Welcome Warriors of leisure.
If you are a fan of Red Alert, Westwood studio's classic real-time military strategy game, you have come to the right place. If you haven't played , it's a bit like playing chess without taking turns. By changing and/or adding files to the redalert folder, endless versions of the game can be created. When played over the phone, IPX, or internet, it is a game that never gets old.

If you have purchased a copy of the game you can download my versions of RA and play with new rules, new weapons, new everything.

RDX_2000
RDX is my last project. It's a next generation fight with many new weapons and units. You can download the .mix and .ini files in the self-extracting executable above. Just place it in your redalert folder click on the RDX2000 icon and play.
(167Kb)
 

Specops_
If you prefer my guerilla war specops version, download that one here. By placing a shortcut to your desktop or start menu you can select between specops and rdx 2000 and it will automatically install and launch that version.
(312Kb)
 

manual_patch303_english.exe
I also recommend the v3.03 patch from westwood studio, which upgrades the game and adds some helpful multiplayer features. It is required by gamespy for internet play.
You can download from westwood studios, or here.
(2,302 kb)

For any of this to be of  use too you, you must own a copy of the game. For around $15 US , copies of  game can be purchased at many locations that sell software. Once you have Red Alert installed on your winxx machine you can begin to make changes.

If you want to know how? Read on!
 

Each time you start a game of "R.A." the program searches  for and reads a file named "Rules.ini". This file contains a large number of variables used during the game. Everything from how much ore can be stored in a silo to the type of warhead used on a rocket is read from this file.
If you place a copy of the rules file in the red alert folder on your hard drive (normally C:\westwood\redalert)it will be read and stored in memory instead of the default version. That means any changes you make to this file will be included in the game.

Note that you are not really changing the program. the actual program is in the executable file, "ra95.exe". The rules file is simply a set of options that are used during game development. Changing ra95.exe would require the source code for the game and is therefore out of the question.
 

Syntax:

;Note           = programers notes, not read by game.
[Name]         = structure name, cannot be changed.
Variable=    = names of variables cannot be changed, however the values associated with them can. Values may be numbers, yes/no options, or references to other structures. For descriptions of structures and their values, look at the notes at the top of each structure name in the rules file.
 

In the example below are the variables associated with the structure, or "sprite", 4TNK. For game players it is the Mammoth tank.
To the left you see the variables as they are set in the store-bought rules file. On the right you see a modified version. The changes are in blue.
 

; Mammoth tank  [4TNK]  Prerequisite=weap,stek  Primary=120mm  Secondary=MammothTusk  Strength=600  Armor=heavy  TechLevel=10  Sight=6  Speed=4  Owner=soviet  Cost=1700  Points=60  ROT=5  Tracked=yes  SelfHealing=yes  Crewed=yes

; Rush tank [4TNK]  Prerequisite=weap,stek Primary=chaingun Secondary=MammothTusk  Strength=550 Armor=heavy  TechLevel=10  Sight=6  Speed=13 Owner=soviet,allies Cost=875 Points=60  ROT=5  Tracked=yes  SelfHealing=yes  Passengers=12

Now we have a new vehicle. This one may be good for rushing into a area with lightly armed troops. instead of a big 120mm gun it has a chaingun. The chaingun is one of the weapons i had to chose from. But, i must chose one already in the game, no creating new ones, only modifying.
Our new tank is much faster and cheaper, yet still well armored and has the mamothtusk missile for long range firepower and air support. It can now be built by either side and will hold up to 12 passengers. since this is not a vehicle that normally holds passengers, i think they are trapped inside until the tank blows up?
 
 

If we skip down the rules file and find the structure for the mamothtusk missile, further changes can be made to just that weapon. Placing structures within structures like this is known as "nesting".

; Vehicle carried anti-tank missile
[MammothTusk]
Damage=175
ROF=80
Range=15
Projectile=HeatSeeker
Speed=35
Warhead=AP
Report=MISSILE6
Burst=2

Here i have:

• Boosted the damage or "hit points" that this weapon will inflict.
• Tripled the range and slightly increased the speed to make it more of a standoff weapon than for battle.
• changed the warhead from High explosive (HE), to Armor piercing (AP).

; armor piercing (discarding sabot, narrow effect)
[AP]
Spread=3                How far will fragments fly
Wall=yes                Will it fly over walls?
Wood=yes                Does it damage wood?
Verses=30%,45%,75%,100%,50% See below!
Explosion=4    What graphics should run when it hits?
InfDeath=3 What graphics should run if it hits a person?

The Verses= variable will decide what percentage of hit points to apply against different type of armor.

Get the idea?

Click here to view the rules file as it appears in the store-bought version of the game. you can download this file. Or cut and paste the text into any text editor (such as wordpad), then save it as rules.ini in your redalert folder. you can also download ramix (see below) and extract the copy you have encoded on your R.A. CD.
Now your ready to roll!

Some Basics: When you are working with the rules file you should always start by making a copy. Make a hand full of changes to the copy, then run it and check to see that it works. This way if it crashes, you can at least go back to your last working file.
You may also want to make a map that cuts you off from your computer enemy with water. The computer cannot cross water and you can check your modifications without fear of attack.
 
 

Another file read by the game is the "redalert.mix" file. This file contains the actual graphics, sounds, animation and other resource files including the rules file. If you place another .mix file in your RA folder with your own graphics, it will be read and acted on just like the rules file.

Hacking this file will allow you to modify the look and sound of the game. It is however, much more complicated.

You will first need some tools. For opening and viewing mix files i recommend RAMIX. I make no claims to it, it is not my work.
To create new mix files you will need to be familiar with offsets. if you are not, you might want to try downloading Unit Creator. It has some problems/limitations but it is a helpful tool!

Of course, you will also need graphics and/or sound software to make new stuff. Oh, and you will need lots of time to work if you want to take on something as big as creating a new infantry unit graphics and all.
To give you an idea, you would need to create over 600 frames of animation and an icon for one character. This is how many frames it takes to give an infantry sprite the graphics it needs. You may want to try a airplane or projectile, as some only require around 12 frames.

Well,that's all i have time for now. Have fun with the game and remember only you can prevent forest fires.
 

-RodeoX