The following guide will teach you how to install and setup the Dark Messiah SDK for the multiplayer version of the game, part of the Source Engine which the games is build upon, to begin creating maps and mods for Dark Messiah the Might and Magic. Another version of this guide can also be found on the Valve Developer Community (VDC), more on this at the end.

This guide will however NOT teach you how to use any of the tools included with the SDK and it is assumed that the user either already knows afterwards how to use them or is willing to learn more about their usage through both external sources, as well as other guides that may be available elsewhere on steam - when the time comes.

You need to have followed the singleplayer version of the guide beforehand to be able to get this to work properly.

The Multiplayer version of Dark Messiah of Might and Magic does not come with a separate SDK unlike with the singleplayer version of the game and as so require a longer setup process to function properly, however once done it becomes very easy to create maps for the game and at the same time excludes the use of the now obsolete Source SDK unlike earlier written versions of said setup guide.

To be able to get this to work, both the singleplayer and multiplayer version of the game need to be installed (preferably on the same drive), plus it is a requirement that the singleplayer SDK Installation process has already been completed and that it has been tested locally that being able to build and run maps for the singleplayer version of the game is possible.

Start out by creating a backup of the folders: sound, models and materials located inside of Dark Messiah Might and Magic Single Player\mm by renaming them (example by adding the postfix _backup) as these represent the singleplayer content and shall not get lost so it is always possible to switch back and fourth between developing maps for both game versions. Next you will need to extract the contents of the following VPK files located inside of the Dark Messiah Might and Magic Multi-Player/vpks folder with GCFScape[nemstools.github.io] to your ''Dark Messiah Might and Magic Single Player/mm'' folder. Click yes when Windows ask if you want to override any folders in the process:

• depot_2132_dir.vpk (models)
  
• depot_2133_dir.vpk (materials)
  
• depot_2134_dir.vpk (materials)
  
• depot_2135_dir.vpk (sound)
  
• depot_2136_dir.vpk (sound)

Next you will have to copy the folder /editor, now located inside of the backed up materials and models folders for the singleplayer version to the current active folders of their type, as the multiplayer folders does not contain the editor files and therefore hammer will provide fatal error messages upon opening any maps without them.

Once all the files have been extracted, you still need to tell Hammer where to look for these files. To do this, open the GameConfig.txt file located in the /bin folder inside of the Dark Messiah of Might and Magic Single Player directory and add the following content above the "Dark Messiah" entry already in the file, in-between the Games clause. You also have to correct the $SteamUserDir strings below afterwards, to the directory where your steam library is located (example C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\):

At this point it should now be possible to development maps by launching the hammer editor from the bin folder of the singleplayer version of the game and choosing "Dark Messiah MP" configuration when asked. All official map sources are already included with the Multiplayer version and can be found in Dark Messiah Might and Magic Multi-Player\mapsrc directory, which also can be opened to check that all game content such as materials and models are found successfully by the editor.

From here on a basic test map should be created and compiled before creating more ambitious maps to ensure everything works as indented when run by the game. How to create a multiplayer map with the least amount of requirements can be found on either here on the wiki itself or by reading page six in the officially included pdf file inside of Dark Messiah Might and Magic Multi-Player\Docs.

Note:

• Some displacement blend materials will still show up as missing and there is also no compiler configurations available from the get go which will require additional setup.
  
  
• It also might not be possible to run the multiplayer version of the game directly once the map is compiled as hammer is unable to copy the mapfile outside of the main directory, as such make sure to copy the final compiled BSP map into the Dark Messiah Might and Magic Multi-Player\maps directory before running the game.

The Dark Messiah Level Creation page is a good place to go if you are familiar with Source mapping already. If not, you will need to master the basics of Source level design first.

If you want to learn about how to create content for the Source Engine in general, the main page of the Source SDK documentation is a good place to start.

3kliksphilip Tutorials - Beginner Source SDK Tutorials

Post all issues you may have in the Dark Messiah Steam Discussions Board. If you have a bug specific to the Dark Messiah SDK or game and are able to replicate it, perhaps even know a fix, please add it as an entry to the Dark Messiah Bugs page.

See the Source SDK FAQ for answers to general SDK questions. For level design and Hammer editor issues, see the Level Design FAQ.

The Dark Messiah of Might and Magic Videogame Community is from what I know of no longer around due it being an old game, however the Source Engine Community itself is still thriving to this day with new games and mods releasing all the time.

Valve Developer Community (VDC) - Wiki about everything Source.
Source Modding Community[discord.gg] - General Source/GoldSource Modding Discord Server.
Source SDK Steam page - Source SDK Steam Community.
Valvetime Forums[www.valvetime.co.uk] - Source Modifications Forum.
Interlopers Forum[www.interlopers.net] - General Game/Half-Life Forum

Thanks for taking the time to read this guide and I hope it has provided all of the information you need to begin your journey into creating possible maps and mods for the game.

As stated in the introduction, the majority of the content found in this guide is taken directly from the Valve Developer Community, and is done because I wrote the same content found there and wanted to share it with more of the community found here - as I have read comments from people interested in how to get started mapping for the game but may be unaware of the VDC's existence and also might just want a simple 'How to get started!' guide without having to use too much time searching the web for answers.

It is also a perfect place to find it as this hub is Dark Messiah of Might and Magic's primary community hub at the time of writing - mainly due to it being an old game, and is where people might expect to find it in the first place, as it is where you begin your adventure for more information regarding the subject if you just bought the game on its store page.

If anyone finds any information in this guide misleading, not describing something well enough, contains any spelling mistakes or just unsure of anything; please write a comment below and I, or possibly someone else, will try to answer/fix the problem as good and fast as possible.

I hope to create more content and guides for the game over time, anyways thanks again and have a wonderful day!