I'm updating and adding my own variations to some of the modding tutorials I've seen at the archives. This one is the basic beginning. I also have tutorials for using ModMan, folder packing, etc. I guess it's just stuff I wanted to write for myself during my learning process I hope it helps.

Sorry about the post stacking, but the forum only allows 15 images per post. Give me some constructive criticism please! Doubtlessly I've got some of the terminology incorrect...


This is a Modding 101 tutorial for users of Vista. It will explain the steps necessary for creating a manual backup of the items.dat file, and it will also describe the coding technique of “effect blocking.” We will then create a new item known as an “Archer’s Ring”, which will be socketed, and give the character +10 Dexterity and +5 Strength bonuses when equipped. In a later chapter, we will learn how to make simple mods applicable through gbrown’s Mod Manager.

This tutorial references the use of a text editor called EditPad Lite. Although you could use NotePad to complete the tutorial, it is recommended that you download EditPad Lite for free (link below). This editor is superior to NotePad, and its versatility will become clear as we make increasingly more complicated mods.

http://www.editpadpro.com/editpadlite.html

Part 1: Creating a manual backup of items.dat

1. On your desktop, you will have a shortcut icon for Fate. Right click on this icon to give you the following menu and move your cursor to “Open file location.”



2. Left click on “Open file location”, and you will get the following window. You are now viewing all the files and folders in Fate’s root directory. Scroll through this window until you find a folder named “ITEMS”.



3. Double click on the “ITEMS” folder to open it, and scroll through this window until you find the items.dat file.



4. Right click on the items.dat file to give you the following window, move your cursor to “Copy“, then left click.



5. Now left click anywhere on your desktop to select it, then right click on the desktop to get the following menu. Move your cursor to “Paste” and left click. (The keyboard shortcuts ctrl-C and ctrl-V are of course faster in the above steps.)



6. You will now get a new file icon on the desktop which looks like this:



This is the backup of the items.dat file. Keep it in a safe place. If you make numerous changes to the working items.dat file and the code has too many errors to accurately debug, you may need to replace the working items.dat with the backup and start from scratch. This holds true even if your are using Mod Manager, as Mod manager has issues restoring files in Vista (more on that in another chapter). I’ve found that it’s always wise to have manual backups of ALL Fate files that you intend to alter.

Open editpad (or notepad) and type this template.

[ITEM]
<TYPE>:RING
<NAME>:
<RARITY>:
<FISHING_RARITY>:
<MINIMUM_DEPTH>:
<MODEL>:ITEMS/ring.mdl
<COLLIDEABLE>:0
<SHADOW>:0
<ICON>:ICONS/ring8.png:ICONS/ring8a.png
<VALUE>:
<TAKEABLE>:1
<DROP_SOUND>:SOUNDS/ITEMS/fall.wav
<TAKE_SOUND>:SOUNDS/ITEMS/ring.wav
<LAND_SOUND>:SOUNDS/ITEMS/ring.wav
[/ITEM]

This is what we will use for the template for our new Archer's Ring.

After the <NAME>: tag, you need to type "Archer's Ring", as this is the name for your new item.

Next comes the <RARITY>: tag. The function of this tag should be obvious, it controls how rare this item is. The rarity can be any number between 1 and 1000, 1 = very common, 1000 = you will never see this item in the dungeon.

Next comes the fishing rarity. This, of course, controls how rare this item is when fishing. The rules for the <RARITY>: tag apply here as well. You could, for example, type in <RARITY>:1000 for the rarity tag and <FISHING_RARITY>:930. This would mean that you can only get this item by fishing.

<MINIMUM_DEPTH>: controls what the minimum depth (dungeon level) this item can be found at. (Note: There is also a <MAXIMUM_DEPTH>: tag, this obviously controls the maximum depth the item can be found at)

<MODEL>: This tells the game which 3d model to use for the game. Make sure you type the path correctly!

<COLLIDEABLE>: Determines whether or not you can run into the item. <COLLIDEABLE>:1 means you can collide into it, <COLLIDEABLE>:0 means you cannot.

<SHADOW>: Determines whether the item has a shadow.

<ICON>: This tells the game what to use for the item's icon, and after a colin ( : ) the alpha. The alpha is a black and white image that determines what area(s) of icon are transparent. White = completely transparent, black = not transparent. Make sure you type the path correctly!

<VALUE>: This is how much gold it will cost you to buy it from a merchant.

<TAKEABLE>: This tells the game whether you can pick the item up or not.

<DROP_SOUND>: This is what sound it makes when you toss it into the air.

<TAKE_SOUND>: This is what sound it makes when you pick it up.

<LAND_SOUND>: This is what sound it makes when it hits the ground.

Now, to add the +10 dexterity and +5 strength bonuses, you need to put in something called the effect block. Normal effect blocks go like this:

[EFFECT]
<ACTIVATION>:PASSIVE
<TYPE>:
<VALUE>:
<DURATION>:INSTANT
[/EFFECT]

For a dexterity bonus, you want to put <TYPE>:DEXTERITY in the effect block. The <VALUE>: tag tells how much of the type to apply. In this case, for a +10 dexterity bonus, you would type <VALUE>:10. (You can also do curses on an item, to do this, you would type a - sign, then the number of reduction)

To make another effect on an item, you need another effect block. Type another one. Now, make the <TYPE>: tag <TYPE>:STRENGTH. The value, of course, would be 5.

There are many types of effects. This is the complete list:

STRENGTH
DEXTERITY
VITALITY
MAGIC
MANA
HP
STAMINA
MANARECHARGE
HPRECHARGE
STAMINARECHARGE
ARMORBONUS
TOHITBONUS
DAMAGEBONUS
DAMAGETAKEN
KNOCKBACK
SKILLSWORD
SKILLCLUB
SKILLHAMMER
SKILLAXE
SKILLSPEAR
SKILLSTAFF
SKILLPOLEARM
SKILLBOW
SKILLCRITICALSTRIKE
SKILLSPELLCASTING
SKILLDUALWIELD
SKILLSHIELD
SKILLATTACKMAGIC
SKILLDEFENSEMAGIC
SKILLCHARMMAGIC
PERCENTSTRENGTH
PERCENTDEXTERITY
PERCENTVITALITY
PERCENTMAGIC
PERCENTMANA
PERCENTHP
PERCENTSTAMINA
PERCENTSPEED
PERCENTATTACKSPEED
PERCENTARMORBONUS
PERCENTTOHITBONUS
PERCENTDAMAGEBONUS
PERCENTDAMAGETAKEN
PERCENTMAGICALDROP
PERCENTGOLDDROP
PERCENTCASTSPEED
PERCENTLIFESTOLEN
PERCENTMANASTOLEN
PERCENTDAMAGEREFLECTED
PERCENTBLOCKCHANCE
PERCENTITEMREQUIREMENTS
PERCENTPIERCINGRESISTANCE
PERCENTSLASHINGRESISTANCE
PERCENTCRUSHINGRESISTANCE
PERCENTMAGICALRESISTANCE
PERCENTFIRERESISTANCE
PERCENTICERESISTANCE
PERCENTELECTRICRESISTANCE
REMOVEEFFECT
KNOCKBACKEFFECT
IDENTIFY
WRITESPELL
SUMMON
ADDDAMAGETYPE
TRANSFORM
REVERTTRANSFORM
OPENPORTAL
DISCOVER
FLEE
TURNALIGNMENT
DISPEL
DISPELENEMY

Now, to put your finished mod in the game, you need to copy your item code and paste it somewhere in the items.dat file. It doesn't matter where, but I would suggest putting it on either to top or bottom, so it is easier to find.