Well guys,
The only solution to my problem seems to be the old way... I managed to workaround, but not the way i expected (or desired):
1. create images w/ alcohol 120%, using .bin and .cue images (had no success using the native .mds, .mdf);
2. create a virtual drive w/ Daemon Tools, mount the images, and;
3. patch the game to version 1.08 and apply the 1.09 no-cd fix - read the instructions (at this point y r not able to play without the original CDs nor the DVD w/ the images yet);
4. Now make 3 new folders and name them "CD2" "CD3" and "CD4" then copy CD2 into CD2 etc.
5. now you can play without the CDs (or DVD).
6. since the job is done and worked well, you can now COPY the images (w/ the patch and the no-cd, for convenience) to a DVD. Do not BURN the images, just create a data DVD and copy the files!
Kyle2k