Mod The starting Lance

[ARKANE]

I have followed most of the guides out there to do this and nothing stays.. Not sure if there is a video out there that does this step by step...

any idea's please PM me..

Thanks

Arkane

 

[unclecid]

there are two places to do this in the simgamesconstant json

first place is for the campaign (player mech is BJ)
second place is for career mode.(player mech is VND)

 

[i64man]

is there a step by step on how to modify the starting lance? what is actually needed? the mech def and that is?

 

[EmptyPepsiCan]

First find the correct .json file. For me it's here:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\BATTLETECH\BattleTech_Data\StreamingAssets\data\simGameConstants

Open SimGameConstants.json with Notepad++ (free to download)

Scroll down to:

"StartingPlayerMech" : "mechdef_vindicator_VND-1R",
"StartingLance" : [
"mechdef_jenner_JR7-D",
"mechdef_commando_COM-1B",
"mechdef_spider_SDR-5V",
"mechdef_panther_PNT-9R"

Make the changes you want, following the format in the file. The names of all of the original mechs are here:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\BATTLETECH\BattleTech_Data\StreamingAssets\data\chassis

I'm not sure where the new mechs are - maybe somewhere in the Flashpoints files? - but they're easy enough to figure out. For example, the Hatchetman is "mechdef_hatchetman_HCT-3F".

You just pick whatever mechs you want - you can take up to 6 total - and plug them into the list, being careful not to screw up the formatting. Make a backup copy of the SimGameConstants.json file before you start, and the process will be totally, 100% foolproof.

 

[unclecid]

concerning the above post;

that is under career mode for that lance.

for campaign it is further up in the json with the player mech being a blackjack.

 

[Shark7]

Since the subject has come up, is it possible to change the starting Mechwarriors in the same manner, or does it take a few more steps?

I'd like to change out the starter pilots to some of the other Ronin and/or Kickstarter pilots from the start.

 

[Azural]

Since the subject has come up, is it possible to change the starting Mechwarriors in the same manner, or does it take a few more steps?

I'd like to change out the starter pilots to some of the other Ronin and/or Kickstarter pilots from the start.

You can easily change the starting pilots for the campaign. There are two settings for each of them, right under the starting mechs.

        "StartingPlayerMech" : "mechdef_blackjack_BJ-1",
        "StartingLance" : [
            "mechdef_vindicator_VND-1R",
            "mechdef_shadowhawk_SHD-2H",
            "mechdef_spider_SDR-5V",
            "mechdef_locust_LCT-1V"
        ],
        "StartingMechWarriors" : [
            "pilot_sim_starter_glitch",
            "pilot_sim_starter_behemoth",
            "pilot_sim_starter_dekker",
            "pilot_sim_starter_medusa"
        ],
        "StartingMechWarriorPortraits" : [
            "PortraitPreset_glitch",
            "PortraitPreset_behemoth",
            "PortraitPreset_dekker",
            "PortraitPreset_medusa"
        ],

Pilots and portraits are both listed in their respective folders in "Streaming Assets/Data".

Career mode generates random pilots, so I don't believe you can change those by editing .json files. But if you're feeling curious, you could try to copy/paste the two relevant sections above to be listed under the starting mechs in the career mode section to see what happens.

 

[i64man]

Gentlemen thank you very much for the help.

 

[ronhatch]

Since the subject has come up, is it possible to change the starting Mechwarriors in the same manner, or does it take a few more steps?

I'd like to change out the starter pilots to some of the other Ronin and/or Kickstarter pilots from the start.

While the information Azural gave is entirely correct, there is a detail that may cause you problems if you're trying to start with Ronin or Kickstarter pilots. Specifically, the starting portraits in the simGameConstants file don't appear to allow the custom images used by those pilots... they must instead be a list of settings to use for the procedural portrait generator (unless it was changed in later versions of the game... I haven't had a chance to test this on 1.3 yet).

More information available on this similar thread:
https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/foru...w-to-use-custom-portraits-for-pilots.1140929/

If you can't get it working based on that, let me know and I'll try to explain in more detail for your specific situation.

 

[Shark7]

Thanks for the replies @Azural and @ronhatch.

I'll give it a try and see how it goes, though it may be a day or two with the holiday season being upon us.