ericp07 Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Hello, Part of the mod I'm developing will call for a quest involving a villain and his assistants, so I'd like to know if my mind is on the right track in how to create them, and how to best set it up in terms of files to add to the mod. I'm guessing that I'll need to create a .cre for the villain, an evil cleric, and one for each of his assistants. If possible, the assistants should include lycanthropes, fallen rangers, and evil druids (can we make evil druids?). I think I'll need to create a new weapon for the cleric, and I already have the particulars for it (not powerful, but a signature weapon for followers of his patron deity). Do I need anything more besides the .cre and .itm files, and a bit of scripting? any .d files or others? Are there existing portions of mods that would be best for me to examine as a guide to creating this? The master villain should be "intelligent" enough to seek to escape combat if he's clearly going to die, so he can heal up and surprise the party again later. The enemy group should have a random chance of appearing and attacking the party in any outdoor wilderness area. I was even thinking of involving such enemies in the Windspear Hills encounter between the gnolls and lycanthropes, but that's not required...although it would be a perfect way to introduce these enemies, and perhaps be the place where my NPC first appears and asks the party for help. Any thoughts, advice, etc. will be most welcome Thanks, Eric Link to comment
Icendoan Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 If they start hostile, no .D is needed iirc, a soundset and CRE and ITM files should do. At least for the henchpeople. The main villian would want some dialogue. But it really isn't what I am good at, so I cannot talk about it. Scripts give enemies their intelligence. Icen Link to comment
Guest Guest Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 It's always good to look at existing mods to see how the code is implemented. Many NPC mods introduce a few new characters with their own quests, so you can pretty much just grab a random one from the modlist. Just try to get one that's somewhat new and up to date on the coding. You create enemies the same way you create your own NPC, either by making a new character from scratch or by copying and editing one that already exists with a program like DLTCEP or Near Infinity. For example the DRUID10A .cre is a 10th level lawful evil human druid, so it might be a good place to start. You can have any kind of combination, evil druids, non-lawful/good paladins or whatever. For scripts, the simplest way is to use one that alerady exists (MAGE12B, PRIES10A, etc). Otherwise you should look at mods that deal with AI changes and see what they do and try to adapt from there. You should probably NOT make any fights that are hugely more difficult than the ones already in the game, though, that's not why people download NPC mods. Link to comment
ericp07 Posted February 9, 2008 Author Share Posted February 9, 2008 It's always good to look at existing mods to see how the code is implemented. Many NPC mods introduce a few new characters with their own quests, so you can pretty much just grab a random one from the modlist. Just try to get one that's somewhat new and up to date on the coding. You create enemies the same way you create your own NPC, either by making a new character from scratch or by copying and editing one that already exists with a program like DLTCEP or Near Infinity. For example the DRUID10A .cre is a 10th level lawful evil human druid, so it might be a good place to start. You can have any kind of combination, evil druids, non-lawful/good paladins or whatever. For scripts, the simplest way is to use one that alerady exists (MAGE12B, PRIES10A, etc). Otherwise you should look at mods that deal with AI changes and see what they do and try to adapt from there. You should probably NOT make any fights that are hugely more difficult than the ones already in the game, though, that's not why people download NPC mods. I'll do some digging, and see what I can find. Thanks! I don't intend for the encounters to be overwhelming. Some might be very small, simple fights, maybe a couple minor scrapes that lead to larger, more involved situations, thus building a story. The mod as a whole, though, is much more about the character than about the encounters. Happy modding, Eric Link to comment
theacefes Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Auren ToB has a nice little encounter with an enemy containing dialogue and script, as well as a few "henchmen". Seeing as how NASA did not code her, I'd say she's a pretty simple one to look at. Link to comment
berelinde Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 In 2nd edition, druids have to be true neutral. Even Shadow Druids like Faldorn. Of course, this has not prevented me from writing a tweak that allows a PC to become a druid by 3rd edition rules, i.e. any alignment with the word "neutral" in it, solely for use in my own games, but I wouldn't advocate writing illegal characters in a mod intended for distribution. Ordinarily, I'd say "but no one will ever see it!" but this isn't true, as evil druids will light up like christmas trees if a detect evil spell is cast. Link to comment
ericp07 Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 In 2nd edition, druids have to be true neutral. Even Shadow Druids like Faldorn. Of course, this has not prevented me from writing a tweak that allows a PC to become a druid by 3rd edition rules, i.e. any alignment with the word "neutral" in it, solely for use in my own games, but I wouldn't advocate writing illegal characters in a mod intended for distribution. Ordinarily, I'd say "but no one will ever see it!" but this isn't true, as evil druids will light up like christmas trees if a detect evil spell is cast. Perhaps a way around this is to say that any involved druids are still true neutral, but feel they're serving to maintain balance from their perspective in siding with the villain. Or said villain may be influencing them in some way. They may or may not be of the Shadow Circle. I hadn't considered that... I also wouldn't want to break rules for this purpose. Thanks, Eric Link to comment
devSin Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 I also wouldn't want to break rules for this purpose.This is one of the places where the rules are so incredibly stupid that I'd encourage you to just break away. I'd like keeping "any alignment with the word neutral" (as berelinde says) for legacy reasons, but the idea that a druid can't be neutral evil or chaotic neutral or lawful neutral because... because... (why don't you try to come up with a reason for it? I sure can't) is just dumb. Link to comment
berelinde Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Yeah, I always thought it was a stupid rule, which is why one of the first things I did when I learned how to patch 2da was to write one that would enable me to create druids of NG, LN, TN, CN, or NE alignment. But when it comes to the sheer incomprehensibility of D&D rules, nothing beats the 1E rule that said that clerics could be any alignment except TN, and if they wanted to be TN, they had to be druids. Link to comment
SixOfSpades Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 But when it comes to the sheer incomprehensibility of D&D rules, nothing beats the 1E rule that said that clerics could be any alignment except TN, and if they wanted to be TN, they had to be druids. How about the 2nd Edition rule that says Elves can be Fighters, or Thieves, or Mages, or even all three at the same time, yet they cannot be Bards? Link to comment
theacefes Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Of course, because an elf should be able to fight, steal, and cast a spell, but please, don't let him sing! Link to comment
DavidW Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 For scripts, the simplest way is to use one that alerady exists (MAGE12B, PRIES10A, etc). Otherwise you should look at mods that deal with AI changes and see what they do and try to adapt from there. You should probably NOT make any fights that are hugely more difficult than the ones already in the game, though, that's not why people download NPC mods. Actually, this might be a good reason to use the generic scripts where possible... that way, the creatures get the same AI upgrades that vanilla-game creatures do. (AI mods like SCS upgrade the generic scripts). Realistically the BG2 combat system is uncontrollable enough that you'll need to cheat to keep your villain alive long enough to run away. The usual way is to give him an item like "minhp1" which prevents him dying, and then add a script block that teleports him away or tells him to run when he gets to one hit point. Link to comment
Icendoan Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Cheating, I don't exactly call it cheating, because many Bioware creations cheat, then. Think about; Chez Irenicus Imoen SpellHold Irenicus Half the ogres in the 1st pocketplane trial (yes, CTRL-M them) Bodhi Bodhi again Bodhi's henchman, idk the name, begins with L iirc Mellisan Mellisan again (2nd pool) Actually, I shall give you a nice reference of the CRE files with minhps on them, shall I? I like DLTCEP MINHP01 ------------ C6ELVEN2 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) C6ELVENW Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) VVARKAN Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) UDLESA Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) GNOLLHP1 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) ELETRO02 Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) PPDRADEE Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) JADERMIN Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:4-L.Ring) ARNTRA01 Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) ARNTRA02 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) JAERTOF Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) VAMPBAT Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) AMMONK01 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) AMMONK07 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) AMMONK08 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) ADSHAR Nonstandard order. LAVOK01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) LAVOK02 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) SUELLE2 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) HELLPRID Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) PPBHAAL Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) C6BMIST Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) AMELM01 Found item minhp1 at position #6 (slot:7-Belt) BODHIAMB Found item minhp1 at position #3 (slot:6-Amulet) FINSOL01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) JATERMIN Found item minhp1 at position #6 (slot:7-Belt) HLKANG Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) SAHIMP03 Found item minhp1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) SAHIMP04 Found item minhp1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) SAHIMP05 Found item minhp1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) SAHIMP06 Found item minhp1 at position #3 (slot:6-Amulet) SAHIMP07 Found item minhp1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) SUELHAN Found item minhp1 at position #2 (slot:4-L.Ring) TANOMIST Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) BODHI2 Found item MINHP1 at position #3 (slot:6-Amulet) HGNYA01 Found item minhp1 at position #3 (slot:6-Amulet) SOLAR01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) FANGEL01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) OBSGOL01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) KPTROL01 Found item MINHP1 at position #5 (slot:21-Inventory 1) KPTROL02 Found item MINHP1 at position #5 (slot:21-Inventory 1) KPTROL04 Found item MINHP1 at position #5 (slot:21-Inventory 1) KPTROL05 Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) WARSAGE Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) RIFTCR04 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) HLSKULL Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) TROLGI01 Found item MINHP1 at position #5 (slot:21-Inventory 1) C6BODHI Found item MINHP1 at position #4 (slot:7-Belt) ELEARB01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB02 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB03 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB04 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB05 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB06 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB07 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB08 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB09 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB10 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEARB11 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) PPDEMON Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) BODHI Found item minhp1 at position #3 (slot:6-Amulet) HLSION Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) HELLFEAR Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) HLKETTA2 Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) SKELHP1 Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) HELLGREE Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) VALEMIST Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) SARVIE01 Found item minhp1 at position #4 (slot:6-Amulet) LOVEONE5 Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:4-L.Ring) SWORD02 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:5-R.Ring) SWORD03 Found item minhp1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) PPBODHI3 Found item minhp1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) TRAX Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) DACEMIST Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) C6GOD Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:4-L.Ring) SUJON Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) DRSHLO01 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) DEMOARCH Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:4-L.Ring) DAABOL Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) HGTRL01 Found item MINHP1 at position #4 (slot:21-Inventory 1) ADANG25 Nonstandard order. BOUNHA Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:4-L.Ring) WISH01 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) WISH02 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) DEMOCLER Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:4-L.Ring) DELMIST Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) GARKID01 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) GARKID02 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) BRUS2 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) VIEKANG Found item minhp1 at position #4 (slot:6-Amulet) ADANGEL Nonstandard order. HLKETTA Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) PPTIAX Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) C6ELHAN Found item minhp1 at position #2 (slot:4-L.Ring) ELEPUZ01 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEPUZ02 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEPUZ03 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) ELEPUZ04 Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:6-Amulet) IGOLEM01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) SHAAVA01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:6-Amulet) SOLAR Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) ADFOX Found item MINHP1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) SUAVATAR Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) PPGUY01 Found item MINHP1 at position #1 (slot:5-R.Ring) PPIRENI1 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:4-L.Ring) PPIRENI2 Found item minhp1 at position #0 (slot:5-R.Ring) HELLSELF Found item MINHP1 at position #2 (slot:6-Amulet) Noone seems to like MINHP20 and MINHP60 Icen Link to comment
berelinde Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 You've got several mod creatures in that list, by the way. Link to comment
Kulyok Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Sawara's fox in Angelo NPC is among the most hardened cheaters in the game, yes. Watch your trousers. Seriously, I don't know how it is for you, but for me, an NPC mod author, coding quests sucks. It is exhausting, mundane, it requires extensive testing, and it's not half as fun as writing dialogue(unless you're writing it for an Iron Modder challenge). So I'd leave it for the end, when the NPC itself is complete. Link to comment
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