MEDIAN XL  |  MODS BY LAZ
README
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All documentation for this mod can be found at:
<http://modsbylaz.hugelaser.com>

Median XL forum:
<http://modsbylaz.14.forumer.com/index.php>

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1. MEDIAN XL FEATURES
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o New skill trees with 30 brand new skills per class.
Bored with Blessed Hammer? Median XL offers brand new skill trees. Each class has 25 main skills, 3 uberskills and 2 challenge reward skills. If you ever wanted a crossbow necromancer or summoner amazon, here is your chance!

o Improved monsters.
When was the last time a frog killed you? The monsters are much more aggressive and dangerous, and many have learned various new tricks. From quill rats with homing spikes to invisible templars, the monsters will pose a much tougher challenge.

o Elite, veteran and heroic monsters.
If the normal monsters are tricky, the elites will have you run for your life. Featuring their own unique attacks and improved statistics elite, veteran and heroic monsters are a match for the strongest heroes.

o 30 new uberquests for high level characters.
Forget Battle.net and 'Uber Tristram', Median XL has 22 more uberbosses and 8 special uberlevels for high level characters. Defeating them on the highest difficulty yields powerful unique charms.

o New base items. Six quality tiers.
Median XL features many new class-specific items. Additionally, item stats have been rebalanced and there are now six tiers of item quality, each with better stats than the last. Rumours persist of even stronger Sacred items...

o New and improved gems and runes.
More gems, more runes and the existing gems and runes have been improved. Plentiful random sockets on items offer a powerful way to customise your items.

o Enhanced magic and rare items.
Between the improved affix pool and the addition of powerful new affixes including percentage based attribute bonuses, rares are a much improved game option.

o An assortment of new uniques and sets.
Median XL features 710 new uniques and 29 new sets. Many of the uniques and all of the sets can only drop in special difficult areas.

o An assortment of new runewords.
There are exactly 332 brand new runewords, each requiring only a single rune. You can fill the other sockets with jewels for your convenience.

o New and improved cube recipes.
Median XL offers many powerful new cube recipes including a revolutionary crafting system.

o Honorific items.
Create blank items and enchant them yourself. Ever wanted to make your very own uniques? Now you can.

o Special challenges for expert players.
Beating the game is only half the fun! Reach certain milestones in the game to obtain a special reward.

o Rebalanced drop rates to make good items more common.
You may actually see a Zod now.

o And much more...
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2. INSTALLATION
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This mod requires Diablo II Lord of Destruction version 1.10 or later.

2.1 How to install

I am using Windows:

· To install:
1. Find your Diablo II folder on your hard disk;
2. Make a backup copy of the patch_d2.mpq file located therein;
3. Copy the patch_d2.mpq file found in the mod download to your Diablo II folder.

· To uninstall:
1. Delete the new patch_d2.mpq;
2. Copy the original file back in its place.

I am using a Macintosh (OS X and later):

· To install:
1. Find your Diablo II folder on your hard disk;
2. Make a backup copy of the Diablo II Patch (Carbon) file located therein;
3. Copy the patch_d2.mpq file found in the mod download to your Diablo II folder;
4. Right-click the file and select ‘Get Info’;
5. Select the ‘Name & Extension’ tab. Rename the file HERE to Diablo II Patch (Carbon);

· To uninstall:
1. Delete the new Diablo II Patch (Carbon);
2. Copy the original back in its place.

I am using a Macintosh (before OS X):

· To install:
1. Find your Diablo II folder on your hard disk;
2. Make a backup copy of Diablo II Patch;
3. Copy the patch_d2.mpq file found in the mod download to your Diablo II folder;
4. Rename it to Diablo II Patch.

· To uninstall:
1. Delete the new Diablo II Patch;
2. Copy the original back in its place.

(thanks to reiyo_oki for OS X installation instructions)

2.2 I forgot to backup my original patch_d2.mpq!

If you forgot to make a backup of the original patch_d2.mpq file, you can no longer uninstall the mod because this file is required to use the regular game.

But do not worry, you can find a clean copy of patch_d2.mpq at:
<www.d2mods.com>

2.3 Blizzard released Diablo II patch 1.14, will the mod still work?

At the time of writing (27.dec.2011), Diablo II Lord of Destruction 1.13 is the latest version.
Should Blizzard release 1.14 or up, check the official site first:
<modsbylaz.hugelaser.com>

If the mod turns out to be incompatible with 1.14, I will provide a patch to update it.

Btw. Do not upgrade your Diablo II version while the mod is installed, or both the mod and your installed copy of Diablo II will be damaged. Please uninstall it first.
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3. HOW TO USE
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After installing the mod, running the game the normal way will bring up Median XL.

Notice:
- Closed battle.net (= ‘realms’) does not support this mod.
- Single player, open battle.net and TCP/IP multiplayer are available.
- You will need to start a new character.
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4. MULTIPLAYER
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4.1 Does this mod support multiplayer?

Mods are not compatible with closed battle.net (= ‘realms’), because a closed battle.net game actually runs on Blizzard’s own servers. Blizzard does not have a copy of this mod.

To play with other people, you need to use TCP/IP (‘other multiplayer’). This allows you to connect directly to a friend’s computer and join his game or vice versa. Alternatively, use open battle.net, but please make sure to password your games and allow only other Median XL users, otherwise you may experience a crash when a regular Lord of Destruction user joins.

4.2 TCP/IP does not work, help!

Many players report that they are unable to join games over TCP/IP. Median XL does not affect the Diablo II netcode and does not interfere with your ability to play TCP/IP games. However, Diablo II itself tends to be picky about TCP/IP games and often refuses connection for no obvious reason.

· A. Verify that all players have the same version of the mod, and the same Diablo II version.

· B. Do not trust the IP address displayed by Diablo II, but use:
<www.whatismyip.com>
to find out your real IP address.

· C. Open ports 6112 TCP and 4000 TCP on your router, firewall and/or proxy server. If you do not know how, please consult the manual of your device, or try:
<http://portforward.com>

· D. If any of you has installed the third party addon PlugY, you may want to disable it. PlugY is notoriously bugged in a multiplayer environment and may prevent you from joining games, or even eat your items! Note that I did not create PlugY and therefore I do not support it.

· E. If this did not solve your problem, see the Blizzard Support Site:
<http://www.blizzard.com/support/?id=msi0445p>

Please do not blame your TCP/IP connection problems on the mod. Median XL supports TCP/IP, provided you have installed it properly and configure your system so Diablo II TCP/IP works in the first place. If you still cannot connect, blame Blizzard.

4.3 Where can I find a realm or server for this mod?

Third party realms are illegal and may host lower quality hacked versions of Median XL. Next question...!

4.4 Where do I find other people to play with?

There is usually an active TCP/IP thread on the Mods by Laz forum at:
<http://modsbylaz.14.forumer.com/viewforum.php?f=16>
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5. HELP, I HAVE A PROBLEM!
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Please check the following:

5.1 The mod has no effect!

· A. This may be due to a no-CD crack or use of D2Loader.
· B. If you used any other mods before Median XL, they may have messed up (*) your Diablo II installation.

(*) (Many mods come with their own installer / mod manager, which may have modified Diablo II to read the patch_d2.mpq file from its own subfolder)

5.2 The mod crashes / causes an error!

· A. Make sure you have Diablo II Lord of Destruction version 1.10, 1.11 or 1.12.
· B. Do not attempt to use a character from another mod or from classic LoD, they are not compatible.
· C. If you crash when you travel to Act 2 after killing Andariel, this is due to a bug with the Diablo II video player, which crashes if you have no soundcard installed or your soundcard is not working. Fix your sound.
· D. A badly written maphack may occasionally crash the mod. Please get rid of it, I do not support cheating.
· E. If you are using PlugY (*), remove all non-Median XL items from the shared stash.
· F. If all else fails, download the mod again, and reinstall Diablo II. Files occasionally do get corrupted.

(*) (If you do not know what PlugY is, you probably aren’t using it. PlugY does not come with Median XL, but it is a somewhat popular third party addon for Diablo II and its mods)

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6. DOCUMENTATION / CUBE RECIPES / RUNEWORDS / ...
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The documentation can be found on the official site:
<http://modsbylaz.hugelaser.com>
(If the official site ever goes down, please google for 'Median XL' and you will probably find it there)

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7. CONTACT ME
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Any feedback and questions are welcome. You can:

A. Email me at:
<ForTheeEndymion@googlemail.com> (Notice the three e’s)

...or...

B. Post your question on the official Mods by Laz forum at:
<http://modsbylaz.14.forumer.com/index.php>
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8. UPDATES
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You can find the most recent version of Median XL at:
<http://modsbylaz.hugelaser.com>

Accept no substitutes. Other file mirrors may be outdated or may have tampered with the download. This applies especially to peer-to-peer downloads.

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MODS BY BROTHER LAZ