Unearthed Arcana present Tome & Blood: more options for arcane casters

[subtledoctor]

Okay, I have a fairly large update ready to go.  This has a bunch of new stuff and a structural change, so I'm going to go ahead and bump the arbitrary version number to 0.9.  Here is the rough list of changes worth mentioning:

• A few improvements to familiars: new icons in the familiar choice screen, fixed "swarm of rats" ability, and more explanation about how imbuing familiars with spells works. Also, the Shadow Adept and similar kits from the Shadow Magic mod will not get the Find Familiar innate ability.  There still may be some small issues with familiars - I was not able to do an exhaustive look into stuff like speaking with them.
• Shadow Magic kits will also be exempted from other aspects of the mod: they will not get innate cantrips, and will not get innate sequencers, and will not get spurious bonus spells if you install the "Ability Score Bonuses" component.
• The duration of the "Summon Bunny" innate cantrip is reduced to 3 rounds, to prevent you filling the screen with them.  I have not touched anything else with regard to innate cantrips; that component is very old and needs a complete overhaul.  But that's just not a high priority right now.
• Fixed the "REPLACE_TEXTUALLY" code so that the UI patch for sequencers and contingencies works with the "LeUI" interface.
• The Arcanist kit is added to the mod.  Start as a wizard, and choose Arcanist for your kit.
• The Mana Sorcerer kit is added to the mod. Start as an unkitted sorcerer, and then use an innate ability to change your casting style to use mana points.
• The way bonus spell slots from items works for my "pseudo-spontaneous" kits (Arcanist, Mana Sorcerer, multiclass sorcerers) is updated to the latest method used in the standalone Arcanist mod.  To recap, you can get one bonus casting slot per spell level per item worn.  So the Ring of Acuity, which nominally gives you two bonus 2nd-level slots and one bonus 3rd-level and 4th-level slot, will give these kits one bonus slot of 2nd, 3rd, and 4th spell level.  But adding other bonus spell slot items - the bardic Wondrous Gloves or something - will get you more bonus slots.
• The "Ability Score Bonuses" component is moved to the end of the mod's install order, and given a new DESIGNATED number.  Sorry, I know that's annoying, but it is important in order to let it be installed later than everything else.  There have been repeated problems with players screwing up their spell tables by changing them after installing this component.  Now it should be fairly easy to quit the TnB installer before this component, and install it much later in the stack, after CDTweaks or Klatu Tweaks or whatever other mod you use to change the spell tables. 
• Please note, I have once again replicated the ability score-based bonus spell slots in Scales of Balance, in order to make this even easier.  You can install all of Tome & Blood except for the ability score bonuses, then install other kits and tweaks or whatever, including CDtweaks, and then install Scales of Balance after that.  Hopefully this should make it easier to avoid problems.  I'm also going to suggest a change to CDTweaks itself which will make install order irrelevant for purposes of spell tables.  Realistically, maybe this component should just be moved to Scales of Balance in its entirety, just to help people with the install order and prevent players having to split up the mods.  I would want to hear from @Aquadrizzt before doing that, though.
• One more new component: spell switching for sorcerers.  This gives you an innate ability that will open a dialogue and allow you to remove one known spell from your spellbook.  You can then choose another to take its place.  In order to achieve the latter part, the mod completely replaces  the way sorcerers choose spells: instead of doing it during level-up screens, you can use a item ability (under the "backpack" icon in the main UI) to fill out your spellbook.  This mechanism keeps track of your allowed known spells, so removing one automatically allows you to choose another.  The item ability may be used as many times as you want; even if you cannot learn any new spells, you can still use the ability and browse what will be available in the future.  This system has already been in place for multiclass sorcerers, so it now makes single-class sorcerers consistent with them.  You can choose at install-time whether to get the spell-switching ability once per level, or once per three levels.  NOTE: the ability is removed after using it, until the next time you get it from a level-up.  So do not "save" uses of it; if you don't use the ability at 4th level, you will not be able to use it twice after reaching 5th level.  Any time you use it, the ability will disappear entirely until you reach a new level.  This ability will work equally well for traditional sorcerers, multiclass sorcerers, mana sorcerers, and even spontaneous-casting priests and multiclass shamans in Faiths & Powers, as long as you install FnP after this mod.
• Finally, I added an .ini file for use with Project Infinity.

Cheers.

Edited September 10, 2020 by subtledoctor

[Endarire]

To confirm, does spell switching/swapping work with spontaneous casters who aren't Sors, like F&P spontaneous divine casters and M&G Bards?

Also, you added spell swapping!  Alleluia!

[subtledoctor]

1 hour ago, Endarire said:

does spell switching/swapping work with spontaneous casters who aren't Sors, like F&P spontaneous divine casters and M&G Bards?

Yes for FnP casters - with FnP v0.79.17 or higher.  MnG bards don't need it, they can manage their spellbooks like wizards.

[Endarire]

Does @lefreut's UI work with the new spontaneous caster spell swap?

Also, to clarify, how does a multiclass Sor/spontaneous caster swap spells?  How often can this character swap spells?

[Endarire]

@subtledoctor
Greetings, SD!

May we get a collaboration between OlvynChuru from the Beamdog Forum and you for OlvynSpells/F&P/T&B cross-mod compatibility?  Part of it is integrating OlvynSpells into the F&P spheres system.  Beyond that, it's fixing bugs so the revised spells and specialty Wizards properly learn and cast spells, including vanilla spells.  (For example, with Revised Specialists and OlvynSpells installed, the vanilla spell chill touch didn't work.)

Thankee!

[subtledoctor]

19 hours ago, Endarire said:

Beyond that, it's fixing bugs so the revised spells and specialty Wizards properly learn and cast spells, including vanilla spells.

I’m not aware of any such bugs. 

19 hours ago, Endarire said:

with Revised Specialists and OlvynSpells installed, the vanilla spell chill touch didn't work

The Revised Specialists component changes the “[undead] Touch” spells into special abilities only for necromancers, and improves them with extra effects against undead. I should spell all that out in the readme... but in short it is a feature, not a bug.

[Necromanx2]

I installed the ~TOMEANDBLOOD/TOMEANDBLOOD.TP2~ #0 #67 // Choose-Your-Own Familiar: 0.8.54 component and am able to select my familiar.
When I talk to my familiar I get the SoD dialog instead of the familiar dialog.

[Necromanx2]

I created a Favored Soul in BGEE and find the Anticipation cantrip (I made it innate) casts and immediately ends instead of lasting the 3 rounds it says. The icon flashes on my character portrait for a fraction of a second. Of course I get no bonus to AC.

Note: I was able to fix it using Near Infinity as there were two removes in with the give that seemed to have caused it. I'm not good at modding, but it seems to work and lasts 3 rounds after the NI edit.

[subtledoctor]

12 minutes ago, Necromanx2 said:

When I talk to my familiar I get the SoD dialog instead of the familiar dialog.

ModMerge/DLCMerger failure?

Game language->mod language failure?

7 minutes ago, Necromanx2 said:

find the Anticipation cantrip (I made it innate) casts and immediately ends instead of lasting the 3 rounds it says.

Don't quite understand the "made it innate" comment, aren't those cantrips all innate?  Anyway, as I've said, that base "Innate Cantrips" component is very old and pretty busted.  It needs a complete overhaul, but I don't have time or enthusiasm for such a project.  Thanks for the report, though.

I like the "Cantrip Wand" component a lot better: it moves things to the item ability bar so as not to clutter up the already-cluttered innates bar; and it makes the "Minor Missile" cantrip into a ranged weapon attack, so you can set it to keep firing instead of having to click the innate button every round.  I really don't see any advantage to the innate cantrips component over this one, except that with the wand, every wizard has every cantrip and some people might find that overpowered. (But come on, they're only cantrips!)

Lately I've only been playing with the "Level 1 Cantrips" component.  It's a more radical change, to be sure... but it is seamlessly used by enemy wizards and creatures, which is a huge benefit IMHO.

I need to overhaul the innate cantrips option, and I also need to create the blended "use 1st-level slots for spells and cantrips" option.  But there's just no time.

[Necromanx2]

I installed v0.9 and am trying the Arcanist. It looks the the bonus for high abilities on an Arcanist work like the Sorcerer (Charisma). Is this correct?
In BGEE, I did not installed the revised specially mage component. I see that I can put a pip in crossbows, but I can't equip them (I do have the needed strength for light crossbows).
 

EDIT: One more thing. I am getting two spell casts at level 1 when I was expecting 1 cast with an 8 charisma. Is this correct?

Edited September 17, 2020 by Necromanx2

[subtledoctor]

Arcanists use INT for bonus spells. The bonus only kicks in after you rest, so casual testing might not reveal it. 

EDIT - actually maybe it does kick in immediately. I forget. It should definitely appear after resting though. NB, this is a bonus to your casting slots - the number of spells that appear when you press the ‘cast spell’ button. It does not apply to memorization slots, i.e. the boxes in the spellbook screen. 

I think 2 casting slots is normal at first level. I more or less follow the Dragon Disciple table for casting slots.

[Necromanx2]

I see I need to be more patient.  It takes time for things to take effect and if I do things too quickly it looks off. Like the Evermemory ring, it can take 15 seconds for the bonus to show up so at first it looked like it wasn't working (but it does work per you note of one extra spell cast only).
The Arcanist is really cool and I am looking forward to playing him more!

[Necromanx2]

Question: Should the Arcanist not be able to select and cast spells even with a 12 INT? I can't do either with a 12 INT.

Could be lack of patience again on my part.

Edited September 18, 2020 by Necromanx2

[Guest The Wire]

14 hours ago, Necromanx2 said:

I installed the ~TOMEANDBLOOD/TOMEANDBLOOD.TP2~ #0 #67 // Choose-Your-Own Familiar: 0.8.54 component and am able to select my familiar.
When I talk to my familiar I get the SoD dialog instead of the familiar dialog.

I'm having the same issue.

[Endarire]

@subtledoctor
To clarify, if we respec Edwin into an Arcanist or a Sor, what does Edwin's Amulet do?