Song and Silence

Song and Silence: A Mod for Bards and Thieves adds many options to those who use thieves and bards. It includes a selection of items tailored to bards and thieves as well as nine new kits. The mod works on the original Baldur's Gate II (with or without the Throne of Bhaal expansion) as well as the Enhanced Editions of Baldur's Gate, Baldur's Gate II, and Icewind Dale. The conversion projects BGT, Tutu, and EET are also supported.

This mod is designed to work with Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition, Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition, BG2: Shadows of Amn (with or without the expansion pack Throne of Bhaal), Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition, and with the mod conversions Enhanced Edition Trilogy, Baldur's Gate Trilogy, and Baldur's Gate Tutu. The mod is fully compatible with the changes made in the Ashes of Embers "Universal Weapons" component, provided Song and Silence is installed after it. The Rogue Rebalancing and Refinements mods from Spellhold Studios also alter rogues (bards and thieves); if you are using these then you should get the benefits of whichever was installed most recently. Until I get HLAs (High Level Abilities) done in this mod I would recommend installing one of them before this mod, so you get their HLAs and my new kits and changes to classes. All the new kits in this mod currently use the standard HLA tables so will be compatible with Refinements and Rogue Rebalancing. If you have kitted Imoen or Nalia with the Adventurer kit from the NPC Kitpack, installing Song and Silence's Adventurer kit will update them to the (slightly different) S&S version of the Adventurer. The Acrobat and Chorister bard kits will use the additional songs from IWDification's Bard Song component.

Song and Silence contains the following components which can be installed independently of one another:

Changes to trueclass bards and thieves, and unmodded game kits

This is required for all other components.

This component changes thieves and bards to be more in line with P&P rules and my own personal views on the classes. Firstly, alignment restrictions have been changed. Thieves can now be of any alignment (previously Lawful Good was prohibited), as can kitless Bards and Blades. Jesters and Skalds can now be of any non-Lawful alignment.

Secondly, this component fixes several bugs to do with bards and rogues in the unmodded game. These are listed below. Some of these bugs may be fixed by other mods/patches/fixpacks such as Baldurdash. There will be no problems with having the fixes from both sources installed.

  • Blades not actually suffering a penalty to their Pick Pockets skill as the description states.
  • Skalds were not getting a bonus to hit as the description states.
  • Swashbucklers had incorrect maximum proficiency slots in Katana, Crossbow, Short Bow and Sling.

Thirdly, Thieves (kitless and kitted) can now place 3 proficiency points in Two Weapon Fighting Style. The Swashbuckler description has been altered to reflect the fact that this is now not unique to them.

Further versions will include HLA changes - at the moment I would suggest using aVENGER's Rogue Rebalancing from Spellhold Studios as an alternative. aVENGER has graciously allowed us to use his work as a basis for HLAs in this mod, so if you've been using Rogue Rebalancing and liked that you should hopefully enjoy this mod too!

Add new bardic store and thief items

This component adds a new storekeep, Raoul, to the game who sells a variety of interesting new items. These are mainly for bards but other classes may find something to suit as well... So be sure to take a peek. Raoul can be found standing between two tents at the Nashkel Carnival in BGEE/BGT/Tutu, and outside the Five Flagons at the Merchant's Square in the Athkatla Bridge District in BGIIEE/BGT/BG2. Note that while Raoul will appear in both the Carnival and the Bridge District in BGT games, his store inventory will not carry over from Nashkel to Athkatla.

A selection of new items designed with thieves in mind has also been added; in BGEE/BGT/Tutu they can be found in the inventory of Black Lily (in the Thieves' Guild in the city of Baldur's Gate) and in BGIIEE/BGT/BG2 you can find them with Roger the Fence (in the Sewers of Athkatla underneath the Temple District).

Install Acrobat bard kit

ACROBAT: As entertainers, most Acrobats are typically found accompanying carnivals or circuses, although a troupe of Acrobats can put on a remark­able show all by themselves. The often perform in large taverns or in clubs, using their arts to draw in the crowd and captivate them long enough for the proprietor to drain their purses. Acrobats are flashy and love to show off their skills; whatever they do, they like to do with a sense of style and a flair for the dramatic. Acrobats sometimes become cat burglars extraordinaire, and they are also useful adventuring allies, as they can squeeze into places where others cannot go without the aid of magic. Their skill at avoiding traps and other dangers also makes them excellent scouts.

Advantages:
- +1 bonus to Armor Class
- +1 bonus to Armor Class vs. missiles every 8 levels
- May place up to 2 proficiency points in slings, darts and daggers

Disadvantages:
- May only place proficiency points in weapons a thief can use
- May not wear armor heavier than Studded Leather
- Only has one-half normal lore value

Install Chorister bard kit

CHORISTER: Music, whether hymn, symphony or dark chanting intonation, plays an important part in the services of most deities. For aiding in performing rituals or just leading the faithful in worship, most holy places have at least one bard, known as a Chorister.

Choristers are not only to be found within temple walls, however; many faiths use them as missionaries, helping to bring new worshippers into the fold. Many an adventuring bard with a religious bent can also end up as a Chorister, finding their prayers answered by the deity they venerate.

Advantages:
- Knows a small selection of divine spells. These are accessed and memorized as Mage spells:
Level 1: Armor of Faith, Cure Light Wounds, Doom
Level 2: Chant, Draw Upon Holy Might, Slow Poison
Level 3: Cure Medium Wounds, Glyph of Warding
Level 4: Defensive Harmony, Holy Power
Level 5: Mass Cure
Level 6: Bolt of Glory

Disadvantages:
- Only has one-half normal Lore value
- Only has one-half Pick Pockets percentage

Install Dirgesinger bard kit

DIRGESINGER: Dirgesingers voice melodies not of celebration and joy, but of sorrow and grief. They seek to spread this melancholy outlook far and wide, believing that only those who give in to their sadness can truly understand the world.

These sad wanderers seek to express their grief through songs that teach the hearts of their listeners the meaning of true sorrow. Some of these fallen bards want nothing more than for others to understand the depths of their loss. A few are sinister creatures who believe that, since joy has been extinguished for them, they must in turn extinguish the joy of others by using their powers to teach the folly of love, the futility of hope, and the finality of the grave. Dirgesingers of this last sort often associate themselves with powerful undead; serving in the courts of vampire lords or lich-kings.

Dirgesingers are limited to non-good alignments.

Advantages:
- Song Curses enemies, giving them a -1 penalty to saves and THAC0
- From level 5 may use a Song of Horror 1/day. This has the same effects as the level 2 Wizard spell, Horror
- From level 7 may use a Song of Grief 1/day. This has the same effects as the level 4 Wizard spell, Confusion
- From level 9 may use a Song of Awakening 1/day. This has the same effects as the level 5 Wizard spell, Animate Dead

Disadvantages:
- Song does not improve with level
- Only has one-half normal Lore value

Install Luring Piper bard kit

LURING PIPER: Luring Pipers are often employed as rat-catchers or similar vermin control specialists by townsfolk or farmers. By using their enchanting song they are able to charm their foes into traps or away from the town or farmland. However it unwise to cross a luring piper as their song can affect more than just vermin.

Advantages:
- Song charms enemies unless they save vs. spells at +2, with a -1 penalty per 5 levels of the bard
- Has a +1 bonus to saves vs. spells per 8 levels
- Can cast Curse once per day. The opposite of a Bless spell, this gives foes a -1 penalty to THAC0 and saves

Disadvantages:
- Cannot learn mage spells from the schools of Conjuration, Invocation or Transmutation

Install Adventurer thief kit

If you have kitted Imoen or Nalia with the Adventurer kit from the NPC Kitpack, installing this will update them to this version of the Adventurer.

ADVENTURER: The adventurer is a jack-of-all-trades, not so much a thief as a character who takes advantage of general thiefly skills on adventures. An Adventurer is preferred by many adventuring parties, because he is much less likely than other thieves to betray or steal from his own companions. The successful Adventurer knows the value of trust and cooperation, while many a "street thief" has been raised on duplicity and (sometimes literal) backstabbing.

Advantages:
-  +5% to Open Locks and Find/Remove Traps every other level
-  Gains a +1 bonus to all saves at levels 1, 8 and 14

Disadvantages:
-  No backstab multiplier

Install Burglar thief kit

BURGLAR: This sort of thief is the consummate Burglar. He is an expert at breaking and entering the most difficult buildings, bypassing walls, locks, traps and guardians, grabbing the best loot, and escaping unnoticed as stealthily as he arrived.

Advantages:
- +10% to Find Traps, Hide In Shadows, Move Silently and Open Locks
- Can Specialize in Daggers, Darts, and Slings

Disadvantages:
- -20% to Pick Pockets and Set Traps
- Gains trap usage at half the rate of a normal thief

Install Soulknife thief kit

SOULKNIFE: This sort of thief, a being possessed of potent psionic power, recognizes his or her own mind as the most beautiful and deadly thing in all creation. With practice, they have learned to forge their mental strength into a semisolid blade of pure psychic energy. This weapon, known as a mind blade, means that even when unarmed the soulknife is but a thought away from a deadly strike.

Advantages:
- Can achieve Mastery in short swords
- Can manifest a Mind Blade once per day per 10 levels. This short sword is a psionic weapon that lasts for 1 round/level, and counts as being of enchantment 1 higher than it is when determining what it can hit, to a maximum of +5. Each hit heals the Soulknife 1 Hit Point. THAC0 bonus and damage improve by 1 per 5 levels, to a maximum of +5 at level 25. Range improves by 10 every 5 levels to a maximum of 50 at level 25.

Disadvantages:
- Cannot set traps
- Only gets 15 skill points per level

Install Sharpshooter thief kit

SHARPSHOOTER: This sort of thief tends to be a stealthy character, preferring to engage a target from afar with bolt or arrow rather than face them in dangerous melee combat. Unlike the ranger, the Sharpshooter uses her skills to aid her dubious activities involving the property and lives of others rather than the protection of the great outdoors.

Although well-versed in the use of many missile weapons, the sharpshooter is not as resilient as a true warrior and the propensity for missile attacks over melee means that they lack the opportunism of other thieves when it comes to backstabbing. They tend not to see this as a disadvantage, instead striking from the shadows with a well-aimed projectile, or setting a deadly trap for those who would follow, when necessary.

Advantages:
- Can attain Grand Mastery in any missile weapon a thief can use
- May coat his missile weapon in poison once per day per 4 levels. Attacks made with the weapon in the next round will inject the poison into the target, dealing out 1 damage per second for 24 seconds (3 damage for the first 6 seconds). A saving throw vs. poison limits damage to 12 total.

Disadvantages:
- No backstab multiplier

Install Shadowdancer thief kit

Since BGEE/BGIIEE already have their own Shadowdancer, this kit is only available for BG2/Tutu/BGT.

SHADOWDANCER: Operating in the border between light and darkness, Shadowdancers are nimble artists of deception. They are mysterious and unknown, never completely trusted but always inducing wonder when met. Despite their link with shadows and trickery, Shadowdancers are as often good as evil. They may use their incredible abilities as they wish.

Shadowdancers often work in troupes, never staying in one place too long. Some use their abilities to entertain. Others operate as thieves, using their abilities to infiltrate past defenses and dupe others. All Shadowdancer troupes maintain an aura of mystery among the populace, who never know whether to think well or ill of them.

Advantages:
- Gains a +5% bonus to Hide and Move Silently skills per 2 levels
- Has permanent Infravision
- May cast Reflected Image once per day
- From level 5, can summon a Shadow once per day. The Shadow increases in power as the Shadowdancer gains levels, has stealthy abilities, and is summoned for 8 hours.
- From level 8, may cast Shadow Door once per day. Further uses are gained at levels 14 and 20.

Disadvantages:
- May not set traps
- Only gains 15 skill points per level