by DwnUndr Dec 2008
dwnundr@ripteam.com
http://FreelancerCommunity.net
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This is a guide to adding complete voices to Total Conversion mods.
Don't fret, it IS very complicated, but I have reduced all of my research to some easy-to-read formats. A huge mod like the UnderVerse is very daunting to attack, but if you only have a few new systems and factions it is a simpler matter.
The wav files themselves will have to be created by you, either with a microphone or a text to speech program. There are two particulars to observe...how the entry is recorded in each type of file and how the wav is named. There are also two methods to pack the new wav into a utf file. There are even two methods beyond that (overwrite old or make new). This involves more work, prod me if I forget to include this info later...
See my other voice tutorials for more in-depth info, but this one will remain 'simpler'. (insert Tales from the Crypt soundtrack here, heh).
Please see other tutorials for sound file formats etc, trying to keep this simple.
Even after saying all that, the scope of this is huge. It took me a long, long time to wrap my head around it all. Hopefully I can touch on this in an orderly manner and not lose you.
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Preliminary 1: text entries. These are covered under tutorials by others on the old TLR site. Specifically, these refer to the entries in initialworld.ini and which dll they should be placed in. But remember, this tutorial is supposed to be simpler so I only mention it here. This is about the voices, not the text. If people ask, I will expand those old tutorials with new ones (as soon as I invent a time machine).
Preliminary 2: Utilities used.
XMLUTF.exe
UTFXML.exe
DB_Hash_CRC_Calc.exe
CRCTool.exe
UTFedit.exe
Preliminary 3:
How to make it simpler than DA did it? First, don't make 29 different pilots, 3 different docking characters and 15 different bar characters, heh. For the first release of the UnderVerse, Soupman and I made one docking character and two pilots (one male and one female). We also made a new Misson Commission dude. It took several thousand unique wav files to do it THAT simple! Do it simple first, expand if people play the mod, then get fancy later. Here is my recommendation:
a) Docking character...We picked a female voice here (since we only found one female text-to-voice program and there are no female base dealers). I shied away from all robot voices, they didn't fit in the UnderVerse. Here are the 3 docking characters you can use:
atc_leg_f01 (female)
atc_leg_f01a (female robot)
atc_leg_m01 (male)
BTW, atc means air traffic controller.
b) People in the bar to talk to....These are the ones you can get rumors and missions from. We are going to save doing one of these for a future release since these range from 167 to 458 files. Their utf files are names like this:
rvp003.utf
rvp101.utf etc...
I call the rvp 'random vendor people'. They will say things like "We don't run this place, but we have an understanding with the people that do" etc. This is one of the hardest to decipher since most of their entries have bizarre coding. For instance, GCS_ML_A04aG01 says "...waste any time in hunting down people who crossed them". Another part of an internal string. To create a single one of these rvp's means making 457 entries in vanilla. Adding just a few new ones is easier, but a total conversion could be more.
c) Ships you encounter in space...Both male and female (did you know that the GC, the Golden Chrysanthemums, were ALL female!). These all start with pilot_ . See another tutorial by me for detailed descriptions of these, some are never used, one is too bizarre, heh. Pick one from my list of used ones and edit it.
Preliminary 4:
The wav files and the ini entries are just part of the picture. Hidden deep inside the exe are the strings, I don't know anyone who has found them yet, but you can hear them by observation. For instance, the single-player string (sadly, not usable in multiplayer yet) "Freelancer Alpha 1 dash 1, you are clear to launch" internally calls 6 different wav files. Maybe someday a smart fella can find and manipulate these strings, but until then we just have to notice them and make new files appropriately. For instance, if you don't want to use "Freelancer" in your universe, change the wav to "Citizen" or something. A similiar string is used in multiplayer, when they say something like "Attacking Freelancer Alpha 1 dash 1".
Preliminary 5:
You can create whole new pilot utf files. This not only preserves the vanilla entries if your mod has vanilla systems but gives you unique new voice types which are much easier to edit.
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I'm setting a chapter system, hopefully I keep to it, heh. They will be:
New systems
New bases
New factions
New commodities
New ships
New guns etc...
Each of these is defined in a certain location, called in a certain way, named in a certain way and recorded in a certain string. Discovering these differences and implimenting them properly will create a smooth in-game conversation.
Scared yet? You will be...you will be.......
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******New systems*******
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pull these entries from universe.ini like:
[system]
nickname = Li01
file = Systems\Li01\Li01.ini
pos = 7, 8
msg_id_prefix = gcs_refer_system_Li01
visit = 1
strid_name = 196609
ids_info = 66106
This entry: "gcs_refer_system_Li01" is what you want. If you used FLExplorer and named your new system as you placed it, this entry will already show your new system. If you edited by hand, name it to fit.
This wav is used by npc ships that you find at gates and holes. You will overhear them talking to each other stating where they are came from or where they are headed. Something like "Looks like we aren't the only ones heading to the California system". The only voices that use them are the "pilot_" entries such as pilot_f_ill_m01.utf which is found in the data\audio folder.
Here is the entry inside the utf file:
gcs_refer_system_Li01- 0xB08D7FCF <> 2962063311
The first thing to note is that you NEED to add a dash at the end. Truthfully, I didn't test it without the dash, but I always followed the format of DA.
So, gcs_refer_system_Li01
becomes
gcs_refer_system_Li01-
The next step is to create your wav file (microphone or text-to-speech program). Then you need to know how to name it. There are two methods, the first is to use CRCTool to find the code, then add 0x in front of it. The second is to use Lancer Solurus' utility which adds the 0x automatically. Visit
http://digitalbrilliance.com and search for the DB_Hash_CRC_Calc utility. Use the unsigned hash entry.
Using the latter and plugging in the above (with a dash) gives:
gcs_refer_system_Li01- = 0xB08D7FCF
to confirm this, rip apart the pilot_f_ill_m01.utf (with UTFXML.exe) and inside you will find a file named 0xB08D7FCF_01FE9B82.wav. Play that wav and you will hear "the New York system". So, this is how you should record your new wav (as 0xB08D7FCF.wav , don't worry about the extension).
Summary of New Systems:
defined in universe.ini
named with a dash at the end before you calculate the hash code
recorded as 'the <new name> system'
typed into voices_space_male.ini (for male voices, use the appropriate one for your use)
packed into the pilot_ utf files.
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If you have absorbed that, lets do a short interlude. You can review other voice tutorials by me, but I will include a quick description of the available ini files here:
voices_base_female.ini
voices_base_male.ini
voices_mission01.ini
voices_mission02.ini
voices_mission03.ini
voices_mission04.ini
voices_mission05.ini
voices_mission06.ini
voices_mission07.ini
voices_mission08.ini
voices_mission09.ini
voices_mission10.ini
voices_mission11.ini
voices_mission12.ini
voices_mission13.ini
voices_recognizable.ini
voices_space_female.ini
voices_space_male.ini
Ignoring the singleplayer missions, there are 5 ini files that you will be typing these new wavs into.
voices_base_female.ini............rvp003, 501, 511, 516, 541, 546
voices_base_male.ini..............rvp101, 106, 111, 121, 126, 131, 140, 146, 151
voices_space_female.ini...........atc_leg_f01, atc_leg_f01a, female pilot_
voices_space_male.ini.............atc_leg_m01, mc_leg_m01 (mission commission), male pilot_
voices_recognizable.ini...........nnvoice, trent_voice
Inside each of these ini files are headers for the appropriate voice, be sure to get yours in the right place.
onwards...
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******New bases*******
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To be continued, the UnderVerse Beta 2 is underway, getting busy...prod me if I don't continue this...
