Marlinspike

Marlinspike - Search and Replace

Find anything, anywhere in your module.

The cross-tool search and replace engine for the Radoub toolset.

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Table of Contents

• Overview
• Using Marlinspike in Trebuchet
  • Searching
  • Search Options
  • File Type Filtering
  • Results
  • Replacing
  • Replace Safety
• Filename / ResRef Rename Mode
• Using Search in Individual Tools
  • Single-File Search
  • Module-Wide Search from Parley
• Supported File Types
• Field Categories
• Keyboard Shortcuts
• Tips
• Troubleshooting

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Overview

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Marlinspike searches and replaces text across all file types in your NWN module. It is available in two ways:

• Trebuchet — the Marlinspike tab provides module-wide search and replace across all 17 supported GFF file types
• Individual tools — Parley, Manifest, Quartermaster, Relique, and Fence each have inline search (Ctrl+F) for the currently open file

Marlinspike searches inside the files, not just filenames. It understands the structure of each file type and searches the right fields — dialog text, creature names, script references, item descriptions, faction names, palette entries, and more.

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Using Marlinspike in Trebuchet

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Open a module in Trebuchet, then click the Marlinspike tab (4th workspace tab, Ctrl+4).

Searching

1. Enter your search text in the search box
2. Configure options (case sensitivity, regex, etc.)
3. Select which file types to search
4. Press Enter or click Search

The status bar shows progress: "Searching file.dlg (5/47)". Click Cancel to stop a search in progress.

Search Options

Option	Description
Case Sensitive	Match exact letter case
Regex	Interpret the search pattern as a .NET regular expression
Whole Word	Only match complete words (word boundaries)
Category	Filter which field types to search: Content, Identity, Script, Metadata, Variable, or All Fields
Search StrRefs	Also search TLK-resolved text for StrRef values (requires TLK loaded). This has a performance cost for large modules.

File Type Filtering

Checkboxes control which file types are included in the search. Use Select All / Deselect All for quick toggling.

Supported types: DLG, UTC, BIC, UTI, UTM, JRL, UTP, UTD, UTE, UTT, UTW, UTS, GIT, ARE, IFO, FAC, ITP

Results

Results appear in a tree grouped by file type, then by file, then by individual matches with preview text.

• Double-click a match to open the file in the appropriate Radoub tool (Parley for DLG, Quartermaster for UTC, Relique for UTI, etc.)
• The status bar shows total match count, file count, and search duration
• Files that failed to parse are listed separately as parse errors

Replacing

1. Enter your replacement text in the replace box
2. Click Replace All to replace every match, or Replace Selected to choose specific matches

Replace Selected opens a preview window where you can:

• See each proposed change with before/after text
• Check or uncheck individual matches
• Review changes before committing

Replace Safety

Marlinspike protects your files during replace operations:

• Automatic backup — files are backed up to ~/Radoub/Backups/{Module}/{Timestamp}/ before any changes
• SHA256 verification — each backed-up file is verified with a hash
• Rollback on failure — if any file write fails, all changes are automatically restored from backup
• ResRef fields protected by default — resource reference fields are blocked from text replacement unless you enable Filename / ResRef Rename Mode (see below)

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Filename / ResRef Rename Mode

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Checking Include filename/ResRef changes Marlinspike from a text-replace tool to a module-wide rename tool. When enabled:

• All file types (including the new NSS checkbox) are automatically selected
• The "All Fields" category is automatically selected
• The reference scan respects your file-type checkboxes — what you see in the results is what gets replaced. Unchecking a file type removes it from both the search and the rename.
• In addition to GFF reference fields, Marlinspike also scans:
  • DLG script parameters (ActionParams, ConditionParams) when DLG is checked
  • .nss script source for the ResRef as a string literal when NSS is checked. High-confidence matches have surrounding quotes (e.g., "target_resref"); low-confidence matches are bare substrings and are flagged in the preview.
• Renamed filenames are normalized to lowercase
• The Aurora 16-character ResRef limit applies; collisions are auto-suffixed (_2, _3, etc.) with a confirmation prompt

Why You Might Want to Narrow Scope

Sometimes you don't want every reference updated. The classic case is splitting one NPC into two: you create a new .utc for the second NPC, then rename the original — but you want the new NPC to inherit some of the old NPC's dialog or scripts, not have those references updated to point at the rename target. Unchecking specific file types lets you scope the rename precisely.

Risks When Narrowing Scope

• Forgotten references in unchecked file types will not be updated and may break in-game
• Multiple developers may have authored references to the same resource at different times; a rename can surface or amplify inconsistencies that nobody knew existed
• Compiled .ncs and 2DA references are never scanned by Marlinspike — they're always out of scope, regardless of checkbox state. If you have script binaries or 2DA columns referencing the renamed resource, you'll need to recompile or update those manually.

Always run a test session of your module after a rename to verify nothing broke. Pay particular attention to .nss script matches flagged "low confidence" — substring matches in script source can produce false positives.

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Using Search in Individual Tools

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Single-File Search

In Parley, Manifest, Quartermaster, Relique, and Fence:

1. Press Ctrl+F to open the search bar
2. Type your search text and press Enter
3. Navigate matches with F3 (next) and Shift+F3 (previous)
4. Press Ctrl+H to show the replace row
5. Press Escape to dismiss

The search bar shows a match counter (e.g., "3 of 12 matches"). Matching sections auto-expand and results are highlighted.

Module-Wide Search from Parley

Press Ctrl+Shift+F in Parley to open a module-wide search dialog. This searches across all files in the module (same as Trebuchet's Marlinspike tab). Double-click a result to open the file.

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Supported File Types

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Marlinspike searches 17 GFF resource types. Each type has fields organized into searchable categories.

Type	Description	Key Searchable Fields
DLG	Dialog files	Text, Speaker, Quest, Comment, Scripts, Sound
UTC	Creature blueprints	Names, Description, Tag, ResRef, Deity, Scripts, Variables, Equipment, Backpack
BIC	Player characters	Same as UTC
UTI	Item blueprints	Name, Descriptions, Tag, ResRef, Comment
UTM	Store blueprints	Name, Tag, ResRef, Comment, Scripts, Variables
JRL	Journal files	Category Name/Tag, Entry Text, Comment
UTP	Placeable blueprints	Name, Description, Tag, ResRef, Comment, Scripts, Variables, Inventory
UTD	Door blueprints	Name, Description, Tag, ResRef, Comment, LinkedTo, Scripts, Variables
UTE	Encounter files	All string fields (generic search)
UTT	Trigger files	All string fields (generic search)
UTW	Waypoint files	All string fields (generic search)
UTS	Sound files	All string fields (generic search)
GIT	Area instances	All string fields across 8 instance lists (creatures, doors, placeables, etc.)
ARE	Area properties	Name, Tag, ResRef, Comments, Event scripts
IFO	Module info	Module Name, Description, Tag
FAC	Faction files	Faction names
ITP	Palette files	Branch names, category names, blueprint names and ResRefs

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Field Categories

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Use the Category filter to narrow searches to specific field types:

Category	What It Searches
Content	Dialog text, descriptions, names — player-visible text
Identity	Speaker tags, item tags, quest references — identifiers
Script	Event handler script references (OnHeartbeat, OnDeath, etc.)
Metadata	Sound references, script parameters, other non-text data
Variable	Local variable names and string values
All Fields	Everything above

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Keyboard Shortcuts

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Trebuchet

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+4	Switch to Marlinspike tab

All Tools

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+F	Find in current file
Ctrl+H	Find and Replace in current file
Ctrl+Shift+F	Find in module (Parley)
F3	Next match
Shift+F3	Previous match
Escape	Dismiss search / cancel search

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Tips

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• Search before replacing — run a search first to review matches, then switch to replace mode
• Use field categories — searching "All Fields" is thorough but slow on large modules. Narrow by category when you know what you're looking for.
• Regex for patterns — use .NET regex syntax for complex searches. Example: nw_s0_\w+ finds all standard spell scripts.
• StrRef search — enable "Search StrRefs" to find text that comes from the talk table rather than being stored directly in the file. This is useful for base game content but adds search time.
• Module must be unpacked — Marlinspike searches the working directory, not packed .mod files. Unpack your module in Trebuchet first.
• ITP is search-only — palette files can be searched but not replaced (yet)

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Troubleshooting

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No Results Found

1. Check that a module is loaded and unpacked in Trebuchet
2. Verify the file type checkboxes include the type you expect
3. Try disabling Case Sensitive if your search term has mixed case
4. Check the Category filter isn't excluding the field you need

Search Is Slow

• Disable "Search StrRefs" if you don't need TLK resolution
• Narrow file type checkboxes to only the types you need
• Use a field category filter instead of "All Fields"

Parse Errors in Results

Some files may fail to parse (corrupted or non-standard format). These are listed separately and don't block the rest of the search. The file can still be opened and examined in the appropriate tool.

Backup Location

Replace backups are stored in ~/Radoub/Backups/{ModuleName}/{Timestamp}/. Each backup includes the original files and a manifest with SHA256 hashes.

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Page freshness: 2026-05-16