Posted: Sat May 02, 2026 4:16 am Post subject:
Problems with C4/Chronoshift Q/How to display custom text in main menu?
Hello all,
How do I deal with the bug in Ares that causes SEALs/Tanya to die upon C4'ing a naval structure? I've been temporarily having them use a replacement "FakeC4"-style weapon for buildings instead, but it renders them unable to blow up bridges by entering a bridge hut. It also seems to disable them from shooting oil barrels with their primary weapon, instead making them attempt to C4 oil barrels. Unideal.
Also, is there any way to make a unit only chronoshiftable by its owner, not by any other players? I'm trying to make a unit of mine immune to offensive chronoshifts (e.g. teleporting it into water) while still retaining the ability for me to chronoshift it where I want.
Lastly, how do I display custom text in the main menu? I'm finally almost done with the mod I've been developing seriously for the last 3 years, starting since 9 years ago. I'd like to display my mod's title and my name there as credits. QUICK_EDIT
Units with C4 can be caught in the blast if they can't exit the building foundation before it goes off. You can try increasing the units Speed= or C4Delay= to give them more time to escape.
You can't limit chronoshift by owner.
I presume you mean the animated logo in the main menu screen, its a bink video file called ra2ts_l.bik that you can find in the language/langmd.mix file. You can download Bink Video tools here and use it to convert an image or video into bink format. _________________
Setting C4Delay to a high value (like 10000) on the unit didn't seem to do anything. Structures still explode just as soon and the unit still dies.
Unfortunate for the chronoshift topic. My mod has super expensive superunits I want to prevent being killable by Chronoshift cheese, while also letting them get teleported when I chronoshift them. Too bad if it really is impossible.
And I meant adding text to the main menu, not editing the animation there. The lower right of the main menu that normally shows the game version could be a good place to put the text. QUICK_EDIT
Ah. Seems the text controlled by Gui:Version doesn't have enough space to include both my mod's and my name, so I guess I'll have to put it somewhere else. No clue where...
And anything to add about the C4 issue? QUICK_EDIT
Is there any other area in the main menu I can add text to? I'd like to avoid changing the animated logo and stick to text only.
Also, upon setting C4Delay from 0.03 to 0.5 in the [CombatDamage] section, I saw that it seems to cause the C4 infantry to die shortly after C4'ing the building anyways, quite a bit before the building even explodes. So that didn't work either. QUICK_EDIT
Posted: Tue May 05, 2026 6:58 pm Post subject:
Re: Problems with C4/Chronoshift Q/How to display custom text in main menu?
patric20878 wrote:
Lastly, how do I display custom text in the main menu? I'm finally almost done with the mod I've been developing seriously for the last 3 years, starting since 9 years ago. I'd like to display my mod's title and my name there as credits.
You could try adding these:
Code:
[txt_copyright]
Value=Gameplay design, development, art and sound effects by Martin (RaVaGe).
Had this lying in my game so long ago. Back when I was trying things out.
Never even removed it even though I already use .csf and RA2SsfToolsGUI by SadPencil because I might forgot about it.
[txt_copyright] should be long enough for Mod Name and the creator, it appears only at the logo screen though.
So, if they have -nologo they wouldn't be able to see it.
[txt_release_note] appears in-game always, at the bottom right. This is already outside the menu but if you really want people to know,
then you could add that.
Lastly, I'm guessing you're not using Rampastring's version of CNCNet? There, you could add as much as you want to credit yourself.
And that is usually what modders use, for player to be able to add as many mods as they want without interfering with each other.
Your mod might suffer with people needing to have to have it in the original folder. QUICK_EDIT
Where do I add those? And I'm using the ultimate collection's version of ra2/yr, though I also have Medstar's standalone launchers setup. Seems Ares doesn't work on the ultimate collection's ra2yr exe.
And have any insights about the C4 issue? QUICK_EDIT
Posted: Wed May 06, 2026 5:59 am Post subject:
Re: Problems with C4/Chronoshift Q/How to display custom text in main menu?
patric20878 wrote:
Hello all,
How do I deal with the bug in Ares that causes SEALs/Tanya to die upon C4'ing a naval structure?
You're right! Tested it and it does kill her. Maybe this was why C4 was change in MO.
Thought it was because of the repair bay part, but destroying a Service Depot doesn't kill her.
Mig Eater wrote:
Units with C4 can be caught in the blast if they can't exit the building foundation before it goes off. You can try increasing the units Speed= or C4Delay= to give them more time to escape.
This doesn't matter by the looks of it. Tanya sometimes move further into the building and still not die.
There's something wrong with naval buildings or just the shipyard. Sometimes she does destroy it without dying.
But she still dies most of the time
patric20878 wrote:
I've been temporarily having them use a replacement "FakeC4"-style weapon for buildings instead, but it renders them unable to blow up bridges by entering a bridge hut
Do you need them to enter the bridge hut to blow it up? Possibly could add CanC4=no to all buildings.
But that's gonna be a lot of work.
patric20878 wrote:
It also seems to disable them from shooting oil barrels with their primary weapon, instead making them attempt to C4 oil barrels. Unideal.
Yeah, I think that was how it used to be in MO as well until they fixed it. I think you need to set bombable=no,
though that would also affect Ivan. Probably add a new armor called "Unbombable" so you could set the warhead for Tanya's FakeC4 to be Unbombable=0%.
Tested it on [IvanBomb] and it works.
patric20878 wrote:
Also, is there any way to make a unit only chronoshiftable by its owner, not by any other players? I'm trying to make a unit of mine immune to offensive chronoshifts (e.g. teleporting it into water) while still retaining the ability for me to chronoshift it where I want.
Hmm... Since you said offensive chronoshift. That means you still want the chronoshift to affect the enemy.
The only things I know is to set the chronoshift to only affect the owner. But that would make the chronoshift not work offensively.
The other is to set it so that you won't be able to chronoshift the expensive unit. But that would be for both the enemy and yourself.
Weirdly enough, the Chronoshere isn't expanded upon in both Ares/Phobos as much compared to the Iron Curtain.
Though I like your idea actually. To add levels to what can be chronoshifted by a superweapon.
Seems they are planning to add levels for Crusher on who can crush who. The level system was already added in a new feature in Phobos,
"Penetrates damage on transporter", maybe this would spread further to a lot of features. As for right now, there isn't much done to the Chronosphere. QUICK_EDIT
Do you need them to enter the bridge hut to blow it up? Possibly could add CanC4=no to all buildings.
But that's gonna be a lot of work.
It worked until I removed C4=yes from the infantry to make them use their fake C4 on naval structures instead. So it seems C4=yes is needed to blow up bridges via bridge hut. And it does in fact seem to be all naval structures. The naval Torpedo Launcher base defense in my mod has the same issue.
Ousagi wrote:
Yeah, I think that was how it used to be in MO as well until they fixed it. I think you need to set bombable=no,
though that would also affect Ivan. Probably add a new armor called "Unbombable" so you could set the warhead for Tanya's FakeC4 to be Unbombable=0%.
Tested it on [IvanBomb] and it works.
I'm fairly sure this happens because I set their primary weapons' building verses to 0%, to make them use their fake C4's on buildings instead. Normally, C4=yes overrides this. Since I removed that from them, there's nothing to prevent them from trying to C4 oil barrels anymore. I want to add C4=yes back to them without running into the naval structure bug again.
Ousagi wrote:
Hmm... Since you said offensive chronoshift. That means you still want the chronoshift to affect the enemy.
The only things I know is to set the chronoshift to only affect the owner. But that would make the chronoshift not work offensively.
The other is to set it so that you won't be able to chronoshift the expensive unit. But that would be for both the enemy and yourself.
Yeah, I'm currently doing the latter. I set the Ares Flag Chronoshift.Allow=no on them. As my 2 superunits cost $5000 and $10000 each, and require a $5000 building just to unlock, it'd suck if they could be so easily destroyed by a single chronoshift lol. But still lame I can't chronoshift them myself either.
And where do I add something like this?
Code:
[txt_copyright]
Value=Gameplay design, development, art and sound effects by Martin (RaVaGe).
Oh, I use RA2CsfToolsGUI by SadPencil then just create an INI to convert into CSF. Whatever you use to change Gui:Version should also work.
You could directly change the CSF. That one was the INI version, to be converted to CSF using RA2CsfToolsGUI.
patric20878 wrote:
I'm fairly sure this happens because I set their primary weapons' building verses to 0%, to make them use their fake C4's on buildings instead.
I know you did, that's why I gave the sample of making the barrels armor to be different.
So that your Primary can target specifically the barrels while still not being able to target any other buildings.
Unbombable=0% isn't just for barrels. They're for all "buildings"(mostly props) that could just be destroyed without moving in and attaching an overkill weapon.
Hope you find a way to make C4=yes work. Otherwise, you're going to need to wait until the Phobos devs fix the issue.
patric20878 wrote:
So it seems C4=yes is needed to blow up bridges via bridge hut.
Wut? You can blow bridges up with FakeC4. All of this FakeC4 stuff is making it forget that it's just an Ivan Bomb and Crazy Ivans can blow bridges up. QUICK_EDIT
Do you mean to add those as entries to ra2md.csf? I use RA2StrEdit for that, just didn't know where to add those entries.
I know how to make custom armor types so barrels don't get targeted with Fake C4, but rather not as it's just one of the symptoms of using Fake C4. Rather figure how to use real C4, then that problem will take care of itself.
Wut? No you can't. Fake C4 can't target bridge huts at all. Try it. QUICK_EDIT
Do you mean to add those as entries to ra2md.csf? I use RA2StrEdit for that, just didn't know where to add those entries.
Just add new entries? You don't have to edit what's already there, You can also add new lines.
patric20878 wrote:
I know how to make custom armor types so barrels don't get targeted with Fake C4, but rather not as it's just one of the symptoms of using Fake C4. Rather figure how to use real C4, then that problem will take care of itself.
Guess you'll have to find out how to or just wait for fix.
patric20878 wrote:
Wut? No you can't. Fake C4 can't target bridge huts at all. Try it.
Bruh, have you not played MO? It's the mod that's explicitly made to advertise all features of Ares PLUS new ways of modding.
If MO can do it than everyone else could and I was able to:
Fake C4 blow bridge hut.gif
Description:
Made on the first mission of the soviet campaign series :D
Just tried adding those 2 entries to ra2md.csf. Don't see anything different on the main menu. Is there something else?
And on FakeC4, I'm talking about the one chrono commandos have. They clearly can't interact with bridge huts. And neither can similar weapons modelled after it. Is there something else you're doing to make FakeC4 work on bridge huts, and do you have C4=yes omitted on the infantry using it? QUICK_EDIT
Just tried adding those 2 entries to ra2md.csf. Don't see anything different on the main menu. Is there something else?
Not the Main Menu but the logo loading sceen and in-game at the bottom-right corner, when you play skirmish or campaign.
patric20878 wrote:
And on FakeC4, I'm talking about the one chrono commandos have. They clearly can't interact with bridge huts. And neither can similar weapons modelled after it. Is there something else you're doing to make FakeC4 work on bridge huts, and do you have C4=yes omitted on the infantry using it?
It literally has C4=no in it, but here's the code. Might be messy, but that's pretty much all of my code.
So if you see something weird don't worry about it, it'll be cleaned up:
Code:
[GHOST]
UIName=Name:GHOST
Name=SEAL
Image=SEAL
Category=Soldier
Prerequisite=ABRCKS,RADAR
PrerequisiteOverride=CAWA2A,CAWA2B,CAWA2C,CAWA2D ; SJM: any Pentagon building sufficient to build SEAL
Primary=Sapper
Secondary=MP5
OpenTransportWeapon=0;defaults to -1 (decide normally) What weapon should I use in a Battle Fortress
NavalTargeting=4
LeadershipRating=8
AlternateArcticArt=yes ; ie SEALA for arctic maps
C4=no
Assaulter=no ; I clear out UC buildings
CrushSound=InfantrySquish
Crushable=yes
TiberiumProof=yes
Strength=12500
Armor=flak
TechLevel=9
Pip=red
Sight=8
Speed=5
Owner=British,French,Germans,Americans,Alliance
AllowedToStartInMultiplayer=no
Cost=1000
Soylent=500
Points=50
IsSelectableCombatant=yes
VoiceSelect=SealSelect
VoiceMove=SealMove
VoiceAttack=SealAttackCommand
VoiceFeedback=
VoiceSpecialAttack=SealSpecialAttack
CreateSound=SealCreated
DieSound=SealDie
EnterWaterSound=TanyaEntersWater
LeaveWaterSound=TanyaLeavesWater
Locomotor={4A582744-9839-11d1-B709-00A024DDAFD1}
PhysicalSize=1
SpeedType=Amphibious
MovementZone=AmphibiousDestroyer ; I am the only one with this zone, because it is now tied with being an infantry (part of seal stuck on tree bug)
ThreatPosed=25 ; This value MUST be 0 for all building addons
SpecialThreatValue=1
ImmuneToVeins=yes
VeteranAbilities=STRONGER,FIREPOWER,ROF,SIGHT,SCATTER,FASTER
EliteAbilities=SELF_HEAL,STRONGER,FIREPOWER,ROF,FASTER
Size=1
DetectDisguise=no
ElitePrimary=MP5
IFVMode=4
UseOwnName=true
SelfHealing=yes
Insignia.Veteran=chevrons1s
Insignia.Elite=chevrons4s
SelfHealing.RookieAmount=100
SelfHealing.Rate=.016
SelfHealing.VeteranAmount=100
SelfHealing.Rate=.016
SelfHealing.EliteAmount=100
SelfHealing.Rate=.016
[Sapper]
Damage=1
Warhead=AttachSapper
ROF=100
Range=1.5
CellRangefinding=yes
Projectile=Invisible;Invisible5
IvanBomb.Delay=80
IvanBomb.Warhead=SapperWH
IvanBomb.Damage=100000
IvanBomb.AttachSound=SealPlaceBomb
IvanBomb.TickingSound=none
IvanBomb.Image=null
IvanBomb.FlickerRate=40
SabotageCursor=yes ;gs instead of normal fire cursor to avoid confusion
FireOnce=yes
Just gave your code a try. Didn't work though as you didn't post your warhead code, and there's no such SapperWH entry in original rulesmd.ini. Giving it its original warhead of Mechanical didn't work either. Please post your code for SapperWH also.
And is there a way to add custom text to the main menu without changing the video in the background? I didn't see new text in the logo loading screen or in-game at the bottom-right corner in skirmish. QUICK_EDIT
Just gave your code a try. Didn't work though as you didn't post your warhead code, and there's no such SapperWH entry in original rulesmd.ini. Giving it its original warhead of Mechanical didn't work either. Please post your code for SapperWH also.
Could have done your research at that point. You wouldn't really get codes always, but:
And is there a way to add custom text to the main menu without changing the video in the background? I didn't see new text in the logo loading screen or in-game at the bottom-right corner in skirmish.
I don't know. That's what I copied from YR Redux. At this point, you could try to research.
You basically have all of the things you need and you know they work. Just finish up the research.
That's what I did when trying to copy some of the features in MO.
Try searching for YR Redux to check what it looks like for yourself. At least you'll see the credit like you wanted. QUICK_EDIT
Did do some research and tried stuff out before asking for your warhead code. Like adding Ivan=yes to the unit and IvanBomb=yes to the warhead. The only thing I was able to achieve was the infantry shooting the bridge hut, not C4 it. Just tried your code also. Doesn't let SEALs target bridge huts at all. Is there anything else you're doing to make your fake C4 work?
And I just tried installing Redux. Extracted all the files to my ra2 folder and ran syringe like usual. All it gave was a fatal error and wouldn't run the game. Know anything about that?
And I think even if I did see the credits text in Redux, I couldn't reverse engineer it anyways. Wouldn't have any idea where to even begin looking. QUICK_EDIT
Seems Ares doesn't work on the ultimate collection's ra2yr exe.
Maybe because of this the Ivan stuff isn't working? Though you said you where going to use
the Ares feature to limit the chronoshift ability so I don't know.
Do you have Ares working or not? If not, then the code I just provided is not usable since it requires Ares.
Lastly, If you can't use Ares, then unfortunately I can no longer help you.
Most of my modding knowledge uses Ares/Phobos and even the CNCNet Client.
There is also another guy here who also doesn't/can't use Ares, so the issue might not be resolvable.
Unless you want to take Mig Eater's solution, which is to create a new bink file.
Or I guess set up Rampastring's CNCNet Client. Which you could probably even just draw in paint the Main Menu there.
It is easier to customize, but the setup did took me a while to understand. QUICK_EDIT
I have both Ares and Phobos working. I use Medstar's standalone launchers to make the game work with Ares. TUC's version causes the game to crash when using Ares. From what I can tell, Medstar's standalone launchers just reverts the game from v1.001 TUC back to v1.001, which Ares was designed for. QUICK_EDIT
Already tried that earlier, and as expected, it didn't work. The note clarifies what it actually does. Has nothing to do with actually being able to interact with bridge huts. Just bridges actually blowing up when you bomb one. Are you sure there isn't something else you're doing to be able to bomb bridge huts? QUICK_EDIT
It says "Whether or not this bomb can be used on Bridge Repair Huts in order to destroy the corresponding bridge. Defaults to yes.".
How would the bridge even blow up if you can't attach a bomb on the Bridge Hut?
And the note also says that bombs can be attach to Bridge Huts regardless if it's no or yes.
IvanBomb.DestroysBridges= just say if the bridge would blow up. If you can't attach the bomb,
with the code already used, then that is weird. IvanBomb.DestroysBridges= has nothing to do with interacting Bridge Huts.
Because Ares says it will attach a bomb regardless. It has something to do if it will blow up the bridge once the bomb detonates.
Something is wrong with how your Ares is being handled by your game.
Because everything in the Ivan Bomb doc is all you need for it to work. QUICK_EDIT
idk, Ares/Phobos have been flawless for me thus far and I use their features extensively. I also tried giving crazy ivan mp5 as their primary and changing their bomb to secondary earlier, which is what causes them to shoot bridge huts instead of bombing them. I also set MP5's warhead (hollowpoint)'s building verses to 0%. I don't get it at all. And reading and trying stuff from https://ares-developers.github.io/Ares-docs/new/weapons/ivanbombs.html several times didn't give me any insights as to how to make it work. QUICK_EDIT
Setting the Primary=Comet and Secondary=Sapper doesn't work. The [Comet] weapon stops from using [Sapper].
Tried only Primary=Sapper and it works. Try Primary=Sapper.
Also tried to bomb the Bridge Hut with Crazy Ivan's original weapon [IvanBomb] doesn't work.
It needed the Ares format to work.
Maybe the [MP5] needs to have 0% on buildings to work, but as you said you already tried that.
Isolate the issue and only use Primary=Sapper, without a Secondary= weapon on the unit and see if it works. QUICK_EDIT
That just turns it back into the vanilla crazy ivan. Ofc it works then if that's their only weapon. It's getting it to work with both weapons that's been beyond me. QUICK_EDIT
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Problems with C4/Chronoshift Q/How to display custom text in main menu?
