Mounts, Patching and Moddesc oh my
So you've probably come across people talking about Patching mods for other mods. And you may be thinking why? or even How? This tutorial is in the hopes to teach you both. Because of focusing on mounts and patches I will go into depth on some subject matters.
Before I can explain why or how let's first learn what Mounts are.
So by now you probably know in ME we install our mods via Content first and then textures but some will be coming from other games and asking what load order should they install content mods.
This is where Mounts come in. A mount is sort of similar to load order except you don't have to do anything, the mount itself determines what gets priority. The higher the mount number the higher priority it has.
So if you have two mods. Mod A1 mounts at 4500 and Mod B1 mounts at 6000. Mod B1 will get priority. So if Mod A1 has BioP_Nor and Mod B1 has BioP_Nor, Mod B1's will override Mod A's BioP_Nor. So any edits done in A1 will not appear in game, instead only Mod B1's will only show.
So unless a mod specifically says to install it first such as when a mod option requires another mod installing first in order to be able to install that option. Then generally the Mount will sort what has priority.
When creating a mod in ME3 Tweaks Mod Manager's DLC Mod Starter Kit on the right hand side is Existing Known DLC, the numbers to the left of their name are the Mount Priority. The example image below (Image 01) points from the section where you put your mount number to already existing ones on the right. That have currently been added in the database.
If making mods that, add, edits or replaces meshes (objects, outfits, NPC edits) it is best to mount on the lower end of the mount list unless your mod includes much more than just meshes.
This is because if your mod gets overridden its much easier to notice something has gone wrong as the mesh won't show, it also won't break the game. It just visually won't show up. Where a mod that edits or creates new plotbools, conditionals and such are much less easier to notice. In fact you may end up four hours later in the game and notice something has gone wrong then. And then require to load up an earlier save.
Known DLC Mods You can also see them here. Any marked in red are mounting at the same mount number , and the engine behavior will be undefined. As such, never use the same mount as another mod's, even if it's one of your own, as users can (and will!) try to install both. For the mods to work properly, they will need a unique mount number.
If you want to know more about the other tabs on the create a mod section see here
Now we come onto the why we make patches, so in my example above if a user wanted to use both Mod A1 and Mod B1's version of BioP_Nor a patch would be required by the highest Mounted mod. In this case Mod B1 would be the mod that would need to host the patch as being the higher mounted mod it overrides any edits done by the lower mounted mod. So the higher monuted mod requires to host the patch, whether the lower mounted mod makes the Patch for the other to host, or the host mod creates the patch after getting the go ahead to create it.
So if Mod A1 has open patch permissions, Mod B1 could create a patch for it.
So why do we make patches? So users can use mods together that edit the same files.
For example the biggest example of mods that need patches right now are mods that edit meshes of characters that share the same Package file (PCC)
So first how do you know if your mod needs a patch for another? Personally I keep a list of my mods mount numbers in an excel spreadsheet so its just quicker for me to check my mounts.
Now if a user comments on your mod asking for a patch you know your mod mount number but then want to check the other mods mount number.
First if it has already been added to the database you can go here Known DLC Mods and click on the tab that pertains to you. To see what mount the other mod mounts at.
If it is higher than yours, then that mod is the one that would require to host the patch. Best to make a note on your main page what mods are not compatible with yours and an extra note if you are fine with them making a patch for your mod. If yours is higher then theirs, yours is the one that needs to host the patch.
If the mod is not yet in the database, open up Legendary Explorer and go to the Utilities tab and open Mount Editor (See image 02)
When the window pops up it will look like Image 03
Click on Load Mount File and locate the Mount.dlc in the DLCs CookedPCConsole folder (see Image 04)
This example uses my Body Diversity mod folder as you can see in the top bar the Mount.dlc is located in DLC_MOD_Body_Diversity_for_Mshep/CookedPCConsole. Click on it then open.
Where it says Mount Priority is the Mount number, so this mod is 4447 (see Image 05)
Now you've learnt how to manually check the Mount Priority, this is also how you can edit your own Mount if you ever need to update it.
Do not make a patch without finding out if the other modder is okay with a patch, in some cases a mod page may already say somewhere its okay with patching, in which case you're good to go. Some also include articles with more information about the mod such as the mount number, whether patching is okay and such.
For example my Garrus No Visor LE2 has this on the description page (See Image 06)
Remember, everyone has the right to say no, it's rare these days that someone will say no. But they do have a right to say no, just as you have the right to ask about patches. Sometimes it can be how we talk to someone about patches, how much work is required or even they may not have time to make a patch and keep their own mods up to date while making sure the patch is up to date. So please remember be polite and try to be understanding.
In other cases a mod may have files they cannot give permission for you to patch because they have assets made by a third party. Such as say you got permission from a simmer, you can't give permission to someone else to have that asset in their mods. That person would require getting permission from the same simmer unless they have open permissions. So unless the other person has permissions from the same person they can not include that file that includes their assets.
If your mod has many files it may just be too much work for them to implement the patch. Remember modding is a hobby and if both your mods have many files that are the same, it would be a lot of work to patch for.
However you could offer to make your edits to their files and send them the patched files.
This also goes for singular packages, if one person makes many edits and you only make a few, it may be a better idea to offer to implement your edits to their files.
A recent example for me is for my Garrus No Visor LE2 mod which mounts at 4445, I was asked by user if I could make a patch for LE2 Alternative Bodies that mounts at 2600. As both our mods edit BioD_EndGm1_110ROMGarrus.pcc in order for their mods edits to work with mine I had to create the edits from my mod to their BioD_EndGm1_110ROMGarrus.pcc so my patch install option would include both our edits.
The LE2 Alternative Bodies page had written on it that it was okay for me to create a patch for their mod, so I was good to go to make a patch for their mod in my next update.
But what about if you're making a mod and want to see what mods edit the same files? So you can preemptively ask or check if a modder is okay with patches so your first version will have patches for those mods.
Well we can use under tools in ME3 Tweaks Mod Manager the Nexusmods File Search as show in Image 07 to search for mods already added to the database on what files they edit.
First click on the game, in this case I click on Mass Effect LE as seen in Image 08
Now open up the drop down menu that says Main, Update, Optional etc and change it to Main, Update, Optional and Miscellaneous (see Image 09) As we really don't need to be checking old mod files or archived files.
Now in the search bar we want to type in the full name of each PCC we edit including the .pcc or even the other file types if you edit them just include the name and the extension. For example in this case I have to search for BioD_EndGm1_110ROMGarrus.pcc (see image 10)
In this you can see my mod edits that file, LE2 Alternative Bodies, Brooks Hair and Some More Default Femshep Replacers also edit that file. However in this case we are focusing on LE2 Alternative Bodies as that is my most recent example of where I made a patch, as it mounts lower than my mod.
So what do we do now? First create a folder in your mod folder for the patch of the other mod such as the example below in Image 11
If you haven't already now download the other mod. Open its mod folder in ME3Tweaks Mod Manager and locate the file you need to create a patch for. Copy and paste it into your new folder in your mod folder such as my example in Image 12
Now make the same edits you did to your mod to that file. In my case I imported my mesh of Garrus with no visor as well as the fixes to stop his face from melting.
Do not use the export bin and import bin to add your changes or theirs to the other PCC. Use the drag and drop feature. The export/import .bin can break things and is advised against.
Now you've finished your edits to the file from the other mod, you need to make an addition to the moddesc so it can be installed. Right click on your mod name in Me3Tweaks Mod Manager and click Moddesc.ini (see Image 13)
In the window that pops up go to the Alternate DLC (Custom DLC) tab and then click + Add new Alternate DLC, then lets fill out the form once you open up your new install option (see image 14) If you haven't previously had an option click + Add new Alternate DLC twice. We will go as if you had to make two options.
For both install options add as follows;
Condition = COND_MANUAL This means the user has to pick an option, however one of the options has to have CheckedByDefault = True This is required for what we are doing. As it makes a default option automatically ticked. (see Image 15)
Because we are making options where only one has to be picked we also need to make our options part of a group. OptionGroup = Casuals I named it casuals as the patch was for the casual outfit. (see Image 16)
We make it part of a group so only one gets installed, otherwise whatever option installs last would get priority. This way we make it so the users choose either the non patched version or the patched version.
ModOperation is what tells the install option what to do. We do the below version so when the option is installed it adds those files to the customdlc folder you specify in the ModDestDLC I explain next. ModOperation = OP_ADD_FOLDERFILES_TO_CUSTOMDLC
ModDestDLC is how we tell the install option where to add the files. The files need to be directed to your DLC's CookedPCConsole folder starting with the folder that starts with DLC_MOD_
Such as; ModDestDLC = DLC_MOD_LE2_Garrus_No_Visor\CookedPCConsole (see Image 17)
Now ModAltDLC this has to be named after the folder that includes your optional files. Such as earlier when I made the Casuals_Only_AlternativeBodyPatch for my second install option it would be that such as below;
First Install Option ModAltDLC = Casuals_Only (see Image 18)
Second Install Option ModAltDLC = Casuals_Only_AlternativeBodyPatch (see Image 19)
Now why do we do this? So the ModOperation OP_ADD_FOLDERFILES_TO_CUSTOMDLC adds the files from our ModAltDLC folder to the CookedPCConsole of our DLC folder when installing to our game directory.
These two are pretty straight forward and can be pretty much whatever you want;
FriendlyName = name you want for the install option Description = describe what this option does such as mentioning its the Patch version (see image 20)
Now this next option isn't always a requirement, but if your mod option relies on another to work it is then definitely required. An example would be the Patch Framework you would need to add this to the option and define the LE3 Community Patch Framework. Otherwise your mod option would not work if the Framework was not installed. In some cases a lot use this also to ensure the modder they are patching for also gets downloads.
DLCRequirements = here you write the DLC_MOD_Name of the dlc you're patching for or using as part of a base of your mod. (see image 21) in this case I add DLC_MOD_LE2AlternativeBodies as that is the name of the DLC_MOD folder in that mod. This makes it that in order to install this option you first have to install the mod that is required. Otherwise it gives the user a greyed out option with the reason the DLC is not installed
This may only be wanted if you have multiple install options that are groups, you may want to give your users the option to choose non of the options in the group you created, in this case you create another + Add new Alternate DLC.
Condition = COND_MANUAL Just like our previous versions we want this to be manual so the user can choose it (see image 22 pink border)
ModOperation = OP_NOTHING We choose nothing as we want this option to do nothing, so this option is basically the vanilla option. (see image 22 red border)
OptionGroup = same as the others in the group you want to give this option to in my case Casuals (see image 22 green border)
FriendlyName = Vanilla Version or describing what it does not do is a good option for the friendly name. For mine its Casuals - Do not Remove Visor Description = again just describe the option (see image 22 blue border)
As you can see when applying the mod we now see all three options (within red border on Image 23 above) as well as some of the other options including a Patch for No Headgear for Squadmates.
Now below in Image 24 you can see the greyed out option (I highlighted with the red box) for the LE2 Alternative Bodies Patch, this is because I am using the DLCRequirement option and this is what it looks like to the user when that mod is not installed.
