Using HLAE through Lawena automatically uses -insecure. Still, it doesn't hurt to be safe.

My last Lawena guide went over the basics and using POV/PREC demos. This is going to be a continuation that will be going over specifically using HLAE for cinematic shots (smooths), and how to get damage numbers, hitsounds, and initiator killfeed using CE.

Shout outs Jayy and Cyanic.

Here's what you will need:

Lawena
Half-Life: Advanced Effects
CastingEssentials

HLAE
Your first step is to go to the HLAE Github and download the latest release installer and run it. Once you have it installed, open Lawena then go to advanced > Launch Mode > Select HLAE Executable and select your HLAE.exe. You might need to do some navigating to find it. Once you have HLAE selected, enable the HLAE launch mode and launch Lawena.

HLAE has a lot of documentation of commands, their functions, and what games they work on. However, for cinematic shots, here are a few commands you will need to know. Feel free to bind them to whatever you feel.

mirv_campath enabled [0/1] = enables the campath to be run
mirv_campath add = adds campath keyframes
mirv_campath remove [id] = removes selected keyframe
mirv_campath_draw enabled [0/1] = shows where the camera will go, point, and each keyframe
mirv_campath clear = clears the campath keyframes
mirv_fov = changes camera fov

Once you have your keyframes placed, when you replay the demo your camera should follow the campath as long as you have it enabled. I would make a video about how to actually go about this but I'd rather not.

CastingEssentials
CastingEssentials can give you damage numbers, hitsounds, and highlighted killfeed in STV demos. Make sure you run the game in -insecure mode through Lawena's launch options. Installing it is similar to installing HLAE, you will have to install the latest release ZIP from the CE Github. Then you want to extract the CastingEssentialsRed folder into Lawena's custom folder. DELETE THE RESOURCES FOLDER. Then you will want to run the following commands.

ce_hitevents_enabled 1 = Enables hitsounds and damage numbers
ce_killfeed_continuous_update 1 = Sets up Intiator killfeed
ce_localplayer_enabled 1 = Sets up to track a player for initiator killfeed
ce_localplayer_set_current_target = Targets player being spectated for highlighted killfeed
ce_tplock_enable = Third Person Taunts

There are a lot more commands for both CE and HLAE but I'll let you test and figure those out.

CE Command List
HLAE Command List

EDIT: updated CE link thanks to Wiethoofd.
HLAE is currently having issues for me where drawing the campath causes a crash with the error message "Cannot load corrupted map." Workaround that works for me is when I reload the map, I turn off the drawn campath and reload. No clue of what causes this, I will open a ticket in the HLAE Git Hub later this week.
Issue is fixed as of HLAE version 2.148.3.2.

"You're the worst soldier i've ever seen and will never see outside of open, don't ever speak to me you absolute shitter"

I was asked about Lawena by my friends often, and others who see our conversations talk about how they wanted to try Lawena, but when they did, decided against it due to a steep learning curve. There are not a lot of up-to-date tutorials for Lawena, and some features broke over time that I still don't understand how. So, I figured I could just explain a simple workflow for POV demos.

I'm going to assume most people can install software and you will need the following software to record POV demos without interfering with your normal configs:

Lawena
VirtualDub

If you want cinematic shots:
Half Life: Advanced Effects (not covered here)

When you first run Lawena, it will ask you where your tf folder is if you do not have it installed on your c: drive. After you select it, or have it installed on the c: drive, you will have to select the movie folder.

THIS NEEDS TO BE SELECTED AS TF FOLDER FOR TWO RECORDING OPTIONS TO WORK.

Something occurred between the last update in 2017 til now that causes Lawena to not have access to any other folders other than the tf folder, even if it's being run in admin mode.

First, let's start with the window.

https://i.imgur.com/siHX27T.png

The top left quadrant is for the in-game recording settings, with ViewModel and Skybox settings included. Note, HUD is also included and if you plan on using a custom hud, you can select your hud on the right side of the window.

The bottom left quadrant is for in-game settings, they are clearly labeled, so feel free to enable and disable what you need and what you don't.

The right side of the screen is custom resourcecs from both your tf and Lawena's custom folders. You can install a hud just for Lawena, enable the one you usually use for TF2, or enable/install any mod you would like to use for your fragmovie. This includes crosshairs.

Next, the advanced dropdown.

https://i.imgur.com/xMcZBWA.png

Enhanced particles sounds exactly what it sounds like, you can enable certain enhanced particles that will replace explosions, smoke effects, medi beams, etc. Some particle effects appear behind walls, so test before you record or else a AM player will roast you in the comments for a spark that appears from behind upper IT.

Custom settings is where you can put custom commands you would put in console. Think of it like your autoexec.

Custom launch options are straightforward. You would most likely not need to touch this unless you would like to run the game on high priority.

Launch mode is where things get tricky. There are three options.

https://i.imgur.com/6KSCA6T.png

Launch using HL2 is the default, and if you don't plan on using HLAE, it gets the job done.

Launch using Steam is virtually the same as using HL2.

Launch using HLAE requires you to have installed HLAE and selected the exe from the button below it. HLAE is it's own beast within itself and I won't be going over how to use it, however, there are CSGO tutorials that can also teach you how to use it.

Now, if you are planning on using OBS or Shadowplay to record your clips, you are all set to go out and create a IM fragmovie. Just be warned, you probably won't be able to get a smooth 60 FPS or will have abyssmal bitrate on the clips you get.

If you plan on using Lawena to record, be prepared for workarounds galore.

There are three main ways to record, and two are basically the same thing.

The first is hitting P. P is bound to recording a movie and once it starts recording, you will know because the demo goes from 60 fps to 2. Once the clip you want has been recorded, go ahead and hit P again and it will return to normal, and you have your clip recorded in TGA format and a WAV file is created, which we will get to later.

https://i.imgur.com/032HQjD.png

The second option is using the command startmovie <name> tga wav . This does the exact same thing P does, but you can specify the name instead of using letters A-Z to record. You will need to use host_framerate (desired recording fps). Sometimes if P doesn't work to record, this option does. Once the clip is recorded, you will need to use the command endmovie . The same files, TGA and WAV, will be created and these files will be labeled under the name you set it as.

https://i.imgur.com/uIusHEE.png

The last option is using the VDM page on the lawena window to create a config and VDM file to record, which is the cleanest way to record.

https://i.imgur.com/PZMfaur.png

You will need to click browse, select your demo, then input the ticks that you want to begin recording and end recording. Then select add exec+record. Afterward, create the VDM files. Once you begin playing the demo, it will automatically skip and start recording the clip. Once it reaches the end of the clip, it will stop recording and stop the demo. It will follow a similar naming scheme and format to P.

Ok, now you have your clip recorded, have audio, but now you need to create it into a video. This is where VirtualDub comes in. Once launched, click file and open video file. Then you need to navigate to your tf folder and select the first image in the sequence

https://i.imgur.com/KXqypxO.png

Afterward, go to audio then audio from other file and select the corresponding WAV file.

https://i.imgur.com/7pAj1p6.png

Next, go to video then frame rate. Select "Change so video and audio durations match."

https://i.imgur.com/AtdonCN.png

We're almost done to export, but you will need to select a codec to export the clip in. If you export now, you will get a 25-gigabyte file for 10 seconds of footage. Go to video, then compression, and select a codec.

https://i.imgur.com/dhYIH1P.png

I recommend using Lagarith Lossless Codec, but you will need to download it. If you are lazy, you can use either Intel or Logitech codecs. All three are visually similar, but Lagarith is about 80% of the size of both Intel and Logitech's output.

Once you have everything set, you are ready to export the clip. Go to File, Save as AVI, and save the file to wherever you store clips. Play it back, make sure it looks good, and you are ready to send the clip to whatever editing software you use.

Lawena is very easy to break and has a habit of not telling you what's wrong with the client. I've done some troubleshooting around some common problems I was having and found solutions to most.

TF2 starts to launch, but it boots me back to desktop

Make sure Steam is running and if you have a custom hud selected, make sure you have it selected in your custom resource window.

Crashes when disabling captions

Get a different HUD or just enable the default HUD lawena offers. I don't know why, but whenever I tried a HUD that had captions on automatically, it would crash when I disable them, even in the custom settings window.

Pressing my record bind doesnt record

Check if your Movie folder is set to your tf folder. If it is and it still isn't working, either A. try the startmovie command or B. check if you have space in the drive TF2 is installed on.

Virtualdub Files are fucking massive

Use Virtualdub2 and export to h.264 8 bit with MPEG AAC Audio Compression

Exported videos buffer

Get the file off of a hard drive/external drive. The files have a massive bitrate, and you will need to have an SSD if you plan on playing them back in real-time.

That is a basic workflow for Lawena POV recordings. If anyone has any other information, feel free to reply and correct me. There are still features that I'm figuring out.

https://clips.twitch.tv/GrossZealousPangolinDuDudu-jpgKKh-NZ6hD4nlY

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