External mods not loading properly?

[FreeLancer8A]

I used to just put converted EU4 saves into the mods folder and they worked fine. Now when I try to use them, the map is blank or, if I'm lucky, is a mixture of converted, vanilla, and blank states. Moreover, while older conversions are properly recognized, newer ones have the "metadata file is missing or it cannot be parsed" (even though the metadata file is perfectly fine)
I first thought the problem was with the converter, but couldn't pin down anything. The mods installed through Steam worked fine, so I thought the problem might be with these mods being external. So I tried to load Divergences as an external mod (by copying all the files from the Steam Workshop installation), and I was right - the Steam version loaded perfectly, while the copy didn't load all buttons in the start game menu and crashed upon selecting the "Start Game" button (that would normally take you to the map).

I don't know if the problem really stems from the metadata file not parsing nor why parsing fails. Is there a way to pin down the problem and fix it? I don't really want to upload a Steam Workshop mod every time I want to convert a save.

 

[CaesarVincens]

It might be that your external mods (or more often called "local mods") filepath includes non-ascii characters, which have been an issue for PDX games for a long time. Most often this is the case if your username uses non-ascii characters, such as Cyrillic, Hangul, or other writing systems.

 

[FreeLancer8A]

It might be that your external mods (or more often called "local mods") filepath includes non-ascii characters, which have been an issue for PDX games for a long time. Most often this is the case if your username uses non-ascii characters, such as Cyrillic, Hangul, or other writing systems.

I'm trying to fix that by using userdir.txt, but apparently THAT doesn't work now.

 

[CaesarVincens]

Just to check, did you follow the instructions here? https://hoi4.paradoxwikis.com/Modding#Wrong_path

 

[FreeLancer8A]

Just to check, did you follow the instructions here?

1) I don't think Victoria 3 uses .mod files anymore. This method worked for HoI4, you can't change the mod's path in Victoria 3 that way.
2) The launcher reads from the new folder when I change it in the launcher settings, but the game doesn't read from userdir.txt, continuing to use the Documents folder

 

[CaesarVincens]

Oh yeah, I forgot it's all different. Hm, hopefully someone who knows more will pop in with answers.

 

[CaesarVincens]

Had some recent confirmation (from the EU4-Vic3 converter thread) that the non-ASCII issue plagues Vic3 too. Of course, the solution I posted earlier won't help fix it (since that's for HoI4) and I'm not aware of the particular fix for Vic3 at the present, but it's a direction to look at least.

 

[FreeLancer8A]

Had some recent confirmation (from the EU4-Vic3 converter thread) that the non-ASCII issue plagues Vic3 too. Of course, the solution I posted earlier won't help fix it (since that's for HoI4) and I'm not aware of the particular fix for Vic3 at the present, but it's a direction to look at least.

Well, you can still just upload the mod to the Steam Workshop and redownload it, but that may not be optimal for everyone.

 

[Pr0bability]

Same issue when trying to make a mod. Local mods do not work. In particular, the game fails to load subdirectories of the common directory fail to load:

[03:24:53][virtualfilesystem.cpp:562]: Could not create lexer from file due to 'fopen() failed: 2'
[03:24:53][lexer.cpp:365]: File 'common/game_rules/hat_game_rules.txt' should be in utf8-bom encoding (will try to use it anyways)
[03:24:56][virtualfilesystem.cpp:562]: Could not create lexer from file due to 'fopen() failed: 2'
[03:24:56][lexer.cpp:365]: File 'common/character_interactions/hat_character_interactions.txt' should be in utf8-bom encoding (will try to use it anyways)

Both files are indeed in utf-8-bom, checked with HEX editor. The problem is with fopen failing. Curiously, achievement_groups.txt, the only loose file in common, I can modify, so it's just the subdirectories that are problematic.

Even more interestingly, with -filewatcher on, resaving the files actually makes them load without any problems, and I can see the things in game. So it is just the initial loading that is broken.

Of course, my username contains two non-ASCII characters, so after triplechecking everything from directory mode, permissions, to encodings of the files, I am fairly certain that is the issue (especially after reading the linked HoI4 wiki). It seems like so many things have a problem with such a username I will never make the same mistake again. I would change it if it were even remotely possibly, but with the chance of breaking half the computer I am not so sure that is the move.

 

[AdamTheAlgerian]

I used to just put converted EU4 saves into the mods folder and they worked fine. Now when I try to use them, the map is blank or, if I'm lucky, is a mixture of converted, vanilla, and blank states. Moreover, while older conversions are properly recognized, newer ones have the "metadata file is missing or it cannot be parsed" (even though the metadata file is perfectly fine)
I first thought the problem was with the converter, but couldn't pin down anything. The mods installed through Steam worked fine, so I thought the problem might be with these mods being external. So I tried to load Divergences as an external mod (by copying all the files from the Steam Workshop installation), and I was right - the Steam version loaded perfectly, while the copy didn't load all buttons in the start game menu and crashed upon selecting the "Start Game" button (that would normally take you to the map).

I don't know if the problem really stems from the metadata file not parsing nor why parsing fails. Is there a way to pin down the problem and fix it? I don't really want to upload a Steam Workshop mod every time I want to convert a save

did you find a solution to it or no?