Warlords Battlecry 3 Source Code Available!

Games
1

This is just to let interested parties know that Mr. Steve Fawkner has allowed us to re-distribute the Source Code (with a signed Non Disclosure Agreement) to interested coding parties, for free, quasi-open source work.

A Community Mod Project has been in effect for just over a year, now, producing editors, fine tuning tools and other coding forks for the ‘house rules’ re-distiribution of the game.

Interested parties should check the link below at the Battlefield, for more information. There is an FAQ in the ‘Archives’ Section, where most of the editors, decoding tools, and other points of interest are stored. There are also a handful of unofficial patches avaialble from the original mod project home :The Cheeseportal. Its owner, Jodwin, is working on a new ‘Data Pak’ Technology to help correct balance and other issues, including an enhanced netcode system for individuals who wish to mod their own House Rules when playing Multiplayer.

All 3d rendering artists, Programmers, and interested parties are welcome to join us at either forum, and we would love to hear from you. We are also working with some modders from the Baldur’s Gate Series to try to get some ‘fusion’ of the two games, over time.

http://www.the-battlefield.com/forum/index.php?showforum=40
If you are interested in Signing the NDA, just read the FAQ first. There is absolutely no charge to sign, but you must be of legal age to obtain the source code (18).

Best Regards, and thanks to this Forums Administrator, for allowing me to post this information. Hope to see you all soon!

St. Povis

2

Awesome. I just started playing Warlords Battlecry 3 again – such a great, tragically overlooked RTS series.

Can’t wait to see the mods this might theoretically churn out. Hopefully, someone will graft Battlecry 2’s dynamic campaign and hero model onto 3’s engine and races.

3

Well, the more the merrier, DE!

If you, or anyone you know would be interested in helping out, let us know. Maestorak is the guy who got the project off the ground, & there are others out there who work independent angles, as well.

Source is in C++, but many developments have been made in C#, Pascal, Delphi, Visual Basic, and other formats, as well. Again, there’s no charge for the code, just a willingness to respect Steve’s Work & to behave oneself within the restraints of the NDA (Which, he’s actually very enthusiastic about). The only things he’s really worried about are
a) Copyright Infringement
b) Wildfire Distribution
c) Unbecoming behavior that might affect his reputation as a designer.

Other than that, the NDA is pretty much ‘just a formality’ in his words. He’d like to jump in and help us out some time, in the future, as well, after he’s done with other obligations over the summer.

Anyway, its good to see that there’s some enthusiasm for the idea, I hope we’ll see tons more in the future!

Kind Regards,
Povis

4

I forgot to mention…

A Forum Leader (Jodwin) has been working on a full expansion mod he calls Delta…which appears as if it is heading in the direction of the WBC2 style hero system…

Best,
St. P

5

The FAQ in the forum the link above points to talks about joining clans and such, not signing NDAs and obtaining source code.

6

I like. More companies should give out sourcecode once they’re done with the game.

Althought it seems a lot more complex to get access to the files as opposed to:

7

(Embarassed)

Ooops. I forgot to mention it, I suppose. Interested Parties can contact me or Jodwin, or Maestorak about getting the code.

It is a little difficult, I agree, to obtain it (which leads me to believe that Mr. Fawkner isn’t totally done with the series & wants to cover his bases about letting a ragtag group like our own take too many liberties (there was a past issue addressed to me about one of the older coders having gone a little
on the dark side about how he overtouted his disdain for the codebase’s organiazation…a polite e-mail corrected the problem)

Generally speaking, though, the best thing to do is to contact me for the code, itself, and Maestorak and/or Jodwin about getting set up. We’re revamping the Private forums for an August set up, & depending on response, I may be re-opening an invitational modding site with FTP for exchange.

I lean towards a full concession about a totally Open Source Program, but, unfortunately, we’re unable to allow it, because of the paranthtetical issue I mentioned. We’ve had to chase out a lot of unwelcome behavior in the past, but, in the end, the most loyal members of the teams have come up with a lot of good things, considering the amount of abuse we’ve had to put up with as a handful of {mostly} beginners.

Anyway, if you’re interested, my suggestion is that you contact Maestorak or me about it. I’ll take the liberty of posting the NDA itself at the Battlefield, but, generally speaking, we like to know who we’re dealing with before handing out hard copies of the code, or even via FTP. I keep the code, itself, on a totally separate machine, as hacking issues had become a huge problem in the early days (something about these smaller company games seems to draw them out like crazy.) I should also point out an erratum in the FAQ in that, until the/an FTP site is up & running again, I’ve been distributing ‘Hard copies’ on a CD, & charging the shipping price + $1.00 for the CD/Burning, etc. (Receipt Included)

8

SOURCE CODE AGREEMENT

BETWEEN:
Infinite Interactive Pty. Ltd.
25 Antares Court,
ESSENDON
Victoria 3040

AND:

Your Name Here__________________________________________________

Address ______________________________________

Address Line 2______________________________________

Recitals
For the purposes of this Agreement the parties are:
(i) Infinite Interactive (hereinafter referred to as “INFINITE”)

(ii) Your Name Here_____ (hereinafter referred to as “ARTIST”).

B. For the purposes of this Agreement these other definitions are in effect:
(i) “GAME” refers to the computer program “Warlords Battlecry 3”
(ii) “SOURCE” refers to all original Source Code, Tools and Assets required to create the GAME that are proprietary to INFINITE.
(ii) “MODS” refers to all changes and additions to the SOURCE even if that results in final product other than the GAME.
(ii) “UPDATES” refers to releasable binary updates to the GAME that do not include any of the SOURCE or MODS.
C. INFINITE is a constitutional corporation, engaged in the Computer & Video Game Development Industry.
D. INFINITE has agreed to engage ARTIST on the terms and conditions set out in this Agreement.
E. In no way does this Agreement constitute any form of Employer/Employee relationship between INFINITE and ARTIST.
Operative provisions

  1. Operation of this Agreement
    Except as expressly noted in this Agreement, this Agreement determines all of the terms and conditions of ARTIST’s position. There is no other contract or agreement between the parties, either express or implied, apart from this written contract.
  2. Term of the agreement
    This Agreement will commence on March 23rd 2005 and will operate until terminated in accordance with clause 8 of this agreement.
  3. Position and duties
    ARTIST is engaged in a voluntary and temporary capacity for ARTIST to make freely available UPDATES to the GAME.
    ARTIST will create said UPDATES by making MODS to the SOURCE.
    ARTIST will be required to perform his/her duties in good faith and exercising all due care, skill and diligence. ARTIST will also be required at all times to promote the interests of INFINITE with regards to the GAME.
  4. Location
    ARTIST may perform these duties from anywhere that ARTIST wishes, pursuant to clause 9
  5. Amount of Work
    ARTIST may choose to work as much or as little as they wish while this agreement is in effect.
  6. Remuneration
    ARTIST agrees to work on a purely voluntary basis. No remuneration will be given to ARTIST from INFINITE.
  7. Allowances
    No allowances will be paid to ARTIST
  8. Termination
    Either INFINITE or ARTIST, giving written notice to the other party, may terminate this agreement.
    Since work is on a voluntary basis, ARTIST’s position may be terminated by INFINITE any time at INFINITE’s discretion, after giving ARTIST written notice.
    Since work is on a voluntary basis, ARTIST may terminate ARTIST’s position at any time after giving INFINITE written notice
    No termination payment is required to be made if this agreement is terminated.
  9. Non-Disclosure
    ARTIST acknowledges that SOURCE & MODS contains proprietary information and trade secrets and techniques that are the property of INFINITE.
    ARTIST may not release or cause to be released the SOURCE or MODS to the public.
    ARTIST may not discuss with the public proprietary information and trade secrets and techniques that ARTIST has learned solely from the SOURCE or MODS.
    ARTIST may not use proprietary information and trade secrets and techniques that ARTIST has learned solely from the SOURCE or MODS, for any other purpose than to create UPDATES to the GAME.
  10. Various other conditions
    ARTIST acknowledges and agrees to comply with the requirement that no smoking is to occur on INFINITE’s main premises.
    INFINITE will not be required to provide any hardware and software required for ARTIST to satisfactorily complete their work, other than providing the SOURCE to the GAME.
    The parties to this Agreement agree that:
    it is their intention to achieve the principle object in paragraph 3(j) of the federal Workplace Relations Act 1996, which is to respect and value the diversity of the workforce by helping to prevent and eliminate discrimination at their enterprise on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual preference, age, physical or mental disability, marital status, family responsibilities, pregnancy, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin;
    any dispute concerning these provisions and their operation will be progressed initially under the dispute resolution procedure in the Agreement; and
    nothing in these provisions allows any treatment that would otherwise be prohibited by anti-discrimination provisions in applicable Commonwealth, State or Territory legislation.
  11. Dispute resolution procedure
    The parties acknowledge the value of a dispute resolution procedure in this Agreement. They will utilize the procedure set out below to resolve any disputes they may have.
    The procedure the parties will use to resolve a dispute (‘the Dispute’), in relation to this Agreement, is as follows:
    work will continue as normal;
    the parties will attempt to resolve the Dispute at the workplace level by ARTIST and his/her supervisor meeting or conferring on the Dispute;
    if the Dispute is not resolved at such a meeting the parties will arrange further discussions involving more senior levels of management (as appropriate);
    if the Dispute cannot be resolved by negotiation, the parties agree to refer the Dispute to an external mediator, and both parties will participate in the mediation process in good faith;
    the parties agree not to commence proceedings under the Workplace Relations Act 1996 or for damages for breach of this Contract unless this dispute resolution procedure has been followed.
  12. Concurrent External Employment
    ARTIST is free to undertake any other employment, however the SOURCE or MODS may be not be used by ARTIST for anything except creating UPDATES to the GAME.
  13. Superannuation
    Since ARTIST is engaged on a purely voluntary basis, INFINITE will not contribute any superannuation to ARTIST.
  14. Copyrights
    While this agreement is in effect and even after termination of this agreement, INFINITE will have copyright over any MODS created by the ARTIST for INFINITE.
    ARTIST acknowledges that they possess no rights or ownership over any MODS or UPDATES created for INFINITE.
    INFINITE will allow ARTIST to freely release UPDATES to the GAME.
    ARTIST guarantees that all MODS made to the game shall be either the ARTIST’s own work or free from external copyrights, patents and trademarks. If any legal actions occur in relation to copyrights, patents and trademarks infringed by the MODS or UPDATES made by the ARTIST, then the ARTIST assumes full responsibility for the infringements, releasing INFINITE from any responsibility.
  15. Miscellaneous
    15.1 Amendment
    This Agreement may only be varied, supplemented or replaced by a document in writing duly executed by the parties.
    15.2 Waiver and exercise of rights
    A single or partial exercise or waiver of a right relating to this Agreement does not prevent any other exercise of that right or the exercise of any other right.
    A party is not liable for any loss, cost or expense of any other party caused or contributed to by the waiver, exercise, attempted exercise, failure to exercise or delay in the exercise of a right.
    15.3 Governing law
    This Contract is governed by and is to be construed in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Australia.
    Each party irrevocably and unconditionally submits to the jurisdiction of the Federal Court and other federal tribunals and any courts which have jurisdiction to hear matters relevant to Commonwealth laws, including the Workplace Relations Act (‘the Act’). Execution of Agreement

……………………………
SIGNED BY STEVE FAWKNER ON BEHALF OF
Infinite Interactive Pty. Ltd.

…………YourName/Date/Initial………….……………….
SIGNED by ARTIST

This is a look at the NDA itself.

9

I recently received a somewhat solemn letter implying that distribution of the Source Code could be taken as an internet scam.

I’d like to assure any similarly interested parties that this is not the case. We have been operating for just over a year, and, one can check in with the Fawkners, themselves at the Infinite Interactive Forums listed hereafter to see for themselves. Steve runs the forums, & is always looking for constructive ideas and debate about the series.

http://www.infinite-interactive.com/InfiniteForums/index.php

Starting a thread about the issue may serve to answer any fears or concerns anyone might have about it.

Should it be the case that there are those who are timid about signing an over the internet contract, all I can say is that there’s really nothing much to worry about. All we really care about is whether or not the people we bring aboard for the project are honest and trustworthy individuals, who aren’t going to get us in trouble with Steve & co. The rest would be represented by those parties interested in modding.

In any event, we hope to hear more from others over the weekend!

Best Regards,
-St. P

10

You probably don’t want to say “quasi-open source” here, by the way. There’s nothing even vaguely open source about this arrangement, and it’ll just create hard feelings if someone mistakenly thinks there is.

11

Hi Damien,

Not entirely true, in my estimation…Depends on one’s Point of View, I imagine. I’m actually approaching the idea with a heavily optimistic approach. There is the proverbial Snowballs chance in a warm place that we could, ine day, become totally open source, but, I sincerely doubt it would happen anytime soon. I think that if Mr Fawkner has his standard success with his next generation of games, things could look very good for the idea…
On the other hand, I’m not Steve, nor do I know him on better than a casual letter basis…My typical mode of thinking is simple:

Remotely…yes…
Of Extreme Open-ness…you are correct…no.

Steve’s basic philosophy has been to just have fun with the idea, but, you are right in pointing out that it is, by no means, an open source project designed to let the code run away from him.

If nothing else, the need for artistic renderings has been pounding us for the better part of this last year…Rendering units & buildings requires no NDA, but, of course, requires a renderer, and the willingness to render. Since there are free renderers available, it stuns me that with all the ideas out there about what new races, units, spell effects, etc ought to be added to the game, none of them actually yet have been. The Project itself doesn’t require an NDA…obtaining the Source Code, however, does…And, tools developed by the team{s} of their own volition, are also fair game, provided that Mr. Fawkner’s Source isn’t compromised in the process (but more likely better served to be used by the signers than the general public, anyway)

Moreover, most of us on the team know we’re in it for the long haul, and share the philosophy, at least, to some degree, that time may prove to be our best friend with development…Something Enlight {publisher} never bothered to give to Infinite Interactive {developer} before the release of
Warlords Battlecry 3. Of the top complaints I’d ever heard about it, the most common most certainly revolved around a sense of ‘incompleteness’ about the whole thing. They were rushed, & our little corner community didn’t want to see a game whose source must obviously had (and does have) IMMENSE potential. We all just hate to see it go to waste.

Before I prattle too much, though, I’ll thank you for your opinion & hope you’ll one day come up to the challenge with us.

Best Regards,
P

12

Really. Not even remotely open source in the tiniest way. Completely, utterly, absolutely, entirely closed source.

Please understand, I’m not criticizing you, I’m not saying I want you to open source this code, I’m not saying that you should open source it, and I’m not objecting in any way to what you’re doing. Giving people this opportunity is entirely cool by me. It’s just not open source, which is a concept with a very specific definition. (The Open Source Definition – Open Source Initiative, if you’re curious–the OSA has a trademark on the term, so their definition is pretty canonical.)

13

Good. Can somebody please fix the multiplayer connection issues. thanks!

14

I don’t worry about it too much. No offense taken, or implied to anyone Damien. For me, its more of an issue of ever so gently ‘rocking the boat’. Whatever the case, I appreciate the votes of support. I fully support the NDA’s ‘credo’, if you will, but, I think that we’re all very hopeful for the future. I was pretty much indoctrinated into the notion that Open Source projects were something to which individuals who supported it in public were still held liable for the results of. You are correct, of course, but, I like to remain open to the possibilities…

Regardless of all that, thanks for the link…I’m a touch embarassed by the use of the word, in that light…Maybe ‘Pseudo’ should replace ‘quasi’. lol.
Again, Absolutely no offense implied, and none taken, here. Any chance we can tempt you?

Kind regards & a great weekend to you!

Sincerely,
P

@ Guild Boss…There have been some improvements to the Netcode, in past days. Maestorak & Jodwin could probably help out in that regard, if there’s something specific that you’re looking for. If you have the time/inclination some day, check out the Battlefield & ask some questions, there’s a good chance that, if nothing else, we might be able to arrange an agreeable ‘netfix’ in the next few months. I can’t promise anything, since my time is limited until August, but, after then, assuming we get some more coders to forcus on the idea, I’d like to try and arrange a ‘specialization’ team in the way of netcode explorations. There are, in fact many Multiplayer fixes, but the controversial ‘spell timers’ have forced the team into a ‘Data Pak’ technology, whereby people can have an easy ‘checksum’ system to match one and other’s personal ‘balance mods’.

Best,
P

15

Why is it that mod teams always use their goofy internet names? Just once, I’d like to see a mod from someone named “John Cunningham” or “Steve Harris” or “Frederick Burke”. :)

-Tom

16

You sink our names are goofy? Vee cut off your johnson!

17

Haha! From the people I’ve talked to, anyway, its just a matter of comfort. None of us are ‘professionals’, (well, there was one guy, but he’s been busy with more immediate concerns.) and, as such, I think its almost the neccessary evil to save face for the companies they/we {mis}represent.

I think the fictitious element lends itself to the gaming audiences which come to the boards…

If you like, though, feel free to refer to me as Jason Davis, &, hopefully, I won’t find myself missing my vee vee.

I think there’s also a certain level of comfort in the fact that the gamer subculture seems to be littered with hackers and the like, who have no problem taking people’s private information and using it to their own advantage.

18

Actually, that’s a great point, Jason. I suspect the hacker mindset is the same mindset that leads a lot of people to modding.

-Tom

19

Because being shit on after creating something out of passion and love for others to enjoy versus money and recognition while using a ‘handle’ is easier to deal with than using your real name.

20

That sucks if mod-makers feel that way. I know there are a bunch of ungrateful bastards out there. I would hope the people that appreciate mods can be just as vocal.

That Fall from Heaven stuff for Civ4, for instance, seems to be getting the appropriate fan kudos.

-Tom