Alter Weapon Proficiencies and NPC pips

[cdds]

When using the "Alter Weapon Proficiency System" options, how are pre-allocated points of NPCs handled?

For example, BG-style proficiencies combines bastard swords and long swords (etc.) into a single "large sword" proficiency; if an NPC would normally have 1 pip in bastard swords as well as 1 pip in long swords, will he now have 1 or 2 pips in "large swords"? In the former case, what happens to the unused point? In the latter case, does this account for proficiency limits for certain classes?

Thanks!

Edited September 12, 2022 by cdds

[CamDawg]

It's a two-step process. For joinable NPCs the component looks at current number of pips and then tries to map the old proficencies onto the new, while counting up the 'extras'. So if an NPC had three pips in bastard swords and two pips in two-handed swords, it would keep three in large swords and count the other two as extra pips. If weapon styles are not enabled, any existing pips in weapon styles get removed and counted as extras.

Once the mapping is done, it'll try to allocate those extra pips. First it looks up the class/kit to find limits on placement so we don't allocate the pips illegally. (It should be noted that if the NPC has existing illegal pips, these will be preserved. It's only checked when placing the extras.) It'll try to place the pips in unmaxed proficiencies--following the above example, if the NPC is allowed five pips in large swords, it'll try to use those extra pips to max large swords. However, it's an automatic process--those extra two pips from two-handed swords could end up trying to max out another unmaxed prof like axes or missiles; there are no 'preferred' placements for extra pips. If pips are still available after attempting to max out all of the existing profs, it'll select a new prof and start investing points to its max, with the weapon styles (if enabled) filled last. The only way pips are still left after all of that is if the NPC now has maxed profs in everything legal for their class/kit.

[cdds]

Thanks for the detailed answer! As a follow-up: according to this thread some enemies in SoA/ToB use BG2 profs and some use BG1 profs. Can using BG-style proficiencies (or IWD-style proficiencies) mess up the proficiency allocation of enemies; e.g. a mace-wielding enemy with profs in "Mace" no longer has the appropriate weapon profs after installing the tweak component? I presume you only edit proficiencies, not creature files...

Edited October 9, 2022 by cdds

[CamDawg]

Nope. Long explanation follows, but the tl;dr is that the oBG and BG2/EE proficiency systems co-exist just fine. What all of the various flavors of Alter Weapon Proficiency do is alter the BG2/EE system to the desired end without touching the underlying oBG system.

Creatures have two sources for weapon proficiencies. There are old BG profs, which are set int he creature file (0x6e - 0x75) and tied to a weapon's item type (0x1c). This was the system for oBG, and still works in oBG2 and the EEs, and remains the main method that non-joinable NPCs and monsters set proficiencies. The BG2/EE system is a series of opcode 233s attached to a creature file, and tied to the proficiency field (0x31) of an item. When you select pips for a party member or your PC, this is what it's using. Non-joinable NPCs can use the BG2 system as well, though the majority use the oBG system.

Alter Weapon Proficiencies (all flavors) exclusively alter the oBG2/EE system. Item types aren't changed, nor does it mess with the oBG prof fields on creatures, so the underlying oBG system remains unchanged. When you choose the BG option, what it's doing is converting the BG2/EE system to emulate the BG system, so you essentially have the original oBG system, plus the BG2/EE system altered to look like the BG system. Under the hood it's still using op233 against weapon proficiency fields, but it's changed the name of the profs and changed the proficiency of items to match the new scheme. Creatures with existing pips (existing op233s) also get mapped to the new system, as outlined above.