# Game not respecting some mod file changes

**URL:** <https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477>\
**Category:** The Garage\
**Created:** [August 17, 2020, 5:33pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477 "2020-08-17T17:33:22Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 11\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Grimm\_Spector](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/grimm_spector/32/5132_2.png) [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2020, 5:33pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/1 "2020-08-17T17:33:22Z")

</div>

I’m sure there’s something I’m missing somewhere, but I cannot figure it out.

I’ve made changes to add some “looks\_like” bits to vehicle parts, they don’t change. I’ve made replacements to damage types “fire” to “heat” to reflect recent changes, due to various mods not being up to date with that.

I have those mods in cdda/mods, and the rest of the mods that come with the game in the cdda/data/mods folder.

I’ve done a find and replace in all files for the damage type strings to remove “fire” and replace with “heat” and replace “bio” with “biological”. Now when I search the files there are NO occurences of the old stuff, but the game still hangs up while loading up on the same mod it’s always been doing it (Vamp Stuff / Vamp Stuff + Arcana), and I cannot figure out why. Same error message.

`13:22:24.719 ERROR : src/main_menu.cpp:1146 [bool main_menu::load_character_tab(bool)] Error: Invalid enum string 'fire' for '11damage_type'`

Obviously with these two types of changes something is wrong, but I don’t know what. I am very frustrated and just want to update so I can deploy fish traps again! Argh!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Zhilkin](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/zhilkin/32/3749_2.png) [@Zhilkin](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Zhilkin)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2020, 8:16pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/2 "2020-08-17T20:16:00Z")

</div>

Try searching for `"fire"` in all json files in CDDA folder.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Valase](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/valase/32/6972_2.png) [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2020, 10:20pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/3 "2020-08-17T22:20:28Z")

</div>

If I remember right, there are actually three places the game looks for installed mods (given that you don’t use the launcher, which might add more locations):  
`./mods`, `./data/mods` and `./save/[WORLD_NAME]/mods`.

I don’t know which one’s overwrite the other if there are multiple instances of a single mod id (if that’s even allowed to happen), but my guess is that it will overwrite it in the order of depth (basically as listed above; those in the save file will overwrite all others, those in the data folder will overwrite the ones in the base folder).  
Check all locations, just to make sure you’ve got all of them.  
And always exit the game fully, as sometimes the mods get “stuck”.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![B00ked1](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/b00ked1/32/9861_2.png) [@B00ked1](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/B00ked1)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2020, 10:34pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/4 "2020-08-17T22:34:38Z")

</div>

Yeah I have the same issue and I think it has something to do with Arcana

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![B00ked1](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/b00ked1/32/9861_2.png) [@B00ked1](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/B00ked1)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2020, 10:44pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/5 "2020-08-17T22:44:28Z")

</div>

I update the mod and the build to the newest version and it is fixed for me

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Grimm\_Spector](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/grimm_spector/32/5132_2.png) [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2020, 11:46pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/6 "2020-08-17T23:46:36Z")

</div>

> [@Zhilkin](#):
>
> Try searching for `"fire"` in all json files in CDDA folder.

Sigh, there was a single line…in one obscure spot, where the formatting was slightly wrong, and it was missed. Thanks _facepalm_ 😓 I really should setup regex scripts for this stuff. Still doesn’t help with that damned ugly tile that won’t be a tile! But thank you, got my game running again!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Valase](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/valase/32/6972_2.png) [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 12:07am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/7 "2020-08-18T00:07:16Z")

</div>

> [@Grimm\_Spector](#):
>
> Still doesn’t help with that damned ugly tile that won’t be a tile!

I thought you were able to fix that kitchen unit tile thing with a reinstall… Is it back? Or is it something new?

> [@Grimm\_Spector](#):
>
> Sigh, there was a single line…in one obscure spot […]

Glad you could solve at least that issue, though.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Grimm\_Spector](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/grimm_spector/32/5132_2.png) [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 12:27am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/8 "2020-08-18T00:27:50Z")

</div>

> [@Valase](#):
>
> I thought you were able to fix that kitchen unit tile thing with a reinstall… Is it back? Or is it something new?

Sadly, yes it is back. The reinstall worked … till I updated. And then it of course was reverted. So I made the change again, and it iddn’t work. Wiped the mods and did it again like last time, but didn’t fix it this time. -.\_ I’ve even add the looks\_like tag to the item that you use to make it, and a random mod I don’t even use that had a copy-from tag from the survivor station.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Valase](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/valase/32/6972_2.png) [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 12:42am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/9 "2020-08-18T00:42:03Z")

</div>

> [@Grimm\_Spector](#):
>
> Sadly, yes it is back.

Do you have multiple cataclysm dda folders on your computer? If you edit with notepad++ or similar, it might saves it to the wrong folder…  
After making the change and starting the game… does the file revert back (I mean apart from updates)? Is the change still there?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Grimm\_Spector](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/grimm_spector/32/5132_2.png) [@Grimm\_Spector](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Grimm_Spector)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 2:11am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/10 "2020-08-18T02:11:06Z")

</div>

> [@Valase](#):
>
> Do you have multiple cataclysm dda folders on your computer? If you edit with notepad++ or similar, it might saves it to the wrong folder…  
> After making the change and starting the game… does the file revert back (I mean apart from updates)? Is the change still there?

Currently no, just one install. And after making the change the file doesn’t revert back, the change is still there. That’s what’s mind boggling about it. It shouldn’t be possible for it to just pretend the looks\_like tag isn’t in the JSON.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Valase](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/valase/32/6972_2.png) [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 4:34pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/game-not-respecting-some-mod-file-changes/24477/11 "2020-08-18T16:34:43Z")

</div>

Alright… Let’s change things up a bit before I request a lot of data and do a lot of testing.

The legacy tileset does have a support for that tile, but I guess you don’t want to go back to that version… That’s fine…

Instead of modifying the mod, let’s create a new one (if that doesn’t work, theres a lot more complex way to add this one in, so let’s hope this one works)…

First close the game and make a backup of your save. Then…

- Create a new mod with this file…:

modinfo.json:

```
[
  {
    "type": "MOD_INFO",
    "id": "uglyampersandbegone",
    "name": "Tileset addition",
    "authors": ["You"],
    "description": "Replaces an ugly ampersand with a less ugly sink.",
    "category": "graphical",
    "dependencies": ["dda", "Cata++"]
  },
  {
    "id": "surv_station_t",
    "copy-from": "surv_station_t",
    "type": "vehicle_part",
    "name": "Survivor's Station Unit",
    "looks_like": "craft_rig"
  }
]

```

- Add the newly generated mod id to your world mod list by editing the `mods.json` file in your save game folder.
- Start the game and load up your world.

If this doesn’t work, we could try to add the vehicle part to the tileset ourself, but that’s going to be a lot more work than this one.