Greetings Mercenaries!

Patch Date and Time - 23 MAR 2020 @ 10 AM PDT
Patch Number: 1.0.227

Welcome to the latest MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries Mod Editor and game update! This update focuses on introducing a significant array of improvements to in-game Mod support and the Mod Editor, along with general game improvements for AI obstacle avoidance and the addition of a news carousel to the Title Screen.

UPDATE: We've also included support for NVIDA DLSS 2.0! Check out this post for more details!

Prior to release of this update we strongly recommend that all Mod makers disable the Epic Games Launcher auto-update feature for the MechWarrior 5 Mod Editor and back-up all your modded assets (in their pre-cooked form!). We cannot stress enough how important this is, as any modifications you’ve made to existing game content is likely to be overwritten by this update. You will also need those backups to port your work into the new system.

The new mod creation framework introduced in this update will greatly help to mitigate these kinds of conflicts in any future updates. This update will eliminate the need to directly modify source game assets, and instead introduces a semi-automated system for making safe, mod-specific duplicates of any asset you want to modify.

When it comes to packaging your Mod, this update also introduces a simple one-button solution to handle what had previously been a convoluted and error-prone manual process for cooking and packaging your mods. No more custom bat files and inflated cook times!

Our Mod Editor Guide has been updated to reflect the new system for creating and packaging your Mods. It also includes steps for porting your previously built Mod into the new system. Get it here!

In addition to the built-in support for creating and packaging your Mods, this update features an array of improvements to the number of core systems exposed to modification.

On the game side you'll see a new Mods option available in your Title Screen, which will bring you to a new interface for managing your installed Mods. Important note: Mods must have been built under the new system introduced in this update in order to be compatible with this screen. Any mods that were manually cooked and packaged by the author and distributed as a basic PAK file will not appear in this screen.

- The MechWarrior 5 Team

Mod Editor Updates

• A streamlined system for creating and packaging your Mods has been introduced, making it both safer and easier to build your Mods.
• The Dialogue system used for creating dialogue chains with NPCs in the Leopard Hangar environment is now available for use, empowering you to introduce brand new NPC exchanges in any Campaign Mods or Hangar events.
• ‘Mech Stats can now be overridden directly inside individual Mech Data Asset (MDA) files, rather than needing to change the global MechStats data table.
• ‘Mech Movement and Torso stats stats are now exposed for dynamic modification in Blueprints.
  • Use MWMechMovementComponent::SetMoveStats() to change movement properties of a 'Mech at runtime.
  • Use MWTorsoTwistComponent::SetTorsoTwistStats() to change torso/arm properties of a 'Mech at runtime.
• Player Sensor behaviors are now exposed for modification in Blueprints.
  • MWTargetTrackingComponent BaseSensorRange is now exposed. This is the distance from the player at which sensors work.
  • MWTargetTrackingComponent BaseSensorFoV is now exposed. This is the angle in front of the player at which sensors work.
• AI now directly adhere to SensorData config assets, enabling greater Mod control over AI sensing systems and unlocks the dynamic modification of AI sensing stats.
• WeaponDataAssets can now directly specify their Emitter, Cooldown, and Jamming behaviors directly in blueprints, greatly extending weapon mod support.
  • Added new weapon emitter functions to blueprints: Configure, PreFire, TickFire, CanInterruptFire, CanLockOnToTargets, RequiresTargetLockOn, IsIndirectFire, CanFireAtLockedTargetWithinMinimumRange, CanFireAtLockedTargetOutsideMaximumRange.
  • MWWeaponEmitter::TickFire() is a powerful function for modding as it tells a weapon what to do while the trigger is being held. Entirely new firing behaviors can be created by overriding this function.
  • MWWeaponEmitter::Configure() allows weapon stats to be modified at runtime to create dynamic firing behaviors, and will be another very useful tool for modding. For example, a certain kind of equipment being installed on a 'Mech could influence the statistics of a projectile weapon.
• Added new metagame economic event handlers to MWGameState CampaignHooks.  These can be overridden to produce custom behaviors.
  • New FinancialModelHandler Blueprint - Composes the Financial Statement shown to the player on the Operations Screen and is used to debit the player every pay period. Mod this and use Function Overrides to build your own finance logic.
  • New UpkeepHandler Blueprint - Helper to the FinancialModelHandler which tallies C-Bill upkeep for 'Mechs and Pilots. Mod this and use Function Overrides to modify 'Mech/Pilot upkeep.
• Added a new interface MWPersistentActorInterface that allow Mods to save/load state.
  • Any actor that inherits from this interface in blueprints will be saved on game save, and re-spawned on game load.
  • Any blueprint variable flagged as "SaveGame" in its variable details will be saved and restored along with the actor.
  • Added PreSave/PostLoad functions, which get invoked on the actor on save/load.

Misc

• Some third-party particle content that had been removed from the Mod Editor for its initial release – most notably a number of widely used explosion particles - is now present in the form of pre-cooked assets. This will allow those particles and their constituent assets to be used, but not modified or exported.
• This update fixes a few remaining cases of missing source content from the Wwise project. Some unused files have also been culled to help reduce the install size.
• The Mod Editor Guide has been updated to reflect the new features and systems introduced with this update.

Game Updates

• A Mod Manager screen has been added to the Title Screen, providing support for the enabling and disabling of installed Mods that were built in this latest version of the Mod Editor.
• AI obstacle avoidance has been improved, making them less likely to walk through buildings and other destructible objects.
• A news carousel has been added to the Title Screen.
• NVIDA DLSS 2.0 is now supported

Mod Editor Known Issues

There is currently a known issue when attempting to use modified child widgets in unmodified parent widgets. For example, modifying the Objective Log widget on the Home Screen but not including a modified version of the Home Screen itself.

If you are intending to make a Mod that changes a child widget, you must follow these steps to ensure its functionality:

1. Make a duplicate of the child widget you are intending to Mod and give it a distinctive name, such as 'ObjectiveLogModded'. In this specific case do not use the Save To Mod function, as doing so will prevent your Mod from working.
2. Move that duplicate into the Content folder of your Mod (not the ModOverride folder), as for the purposes of this workaround we need to treat this duplicate as a new asset.
3. Make your intended changes within that duplicate.
4. Identify the parent of that child widget (the main widget in which your child widget is used). You can do so by checking the Reference Viewer for the original version of that child widget. Open that parent widget and hit the Save To Mod button.
5. In the new Mod version of the parent widget, replace the original child widget with the one you added to your Mod Content folder.
6. Package your Mod.

Until we can issue a fix, the above steps will enable you to make a functional Mod containing a child widget.

See the updated v2 Mod Editor Guide for more details on these changes!

Tagged: Patch-Notes