The Guild 1 HookDLLs

This project provides a set of hook-DLLs and an injector to patch and stabilize the multiplayer experience in Europa 1400: The Guild Gold Edition ("The Guild 1").

What is this and why?

The Guild Gold Edition has a network multiplayer mode that relies on server.dll for all network communication. Unfortunately, the original implementation is extremely sensitive to even minor packet loss or timing issues, causing frequent "out of sync" errors and disconnects—especially when playing over VPNs (like Hamachi, Radmin, or TeamViewer) or anything other than a direct LAN connection.

This project was created to fix those issues by intercepting and patching the problematic network routines. It does so by providing replacement DLLs ("hook-DLLs") for kernel32.dll and ws2_32.dll, as well as a patched server.dll and an injector. These DLLs use MinHook to hook and modify the behavior of critical functions, improving network stability and making multiplayer possible even over VPN.

Technical background

• The original server.dll expects perfect packet delivery and will desync or crash on any network hiccup.
• The hook-DLLs intercept calls to Windows APIs (like those in ws2_32.dll and kernel32.dll) and patch or work around the problematic logic.
• This approach was inspired by community research and reverse engineering.
• The solution is non-invasive: if you want to revert, just remove the DLLs and injector.

Who is this for?

• Fans of The Guild Gold Edition who want to play multiplayer reliably, even over VPN.
• Modders and tinkerers interested in reverse engineering or improving classic games.
• Anyone who wants to understand or extend the network logic of The Guild 1.

Features

• DLL hooks for kernel32, ws2_32, and server modules
• Standalone DLL injector
• Clean, reproducible cross-platform build system
• MinHook vendored as a submodule and built from source

Requirements

• Zig (tested with Zig 0.11+)
• ar and zip utilities (for packaging)
• Git (for submodules)

Getting Started

1. Clone the repository and initialize submodules:

   git clone https://github.com/yourusername/The-Guild-1-HookDLLs.git
   cd The-Guild-1-HookDLLs
   git submodule update --init --recursive

2. Build everything:

   make all

3. Create a distributable package:

   make package

   This will create The-Guild-1-HookDLLs.zip containing all release artifacts.

4. Clean build artifacts:

   make clean

Makefile Targets

• make all — Build all DLLs and the injector
• make install — Copy artifacts to the release/ directory
• make package — Create a zip file for distribution
• make clean — Remove all build and release artifacts

Directory Structure

• src/ — Source code for hooks and injector
• vendor/minhook/— MinHook source (as a git submodule)
• build/ — Build artifacts (ignored by git)
• release/ — Final DLLs, injector, and packaging scripts

Notes

• All DLLs are cross-compiled for Windows (x86) from Linux.
• MinHook is built from source automatically; no CMake required.
• If you update MinHook, re-run git submodule update --remote and rebuild.

DLL Export Definition Files (.def)

• The docs/kernel32.def and docs/ws2_32.def files list the exports of the original Windows DLLs (kernel32.dll, ws2_32.dll).
• These are provided for reference, to help you match the exports in your proxy DLLs if needed.
• If you want your proxy DLLs to export the same functions as the originals, use these files as a template for your own .def files or for linker configuration.

How to use

1. Build and package the project:

   • Run make package to produce The-Guild-1-HookDLLs.zip in the project root.
   • Unzip this file. Inside the release/ directory, you'll find the DLLs and the injector executable.

2. Prepare the game:

   • Make a backup of your previous hook_kernel32.dll and hook_ws2_32.dll in the game server directory (if present).
   • Place the built proxy DLLs (hook_kernel32.dll, hook_ws2_32.dll, etc.) into the game server directory.

3. Using the Injector:

   • Run injector.exe (recommended in the game dircetory) with the PID of the gane exe and the pathes to the DLLs you want to inject. If starting the injector in the game directory, for example:

     injector.exe PIDofExe server/hook_server.dll server/hook_ws2_32.dll server/hook_kernel32.dll

   • The injector can also attach to a running process by PID if needed.
   • It is recommended to use the provided bat files due to conveniene reasons

4. Start the game:

   • Place the bat file and injector exe in the game dir and execute the bat file with admin rights
   • Launch the game as usual to get PID and use the injector as described above.

More background

• The multiplayer instability in The Guild 1 is due to the lack of packet loss handling in the original server.dll.
• This project was inspired by community guides and reverse engineering efforts (see Steam guides by Atexer and lycanthrope).
• The hook-DLLs and injector are a "drop-in" patch: no installation required, just copy the files and play.
• If you want to contribute, improve, or extend the patch, see the source code and documentation in this repository.