So there are a lot of books that do not exist in Meta Creator, but there is a way to create data sheets for the software. I want to create a data sheet for some of the books, but I'm not exactly sure how some of the data points are supposed to be filled in. Does anybody know of a tutorial out there on how to do this?
To get you started -
If it’s only adding extra things (spells, equipment abilities, virtues, flaws, spell guidelines, etc) in structures which already exist you only need to create a new clean data sheet (a .mds file) with all the old notes stripped out and the new items you want added. You can stipulate dependencies (must have martial ability group, or a set of virtues) in the same mds file too. It’s very powerful.
It’s not a great editing experience in terms of adding a lot of new data at once. I might have missed a programmatic way to do that.
Then you import the file using MC’s menu when a new character is being edited, and the new options will appear.
There are some file properties which need to be edited too but I can’t recall the tricks for that, but I do remember it didn’t take me long to suss how the versions and references hung together.
Bruce was excellent in answering questions I had.
If you want to also add new formulas and rules that is much trickier, and it needs additional files.
E.g. the crossbow needed a weapon damage calculation to be slightly different, which meant editing in the macro language (and I’m a disastrously poor developer).
If you want to create your own help file which is usable from within the application then I wish you luck - I did it once successfully and it did my head in.
I have files from 2011 for crossbows and bastard swords from Lords of Men, and a file which adds Gaelic as a language.
Somewhere (probably lost or in a backup) there is files for dual wielding weapons skills, and about 100 of my spells, and the spells from the Apprentices book. I couldn’t find the files today when I looked but they might be on a hard disk backup.
I really recommend you read the in built help on binary data files in MC as it demonstrates what can be done well.