Cameo

Cameos are the "build list icons" which you click to build objects. They have to be defined by the Cameo= line in the art(md).ini-section of an object.

How to add a cameo to RA2/YR. (by Kravvitz)

If you start out with a PCX

• Open XCC Mixer and navigate to where you have your PCX cameo.
• Make sure that when you click on the PCX it says in the top right hand corner that it says "Bits/pixels: 8".
  • If it doesn't, you need to go to View --> Palet and click "Use for Conversion"
• Go to View --> Palet --> Red Alert 2 and click cameo.pal
• Now right click on the pcx go to Clipboard and click on Copy
• Now right click on the pcx go to Clipboard and click on "Paste as SHP(TS)"
• It will pop up a "Save as" window, so type in what you want to name the cameo and click Save.
• It will pop up a "SHP Properties" window, if it's just a normal cameo, click Ok.
• You now have a cameo in SHP(TS) format. (I feel that this method is the easiest.)

Once you have the SHP file

• Put the SHP into your RA2 directory
• Open up the art(md).ini
• Find what ever Infantry, Vehicle, Aircraft, or Building's entry
• Add the line Cameo=XXXX, XXXX being the name of your cameo in uppercase letters
• If you have a version of the cameo with a Veteran's Stripe, add the line AltCameo=YYYY, YYYY being the name of the veteran version of the cameo

Note: You can also use OS SHP Builder to edit the cameos. It can edit SHP files directly, without needing to convert them to PCX and back.

Cameo Building Transitions (The Percent Built Thing) (by Kravvitz)

It uses the gclock2.shp and the sidebar.pal files in ra2.mix --> sidec01.mix and sidec02.mix. The original gclock2.shp files are the same, except the colors that are used are different. The sidebar.pal files are named the same, but they are different. So you have to modify those files. You don't have to change the sidebar.pal it you don't want to it's your choice, but if you don't change it, the colors you can use will be limited. The files ambttn.shp, smbttn.shp, and tmbttn.shp in ra2.mix --> neutral.mix apparently are not used.