Home For Developers ERF Format 2. ERF Localized String List

2. ERF Localized String List

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The Localized String List is used to provide a description of the ERF. In .mod files, this is where the module description is stored. For example, during the Load Module screen in NWN (a BioWare Aurora Engine game), the module descriptions shown in the upper right corner are taken from the Localized String List. The game obtains the current Language ID from dialog.tlk, and then displays the ERF String whose LanguageID matches the dialog.tlk language ID.

String List Format

The String List contains a series of ERF String elements one after another. Note that each element has a variable size, encoded within the element itself. The LanguageCount from the ERF Header specifies the number of String List Elements.

String List Element Structure

Each String List Element has the following structure:

LanguageID	32 bit
StringSize	32 bit
String	Variable size as specified by the StringSize field

In .erf and .hak files, the String portion of the structure is a NULL-terminated character string. In .mod files, the String portion of the structure is a non-NULL-terminated character string. Consequently, when reading the String, a program should rely on the StringSize, not on the presence of a null terminator.

Language IDs

The following is a list of languages and their IDs:

Language	ID
English	0
French	1
German	2
Italian	3
Spanish	4
Polish	5
Korean	128
Chinese Traditional	129
Chinese Simplified	130
Japanese	131

Note, however, that the LanguageID actually stored in an ERF does not match up exactly to the LanguageIDs shown in the above table. Instead, it is 2 times the Language ID, plus the Gender (0 for neutral or masculine, 1 for feminine).

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