I am trying to run SoZ for really the 1st time since 2008-ish. I’ve installed the NWN2 CE as it was suggested to help with the “stuttering” in the game, and for the most part I haven’t had many difficulties in the OC or MoW (which are the ones I’ve been playing up to this point). But in SoZ, I get frequent crashes, the log stating memory access violation or some such. Does this sound familiar to anyone, and is there something I can do to mitigate this?
We’re talking “unplayable” at the moment; the game crashes everytime I try to enter Shrine of Waukeen in Rassatan (or what’s-its-name).
I have patched the game with the 4GB thingy, and I set affinity to processor 0. That helps A LITTLE, but not enough. 
You could try using DXVK for Windows. I have run it some and it helped performance and allowed me to open some save games from the MotB endgame that were crashing. I only use the Jade Empire stutter fix regularly because I am afraid the client extender or DXVK will cover up an issue for someone running the base game with my AI.
Hmmm. I’ll have a look into it during christmas. My head is incapable for the time being of understanding how this DXVK-thingy should be installed. 
But am I to understand that I should NOT use the 4GB patch / JE stutter fix with the CE?
I also use ReShade, could it be messing with the game in such a way (no problems with this kind of thing in Dragon Age: Origins and NWN EE)?
This is a writeup of using the client extension and DXVK.
Game setup - Neverwinter Nights 2 - nwn.wiki
The Jade Empire stutter fix uses the same d3d9.dll as DXVK so it can’t be run at the same time, and I don’t think it would be needed with DXVK. I think the Jade Empire patch or DXVK is compatible with the client extension. I haven’t tried the 4GB patch.
Thanks, not very complicated, thank heavens above. 
But would you suggest I run this rather than CE - or both, then?
What happens when you load a save, then enter the shrine, while running a completely vanilla game?
4gb patch? I take it you’re running a DVD/CD installed game. If so, cool.
I too suspect something is up with the CE.
You will probably have to try various combinations of things. You have three modifications (CE, DXVK, and 4GB) so a total of eight variations. I know from other work (not NWN or NWN2 related) that the 4GB patch can cause new problems to occur.
1 Like
Can you post a save to be downloaded?
What is in the override?
No, while I do have them still, I am playing the GOG version. Which maybe doesn’t require the 4GB patch? (this was something that I first found for DA:O, but it has helped with NWN2 OC previously also)
Given the message in the error log I suspect the CE doesn’t like it when the game isn’t installed in the default path. But it is only a guess.
Far too much
I used a “how to make NWN2 look great”-page I found somewhere. So much graphical stuff, but also fixpacks (which don’t affect the engine, or should not, but it may be they mess with the loading routines in some way).
But it seems that “uninstalling” the 4GB patch (read: reverting to the original nwn2main.exe file) has indeed made the game more stable.
1 Like
Weeeell… to a certain extent. It definitely is CE that does not like something - but what it is, I don’t understand. Using the normal executable results in a stable game - but lots of stuttering when moving. I thought perhaps ReShade might be the culprit, but the game works fine with ReShade if I use the vanilla executable as well. So, it seems I either have to accept a stable game with stuttering, or an unstable game without stuttering. 
However, I have noticed a SLIGHT decrease in ctd’s I think, after I disabled the automap and chat function of the CE. Might be my imagination, mind you…
What I find especially weird is that it seems this is only a problem in SoZ - the OC works just fine. 
1 Like
NWN2 doesn’t like video/sound codecs… It could be a codec problem.
Dunno. According to the log files (nwn2_errorlog.txt and nwn2reportlog.log) it seems that CE might be causing some problems with/against MSVCR80.dll …?
“NWN.ClientExtension.ClientExtensionCLR.GetOnlineUserCountWorkItem(): Exception: 'System.AccessViolationException: (localized, roughly translated to English) Attempting to read from or write to protected memory. This is often an indication that other memory is corrupted.”
A couple of pointers that may help you… 
First, in my experience, the stuttering fix does not require the CE, but simply a reboot of your computer. That will fix any stuttering. In fact, I personally recommend not to use the CE for such. Remove the CE and see if that changes anything regarding the CTD.
Secondly, it may be that SoZ uses the database functionality more than the other modules. (I believe that function became available from the SoZ module.) I have found that when the game writes a new campaign variable to the database, a CTD will follow shortly afterwards, most noticeably when trying to change areas, but can happen before this, and is subject to computer specs, I believe. I have not found a fix for this problem yet (short of not using them), and is why I give a warning to players at the start of my own campaign about a potential initial crash. To alleviate the problem, I write all potential campaign variables prior their actual need at the very start of the game, so that an entry already exists and so these new campaign variables are only ever written the once, at the start of the game. It still means at least one crash, but any variables I update later, no longer crash the game. (Once a variable is written, it can be updated without crashing the game further.) My suspicion is that SoZ may write them new sporadically throughout the game, meaning they lay a time-bomb to a CTD shortly after each campaign variable update.
I doubt it to be your memory, as I have had similar warnings when using NWN2 and I know it is not due to this, short of the memory running low due to poor management or bugged script, like this database issue.
If you remove the CE and no longer have an issue, you may be able to test an earlier saved game prior a previous crash to see if it persists, and an indication of the database issue. However, you would need to find a point prior a campaign variable is written, and without going through the code, your guess is as good as mine when one was last written.
Once you are past all database updates in your play, a reloaded game will not experience any more crashes until another new campaign variable is written. It is possible to even miss one if, for example, a new variable is written and you save and quit before experiencing the CTD, and then reload your game. As you reload your game prior the CTD occurring, you will not experience it, as reloading a game (after a database variable is written) bypasses the issue.
TEST POINT: So, if you are able to reload a game after a CTD and continue, then I suspect the problem may well be database related, and you may not experience another CTD until the next new variable is written and you play to the point of it occurring.
FINAL POINT: A quick scan of the code I have available suggests they use campaign variables with respect to henchmen, but that is not confirmed either way, as I have not pursued it.
2 Likes
I find it hard to argue against this. That which you describe is very much like what I experience - I can play for 5 mins without crashing, 40 mins… and I can get ctd when I start the game in certain locations. Reloading again usually works.
I noticed however that dwm.exe used about 1 gig of RAM earlier today, and closed a few browser windows, made some changes to the on/off choices and restarted the PC.
After that I experience less crashes, but they do still occur nonetheless. So it might be a campaign db AND a memory/computer issue.
Regarding stuttering, restarting the PC does not help for my part - the only way I can rid of the stuttering seems to be using the CE.
EDIT: Hmm. Actually, after having fixed the dwm.exe 'UUUGE RAM consumption it DOES in fact help rebooting the PC, without getting stutter… So, it seems that despite that my computer is quite the beast, there is a limit to how much memory/how many windows I can have open at the same time while playing this game.
Also, I haven’t had a crash for about half an hour, which again makes me think that the CE behaves in a way that Windows does not like… but what THAT is, I have no idea.
Back to basics then: no unnecessary programs open at the same time I am playing NWN2, just like in the old days. 
1 Like
…except now the game crashes now and then also without using the CE (and to make it even better (or worse…) without any error message) - so I suspect your theory about db issues is spot on, @Lance_Botelle.
So, the game crashes both with and without the CE, but definitely more WITH.
This might of course also be driver related, I guess. I updated to the latest Nvidia driver for my card and lo and behold suddenly the toolset refused to start… had to revert to the previous driver again.
1 Like
That would be my experience too… and I am glad it sorted your stutter issue after removing it, and simply rebooting the computer. That was my experience too.
So, yes, the database CTD issue I experience may well be the issue you encounter too. It happens on both my own and my wife’s computer with two different Windows setup, and so is consistent in this way too.
Anyway, glad I could offer some advice for you.
1 Like
I simply cannot remember how this behaved on Win XP back in 2008-2009. I think only finished SoZ once, and didn’t even test it on Vista or 7.
But I guess it would be much the same, judging by reading gamefaq-posts from about 2012 where some complained about similar issues.
1 Like
Another thing… I have set up my \documents folder on OneDrive. If the game tries to access a (save) file currently processed by OneDrive, I guess the result is predictable…
1 Like
I uninstalled One Drive along with the rest of the “free” MS Office apps when I got my current PC last spring. Performance improved immediately.
YMMV
2 Likes