A little tinkering with a genie editor reveals that AoK is filled with duplicate buildings. There are four barracks, one for each age; two siege workshops, one for each age where you can build them. However, there are twenty town centers and no less than thirty-two units all unhelpfully called 'Gate', making the modding of gates and Town Centers a difficult proposition. This article explains the purposes, relations, and naming conventions of these units and their even more numerous graphic IDs. Armed with this knowledge, you can add new graphic sets more easily, and even create new sets of gates!
There are two ways refer to individual units: by ID number and internal name. Unfortunately, ID numbers are completely arbitrary. You'll find some corresponding units with consecutive IDs, and some hundreds of entries apart. However, internal names are consistent and precise, though somewhat hard to read. The same logic applies to the individual graphic slots, where the names are very similar to internal unit names. This guide will use and explain these compact names such as GTAB3 and RTWC4XD3.
Units
The internal names of the various Town Center units follow this pattern: RTWCxn
Where x is age number
x = 1, Dark Age variant
x = 2, Feudal Age variant
x = 3, Castle Age variant
x = 4, Imperial Age variant
x = 2, Feudal Age variant
x = 3, Castle Age variant
x = 4, Imperial Age variant
n is a one letter code denoting what part of the Town Center the unit corresponds to. Note that the base TC units are simply RTWCx.
There are five Town Center units for each age. Here are the five Castles age versions for the Middle Eastern buildset, along with the base dark age unit.
To elaborate further:
RTWCx is the main TC unit, where villagers and technologies are purchased. Standing graphics show the shadow and side pillars.
All ages have RTWC1A, RTWC1B, and RTWC1C annex units and RTWC1X as head unit (Dark age variants are always used for annex units, so RTWC3X mostly looks like a dark age TC until you advance)
Standing graphics: RTWCxN4b
These units have snow and damage graphics
These units have snow and damage graphics
RTWC (there is no RTWC1) is the unit unhidden in the scenario editor
RTWCxA - Center
All ages have RTWC1X as head unit
Standing graphics: RTWCxNNb
RTWCxB - Pillars
All ages have RTWC1X as head unit
Standing graphics: RTWCxN3b
RTWCxC - Wings
All ages have RTWC1X as head unit
Standing graphics: RTWCxN2b
RTWCxX - Preview: all graphics included with deltas
All ages have RTWC as stack unit
Standing graphics: RTWCxCNb
These units have snow and damage graphics
These units have snow and damage graphics
These are the buildings constructed by villagers. Their standing graphics appear when placing a new TC. They also appear in the fog of war.
All town center graphic id names have the following format:
RTWCx**b
x denotes age number
x = 1, Dark Age variant
x = 2, Feudal Age variant
x = 3, Castle Age variant
x = 4, Imperial Age variant
x = 2, Feudal Age variant
x = 3, Castle Age variant
x = 4, Imperial Age variant
b denotes buildset:
W is West European
E is East/Central European
F is Far Eastern
G is Dark Age
M is Middle Eastern
X is Mesoamerican
E is East/Central European
F is Far Eastern
G is Dark Age
M is Middle Eastern
X is Mesoamerican
In Forgotten (Empires):
I is Italian
X is also Slavic
X is also Slavic
** is a two or three character code
Generalizing the age and buildset, the slots correspond to following slp content, with visual examples are from the Middle Eastern Imperial TC:
RTWCxN0b - shadow
RTWCxN1b - blank or miscellaneous prop
RTWCxNNb - Center Structure. Standing graphics for RTWCxA
RTWCxN2b - Left Wing. Contains deltas for right side. Standing graphics for RTWCxC
RTWCxN3b - Front Left Pillars. Contains deltas for right side
RTWCxN4b - Far Left Pillar. Contains deltas for far right pillar, shadow, and prop. The standing graphics for RTWCx
RTWCxCNb - Preview graphics: blank slp with deltas for all other graphics. Standing graphics for RTWCxX
RTWCxD1b - Damage graphic 1: blank slp with numerous flame deltas for 25% damage
RTWCxD2b - Damage graphic 2: blank slp with numerous flame deltas for 50% damage
RTWCxD3b - Damage graphic 3: blank slp with numerous flame deltas for 75% damage
RTWCxGb - Garrison: blank slp with garrison flag delta
RTWCxXD1 - Damage graphics for preview at 25%
RTWCxXD2 - Damage graphics for preview at 50%
RTWCxXD3 - Damage graphics for preview at 75%
As far as I know, no one has felt it worth the time to align snow and flame to new graphics. Copying the graphics from a similarly shaped existing TC is sufficient.
RTWCx2N5b - Right Wing
RTWCx2N6b - Front Right Pillars
RTWCx2N7b - Far Right Pillar
RTWCx2Sb - Snow: blank slp with several snow deltas
RTWCx2XSb - Preview Snow: blank slp with several snow deltas
The internal names for gates have this format: GTnmx
where n denotes orientation
n = A, /
n = B, \
n = C, -
n = D, |
n = B, \
n = C, -
n = D, |
Somewhat less abstractly, notice how the third letter changes with orientation in this screenshot:
x = 2, stone gate
x = 3, fortified gate
m denotes what part of gate the unit corresponds to
m = A, closed gate
Standing graphics: GTnAxNNb
Possesses two annexed GTnC2 gateposts
Transform unit = GTnB2
Head unit = GTnX2
Note: The stone variants of these units are the ones unhidden in the editor
m = B, open gate
Standing graphics: GTnBxNNb
Possesses two annexed GTnC2 gateposts
Transform unit = GTnA2
Head unit = GTnX2
m = C, gatepost
Standing graphics: GTACxN1b (Note that n is always A)
Head unit = GTnX2
m = X, Preview: all graphics included with deltas
Standing graphics: GTnXxNNb
Construction graphics: GTnXxCNb (Other unit have construction graphics, but not gate specific ones)
Seen when placing and constructing a gate
GTAXx is the unit that actually appears in the builder menu, but all are enabled by techs. The automatic orientation seems to be hardcoded.
These units vanish completely once construction completes.
All options exist independently, resulting in 32 total gate units
Sea Gates are SGnm (Palisade Gates PGTnm in FE/AoF)
There is not an upgraded variant to worry about, but otherwise the same conventions are followed.
If you copy these units and adjust the annex, head, and transform units accordingly, new gates can be created.
Finally, an aside for modders struggling with the 900 unit limit: every orientation has its own gatepost, (GTnCx) but you can reuse the same one for all for types. (I.e., set annex units to GTAC2 for all stone/fortified gate units) Gates are placed in scenarios as closed gate units, so this change doesn't break old scenarios. Though you will need to remove several effects in the Fortified wall technology to properly use the units you've freed up.
Gate Graphics are typically formatted as GTmnx**b
where n denotes orientation
x = 2, stone gate
x = 3, fortified gate
m denotes what part of gate the graphic corresponds to
Generally, these five characters will be the name of the gate unit that uses the graphic.
b is a letter referring to buildset:
W is West European
E is East/Central European
F is Far Eastern
M is Middle Eastern
X is Mesoamerican
E is East/Central European
F is Far Eastern
M is Middle Eastern
X is Mesoamerican
In Forgotten:
I is Italian
X is also Slavic
X is also Slavic
** varies considerably. Using Southwest-Northeast Middle Eastern stone Gates as a visual example,
GTnAxN0b - Shadow for closed gate center
GTnAxN1b - Slot for animations. Closed gates have none, and it is therefore unused
GTnAxNNb - Graphics for closed gate center
Includes deltas for shadows and dummy animation slot
GTnBxN0b - Shadow for open gate center
GTnBxN1b - Slot for animations. Open gates have none, so this slot is unused
GTnBxNNb - Graphics for open gate center
Includes deltas for shadows and dummy animation slot
GTnCxN0b - Shadow for gatepost
GTnCxNNb - Graphics for gatepost
Includes deltas for shadows and dummy animation slot (Except GTAC2NNb, which has none)
Since GTACxN1b is used as the standing graphic, these deltas are irrelevant
GTACxN1b - Blank slp with deltas for flag, shadow and tower graphics
n=A is special. Other n values are just flags.
This graphic is used by all gatepost units
GTACxN1G - Animated flag graphics. Used by GTACxN1b
GTnCxN1b - For n = B, C, D. Static flag graphics used by GTnX2NNb (Preview). GTAX2NNb uses GTACxN1G instead.
GTnCxC0b - Shadows for the three stages of construction
GTnCxCNb - Graphics for the three stages of construction. Includes deltas for shadows
GTnX2NNb - Preview graphics: blank slp with deltas for all other graphics
GTmnxSb - Snow graphics. Blank slps and no deltas mean that gates do not change appearance on snow. Nevertheless, processing power is still used to superimpose these graphics on gates in snowy terrain.
GTmnxD1 - Set of delta flame graphics that appear at 25% damage
GTmnxD2 - Set of delta flame graphics that appear at 50% damage
GTmnxD3 - Set of delta flame graphics that appear at 75% damage
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[This message has been edited by Vardamir (edited 08-08-2017 @ 07:39 PM).]