Civ4 World Builder
Tutorials and Reference
- In-Depth Look at the .WorldBuilderSave File
- Map Making for Mods
- How to Add Rivers
- Civ 4 World Builder Manual
- Modding maps with a Text Editor
The WBS File
The parts of the .WorldBuilderSave (WBS) files.
BeginGame
This section describes to the Civ4 engine the game setup parameters. Specifically they refer to the options you choose when starting a new game from the menu. Below is a list of ALL possible variables. The values they can have are listed on their individual pages.
- Tutorial
- Era
- Speed
- Calendar
- Option
- MPOption
- ForceControl
- Victory
- GameTurn
- MaxTurns
- MaxCityElimination
- TargetScore
- StartYear
- Description
- ModPath
BeginTeam
This section of the WBS file describes each team (not just the player) in the scenario. In Single Player games you can even create teams. Please note: every player MUST be part of a team, even if there is only one player in the team.
- Tech
- ContactWithTeam
- AtWar
- PermanentWarPeace
- OpenBordersWithTeam
- DefensivePactWithTeam
- ProjectType
- RevealMap
BeginPlayer
This section defines all the player settings for the game. These settings will allow you to change all behavior for the players. Note that you must have a BeginPlayer section for every player in the game/scenario.
- CivDesc
- CivShortDesc
- LeaderName
- CivAdjective
- FlagDecal
- WhiteFlag
- LeaderType
- CivType
- Team
- Handicap
- Color
- ArtStyle
- PlayableCiv
- MinorNationStatus
- StartingGold
- StartingX
- StartingY
- StateReligion
- StartingEra
- CivicOption, Civic
- AttitudePlayer, AttitudeExtra
- CityList
BeginMap
This section describes the map settings to the Civilization IV engine. Here you can define several different things about the map and how it plays.
- grid width
- grid height
- top latitude
- bottom latitude
- wrap X
- wrap Y
- world size
- climate
- sealevel
- num plots written
BeginPlot
This section will fill in the last section of the WorldBuilderSsave file: the Plots section. Each plot on the map will have its own BeginPlot/EndPlot section. This is the largest section of the WorldBuilderSave file, for there is a BeginPlot/EndPlot section for every tile on the map.
- x, y
- Landmark
- ScriptData
- isNOfRiver, isWOfRiver
- RiverNSDirection, RiverWEDirection
- StartingPlot
- BonusType
- ImprovementType
- FeatureType, FeatureVariety
- RouteType
- TerrainType
- PlotType
- BeginUnit
- BeginCity
- TeamReveal
Original descriptions of BeginGame, BeginTeam, BeginPlayer, BeginMap, and BeginPlot sections, along with descriptions on all pages linked to from here by Dale on Apolyton Civilization Site and Civilization Fanatics Center from his "In depth look at the WBS file" thread.
Alternatives
There're some applications on the market that try to replicate the functionality of the World Builder. Some applications will automatically generate scenarios or will allow you to edit or create existing ones. You can find a list of those tools in the Map/Scenario (WorldBuilder-like) Programs section on the Wiki page about Useful Civ4 Programs. It's also an good idea to have a look at the Civ4 - Utility Programs subforum at Civfanatics.com.
As of April of 2013, there is also a mod component called Platy World Builder which greatly expands the functionality of the ingame Worldbuilder
