Progress report for IA v5, New features you will see soon Options

[Vardaman]

Vardaman brought it up here.

Good memory, Baronius. I thought it was something I had said but couldn't remember what thread I posted it in.

Also mentioned in my old post, improving the WK seal guardians (specifically the party of 6 that includes a beholder, siren and a drow) would be another good encounter to improve in the future. I'll try to think of some unique ideas for it.

[coaster]

Hi Sikret

The list of new features, content etc looks pretty cool. Look forward to playing v5 when it's done.

Just one question - as someone who likes to play a character through from BG1 Tutu, will this still be possible with the new auramaster/riskbreaker kits bundled with IAv5? In other words, if I start in BG1 Tutu with a riskbreaker from the standalone riskbreaker mod, can this character be imported into BG2 so they assume the characteristics of the IA version of the riskbreaker? Are there many differences between the standalone riskbreaker kit & the IA version?

I also mentioned this elsewhere, but would it be possible for you to release a BG1 Tutu-compatible Vagrant kit mod, so players can go through the BG trilogy & IA with the same Vagrant character?

Thanks

coaster

[Sikret]

Hi, coaster!

Just one question - as someone who likes to play a character through from BG1 Tutu, will this still be possible with the new auramaster/riskbreaker kits bundled with IAv5? In other words, if I start in BG1 Tutu with a riskbreaker from the standalone riskbreaker mod, can this character be imported into BG2 so they assume the characteristics of the IA version of the riskbreaker?

I'm afraid, no.

Are there many differences between the standalone riskbreaker kit & the IA version?

Yes, they are very different.

I also mentioned this elsewhere, but would it be possible for you to release a BG1 Tutu-compatible Vagrant kit mod, so players can go through the BG trilogy & IA with the same Vagrant character?

Not in the near future, sorry.

One other important point for players who play BG trilogy to notice is that once you finish the BG1 portion of the game and start BG2, you will need to uninstall every tactical mod you had for BG1 (if they tamper with STATS.IDS file or use detectable stats).

[lroumen]

If you play Tutu, there is a component in BG2tweakpack that allows you to change your walking speed.

CODE

Use BG Walking Speeds (BETA)
From Tutufix, this will make folks walk slower, as they did in the original Baldur's Gate. While it's most useful for Tutu and BGT players, you will be able to install it on a bogstandard BG2 game. Since this component had some issues in Tutufix (notably when interacting with polymorph or haste/slow spells) it's being labeled a beta until the issues can be worked out.

When I installed this component it didn't have any bg1 content issues, but when I exported my character from the savegame and imported it in a BG2 game (modded or unmodded), the walkingspeed of my character remained slower as in BG1. This is because there is an effect added to your character in the .cre file which lowers your walking speed (something with the number 192 if I recall it correctly). If you delete this effect, everything should be fine for BG2 (DLTCEP or shadowkeeper may even do that).

I still had an unexplicable problem though... when I deleted the spell effect and imported my character into a new BG2 game, the starting cutscene was broken. So.... I advise against installing the component.

This post has been edited by lroumen: Oct 16 2007, 07:54 AM

[coaster]

Not in the near future, sorry.

OK thanks, not to worry. IIRC I can play through as a plain ranger in (vanilla, not Tutu) BG1 and when I import that character I should be able to select a Vagrant kit at that point. At least that's how it works when selecting Bioware's own kits after importing a BG1 character.

Slower walking speeds? lol, usually I can't wait to get the Boots of Speed...

[lroumen]

In BG1 everyone walks slower than in BG2. BG2 walking speed is running compared to BG1 walking speed. Since BG1tutu exports everything from BG2 onto BG1 the walking speed for BG1 is also severely increased. The walking speed tweak is to give us back the old BG1 feeling... but it's a bit buggy.

I thought it was also one of the reasons why in BG1 ranged combat is much more efficient than in BG2. Characters just walk slower and can be hit more before they reach you.

Anyways, nothing to do with IA v5. I just wanted to make you aware that switching from tutu to bg2 can provide some issues. Carry on, carry on

[coaster]

OK, thanks for the warning Iroumen - as you probably gathered from my post I don't usually install that component . After countless runs through BG1 & 2, I'm not exactly keen to slow the game down!

[trufa]

Sikret! The readmes for 5.0 are ready? If yes can you released the readmes? Especially (in)compatibily list and Itemupgrades? Only to building the playing modlist and create the party. First on Paper (or in excel)

[Sikret]

The newest installation document is attached to this post.

The newest Item Upgrade document is attached to this very post which you are reading. Both are tentative and subject to possible changes; you should read the final documents when the mod is released.

This post has been edited by Sikret: Oct 17 2007, 08:39 AM

Attached File(s)

 Document_I_Items.txt ( 46k ) Number of downloads: 35

 

[Sikret]

I attached a new document to my previous post. There was a small mistake in the description of "The Truth +5" sword (the item's description inside the game was correct but I had forgotten to update it in the attached document).

[Shaitan]

Any hints as for when ver. 5 gets released? It's hard to dechifer the list with new (great) stuff for a kind of bearing towards when this mod is released

[Selvanus]

Why is Imoen being turned into a Sorceress? That sucks for me, because I've always used Imoen has a thieve, not a mage, and turning her into a pure sorceress just makes it so I have to replace a "favored" companion with someone like Jan. Also, having Irenicus gain power overtime doesn't make any sense, because it's not like he lost any power going to Spellhold, nor is he gaining anymore, he's not giving the power to himself, but to Imoen; Bodhi. Bodhi is the one gaining power, for Imoen is getting more power, only to be taken away when Bodhi comes to take her soul. And as mentioned in the first journal of Irenicus, "I marvel at her hunger, and how she seems so *alive* in her undeath. Perhaps it is the soul of Imoen." As well as the second journal of Irenicus, "Victory! I am restored! <CHARNAME> has given exactly what I needed, exactly as I demanded, and now I see where Bodhi has found such fire!" Sure, he might get a little stronger while you're going through the challenges of the Gauntlet, but not much, it should be Bodhi who gets the gain, not Irenicus. Also, "The battle with the Supreme Leader of githyankis is improved Even further." Sorry, but I haven't seen this supreme leader of the Githyanki's, what is his/her name? Sorry, but this might seem to be a little much, but I thought I should discuss this. Oh yes, one more thing, 14. "Moreover, if they fail the first time reloading the game will not change the result. If they fail the first time they will keep failing even if you reload forever." I hate you. lol

[luan]

I'm pretty neutral about Imoen becoming a sorceress, but from what I understand Imoen will maintain all here thieving abilities. In fact, points are redistributed to make her thieving *more* useful in IA.

I actually don't recall Irenicus being difficult at spellhold at all... definately not a memorable encounter compared to other IA components, perhaps this will fix it!

Spellhold is a prison to all sorts of crazy/warped minded but *powerful* magic users. It's entirely plausible that Irenicus learned or even siphoned power directly from the inmates!
Hell, anything that makes the mod even harder is a good addition in my books lol.

The supreme leader is named "Supreme Leader" in game if I recall correctly. In a non-bugged game, he should be on WK4.

[Sikret]

@Selvanus

If you read what I wrote again, you will see that I wrote "If you delay in going to spellhold too much, you will find that Irenicus's control over asylum has strengthened". It's the enitre spellhold which will become more difficult if you delay in going there (not Irenicus himself). The spellhold's Irenicus is improved regardless of when you go there, but if you go there with too much delay, you will find everything more difficult. Even the battle with Irenicus will look more difficult but not because Irenicus has learned new spells. It's something else which I don't intend to spoil now.

As for Imoen, we have already had enough discussion about this feature of the mod. It's a bit too late now for discussing it further. The original game had two identical NPCs (Imoen and Nalia). Almost everyone ageed that one of these two should change. We discussedthe case and the majority voted for Imoen to be the one who should change.

@luan

Imoen won't have any thieving skills (she will know "Knock" spell though). It's Nalia whose thieving skills are re-distributed.

[lroumen]

The IA component that improves Spellhold the longer you wait (do quests in Chapter 2) basically just matches the power of your party level so that Spellhold does not become too easy.

My interpretation of the component is as following.

The protagonist has never actually seen Irenicus act to his full potential. The Cutscene that shows him casting some spells at the cowled wizards is only a meager display of power. Since he's taken to Spellhold before he proves his worth, you can't really rate his power until you meet him in Spellhold. So in basic, you cannot tell that he has gained more power since he's gone to Spellhold.
Furthermore, you could imagine that once he's taken over Spellhold, he's had a bit more time to summon more allies since you're not showing up on his doorstep the next day and he probably has spies all over the place who keep an eye on your progression. Whatever power Irenicus or those allies have is irrelevant. You have never seen any of them before anyway.
So I don't see it as if Irenicus has learned to gain power from the inmates, or gain power from Imoen, or gain power out of nothing.... I just see it as the first time I actually meet Irenicus face to face and see his true potential for the very first time. And since he was able to capture me before, he'd better be a powerful wizard with a lot of helpers and aids, because as protagonist I would be so very much ashamed if he turns out to be a complete pushover.


All that IA does is make Spellhold more difficult than Spellhold-Vanilla. How difficult doesn't matter story-wise since I've never been there before. IA can summon 50 demiliches for all I know...

[Sikret]

All very good points, Iroumen!

[melkor_morgoth75]

Just a coin for me regarding Imoen or other points "under discussion"...can "Imoen change" be put as a "optional component" so that u wish or don't wanna install it?

mm75

[Sikret]

I have already asked everyone (several times) not to comment about Imoen anymore. The decision is made and implemented. As mentioned before, those who don't want Imoen to be a sorceress can simply SK her back to a thief-mage in their own games (though they will also need to erase the new 4th level spell, Ray of Fragmentation, from her spellbook. Scrolls of this spell are rather rare in the game; a sorcerer can easily have it, but a mage needs to find the spell's scroll.).

[melkor_morgoth75]

Ok sorry, i didn't know that ;-)
Anyway ... i was speaking "in general", not only regarding Imoen. If u need or want to change something that people could like or not i simply think that an optional component is a fair choice so that people can install it or not (of course i'm not speaking of core components).

just my 2 cents,

mm75

[Arkain]

Q: Two questions: (1) Why Improved Anvil is not divided into separate installable and optional components? (2) Is it because it will take much time or effort to divide it into separate components?
A: Answer to question (1): Because everything in Improved Anvil are so deeply interrelated to each other that it's not even logically possible to divide it into separate components. Quests, encounters, items, tactical content, tweaks and fixes and even the item randomizer are all strongly interrelated to each other.If a spell is tweaked, the changes are taken into consideration in enemies' scripts, if an item is there it has a purpose in some other event and so on. The only way to divide the mod to optional components is to remove these connections; but then it won't be Improved Anvil anymore; it will be a new mod with a far less degree of quality than Improved Anvil.

http://forums.blackwyrmlair.net/index.php?showtopic=1737

Of ourse you could ask yourself how "deeply interrelated" the "new" Imoen and all the other (way more important) changes are
As far as I know IA was and is intented to be a one-component-mod. So you have to live with it. As Sikret pointed out: you can always SK her back. I mean, beforehand some players SKed her so she actually was a sorceress or whatever.

This post has been edited by Arkain: Oct 30 2007, 05:55 PM