Initial commit: RE tooling and docs for The I of the Dragon localization/HD

2026-09-20 09:57:07 +08:00
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+# DEVLOG
+
+Working log for the *The I of the Dragon* localization / HD project.
+Newest entries on top.
+
+## 2026-09-20 — Double-byte font patch proven
+
+- Reverse-engineered the whole text pipeline (see `patch-notes.md`).
+- Built `tools/add_section.py` (PE section injection) and verified the patched exe still runs.
+- Built `tools/apply_cjk.py`: assembles two code caves with keystone, adds a `.cjk` section,
+  hooks the draw loop (`0x4EACB0`) and the metrics loop (`0x4E8026`).
+- **Verified on screen**: a GB2312-coded string `0xC1FA` (龙) in a menu label rendered a 16x16
+  glyph at the mapped atlas position (green control test). Double-byte decode + render works.
+- Game files restored afterwards (exe SHA1 `9EDB9B99...`, `Textures.res` byte-identical).
+
+### Next
+1. Big atlas (2048x2048): ASCII glyphs (copied) + CJK glyphs; re-point `Fonts.dat` `Texture` + ASCII rects.
+2. Generator for `cjk_glyph` / `cjk_metric` tables from a chosen charset.
+3. Convert `Strings.dat`, scripts, and `*Description.dat` display text to GB2312.
+4. Redraw baked-in text textures (menu buttons, credits, tutorial).
+5. Package: patched exe + atlas + data files.
+
+## 2026-09-20 — HD texture preprocessing
+
+- Cracked the `.res` archive format and built `res_unpack.py` / `res_repack.py`
+  (byte-identical round-trip once 16-byte alignment was found).
+- Extracted `Textures.res` (1884) and `Geometry.res` (1397).
+- Built `preprocess.py` (TGA/DDS→PNG, classification) and `make_plan.py`.
+- Result: 63.6 Mpix, 1882 PNG, 0 failures. Plan: 1195 upscale / 499 tiling / 182 review / 8 skip
+  (6 font atlases + 2 non-textures).
+
+## 2026-09-20 — Cracking the `.dat` obfuscation
+
+- `Fonts.dat` / `UnitDescription.dat` / `AIDescription.dat` decoded:
+  `b"==" + XOR(plaintext, "GBDFYTNE")`; key at `0x620D18`, decoder at `0x4AE1D0`.
+- `Fonts.dat` parsed: 4 font blocks, per-char atlas rects; parser keeps only the first byte of `Code`
+  (`0x4EC168`), so the stock engine is single-byte.
+
+## 2026-09-20 — Initial findings
+
+- Engine has a data-driven multi-language system: per-language folders for scripts/speech/video/UI
+  textures and language columns in `Strings.dat`.
+- Text is externalized: `Strings.dat` (499 entries, plain) and plain-text scripts.
+- First font test: replaced the `e` glyph in `Shrift_gb_Germany.TGA` and confirmed the atlas override
+  works in game (rendered 龙 where `e` was).
+- Investigated the "pirate build": PROPHET 2009 Topware release, languages EN/DE/PL/CZ/HU, **no
+  Chinese**; its exe is identical to the Steam exe (no engine patch), so the Chinese build the user
+  remembers was a different repack (not recoverable from it).
+
+## Decisions
+
+- Do the localization ourselves (route B): patch the engine for double-byte text, build our own font
+  atlas, translate only display text (never Ids / event names / unit types) to avoid trigger bugs.
+- Keep the repository text-only; regenerate binaries from scripts (see `.gitignore`).