects for dynamic rigid bodies will have some polygon count restrictions.
E2. Is Armour created the same way as you have shown the weapons to be created?
The crafting system only works for melee weapons. Armour, shields, bows and crossbows cannot be crafted.
E3. Does this mean that creation of arms and armour now are internal to the game superstructure and if so, does this support independent artists from adding their own weapons and armour to the game?
Crafted and non-crafted items are added in different ways, but modders can add both. For crafting, modders can easily add new crafting parts. They can also add new weapons by editing an xml file only, specifying which parts the new item is made of.
E4. Will we be able to add custom skeletons and new bones? If yes, would it be able to support static object bones for real time animations (e.g. destruction effects)?
Yes, you can add custom skeletons to meshes.
E5. Any information on model dimensions etc.? Poly count?
Poly count is very varied but we use LOD meshes heavily.
E6. Any information on average texture sizes? Will 4k be supported?
Average texture size is 2k. You can add 4K textures to the game.
E7. Will every piece of equipment have physics options (tassels, cloth, etc.), including weapons?
Not every piece probably, but modders can add it to all types of equipment. Weapons can have them as cosmetic only, so no flails with cloth system.
E8. Will we have access to shader source files?
Not decided.
E9. What level of moddability can we expect for the new PBR engine? PBR relies less on the shaders and textures themselves and more on skymaps, screenspace posteffects, and the location and detail of lights. Can we expect to be able to implement dynamic GI, for example? Can we expect GI and SSR at all?
We have good variety of post effects, and you can probably add new post effects. We have SSR. It should be possible to add dynamic GI in theory but in practice it can be very hard or even impossible.
E10. Can we force certain body parts/bones to play specific animations and apply ragdoll physics on them? (Useful to simulate various injuries on different body parts)
Sorry, the game engine does not support that.
E11. What modelling/viewing program(s) will or should be used for Bannerlord?
For basic polygonal modelling, our artists use mainly Max, Maya and Blender and we will document work flows for these. We also use a ton of other tools for sculpting, painting textures, viewing etc.
E12. What tools support animating campaign map icons?
We have some script components, which can add simple looping animations to entities in any scene. It is not as complicated as the animation system of characters in battles.
E13. Will you add in features like decals like in ue4 (with option to pick what is affected and what not so that it does not project onto moving characters and so on when near them) and terrain blend? (like battlefront and this: https://polycount.com/discussion/18...ending-tool-inspired-by-star-wars-battlefront, which would both help with environments and so on)
We have a decal system in which you can decide whether the decal should be projected to terrain and/or to objects. You can also disable particular render layers to be projected like “do not blend diffuse” , “ do not blend normals”, “do not blend specular”. Only blending the specular and gloss is particularly useful for projecting wetness effects through decals.
Also, we have a system in which the terrain layers can blend into the meshes. Their diffuse, normal, ao, specular and gloss values are blended, making it a seamless transition. Looks very similar to the link provided.
E14. Is there a limit to the amount of animations we can add? (Are there limited animation slots?)
No
E15. Can projectiles have particle effects?
Yes
E16. Can more item slots be added? If so, can the items equipped in a custom animation slot appear on the character? (Cape slot)
The item count limit that can be wielded is 5. 5th slot is only for the items that get dropped when sheathed. But there is no limit to the number of items that are not wielded. In fact, the engine doesn’t know anything about them, except their meshes.
E17. Will it be possible to blend textures with different UV Channels? (To for example have a > 0-1 UV space texture be blended with a unique 0-1 UV space texture)
We have two different UV inputs. We do not have an in-built shader in the engine for that but one can write a simple shader that does that and by exporting a mesh with UV layouts, can have different effects with two different texture samples.
E18. Will it be possible to switch between different UV tiling values based on distance? And also switch materials?
Need to write a custom shader that changes different render layers(diffuse, normal, specular etc.) That shader can continue to use the default shading function.
E19. How are siege weapons made at this stage? Is it prop with vertex animation? Or is it a skeleton body?
They are skeleton animations.
Multiplayer/Server-Client
F1. Well, I'd like to ask some questions about how multiplayer modding will work. Can we make custom game modes, factions and units, with people being able to join servers with these mods without having to install them, so long as we only use vanilla assets? In other words, are there in-game tools for creating these sorts of mods? Can those tools, if they exist, also be used for creating new systems such as recreating the Warband equipment system? If not, have you considered doing auto-download, as most games with multiplayer modding communities do?
Making new game modes is possible on the mission side, but auto-download, mod loading etc. is unknown at this stage.
