GemRB with mods, spawning hordes of enemies.

[Fernside]

Looking for some help with an ongoing problem I’ve had running a mega-modification build of BGT-Weidu through GemRB. After the installation of all mods, the build functions normally on a Windows 7 machine, however when run through GemRB on a new game on a Linux based system (Arkos for Anbernic RG353P) an overwhelming number of monsters spawn in vanilla areas (eg 6 wolves or bears instead of 1 in the area straight after Candlekeep) making the game unplayable.

Initially, I thought the component of ‘Dark Side of the Sword Coast’, which changes monster spawn rates was responsible, however after uninstalling and reinstalling without this component, and then without DSotSC completely, the problem was the same.

The mods I have installed with this build are in order: BG1Patch 5512, BG2 Unfinished Business, Check the Bodies, Region of Terror, Shadows over Soubar, BGT-Weidu, (Dark Side of the Sword Coast), Northern Tales of the Sword Coast, BG1 Unfinished Business, BG1 NPC Project, Ascension, BP-BGT Worldmap, Infinity Portrait Pack, Generalized Biffing.

Any help would be appreciated.

[lynx]

What version of GemRB are you using?

[Fernside]

According to the title screen, version 9.1.

[Fernside]

52 minutes ago, lynx said:

What version of GemRB are you using?

According to the title screen, version 9.1. I’m downloading via a third party client (portmaster) for Arkos (OS for Anbernic handheld devices), which does not seem to be updated for 9.2 or I would have used that, not sure how to go about installing myself without portmaster.

Edited September 4, 2023 by Fernside

[jmerry]

The spawn points in the first area out of Candlekeep, specifically, are weaker than those in other BG1 wilderness areas. There's a "difficulty" parameter which is much lower for those first-area spawns than it is elsewhere, and monster spawn numbers scale to that difficulty. An "increase spawn rates" mod would likely wipe out this difference.

Now, the EE spawn points are what I'm familiar with; anything I know here will inevitably be distorted compared to the setup you have. But the issue specifically in that area is probably still the same.

The other scaling factors for monster spawns: party size and levels, monster "power level". The latter is the same field as XP for playable characters, with values like 3 for a kobold, 7 for a wolf, 12 for a black bear, or 25 for an ankheg. If you put monsters with zero power level on a spawn point, that spawn will come out full power every time. This doesn't happen in standard BG1, but it does in BG2 where the game instead relies on the "Maximum spawned creatures" parameter to control spawn point size. If a mod messes with spawn point monsters, that's another thing that could come up and cause those big packs right out of the gate.

The party-based scaling ... I know how that works in the EE, but the system may have been changed. Add the levels of everyone in the party (multiclass characters use their average level), and spawn numbers are proportional to that. So you see small groups when you're just starting out, and larger groups when you have a full party near the level cap.

[lynx]

Yeah, I guess it's some other mod. I just tried entering the first area out of Candlekeep (ar2700) on a fresh game 3 times and always only one (dire) wolf spawned at spawn point 5.

Btw, kloptops contributed the port and he's still active, so you can ask him to rebuild it for the new release.

Also, you have to start a new game when testing. Area files get cached in saves, so potential mod damage would persist.

Edited September 4, 2023 by lynx

[Fernside]

8 minutes ago, lynx said:

Yeah, I guess it's some other mod. I just tried entering the first area out of Candlekeep (ar2700) on a fresh game 3 times and always only one (dire) wolf spawned at spawn point 5.

Damn, I was pretty optimistic of a solution when I saw you’d replied!  Thanks for your help though. I’m guessing just try removing mods one at a time? It’s almost like a level scaling issue but I can’t think of anything I’ve installed that would involve that.

[lynx]

You can just ctrl-y kill the extra spawns and call it a day.