Tutorial - Modifying the unit cap

Tutorial - Modifying the ship number cap in Haegemonia

This is a short tutorial on modifying the ship number cap in Haegemonia. This limit is the maximum number of ships that can be built.

This number varies from map to map and is different by ship type. These numbers for ships, spies, spec1 and spec2 units are stored in the level files. We will open a level file, modify the appropriate section and save it.

Part 1: opening the level file
First, go to your Game_Inf\Levels folder. Here you can find several folders, each containing different maps, or levels that you can play in skirmish or multiplayer. Open the folder you would like to modify.
Within the folder, you will find a level.inf file. Try to open it in Notepad. If you can read the opened document, skip to part 3.

Part 2: opening an encrypted level file
Some maps, like the originals, are encrypted. You will need a tool to open, edit and modify them. Find ‘Haegemonia Explorer' - this tool does not come with TSH, however, if you have downloaded VP, you will most likely find it in the game's main folder, or, if one exists, the so-called "Modding tools for Haegemonia" folder. An alternative is to download the modding tools itself, but today it's not easy to find it on the web. Once HExplorer is open, open the level.inf file you would like to modify.

Part 3: editing the level file
You will need to scroll down almost to the bottom of the file, until the [Empires] section. Here, Empire1, Empire2, etc. are the player empires, Solons are the Solon, Alien are the space monsters, rndattackers are attackers spawned by random events, independent are civilians, and the mercenaries are self-explanatory. Leave the NONE empire intact - this is for uncolonised planets, asteroids, etc.
Edit the following lines in Empire1, Empire2, etc. but leave all the others as they are.
MaxShipGroupNr = 20 <== Military
MaxSpyGroupNr = 6 <== Spies
MaxSpecialGroupNr = 6 <== Military Special
MaxSpecial2GroupNr = 6 <== Economic Special
Make sure you have the same values for player empires. The maximum number is unknown, but you can probably push the values relatively high. Remember that there is a balance in the game - military bases go into Special 1, and if you allow too many military ships, they become powerless. The same for spies, but too many spies can quickly ruin a game. Try to experiment with numbers to get good balance.
Also, keep in mind the strength of your computer (and the others you play with). 20 military ships can mean 220 fighters in TSH - which can slow down the game to a crawl.
Save with notepad or haegemonia explorer.

General notes, guidelines:
- Keep game balance in mind
- Keep your PC's speed in mind
- It's not fair to allow one empire to build more than another
- It's wise to keep a backup copy.

Have fun!