EPW Recaster

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In a nutshell

EPW Recaster is a tool that

• automates recasting EPW weapons & gears (armors)
• using Optical Character Recognition and
• user-configurable search conditions.

EPW Recaster does not rely on nor uses any kind of game hook.
It solely relies on what is captured using OCR and performs
programmatical choices & actions based on captured results.

Compatibility Note

• This tool has been confirmed to work on other servers as well (Relentless, ...).

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TL;DR Version 3.1 QuickStart

Video Demonstration	Useful ReadMe Links
	🔽 Setup & Prerequisites 🔽 Main Setup Form 🔽 Comparative Condition Examples 🔽 FAQ 🔽 Contact | Feedback

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Setup

• Extract the contents of the provided package
  to any folder that has write privileges.
  ( f.e. Desktop | C:\Apps\EPW Recaster | ... )
• Launch EPW Recaster(.exe).

❗ Additional Setup Prerequisites ❗

[ (Show|Hide) Additional Setup Prerequisites ]

• This tool may require administrative privileges due to low-level actions used
  ( f.i. moving/clicking mouse, ... ).
  • Steps to check/enable administrative privileges :
    • Right-click EPW Recaster(.exe) and
      choose Properties.
    • In Compatibility tab,
      check ☑ Run this program as an administrator
      and confirm by clicking OK.
• This tool requires Windows Display Scaling to be set to 100%
  for a correct screen capture behavior.
  • Steps to check/change Windows Display Scaling
    ( Windows 10 / Other Windows versions: use Google ) :
    • Right-click anywhere on desktop and
      choose Display Settings.
    • Make sure the Scale and layout setting is set to 100% and
      close the window.
      

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Sections

General Notes

• Once a preview or an auto-roll is started, the main form will be programmatically minimized and restored after.
  ( The main form is mainly used for setup purposes only. )
• On the other hand, the info form will always stay on top of all windows.
• All changes are automatically stored and restored upon relaunch.
• Using any kind of text editor, theming options can be altered in
  .\Config\ThemeColorStyle.cfg (includes additional comments).

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1. ( Main ) Setup Form

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1-1. See-through Region

• When launching EPW Recaster for the first time
  ( and/or whenever the in-game location of the recast
  a.k.a. reshape/manufacture window is changed ),
• move the tool around and resize using the size grip handle
  in order for:
  • the see-through region to fit the in-game recast
    a.k.a. reshape/manufacture window,
  • the 3 tiny squares ( hinting click regions )
    to be located somewhere over the in-game buttons
    ( Retain the old attribute |Reproduce | Use the new attribute ),
  • the capture region to fit the text to be captured.
    • The fitting does not need to be pixel perfect in order for the Optical Character Recognition to work properly.
    • Also, try to avoid including any additional UI elements in the captured region.
      Reason: Depending on the fitting, parts of the in-game UI could be detected as a character
      ( f.e. the in-game scroll up icon may be detected as capital 'A' ).

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1-2. Capture Region

• ( A visible preview of )
• The region setting the boundaries used for Optical Character Recognition.
• Depending in which mode the process will be started, the capture region will either be located:
  • Preview Mode : full width of see-through region and a little above the in-game buttons.
  • Roll Mode : right half of see-through region and a little above the in-game buttons.

❗ IMPORTANT NOTE ❗

• [ ! ] Without any actual game file alterations ( configs.pck ),
  it is not recommended to use EPW Recaster
  to look for stats on weapons that have unique (long descriptive) stats,
  unless it's (one of those) unique stats being targeted in a roll.
• In other words, avoid looking for stats on weapons having
  Purify Spell, God of Frenzy, Square Formation, Soul Shatter, Spirit Blackhole, ...
  as a possible stat in order not to miss a stat needing an in-game scroll
  (unless the previously mentioned stats are being specifically targeted).

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1-3. Condition List Switcher

• Left Mouse Click:
  • Select any of 5 condition list slots to work with.
• Right Mouse Click:
  • Copy / Export Condition List.
    • Can be used to:
      • share a condition list with anyone,
      • move a condition list to another slot by importing it.
      • back up a condition list ( f.e. in a text document ).
  • Paste / Import Condition List.
    • Can be used to:
      • import a condition list,
      • overwrite an existing condition list with another one.
  • Clear Condition List.
    • Clears all entries of a condition list.

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1-4. Condition List

• A list containing preferred roll conditions.
• Used in order to programmatically stop rolling when one of the listed required conditions is met.
• The condition list can have both fixed amount stats and combo stats entries mixed.
• The order of entries can be changed by dragging an entry over to another location in the condition list.

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1-4-1. Fixed Amount Stat(s)

• Although REQUIRING A FIXED AMOUNT of a preferred single or grouped stat,
  rolled results CAN HAVE ANY OTHER STAT.

• Will accept a roll if
  • an exact amount or more of a preferred single stat or of each of the grouped stats is detected.
• Will reject a roll if
  • an exact amount or more of a preferred single stat or of each of the grouped stats isn't detected.
• Recognizable by a blue stat color.
• Always preceded by a fixed minimum amount of a preferred stat.
• Can have up to 4 ( grouped ) stat requirements per entry.
• Mainly used for rolls:
  • having equal stats:
    • 4 x Interval Between Hits
  • needing at least a certain amount of stats:
    • at least 2 x Channelling ( and/or any other stat rolled )
    • ...

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1-4-2. Combo Stats

• Although NOT REQUIRING A FIXED AMOUNT of a preferred single or grouped stat,
  rolled results CAN NOT HAVE ANY OTHER STAT.

• Will accept a roll if
  • a combination of at least one of each of the preferred grouped stats only is detected.
• Will reject a roll if
  • a combination of at least one of each of the preferred grouped stats isn't detected or
  • a stat is detected that isn't listed in the preferred grouped stats.
• Recognizable by a golden stat color.
• Are not preceded by a fixed minimum amount of a preferred stat.
• Can have up to 4 ( grouped ) stat requirements per entry.
• Mainly used for rolls:
  • needing a uncertain amount of certain specific stats only:
    • at least 1 x Channelling & at least 1 x Reduce Physical Damage Taken ( and NOT any other stat rolled )
    • ...

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1-4-3. Comparative Condition List Examples

Condition	Would Accept	Would Reject
	✅ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -2% • Channelling -3% • Channelling -2% ✅ • Channelling -3% • Magic +9 • Channelling -2% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% ✅ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -2% • Channelling -3% • Magic +9	❌ • Channelling -3% • Magic +9 • Magic +10 • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% ❌ • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +1% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% ❌ • Channelling -3% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +1% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2%
	✅ • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% • Channelling -3% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +1% • Channelling -2%	❌ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -2% • Channelling -3% • Channelling -1% ❌ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -1% • Channelling -3% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% ❌ • Channelling -3% • Magic +9 • Magic +10 • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2%
	✅ • Channelling -3% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +1% • Channelling -2% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% ✅ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -2% • Channelling -2% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% ✅ • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +1% • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2% • Channelling -3%	❌ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -2% • Channelling -3% • Channelling -3% ❌ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -3% • Magic +9 • Channelling -2% ❌ • Channelling -3% • Channelling -3% • Magic +9 • Reduce Physical Damage Taken +2%

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1-5. Condition Entry (Entries)

❗ IMPORTANT NOTE ❗
Always put some thought in which rolled stats would be preferred and
add all-encompassing conditions accordingly
in order not to miss out on any good rolls.

• In order to enlist a roll condition:
  • Select a preferred amount and preferred stat to be found.
    • (Optional) Select up to 3 additional preferred amounts and preferred stats to be found/combined.
      • Once a second preferred stat has been selected from the drop-down list,
        a checkbox to ignore amounts becomes available.
        If checked, the entry would become a combo entry ( allowing any amount of selected stats although limiting a roll to only contain the selected stats ).
  • Click the green + sign.
• Any previously added condition can be removed
  by pressing the red x in the condition list.

Additional Notes

• Ignore white stats, only blue stats are to be taken into account.
  ( f.e. 4 x Phys. Res. = max, ignoring the fifth white Phys. Res. stat on a gear )
• When (accidentally) adding an amount larger than 1 of a unique stat ( f.e. Purify Spell ),
  it will instead be enlisted as 1 x.
• When (accidentally) adding a summed amount exceeding the max stats possible,
  it will instead be enlisted as either 4 x or 5 x ( Atk. & Def. only ).
• Using any kind of text editor, the list of selectable stat options can be altered in
  .\Config\Stats.cfg (includes additional comments).

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2. Info Form

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2-1. Form (Un)Chainer

• A toggle button attaching/detaching the info form to/from the main form.
  • Chained Mode ( attached forms mode | default at first launch ) :
    • Only the main form will be movable and resizable.
    • Only the main form location and size will be stored and restored upon relaunch ( due to the info form following its changes in location and/or size ).
  • Unchained Mode ( detached forms mode )
    • Both main and info form will be separately movable and resizable.
    • Both form locations and sizes will be stored and restored upon relaunch.

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2-2. Log Folder

• Clicking this button opens the log folder.
  • For each roll, a resulting text and image file is logged.
  • [ ! ] Occasionally empty/delete this folder
    in order to free up storage space.

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2-3. OCR Result Info

• Displays text captured together with some additional info when previewing or rolling.

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2-4. Preview | Roll Mode

• Preview Mode ( default at first launch ) :
  • Once started, will perform one single text capture.
  • No rolls will be performed in-game.
• Roll Mode
  • Once started, will perform a set number of in-game rolls,
    • obeying any previously set conditions &
    • resulting in a programmatically moving mouse cursor and mouse clicks.
  • Can be stopped at any given time by clicking the Stop button.
  • Using any kind of text editor, timings can be altered in
    .\Config\Params.cfg (includes additional comments).

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FAQ

[ (Show|Hide Answer) "The tool doesn't seem to work for me ... what do I do, doc ?" ]

Symptoms: "No valid roll information detected (yet)." | "... doesn't seem necessary to roll any further ... halted ..." | ...

➥ Answer:

• In general, each capture/roll produces a logged text and image file that may be worth checking
  in case it would be an OCR related issue.
  Check 2.2. Log Folder for more information.
• It doesn't click/reproduce a roll.
  • It's most probably an admin privilege issue.
    Check [ Setup > Additional Setup Prerequisites ] for instructions on how to enable administrative privileges.
    • [ Developer Note ] This fixed it for most I've been chatting with that had this issue.
      If many encounter this, I may include code in an update
      to elevate administrative privileges programmatically ( hoping it would skip the manual fix ).
  • Additionally, make sure the capture region has been sized/positioned correctly.
• It does click but the captured results are incorrect/incomplete.
  • It's most probably Windows Display Scaling not being set to 100%.
    Check [ Setup > Additional Setup Prerequisites ] for instructions on how to change Display Scaling.
• It does click/reproduce a roll but still stops a batch roll after a short while.
  • May as well be a timing issue. Even though the most recent release already has all timings increased and I personally don't think this would still be needed, on older or trying-to-avoid-what-fries-and-chips-are-made-of-word computers a solution may be to increase timings even a little more ( add about 500~xxxx milliseconds to timings of choice ).
    • Check [ 2-4. Preview | Roll Mode ] for the timings config file location.
• The captured stats don't match the rolled stats.
  • Check the [ "captured stats don't match the rolled stats" FaQ entry ] for more information.
• Inform me when the above does not provide a solution to the issue.

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[ (Show|Hide Answer) "The captured stats don't match the rolled stats ... what do I do, doc ?" ]

➥ Answer:

• The ( most probable ) cause ( and solution ) for this is mentioned
  in the [ See-Through Region ] section of this ReadMe.:
  ( try to avoid including any additional UI elements in the captured region ).

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[ (Show|Hide Answer) "Why did the tool skip a very exotic roll ?" ]

➥ Answer:

• Most probably, the cause would be any of these:
  • It did not meet any requirements set in the condition list.
    Always put some thought in which rolled stats would be preferred and add all-encompassing conditions for those.
  • The roll contained a unique stat with a long description.
    • Check [ 1.1. See-through Region ] for more information.
  • The captured stats didn't match the rolled stats.
    • Check the [ "captured stats don't match the rolled stats" FaQ entry ] for more information.
  • Inform me with detailed information ( and if possible steps to reproduce )
    if you think any of the above aren't the reason.
    I would consider such a priority fix.

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[ (Show|Hide Answer) "What are my chances to roll certain stats ?" ]

➥ Answer:

• A good and up-to-date reference on roll chances per stat/gear can be found here:
  EPW Forum ~ R8 Recast Add-On Guide.
• As for the tool, it doesn't increase chances in any way.
  Legend goes inf once wrote this tool only takes away the boring part of rolling gear ;).

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[ (Show|Hide Answer) "I still use version 2 of the tool, should I update ?" ]

➥ Answer:

• In general: yes, I would advice to update.
• In a nutshell:
  • For rolls like f.e. *2 x Channelling*, *4 x Interval*, any previous version will do just fine.
  • For more exotic rolls ( combined stats, ... ), version 3.1 is recommended.

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[ (Show|Hide Answer) "Does this tool work on other servers as well (besides EPW) ?" ]

➥ Answer:

• In general: if server X follows the same mechanics of rolling gears, it should.
• I only ever played EPW, although I got confirmation it works on f.e. Relentless as well.

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[ (Show|Hide Answer) "Can the roll speed be adjusted/increased ?" ]

➥ Answer:

• Yes. As stated in section [ 2-4. Preview | Roll Mode ]:
  Using any kind of text editor, timings can be altered in
  .\Config\Params.cfg (includes additional comments).
• Example of speed settings ( defaults since v3.1.2 ) :

# =================================================================
# Time it takes for the in-game reproduce button
# to become available again.
# Note: Should be above 1500 milliseconds (personal measured time).
# =================================================================

Await In-Game Reproduce Button Available    | 1750 milliseconds


# =================================================================
# Time it takes for the in-game stats to be rolled.
# =================================================================

Await In-Game Stats Rolled            | 1750 milliseconds


# =================================================================
# Time to wait before accepting/rejecting a roll.
# Notes:
#       - A lower value speeds up the roll process.
#         However, if lowered: more difficult to stop roll process
#         due to mouse cursor being moved.
#       - A higher value makes it easier for the user
#         to follow the roll process and thus leans
#         closer to human behavior.
# =================================================================

Await Accept/Reject Action            | 2250 milliseconds

• Roll speed can even be sped up more if so desired.
  ( Mainly the 3rd timing option; check config comments for more info. )
• If the tool is still open when changing the above mentioned file, restart the tool to apply any changes.

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[ (Show|Hide Answer) "Can I to contact you in any way / provide any feedback ?" ]

➥ Answer:

• Sure. Check below for ways to get in touch with me.
  Feedback is always welcome and greatly appreciated.

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Technical Notes & References

• This tool has been programmed in Visual Studio 2019 Community Edition using C# language.
• Third-party libraries used:
  • Tesseract ( OCR )
  • MetroFramework ( UI framework )
  • Costura ( self-contained executable build )
  • Humanizer ( human readable time difference )

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Contact | Feedback

• Post a message in the EPW Tool Release Info Thread .
• Feel free to post-message me in-game | on Discord.

( Any kind of ) Feedback is always welcome and greatly appreciated.