mmarch: command line tool to handle (extract add compare res..) H3/MM678 archive [upd 21 Apr 2020]

[tomchen1989]

Command line tool to handle Heroes of Might and Magic 3 and Might and Magic 6, 7, 8 resource archive files (e.g. lod files)

GitHub homepage and detailed manual/readme:
https://github.com/might-and-magic/mmarch

Download mmarch v3.2 (2020-04-21):
https://github.com/might-and-magic/mmar ... /mmarch.7z

Based on GrayFace's great MMArchive (repo). If you need a graphical user interface tool, use MMArchive.

Condensed manual/cheatsheet (read GitHub homepage for the full manual):

Code: Select all

mmarch extract <ARCHIVE_FILE> <FOLDER> [FILE_TO_EXTRACT_1] [FILE_TO_EXTRACT_2] [...]
mmarch list <ARCHIVE_FILE> [SEPARATOR]
mmarch add <ARCHIVE_FILE> <FILE_TO_ADD_1> [FILE_TO_ADD_2] [...]
mmarch delete <ARCHIVE_FILE> <FILE_TO_DELETE_1> [FILE_TO_DELETE_2] [...]
mmarch rename <ARCHIVE_FILE> <OLD_FILE_NAME> <NEW_FILE_NAME>
mmarch create <ARCHIVE_FILE> <ARCHIVE_FILE_TYPE> <FOLDER> [FILE_TO_ADD_1] [FILE_TO_ADD_2] [...]
mmarch merge <ARCHIVE_FILE> <ARCHIVE_FILE_2>
mmarch compare <ARCHIVE_FILE_OR_FOLDER> <ARCHIVE_FILE_OR_FOLDER_2>
mmarch compare <ARCHIVE_FILE_OR_FOLDER> <ARCHIVE_FILE_OR_FOLDER_2> {nsis|batch} <SCRIPT_FILE> <DIFF_FOLDER_NAME>
mmarch compare <ARCHIVE_FILE_OR_FOLDER> <ARCHIVE_FILE_OR_FOLDER_2> filesonly <DIFF_FOLDER>
mmarch diff-files-to-{nsis|batch} <OLD_DIFF_FOLDER> <SCRIPT_FILE> <DIFF_FOLDER_NAME>
mmarch diff-add-keep <DIFF_FOLDER>
mmarch optimize <ARCHIVE_FILE>
mmarch help

Typical advanced usage:

• Extract all archive files recursively in a folder and its subfolders
• Automatize the workflow of MM/HoMM MODs development
• Be used with batch file (.bat) or NSIS script to produce game patch or MOD installation / update files
• Automatically compare two or more game folders and make an NSIS-compiled .exe patch installation file (MM Merge Update Patch as example & tutorial) (<*> : one of the tutorial's screenshot images)

<*> :


I looked for a command line tool in 2012, and again looked for such tool recently because I wanted to make localization patches which are .exe (or .bat) that can fully-automatically update MMMerge/MM678 to newer version, add localized files, clean up old files and other languages' localized files, replace sound in video files (.bik and .smk) in .lod/.vid to localized version (Smacker and Bink's original developer's official CL "The RAD Video Tools" can replace sound, but there was no CL lod/vid extractor and editor). GrayFace's AutoLod, LodCompare and CL tool LodMerge can solve the problem sometimes but not always (for example, unable to extract video and pack it back after modification). So, after learning a little Delphi (Pascal), here is my tool, heavily based on MMArchive. Enjoy.

[Strange phpBB (CH's forum system) bug, completely unable to edit the topic that I posted weeks ago screenshot. Since that topic had no reply, I deleted it and reposted it here.]