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Age of Sharpness (Graphics Enhancement ENB) v1

SUMMARY:
The Age of Sharpness ENB sharpens every texture in the game by applying a smart sharpening post-processing algorithm to AoE2HD. Units, buildings, game menus, etc., all appear more crisp in general. The Age of Sharpness ENB effects, while subtle, enhance the overall look and quality of the game, without drastically changing the game's apperance. AoE2HD's built in anti-aliasing feature (AA) affects only shadows (causes a slight blur), so whether or not you play with AA turned on, you will still see an improvement in sharpness of all textures using this mod. For more information, see the text following the installation procedure below.
NOTE: You can dynamically enable and disable the mod in-game by pressing SHIFT + F12 to compare the effects of the ENB!

For a more colorful, vibrant look to your AoE2HD, check out my Age of Vibrance ENB:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=424144724

For a more darker, night-like look to your AoE2HD, check out my Age of Darkness ENB:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=424153697

GAME VERSION:
This mod works as is for both AoE2HD and AoF.

MULTIPLAYER:
As this is a graphic mod, it is fully multiplayer compatible! You may play using this mod against players who both have and do not have this mod installed.

MOD COMPATIBILITY:
Since this ENB mod applies post-processing effects while your game is running, it is compatible with ALL other non-ENB mods! Yes, even mods that change textures. The ENB will automatically apply its effects to everything on-screen.

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INSTALLATION (MANUAL ONLY):
Please follow the below manual installation steps exactly, or the ENB may not work:

1. In your Steam Game Library, right click on "Age of Empires II HD" and click Properties.
2. Click on the "Set launch options..." button.
3. Type in SKIPINTRO and click OK. This is necessary because the ENB does not work with the introductory videos.
4. Subscribe to this ENB mod
5. Start the game- it is during this launch that the mod is downloaded.
6. Once you get to the main menu, exit the game and navigate to the mods directory:
\Steam\SteamApps\common\Age2HD\mods
7. Verify that the "Age of Sharpness ENB v1" file exists in the mods folder. If not, there was a download problem and you will need to unsubscribe and subscribe again, repeating steps 4-6.
8. Open the "Age of Sharpness ENB v1" file with your favorite archiving program (i.e. WinRAR, WinZip, etc.).
9. Extract all three files inside "d3d9.dll", "effect.txt", and "enbseries.ini" into your Age2HD directory:
\Steam\SteamApps\common\Age2HD\
10. Launch the game. If you see the text "ENBSeries v0.076 Generic" in the upper left corner of your screen, your installation was successful! The text will disappear after a short while, so now simply play the game and enjoy.

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BACKGROUND:
First off- what is "ENB"? Good question- the actual acronym is a mystery to me. However, what I can tell you is what ENB\ENBSeries mods do. ENB mods strive to utilize and enhance post-processing effects to customize how games look. The developer of ENB, Boris Vorontsov, has the following to say about ENB:

"The main idea is to allow every gamer to configure how [a] game looks like [to] their own taste, so [that] every player [can] share [these] settings with others. Many games may look much better and ENBSeries is the easiest way to improve them."
http://enbdev.com/description_en.htm

I have used ENB mods in other games to great effect on my gaming experience. In fact, it was while I was playing Skyrim with an ENB that it dawned on me that since AoE2HD uses DirectX9 graphics, it might just be possible to create an ENB mod for it. And today, after much learning, tweaking, and trial and error, I am proud to present the first ENB mods ever for AoE2HD!

CREDITS:
ENBSeries (c) 2007-2015 Boris Vorontsov
http://enbdev.com

Ultimate Shader Addon for ENB (effect.txt)
Based on Post-Process Effects Addon for ENB by ZeroKing
Initial D-N-I separation code and GUI implementation by --JawZ--
Kinematic Filter code (formerly known as Old Black-White TV Filter) originally by Boris Vorontsov
Kinematic Filter code tweaked by Trillville, Midhras, Kyokushinoyama, Insomnia
LumaSharpen code by CeeJay.dk, ported from SweetFX by ZeroKing, tweaked by prod80
Blur, Sharpening, Color Shift, Vignette code by Boris Vorontsov
Contrast and Vibrance code by CeeJay.dk, ported from SweetFX by ZeroKing
Noise code by MTichenor/IndigoNeko
Dithering, Border, Splitscreen code by CeeJay.dk, ported from SweetFX by Marty McFly
Letterbox code by Matso
Combined, edited, tweaked and arranged by Miratheus

Please rate this mod if you enjoy it, thanks!

If you enjoy my work and would like to support me, feel free to Donate with PayPal[www.paypal.com]
Thank you! :)