Need SH3 Commander tweaking help

[godswarrior493]

Hey all, I had a question, and was wondering if anyone knew how to fix this. I don't know how to edit html since I'm no web designer, but I noticed that when I create a crew list, from SH3 Commander, it generates a beautiful crew list with 1 exception.

I modified my game so that I would start out as a Kapitanleutnant. Basically so that the last rank for me would be Fregattenkapitan, instead of ending with Kapitanleutnant. Couldn't stand being a Leutnant in charge of Oberleutnants. When the crew list generates, it still shows a little leutnant shoulderboard next to my captains name instead of the interweaved rope version for Kapitanleutnant. Now I realize there has to be somewhere to modify this, because jscone has the gif file for every rank through Vizeadmiral it looks like. I've been through just about all the files there and couldn't find anything that seemed to fix this, so I think it might be hidden in some code somewhere.

I realize this is a small issue, but I have a lot of fun with those personnel files and this has been bugging me for a while.

Does anyone have any advice, on how to modify that little gif?

[godswarrior493]

Just went through those files again, and I can't find any sort of trigger that tells SH3 Commander to call any particular gifs. Anyone else have an idea of what file this might be in?

[Laufen zum Ziel]

Sorry can't help you but I am sure someone will
come along who can.

(I hate to see a thread without any replies)

[JScones]

You will have more than that one problem. From the SH3Cmdr User Guide:

I want to start my career at a rank higher than Leutnant (rank bump). Will SH3 Commander allow me?
SH3 Commander reads whatever ranks are in SH3. However, when creating a Commander's pre-SH3 history, SH3 Commander assumes the starting rank will be as SH3 originally set it. It needs to do this for maximum compatibility. Thus, any "rank bumping", that is, changing your starting rank to anything higher than the SH3 default, will create gaps between your pre-SH3 history and your SH3 career. This will be evident only if you generate Personnel Files, where you will notice missing promotions. You can alleviate this somewhat by adjusting the pre-SH3 rank labels in SH3Cmdr_*.txt, or simply ensuring that you always start careers at the default rank of Leutnant.

Anyway, re "I modified my game so that I would start out as a Kapitanleutnant" I assume you mean you edited menu_en.txt and changed the rank labels? If so, then just rename the rank images in SH3Cmdr to match. For example, rename rank9.gif (KptLt image) to rank7.gif (Lt image) and so on.

BTW, the rank slide for KptLt is not interweaved rope.

[godswarrior493]

Ah yea, I wrote that article at 1 in the morning after tinkering with all the other files there, your right kapitanleutnant is O-3, not O-4. I always did forget that Lt. jg. rank heh.

Anyway, my question is will the engine not recognize the other leutnant and oberleutnants, and apply kapitanleutnant, and korvettenkapitan rank gifs, to them as well? that fixes me but then makes everyone else to same as well? I wish I knew html haha, would make things easier i think.

[JScones]

Originally Posted by godswarrior493

Ah yea, I wrote that article at 1 in the morning after tinkering with all the other files there, your right kapitanleutnant is O-3, not O-4. I always did forget that Lt. jg. rank heh.

Anyway, my question is will the engine not recognize the other leutnant and oberleutnants, and apply kapitanleutnant, and korvettenkapitan rank gifs, to them as well? that fixes me but then makes everyone else to same as well? I wish I knew html haha, would make things easier i think.

Yes it will - I thought of this last night - thanks for reminding me.

Basically, SH3Cmdr does not support rank bumping.

To post-edit your rank image in your Personnel File is easy though. Simply open "U-xx_Crew_List.html" in Notepad and look for the line that includes your Commander's name. It will look something like this:

    <td width="26%" valign="bottom"><font face="Courier New"><img border="0" src="rank9.gif" alt="Kapitänleutnant" width="12" height="32"> Jäsen Jones 4</font></td>

Change the src and alt values to suit.

You'll need to do this everytime you update your Personnel File though.

[godswarrior493]

Ahh, ok, that should be fine for me then, I don't mind self editing. As anal as it is, I enjoy keeping everything in sync so to speak, plus its hard to believe that a leutnant will be in charge of a u-boat with an oberleutnant on board. Thanks for the help. I really enjoy your program.

[JScones]

Originally Posted by godswarrior493

Ahh, ok, that should be fine for me then, I don't mind self editing. As anal as it is, I enjoy keeping everything in sync so to speak, plus its hard to believe that a leutnant will be in charge of a u-boat with an oberleutnant on board. Thanks for the help. I really enjoy your program.

Just on that, while having an Lt in command of a U-boat didn't occur too often, there are certainly examples where the Commander was not the most senior officer on a U-boat. From a previous post:

Originally Posted by JScones

In WWII there were two general streams of U-boat officers - "Line" and "Engineering" (and "Medical" in the later years). In some instances the LI (Engineering stream) would actually outrank the Commander (Line stream) either in seniority or rank (look at U-516 for example, at one stage near the end of the war the Commander was an ObLt whilst the LI was a highly decorated KptLt). And it certainly occurred where a newly promoted ObLt U-boat Commander (such as all of us every time we start a "new" career*) would be "outranked" by the existing ObLt LI.

Of course though, I wouldn't be happy if another Line officer was of higher or more senior rank than me because that would never have happened. Indeed, from a look at U-boat crew lists, in most instances the next senior Line officer was one rank below the Commander.

The SH3Cmdr "Realistic" crew list replicates the above by providing an ObLt LI, but limits the rank of all other officers to no higher than the player's starting rank of Lt (which becomes ObLt after the first patrol anyway, if you are running RUb or any derivative mod).

I should also point out that if something happened to the Commander at sea, it would be the next highest Line officer (ie the IWO/Exec) that would take over command, even if the LI was higher ranked (there are *many* instances where the Commander was an ObLt, the LI was an ObLt and the Exec was an Lt).

When SH3 was very young the issue of starting rank was discussed and the most robust solution, still employed by most mods today, was to change the variables (rather than the rank labels) so that you are promoted by the game to ObLt after the first patrol. Thus, I find combining a mod like GWX with SH3Cmdr's "Realistic" crew configuration the closest way to simulate what was most likely to happen "in the field".

But whatever floats your boat. I just mention this fyi.