It's gotten a little wierder - on a whim, I tried moving the SH5 install directory from a spindle disc (where it's been) to another SSD...it loaded MUCH faster - previous time from launch to game window was ~2:30....on the SSD it loaded in 20 seconds
I was about to cheer, but then I tried creating a new campaign and doing the start, save, quit, load routine....when I loaded into the sub pen, this was the view I was shown:
Clearly something's gone awry here, but I have no idea what! Time for a fresh install to the SSD?
All the answers so far are much appreciated!
Just a quick update - clearly something's gone seriously wrong with the install - allowing for my Documents\SH5 directory to be recreated did NOT solve the issue. Since I have ready access to the install files, I'll do a quick reinstall and see where it goes.