Ajantis requirements for romance?

[Minarvia]

I'm playing BG1 for the first time again in years and am now doing it with this mod and SCS. I wonder, tho, does Ajantis romance neutral females? I want to play a Druid, but I'm kind of scared to because I found out the hard way after wasting many hours as a bounty hunter that Ajantis breaks a romance with a thief. Fine, if I had known that first! I wish he hadn't even started it, really.

Sooooo, will he romance a neutral? Will reputation affect the romance? I don't intend to become disliked, but would a time of average be okay?

[cmorgan]

/* Script file for Ajantis Romance */
/* Romance Match */
/* For romance, Player1 has to be non evil female human, half-human, elf or halfling. for thieves, romance will start but stopped by Ajantis */
IF
 Global("X#AjantisRomanceMatch","GLOBAL",0)
 Global("X#AjantisRomanceCheckMatch","GLOBAL",0)
 Gender(Player1,FEMALE)
 ReputationGT(Player1,10)
 OR(4)
Alignment(Player1,MASK_GOOD)
Alignment(Player1,LAWFUL_NEUTRAL)
Alignment(Player1,NEUTRAL)
Class(Player1,DRUID_ALL)
 OR(4)
Race(Player1,HUMAN)
Race(Player1,HALF_ELF)
Race(Player1,HALFLING)
Race(Player1,ELF)
THEN
 RESPONSE #100
SetGlobal("X#AjantisRomanceCheckMatch","GLOBAL",1)
SetGlobal("X#AjantisRomanceMatch","GLOBAL",1)
END

De-codified code:

Ajantis say "Yes, M'Lady, I serve both Helm and You" to Females, reputation 10+, Alignments: Neutral, Lawful Neutral, all forms of Good, and specifically Druids, Races: Human, Elf, Half Elf, Halfling. Romance killers: rep drops way low (he will warn you several times, but his response to evil is to kill it, so if you go too far be prepared to kill or be killed. Thieves can go only so far before he wakes up and shakes the dew out of his eyes (otherwise the Order would be all over his butt. I mean really - a Paladin and a Thief? By Helm's GreatSword!). If you romance Xan or Coran (or both) and have installed Female Romance Challenges, you can have some great interactions; once bonded to another, though, like any good gentleman he bows out. Until then, he will contest for your favors. Unlike others (*cough* Viconia *cough*), Ajantis is true to his Order - you can't seduce a Champion to the dark side!

 

 

As an aside (not for you, but for folks looking at this post later on when they do a forum search ),

I STRONGLY suggest NOT trying the Multiple Romance tweak with Ajantis (from any source, but the latest is the one in BG2 Tweaks). This is the most involved and complicated piece of code I have ever seen, and I have spent the last three months reading everybody's code I can find to learn from them. Jastey did a wonderful, masterful job of providing a carefully tailored experience -- messing with it will have multiple (non-fixable, almost impossible to figure out, all unintended) consequences!

[Minarvia]

/* Script file for Ajantis Romance */
/* Romance Match */
/* For romance, Player1 has to be non evil female human, half-human, elf or halfling. for thieves, romance will start but stopped by Ajantis */
IF
 Global("X#AjantisRomanceMatch","GLOBAL",0)
 Global("X#AjantisRomanceCheckMatch","GLOBAL",0)
 Gender(Player1,FEMALE)
 ReputationGT(Player1,10)
 OR(4)
Alignment(Player1,MASK_GOOD)
Alignment(Player1,LAWFUL_NEUTRAL)
Alignment(Player1,NEUTRAL)
Class(Player1,DRUID_ALL)
 OR(4)
Race(Player1,HUMAN)
Race(Player1,HALF_ELF)
Race(Player1,HALFLING)
Race(Player1,ELF)
THEN
 RESPONSE #100
SetGlobal("X#AjantisRomanceCheckMatch","GLOBAL",1)
SetGlobal("X#AjantisRomanceMatch","GLOBAL",1)
END

De-codified code:

Ajantis say "Yes, M'Lady, I serve both Torm and You" to Females, reputation 10+, Alignments: Neutral, Lawful Neutral, all forms of Good, and specifically Druids, Races: Human, Elf, Half Elf, Halfling. Romance killers: rep drops way low (he will warn you several times, but his response to evil is to kill it, so if you go too far be prepared to kill or be killed. Thieves can go only so far before he wakes up and shakes the dew out of his eyes (otherwise the Order would be all over his butt. I mean really - a Paladin and a Thief? By Helm's GreatSword!). If you romance Xan or Coran (or both) and have installed Female Romance Challenges, you can have some great interactions; once bonded to another, though, like any good gentleman he bows out. Until then, he will contest for your favors. Unlike others (*cough* Viconia *cough*), Ajantis is true to his Order - you can't seduce a Champion to the dark side!

 

 

As an aside (not for you, but for folks looking at this post later on when they do a forum search ),

I STRONGLY suggest NOT trying the Multiple Romance tweak with Ajantis (from any source, but the latest is the one in BG2 Tweaks). This is the most involved and complicated piece of code I have ever seen, and I have spent the last three months reading everybody's code I can find to learn from them. Jastey did a wonderful, masterful job of providing a carefully tailored experience -- messing with it will have multiple (non-fixable, almost impossible to figure out, all unintended) consequences!

 

Thank you so much! At least I know I can finish a game this way. I don't know if I have the female romance challenges installed, tho, I'll have to check! But I know that I never install a multi-romance.

Thanks again for the quick and thorough reply.

[jastey]

Thank you. I would like to add that reputation of min 11 will start the romance, but sometime after a reputation of 16 is required to continue.

[Minarvia]

Thank you. I would like to add that reputation of min 11 will start the romance, but sometime after a reputation of 16 is required to continue.

 

Thanks for the help, everyone. I used SK to change my alignment to NG because the romance never seemed to start even tho my rep was at least 11. Anyway, it is going well now, tho I must have hit the stopping point until the next chapter continues.

[berelinde]

Uh, the romance isn't set for Chapters. It's on a timer. You should get a LT every timer interval, provided the conditions of the LT are met (day/night, city/wilderness).

 

Check your romance guide. You might want to find your last LT, find the next one, and check your conditions. If it's been longer than your set interval and the conditions are met, something might have gotten stuck.

 

If you have player-initiated dialogs enabled, you might want to give Ajantis a poke to see if there's anything in the cue.

[Minarvia]

Uh, the romance isn't set for Chapters. It's on a timer. You should get a LT every timer interval, provided the conditions of the LT are met (day/night, city/wilderness).

 

Check your romance guide. You might want to find your last LT, find the next one, and check your conditions. If it's been longer than your set interval and the conditions are met, something might have gotten stuck.

 

If you have player-initiated dialogs enabled, you might want to give Ajantis a poke to see if there's anything in the cue.

 

Hmmm...you may be right. My game is on hold for a few days but I know that nothing has happened for hours real time. I just assumed that I have to get to some part about my pc's heritage in order for it to continue. My rep is super high and I'm in the City now. Still nothing. Checked the PID's. Nothing new. Weird...

[berelinde]

Well, if your game is on hold for a while, check the romance guide when you get around to it. If you've already passed a rather significant point in your relationship, i.e. you know how he likes his eggs, then you may indeed be out of LTs until after you find out a bit more about your family. But you should still get flirts!

 

Just for kicks, I was trying to see if I could make it to the romance challenge before somebody went committed (nope, darn it!), so I had Ajantis, Coran, and Xan all romancing at the same time. *And* I have Kivan in the party. Between the LTs, flirts, banters, and Kivan's very nice friendtalks, it was a little tough to keep the game moving forward at times (not that I'm complaining.)

[Minarvia]

Well, if your game is on hold for a while, check the romance guide when you get around to it. If you've already passed a rather significant point in your relationship, i.e. you know how he likes his eggs, then you may indeed be out of LTs until after you find out a bit more about your family. But you should still get flirts!

 

Just for kicks, I was trying to see if I could make it to the romance challenge before somebody went committed (nope, darn it!), so I had Ajantis, Coran, and Xan all romancing at the same time. *And* I have Kivan in the party. Between the LTs, flirts, banters, and Kivan's very nice friendtalks, it was a little tough to keep the game moving forward at times (not that I'm complaining.)

 

Darn, don't know how he likes his eggs! I still get the flirts, tho. I'll try a few more things and see if I get the next LT. Thanks for responding, Berelinde. I do have another question for you, tho. I want to try to have all 3 guys vying for my pc, but I don't know how to do it. What I mean is, I can get Ajantis and Xan fairly quickly, but how can I get Coran quickly? I can never get to that stupid area early on. It seems I have to do a bunch of little areas and the Nashkel Mines before I can even open up the Cloakwood areas. So by the time I reach Coran, I've already had to choose either Xan or Ajantis. Of course this is my first playing of BG1 in years so I just probably don't know all the "little tricks" people can use when you know it as well as I know BGII.

[berelinde]

You know, I've been trying to figure out how to do that, too. This is the best answer I can come up with after thinking about it for quite a long time. I haven't tried it yet, but we'll see if it works.

 

Set Ajantis and Xan's timers to whatever you would your timers to be in the end. If you're going to go through the game quickly, I would recommend 45 minutes. If you're going to take your time, clear each map section completely, etc, I'd recommend something longer, like an hour or an hour and a half. Set Coran's to 15 minutes.

 

If you like playing with a full party, you're going to get Immy, so get her, then shoot up to the FAI and get Jaheira and Khalid. You can pick up Xzar and Montaron, if you like. Up to you.

 

Then, go down to the Nashkel mines and pick up Xan. Send Xzar and Montaron away, if you have them. Xan will fire off his first LT as soon as you leave the mine.

 

This is going to sound weird, since it goes against everything we know about BG2. When you dismiss an NPC from the party, it does not kill the romance. This was a deliberate design. Still, to be safe, I always create a separate save, just in case, called something I won't forget like "Charname before ditching Xan."

 

Pick up Edwin. Send Xan away. Send him to wait at the Friendly Arm Inn.

 

Pick up Minsc and go rescue Dynaheir.

 

Now that you have your full party, go pick up Ajantis. You're going to have to loose somebody. I recommend Jaheira and Khalid at this point. I usually send them to the FAI. Go back to the FAI. Let him fire off one LT. He will probably have done so by now, but if not, pause the game for a while until he does. Dismiss him, and send him to wait at the FAI. Don't be freaked if he leaves the room. He always does. And don't be put off by his leaving dialog. He'll still be happy to see you when you return to collect him. I always save before dropping him off, again with a separate name (Charname before ditching Ajantis), to be safe. Next time you re-enter the common room of the FAI, he'll be there.

 

Now, you've got Immy, Minsc, Dynaheir, and Edwin. Pick up Jaheira and Khalid. Lose Edwin. I never care where he waits, because I don't go get him again.

 

Go get Kivan. It's your choice who you lose. A coin toss, really, but I might be inclined to keep Minsc and Dynaheir, just to keep one arcane spellcaster.

 

Now, you can get to Cloakwood two ways. You can gain entry by joining or you can go in guns a-blazing, figuratively speaking. I like the latter, myself, but that's just me. Spoilers (highlight to read): If you want to go in by stealth, you're going to have to go to Peldvale and let Raiken take you to the Bandit Camp. Trying that in Larswood isn't going to be an option. Kivan and his reputation, tsk, tsk. I still go to Larswood to get more scalps. Besides, just because I know what will happen does not mean the pc will. Then I go north through Peldvale to the bandit camp. Spoilers (highlight again): Tazok will not be there. Everyone will be hostile. The second in command is one tough dude. It's going to be a hard fight. Enter the tent, and have a good look around.

 

Cloakwood is now open!

 

Go back to the FAI, pick up Xan and Ajantis, get rid of Minsc and Dynaheir, and cut across the bottom of the FAI screen to leave it on the left and go to Cloakwood. You're going to enter at about the mid-point on the right-hand side of the map. I usually just cut straight across until I get to Coran.

 

By now, Ajantis and Xan will each probably have fired off one, possibly two LTs. Let Coran catch up, but keep your romance guide open, because he flirts a lot, and his flirts do resemble LTs. The boys will start bickering immediately. Once Coran catches up, reset his timer by re-running setup-BG1NPC. Set it to the same time as Ajantis and Xan. If you have several mods installed after it, this is going to take ages.

 

Unfortunately, you're still probably going to have one of the boys want things to be serious before you get to that conflict. I wish there was a way to shorten that timer.

 

Now, start clearing map sections and doing quests. You've gone to the bandit camp, so Kivan won't grumble about not starting his quest early enough.

[cmorgan]

You know, I've been trying to figure out how to do that, too. This is the best answer I can come up with after thinking about it for quite a long time. I haven't tried it yet, but we'll see if it works.

 

Unfortunately, you're still probably going to have one of the boys want things to be serious before you get to that conflict. I wish there was a way to shorten that timer.

 

 

OK, hmmm... I don't think Domi intended for you folks to have to jump through so many hoops to make it all work... is this perhaps an unanticipated side-effect of the timered components? Perhaps the next-summer-absolutely-final-version needs to have a separate set of triggers (messing with the timers might not be possible, as there are too many ways to go about this, but perhaps a set of PID options that "unlock" the conflict materials in a more orderly way)?

 

I would consider this a bug fix rather than new feature, as I am darned sure that Domi didn't spend all of that time and energy only to have it be that hard to trigger. This is a Romance component, not an Easter Egg!

[berelinde]

Maybe something along the lines of a shorter conflict timer would work. It is insanely long.

 

That, and not start the romance track until everyone is assembled. How would you do this, you might ask? Well, go ahead and run the match on joining, but set romance inactive to 1. Then, include a PID that signals that it's OK to start the relationship. When the player chooses that option, the romance active gets set to 1.

 

Possible dialog choices to add to the regular friendship one that indicate an interest:

To Ajantis: Ajantis, would you mind telling me a little more about yourself?

To Coran: Do you sing?

To Xan: Smile, Xan. You do have friends, you know.

 

Alright, it's horribly contrived and lacks any kind of organic feel. But it does contain the tiniest seed of realism. Sure, I've never met a guy who was so afraid of rejection that he wouldn't at least try to get a conversation going with a woman he was interested in, but it is theoretically possible.

 

There has to be a better way.

[jastey]

Don't be freaked if he leaves the room. He always does. And don't be put off by his leaving dialog.

Hm, I didn't touch the leaving dialogue for the romance, maybe I should have...

 

And no, the romance conflict isn't meant as an easter egg that the player only gets to see after several re-installing and a lot of pausing and game-organising. It was a lot of work for little output (so to say) and should be made available easily for the romance cases if the males are in the party. I don't know how the challenge is triggered, but a shorter timer if all men (or at least Ajantis and Coran) are in the party sounds like a reasonable first option.

[cmorgan]

OK, sounds like in my "reorganize my desktop and figure out what I'm supposed to be doing" session this weekend, I need to mark up some stuff for the BG1 NPC Next-Year Platinum Edition:

• Rebuild Romance Conflict component for better triggering/integration, so that folks can begin the content when they are interested in doing so.
  
• Rebuild or with Domi re-author the Dynaheir Romance end cutscene to both work as intended and be compatible with BGT.
  
• Hire Plasmocat/bring her small mice and lizards so that she retools all of the Optional Portrait components to be consistent (and pretty )
  
• Redo all documentation to reflect the final game state/dialogues
  
• Finish all the behind-the-scenes variable renaming/code standardization
  

Plus the regular shakeout of minor bugs. Judging by numbers of posts and passsionate responses, my bet is the priority order should be Challenges working as top priority after the BGT side of the installer is working on that side of things.

 

If anyone has further ideas/brainstorms on the Challenges, please feel free to tuck them here. I will move the topic when I am not running between classes/ensembles/practices!

[Wanderer]

[*] Hire Plasmocat/bring her small mice and lizards so that she retools all of the Optional Portrait components to be consistent (and pretty )

Does Plasmocat's recent BG1-portraits-in-BG2-style pack allow for a choice of which ones to install? My guess is no, so I haven't installed it. Perhaps combining it with the other BG1 Portrait Pack...