Here is a list of possible issues you might run into with AoE3 or the mod and fixes for them:

• make sure to place the Patcher inside the bin folder for the Steam version and run it as ADMINISTRATOR
• if you get a "RockallDLL.dll" was not found error, make sure the mod and game are installed correctly; reinstall if needed
• if the Patcher gets stuck just close it and run it again; if it keeps getting stuck then it might be blocked by your antivirus/firewall (get the manual install version)
• if you played the mod before and after a reinstallation or update you get stuck in an infinite loading screen, go to "Documents/My Games" and delete the "AoE3 Improvement Mod" folder
• if newly created Home Cities don't get saved make sure your antivirus (including Windows Defender) is not blocking the mod's exe "age3m.exe"
• if you have problems with resources not being displayed correctly in the UI, go to Options and press the Restore Defaults button
• if you have missing sounds and missing civilizations or other missing content then it means you used the broken torrent for the Warchiefs expansion which has a Windows registry bug; buy the game or get the Complete Collection version
• if you have unexplained AI or map errors then the path to the game folder might be too long; move the game to a shorter path and try again
• if you get a could not compile file error when starting a match, make sure to install "Visual Studio 2019-2022" and try again
• the Improvement Mod has separate files and a unique executable and because of this it can be installed over the game without affecting the original files; this means that you can run Asian Dynasties and continue playing it on ESO and/or with people who don't have mods
• running the mod's exe, "age3m.exe", will of course start the mod and allow you to play with others who are also running the mod, over LAN and ESO
• if you get the Failed to join game error when trying to play multiplayer then you probably need to open your router ports for the game to connect to other players or use a VPN as an alternative which also fixes the issue
• if you want to play with Game Ranger you might need to rename "age3y.exe" to something else and then rename "age3m.exe" to "age3y.exe" for Game Ranger to start the mod
• the Out of sync multiplayer error could be caused by a bad internet connection or by game issues; make sure to send a detailed report in ⁠troubleshooting if it happens to you
• remember that the mod's Patcher is just for updating the mod, you can simply run the mod's exe "age3m.exe" to play without issues
• if you get a Cannot create log file error go to "Documents/My Games" and delete the "AoE3 Improvement Mod" folder and make sure your antivirus (including Windows Defender) is not blocking the mod's exe "age3m.exe"
• you can also change AIs manually; in the "bin/root" folder there is a zip file called "ImpMod_AIs"; open it and extract the AIM folder of your choice - delete the existing "AIM" folder and put the one you extracted in its place
• if you receive a DirectX error, go to the game's "bin/root" folder and delete the D3D9.dll file