Let's put the Black Pits 1 into BGEE!

[Endarire]

Is this properly named string in the newest GitHub edition?

Thankee!

[subtledoctor]

Update to version 0.9.2 which sets the BP merchants to only use the later, bigger versions of their stores throughout all 15 fights.

This sounds at first like a bonus, since you will have access to better stuff, earlier. But the fact is, if you are coming here at 6th/7th level then you will already be equipped with very good gear, and this actually reduces the number of things available like potions and ammunition, since the merchants' inventory will not refresh.

On 2/18/2023 at 3:37 PM, Endarire said:

Is this properly named string [Najim's script name] in the newest GitHub edition?

It is not an issue with this mod - it is some other mod that comes later and messes up BPNajim.CRE. So there's not much I can do about it here.

You can install this hotfix at the end of your install if you are concerned about this problem.

[Endarire]

@subtledoctor
'Sup, doc?

Over the past 2 days, I wrote this script for BP in EET to better contextualize Baeloth's recruitment in SoD if the party beats him in BG1/BP.  It also expands dialog options during this scene to allow fighting M'Khiin and Baeloth if the player chooses.  Baeloth and M'Khiin are still recruitable if CHARNAME handles things correctly, but their recruitability isn't guaranteed.

Enjoy!

[subtledoctor]

13 hours ago, Endarire said:

I wrote this script for BP in EET to better contextualize Baeloth's recruitment in SoD if the party beats him in BG1/BP.  It also expands dialog options during this scene to allow fighting M'Khiin and Baeloth if the player chooses.  Baeloth and M'Khiin are still recruitable if CHARNAME handles things correctly, but their recruitability isn't guaranteed.

Took a look at it. I think 1) your ideas seem fine, and I would have no objection to a mod, or this mod, setting up the SoD "Black Pits" scene in this way. And 2) I definitely do not have the ability to implement that. My experience working with .DLG files is basically tinkering with what already exists and adding a block here, a block there. Some more sophisticated instances, like making various "bardic" kits get bard reactions and stronghold, were the result of very specific instructions from a literal pro.

Like I say, I don't really want this to me my project - it is mostly Beamdog's project, since they created the Black Pits. If anyone who knows how to implement Endarire's script wants to add it here, they can do so and I will fold it into the Weidu mod. Or, they can simple fork the mod in Github and take over the reins.

Right now my focus is... well, my focus is not on this mod. But to the extent I have more to contribute, I am focusing on fine-tuning the "what happens if party members die in the arena" code.

[Endarire]

Thankee.

[subtledoctor]

Honestly @Endarire if you really want Baeloth in your party, you might want to simply not install BP-in-BG. Or install it, but don't actually play it. Or play it, then reload a save from before playing it and move on with your game.

You can reportedly also get a lot of BP content, and more, from the Black Hearts mod, so you might want to look into that. I am including that in my next install.

[Endarire]

Thankee!

I also appreciate your approval of the methodology I used in my BP in EET revised script.

Our backup option is just to reach that spot and spawn Baeloth/M'Khiin.  I've seen the scene of Baeloth & M'Khiins' intro enough to be able to skip it and get on with playing.

[Endarire]

jastey, I was hesitant to tag you, but I ask you since you've worked often with SoD and WeiDU dialogs:  What would be involved programmatically in changing the Baeloth SoD scene to what I posted in the aforementioned Google Doc?

Thankee!

[jastey]

This is nothing I could answer in a few lines, I don't have time to dig into this, sorry.

[Endarire]

Thankee.

A simple, naieve and not necessarily compatible way to handle things is to scrap the scene and make a new one if the party beat Baeloth already in the Black Pits.  Perhaps use different globals and dialog weights going forward.

Beyond that, I'm unsure, but I also know that others know more.

[subtledoctor]

I have not given this very much attention in a long time, but my recent run has identified some bugs. I will be looking at these soon:

— On EET and with Neera in your party, Baeloth’s initial dialogue breaks, preventing you from recruiting him or going to the BP

— Prices of a lot of gear is a bit wacky. To some extent this is due to mod interactions: tipun’s IWD mod, Argent77’s TotLM mod, Angel’s MiH mod, and my own Item Tweaks mod can all overwrite and/or patch these items in ways that unbalances their price relative to the other BP store inventory. Probably there are other mods that affect this as well. I’ll see what, if anything, I can do. 

— I’m going to adjust the script for the penultimate battle to level-gate the earthquake effect. If you go to the BP at relatively low level that fight can be all but impossible. (I think the unmodded BP campaign gets you up to level 9/10 by the end; in my current game I am tackling those fights at level 7.)

— I might actually level-gate Baeloth’s appearance in Larwood? To level 6 or so? This would limit Baeloth to being a Tiax/Alora/Skie late-game NPC. But it would prevent low-level parties being taken to the BP at a time when they won’t be able to escape. 

— I will probably script the special BP geas rings to be removed when you go into the final fight. It’s the end of the campaign after all, and story-wise, Baeloth at that point has literally lifted the restriction on attacking him. It gives you a slight advantage going into the final fight (two ring slots!) but it also removes the minHP/pseudodeath effect, so anyone who dies in that fight dies for real, and depending on the state of your party they might not make it back to the surface. EDIT - this already happens! Nice, one less item on the list.

— I forget how things work in the unmodded BP game, but in my game I can use the Rest button when I am in the waiting area. This makes me question why the game applies pseudo-rest by script after every fight. The fights are a bit unsatisfying when I can go nova every time; there is no resource management required here. So I may remove the scripted auto-rest and instead let the player rest manually to restore spells. If you rest after every fight there will be no difference; but this would allow players to give themselves challenge parameters, like only resting once in each ‘tier’ of fights. 

Edited February 23 by subtledoctor

[jmerry]

41 minutes ago, subtledoctor said:

I might actually level-gate Baeloth’s appearance in Larwood? To level 6 or so?

It's actually already level-gated in vanilla - the protagonist must have more than 10K XP for him to show up. If you feel like tweaking this, it's in BAINVI.BCS.

The vanilla version of the Black Pits has both the scripted rests and the ability to rest by choice. Which you'll probably only take if you just leveled up (the XP is granted all at once at the end of the fight) and need to memorize new spells that you want for the next fight. Going nova every time is kind of baked into the scenario, for both BP and BP2.

Edited February 22 by jmerry

[Morgoth]

Forgot to install this in my first playthrough in BG1. I wonder how much xp I would get

 

Edited February 22 by Morgoth

[subtledoctor]

9 hours ago, jmerry said:

Going nova every time is kind of baked into the scenario

Right, and that's fine... but it would be nice to give players the option to stretch themselves thinner if they want the challenge. Especially since in my scenario you can go to the Pits with a bunch of nice equipment. You can pretty easily blow through a bunch of battles without resting.

9 hours ago, Morgoth said:

Forgot to install this in my first playthrough in BG1. I wonder how much xp I would get

I'm on fight #13 in my current game, two more fights and then I can check my xp totals before and after. If I recall correctly from my playthrough last year, I think it is about 20K xp for each party member. A decent chunk, but it's not going to change much as far as your experience in late BG1 and beyond.

EDIT - just finished it, was worth about 18,000 xp, with monster xp tweaked to 1/2 normal. Probably about 24,000 without that tweak.

Edited February 23 by subtledoctor