Constant
From Populous Wiki
Normal Constants: http://pastebin.com/GxeDT5ys
A constant is a value of the "constants.dat" file in the "levels" folder of Populous: The Beginning this controls the games mathematical operations and values of the game. The first version of the constants we're released by TedTycoon and has most of the games values such as tree grow rates, wood requirements, changing charge rates, mana requirements, even how fast braves can spawn in a single hut. The newer versions (known as The Forbidden Constants) that Xandra and Brandan found allows you to change almost every aspect of the games operations. This newer version included controls how many braves can build a hut at a time and even what object (picture) tree are. An example is changing the Trees to 3000, this will make the trees appear as Eagles instead of trees.
Patching common issues with Constants
The constant values can be used in modern day games to fix common issues like path finding issues by changing P3CONST_WALK_ALT_DIFF2 = to 600-900. This will resolve every pathfinding issue in the game. The same patch could be applied to the games incorrect building height setitng where even if theres a small bump the building cannot be built making some levels unfair for certain tribes/colors, to fix this change P3CONST_BUILD_ALT_DIFF2 = to 200 - 300. Setting the values too high can result to unrealistic building/walking and could ruin the game being able to build straight up a 90 degree hill.
The Forbidden Constants
The Forbidden Constants: http://pastebin.com/d9dErb2w
The Forbidden Constants were first discovered in the Populous: The Beginning hex and in the memory while the game was running. They were discovered by Xandra and Brandan in June 2012. The constants allow the user to control more aspects of the game such as changing how many units can build a building and what objects trees can be.