Mod newbie :)
 

Alright, I have been reading these forums for quite sometime now, and I always here about everyone using a whole bunch of mods. I'm interested in trying out some of these mods, but a huge question comes up... What mods? I have heard of the SH3 Commander and stuff, but I really have no idea what they are. Okay, to put it into perspective, take a guy that is completely new to SH3 and what knowledge he would have about mods, and then scrape a little off of the top and you will find out where I stand in the knowledge about mods :) . Yeah I guess what I am looking for is some suggestions and explanations of some good mods out there.

Welcome aboard :up:

The first and most important thing you want is JSGME, it's a mod enabler that will let you quickly enable (and disable) mods without the worry of destroying anything important. Most mods come in compatible format.

There's many graphical mods out there. You can find some for the moon/sky/smoke/trees/water etc, just look for what you like.

Commander is a great tool, it works externaly to SH3. It will give you career stats (time at sea, total ships sunk, patrol by patrol stats and much more), as well as changing merchant ship skins (their paintwork) as the war progresses. I don't think it changes anything gameplay-wise.

RuB (real u-boat) mod is a favourite of mine too. It's main goal is to make the game more realistic (not nessacerily harder). Depth charges will be a little less lethal, planes will be much more dangerous, ramming enemy ships wont sink them (not anything big anyway). Lots of good things.

Checkout the mod forum, they have a good list of mods and descriptions for them.

Greetings, and welcome to the World of Mods..

Firstly, NO ONE can suggest to you what mods are the best - it is purely subjective - some are excellent - some mediochre - each is a love-child of it's author who will probably (if you ask nicely) help you get it working! :up:

Here is the BEST repository for SH3 files:


http://u-boot.realsimulation.com/ :rock:


Some of the published mods will not work on your/my/anyones configuration - accept that as a fact of life (despite what you hear) and accept that there will be CTD's (crash to desk top!) when you install certain mods! :down:

One poster suggests a certain 'Mod enabler' - this has Soooo screwed up my SH3 in the past that I refuse to do anything except manual mod insertions (go figure - it too is a MOD!)! :-?

The best advice I can give you is in FIVE parts:

1. First Part - make a virgin copy of your ORIGINAL SH3 Data File.
2. Make a copy of the same having applied the UBISOFT 1.4b patch.
3. FULLY UNDERSTAND how each part of the Data file works before you MOD anything!
4. Add a Mod ONE AT A TIME and TEST!
5. Try a simple mods first - like adding 'gramophone' tunes or 'reskinning' your VIIc, or simply adding new missions!
- check the mission forums and downloads...

After you get confident with that maybe try crew uniforms - oh and and can recover from CTD's - away you go with the big stuff! :up:
(remember also that some mods may actually restrict your game enjoyment as they have been created for real-sub-diehards!)

Remember - ABSOLUTELY NEVER does Bdu award merit badges for modifying Kriegsmarine property! :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:


Happy Hunting...............

benetofski gives some very good tips. :up:

Yes, start with the simple stuff and gradually move onto the more complicated and difficult mods. The small things will teach you a lot. Modding is very much a game itself; you will need to learn before you can do it well.

Cheers!
Marhkimov.

Hey guys, thanks a lot. I figured you were right about the "game in itself," I just kind of want to add some things in just to see what they look like :) . I can't wait to try these methods out! Thanks again.

I have a constantly updated list of the mods I personally like and have installed at the bottom of my SH3 FAQ page.

SH3 Commander info available at http://members.iinet.net.au/~jscones...dr%20Help.html.

Yes, it does make gameplay changes - but all are fully customisable by the player.

Detailed instructions for using the JoneSoft Generic Mod Enabler (or JSGME as it has become known) are at http://forums.ubi.com/groupee/forums...3/m/3031058373. It's not overly hard to setup and use.

And it's not a mod, but a mod enabler.

JSGME is the best! :up: :up: :up:

... well each to their own - if it always works for you freakin good luck!

I wish I could tell you how many CTD's that sucker cost me :damn: - but it's only a 'non-mod', type-mod eh? :rotfl: :rotfl: - it's definately not one of my 'Must Have's' :down:

In fairness, it is supposed to take mods from a mod folder and neatly install them in SH3's folders - in reality, it sometimes throws them all over the place... could be the originator of the mod who did not care to contribute to the mod enabler's recommended file structuring orders - who knows, who cares, -I'm sticking to manual modding here - that way I know where things are going and dont have to worry about unnecessary screwups or CTD's! :up:

If you want to learn how to mod the game (within the limitations of UBISOFT's non-forthcoming SDK) then it is always better to familiarize yourself with the games file structure and know what a mod is changing, rather than rely on a program script or macro to do it for you blind! :doh:

Anyway, have fun whichever way you decide to go ;)

Yeah, I haven't had any problems using it. Guess I'm just lucky enough to know how it works...

...Or, perhaps being the actual developer of the product helps?

...Or, perhaps simply taking the time to read the instructions helps?

Ironically, your argument against using JSGME contradicts yourself. If you learn the game file structure, then, umm, you have learnt how to make non-JSGME setup mods compatible with JSGME.

But, as you say, each to their own. I am by no means forcing anyone to share my (obviously biased) opinion of the product. However, before blaming the tool for your "screwups"...well...I don't need to say any more... ;)

Omg that is you from the old OFP days!!!

Alright so I have the mod enabler :P but what I'm looking for now is a mod that adds the target areas to the notebook. Anybody know what I'm talking about? On certain ships if you find the type of ship it is in the notebooks you get to a click on certain areas to aim your torps at. I was wondering if there was a mod out there that adds the target areas to all of the ships you encounter. Thanks!

Duster

Oh and one more thing, if there is a mod out there that will fix my glitch: When I dive to periscope depth, or any depth for that matter, and then resurface, I have to manually move my deck officer to the bridge. Is there anything out there that fixes that? I have been looking around for mods and I have found many, but I haven't found a site where they tell me what the mods are all about.

I wish there was. We all suffer this, I'm afraid. :(