Time Units First

This mod changes the ground combat panel to have the time units bar as the first one.

This was originally posted here, but since it looks like the bars are going to stay the way they are in the official game, I've decided to create this as a mod.

The reasons why time units should be first:

- Time units are the most important unit during the ground combat, more important than health. The ground combat is even sometimes described as TU-based. Almost every action changes it, so it is the most often checked value. It is therefore natural to have the most important value as the topmost, instead of in the middle.

- The game always lists time units first everywhere else, be it in the soldier's inventory during the ground combat, or in the soldier equipment tab in the base. This makes the ground combat panel consistent with the rest of the game.

Download:

[ATTACH]3985[/ATTACH]

How to install:

- Unzip the archive in the main game directory (it will extract new files to assets/patches).

- (On Unix-like systems, or if you know how to do it) Apply the patch assets/patches/timeunitsfirst.patch .

- (On Windows) Run assets/patches/timeunitsfirst.bat . It will patch necessary game files and create backups of them with the .timeunitsfirstbackup extension. Note: The .bat file was created on Linux and tested using Wine, if it doesn't work in actual Windows, please report/fix.

Changelog:

1.1:

• Added a workaround for the game positioning the TU bar far too left (the bug exists even in the unmodified game, but making the TU bar the topmost makes this more visible, so the mod tries to mitigate this by positioning the bar intentionally a bit to the right).
  

1.0:

• Initial release.
  

FAQ:

• Is this mod compatible with mod XYZ?
  The mod uses a text patch utility that is quite intelligent about merging changes even to files that have been modified. Unless something changes the actual bars (which is unlikely) , there should be no problem. Since other mods seem to work by replacing files as a whole rather than patching them, it is recommended to install this mod as the last one.
  
• How do I update this mod if the game updates? Is this mod compatible with game version x.y?
  As said above, the mod is good at patching files even if they have changed slightly, so if the game updates files relevant for this mod and overwrites the changes, it should be enough to apply the patch again (and possibly revert it first). If there will be any problems, the patch utility will report problems while applying the changes (you may need to run the patching from a command shell to see the error messages). Generally, if anything else fails, resetting your game to its original state (e.g. verifying game files in Steam) and applying the patch again should work.
  

timeunitsfirst-1.1.zip

timeunitsfirst-1.1.zip

The strings.xml and scripts/combatguiexport*.lua from v22.9 are the same as v22.8? Can I apply the patch without fear of losing some update?

Works for me just fine. The patch program is quite smart about applying the changes even if the original file changes a bit (which moreover I expect is unlikely for the files in question) and if it fails, it'll tell you. In the worst case just revert to the backup files created, or even verify the whole game in steam and apply the patch again.

It just don't work for me: I run timeunitsfirst.bat and nothing happens. A DOS window shows for half a second and that's all. No game changes, no files created.

The path is ...\assets\patches\timeunitsfirst.bat, right? I don't need to put it direct at the game root or assets folder, need I?

Can you run the command from a DOS window so that you see the output and any possible error output?

I've updated the download link. Does that one work?

I will try it now and let you know.

It works now. Thanks.

Nice mod, thanks!

Is it possible to fix the TU bar horizontal alignment? It's 1 pixel too much to the left?

It doesn't depend on the mod. The same problem exists also in an unmodified version, it's just that moving the bar as the first one makes it more obvious. Apparently the x position of a bar moves slightly depending on the value of the bar, and the TU bar changes the most often.

Actually it was a rather easy to fix. I just added +1 to the x value and - 1 to the width. Now its fine.

Fixed version?

Feedback: Today I had game crashes every time i tryed to initiate ground missions at any corvette crash site. Trying to isolate the problem, I finally found that running timeunitsfirst-revert.bat (unapplying the mod) the game crash no longer happens.

That doesn't quite make sense, given that the mod just swaps positions of bars. Do you have a save reproducing the problem?

I know. It just happen. Really. It took me some time to figure it out, as it don't make any sense. I will take a look at my saves.

Do you only use this mod over a vanilla game?

Yes. Worse is: I reapply the mod, reload the save and the game don't crashes anymore. Now THAT makes no sense at all!

Thanks anyway.

Actually it was a rather easy to fix. I just added +1 to the x value and - 1 to the width. Now its fine.

Where?

In the /assets/scripts/combatguiexport*.lua

It's a bit of work as you need to make changes to each units and vehicles small tabs too.

Find/replace?

The fix will be included in the final version of the Oppressive UI MOD.

Fixed version?

As I said, it's a bug in the game that it misplaces the bar sometimes. But I've added a workaround to the mod to place the bar far to the right, which mostly compensates for this.