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About chimera.ini

The chimera.ini file provides additional configuration for Chimera beyond console commands. This file is NOT automatically generated, so you are responsible for keeping it up-to-date. Using the INI file is optional unless you want to take advantage of features configured through it.
You can get a fresh copy of chimera.ini from the Chimera repository.

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File Format

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Encoding

The chimera.ini file MUST be encoded using UTF-8. Other encodings will not work.

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Comments

Lines that begin with a semicolon ; are comments and are ignored by the parser. Comments are also used to “comment out” settings: 
;setting_name=value
Removing the semicolon before setting_name (“uncommenting” the line) will activate the setting.

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Configuration Sections

The chimera.ini file is organized into the following sections:

Halo Settings

Game initialization, paths, ports, and core Halo settings

Video Settings

Resolution, refresh rate, vsync, windowed mode, and graphics options

Chat Settings

Custom chat, server messages, console, and messaging display

Font Settings

Override game fonts with custom system fonts

Controller Settings

Gamepad configuration and button mapping

Hotkeys

Function keys and keyboard shortcuts for commands

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Additional Sections

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Error Handling

Control how Chimera handles errors:
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suppress_fatal_errors
boolean
default:"0"
Set to 1 to not show any error boxes created by Chimera.
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show_segmentation_fault
boolean
default:"0"
Set to 1 to show segmentation fault errors.

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Scoreboard

Customize the scoreboard appearance:
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font
string
default:"small"
Font to use for the scoreboard. Options: smaller, small, large, console, system
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fade_time
number
default:"0.5"
Fade time in seconds. 0.5 is default, 0 is instant.
[scoreboard]
font=small
fade_time=0.5

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Player Names

Customize names displayed when looking at players:
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font
string
default:"small"
Font to use for player names. Options: smaller, small, large, console, system
[name]
font=small

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Server List

Configure server list behavior:
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auto_query
boolean
default:"1"
Enable automatically getting the server list on open.
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master_server_list
string
Master server hostname for server list queries.
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master_server_key
string
Master server key hostname.
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master_server_nat_primary
string
Primary NAT negotiation server.
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master_server_nat_secondary
string
Secondary NAT negotiation server.
[server_list]
auto_query=1
;master_server_list=s1.master.hosthpc.com
;master_server_key=s1.ms01.hosthpc.com

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Maps

Map compatibility settings:
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map_compatibility_list
boolean
default:"1"
Enable/disable the map compatibility list. Used to support legacy maps that depend on Gearbox renderer regressions and legacy Chimera hacks.
[maps]
map_compatibility_list=1

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Memory

Map loading and memory settings:
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enable_map_memory_buffer
boolean
default:"0"
Load maps directly into RAM rather than use temporary files. Requires LAA-patched haloce.exe.
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map_size
number
default:"1024"
Size of buffer (in MiB) to allocate for both the UI and one non-UI map.
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benchmark
boolean
default:"0"
Show the time it took to decompress maps.
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download_font
string
default:"small"
Font to use when downloading maps. Options: smaller, small, large, console, system
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download_template
string
URL template used to download maps. Supports RFC 3986 URLs with placeholders:
  • {map} - map name
  • {game} - game type (“halor” for PC, “halom” for CE, “halod” for trial)
  • {server} - current server’s IP address
  • {password} - server password
  • {mirror<x,y,...>} - comma-separated mirror values
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download_retail_maps
boolean
default:"0"
Enable downloading of retail (HaloMD / Halo PC) maps. OFF by default due to potential incompatibility.
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load_embedded_lua
boolean
default:"0"
Enable loading Lua scripts embedded in maps. No effect on Halo Trial.
[memory]
map_size=1024
download_font=small
load_embedded_lua=0
Ensure you have an English copy of retail Halo PC bitmaps.map and sounds.map before enabling download_retail_maps. Incompatible maps will result in corrupt assets and extremely loud sounds.

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Debug

Advanced debug settings:
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use_external_pixel_shader_collection
boolean
default:"0"
Use pixel shader collection from the “shaders” folder rather than built-in collections.
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use_external_vertex_shader_collection
boolean
default:"0"
Use vertex shader collection from the “shaders” folder rather than built-in collections.
[debug]
use_external_pixel_shader_collection=0
use_external_vertex_shader_collection=0
Don’t modify debug settings unless you know what you’re doing.

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