Here is a breakdown of its features:
1: New phrase pack button. Click this button to reset the program and begin creating a new phrase pack.
2: Save phrase pack button. Clicking this button will save the current phrase pack to the phrase pack directory.
3: Load phrase pack button. Clicking this button will allow you to load a previously created phrase pack into the tool. By default, the phrase packs are located in the directory:
c:\program files\redclaw\weavewords\phrase packs\.
Please note, the official phrase packs that come with the game are locked and cannot be loaded into the tool.
4: Pack name. Enter the name of your pack into this field. The name should be the subject that the phrases are based on and will be displayed on the game screen above the hidden phrase. Naming your phrase pack something like "My cool phrase pack!" is not a good idea as players will have no idea what the phrases will be.
5: Author. Enter your name into this field. This will be displayed in the phrase pack selection screen within the game. If you do not want to include your name, just leave this field blank, and the name will automatically default to "anonymous".
6: Number of phrases. This is a counter of the number of phrases in your pack.
7: Current phrase. This is where you will enter the actual phrases for your pack. You can either type or copy & paste text from another source. Phrases can only contain legal characters, which are the letters A to Z, and apostrophes. If you use any other characters, the tool will warn you that the phrase can not be used.
8: Add phrase button. Once you have entered a phrase into the current phrase field, click this button to add the phrase to the list. The tool will automatically convert any uppercase characters to lower case, remove any trailing spaces, and check that the pack does not already contain this phrase.
9: Delete phrase button. This allows you to remove a phrase from the pack. Either click on the phrase in the list or type it into the current phrase field, then click this button.
10: Phrase list. This is a list of all the phrases in the current pack. This is useful for checking what you have already added to your pack, and for locating any phrases you wish to delete.
A step by step guide to creating a phrase pack
Step 1: Decide on the subject for your pack. This can be anything you like. It could be as specific as "Foods that begin with the letter Q", or as broad as "Popular music". Once you have decided on a topic, enter it into the pack name field.
Step 2: Enter your name into the author field if you would like people to know who made this pack. This is optional, and if you don't want to include your name you don't have to.
Step 3: Start entering phrases! You can type phrases directly into the phrase field, or you can use the common copy & paste keyboard shortcuts (Ctrl+C to copy, Ctrl+V to paste) to enter whole phrases. Once you have entered a phrase, click the add button to add it to the pack. If there is a problem with the phrase, the tool will pop up a message to tell you why the phrase is unsuitable.
Step 4: Repeat step 3 until you run out of new phrases to add. The final number of phrases is entirely up to you. Considering the average game of Weave Words lasts around 5 minutes, even a pack with just 12 phrases could provide one whole hour of play time, so don't think you have to enter hundreds upon hundreds of phrases for the pack to be worthwhile.
Step 5: Save your pack. Just click the save button and your pack will automatically be saved to the phrase pack directory, and will appear in the game the next time you play (remember to select it from the phrase pack selection screen in the game).
Step 6: If you decide to make any changes to the pack, you can load it back into the tool by clicking the load button. This will bring up a standard Windows file locator. Just browse to the phrase pack directory (by default this is c:\program files\redclaw\weavewords\phrase packs) and locate your pack.
