Install¶

Rename Anything needs three things. Most problems come from one of them missing:

Subscribing to the two mods is not enough. Without the program the mod shows "CAPIE missing" and only the CAPIE-free features work (states, cities, characters).

Before you start¶

• Windows 10 or 11. CAPIE is Windows-only. On macOS and Linux the mod runs without CAPIE (see Without CAPIE).
• Hearts of Iron IV 1.19.4.0 from Steam. The version is shown in the bottom left corner of the main menu. CAPIE 1.5.1 supports only this build (CAPIE 1.5.0 supported only 1.19.3.0); on any other build the game starts without CAPIE. Copies from other stores have a different hoi4.exe and are not supported.
• No local copy of Rename Anything or CAPIE in Documents\Paradox Interactive\Hearts of Iron IV\mod with the same name as the Workshop item. With two mods of the same name the game uses the local one and skips the Workshop one.
• About 5 minutes.

Step 1: subscribe to both mods¶

1. Subscribe to Rename Anything on the Steam Workshop.
2. Subscribe to CAPIE.
3. Wait until Steam has downloaded both (Steam, View, Downloads).

Step 2: install the CAPIE program¶

The setup tool changes the Hearts of Iron IV launch options in Steam. Steam keeps them in a file it rewrites while it runs, so Steam must be closed during this step. The tool can close Steam for you and start it again afterwards.

Way A: one PowerShell line (recommended)¶

1. Press Win, type PowerShell, and open Windows PowerShell. You do not need "Run as administrator".

2. Paste this line and press Enter:

   irm https://github.com/capie-mods/capie/releases/latest/download/install.ps1 | iex
   

3. A menu opens. Choose 1 Install or update with Enter.

4. Answer the questions:

   Question	Answer
   Install or update CAPIE in ...\RenameAnything?	Enter (yes)
   Loading method: 1 = CAPIE launcher, 2 = proxy	Enter (1, launcher)
   Add the CAPIE launcher to the HOI4 Steam launch options?	Enter (yes)
   Steam is running. Close Steam now?	Enter (yes)
   Several Steam accounts found	the number of the account you play on, or A for all
   Start Steam again?	Enter (yes)

5. Wait for the Summary. It should say that CAPIE is installed and that Steam starts it ("started by Steam"). If a step failed, the summary names the log file; see If it does not work.

The tool installs into %LOCALAPPDATA%\RenameAnything. It does not change the game folder.

Way B: download the files yourself¶

1. Open the latest CAPIE release and download into one folder (for example Downloads\CAPIE): CAPIE-1.5.0-win64.zip, install.ps1, release-manifest.json and release-manifest.json.sig. Do not unpack the ZIP.
2. Open that folder in File Explorer, click the address bar, type powershell and press Enter. PowerShell opens in that folder.

3. Run:

   powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\install.ps1 -Install -SteamLaunchOption -PackagePath .\CAPIE-1.5.0-win64.zip
   

4. The questions are plain text here. When asked "Add the selected loading method to the HOI4 Steam launch options? [y/N]", type y and press Enter (Enter alone means no). Answer the Steam questions as in way A.

Step 3: enable both mods in your playset¶

1. Start the game from Steam (Play). The Paradox Launcher opens.
2. Open Playsets and enable both Rename Anything and CAPIE in the playset you play with. The order does not matter.
3. Close the Paradox Launcher.

The CAPIE mod is the on/off switch: CAPIE loads only when the CAPIE mod is enabled in the playset you start the game with.

Step 4: start the game the right way¶

1. Start the game with Play in Steam. This runs the CAPIE launcher, which opens the Paradox Launcher as usual.
2. In the Paradox Launcher pick the playset with both mods and press Play.
3. Wait in the main menu for about 20 seconds after it appears. CAPIE loads after the main menu is ready, never earlier.

Step 5: check that CAPIE is running¶

1. In the main menu, the CAPIE mark appears when the CAPIE mod is enabled. Its tooltip only says the switch is on; it does not prove CAPIE loaded.
2. Start or load a game. Open Decisions, find the Rename Anything category and take Rename characters. The name editor opens; switch to its Country tab.
3. A line near the bottom of that tab shows CAPIE 1.5 loaded when CAPIE runs. CAPIE missing: Rename Anything needs it means it did not load; go to If it does not work. With CAPIE running you also see pencils next to the country and leader names in the Politics panel.

If it does not work¶

First: read the launcher log¶

Everything the CAPIE launcher decides is written to %LOCALAPPDATA%\RenameAnything\launcher.log. Press Win+R, paste %LOCALAPPDATA%\RenameAnything, press Enter and open launcher.log. Read the lines from the last start:

"CAPIE missing" although both mods are enabled¶

Go through these in order and test after each one:

1. Check the Steam launch option: Steam, Library, right-click Hearts of Iron IV, Properties, General, Launch Options. It must contain "...\RenameAnything\current\RenameAnythingLauncher.exe" %command%. If it is empty, the setup could not change it because Steam was running: close Steam completely (Steam menu, Exit, not the window's X), run the setup again, choose 1 Install or update, and answer yes to the Steam questions.
2. If you have several Steam accounts: the launch option is set per account. Run the setup again and pick the account you play on (or A).
3. Close every Paradox Launcher window, also the one in the tray next to the clock, then press Play in Steam.
4. Wait 20 seconds in the main menu before you load a game.
5. Look for a local copy of either mod in Documents\Paradox Interactive\Hearts of Iron IV\mod and remove it or rename it in its descriptor.mod.
6. Check your antivirus. Some antivirus programs block or quarantine CAPIE, because it loads itself into the game. Look in your antivirus history for RenameAnythingLauncher.exe, capie_core.dll, capie_editor.dll or capie_injector.exe, restore them, add %LOCALAPPDATA%\RenameAnything as an exception, and run the setup again.
7. If none of this helps, use the alternative method.

The setup does not offer to change the launch options¶

• The Steam step needs a Steam installation the tool can find. If Steam is installed in an unusual place, run way B with -SteamRoot "D:\Path\To\Steam".
• If you answered no, or Steam did not close within 60 seconds, the step was skipped. Close Steam yourself (Steam menu, Exit) and run the setup again.
• You can also set it by hand: in Launch Options type the line above, with the full path of RenameAnythingLauncher.exe in %LOCALAPPDATA%\RenameAnything\current, followed by %command%.

PowerShell errors¶

• "Running scripts is disabled on this system" means you ran .\install.ps1 directly. Use the powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\install.ps1 ... line from way B, or way A.
• If Windows blocks the downloaded file, run Unblock-File .\install.ps1 in the same folder, then try again.
• "irm is not recognized" means you are in the old Command Prompt (cmd), not PowerShell. Open Windows PowerShell as in step 2.
• If the signature or hash check fails, the download was incomplete or changed. Delete the files, download them again, and do not mix files from different releases.

Wrong game version¶

CAPIE 1.5.1 works only with Hearts of Iron IV 1.19.4.0 from Steam (CAPIE 1.5.0 only with 1.19.3.0). On any other build, including a beta branch, the game starts without CAPIE and the CAPIE-free features still work. In Steam, Properties, Betas, choose "None". A yellow "not supported" warning in the Paradox Launcher's mod list compares the mod's supported_version with your game and does not by itself stop anything; the version in the main menu is what counts.

Alternative method: proxy loader¶

If the launcher method does not work for you, CAPIE can be loaded by a version.dll next to hoi4.exe instead. This method adds one file to the game folder, does not need the Steam launch option and does not use the CAPIE mod as a switch: while it is installed, CAPIE loads in every game you start.

1. Run the setup once more and choose Uninstall, so the two methods do not overlap.

2. Download the release files as in way B and run, in that folder:

   powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\install.ps1 -Install -PackagePath .\CAPIE-1.5.0-win64.zip -LoadMethod Proxy -ProxyActivation Config
   

3. Start the game any way you like. Its log is %LOCALAPPDATA%\RenameAnything\proxy.log.

If the setup cannot write to the game folder, run PowerShell as administrator for this step. The setup never replaces a version.dll it did not install; if another mod or tool already has one there, this method cannot be used.

To switch it off, delete %LOCALAPPDATA%\RenameAnything\proxy.enabled, or uninstall.

Still stuck¶

Open an issue on GitHub or comment on the Workshop page with:

• your game version from the main menu,
• what the Steam launch options contain,
• launcher.log (and bootstrap.log from the same folder if the setup failed).

The logs contain paths and process ids, never names you typed.

Multiplayer¶

CAPIE has not been tested in multiplayer. Before you play multiplayer, disable the CAPIE mod in your playset, or run the setup and choose Disable (removes CAPIE from the Steam launch options; files stay).

Updates¶

CAPIE never updates itself. Run the one-line command again and choose 1 Install or update. The previous version stays on disk; running the downloaded script with -Rollback (as in way B) switches back to it.

Uninstall¶

1. Run the one-line command and choose Uninstall. It removes CAPIE and puts your Steam launch options back as they were. Nothing in the game folder needs repairing (with the proxy method it removes its own version.dll only).
2. Unsubscribe from Rename Anything and CAPIE on the Workshop.

Names you set stay in the saves you made. To drop a custom country name, use Restore name in the game before you remove the mod. Continuing an old save without the mod was not tested; try it on a copy.

Without CAPIE¶

On macOS, on Linux, on an unsupported game version, or when you just do not want the native part, Rename Anything still works for states, cities (victory points) and generals, admirals and advisers (decision "Rename characters", typed on an on-screen keyboard). The pencils for your country, leader and parties, renaming subjects and factions, and flags need CAPIE and stay hidden.