Now that I finally have access to all of the content that I’ve paid for (I think), I’d like to bring it all up to date to everything that is available in the EE version’s latest patch. I haven’t figured out fully how to search through what all is already available on here, though. If this is something that is already available here, could someone, please, point me in the right direction?
If, in this day of age, I’m going to be the first person to undertake such a task, I’m hoping that with the EE version this might be a reasonably simple thing to do. For the most part, I’m just hoping to make things so that they’re consistent throughout the official campaigns and premium modules. I want inventory control and for my henchmen and companions to have the same options throughout. I want all of the items that I collect in any of these modules to work properly in all of the modules (talking swords, power stones, etc). I want to update random drops to be all inclusive. Basically, I’m hoping to do a number of things that Beamdog really should have done before releasing the EE version. Am I being realistic, though? As a toolset newbie with zero scripting experience, would I be jumping into waters that are deeply over my head?
If I am not mistaken, the only single new feature for singleplayer module development is a “Doorcap” tile in 1 tileset that is not even used in any official campaigns (perhaps in premium modules, but still there are already existing areas, new tiles are useless for that).
I mean obviously even the new scripting functions are useable for singleplayer module creation, but again you want to use “new content” to “update” OCs and Premium modules. Well, there is no such content in EE because these modules were designed around what was available at that time - therefore new features are useless for them, they already works in a certain way and there is no point repainting the area only so you could put that new tile there. Likewise with functions.
Beamdog changed some tiles now in last 2 stable patches and these will manifest automatically in every module using vanilla tilesets. No need to do anything. The problem is that it seems they fired the betatesters as the changed tiles have many new bugs and most of them weren’t bugged before… sight
Thank you for the response. I realize that most of these modules were made almost two decades ago, but I had expectations that the “enhanced” edition would have includes some basic “enhancements” for the OCs and premium modules. The ship has sailed and the ball was dropped, though, but these older modules were likely the first impression that newer players and reviewers had of the EE version. The second paragraph in the OP describes some of the changes that I’d like to see for the OCs and premium modules.
I opened the toolset for the first time in years today and I’m already lost. I’m not even seeing how to open the OCs or premium modules in the toolset. The last patch was supposed to give me full access to all of the content that I’ve paid for, but I’m sure not seeing it. I’m basically hoping to hear what the simplest way would be to bring these older modules up to date so that basic gameplay mechanics are all up to par with the modern engine.
Opening OC was never possible without extra effort. And actually that effort is now greater in EE than it used to be in 1.69.
Basically you need to copy the campaign modules from “NWN Installation folder”\data\nwm, put them into “NWN User Folder”\modules and rename them from *.nwm to *.mod. Then modify them, save and reverse this procedure to “commit” your changes.
Also, modifying singleplayer modules usually has no effect on already existing save games (though I am vaguely remembering that OCs might be exception to that…)
The problem with such an approach is a matter of commitment and knowledge: How far you’re willing/capable to go. You’ll have to modify scripts and conversations just for the henchies. It isn’t exactly difficult, but it is laborious. Then, adding more scripts in order to keep their inventory and changes throughout modules. If you’re not willing to add custom assets beyond those, it should be simple, but as a toolset newbie, it may seem complicated. I would say, start off with the prologue. See if you can achieve what you want with Pavel. As for premium modules, the only ones you can modify successfully are the newest ones (Darkness Over Daggerford, Tyrants of the Moonsea, Dark Dreams of Furiae). The others have some weird resource encryption that won’t let you significantly modify them even if you’re able to open them in the toolset. Also, bear in mind if Beamdog makes any further updating to the official modules, as they have been doing of late, you will need to choose either to implement those changes (not necessarily an easy task) or redo all of your modifications every time there’s an update.
I think you’re correct. All modules follow the same rules, and need a fresh start for changes to take place, unless they’re hosted by a server as online modules.
I just opened the premium modules for edition after the latest version came out, and all kinds of weird stuff happened. The modules themselves may be edited in the toolset, but the areas, tilesets, etc. don’t load properly, and the module gets corrupted when saving. This was true of all of the old, encrypted ones. Try it out.
As for the updates, I don’t know about the original campaign and expansions, but the opening commenter asked about premium modules, which I consider official. And sure, you can make backups, but if you’re changing a module and it gets updated, it won’t contain any of the changes you made to it. The more involved those changes are, the more work you’ll have to redo if you want the official updates. This is why I gave up on going through the tileset updates Beamdog did last time. It’s over 200 tiles I’ve already modded heavily.
I’ve already gotten lost with the dozens of tutorials available and scripting is certainly beyond my capabilities. I’d say that the differences between the henchmen for each OC might be the most notable. I’ve used Tony K’s henchmen mod, but it appears to make changes to their AI beyond what I’m hoping to do. To just bring the henchmen all up to date to make them universal to the EE version, could anyone point me in the right direction of where to start? I’d start with Pavel in the Prelude. Would I have to make an entirely new Pavel, new conversations, etc. Or could I simply copy a script or two over from HotU or a more recent premium module and update the Prelude in that way?
I wouldn’t recommend Tony K’s. I use the one that starts with 69 in all scripts. Can’t remember for the life of me… The .erf files are set as mbhkit, but I can’t remember the resource’s name in the vault. Thing is, you can’t just copy a script, especially in the official campaigns, because henchmen already have involved scripts, and their nametags are used for events in the module, so you can’t just make them up or replace them with something entirely new unless you know exactly what you’re doing. What I do is use the original creature as it is and just change the scripts in the tab of the same name in the properties window of said creature. That alone will work with Pavel, but not with the rest of the henchmen in the OC because those have multiple iterations, one per level up to 14, I believe, so you would need to change them all if you expect them to level up. The mbhkit level-up script only works if you add the 69-hench conversation to the creature, which you can’t do to the OC henchmen because they already have their own convos, so you would need to merge them. In short, it’s more involved than just copy-pasting a single script.
I’ve been putting this off for some time now, but I’m finally getting around to peeking into the Prelude and seeing what all I can do with Pavel. I’ve picked up the Henchman Kit and thank you all for the recommendation. I’m wondering, though, just for the sole purpose of having inventory control, if there might be a simpler way to bring the Prelude up to date. Eventually, I’m hoping to add some of the custom content, too, such as use of Power Stone, Genie Bottle, Intelligent Sword, etc. Ideally, I’d like to have all of this content available for the entire game, no matter what module that I might be playing. Would it be best to use the override folder for this purpose?