BUG Mod - THE interface mod for Beyond the Sword The BtS Unaltered Gameplay mod, better known as its acronym "BUG" has been going strong for over a year and a half, providing the comprehensive interface mod for the BtS expansion pack. What makes it so good? Is it the many coders behind it? Unknown to many, until very recently, the BUG mod only had two coders, one doc writer and one file manager. Yet they managed to incorporate almost every interface mod into one package, where every option is configurable. Now, they have at least 3 coders, 3 translators, a graphic designer (yours truly), and a whole host of testers. But what does it actually have to offer? If you think the Civ 4 interface could be improved in some way, then the BUG team has either already done it, or will be working on it. Some of the notable inclusions are Sevopedia, created almost 3 years ago by Sevo, a vastly improved version of Plot List Enhancements, also a classic mod, by 12monkeys, and many improvements to screens and other tweaks. The scoreboard is one of the first things that draws the eye when playing a game. It is now arranged in a tabular layout, showing you at a glance your relations with other civs, your war and peace status and there's even a "WHEOOH" indicator (which I understand shows that a DoW is imminent). Of course, as with almost everything in BUG, it is fully customizable. You can choose from a variety of different columns to show, the distance between them (coming soon) and you can even switch back to the linear format that the game shipped with. All of the default screens have been or will be improved at some point. One of the most drastic screen changes is the Military advisor (click the image on the left for a larger view). A whole new tab has been added, showing a color-coded threat level index, strategic advantages you have and even who your allies will DoW on. There's even a column which tells you at a glance who an AI's worst enemy is. Any aggresive player will really appreciate the information provided on this screen. Of course, being only a graphical mod means that BUG does not change any gameplay from the original system, so all of your methodical strategies will still work just as well, and BUG's handy tweaks will mean that it's even easier to work out when to rush that building or try to make up with your enemies. It's so good, in fact, that it is considered the definitive interface mod for Civ 4, being used in many of the top modpacks. And it deserves the accolades.To download, click here. For more details, visit the BUG forum here. Acronyms used: DoW - Declaration of War (sometimes used as a verb) WHEOOH - We have enough on our hands