SubtleMods: SubtleD's Spell Tweaks

[subtledoctor]

This mod is a collection of the rather large number of tweaks I have made to different parts of the magic system over the years. They have accumulated in various places: Scales of Balance, Tome & Blood, Random Tweaks, etc. Now I am pulling them together into one place. There is a lot here, but it should be a bit more organized now.

The readme is here. 

You can download the mod here.

The first half of the mod consists of fairly broad changes to various aspects of the game's magic systems:

• Rebalance Spells' School Assignments - this endeavors to make sure there are a couple spells of each school at each spell level. Sequencer spells are moved to the school of Enchantment; Power Word spells are moved to the school of Enchantment; Symbol spells are moved to the school of Divination; most cloud-based spells are moved to the school of Alteration; and a couple other small changes.
• Change Specialist Mage Opposition Schools - options are no opposition, BG2 rules, IWD rules, or PnP rules, or one of those three variations with low-level spells up to 3rd level exempt from opposition-school exclusions.
• Magic Resistance Penetration - this component has spells bypass the magic resistance of their target by 5% per spell level above 1st. So a 9th-level spell cast at a target with 65% Magic Resistance would affect them as if they only had 25% Magic Resistance. (NOTE, this is a brand new component and has not been extensively tested.)
• Level Drain effects allow a saving throw - this has various spells and attacks that cause level drain to allow a saving throw vs. death to avoid the effect. So you have another way to fight vampires aside from outright immunity to the effect.
• Revised Illusionary Clones - this component makes Mislead and Project Image work just as Simulacrum does, except the clones can use more magic as you go up in level, and the caster gets progressively better invisibility at the same time. At 5th level Shadow Door becomes "Misleading Clone" which is pure distraction, unable to attack or cast spells; the 6th- and 7th-level clones are weaker versions of the Simulacrum spell; and there is a new 9th-level spell that allows Illusionists to create a simulacrum of any target, including allies and enemies (yes you can create a simulacrum of Draconis or Irenicus etc.)
• Revised Invisibility - this component changes the way invisibility and invisibility detection work, so that you can be invisible to some while visible to others. The Nondetection spell is changed into "Protection from Divination" to work better with this system.
• Haste and Slow Cancel Each Other - this restores the Pre-EE behavior where Haste and Slow can cancel each other and return you to an un-hasted, un-slowed state - rather then one completely overriding the other.
• Cure/Buff Spells Bypass Spell Protections - this allows beneficial spells like Cure Wounds, Slow Poison, Cure Paralysis, etc. to be cast on allies with Spell Deflections or Globes of Invulnerability.
• Cantrip Options - there are three options here: to use a set of 17 innate cantrips, to convert all level 1 spells into castable-at-will cantrips, and to give you a wizard's wand that can cast 8 cantrips as item abilities.
• Choose-Your-Own Familiar - this lets you choose from one of seven familiars, rather than having it pre-determined by your alignment. Each familiar (pseudodragon, ferret, cat, rabbit, rat, spider, and imp) grants a different bonus only when outside your pack, and each focuses on a different thief skill or magical ability.
• Pooky's Mod/Imbue Familiars - this component lets you choose up to 5 spells, from 1st through 5th level, which your familiar will be able to permanantly learn and cast in combat.
• Cantrips for Familiars - if you installed #61 "Innate Cantrips," this component allows your familiar to use cantrips the same way you can.

The second half of the mod includes a large number of small tweaks to individual spells:

• Improve Sunscorch
• Improve Faerie Fire (becomes a proper anti-invisibility spell)
• Barkskin blocks one attack per round
• Goodberry gives party-wide out-of-combat regeneration
• Improve Slow Poison
• Improve Alicorn Lance
• Improve Exaltation and Spiritual Clarity
• Add Faerie Fire effect to Moonblade
• Neutralize Poison removes disease/paralysis as well
• Party-friendly Smashing Wave
• Party-wide True Seeing
• Breachable Blade Barrier
• False Dawn and Sunray bypass Magic Resistance
• Physical Mirror blocks 2 attacks per round
• Better Sol's Searing Orb
• Holy Word Slows targets
• Color Spray can blind target
• Pro Petrification becomes "Mirrored Eyes," extra save against all gaze attacks
• Identify spell improves with level
• Set Sleep victims to wake up when struck
• Change Expeditious Retreat into Chameleon
• Add missile avoidance to Blur
• Party-wide Luck
• Move Mirror Image to 3rd level
• Add lingering effects to SR's Stinking Cloud
• Make Web slow instead of paralyze
• Change Agannazar's Scorcher to Melf's Fiery Missiles
• Improve Glitterdust agaisnt invisibility
• Add deafening effect to Decastave
• Move Spell Thrust to 1st level
• Hold Undead/Control Undead bypass Magic Resistance
• Increase range of Icelance
• Allow target of Otiluke's Sphere to access their inventory
• Breachable Fire Shield/Acid Sheath
• Proper illusionary characteristics for Shadow Monster spells
• Improve Waves of Fatigue
• AoE Lower Resistance
• Improve Phantom Blade
• Change Sunfire into Missile Storm
• Change Mantle into Iron Skin (and the druid spell just becomes Stoneskin)
• Make all effects of SR's Chaos mental
• Make all effects of SR's Prismatic Spray physical
• Unbreachable Moment of Prescience
• Move Symbol: Fear to 7th level
• Move Shapechange to 8th level
• Move Black Blade of Disaster to 8th level
• Add instant death effect to Level Drain
• Change HLA planetars into noble genies

*Whew!* That was a mouthful. Enjoy.

Edited October 30, 2023 by subtledoctor

[Morgoth]

Thanks for both of your mods. Hopefully, they are not a send-off. I will have to think about which parts to install in my Bg compilation.

[Thacobell]

Is thing going to go with tweak mods in isntall order, or with item/spell mods?

[Guest VioletUT95]

Hello, I'm having this error when installing the mod with project infinity

//[D:\02 Mods\- Project Infinity -\Tools\WeiDU\249.00\weidu.exe] WeiDU version 24900
//Using Language [English]
//Using .\lang\en_us\dialog.tlk
//Installing [Rebalanced Spell Schools] [2.1]
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Copying 1 file ...
//Stopping installation because of error.
//Stopping installation because of error.
//ERROR Installing [Rebalanced Spell Schools], rolling back to previous state
//Will uninstall   9 files for [SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks\SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks.tp2] component 20.
//Uninstalled      9 files for [SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks\SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks.tp2] component 20.
//ERROR: Failure("Unknown function: spell_scroll_map")
//Please make a backup of the file: Setup-SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks.debug and look for support at: subtledoctor
//Automatically Skipping [Rebalanced Spell Schools] because of error.
//Using Language [English]
//NOT INSTALLED DUE TO ERRORS Rebalanced Spell Schools
//WARNING: unpausing installation will continue from next component.
//
//WARNING: SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks:20 has encounter errors durring installation, exited with ExitCode = 2
 

[subtledoctor]

Incidentally I think the new Innate Cantrips component is SUPER cool. Aot has nothing at all to do with the old version, I completely deleted that and built this from the ground up. (And btw @mickabouille I believe that is the only part of the mod that needs a French translation, I’m pretty sure everything else is covered.) 17 distinct spells, and a dialogue that lets you choose which three of them you want prepared. Lots of flexibility, and a wide variety of choices. 

2 hours ago, Thacobell said:

Is thing going to go with tweak mods in isntall order, or with item/spell mods?

After spell mods like SR, after most kit mods (mostly because the Revised Invisibility component needs to catch any kit-added invisibility spells), but before Tome & Blood. 

[moggadeet]

Apologies if I missed this somewhere, but do you plan to retain the Innate Sequencers component, either here or in Tome & Blood?

[subtledoctor]

1 hour ago, moggadeet said:

Apologies if I missed this somewhere, but do you plan to retain the Innate Sequencers component, either here or in Tome & Blood?

As that is a modification to class abilities, rather than spells (it doesn’t change sequencers’ basic effects), that component remains in Tome and Blood. 

[jastey]

Please note: new guest post in between here.

[subtledoctor]

On 10/10/2023 at 12:49 PM, Guest VioletUT95 said:

NOT INSTALLED DUE TO ERRORS Rebalanced Spell Schools

Ah, it installs if you also install one of the earlier components, but not by itself. I see the problem and it is fixed locally, will update the mod soon. 

There were also two small problems with  innate cantrips, a missing icon and a missing .VVC. Got those fixed too. 

EDIT - fixed in version 2.2.

Edited October 12, 2023 by subtledoctor

[subtledoctor]

Ah crap, the functions from the update for the French translations are not working. The Rebalanced Schools components may bork arcane spell descriptions. Be advised. I’ll fix it ASAP.

EDIT -

Fixed in version 2.3. The changed spell schools will now also correctly update the casting sounds and casting animation. Also, the order of the Rebalanced Schools and Revised Opposition Schools got reversed in the recent transition, which was bad; they are now in the correct order.

Edited October 15, 2023 by subtledoctor

[Connelly]

Got an install problem here.

//ERROR locating resource for 'COPY'
//Resource [SPWI200.] not found in KEY file:
//    [./chitin.key]
//Stopping installation because of error.
//ERROR: [mewi2.txt] -> [override/mewi2.txt] Patching Failed (COPY) (Failure("resource [SPWI200.] not found for 'COPY'"))
//Stopping installation because of error.
//ERROR Installing [High-Level Spells Penetrate Magic Resistance], rolling back to previous state
//Will uninstall   1 files for [SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks\SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks.tp2] component 30.
//Uninstalled      1 files for [SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks\SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks.tp2] component 30.
//ERROR: Failure("resource [SPWI200.] not found for 'COPY'")
//Please make a backup of the file: Setup-SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks.debug and look for support at: subtledoctor
//Automatically Skipping [High-Level Spells Penetrate Magic Resistance] because of error.
//NOT INSTALLED DUE TO ERRORS High-Level Spells Penetrate Magic Resistance

No such SPWI200 in a fresh BG2 install, and looking into it... it's Darkness '15, although I'm not sure from what mod it might come right now.

Also, it seems like it's looking for SPWI200. without the file extension? Could that be the problem?

[subtledoctor]

I cannot reproduce this. I just installed the mod on a unmodded BG2EE 2.6 game and there was no problem. From the log, it looks like you may have a file called SPWI200.spl which is not properly formatted, or else you have some leftover cruft from a mod using Olvyn’s Spell Tool, which is listing a file that doesn’t exist in your game. 

The latter sounds more likely… you need to figure out which mod modifies MEWI2.txt to add the reference to SPWI200. 

[Guest Graion@Work]

I don't think you attempted testing this section at all on a ClassSpellTool install. Nor did you reread your own code after the bugreport.

SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks/SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks/comp/major_spell_tweaks.tpa at master · subtledoctor/SubtleD_Spell_Tweaks · GitHub

PATCH_IF (FILE_EXISTS_IN_GAME ~%me_spl%.spl~) BEGIN
		  INNER_ACTION BEGIN
		    COPY_EXISTING ~%me_spl%~ ~override~

You also ignore MEWI1.TXT which includes the first level spells, btw.

For the record, EET moves Darkness, 15" to SPWI200.spl, but if BG2EE has the Fixpack installed prior, the IDS padding will ensure they won't get moved out from the modder-useable slots by it (Faerie Fire and the third SoD spell are moved to SPWI150 and 250, respectively otherwise).

[subtledoctor]

13 minutes ago, Guest Graion@Work said:

Nor did you reread your own code after the bugreport.

I mean, the bug report said it was a

13 hours ago, Connelly said:

fresh BG2 install

soooo... I took that at face value?

And I did reread the code, but didn't see the typo. Which, you know, you could just say "there is a typo." Seriously, wtf is with people's attitude lately?

15 minutes ago, Guest Graion@Work said:

You also ignore MEWI1.TXT which includes the first level spells, btw.

Indeed. That is so.

15 minutes ago, Guest Graion@Work said:

For the record, EET moves Darkness, 15" to SPWI200.spl, but if BG2EE has the Fixpack installed prior, the IDS padding will ensure they won't get moved out from the modder-useable slots by it

None of which is relevant to this component.

Fixed update here.

[Connelly]

47 minutes ago, subtledoctor said:

soooo... I took that at face value?

Ah, I apologize, it was late at night and brainmeats not grokking = not explaining myself properly. The installation with the trouble is indeed EET, but because the only instance of spwi200 in both the game folder and NI that I could find was in the override folder without a clue of which mod created it, I went to look for it with NI in a "fresh BG2 install" in case it was in the game files. Wouldn't be the first time I had a mod complaining about not finding an item still in the game files but not already extracted to override (ie Ascension a few years ago).

Thank you for the quick fix, no issues installing it now!

By the way, minor thing, you got the specialists and school rebalance components using the same text for the installer.

Edited October 17, 2023 by Connelly