Writing .d files - guidance sought

[ericp07]

Hello,

 

There are so many tutorials floating about for writing the .d files that I'm not sure where to start I understand that my NPC, Hinaeariel, needs EP#Hin.d, EP#HinJ.d, EP#HinP.d, and their respective ToB ("25") counterparts, and I'm setting up bare-bones files for all these. Now, I know I also need a banter file, but is it the current convention to add the letter "B" at the beginning (BEP#Hin.d), or at the end (EP#HinB.d) of the filename? I do see it at the beginning in some mods, but I wanted to verify before proceeding.

 

As for guidance, I'd like to know which .d-writing tutorials I should turn to for someone writing his very first mod. After I've got the basics covered, I'd like to write a friendship path, but as of now I'm undecided on also adding a romance path. I'll either post up what I have so far for these files, or start fresh with each one.

 

Thanks, and happy modding,

Eric

[berelinde]

First of all, it doesn't matter whether you begin your banter file with B or tack it onto the end... or even if you use another convention entirely. You append interdia.2da, and that takes care of that.

 

APPEND ~interdia.2da~

~b!gavin2 bb!gav bb!gav25~

UNLESS ~b!gavin2~

 

b!gavin2 is Gavin's BG2 DV

bb!gav is Gavin's SoA banter file

bb!gav25 is Gavin's ToB banter file

 

I could have named the banter files anything and it wouldn't have mattered, as long as I appended the 2da properly. I could have called Gavin's ToB file b!gavtbb, with no reference to 25 at all and it would have worked.

 

As for the rest of your questions, yikes. You're asking somebody to tell you how to write a mod. Ok, answering it is possible, but it's going to take a lot longer than a few moments. Why don't you get started and then ask for guidance when you get stuck?

 

I've always found that using an existing mod as a template is a good idea. Don't use BG2 Gavin. It's insanely complex and will drive you mad. But you might consider using Haldamir. The coding is extremely basic and all the bugs are worked out.

[ericp07]

First of all, it doesn't matter whether you begin your banter file with B or tack it onto the end... or even if you use another convention entirely. You append interdia.2da, and that takes care of that.

 

APPEND ~interdia.2da~

~b!gavin2 bb!gav bb!gav25~

UNLESS ~b!gavin2~

 

b!gavin2 is Gavin's BG2 DV

bb!gav is Gavin's SoA banter file

bb!gav25 is Gavin's ToB banter file

 

I could have named the banter files anything and it wouldn't have mattered, as long as I appended the 2da properly. I could have called Gavin's ToB file b!gavtbb, with no reference to 25 at all and it would have worked.

 

As for the rest of your questions, yikes. You're asking somebody to tell you how to write a mod. Ok, answering it is possible, but it's going to take a lot longer than a few moments. Why don't you get started and then ask for guidance when you get stuck?

 

I've always found that using an existing mod as a template is a good idea. Don't use BG2 Gavin. It's insanely complex and will drive you mad. But you might consider using Haldamir. The coding is extremely basic and all the bugs are worked out.

 

Thanks so much for this! Funny you should mention Haldamir, as I've already used one of the files in there, and soon I'll also compare .tp2s with mine to make sure I've got things sorted well.

 

Now for a little editing...

Thanks again, and best wishes,

Eric

[ericp07]

In the APPEND ~pdialog.2da~ block, do I need UNLESS ~25POST~ as the last line? Likewise, in the APPEND ~interdia.2da~ block, do I need UNLESS ~25FILE~ as the last line? I have them there now, but those aren't there in the .tp2 I'm comparing to correct mine.

 

Thanks,

Eric

[berelinde]

Back in the old days, many modders would append 2das twice, once if the game was SoA only, once if it was ToB. This is unnecessary. If you add extra fields to the 2da, they will just be ignored.

 

So, it would do you no harm to leave off that UNLESS ~25POST~ and just include all files for both SoA and ToB.

[ericp07]

Back in the old days, many modders would append 2das twice, once if the game was SoA only, once if it was ToB. This is unnecessary. If you add extra fields to the 2da, they will just be ignored.

 

So, it would do you no harm to leave off that UNLESS ~25POST~ and just include all files for both SoA and ToB.

I had a feeling this was a legacy issue of sorts. I'll omit that line. I take it this also applies to UNLESS ~25FILE~?

 

Thanks,

Eric

[berelinde]

Yup.

[ericp07]

Now for giving the NPC her gear. I've seen this done two different ways in .tp2 files, but I'm curious as to why we must write anything into the .tp2, when the .cre is already outfitted with gear.

 

Taking Haldamir as an example, inventory items are added using ADD_CRE_ITEM lines. I suspect that this is the ideal approach, so I've set things up the same way in my .tp2. I notice that each line includes "#0 #0 #0", and I'm not sure what those represent, if not quantity, so I'm interested in knowing. I didn't find ADD_CRE_ITEM in the iesdp, but that doesn't mean it's not listed in there somewhere

 

Thanks,

Eric

[Grim Squeaker]

It's all in the WeiDU readme. The #0s are related to stacks and charges e.g. if you wanted a stack of 5 healing potions or a Rod of Magic Missile with 10 charges etc

[ericp07]

It's all in the WeiDU readme. The #0s are related to stacks and charges e.g. if you wanted a stack of 5 healing potions or a Rod of Magic Missile with 10 charges etc

 

Excellent! That's what I thought those were, so I went ahead and put a number of arrows in the first two quiver slots. It remains to be seen if I did it correctly. I sometimes forget to look at the WeiDU documentation, so I'll get into the habit of looking through it to become more familiar.

 

Thanks,

Eric

[ericp07]

Is there a reasonable average limit to the number of banters a mod NPC should have with each of the other party NPCs? I've set up a template in EP#HinB.d for Hinaeariel to have two short chats with the BioWare NPCs, and with a long list of mod NPCs (which I'll shorten based on how much crossmod I'll be able to co-create with various mod authors). It's pretty generic, so far, with Hinaeariel beginning the first of each pair of exchanges, and the second NPC beginning the second. Haven't begun to decide on content, so there's plenty of time to tune the code, where needed

 

Thanks,

Eric

[berelinde]

There isn't really a standard number of banters per NPC pair. BioWare seems to have gone with 2 banters, but many mods have 4 or more. If you play at a moderate pace, keep the same party throughout the game and if you have not installed any mods that include a banter accelerator, you will probably run out of banters at about the same time that you are finishing the game. If you have any kind of banter accelerator at all, you will run out of banters a lot sooner, possibly before you even leave for Spellhold.

 

Having a goal is fine, but you might be better off seeing how many banters you are inspired to write. Very few people want to have their game interrupted by banter that exists just to fill some quota, but few object to reading even a large number or quality banters.

 

Another thing you might want to consider is including a blend of scripted and unscripted banter. For example, you might decide that Hinaeriel and Cernd should have a banter that will play the first time the party enters the Umar Hills, or that Hinaeriel and Nalia should have a banter in the Underdark. That way, even if the player uses a banter accelerator and runs out of unscripted banter before Spellhold, there will be something to look forward to later.

[ericp07]

There isn't really a standard number of banters per NPC pair. BioWare seems to have gone with 2 banters, but many mods have 4 or more. If you play at a moderate pace, keep the same party throughout the game and if you have not installed any mods that include a banter accelerator, you will probably run out of banters at about the same time that you are finishing the game. If you have any kind of banter accelerator at all, you will run out of banters a lot sooner, possibly before you even leave for Spellhold.

 

Having a goal is fine, but you might be better off seeing how many banters you are inspired to write. Very few people want to have their game interrupted by banter that exists just to fill some quota, but few object to reading even a large number or quality banters.

 

Another thing you might want to consider is including a blend of scripted and unscripted banter. For example, you might decide that Hinaeriel and Cernd should have a banter that will play the first time the party enters the Umar Hills, or that Hinaeriel and Nalia should have a banter in the Underdark. That way, even if the player uses a banter accelerator and runs out of unscripted banter before Spellhold, there will be something to look forward to later.

 

So, condition-specific as well as general, random banters. Makes sense, especially as Hinaeariel would make specific comments related to specific areas. I imagine she'd make a comment, then one or more of the NPCs would chime in, throwing in their two coppers on the subject, or asking her questions. I also have the idea to have Hinaeariel find some herb/plant that is useful, while moving through a wilderness area, and discuss it a bit. Another might be that she picked up some interesting tracks on the ground and identified what made them. One or more of the NPCs would then comment or ask about it, and a little chat would ensue. I'd like to include at least one banter for each NPC, where Hinaeariel asks the character about him/herself, as she likes to learn about different people from different places. She'd also make comments about different environments. She's spent the vast majority of her life within the forest of Cormanthor, and feels at home in woodland settings, but finds other landscapes to be alien by comparison. She'll probably feel claustrophobic in the Underdark, her agitation and apprehension rising to near-paranoid levels as more time is spent running through places she finds fit mostly for foul creatures...

 

I'd better look up how the coding differs if I want to include three or more characters in a conversation, from how to set it up for just two characters. I already understand how to write in the conditions.

 

I'll keep the magic number 3 in mind, as an average, and just go with the flow as ideas come

 

Thanks so much!

Eric

[ericp07]

Are there preferred ways to format the text in .d files? I'd like to make them all neat and orderly, easy to follow...you know, more efficient. If there are examples (or if this is covered in a tutorial somewhere), I'd appreciate being pointed in the right direction, please

 

Thanks,

Eric

[berelinde]

What? You mean spaces and tabs and things?

 

WeiDU doesn't care. You could put the mod all on one line and WeiDU would chug through it happily enough. When you decompile a dilaouge file or script, WeiDU arranges things the way it wants, i.e. indents, line breaks, etc., but there is no reason you have to code it that way.

 

So the anser here is that you should do whatever is easiest for you. If it's clear and visually easy for you to follow, WeiDU can handle it.