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Chicken Spadge

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Aug 3, 2009
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  • Arsenal of Democracy
  • Hearts of Iron III Collection
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  • Victoria 2: A House Divided
  • Hearts of Iron III
  • For The Glory
  • Crusader Kings II
  • Darkest Hour
  • Europa Universalis IV
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  • Europa Universalis IV: El Dorado
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Here is a new counters mod in two versions - smaller (Version One) and larger (Version Two)

Version One



Version Two


What's this? Chicken Spadge, the sprite fanatic, making a counters mod!

Yes, it's true, I do prefer sprites to counters, but I also acknowledge that a large sprite pack can slow AoD down, and so I prefer to use counters for this particular game.

I really don't like the NATO symbols, though, so I thought I'd provide an alternative. The aim was to produce attractive-looking counters that would be easily recognisable.

I wanted to use actual figures on the counter, but it isn't really possible to make them realistic on the normal counter size, so I've made the counters larger. The original counters are 32 pixels wide, and in fact the counters must have a width that is a multiple of 32. 64 pixels for counters on land is too much, however, so I've resorted to using transparency, like so:

Version One:


Version Two:


As already noted, the original counters in the game are 32 by 32 pixels. Version One of this pack is 42 by 42, while Version Two is 52 by 52

Here's the full set of new counters as they appear for Italy (not actual size on map):

Version One:


Version Two:


As you may have noticed, Version Two in particular (but also Version One to quite an extent) relies on Titan79's Tripartite Pack both in terms of the special markings on the edge of the land units and ships and a number of the silhouette figures, which were created from the icons in the pack (partly because I can't draw!).

Just a couple more things to note.

First, tests on my own computer indicate that the game runs just as fast with this mod as it does with the original counters. I haven't experienced any problems with stability.



The transport shown here in the Irish Sea is displaying the symbol (top left) showing that a unit has been loaded onto it.



In the case of Version Two, the new size makes it a bit tricky for the owner of Malta to select the province on the map, but it is possible. You have to click just below the counter.



If you are finding that difficult, you can select Malta using the provinces button.

Download

Download the Counter-attack! mod (Version One) here
Download the Counter-attack! mod (Version Two) here

Simply extract the download into your main AoD folder and overwrite everything when asked.

Other Mods

This mod should work with any mod that hasn't added to the number of counters available. You can check this by going to Arsenal of Democracy/gfx/map/hoi_counter_size. There should be 31 counters:



The counters in the pack don't have to look exactly like this. It's the number of them that's important.

Acknowlegements

I'd like to thank Titan79 for allowing me to use elements of the Tripartite Pack in the mod and for giving me useful advice while I was making the new counters. Although these counters will work without the Tripartite Pack, I strongly advise you to download it as well because it greatly improves the look of AoD.

I'd also like to thank novapaddy for his work on producing counters of a larger size and using transparency, which gave me the idea of producing this type of counter in the first place.

In addition, I'd like to thank a number of other people who answered novapaddy's questions when he was producing his own packs and so provided some very useful information.
 
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Nice to see this being released, and congratulations for the pun from one who enjoys them!

Glad to know, also, that the vague and contradictory info I've provided to you proved to be somehow useful...
 
I've just added an alternative version of this mod in the original post.

Note that the new version is called Version One, while the one posted earlier is Version Two. The main difference is in the size. The new version is smaller.

The new version was originally supposed to be for Darkest Hour, but I decided that I might as well offer it to AoD players as well. (I've had some problems with the version that's specifically for Darkest Hour, which hasn't been posted as I write this. I hope that it will be ready soon, though).

I've labelled the new, smaller version as 'Version One' because on reflection I think that it's more suitable. The detail on the figures isn't quite as good, but the size is better for the game in my opinion. Anyway, I've made the screenshots very similar so that you can compare.
 
It's very easy to mod these counters to suit your own tastes using GIMP (probably with photoshop as well, although I've never used that).

Simply use the tool to open up gfx/map/hoi_counter_strip, make the changes and Save.

Just remember two basic rules:

1. Always save with 'Save', never with 'Save as', or the file that you produce won't work. To make an alternative strip, copy the original first.

2. Don't add anything within two pixels of the flags, or one of the colours might 'jump' across.



I've made some alternative silhouettes from the Tripartite Pack for Version Two (the larger counters) that you can copy and paste. You can download them here They're the right size for the counters. Try to position the first one and the third one so that the tops of their heads are level with those of the other human figures. The head of the middle one can be slightly lower down. Copy the middle one in two pieces to avoid pasting over the flag.
 
Reminds good old times with Atari :)
523558-cywilizacja-atari-8-bit-screenshot-resolving-combat.png
 
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These beautiful counters do not work for Darkest Hour, neither version does. I wonder, Chicken Spadge, if they can be modified for use in Darkest Hour? My modding skills are mainly text-based, only modest in artwork! Thanks for any help!