WeiDU Installing - uninstalling question

[Guest Sayne]

I have a question,

 

I was installing Ashes of Embers, BG2 Tweak Pack and Sword Coast Stratagems s on my game. I installed it AoE (just the sensible weapon stuff) -> BG2 Tweak Pack -> SCS -> then Ashes of Embers for mod weapons.

 

If I install a segment of a mod in the wrong order, do I have to uninstall everything up to the point where I screwed up? I made a mistake with one of the segments of the Tweak Pack that I installed, so does that mean I have to uninstall SCS and the one segment of AoE that I installed after the Tweak Pack in order to preserve the proper install order? Also, does that mess up the WeiDU log, which will show instances of a mod being installed -> uninstalled -> then reinstalled.

 

Thanks

[Jarno Mikkola]

do I have to uninstall everything up to the point where I screwed up?

Well no, because the WeiDU program does this all for you... if you uninstall the specified component by starting the Setup-BG2_Tweaks.exe and skip the other components until you get to the one that has you mistakenly installed, and you push U. And then install the other components on the mod, after that the WeiDU should install the other mod components back for you again.

Now, the "installed -> uninstalled -> then reinstalled" is shown in the WeiDU.log because one needs to be able to retrace once steps. But that doesn't mess up your WeiDU.logs info content. Because that's necessary info too...

[Sayne]

do I have to uninstall everything up to the point where I screwed up?

Well no, because the WeiDU program does this all for you... if you uninstall the specified component by starting the Setup-BG2_Tweaks.exe and skip the other components until you get to the one that has you mistakenly installed, and you push U. And then install the other components on the mod, after that the WeiDU should install the other mod components back for you again.

Now, the "installed -> uninstalled -> then reinstalled" is shown in the WeiDU.log because one needs to be able to retrace once steps. But that doesn't mess up your WeiDU.logs info content. Because that's necessary info too...

 

 

OK great. I've used WeiDU mods for a while now... but I was always very careful about my mod installing, I got sloppy this time.

 

Thanks

[Sayne]

Thanks for the help earlier... one other question.

 

I had been playing Tutu. I have since beaten it and wanted to import my character to BG2 and keep playing, however I realized I hadn't modded BG2 yet.

 

There is a very comprehensive and helpful post describing mod install order for Tutu (http://forums.gibberlings3.net/index.php?showtopic=8122); is it generally applicable to BG2 (non-tutu) mod installation? There can't be that much difference.

 

Thanks

[Jarno Mikkola]

I had been playing Tutu.

Which Tutu? EasyTutu or the (BG)Tutu v4?

As EasyTutu makes it's own game directory ect, the BGII is uneffected...

But if you played the BGTutu, you need to uninstall the whole (BG)Tutu v4 to actually play the original BGII game... ...Or use a backup.

 

I have since beaten it and wanted to import my character to BG2 and keep playing, however I realized I hadn't modded BG2 yet.

 

There is a very comprehensive and helpful post describing mod install order for Tutu here;

Is it generally applicable to BG2 (non-tutu) mod installation? There can't be that much difference.

So I take it that you used a backup of the BGII game or EasyTutu...

And yes, that guide is a good guideline, but it is a bit more depending on what other mods you actually wish to install to the BGII, if they are not in that list, but it's fine if you confine yourself to them.

So, if you wish more guidelines, just say which mods you wish, and I'll give as complete answer as I can.

[Sayne]

Yes I have BG Tutu and BG2 in two separate directories... and I was using EasyTutu. I don't have the patience to do the manual install for Tutu v4, plus nearly all mods prefer EasyTutu as far as I can tell.

 

I was going to use:

BG2 Fixpack

Weimer's Item Upgrade

Unfinished Business

Banter Pack

Maybe One Pixel Productions

BG2 Character Portrait Mod

iiItem

aTweaks

Maybe a select few of The Bigg's Tweaks (like faster romance timer)

Ashes of Embers (default weapons, no kits)

BG2 Tweak Pack

Ashes of Embers (Mod weapons)

SCS 2

 

That may be too many... WeiDU might come alive and strangle me in my sleep.

Any recommendations as to chopping some of those, or will it work? Is the order ok; like Should the Ashes of Embers for Mod weapons be completely last after SCS 2? Any BETTER mods that I should try?

 

Also, what's the deal with Big World Fixpack? It looks like I should dump that into my BG2 Directory (with all the WeiDU folders and .exes that I plan on running) and run the Big World Batch file. I'm just confused as to what that does.

 

Thanks for all your help.

[Jarno Mikkola]

That may be too many... WeiDU might come alive and strangle me in my sleep.

It won't, but just make sure that you get the newest WeiDU.exe from here(take the "Windows Dinary" pack and unzip it).

 

Any recommendations as to chopping some of those, or will it work? Is the order ok; like Should the Ashes of Embers for Mod weapons be completely last after SCS 2? Any BETTER mods that I should try?

It will work. The SCSII doesn't change any items, so AoE is fine there. Correction; SCSII doesn't add any weapons, so AoE is fine there.

Better mods, well check out:

The Level 1 NPCs, it has a component that does the AoE item stuff, but in a bit other way... +hot fixes from the forum!

The Item Revision mod, for tweaked items...+hot fixes from the forum!

The Spell Revison mod, Tweaked spells... +hot fixes from the forum!

The Widescreen mod, to get better graphic pixel count, and no bugged GUI(even in normal scale monitor).

 

Also, what's the deal with Big World Fixpack? It looks like I should dump that into my BG2 Directory (with all the WeiDU folders and .exes that I plan on running) and run the Big World Batch file. I'm just confused as to what that does.

Well, the BiG World Fixpack updated some of the other mods, including the BG2Fixpack v6, BaldurDash-WeiDU v1.66 and other mods so they work better together with the old Big Picture Family of mods and all the other mods in the BiG World Project.

ItBWP Fixpack works by changing the mod files inside the mods before they are installed, so before it's runned, the files need to be uncompressed into the game folder, but not installed.

The BiG World Projects .pdfs (and forum) give very good advice on what order the mods should be installed, even if you don't use it's auto-installers(Installpack) that require the BGT(although, with a little tweak(it involves .bat edition with Notepad), even that requirement can be off-ed).

[DavidW]

Any recommendations as to chopping some of those, or will it work? Is the order ok; like Should the Ashes of Embers for Mod weapons be completely last after SCS 2?

It will work. The SCSII doesn't change any items, so AoE is fine there.

 

It does change items, actually (invisibly): it goes through every weapon in the game and modifies it to make its enchantment level detectable by the AI. It also collects a list of every item in the game that protects against various attack forms and incorporates data on those items into the AI scripting. And the "party lose items in Spellhold" component also works by making a list of all items in the game.So if AoE introduces any new items, it should ideally be installed before SCSII.

[jon-eli]

That may be too many... WeiDU might come alive and strangle me in my sleep.

I think my current install consists of about 54 mods, and all of them install without any warnings or errors (there were a few that I had to rectify by hand, but the errors were non-fatal to begin with).

 

It works by changing the mod files inside the mods before they are installed, so before it's runned, the files need to be uncompressed into the game folder, but not installed.

The BiG World Fixpack does this, as opposed to the main installer, and I'd recommend installing that fixpack rather than the hotfixes listed on the forums for the various mods.

 

The BiG World Projects .pdfs (and forum) give very good advice on what order the mods should be installed [...]

The guide isn't entirely accurate in places, but it's about the best collection of compatibility info there is. It's a very good starting point.

 

It does change items, actually (invisibly): it goes through every weapon in the game and modifies it to make its enchantment level detectable by the AI. It also collects a list of every item in the game that protects against various attack forms and incorporates data on those items into the AI scripting.

May I ask specifically which components do this? Or are you just referring to DS?

 

What I'm thinking is that iiitem needs to be installed after any mod that add creatures to the game (such as scsii), for the the items to be randomly distributed across all creature files. But if iiitem is installed after scsii, this makes scsii AI ignorant to the items it introduces (and their effect immunities and such).

 

I realize that scsii doesn't add terribly many creatures, so the lesser evil is clear to me already. But my install list is pretty long, and shuffling mod-placement tends to break things, since I don't always remember why I install in the order that I do. If it was as simple as moving the Spellhold component and DS further down the list and leaving the rest where it is, this would make me smile.

[DavidW]

It does change items, actually (invisibly): it goes through every weapon in the game and modifies it to make its enchantment level detectable by the AI. It also collects a list of every item in the game that protects against various attack forms and incorporates data on those items into the AI scripting.

May I ask specifically which components do this? Or are you just referring to DS?

 

What I'm thinking is that iiitem needs to be installed after any mod that add creatures to the game (such as scsii), for the the items to be randomly distributed across all creature files. But if iiitem is installed after scsii, this makes scsii AI ignorant to the items it introduces (and their effect immunities and such).

It's:

 

(i) the spellhold component

(ii) a piece of the DS component that makes weapon enchantment detectable

(iii) a different piece of the DS component that makes a list of all items with such-and-such power

 

(neither (ii) or (iii) is part of the "core" DS bundled with various people's mods - they're SCSII-specific)

 

You can install the spellhold component late, but most of SCSII won't install until after the DS component is installed. And this isn't really workroundable - SCS scripts are generated at install time and need to have access to a list of information about the items in the game.

 

Having said this, SCS adds very, very few totally new creatures - a dozen, max. Most of its apparently new creatures are copied at install time from existing creatures, so they'll pick up iitem allocations. (And there aren't that many creatures that are new even in this sense.)

[jon-eli]

Thanks for the info. Large installs are infuriatingly hard to manage; figuring out which things affect which resources in what manner requires a few painkillers to supplement the process.

 

And this isn't really workroundable [...]

Clearly the answer is to integrate all existing mod content into scsii. Start with Ghreyfein's turnip golem mod, plz.

[Sayne]

Is the Level 1 NPCs means of altering item proficiency better or worse than the AoE? Also, the Tutu Mod Compatibility thread recommends that Level 1 NPCs be installed at the very end. If I use Level 1 NPCs to alter proficiencies AFTER I installed SCS2 -obviously if I used it rather than AoE, would it mess up / override anything from SCS 2 (or BG2 Tweaks, etc?)

Thanks

[DavidW]

Also, the Tutu Mod Compatibility thread recommends that Level 1 NPCs be installed at the very end. If I use Level 1 NPCs to alter proficiencies AFTER I installed SCS2 -obviously if I used it rather than AoE, would it mess up / override anything from SCS 2 (or BG2 Tweaks, etc?)

Thanks

 

I doubt it.

[Jarno Mikkola]

Is the Level 1 NPCs means of altering item proficiency better or worse than the AoE?

Well, is this better or worse... you decide:

Optional: Tweak the weapon proficiency rules.

 

When you're altering the joinable NPCs, this mod follows whatever rule set is in place. So if you want mages to be able to use crossbows, and you want Edwin to have to crossbow proficiency, you'll need to change the rules so that this mod will know what rules to follow. Most of the content here mirrors other mods and is presented as convenience, or as an alternative to the many mods that must be installed last.

 

You can choose if you wish to:

* Allow druids one star in any weapon type a fighter can use.

* Allow grandmastery for fighter multiclasses - some will find it cheesy, but if you were going to get this elsewhere (e.g. BG2 Tweaks) then you might as well have it for party joinables too.

* Allow thieves and thief multi-classes three stars in dual-wielding - a la aVENGER's Rogue Rebalancing

* Allow backstab with any weapon a mage/thief, fighter/thief, or cleric/thief can use - Backstabbing with a two-handed sword shouldn't be less effective than backstabbing with a quarterstaff, yes?

* Make quarterstaves unusable for backstabbing - by request.

* Restrict Fighter/Druids from armours single class Druids cannot wear - by request, seems closer to the arbitrary 2nd Ed rules in any case.

* Allow clerics one star in any weapon type a fighter can use - If your deity's weapon is a sword, you should bloody well be able to use a sword!

* If you refused "one star in anything for clerics", Allow fighter/clerics and fighter/mage/clerics two stars in any weapon type - just using the fighter restrictions rather than the cleric

* If you refused "one star in anything for clerics", Allow cleric/thieves one star in any weapon type a fighter can use - otherwise cleric-thieves can only backstab with quarterstaves and clubs, and it's a bit dull.

* If you refused "one star in anything for clerics", Allow cleric/rangers two stars in any weapon type - I'm sure you can make up your own mind

 

If I use Level 1 NPCs to alter proficiencies AFTER I installed SCS2 -obviously if I used it rather than AoE, would it mess up / override anything from SCS 2

I doubt it.

Some one needs to quote a little less content.