I just wanted to throw a quick post up here to let people know that I'm working on a very basic XML reader/editor which will allow one to edit Elemental's XML files without needing to do so by hand. It will be Windows only (I needed an excuse to start learning C#), and the initial release, scheduled for sometime this weekend will be bare-bones, simply allowing value editing based on a simple GUI.

Roadmap:

Release 1:

#Allows editing existing XML files and saving the results of those files in place.

Release 2:

#Allows creating backups prior to editing files.

#Allows creation of new XML files (though for release 2, they will be blank).

Release 3:

#Dynamic determination of what type of XML file one is editing, and providing a unique form for each type of modification (Map, Quest, Spell, etc).

#Creation of new XML files based on existing templates (Map, Quest, Spell, etc).

Long Term Roadmap:

#Provide basic mod manager functionality, including the ability to manage multiple XML files as part of a mod while keeping originals intact.

#Provide ability to package and zip files required for mod.

#Provide ability to unzip and place mod files in place as required for in-game modifications.

As I noted, this is a bit of an exploratory walk for me, so I'd appreciate any help which anyone is willing to provide (especially testers!). My goal is to have a preliminary alpha for Release 1 up this weekend, at which point it'll probably get a SourceForge page, and be released as open source under the GPL. If anyone is willing to lend a hand, I'd love to have the opportunity to work with you!