----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 INFORMATION
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 Title     : VanGurK - Vanguard ui skin for Everquest 2 by gurkoz
 Version   : 2.00
 Filename  : VanGurk_v2.00.zip
 Date      : 2020-07-20
 Author    : gurkoz
 Email     : gurkoz@gurkoz.com
 Website   : http://www.gurkoz.com

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 NOTES
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 3 important notes for you to be aware of.

 - It SHOULD be Compatible with other mods such as ProfitUI and EQ2Map.
   Since it's only a skin based on the standard components it really should 
   be compatible with just about any mods out there. 
   At least those using the same basic resources as the default skin. 
   Read more about Merging mods under "INSTALL" 
   Read more about compatibility under "COMPATIBILITY".

 - It's ONLY a Visual enhancement and will NOT effect your setup and how 
   things work in-game.
   Since this is a skin and only contains image files it will NOT affect 
   anything other than the visual part of the interface. Things will stay 
   the same, but look different.

 - You CAN customize what parts to use or not to use.
   This is a complete package but if there is anything you don't like about 
   it you can customize what to include.
   Read more about customization under "INSTALL".

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 DESCRIPTION
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 This is a user interface skin created by gurkoz based on the theme of the 
 game Vanguard Saga of Heroes. It is a complete re-skin bringing the best 
 aspects of Vanguard UI to Everquest 2!

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 FEATURES
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 - Vanguard Saga of Heroes skin theme!
 - Complete re-skin of all elements currently in use ingame!
 - Crisp clean graphics in 32bit resolution!
 - New Dialogue buttons!
 - New Clock!
 - New Heroic Opportunities wheel with touched up symbols!
 - New Heroic Opportunities icons!
 - New Buttons!
 - New Scrollbars!
 - New Inventory equip boxes!
 - New clean spellbook!
 - New clean knowledge screen!
 - New cool looking "Start" button!
 - New target ring!
 - New XP Bar!
 - New Experience bar!
 - New Target info boxes complete with skulls representing toughness!
 - New Coins!
 - New Progress bars!
 - New Main Menu with new icons!
 - New Tabs!
 - New Background plates!
 - New Main icons with a rounded edge!
 - New Icon ready animation!
 - New Mouse over effect on icons!
 - New smooth backplate for icons!
 - New Map Icons with better contrast and readability!
 - New Emotion icons!
 - New Pet control icons!
 - PLUS much more including buttons, icons, frames, corners, bits and pieces!

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 FILE HISTORY
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 v2.00 - Updated the skin to the most recent version of the game.
          It's been a long while but it's finally up to date. Again.
 v1.05 - Updated the skin to the most recent version of the game.
          It's been a long while but it's finally up to date.
 v1.04 - Edited some extra resource files related to borders.
          This will color some borders gray that where previously using the 
          default skin colors. Thanks to dragonwulf! *high-five*
       - Re-skinned the progress bar.
       - Re-edited some elements in the target bar thanks to The-Order.
       - Re-skinned old dropdowns.
       - Plus some small changes and touch-ups. 
 v1.03 - Swapped EQ2Map quest icons.
          This should better reflect on quest update icons.
 v1.02 - Re-sized the EQ2Map icons giving better visibility.
          This should provide a better view of the already crowded maps.
       - Re-sized the "spell-ready" animation and added fade in and out.
          The previous animation was more or less hidden behind the icon-box.
       - Re-sized and re-colored the "spell-queue" icon.
          This really is a great feature but it really needed to be more clear.
          As of now, spells put in queue waiting will flash with a yellow box.
       - New scrollbars for stuff using the old resources.
          Same Vanguard ui scrollbars on everything!
       - Added border on items when moving.
          This to better see the color coding of picked up items.
       - Added border on map icons when mouse over.
          A better way to really see what icons you are selecting.
       - Aligned the compass to better reflect numeric values.
          Someone pointed out that North was not really north. Should be now.
       - And a few other small improvements here and there.
 v1.01 - Added support for EQ2Map modification and new map icons.
 v1.00 - Initial release.

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 INSTALL
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 Unzip the contents of this file to your Everquest 2 folder.
 This will create the folder "VanGurk" in your UI folder.

 Edit your existing eq2_recent.ini file and change the following line.

   cl_ui_skinname VanGurK

 There is also an internal command to load UI's in-game using "/loadui"
 but the results are sometimes strange and incomplete. It is not really
 the best way and not recommended by anyone. :)

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 - UNINSTALL
   To uninstall the mod just delete the VanGurK folder in your UI path. 
   Also, revert back to your previous eq2_recent.ini file and setup.

 - MERGE WITH OTHER MODS
   To merge this skin with your current enabled UI just unzip the folder 
   named "images" to your existing UI path replacing all files. 
   Please note, this could get unwanted results so please be careful. 
   Knowing what files to replace is the best way to go.

 - CUSTOMIZE
   When unzipping the files you have the option to customize what parts of 
   the skin you would like to use. If you like the skin it self but hate the 
   icon changes, just skip the "icons" folder. I won't go into details about 
   this since using an DDS viewer or reading filenames is self explanatory 
   to select. It's up to you what to include and what not.

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 COMPATIBILITY
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 Since this skin is based on the sole purpose of just replacing Image files
 and not altering any xml game-files, i am fairly convinced that it will 
 be fully compatible with future versions. It might even be compatible
 with other mods but i leave that up to you to find out. :)

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 AUTHORS NOTE
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 I started this project when i recently returned to Everquest 2 again to see
 if there was anything for me in this long time runner mmo. I've played it
 before for a short period and i now remembered why i left. I just couldn't
 get over the fact that the interface annoyed me and made it impossible for
 me to focus on anything else. I immediately found a lot of areas that could 
 use some improvements. In the end, the options where, to accept the facts or 
 to do something about it. Of course the option to use other peoples ui mods
 where available but the really fun part was to create your own!

 Having previously played the trial of Vanguard Saga of Heroes, i felt there
 was something that could be done. Vanguard seemed like a nice game and all
 but it wasn't for me. And really, the best thing about it i found was the
 interface. A real work of art but sadly i couldn't continue playing only
 for the sole reason of a great ui. Going back to play Everquest 2 gave
 me great fun and incredible experiences but i never could forget how clean
 and crisp a nice looking ui could be. The idea of a Vanguard inspired skin
 for Everquest 2 was soon thereafter born. 

 First i only did this to my own amusement and really just to be able to 
 play the game without getting annoyed by the default skin. Later i saw
 the potential in creating a skin other people could use and enjoy and
 this really is the result of this. The fact that SOE own the intellectual 
 property of both Everquest and Vanguard made a project like this possible.

 My plan was to try and see how much can you modify the ui without altering
 any xml files and only stick to image files. Just about everything i found
 out to my surprise. Sure there are some borders and text still using the
 "old" colors but i really think it fits in nice. I might release future 
 addons dealing with the xml styles. Time will tell.

 I did attentionl leave out a few parts of the re-skinning process. First
 i naturally found parts that for different reason didn't needed to be
 reskinned. Other parts where the huge amount of old stuff still present
 in the ui files. I must admit it was quite difficult to know what parts
 that still where in use. Messy messy. Also, the fact that im pretty much 
 new to this game meant i could only get visual feedback ingame from 
 features available to me at low levels. I feel fairly convinced i missed
 some stuff but i just will have to go back and fix those in future releases.

 Let's talk a little about the new map system. I was glad to se finally a
 better system was created. although, the icons where too small and too
 complicated. Initially i was going to remake every icon but i realized
 that would take quite some time. Instead i focused my efforts on making
 the current one easier to differentiate. This had nothing to do with
 Vanguard but i felt i had to try to do something about it.

 And last, since you may be wondering, yes i did get permission from SOE to
 create a skin like this. Also this would be a good place to point out
 what great support and spirit SOE shows in letting us create stuff
 like this! Thanks again for the opportunity and support SOE!

 So, Say goodbye default skin and Hello VanGurK!

 Enjoy!

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 CREDITS
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 - Sony Online Entertainment
   Original artwork of Vanguard Saga of Heroes are the intellectual property
   of Sony Online Entertainment.

 - gurkoz
   I take no credit in the material used as a base for this skin.
   What i do take credit for is the insane amount of time i have spent to
   get this skin in a complete form. It's no matter of just copying an UI 
   from one game to another but involves a lot of tedious precision work.
   Other than this i have also created all the Gaps and icons missing from 
   the original material. The process of just figuring out what to go where 
   took quite some time.

 - Automan
   Beta testing and all those talks about nothing :)

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 DISCLAMER AND DISTRIBUTION PERMISSIONS
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 This user interface skin is distributed 'as is'. 
 I am not responsible for any damage or modification this skin does to your 
 hardware or software, if you play Everquest 2 you ought to be tough enough
 to pick up the pieces yourself and to take full responsibility for your 
 own actions.

 GurkoZ is not responsible for any harm or psychological affects, 
 loss of vision, fatigue or general irresponsibility from playing with 
 this new skin. The skin is 100% safe and tested, so you should have no
 trouble with it. But if you do, please don't blame me too much.

 The VanGurK Skin is freeware and can be distributed freely as long as
 the zip and it's content is not modified. If your looking to include this
 skin in your mod or a collection, please contact me first. Or at least
 leave me some kind of credit.

 I am doing this just for kicks and to honor a great game like Everquest 2!

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 Sony Online Entertainment
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 EverQuest® II © 2004-2020 Sony Online Entertainment LLC. 

 Vanguard Saga of Heroes™ © 2002-2020 Sony Online Entertainment LLC. 
