SubtleMods: Will to Power, a 2E-inspired psionics mod

[subtledoctor]

1 hour ago, Lauriel said:

FYI - after fixing a couple 2da files, EEKeeper is working again.  Makes me so much happier

.2da files stop EEKeeper from working...??  Can you elaborate on what you fixed?

[subtledoctor]

3 hours ago, Lauriel said:

My latest test gave me 2 abilities.  Is it a mistake because I imported the character?  I don't remember if the import already had an ability when I save it off or not...sorry.  Should I completely start from scratch each time?

Yes, I guess I should make sure to export before getting a talent, but you may want to plug that exploit. 

I confess, I don't quite understand why you wouldn't start a new character when starting?  You can always cheat by importing a character that already has this or that advantage - get all the Bhaal powers, import the character to Candlekeep, get them all again.  Or whatever.  It's just the way that importing works in these games.  Not an exploit that I feel I need to close.

Quote

I'll try using one and see if it self corrects.  It didn't.  Not even after a rest.  I probably don't really have 90 PSPs, but ...sure does look like I do   As soon as I use one, they all show 12, like they're supposed to.

As I've said elsewhere, the displayed number might be larger than normal depending on what happens - e.g. leveling up more than one level at a time can do it, or indeed simply starting an SoD or BG2 game.  I don't fully understand why, or how to prevent it... but it corrects itself the first time you use your powers, so I'm not too worried about it.

2 hours ago, Lauriel said:

Is aura evaluation supposed to be an aggressive spell?  I just wanted to use up PSPs so cast it at a monk in Candlekeep and the entire place aggroed on me.  If it's aggressive, shouldn't it be colored red?  Oh wait...right...your colors mean something different.  Forgot...

It is based on the "Know Opponent" spell from Spell Revisions.  It applies a debuff to the enemy, penalizing their AC by 2 points.  On the one hand, I can see how the idea of simply reading someone's aura would not seem to be offensive by itself.  But on the other hand, making it non-aggressive would open up exploits, like using it on blue-circle entities without repercussion before engaging them in battle.  Or maybe that's okay?  I have to say, I'm kind of torn about this one.

Incidentally, I just installed all components of this mod on BGEE, and I do notice that it shifts the first substantive row of WEAPPROF.2da (the one beginning "ID    NAME_REF   etc.") to the left.  This seems to be the default behavior of Weidu; the code used in this mod doesn't do anything unusual, not even a PRETTY_PRINT_2DA - it just does READ_2DA_ENTRIES_NOW/READ_2DA_ENTRIES_FORMER and SET_2DA_ENTRIES_LATER/SET_2DA_ENTRIES_NOW.  (See here, lines 171 to 354.)  And after installing everything, I rolled an Archer and I could put 1 pip in melee weapons and 2 pips in bows/crossbows, which is normal behavior. 

As far as I understand .2da files, the white space at the beginning of that row is meaningless; each kit identified in that row corresponds to the values below in the column one greater than its own column.  Even if that row is used by the engine (and I'm not sure it is), shifting things around with a couple spaces or tabs doesn't change that correspondence.  (Somebody like @CamDawg or @Jarno Mikkola please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.)  And in my quick test right now, I don't see any problems with proficiencies when this mod is installed.  (Also, the only component that modifies WEAPPROf.2da at all is the "Let Clerics Use More Weapons" component, and you said you didn't install that.)  So for the moment, I'm not seeing any issue there...

Please don't be discouraged by responses like this, though!  This is all really useful information for me, keep reporting anything you see that seems out of place! 

EDIT - to put minds at ease, the next version of the mod will add some space at the beginning of that row in WEAPPROF.2da.  I worry that it is a distraction, though - if you have a bug with proficiencies, this will not fix it...

Edited April 23, 2020 by subtledoctor

[Lauriel]

1 hour ago, subtledoctor said:

.2da files stop EEKeeper from working...??  Can you elaborate on what you fixed?

Oh shoot...I really should keep better notes.  I *THINK* it was SPWI510.2DA and SPWI417.2DA

[Lauriel]

46 minutes ago, subtledoctor said:

t is based on the "Know Opponent" spell from Spell Revisions. 

Ahhh, from it's name I thought it was a 'detect alignment'.  My bad.  I really should read the descriptions.  LOL  Oh, well.  That's what happens when trying to do too many things at once.  I totally suck at multitasking.

[Lauriel]

48 minutes ago, subtledoctor said:

if you have a bug with proficiencies, this will not fix it...

It could have been something else that did it, I don't know.  I can't think of anything else I changed, though.  It might be that something else that installs afterwards is expecting the table to be a certain way.  Who knows.   All I know is I'm not having issues now and that makes me happy.

[Lauriel]

1 hour ago, subtledoctor said:

I don't quite understand why you wouldn't start a new character when starting?

I don't want to go through character generation over and over and over and over....ad nauseum.  So I roll once and export.  This time I must have been curious about the wild talent prior to exporting.  I'm testing, not playing.  Sometimes after testing I see a change needs to be done that requires a start-over.  I don't want to spend hours generating a character.

Speaking of testing and not playing...is there any way I can tell the wild talent check to 'I want to test this one'?  I tried assigning via debug console and EEKeeper and neither one works.  With EEKeeper I can assign it but I can't give it a 'memorized #' more than zero because of some limit it imposes.  And I've upped the 'memorization limit' to 99 with still no joy.  And with NI, you can't add a darn thing.  So anyway, testing specific abilities is pretty much impossible.

Edited April 23, 2020 by Lauriel

[Lauriel]

If you drop a companion and bring them back into the group, they get another chance at a wild talent.  Grey the Dog is becoming a wild talent hoarder because he goes in and out of the group all the time.  And sometimes, we get 2 abilities when it checks for wild talent.  Is that intended? 

Edited April 25, 2020 by Lauriel

[subtledoctor]

Sometimes you get two abilities, yes. About 5% of the time. I thought I made the WT check immunize you against future instances of itself, but I guess I need to tighten that up. 

[subtledoctor]

I've uploaded version 0.9.10, which makes a few small fixes (stuff talked about a few posts up), and makes the Object Reading ability compatible with LeUI.

[Caedwyr]

How stable have you found this?  Is it ready for inclusion in a long list of mods, or is it something you'd advise testing by itself still?

[subtledoctor]

It actually should be pretty stable.  I'm about to include it in a major way in a BG2EE playthrough.  Either Charname will be a psion, or I'll play with an NPC psion through the whole game.  The part that has me worried, for being basically untested, is the late-game, and how these kits will handle HLAs. 

[subtledoctor]

Small update to v0.9.11 to fix the wildly OP Psychic Combustion and to have Cerebral Repair dispel charm and domination effects. 

[Psyrista]

Created an account on this forum just to drop into this thread and say “Thank you @subtledoctor“ for your ongoing work on this and all the other mods you’re working across at the moment.

I’ve been without a PC for nearly 5 years now after the last one bricked, and have only now reached a place where I can justify building a new one. So you can imagine my surprise and excitement when I realise that, while I’ve been away, not only have some brilliant mods been developed for the BGEE series, but some of the most exciting mechanical, kit and power changes I’ve seen are not only now available, but still actively (and diligently) being worked on as we speak!

One question in anticipation of my new deck going live and being able to get stuck into newly modded play through - are the kits in this mod eligible for the Feats introduced in Might and Guile?

I realise they were introduced for single classes and certain kits, and I wasn’t sure how they interacted - aware that Psionist begins as a thief kit but is treated mechanically as a multi class. I didn’t know if this was purely for mechanical reasons or explicitly to manage “spell” progression and limit the power of these new kits? (Largely asking because I’m determined to narrow down the perfect kit to blend backstabbing, passable bursts of physical combat and versatile magic without being crazy OP or agonisingly slow to level)

I’m aware this is a question that should easily be answered once I’m actually able to dive into the game myself, but for now I’m still having to make do with ‘window shopping’ and living vicariously through patch notes and my imagination. 

With that in mind, I totally understand if this question doesn’t warrant the time to answer directly. But at least I got to throw in the ever-important “thanks” all the same. Keep up the great work!

 

[subtledoctor]

No feats for psions. They use something like feats to learn new psi abilities, but they focus exclusively on that - learning psionics. 

Psions are multiclass because they use the cleric class for mechanics, and the cleric class has lots of options for combining psionics with other traits - and they have good base thac0 and hit dice. I could make a single-class psion, but 1) it would be weird to go into the priest class in the menus, to play a secular psion kit; and 2) by making all psion flavors multiclass, it is easy to control their skill advancement however quickly I deem appropriate (e.g. they used to learn one power per level, now they learn three powers per two levels).

1 hour ago, Psyrista said:

the perfect kit to blend backstabbing, passable bursts of physical combat and versatile magic without being crazy OP or agonisingly slow to level

Take a look at the Blade in MnG’s Revised Bards: stealth, spontaneous casting up to 7th-level spells, and access to a lot of combat-focused feats. Or, if a multiclass mage is agonizingly slow to level, maybe a revised Stalker: less magic, but faster advancement and increased durability.

[Psyrista]

Thanks for the swift response. I follow the multi class logic - really, the query about thief feats came from a place of greed rather than actual expectation, but couldn’t hurt to ask!

I appreciate the Blade recommendation too. I think I’d managed to blind myself with the stylistic potential of the Bladesinger, Psionist and variations of Assassins/Shadowdancers through feats to scratch this itch for a versatile, combat capable class. I’m awful for being indecisive when it comes to settling on a class in basically any game, so you can imagine the challenge M&G alone presents without factoring in Psionics! 
 

Cheers again!