Install instructions clarification

[Guest Scáthach7]

Hi!

I apologize if this is an ignorant question, but before I spend a couple hours making mistakes, I figure I might as well ask.

My BGEE/SOD and BG2EE are on steam. I want to combine them into the EET. The EE Game Setup Tool says this:

"Have the game(s) you want to mod in directories with full access. Do not use locations like Steamapps, ProgrammFiles or similar. Do not use the game version accessed by any game clients."

Do I just change where Steam downloads the games so they aren't in Steamapps? Are the Steam versions just noncompatible? Do I have to buy them again somewhere else?

It then says this: "Start each game, create a creature, make a save and exit." Does this mean create your protagonist, or does it mean use the clua console to create a creature? Does "Start each game" mean BG1 and BG2, or should I also start a game and create a creature in SOD, TOB, etc?

I played the BWP before the Enhanced Editions came out and it was amazing, so I'm really looking forward to playing again, just want to make sure I don't make mistakes and screw it up! Any advice would be very much appreciated
 

[Leeux]

I think it basically means you need to have your games installed outside of Program Files, so there's no UAC shenanigans involved, and second, it would be prudent be have them be backups of the installs, so if any (steam or client) updates happen, your installations are not ruined.

What I did is (I have games on Steam btw) have them installed to a steam library outside of ProgramFiles (I have all my games that way) and then, made copies of the clean installation and used those as starting point. Specially for your destination install (i.e. the BG2 that will become EET) you won't want Steam updates messing with it at all.  After that you can run the game by launching the Baldur.exe directly, and EET setup creates a desktop icon for you that points to it directly.

As for the second part, you need to start both the games and at least create a character and save so the games create their respective Documents\BG folders for save and initialize all the data there. I don't think ToB is needed, since it shares the same Documents folder as base SoA.

[subtledoctor]

Even if the game folders are in the default Steam folder (or Program Files or wherever), I'm pretty sure you can literally just move them to the Desktop 5 seconds before installing EET.  EET doesn't care if the folders are valid... it just wants to know where the files are, and have permission to copy and change them.

Then you can move everything back afterward.  (But I would not put EET in the default Steam BG2EE location, as Steam will sometimes overwrite game files without warning you.)

(Someone correct me if I'm wrong, of course.)

[Jarno Mikkola]

1 minute ago, subtledoctor said:

Even if the game folders are in the default Steam folder (or Program Files or wherever), I'm pretty sure you can literally just move them to the Desktop 5 seconds before installing EET.  EET doesn't care if the folders are valid... it just wants to know where the files are, and have permission to copy and change them.

Then you can move everything back afterward.  (But I would not put EET in the default Steam BG2EE location, as Steam will sometimes overwrite game files without warning you.)

(Someone correct me if I'm wrong, of course.)

Well, on the C drive with Windows 10(in which it's used as the OS drive), no one has a re-write permission on Steam or any other folder, that's not directly under their OWN name folder in the C:\Users\ -folders.

Steam has a function that when started restores the game files to their original byte sizes & hash number. It's not done automatically, but on a request from the user. It's useful to remove error producing things like mods.

Not that I use Steam... you don't have to download and play the game from Steams folders, nor use it as the start up program, as you just run an additional GUI on top of the original games GUI, which reduces efficiency. Yes, Steam takes the computers resources, just like any other program... so going the other way, you might as well have one processor, 5 Virus scanners running detecting each others, and their guarantee folders and see how your game from 2001 runs with them. News flash, not well. Nor as intended.

[Guest Scáthach7]

Thanks so much for the advice everyone I really appreciate it! Probably going to install everything tonight or tomorrow I'll let you know how it goes