Binary Table Data


Table Data may be loaded from "binary files", files into which machine-readable number values have been directly output by custom table generation program, or entered manually through a program such as a Hex Editor.

The format is very simple, in that values are stored one right after the other, with no header, footer, or other information. A setting in the Table Def specifies whether to load the values as BYTEs (8-bit), WORDs (16-bit, two-byte), or DWORDs (32-bit, 4-byte), and whether to interpret them as big-endian or little-endian, and signed or unsigned.


HCGE Table File


Table data may also be loaded from a more human-readable, text-based HCGE Table File.

The following is a detailed description of each of the entries in a Table Def file. For a more practical view, see the example below


• Number of Tables
  
  
  This value specifies the number of Tables that should be loaded for this game
  
  
  
• Table
  
  
  Each Table Load entry is listed immediately below in the following format:
  
  
  • Filename
    
    
    The filename of a Binary Table Data file or an HCGE Table File
    
    If the file does not exist in this folder, its path must be included. The path must be "relative", meaning that it must tell how to get to the file from this folder, not from the "Root Directory"
    
    
    
  • Type
    
    
    This value specifies the type of data that is stored in the above-named file:
    

    0- Binary table data   Signed Byte
    1- Binary table data   Signed Word  Big Endian
    2- Binary table data   Signed Word  Little Endian
    3- Binary table data   Signed Dword Big Endian
    4- Binary table data   Signed Dword Little Endian
    5- Binary table data Unsigned Byte
    6- Binary table data Unsigned Word  Big Endian
    7- Binary table data Unsigned Word  Little Endian
    8- HCGE Table File

The following is an example setup for a Table Def File to better demonstrate how to put the above information into practice. Use the same format and fill in the appropriate values given the information contained throughout the various documents to create Table Defs for an HCGE Game.

;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
; Example Table Def File ;
;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

Number of Tables:  9

 Table 0 Name: tables\table0.def
         Type: 8

 Table 1 Name: tables\table1.tbl
         Type: 7

 Table 2 Name: tables\table2.tbl
         Type: 6

 Table 3 Name: tables\table3.tbl
         Type: 5

 Table 4 Name: tables\table4.tbl
         Type: 4

 Table 5 Name: tables\table5.tbl
         Type: 3

 Table 6 Name: tables\table6.tbl
         Type: 2

 Table 7 Name: tables\table7.tbl
         Type: 1

 Table 8 Name: tables\table8.tbl
         Type: 0