BIN — Binary Lookup Tables (.BIN)¶
FA_2.LIB contains 6 .BIN files. All are flat lookup tables used by the
engine's color blending and insignia systems.
Tools¶
fx¶
fx bin info <file.BIN> # kind (from the filename) + documented-size check
The bytes carry no self-describing structure, so fx bin info classifies by
entry name (bin_classify) and verifies the size against the inventory
below; the fxs BIN editor shows the same classification above its hex view.
File Layout¶
Single-byte tables; no multi-byte integers.
MIX Tables (MIX2, MIX2L, MIX4, MIX4L)¶
Used for palette-mode transparency and color blending. When the engine blends two 8-bit palette indices, it sums their intensity values and uses a MIX table to look up the resulting index.
- MIX2L — 512-byte table;
output[i] = floor(i / 2). Exact 50% linear reduction. - MIX4L — 1024-byte table;
output[i] = floor(i / 4). Exact 25% linear reduction. - MIX2 — 512-byte non-linear variant; applies gamma correction. Maps 0→0, 255→128, 511→255 but with a non-linear curve (square-ish at low end, linear at high end).
- MIX4 — 1024-byte non-linear variant; same gamma-correction approach for quarter-intensity blending.
The L suffix = Linear (no gamma), without L = perceptually-corrected.
VFONTPAL.BIN (48 bytes = 16 × 3-byte VGA RGB entries)¶
Palette for rendering text in video briefing sequences. VGA 6-bit format (values 0–63 per channel).
| Index | 6-bit RGB | 8-bit RGB | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 3F 00 3F |
(255, 0, 255) | Transparent / color key |
| 1 | 0E 17 29 |
(56, 93, 166) | Blue text — bright |
| 2 | 0C 15 26 |
(48, 85, 154) | Blue text |
| 3 | 0B 14 22 |
(44, 81, 138) | Blue text |
| 4 | 09 10 1E |
(36, 65, 121) | Blue text |
| 5 | 07 0C 14 |
(28, 48, 81) | Blue text |
| 6 | 04 09 0F |
(16, 36, 60) | Blue text |
| 7 | 02 03 07 |
(8, 12, 28) | Blue text — dark |
| 8 | 04 34 3F |
(16, 211, 255) | Cyan text — bright |
| 9 | 03 2C 36 |
(12, 178, 219) | Cyan text |
| 10 | 02 24 2C |
(8, 146, 178) | Cyan text |
| 11 | 01 1D 23 |
(4, 117, 142) | Cyan text |
| 12 | 01 15 1A |
(4, 85, 105) | Cyan text |
| 13 | 01 0E 11 |
(4, 56, 69) | Cyan text |
| 14 | 00 06 08 |
(0, 24, 32) | Cyan text — dark |
| 15 | 3F 3F 3F |
(255, 255, 255) | White |
Index 0 (magenta) is the standard VGA transparency key. Indices 1–7 render a blue gradient (likely shadow or secondary text). Indices 8–14 render a cyan gradient (primary text). Index 15 is white (highlight).
INSIGMAP.BIN (256 bytes)¶
Flat 256-entry byte array. Entry 0 = 0x00.
It is a map, not a fill. An earlier version of this page said "all remaining 255 entries =
0x3B" and inferred from that fill that "most insignia slots are unused". The fill is real but
it is not the table: 135 of the 256 entries are 0x3B (the no-insignia sentinel) and
120 are real slots, carrying values across the range. Reading it as a constant threw away
everything it maps. Counted, not surveyed — tests/test_bin.cpp asserts both numbers against
the shipped file (#491).
The insignia assets themselves are referenced by the pilot save file fields at offsets
0x6E–0x94 (P.md).
File Inventory¶
| File | Size | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| INSIGMAP.BIN | 256 B | Insignia slot → palette/asset mapping |
| MIX2.BIN | 512 B | Non-linear half-intensity reduction table (gamma-corrected) |
| MIX2L.BIN | 512 B | Linear half-intensity table: output = floor(input / 2) |
| MIX4.BIN | 1024 B | Non-linear quarter-intensity reduction table (gamma-corrected) |
| MIX4L.BIN | 1024 B | Linear quarter-intensity table: output = floor(input / 4) |
| VFONTPAL.BIN | 48 B | 16-entry VGA 6-bit palette for video briefing font rendering |
All six live in FA_2.LIB.
Related¶
Formats: P — pilot save files reference insignia asset IDs cross-referenced by INSIGMAP.BIN; PAL — main VGA palette; VFONTPAL.BIN is a separate 16-color subset for video text.
Engine: the fxs BIN editor renders these tables; the fx_lib codec is tracked in #107.