Shagret - A NWN2 Module Project

And now for something completely different.

2011-12-04T13:18:00.002-05:00

Monsters - Round 2

2011-08-09T17:32:00.005-04:00

I'vve already discussed monsters before, but a good topic bears repeating. Right? Well, maybe not, but I think I'll discuss it again this week. What I'd like to do instead of focusing on the general design of monsters--which can be somewhat dry--that I'd discuss individual instances of the types of foes the player will more than likely encounter. So, without further ado:

Naga constructed Automatons:

The Gilded Golems featured above are dangerously powerful creatures--you call that a knife? This is a knife!--that would gladly take any opportunity to hack a foe into pieces. Yikes! The best best would be to soften them up. And I do mean literally. Their gold plating, so elegantly wrought by the Naga designers, can be melted off with sufficient fire. This makes them easier to defeat, which is nice, and it makes them not quite as elegant(a Naga is spinning in its grave, I assure you).

The Naga in the back of the picture is an Undorian Viper. These are attempts by the Nagas to fuse mechanical parts with a living creature. There are several varieties of Undorian creatures the player will encounter, and they are all exceptionally dangerous. They must be treated with extreme caution. That said, they are still vulnerable to the over-bearing opulence of Naga craftsmen.

However, not all Naga-crafted automatons are golems or things to that respect. They are frequently experimenting with various magical effects, and their ruins are littered with such "failed" creations. Care should be taken to carefully observe these objects so as to not become a pile of dust. You've been warned!

I'd also like the chance to showcase a track created by Goran Bastinac. This track is for any and all battles within a Naga Ruin. It is suitably dangerous, I think, and links nicely with the previously showcased Naga Ruins ambient track.

Blastoderms and Dendus-Kadahs:

Blastoderms are quite nearly the apex predator of the Julak Swamp. They possess a hide which is, quite literally, immune to all types of magic, and they have a matching ferocity. They are terrifyingly dangerous and ought to be given a wide berth(especially if one were to be silly enough to disturb a nesting chamber; poor Calad made his last bad decision).

However, their magical nature does have an interesting side effect. If a Blastoderm dies while in the Julak Swamp, their body is infected with the water of the bog. It is imbued with the magic and then re-animates the creature as a dangerous, mindless plant monster. Dendus-Kadahs are pestilent creatures, and their vicious bites are nearly enough to kill any creature instantly. They are best avoided at all costs.

Ahrimans:

Ahrimans are cursed, unnatural horrors that are the product of magical experiments gone horribly awry. They possess considerable intellect, and only close on their foes when all other options are exhausted. Their most terrifying ability consists of their death curse. When enacted upon a living creature, death slowly squeezes the soul out of the body(visually represented by the slowly deteriorating, floating skulls). If this curse is not removed, the creature will be snuffed out instantly and their soul forever the Ahriman's possession.

As these are Undead creatures, you might expect to hear their musical track nearby.

Julaks:

The name-sake of the Julak swamp, these awesome predatory serpents scour the swamp lands searching for any and all prey. All creatures of the swamp fear them, and nothing approaches them with anything less than reverence and terror.

These serpents fight by unleashing a blast of concentrated acid upon their prey which is capable of tearing skin straight from the bone. The acid is so volatile that, upon contact with the air, it will creature a caustic cloud that slowly kills anything within it. Leaving the cloud is the only way to survive. Additionally, Julaks are capable of augmenting their normal vocalizations to something of a howl of madness. The Julak's eyes will change hue, and then the beast can induce madness in any creature unfortunate enough to hear the blast. Those poor souls afflicted by this are easy pickings for the Julak.

Julaks are dangerous, but they are still, fundamentally, animals. They are wont to finding a particular territory and then staying there(preferring that towards fighting constantly with rival serpents). Due to this, the location Julaks live in might be avoided somewhat easily and battles avoided. However, a discerning adventurer might use the Julak to their advantage: if caught in a bind, it might be preferable to risk death by the hand of the serpent and lure other foolish prey items near the beast.

I should also like to take the chance to showcase another track by Goran Bastinac. This is for the battle with Julaks. It starts fast, as the creatures burst from the water suddenly, and then gives way the slow march towards the player's demise. Realistically, there isn't much hope if a Julak is challenged without proper gear and tactics.

Until next week, friends.

Happenings

2011-08-01T20:35:00.002-04:00

It's been a while. Dear reader(s), it really has been. Many of you are no doubt wondering: hey, wasn't there a June release? Wasn't there supposed to be some word from you? Well, I have to say I'm not good with introductions; I mean, take this opening paragraph for instance! What's going on here? I'll tel you what: read through the whole of it and it might make sense. No guarantees, but I guess I'll try if you try.

I found a curious item today. While cleaning for a romantic weekend with the significant other, I discovered a sheet of paper giving me a "List of things to complete on Shagret". This was an amazing little artifact to find! The notes were nothing at all referring to what the project was. I think they're interesting(like a mention of a werewolf; what was I doing?) I was fitfully nostalgic. It was like staring back through photo albums, your mind distantly aware of the events but oddly, dimly it may not have ever happened to you. Had this list happened? Had I wanted to do this? I'm not sure. I've been with this project for so long. It's become a part of me(the worse half, let's say).

But, I think people have gotten the impression I've been ignored this little project. Nothing is further from the truth! These little sheets of paper are quite common; common enough, let's say, that I found more than one in my dustbin whirlwind. Then why haven't I been talking about it here? Truth is, I've been waiting on a key piece of CC for some time and, it seems, I won't be getting it. This realization has made it somewhat difficult to say goodbye to several parts of the mod which depended upon its inclusion. My ideas, such that they were for the mod, cannot really go forward now. Those notes which were relevant now appear like quaint artifacts. I wish it could have happened, but it really can't. I need to plan differently. This means there must be some cuts.

And that's something I never really wanted to get into here. It is the truth, however. I generally like to remain silent on my own goings on, but that's how things are now. I feel like, going forward, I ought to be slightly more open about what's going on(I mean, my girlfriend has seen the final boss; why can't I talk with my fans and like minded modders?) It is odd even thinking about it.

Okay, here's a promise for you: someone outside my intimate circle will have Shagret in a month's time. A beta? An alpha? Hell if I know, but someone will play it. And I've got another for you: regular updates. They help me focus, and I need some help finishing things up. I'm prone towards depression and harsh views towards my own work and achievements(minor such that they are). I feel like people seeing what I'm working on, sans some great CC which is now sorely missed, would go very well towards re-invigorating my (somewhat) waning spirit.

Those of you volunteered to play-test: watch your PM boxes and emails. You will be seeing something in the next month. Until next week, friends.

Shagret - Temporarily Delayed

2011-04-18T12:56:00.003-04:00

I've moved the release of Shagret back from the start of June to the end of the month. Why? Some personal things have come up--the good kind, I assure you--and I find myself unable to stay in front of the computer as much anymore.

Also, if you're interested in being a Beta-Tester for Shagret when it nears in on release, please either let me know in the comments or PM me on the Bioware Social Boards. I will listen to every comment I receive and aim to make my "little" project as polished as it possibly can.

(And for those involved in the Community Project I'm working on, don't think this has impacted that. Things will be progressing smoothly with that as well.)

Here are some screenshots of progress. I hope you like them.

Thank you for your patience. This has been a long journey, and I hope it comes to a close soon enough.

Shagret

2010-11-08T19:21:00.010-05:00

This is a story with many starts, and none are adequate to suffice. The PC can't see all sides, neither can the numerous characters you meet. It will not make sense the first play through, and perhaps not the second, but the story is one constructed that there is "meaning", but not in black and white(or grey, or chartreuse either). You must see it from multiple perspectives, and I hope my story offers an interesting way of video game storytelling. The truth is that in time, even devils have their stories to share.

Syue and Euun. Thanks Enrico!

This track wanders sympathetically through the halls of memory. Perhaps, in time, its meaning will become more clear, its purpose more apparent.

Listrum, the Wolf Goddess. Thanks Clarkycat!(compare this track with the one featured before)

You can kill anything in the campaign. Even a Goddess. I wanted a track that, simultaneously, was "heroic", and yet struck back at the false heroism being enacted. This, it seems to me, does an excellent job: a hero deluded with their own excess, striking out in vain.

Thank you for reading. I really, deeply appreciate the time and effort other modders put into their projects; whether you be making a small fishing village or a dragon's den, animating a golem or painting a fence, I thank you. I am, by nature, a perfectionist that never can reach perfection, so I enjoy seeing other people's projects and comments. I know I would not be here writing this post if it were not for the boundless support from you, relatively faceless and formless, community members. Without you, there would be nothing to see here. It might be some time brewing, coalescing--I know this--but do not worry. The show is not over; I'd wager it's just getting started.

How much is too much?

2010-10-18T18:53:00.003-04:00

When constructing a story, how much information is too much? Let's say my story is set in the United States in present day--need I mention the Revolutionary War? Does it add anything to the story? One might say that it implicitly adds something to the story, as a reader might have certain impressions of the United States that stem from that war. However, I cannot imagine these beliefs to be very strong in of themselves, and so they ought not to influence the story too much.

Now, why am I bringing this up? Because, really, many fantasy stories get bogged down in the particular events of their story, becoming nearly fetishistic in their love of historical dates and time. It is important, yes, when crafting a 'new' world that it is believable and all, but we don't need to know everything that happened in it. The character that are currently in the story and their relationship with the PC are more important than the 'Taming of the Grey Hounds in ~1339.gh'. Sometimes, it's better to do more with less.

Again, let's take the example of a novel set in the modern United States. There isn't some long-winded discussion, usually, about the Civil War, the Progressive Movement and McCarthyism. Why should there be? The story is about Jim's relationship with his estranged son(for example), and bringing in other, irrelevant facts distracts from the story at hand. History has its place, and an important one at that, but it must be sidelined in many cases to get a coherent, and relatively brief, story to the reader/player.

Quick and Dirty Area Design Tutorial

2010-09-27T19:21:00.007-04:00

The Idea:

This post is designed to give you the basic tools necessary to make a visually appealing area with minimal effort. I'm going to tell you how I do things, and you can adjust as necessary. Now, mind you, these tips aren't going to make your areas "come to life" instantly; rather, you might now have some additional tools and a general thought process on how to make an area.

This tutorial is for interior areas. On the surface, these might seem to be far easier than an exterior, but there is a certain mindset that is necessary for interior design. There's no texturing, but that means there is added weight on the usage of placeables and other decorations. If you skimp here, the player will instantly become aware of the relatively repetitive textures of interior design. Care must be taken here.

Part 1: That dark feeling.

You've now created an interior area(say, 5x5) for the final section of your goblin mine. The big boss needs a home, after all, and so you need to make sure the area is a functional battlefield as well as possess some degree of visual flair(nothing to win awards by, mind you, but enough to avoid rolling eyes from the player).

Above is the dark, dark void all new areas start with. Wipe your brow, and grab a drink(if that's your poison), and hunker down(preferably with a good playlist and/or cat).

Part 2: So, uh, let's make a dungeon.

When I design areas, I sort of go by whim. "Oh, I like the look of this", or "Maybe there needs to be a hole here." I don't have anything in mind yet, so I'm just dabbing away. I remember a painting instructor telling me many years ago: early on, the picture hasn't shown itself yet, but if look hard enough it'll show itself. Areas are just the same. Right now, there isn't anything there. Later, after we've poked it with some sticks for a while, it'll come to life(hopefully not a zombie).

Basically, just put down tiles that feel right rather than anything else. If you have a grid based dungeon already written--well, that's great! I can see you've already surpassed the teacher(meet me after class). If you don't have a strict idea, don't feel like you need one. The picture will make itself clear.

Part 3: Who turned off the lights?!

This is a goblin cave, as I said above, in that generic-fantasy world where temperate climate is everywhere and chainmail bikinis keep form and function without chaffing(one can dream). So, it's going to be a brownish hue--lucky for us, the default lighting settings for an area have a brown hue to them. What I do, when starting a new area, is to shut off directional lighting and reduce the ground/sky light value by half. This makes the area very dark, but that's the style I like. Your mileage may vary, but hear me out on this. I can explain my thinking.

Part 4: The Focal Point

Now, for an area to have some oomph to it, there should be something special about how it looks. Somethings that draws the player's eye: something that makes them go "wow". This can be a difficult part of design, but it makes the area feel like an aesthetic whole rather than just stuff thrown together. Start to develop an idea of where the area will be going.

For this, we have a bonfire(did I say they should go "wow"?--well, maybe I was too forceful). I figure goblins want to have some light and, more importantly, some well cooked food, so a bonfire helps on several levels. Also, it's natural light: and I always appreciate that. Notice, too, I put some tan interior fog over it. This acts as 'smoke' and makes it easier for the player to see; always a good combination.

Furthermore, consider this post over at the Left 4 Dead blog. Specifically, the mention of how light guides the player. The player will look at things which have light, and so you can indirectly suggest where the player should go without telling them. This is very useful in mods that don't want to have a great deal of dialog, for instance.

Part 5: Leading the way

Now, as I said before, this is an area for a goblin king. So, it can be sort of dirty, but at the same time it can have some "refinement". As such, I thought some floor mats near the fire, some meat cooking, and a throne near the back were a good idea. The mats add a texture difference(less monotony), the meat provides "realism", and the throne continues with the original theme of a goblin king. I've now created another point in the area while continuing with my theme. I think I'd like to go over there and make some changes.

Part 6: Too Subtle Allusions

When I moved over to the throne, for some reason I could not get the image of Jabba's palace out of my mind. He tortured people and had fun--really, living the good life. So, I thought that some torture devices(of different sizes) near the throne was a good idea. They could be used to intimidate potential rivals, scare new prisoners, and for all I know he has a goblin Carrie Fisher in a gold bikini(okay, there's been far too much bikini discussion in this post...I know, I know). Basically, I've started adding some 'character' to this boss with these small placeable additions.

Part 7: Continue the Theme

With Jabba on the mind, I thought a cage nearby would be a good idea(maybe the end of a quest). Again, this makes the guy 'intimidating'. To further this, I added some skull piles/masks at the throne. After all, why not? It helps the goblin character out a bit, and it spices things up. And, of course, I added a corpse over the fire--goblins are pretty evil.

Part 8: Content

Wait a second! If this is going to be the site of a great battle, don't there need to be...uh, enemies? Good point. We were getting ahead of ourselves here. What do goblins like? Wargs. Oh, wait, excuse me. Worgs(real original D&D). So, let's say the goblin king has a favorite worg and keeps it with him. Let's put some posts in the ground that prisoners could be tied to(gruesome, really) and let the beast have dominion over them. I tuck this into the corner, as I'm sure this puppy wouldn't play nice with strangers.

Part 9: Filling in the Gaps

While putting the dog in the corner, I realized this cave was missing rocks. Of all things, rocks. So, I took the time to put some rocks around the area, making sure to leave enough room for battles to take place in and such. I varied their height to make sure that they look visually distinct, while still conveying their rock-ness. They help to make the area feel less like a tileset and more like a semi-vibrant, distinct area.

Part 10: Further Considerations

Isn't there supposed to be treasure here, too? Okay, you got me. So, keeping with the theme of the goblin, I thought he might want to have some of the spoils of victory nearby. It seems plausible, anyways. I throw some crates near him--making sure they're broken open, of course--and place some garbage at their feet. This makes it awfully grungy, and allows for some treasure during/after the battle. The colors, also, don't contrast much, so it won't distract the player.

Part 11: Them Darn Goblins

If we've got treasure here, then there need to be more goblins stationed here. So, I have an empty corner nearby(the only one left), so I fill it in with some guards and weapon racks. Notice, also, I put a light source on them. The player will know, then, that these foes are in the corner. Rather than having them lurking in the dark, the player will be aware of what's going on. Players shouldn't feel like the design of the area is hindering their play; it's just not fun.

Part 12: Nearing the End

Notice, in my first picture, I put down a hole. Why? Well, I thought there might be some water down here. Maybe it doesn't make sense--but, then again, I'm making a goblin cave, so a certain degree of creative license is to be expected. I think water looks right, and it gives me an excuse to put roots on the wall(which, again, matches visually without distracting the player). The light source is entirely optional(there's no gameplay reason for the light here). I thought it looked nice, so I kept it. That's not a really good reason, but it's the only honest one.

Part 13: A Final Decoration

One last section is left, so I decided to throw down a pillar. Why? It makes sense, and makes the cave seem more 'lived in'. I've always thought that goblins were sort of clumsy, so they might even need a support brace to keep the room up and not crumbling. It doesn't add gameplay, but it's better than just putting rocks in.

Part 14: Darkness...Again

I like making areas dark, as rule, so I just darkened things again. With that all done, you can see that that the area retains consistency in design, color and functionality. It won't win awards, but this area would be entirely acceptable for a final room in your goblin town.

The one aspect of this tutorial I want to stress is this: designing areas is best thought of as designing subsections of a larger, cohesive whole. It's like writing paragraphs in a paper. They can't survive on their own, but they collectively work together to make the area complete. The worg could be removed, but something would be lost by doing so. The subsections complete one another. I'm making this sound far more serious than it ought to, but I think my point comes through(I hope so anyways, as I don't feel I'm a particularly effective instructor).

UIs

2010-09-20T22:00:00.004-04:00

This week, I just wanted to talk a bit about some of the UIs I have in Shagret. None of this is very fancy, and I think they go a long way towards spicing things up. At the very least, they provide distinction(which I think is very important in a modding game like NWN2, as it sometimes can seem like I've seen everything before).

My mod starts--relatively speaking, anyways--with the player finding themselves strapped to a Naga torture device. That's about the third worst thing you can find when waking up(oh, yes, I've made a list). They don't like the answers you give--they're a picky bunch--and so you have to fight through this. Now, originally, this was through conversation, but I realized that it was, well, boring. There was no feeling of urgency, danger or anything. Torture can't really be combat, either, so I was in something of a bind. Hench, the idea to create a custom UI to handle things and route the necessary scripts through it. After a bit of figuring, brotherly hello, and a healthy dose of Google searches on .xml coding, I had a working 'torture UI.'

During the torture scene, the player has to click the "resist" button to, well, resist. Your constitution score is factored into this as well as the in-game difficulty. Rest assured, you do not "lose" if you hit 0%. As a matter of fact, there are about 6 different ways this scene can go...

Looks painful. I wonder...if you had the chance, would you exact revenge on the Nagas?

Now, UIs need not be excuses for exciting(!) new gameplay opportunities. Rather, they can be used to allow the player access to information that they probably want to know(for whatever reason that might be). Frequently, when I'm playing, I want to know "how many creatures have I killed" or things like this. Maybe for bragging rights, maybe just because I'm a curious person. I don't judge your own reasons(except if you keep checking to see how many doors you've unlocked: you're probably a pervert). Because of this, I've implemented a stats page for the player to look at.

This shows where to access the stats page. This is a simple and elegant solution, I think.

Red Shards? What are those? I promise you, Shagret requires no collecting.

Font/etc might change--though, really, black font looks horrible in game for some reason--but this is the base idea. The player can check in at any point and see how they're doing with their stats. Simple and straightforward: always nice.

Addendum:

I'd also like to point those curious to a previous post I made on this subject(featuring a lovely new conversation UI). A little bit of change can go a long way, I think.

The Fred has released several lovely UIs on NWVault. At the very least, they're worth looking at. .Xml is not too difficult, really, and I think it can make projects interesting and, well, a pleasure to experience. If you have different 'things' in your mod, people will like you for it(mind you, I'm no expert, just a guy with some screenshots every week or so).

Next week, I hope to have that area design tutorial done. If not that, I want to talk about visual effects and maybe provide a tutorial on them. Until then, have fun!

Monsters

2010-09-13T20:05:00.002-04:00

I love monsters. I love making them. I love reading about them. I love meeting them(though not for dinner). No matter the focus of an RPG, encounters are going to be an important part of whether or not people think it's good. You might write a great story, but if you force the player to slog through area after area of "Goblin Fighters", then there's going to be some animosity coming through via the review. Therefore--though it might go without saying--enemies need to be varied. More importantly, the enemies should find some way to compliment one another. This is interesting, first of all, and requires that the player does more than "Attack Nearest" and go to victory. If you put in a little more effort, your players will thank you in spades.

Achieving this can be pretty simple, really. But it always surprises me how often it's not true. Putting some archers on a fortification can make things far more interesting, or maybe the troop of Gnolls has somehow got a golem under their control. Varying the nature of the opponents you fight and their placement is such a simple way of getting more out of your "action" sequences. I don't profess to be a master, but I do know that this is not done as often as it ought to.

To illustrate, I'll be showcasing a custom creature of mine. This is not a matter of genius on my part, but rather how some small alterations to the game can, hopefully, make for more dynamic and interesting combat situations.

Naga Ruin

I have a fair amount of ruins, but players will feel something different here. There's something unfriendly company just around the next corner.

Vampire Hounds

These dark, feral-eyed hounds drink death. If they are near enemies that die, the hounds become more ferocious with each new soul they devour. Although dangerous to begin with, they can quickly become a threat far greater than a PC is capable of dealing with. This forces the player to prioritize, importantly, and avoid using mass damage spells(killing a zombified lizardfolk might seem like a good idea, but not if it benefits the other undead nearby).

This is not a particularly detailed opponent, really, but rather something that requires attention from the player. You can't just chop through the opponents as they come. Requiring the player to deal with encounters on an encounter by encounter basis will, first of all, be more enjoyable for them, but also let them remember specific sequences. If I can't remember a dungeon room, then it was probably boring. That might be too harsh, I grant you, but it's generally how I design things.

In honor of those hounds--and the other horrible, special undead you're going to see in the dark places of the earth--I'm happy to showcase a music track by Deflektor. Normally, the music for Shagret has a "natural" feeling to it(flutes, exotic instruments and such); for the undead, they had to have music that stood out, made their presence felt. I think this track does a good job at that, and I hope you enjoy it(I know I do, and not the least for it reminding me of the wonderful music from Heroes of Might and Magic 3).

Next week, I'll talk about some UIs I've created. And, lest you worry, there has been some work done on an area design tutorial. It's a "quick and dirty" guide on how to make good looking areas without a huge investment of time. Until then, happy modding!

Environments

2010-09-06T20:21:00.004-04:00

Area design discussions are sure to upset some people. I mean, who likes to make areas? It's time consuming and, on a certain level, a game can play fine without them. Visuals are nothing more than eye candy, for the most part, as they rarely factor into the mechanics of the level(example: I have to go kill an Orc Chief. The fact that the cave is dry/orange more than likely means nothing in terms of the gameplay). So, then, I can understand to a certain degree why there's some animosity from builders on the subject.

Of course, that small amount of eye candy can go a long way(Misery Stone, for instance, marvelously enhances its adventure via visuals). Ideally, the visuals of an area help to provide context for your actions and, perhaps, additional motivation('man, look what cruel monsters these Illithid are!') Our adventures take place in a particular environment and, assuming we can, the areas can then become part of the story, stitching a sort of subtext for the player to understand. How did these ruins come to be? Why is this cave like that? Should I be worried about that growling behind me?

In Shagret, I have spent a large(read: inordinate) amount of time on making sure areas, no matter how banal, are unique. They must have something visually interesting about them and, importantly, not feel redundant. This can be very difficult, as I'm sure you fellow modders know. Below are two caves I made that I feel comfortable showing off.

Court of the Purple Queen: An eerily calm room.

A sudden shift in colors can change the perception of the player. The pinkish hues above will no doubt give pause, and perhaps call for more searching. No doubt there is something strange here.

Submerged Cavern: You feel something move against your leg.

This is the RWS Deep Chasm tileset but modified with the SOZ moss cave textures. I was very impressed with the tileset while going through Legacy of White Plume Mountain, and realized I had to use it. For my purposes, I needed a swampy environment. The results, I believe, speak for themselves(boy, I wish I had some galoshes right about now).

Next week, I hope to talk about some of the monsters you'll meet in these strange locations. Until then, keep your dreams close and your ideals closer.

PS:

For those reading this, is there any interest in an area design tutorial? I know I've received positive comments towards my areas, and I do have some advice on technical design. If there's demand, I'm sure I can throw something together.

Items and Crafting(complete!)

2010-08-30T17:08:00.012-04:00

One of the decisions I made at the start of this project was for there to be no shops. Sorry, but no bartering for you. Shagret takes place out in the wilderness, so the idea of 'gearing up' seemed a bit silly. I want players to take care of their items. Conserve, plan, adapt: basically, you can't just burn through everything on an area by area basis. You need to have enough supplies to fall back on. This is very difficult to balance, but it will certainly create a unique feel that--assuming I do my job correctly--will be fair and rewarding.

Now, there's more to the game than just the items you find. Throughout your travels, the numerous monsters you encounter will drop supplies that you can, in turn, craft into items to aid you. As there are no shops, making sure you find these supplies is important. I wanted to create a system that allowed players to make due with what they have when they get it, but also a system that allows for you to upgrade items as the game goes along(that is, you find a +1 Attack Craft material but you're afraid to use it in case you find a +2 Craft material). My system is being designed, principally, with fairness in mind.

A long time ago, I gave a basic outline of how my crafting system was going to work. I can reiterate the slightly altered points here(for those interested, of course):

1) First, put the crafting objects into your satchel. Next, target the item you want to modify.

2) Only "basic" items can be enchanted. Remember all those copper rings you've found? Well, these are your basic materials. Take an un-enchanted ring, and add what you see fit. Weapons are in the same vein. If you find a "basic" weapon/armor--like a full plate--you can add whatever you want. Note that an "Alchemial Silver Longsword" still is "basic", as it has no properties. The material does not account for anything. Bear in mind, also, that an item with an added property is still craftable/enchantable(complicated to script, but it works).

3) Maximum of three properties. These properties stack, however. So, if I add a +2 Attack roll onto my sword, then decide later to add +2 again, it now becomes +4. Items, then, are never set in stone: upgrades are always an option so long as the number of properties never exceeds 3.

4) You can change the material of an item. These conversions won't be too common, but you could make an iron longsword into an adamantine sword(purists might cringe at this, but I want the option for flexibility...even if the logic is a bit dubious).

I think that covers the basics. With that out of the way--*whew*--I can show off how it looks in game.

I've put a Wyvern Stinger in my satchel. Using the wand, I've selected the basic item. The game tells me what properties will be added.

If I accept, I am now taken to a screen so I can rename the item. Purely cosmetic, but important nonetheless.

I've accepted, and now I have an Axe which does poison on hit. If I wanted to, now, I could add more Wyvern Stingers to make the poison more potent--or, rather, add whatever other properties I see fit(attack bonus, acid damage, etc).

Next week, I think I'll talk about something else design-wise. I realize that, as of late, this blog has not had anything of interest--then again, with all the imminent releases(!), I don't feel too bad. Point being, I hope to have some other things to show later.

A strange weekend

2010-08-09T13:15:00.003-04:00

To summarize: never let someone who professes to be "technologically bad" use your computer to get "the new music". They'll certainly contract a virus and, well, things go from bad to worse very quickly. Luckily, I managed to solve it over the course of...a few hours(and after I got back from work). Point being, that not much got done over this particular weekend.

But, wait, it's been a while since my last update!--what have I been up to since then? Well, it's partially a secret to everyone, but it's also the fact that I've been working on conversations like no other. I avail myself to make sure that all characters have a "unique" conversation(not necessarily long, but certainly more than a single line of dialog). This means that the PC, should they wish to accept the problem, can interact in semi-meaningful fashions with the disparate entities in my virtual world. I hope, at least, that somebody reads them, as there has been quite a bit of work put into this(and, for a certain reader, I have 12 different rabbit conversations, so you should be happy).

Besides that, I can report that the music is almost completely done(40+ tracks) and I hope to showcase some pieces on here soon. I'm starting a new job relatively soon--tutoring students in philosophy--and I'm not quite sure how much time that will take up. Hopefully, I can get some more definite points to you all soon enough. I do love writing and reading, but I know that it can become a bit pat over time; I'd like you all to see some cool stuff.

A short discussion

2010-07-12T20:02:00.005-04:00

I decided, after a fair amount of thought on the subject(and drafts of this post), to not reveal anything about the story. I couldn't find a way to do so properly. There are certain details that, I feel, ought to be kept secret. Despite my statement last week, I think I'll keep the whole of Shagret shrouded in (quaint) mystery. It would be nice to reveal something, and I'll try to come up with some way of doing so, but it isn't a good idea at the moment.

However, I suppose now would be a good time to talk about my overall design principle of structured non-linearity. It's a fancy, and made up, way of saying "You can do what you want at any time, within reason." Take the Animal Gods for instance. To meet them, there are specific obstacles you must overcome, obstacles you never have to do. If the player doesn't do them, the game will still go on. It adjusts to the player's actions, in a way. So, the story will try and fill in the holes the player leaves out(more on this in a moment). However, let's say the player does go and meet the Animal Gods. Well, they could fight and kill them--good heavens!--and the game will allow for that. Many, many things will have changed at this point, but the game will allow for it.

This is a fancy way of saying that the game has a goal in mind for the player, but it let's the goal post get moved in all sorts of weird ways. I want their to be real choices and consequences for the player. However, I'm trying to have a story that takes place over many, many years(I guess I can reveal something: you're not always playing as the PC character you made), so this presents problems. I've had to create a network of scripts and variables to track plot progress--and by plot, I do not mean that this is a linear story. Shagret is being designed for multiple play-throughs(and, trust me, there's very different ways of playing the game), so this design works(I hope!) There are multiple perspectives for the story and many different ways to play it--like I said on day 1, you can meet the "final boss", and fight him, in 5 minutes.

This is rambling post, and I doubt it answers anything. Truth is, despite my propensity towards meandering writing, I'm more a believer in letting something speak for itself. Hopefully, in time, I can do that.

Update 7/5/10

2010-07-05T19:38:00.002-04:00

Despite my general lack of updates, there has been a great amount of work that's been done. The custom soundtrack is almost done(40 tracks and counting), every portrait is done(over 12) and the UI changes are on their way(at least 4 new conversation menus)--and I don't even want to talk about the number of conversations thus completed(over 10k completed last month). So, then, you might be asking, what's with the silence? I wish I had a good reason, but it's more along the lines of "Oh, Chaos Wielder is just forgetful and doesn't always keep his priorities straight." Honestly, I just forget to update this. Really. Hard to believe, yes, but it happens. Sometimes I've got awesome, handsome things happening on Monday nights(or not). Point being: progress is actually moving along at an astounding rate, and I thought I should let you, dear reader, know.

My goal--and I know I've had many goals before--is to have this done by the end of the year. It might be able to happen, it might not, but I'm going to shoot for it. You might just all have a Christmas present come this winter.

Obligatory pic! I thought this area looked nice. And, also, there's an adorable puppy that's sneaked into the frame. Come here boy!--do you have something to say? Believe you me, he's quite the talker.

Update

2010-05-24T20:22:00.002-04:00

During the last few weeks I've had to deal with some unfortunate personal problems. Because of that, I haven't had much time to dip my feet into the toolset. It was, sadly, a distinct waste of time in that sense, but I'm happy to say that the time away from my project has invigorated interest(good or bad?--I'll let you decide). I hope, then, to provide more information and, I guess, general updates in the future. I've had a few ideas that, should they come to light, would be rather interesting...but more on that some other time. I hope, indeed, that I can now buckle down and get some work done.

Status Update: 5/3/10

2010-05-03T20:24:00.002-04:00

Progress goes as progress goes. That basically means I don't have much to show...which is always sad, I think. That said, there was good work done in the last two weeks. Several major conversations are finally done(after, like, 4 rewrites, so I'm happy), and I ironed out some bugs that were lurking in the brush. I'd like to think that, despite it being somewhat 'ho-hum' in terms of content to show, it was actually pretty productive. In a way, these are the worst possible time periods for running a blog: I don't have a 'Demon of Dark Demonic Doom' to showoff, or anything like that. Talking about writing is just, well, not terribly exciting. I think, however, the work put into it should make your experience not boring...which is always nice, I think.

I did upload something to the vault recently, in case you're curious(or a Lovecraft fan). It shows how easily some changes can be made to existing tiles while creating very pronounced alterations to the environment. Enjoy!

'S' Is For ...

2010-04-19T20:40:00.002-04:00

... Starcraft

I was lucky enough to get into the "Starcraft 2" beta two weeks back. This, sadly, broke off much of my work in the toolset. To those interested in the game, I can safely say that it has a fair amount of work left to go before it becomes as good as the original. There are numerous lazy decisions on Blizzard's part that, ultimately, detracts from the game being as good as it ought to be. This is not to say it cannot achieve greatness, just that it is a beta, after all; these things are to be expected.

... Story

All the major plot scenes have been accounted for now. Writing has now hit a milestone, as I fancy I'm now more than half done(over 100k words now, so my fingers are bleeding a bit as I write this). I can say, now, that my companions talk too much for their own good, and my goal of making characters "dynamic" has ultimately led me down the proverbial rabbit hole(and not in a fanciful, Burtonesque way). This, of course, is quite an accomplishment, if only for notebook checklist achievements and their fans.

... Submissions

I'm right now looking for areas that I have sitting around on my hard drive. I never quite realized how many folks use prefabs, so I think that contributing to this are could be beneficial. Most of them aren't as good as what I have in my mod, but I don't think that it should stop anyone from using them. Expect to see them by next week.

... Stealing

http://worldofalthea.blogspot.com/2010/04/p-is-for.html

(I wanted to give attention to the good usage of UI work here. It really is lovely and makes everything better).

It seems so apt to have a postscript.

PS: There's a cool update heading here in a week or so.

Resting Systems

2010-03-22T22:01:00.002-04:00

Resting systems aren't fun. They're the gaming equivalent of chapter breaks--something which the player(reader) wants to be frequent, forgiving and fun. The author would probably rather just get their work done and be rid of the whole thing; however, it's not so simple. In NWN2, due to its roots, a fully realized resting system seems appropriate, if not even desired. So, I've managed to waste more time on one than I had previously thought possible.

What I've decided on:

1) Limited, time based resting system dependent on in-game difficulty. I have to say, Trinity really opened my eyes on that one. There will, of course, be some players that exploit the system, but I imagine they will be few and far between. And, honestly, exploiting such a small system means they still enjoy the game and want to see the rest; I can live with that circumvention.

2) Monsters can attack the player. There are two checks, however, involved. The party--companions included--make a survival check to see if the monsters find you at all(the idea being that a good survival skill means the party "covered their tracks" or something like that). If they succeed, no monsters attack. Failing that, though, there is a listen check. If the party fails this, the monsters have "snuck up" on the party and the battle starts with everyone knocked down for 3 seconds. This last part is rather painful, indeed, but I think it encourages a frugal party.

3) Monsters are not infinite. Areas can be cleaned out of opponents, so to speak, so "safe zones" can be created by the player. This can be tiresome and dangerous, but the option is there.

4) If you're ambushed, the next rest is guaranteed to be safe. This is totally illogical and, honestly, downright silly, but I once was "interrupted" 6 times in a row(I will not name the mod which did this). Needless to say, a slight shift in design seemed prudent.

Now, this is not a fascinating update. My reason for posting this is to elicit feedback from others modders(we've all been down this road at least once). I'm interested in hearing ideas/criticisms from others and seeing if I might make this a more robust, attentive system.

A Monstrous Update

2010-03-15T16:56:00.003-04:00

So, how've you been? Good, good. Still working? Nice to hear.

Oh, me? What have I been up to these last two months? Well, that's sort of a long story. I've been inspecting prospective graduate schools--amongst other, less savory real life problems--and it has kept me away from modding as much as I would like. I'm not working like I used to, but I'd like to think progress is being made. Which, with something like NWN2, I can only think that's a good thing.

To make sure that you, dear reader, know this, I figured an update would feel just about right.

Area design, at this point, is just something I can "do". It doesn't take a particularly large amount of energy or time, just a certain amount of focus(and a good Tom Waits CD on a continuous loop). The above is a ruin(to state the obvious) that is still not totally overgrown. From a design perspective, only mapping the area on a 2D visual scale--as opposed to making vines/roots going over the player--is a welcome relief. In the words of a friend, "At least this area doesn't have a vine orgy." His sentiments are welcome, if perhaps not the image it creates.

Rest assured that there are some rather nefarious critters running around outside that gate(and a certain amount of plot relevance--you know, I never talk about what "Shagret" is, well, about. Maybe I should at some point?) In any case, nefarious critters brings us nicely into the next screenshot(and the quasi-reason of the bad pun name of the update).

In the depths of the sulfurous cavern lurks a powerful creature: a Rust Wyrm. Its breath, as would be implied by its very subtle(and clever) name, rusts weapons and armor the PC happens to have equipped. This is not a destructive ability, merely something that discourages the sinister "sword and board" style characters from standing in a dragon's face.

I should say, however, that the wyrm is not all bad. Really, I--and other 'monster lovers' out there--tend to focus on the evil nature of our creations. I'd like to think that if you could pet this fellow behind the ear(frill?) he'd appreciate it. I think you could try, anyways.

And for those wondering, that yellowish 'sulfur' is a new model I fashioned. MDB cloner and some determination means that a fair amount of flexibility is allowed by the NWN2 editor. If there is interest in this sort of thing, I can show how it's done(or, at the very least, release the aforementioned piles).

It goes beyond that in terms of monsters. Above, our intrepid hero seems to have stumbled across a group of trolls(how ghastly!) As you can see, one of the little fellows is an albino. Trolls don't much care for tans as it is, so it's no loss there. In fact, it means the creature regenerates at a disturbingly quick rate(read: 2HP a second). This is removed via fire and acid damage temporarily, so you're best inclined to fend off the creature on a quick basis.

I think that adding in monsters which eschew the "standard" template, however slightly, will create a sense of discovery(or dread) in the player. It will, also, I hope make players read my monster descriptions(all of which are unique, I might add).

Next, I'm proud to showcase a little design shift on my part. "Shagret", despite the nature of my posts here, is rather dialog and "talking" heavy. I figured that, if the player is going to be reading so often for so long, I might as well make their eyes have something to look at. To that end, Bolero has fashioned a rather nice looking UI for the dialog to go into. Those of you with clever eyes might note that it is borrowing its shape from the SOZ overland UI--well, yes that's true. With some delicate XML coding, I've managed to remove the party chat features while keeping the otherwise lovely scale of the image.

The scale is, of course, the main reason this decision was taken. I have some lovely portraits for my NPCs, but there were so hard to see while only being 48x48 images(roughly the default size). This way, the portraits might be appreciated for what they are: fantastic depictions of my characters. They complement the writing and serve to better contextualize my work. I think, really, that's the best possible way a portrait can work.

For those of you interested in trying this, there are some scripting hurdles I'm not mentioning. I'd be willing to elaborate if there is interest, however.

And last but certainly not least, I have a lovely combat track created by none other than Goran Bastinac of "Heaven Rain". It sort of has a jumpy, lively feel to it; I hope you like it(I know I do).

See you next week for a scripting system discussion(and I mean it).

Let's see how everything is going

2010-01-18T19:46:00.004-05:00

It's been some time since I've updated this blog. This is a strange feeling, like a reunion and you smile awkwardly at the girl you went out with one date on(that ketchup packet was too loose, I swear!) You try and start a conversation, making sure not to meet one another's eyes, and the first thing that comes up is always the same: "So, how've you been?"

Things have been going well. I've managed to get some major conversations finished, areas completed and finally worked the generic swamp monster AI into the fold(they try and preserve their lives, now, instead of blind rages). I've scripted all the major boss encounters, adding in flairs of interest, and I've even completed most of the major UI changes that are necessary for certain key moments. The question, then, is pretty obvious: what's left to be done?

Well, lots and lots of conversation. Thousands of words, really. It's a bit strange that between me and the end of my game is not necessarily a ton of 'game work', as most of that is done, but there's plot and characterization that needs to be addressed. And, well, in the terms I've set it up, that means the characters need to come off as much more dynamic than they currently are. I will be addressing that issue in future weeks(or maybe just venting), but it might be worth it nonetheless.

In any case, for those of you wondering, Shagret is in better shape than it's ever been. I don't have a design doc telling me how much more there is to do, but I saw, briefly, a small glimmer(hope, maybe?) at the end of the cavernous tunnel I've willingly constructed. I think I might finish this, and that's scary. But, terror not withstanding, I like working on the project, and I thought to share some images with you.

Can you find all the dragonflies? Shout out to Dreatern's Hak(wherever you are, I still love you).

Point lights are the secret to interior design. If you sneak into the Naga Temple, the inhabitants will largely be unarmed and unarmored. I'll detail that system in the future.

Also, the Storm of Zehir Project is up(I'm late to announcing my own work, no?) This is a shameless post script, true, but I thought to add it because, well, it seemed the right decision.

Updates Go On

2009-12-07T20:35:00.003-05:00

Sure, I've got the Storm of Zehir project on my plate, but it is worth noting that work on Shagret, that bloated beast of a project, still goes on. The problem is, that despite efforts to reign in its excessiveness, I find it still rather time consuming to make certain areas. For instance, one really ought to make every dungeon unique, skill checks happen and other "fanciful" events occur.

With that said, I feel it necessary to say that Shagret is simply incapable of being released at my original "deadline" of January. I know, for some of you, this was the only reason to even wake up in the morning. Well, I apologize for that much(drink coffee, it's good and good for you). I'm not really sure how Chaos Wielder of the past really thought the work would be done in time; you do know he's constantly working against me, laying down "scripting systems" and "ideas" that need work later on. He is a despicable character, really. I am, however, beholden to continue some amount of work in this vein.

The upside of this delay--of which I have no definite time line--is that individual polish, such as area lighting, descriptions and other minor troubles, are being given a thorough going over. In the end, it's for the best(and many folks are busy off with Dragon Age, so I should shoot for the [distant] moon and be happy).

Obligatory screenshot. I've re skinned all the Golems to have a golden look. I figure, if the Nagas like gold so much, their constructs would have that vain appearance as well. Calad, my testing dummy, is about to be killed, so I thank him for posing so elegantly before the finishing blow.

Next week, I hope to have some more definite(read: interesting) information. Until then, keep at it!

SOZ Holiday Project

2009-11-30T22:09:00.004-05:00

I started a thread over on the official, NWN2 boards with a simple goal: more adventures to be had in SOZ. I explain more fully in the thread, but that's the essential aim of the project. I think that if we modders work together and give a substantial, and substantive, gift to the community, they'll back us on future endeavors. Too often hear people saying they don't know what we're up to: well, I think giving our own little flair to SOZ(which is, in reality, a fairly open and plot light adventure) would allow our talents to shine while making it not too much additional work.

That, of course, cannot be overstated: any modder who reads this and would like to contribute but has time constraints, that is totally acceptable and, really, respectable. Many of these campaigns we are working on are dreams(or, in some cases, nightmares), but they just stick with us. Shagret sort of demanded a break from me--after 30000 words of dialogue, area design was just a relaxing exercise--and so I managed to keep modding while not overdoing it. A welcome bargain, I think.

Of course, I've digressed(and indulged myself) too much. For those interested in lending a dungeon or two, hit me up in the thread or here. I welcome the support and, really, think it will be grand fun. Zehir won't know what hit him...

Now, of course, obligatory screenies on my two as of yet finished dungeons(fyi, I do love blue light and fog):

Darkstrand Maw

Lair of the Creators

(Wyrin has beaten me to the punch, but...ah, who blames him. For those that like good old fashioned adventures, it's a welcome addition. I'm pleased by the support thus far, and I suspect it will be a good time for all.)

Monsters and a Request

2009-11-09T20:58:00.007-05:00

I love monsters. Sure, we all do, right? I mean, what what an adventurer do without a horde of seemingly oblivious creatures to kill? Hell if I know. So, to this end, I've decided to make certain changes to the monsters in my module. I've discussed this before, but I enjoy repeating myself(especially since I really would like to talk about something. It's better than saying, "I'm writing conversations and that's that.")

Cowardice: A great philosopher said something along the lines that we'd all sell our souls to the devil if we were scared(his name escapes me). The point being, that the smaller, squishy monsters of the swamp make sure to get out of the way when the big ones show up. I've also incorporated this, in some cases, to a staged regeneration system, which means the little guys have a point in running other than simply running. This is not a totally new idea, I'll admit, but I think it necessary when you have multiple species of creatures interacting.

Ignoring the Small fry: Let's say you, intrepid hero, have somehow stumbled across a big bad Blastoderm(pro tip: don't). Naturally, you run away hoping to find some possibility of escape. The thing is, most of the big monsters will initially ignore the smaller monsters if they're preoccupied with something else. The idea being something like: if a Lion is busy with a Buffalo, it won't go for a rabbit just because it's there. NWN2 is hardly real life, but I'd like to think, if we're making environments with the monsters, that they should be afforded more than just encounter strength.

Boredom: But, of course, I'm a fair guy. Most monsters, if you run for too long, will just grow bored and quit hassling you. This is a very "gamey" solution, meaning that the player could act outrageous and still survive, but it, in sense, does mimic the behavior of "real animals". In turn, it means I can spawn in very, very dangerous creatures early on because I give an "out" option for the player(and, assuming they're suicidal and/or bloodthirsty, they might try and go for an early kill).

Species: I'm trying to make the monsters of the swamp feel more than just monsters. In Metroid Prime, for instance, there are detailed biographies and lifestyles for many of the creatures. You can see them foraging, living out their life as if yours does not "matter" to them. And, really, for most animals in real life, human interaction is not a direct interest in their day to day activities(and God knows the monsters in an RPG are hardly "animals"). So, in some cases, the monsters simply are foraging for plant life, pollinating or just flat out ignoring you. Although there are some really crazy monster fights in this module, many of them have lives that are outside the player and should, I hope, be respected as such.

I've also made a request over at the official forums. I need some help with a reskin for the deer model and remodel of the wolf to make a fox. At the risk of sanctimonious musing, I'd be eternally grateful to anyone skilled in these arts to assist me. I can, yes, do some skin work on my own, but this is, sadly, outside my skill. Please contact me here or via the forums if you can. Thanks in advance.

Logo(!) & Status

2009-10-26T17:30:00.004-04:00

As I'm sure you've noticed by now, there is a fancy new logo at the top of this blog. It's quite lovely and was made by the very talented Bolero. I hope you like it(and make sure, lest one forget, that it is very much in accordance with the oft-remembered principles I have on the left side). I hope you enjoy it.

As far as progress: An important point for Shagret is its insistence that the many characters you meet will not always simply follow you(I've mentioned this before, I'm sure, but it bears repeating). This is a difficult thing to design for, because certain monsters would, due to their power, seemingly require all your party members to defeat them: if you lust for blood, you need a good heart at the same time. Of course, some players will have trouble with this idea. You can't boss them(the companions) around all the time. I'd like to, in some small way, manage a "real life" for them outside of your interactions. It's absurd, sure, but their motivations supersede yours(i.e., if they want to go right, but you say left, they'll more than likely still go right). That might make them seem selfish, but it's just a simple way of formulating it. The point is that they're not your toys to be used, and they will 'rebel' if you throw them towards crazy battles, pointless dungeons/caves and other tasks they don't like.

(And, for those curious, my computer is back up and running. It was a bit scary there for a moment, but it was just the graphics card and nothing more serious. Sadly I'm now running a less powerful machine--who knew things were so much money!--but it gets the job done. It had a fine time going through Live Forever which, really, I think everyone should; it's a lovely module, although I'm sure Azenn would not like the word "lovely" to describe it. I'm no philosopher, but "fucking awesome" would seem more apt, I imagine).

Anyways, enjoy the logo(I know I do), and I'll see you next week.

PS:
Oh, I should also say I'll have a small piece of custom content to release on Halloween. Not a mod or anything like that, but a good friend to keep you warm in the darkness.

Possibly Major Problem

2009-10-19T14:41:00.002-04:00

My computer has stopped working. I'm under the impression it is the graphics card and the main fan; I simply need to get new ones(expensive, perhaps, but simple). However, it remains to be seen if that is the case yet. Like all computer issues, one hopes it is nothing major.

Fingers crossed--it goes in to the shop later today.

Writing, yes

2009-10-12T20:09:00.000-04:00

Writing is problematic as an update. What do I, well, talk about? Strangely, words do not make good updates. Pictures, monsters and other such zazzy topics are generally more accepted. However, bad conversations are a blight like no other. All I can say is that I've been writing and, well, there's not much more than that.

Or, actually, there is. I've been working on a small monster "logic" system for the swamp. Basically, it means that little monsters(let's say, a Stirge) won't try and attack a bigger monster(say, a Wyvern). And, conversely, the Wyvern won't try and attack the Stirge. Although this might seem simply like a faction issue, it's a bit more complicated. I want it to be that if the Wyvern is "hungry"(injured) that it will attack other monsters that, previously, it ignored. But, of course, the Stirge will try and avoid it--ultimately, it involves chases and the Wyvern giving up.

These sort of scenes, obviously, won't attract much player attention(you'd have to have good eyesight or invisibility potions). However, I like to think this level of detail--or supposed detail--does much to make a module(or game) more interesting.

And, while I'm coding this in, I'm trying to make sure that grossly unbalanced combats don't happen(one Naga cannot beat a flight of Wyverns). So, I'm trying to get a handle on a cowardice system, of sorts. Not a total one: making everything run away just bogs down gameplay too much. So, I'm sort of giving it a rule of thumb on which monsters should run away and which ones shouldn't. It'll (hopefully) keep things interesting.

In sickness and in health

2009-10-05T22:46:00.005-04:00

Or, something along those lines. Last week, I was afflicted with a serious case of the flu and found myself away from the computer(tangentially, I recommend Batman: Arkham Asylum: it was a good friend while ill). However, I did manage to do some amount of thinking about the module(an important thing, of course). I don't have the time to showcase something interesting, to be honest, but I will make sure to discuss something more of interest next week.

Until then, I'd like to say my rules about writing dialogue(something I could do while sick):
1) Know the ending before you start. Random tangents can be amusing, but they are more likely to be a distraction. Players want focus, despite occasional insistence on non-linearity(despite my focus on individual choice, I try to keep the random choices focused, which is hard and confusing).
2) Imagine if the character came over for dinner. What would they say?--would the Wolf Goddess like The Daily Show? This helps as a primer for dialogue.
3) Keep your characters distinct. Even if it's as banal as having one of them say "Aye" instead of yes. Just, please, try and make the individual lines distinct enough that they could stand on their own. "Oh, that's something she would say!" Bland dialogue is a killer for me, even if the module is 'action-oriented'. It doesn't need to be Proust, but try to make it interesting.
4) Try not to have direct answers to questions. If I said to you, "Tell me about yourself."--what would you say? If people in games are supposed to even sort of be like us, then make it seem like that.
5) Stupid people don't all sound like, "I go bed now." Vary it up.
6) Different species/races ought to have different perspectives and likes. Dragons aren't just scaly people--how's a life that's viewed as scale mail like?

I hope these simple steps are useful(now, granted, there are better writers than myself, but these might be helpful to somebody). /Englishmajorrant

Visual Effects Tutorial - Pink Torch

2009-09-21T20:39:00.004-04:00

Have you ever thought your dungeon lacked the zazz it needed? Are your torches looking a bit...drab? Well, thankfully for you, now you can turn that torch to a hot pink look. I've made a tutorial that should give the basics on how to make some simple modifications to standard VFX files. It's not hard to do, but can be a bit daunting if you just jump in expecting results.

1) The torch itself

All files pertinent for this are stored in the install directory(for most, something like: C:\Program Files\Atari\Neverwinter Nights 2).

First, we need to find the torch visual effect to modify. Go to the install directory, find the Data folder and open it up. Inside this is a .zip file called NWN2_VFX--open that up. The explorer should show something like this:

These are all the subfolders where the individual effects files are stored. We're looking for the torch, so a logical place to look would be the FX_AMBIENT folder. Once there, you're going to see a large collection of effects files:

We're going for torches, but there's all sorts of stuff to play around with in here(maybe some other time!) Anyways, I'm going to extract all the files that have "fx_torch" as their prefix. This will just simplify things. Also, for later, you should extract "fx_embers". This is needed as well.

Now that we've extracted them(put them somewhere you can find them), it's time to load up the toolset. Now things will get interesting.

2) Hot Pink

Go to the plugins drop down menu and select Visual Effects Editor. From there, find where you extracted your file and open "fx_torchglow.sef". If you do that right, you should see something like this:

There are three files being defined here--shown on the left tab--(and we've extracted them all), so let's go open up the first one: "fx_torchglow.pfx". But wait, you say, we've already got the torchglow open. Well, the thing is that the suffixes for the files are different things(I'll explain all we need for now):

.pfx: A particle effects file. This is like flying dots and stuff like that.

.bbx: A billboard effect. This is for a static image.

.sef: This is the special effect file. It combines other effects into a package the game will then apply.

Anyways, let's open up that file "fx_torchglow.pfx":

You can see the start color and end color definitions on the side of the tab. Changing these on their own gives our desired effect(this is a very basic tutorial, so this is all we need to muck with).

I changed my values and...voila! I have the start of a pink torch. Edit the other two files the same way--changing only the start and end colors--and save them into your override folder: for most, something like C:\Users\YOURNAME\Documents\Neverwinter Nights 2\Override

I used the names pinktorchglow, pinktorch, and pinkembers to make it easier to find.

Let's go back to our original torch, fx_torchglow.sef, and modify the definition files for each slot:

It doesn't particularly matter, in this case, which order you put them in, so don't worry. But, look...it's done!:

We can now save this into the override folder(or campaign directory for our project) and go from there. I'm calling mine pinktorchfinal. Go into the toolset, now, and load up any area. Put down a torch visual effect, and then change its definition file to the finished torch. And, voila part deux, it is done!:

From here, giving it light and such is up to the individual modder. But, really, what self-respecting lich wouldn't have a pink torch?

3) Lessons

You can take what you learned here and my other tutorial on VFX files to make a wide variety of different effects. These are just the basics, of course, but they allow for a fair amount of flexibility and, importantly, individual uniqueness for modders. Rather than have things look like the same old stuff, spice it up with some custom visuals!--your eyes will thank you later.

Status Update - 9/14/09

2009-09-14T20:31:00.002-04:00

I was originally going to have an update featuring something in respect to visual effects. Sadly, time constraints got the best of me. It will have to wait until next week.

The truth is, I started my final semester at college(woot!) and am right now in the process of looking at master's programs(people just line up for philosophy degrees, no?). In any case, this will not have an effect on Shagret so much--I allot time as needed--but it might make these updates, occasionally, consist of hastily formed sentences and blubbering excuses. I shall, however, aim to make the other updates more robust and interesting.

The Nagas, a Companion and Music

2009-09-07T20:40:00.008-04:00

The Nagas:
In the silt of the Julak Swamp, Nagas reign supreme. There are terrible creatures in the swamp, but none stray close to the Naga Temple. Nagas are many in number, great in sorcery and resolute in their collective purpose. They view the swamp as their property, and any sentient creatures which venture inside are little better than chattel. The few remaining civilized monsters that make Julak their home know better than to ever challenge the Nagas. However, the player is thrust into a dangerous situation to begin with. Diplomacy, while useful, is not as helpful as quick feet. Running away is ones best option to begin with.

But, perhaps you wish to return the favor? Mayhap the Nagas have earned your wrath? Well, there's a problem with that...you see, the Nagas don't take well to you escaping. They want you back.

The player will, very soon upon escaping, find that the Nagas have given chase into the swamp. Nothing is worse than a story of success, so they hope to make your escape a short-lived and pointless endeavor. There are few options left to the player: fighting is next to useless to begin with and you're outnumbered. Of course, the Nagas might think they own the swamp, but other beasts might beg to differ...and I'm sure they have a few words to say.

But let us say the player escapes. Let us say that they wish to come back with powerful items and allies to kill the Nagas. Well, I'd like us to say further, but there's quite a few "ifs" involved now. The Nagas aren't goblins or orcs, they're heavily trained and armed. There's no Naga 'grunt', each one is a fearsome foe that will not go down easily. Worst of all, they are intelligent; Nagas will retreat and call in reinforcements quite liberally. It would be rare if the player managed to catch these serpents unaware.

Of course, I do not require one to kill the Nagas for the story to advance. I suspect complete eradication to be beyond most players. And, besides, the Naga Queen might have a few tricks up her (proverbial) sleeves.

Mulaska:

Indeed, she has a few tricks left. As a hidden companion, only available due to certain events at the start of the campaign, the Naga Queen Mulaska might join you. Despite what she might have you believe, she is only the former Queen--politics and all that are ever so complicated and filled with back-stabbing, reverse back-stabbings and smoke filled rooms.

She would not, of course, explain any of this to you. Mulaska is in charge and, in fact, does not tolerate back-talk from the player. The conditions on which she joins you are...well, complicated, and she is somewhat justified in saying you work for her. And she does take this seriously. Unlike other, kinder NPCS in my campaign, Mulaska is ruthless. She will kill you if you don't act right. She demands respect and will receive it. She provides a totally different experience for nearly every dialogue and event in the game.

Mulaska, as the former Queen of Nagas, carries her name far in front of her. Anyone that knows of her will be displeased simply by her presence, and her terse tone does nothing to help that. One will find allies in small supply if they wish Mulaska to be an ally. She has done crimes that are best not spoken of, and only by dredging the mire does it fully become apparent what the past holds. It is worth noting, also, that if you have Mulaska on your team, all Nagas you meet will have names. There are no 'generic' Nagas. Each one has their own life, and she knows of them all.

The excellent portrait for Mulaska was made by Bolero. Her eye is hidden from the world, and why does her smile crack like a stiched vein? Snakes never blink, you know, and Mulaska is no different.

Battle with Nagas:
I have been fortunate enough to receive another track composed by Goran Bastinac of Heaven Rain. It is the battle track players will hear when fighting the Nagas and, I think, does a good job at making their deadly presence felt and appreciated.

The thing about companions...

2009-08-31T22:27:00.002-04:00

Is they require a ton of work. Far be it from me to complain, but the sheer amount of effort any given companion requires is daunting. You figure they need a personality(shiver with dread), then you figure they need to be interesting(the cold creep moves from the back of your heels now), next this companion needs to chime in every now and again(sweat fully covers your eyes), and, most importantly, this companion needs to remain relevant throughout the whole of the story(aneurysm). These are all individually difficult tasks, any modder will tell you this. Now, add in that there's probably more than one companion...and, well, no wonder authors are heavy drinkers.

The problem is, you can never run from your problems(as my hapless picture pal below realizes). Rather than that, the thing is to really think about what companions you want. In my NWN1 projects, I too often drove myself to include companions who simply fit roles rather than were roles in of themselves. There was the fighter who fought, rather than the character who happened to be a fighter. Shagret has very few characters in it(not including the PC, NPCs of importance are under 10). This limitation has forced me to pay attention to their quirks, follies and successes. I'd like to think the few characters I have will be interesting.

I suppose my point in posting this--other than venting(which is a noble tradition)--is that writing companions is very, very time consuming. If you are not happy with their opening dialogue then the player might not be either. Make sure, if this character is going to be there, that you have no reservations about them. In most RPG constructions, the companions are the game. Without them, there's only giant rats(nobody likes them).

And totally unrelated to this post, I'd like to point out to other modders who forge away in obscurity about this thread. The point, I hope, is to get our projects out in the open. Yes, NWN2 is probably not going to receive any more official content--I know that. However, our collective efforts, for what they are worth, might do well to be more public. At the very least, it seems like a good idea.

So, what games do you like?

2009-08-24T22:10:00.004-04:00

Blah! All this week was spent on writing(and writing, and writing). Now I do like writing to a certain extent, but after a certain point it is just a bit much. If this rate continues, Shagret could well have over 200,000 words in it. Which is, of course, terrifying on a cosmic level. It's the kind of thing that keeps me up at night in a cold sweat, muttering about ancient cities and other terrifying eldritch powers.

The point being is that this week I thought I'd do something different. *Gasp*--you spit out needlessly costly imported coffee--but I look forward to the quasi-professional posts each and every week! No such luck for you this week. I'm afraid there won't be any entertainment of any kind. You kids are getting spoiled with screenshots and "content". Back in my day, we got by with a 30x30 image smuggled in booth babe's tightly fit leather "clothing". Talking about things that matter--important things!--has been lost over time. This week, Shagret will bring relevance back to the Internet.

I'd be interested in any comments from modders on what games(or modules) inspire them during the creative process(read: finding ways to sneak a Balor into the storyline). I mean this in a very broad sense: maybe it's visuals, music or, hell, maybe you like that chain mail bikini. I suppose I could start this out with what module(s) inspired me, but that would just be leading the discussion. That would just be plain rude.

Monster Showcase - Blastoderm

2009-08-17T22:20:00.002-04:00

I am not often pleased with the work of my underlings. They do nothing worth discussing, eat too much, and bicker over the most pointless of things. Their good, what little there is, might best be described as "the inherent good of life". You might give credence to such notions, but the petty squabbles I am forced to attend to--the heavy burden of abject royalty--makes me realize their absurdities. Nasin killed a prisoner the other day, leaving it strapped into the device gifted from Shagret for simply too long. With pursed scales, the fool said he got carried away. How like an expert. He shall be excoriated promptly...or, when I get around to. Corporal punishment, while rewarding at times, makes for a dull practice so often. It needs to be aged properly.

But, they have done good at the moment. Recently, during a recent excursion, they came across a wounded Blastoderm. This is, of course, unusual. Other than Julaks themselves, I know of no creature that can face down and chance victory against a Blastoderm. Thinking quickly, which is rare for their mushy skulls, they captured the beast and brought it back to the temple. At the moment, it is resting comfortably in the lower chambers. I have given it Nasin's lover, which seems appropriate. You might think it cliche, and I suppose it is, but motivation hardly rests on innovation.

I am tempted to send some of the Magi in training to face the beast, if only for the amusement. Perhaps you are unaware, but for some reason I have not discerned, the scaly hides of Blastoderms absorb any and all incoming magical attacks. Even my spells were turned away, which is tiresome; a brain the size of a nut governing such an engine of destruction. There is some side effect, additionally, that the beast's corpse begins to fester upon death. Apparently, if given time, the body reanimates. I should think this absurd, but these Dedus-Kadah's, as the troops have taken to calling them, are apparently seen every now and again. I shall consider slaying this creature and seeing what happens--perhaps there is use with the dead, however much that might displease your squeamish sensibilities.

The Blastoderm shall be an interesting diversion should any treacherous Nagas raise their heads(which is too often). But, as I have said before, they are fools. After the encounter with the Blastoderm, they fretted upon about 'terrors' in the swamp. As if the bi-decade migration was lost to them. Their minds are bleached like the walls of the temple, and about as interesting to talk with. When you return from Shagret's task, I readily await speaking to you. She is of little use any longer and the rest of these fools have shed more than their skin over time. The Black Hands, too, should wish to discuss some matters(though they are penitently serious, which is amusing in its own right).

-Mulaska

(I'm back to weekly updates, too. See you next week)

Zorked!

2009-08-03T23:11:00.005-04:00

I found some time to enjoy Zork - Rediscovering the Great Underground Empire and thought: why not write a quasi-review of it? It's what the cool kids do(or at least the kids who have free blogs and spare time on Monday nights do).

Although most of the design decisions are, naturally, from the original text based adventure, I do still enjoy some of the bare bones gameplay stylings. Nowadays, there is an emphasis on games being "fair"; that is, the designer holds your hands in the deep places of the world, making sure that one always has a safe way out and that rest is nearby. The point being, ultimately, that one is having less of an adventure than a picnic break. This is hardly the case with (some) older games. When the battery starts to dim, it's your fault for being eaten(by a grue).

These older games might have a strain of strangeness to them, perhaps even illogical flourishes and the like. However, the emphasis on adventure where it was easy for one to become lost and, well, dead, makes them feel vibrant alongside adventures nowadays where any inborn son(or daughter) of an orc can save the world. If the world is supposed to be dangerous, if one is supposed to feel special, do it through the gameplay. Don't have an uncle or kingly fellow say I'm a hero, have me work through difficult obstacles where a lesser (wo)man would have failed. Conserving resources, making gambles and struggling through the deep would make you a better adventurer(hero); not all can make the journey, but it reflects upon the player(and avatar) if they can.

I'd like to think that allowing the player the option, the freedom, to make catastrophic choices and respect them--i.e. you cannot get the treasure because you did a puzzle wrong, your finite light sources have run out--is a cornerstone of good adventure design. One might even say this constitutes the ABC(and G)s of my design.

I hope Shagret might incorporate what these older, fine games have to offer. Congrats to Amraphael on the release(my hero clumsily broke the egg, and I don't deal with nasty thieves).

Dark Areas

2009-07-20T20:39:00.006-04:00

Curiously, there has been some discussion about dark areas over the last two weeks. I think people tend to like them in theory, but then get mad when their torch has run out or they memorized ray of frost, instead, for that 'rainy day' battle up ahead.

In any case, I am a proponent of their use. There is the possibly of irritation on the player's part, and I am sympathetic towards that, but it's not as though the game has become unplayable, it simply changes how you interact with the game. Additionally, it helps the game have a more realistic feeling to it--and, well, maybe a game with Orc Bards shouldn't go for realism, but having brightly lit caves is a bit much for me sometimes. Although, one should be creative with their use. I don't think it's enough simply to say "my caves are dark, deal with it!" Well, maybe it is, but I figure the general bland feeling of shadows and darkness and gloom and darkness might get on people's nerves. After a certain point, enough is enough.

And there it loops back to a certain absurdity: dark areas are used for a sense of realism and immersion, but to keep them visually interesting one has to, well, spice things up with lights and other effects(thereby marring that otherwise realistic tone). This is a problem I've dealt with for quite some time(successfully or not). Keeping areas in aesthetic consistency is difficult enough as is, and making variety amongst that is troublesome.

In any case, here is an attempt at making a near pitch black cave palatable for those who abhor them. Glow Spiders, a total absurdity, lurk around and light the cave up. It's somewhat interesting that, for those who didn't bring a light, the enemy is the only thing you have for looking around.

Also, I have decided to move towards a bi-weekly update pattern. I want to keep saying "I'm alive and working", but weekly updates might be a bit much for me at this point. I am, though, alive and working, and will see you in two weeks.

The Animal Gods

2009-07-06T19:28:00.011-04:00

Shagret is a bit different. There are few characters, fewer still who care to speak with you. The swamp and the forest inside of it, Frurar, house little which might be considered 'civilized'. Fortunately for those in the swamp, one might head north to the great forest of Frurar. On top of a mountain, surrounded by silt and fog, is a peaceful wood which harbors few enemies. There, the PC might rest and regain their senses, perhaps even choose to stay there in tranquility for all time...Certainly better than braving the terrible beasts of the swamp, and the Nagas are less than kind.

Inside the forest are three guardians of the forest: placid creatures, for the most part, who are willing to protect and aid the PC in any way they might require. They, as my post title might indicate, are the Animal Gods, central characters to the story of Shagret. When--and more importantly, if--the player chooses to speak with the Animal Gods, the player will perhaps be confused by the responses of the Gods. They view the PC curiously; certainly the PC is something of interest, but ought they to care so much about one person? They will talk to you, sure, but collectively the three of them are stronger than you can ever be. 'Quests' really won't be assigned from them, but they will try and help you whenever possible.

By help, though, I should try and clarify. The Animal Gods, with perhaps the exception of the Boar God, are totally non-violent. You, quite literally, would need to stab them first, and even then they might shrug it off. The point being, that they will only help you in regards to healing, information and perhaps protection against the Nagas. They are avowed pacifists, and will only act in defence of the forest as a whole. The Boar might see things differently, of course, but even he is reluctant to spill blood. They will have a higher opinion of the PC if (s)he has not killed anything, which is a very open and constructed path in my module.

The Animal Gods are ancient, and not much shocks them. Your adventure, whatever it might be worth, is not something worthy of their undivided attention. The forest crumbles, and the mountain it stands on slowly is being eaten away by lichen and moss. The swamp will, within their lives(not yours), destroy their purpose, but not their being. They are hardly fatalists, and being melancholic doesn't suit them--rather, you might forgive them if your little quest doesn't enthrall them.

The Wolf God: Her eyes shimmer a residual green, flowing out to white streams of glossy fur. Wind whistles by, picking up faint touches of fragrant pollen, new sprouting flowers.

The Boar God: His nose spouts blasts of warm air that smell like the setting sun. The massive tusks adorning his skull are caked with ancient blood; they glow softly against the dirt ground.

The Bear God: She looks at you with calm eyes, gently resting in her den amongst blooming trees. Sprites and other fey creatures flit and dance, their trails are warm to the touch.

I'd like to take this chance to showcase some of the excellent work done for me. The portraits for the Animal Gods, and other important characters for Shagret, are done by Bolero. Plot characters are few but important--this makes writing harder, but characters like the Animal Gods(hopefully) more distinct. When I created them(the Gods), there was one track from NWVault which was in my mind. I have been very fortunate to have Clarkycat, creator of Weeping Mesa(the track in mind) agree to help with music development for Shagret. His modified version of Weeping Mesa, featured below, bears a prominent place in my module: its vague sadness mixed with tranquility is apt, and I hope you enjoy it.

And for those playing along at home, last week was the first Monday I ever missed. I've been quite busy lately, sadly, and am glad--for what modding might be work--to be back to work.

Philosophy of Endings - Completion, Circumvention or Curiosity?

2009-06-22T12:59:00.004-04:00

RPGs are particularly prone to a sort of criticism: the endings were not representative of my character. Mask of the Betrayer, for those of you who followed the forum banter on the subject, was routinely attacked for offering too few of endings for particular players. This is to be expected: when one is granted the ability to "make" a character, the player has a certain amount of energy invested in what they want to happen(this is distinct from stat driven games, such as Pokemon, due to RPGs often having elaborate individual biographies which the player is assumed to have for their individual avatars). And, of course, what is desired from the player is not necessarily what the designer has in mind. This is the source of the friction between the two camps, and this post does not necessarily provide a solution(perhaps to your, dear reader, chagrin).

Rather, I'd like to say that Shagret will try and move away from the standard methodology of endings. This is, I should say, rather daunting--rather than my game being pigeonholed into "did you get the good/neutral/evil ending?", I think the question should be more like, "what happened?" As one of my design principles stated, "there are many endings, but not all at the end." The point being, in such paradoxical terms, that it is up to the player to determine their own gaming adventure--within reason, of course(as this isn't an infinite adventure)--and that I, the designer, should accommodate their decisions. Arbitrary, eleventh hour ending determinations are, frankly, stupid, and I'd like to move in a different direction.

There are a few types of endings I would like to discuss, though, prior to moving into such a brave new world as my own theories regarding endings:

Completion: This is, of course, where the majority of endings of games occur. Typically, there is a sinister baddy(Monster Macguffin) who holds hostage the fate of the world/city/universe and you, luckily, showed up at the right time to defeat this opponent. Beat the boss, get the gold and let the credits roll. Nearly all games are founded on final battles as determining what is 'the end'(to find some which aren't, you have to pick things such as Tetris, which seems odd).

Circumvention: These are, basically, ways to shorten the method for the player to reach the above ending. In Chrono Trigger for the SNES, the player most ultimately defeat the entity known as Lavos--the player is given the ability to travel through time to face this opponent early in the game. Of course, they will certainly lose if given the chance, but the option is given. Still, the player is granted a slightly different play through if they choose to move in this direction. The ending, fundamentally, is the same, but the method for reaching it is the same.

Curiosity: These are, as their name suggests, strange nuggets found in games from time to time. In the original Star Fox, the player can enter a secret wormhole and enter another dimension. Whereupon, after the initial WTF? moment, the player has to fight pieces of paper and a giant slot machine--the game, ultimately, does say "the end" but nearly no player would say that that ending was acceptable for completion. They'd probably scratch their head then replay the game in an hour or so. These sorts of endings are the sorts of things forum posters can get really excited about, but your average player won't care too much.

The difficulty, as perhaps alluded to with 'curiosity' endings, is that many players simply won't accept certain endings in games: imagine going up to the King of Shadows and, instead of a battle, he was banished in a cinema. Most players would feel cheated--curiously, this standard doesn't exist for combat. This, I think, is more so a trope of game design; a crutch, if you will, for designers. Even ostensibly story based games, Bioshock, Silent Hill 2 and even ICO, have a battle at the end which makes the ending "real" and acceptable. There are, of course, exceptions to this(Planescape: Torment comes to mind), but as a general statement, the majority of games end with combat, and only curiosity endings really avoid this(but, again, people tend to dislike those as not complete).

Why, then, is there such an emphasis on combat? Looking at it in the abstract, it almost is as if a mystery novel must have the butler do it or, otherwise, it'd be cheating the reader. This convention, aside from being odd from a storytelling perspective(why must fighting/killing be necessary?), prevents new avenues of design from being taken. This is, obviously, a bad thing for a designer, and ultimately restricts the avenues which the player might take. I am trying, in some small way, to allow for multiple ways of playing, so I shall try my best to change this.

By this, I mean, there will be many ways to finish the game: your character's adventure might be complete in 5 minutes, perhaps 10 hours is what they are seeking. Maybe killing everything suits your fancy, maybe you want to leave immediately--the point being that I will try and accommodate these playstyles. Of course, some players will think that some of these endings are "incomplete"(despite me rolling the credits, of course, and not canonizing one as "correct" or "good"), but I'd rather move in the direction which allows more interaction and playstyles. Making endings all happen, fundamentally, in the 'big baddies room' is not only not interesting from a design perspective, but it marginalizes the player and their individual sensibilities. If we are trying to allow roleplaying, we should be paying attention to method and means, of course, but where they lead to ought not to be on a few branches.

The point being, ultimately, is that I shall try my best to avoid the categories I mentioned above. I don't want the player to think there was a right way to end the game--why should there? Not that games are life, but I'd like to say we shouldn't be categorizing correct and incorrect methods for players. This will be more work, of course, but I've already barked up the wrong tree: the least I can do is try.

You've bred raptors?

2009-06-15T22:50:00.003-04:00

Some time ago I posted a bit about a 'pack AI' I had been developing. Well, there have been mixed results with it, but the overall effect has been positive.

The AI works something like this:
An "alpha" is spawned in who directs the flow of the other members of the pack. If the leader is alive, then the other members of the pack behave a bit smarter(since the pack hunters usually move quickly, having one attack wizards is prudent, and so on). Additionally, the members of the pack follow the alpha around rather than directing their own movement. Additionally, if the alpha is killed, the rest of the pack 'picks' a new leader--this is based on current hit points(as it seems a fair guess of overall 'fitness'). The rest of the members then go and act for the betterment of that individual.

Now, something else I have been toying around with is an AI which has retreating and returning for animals. Most creatures in reality don't fling their mangled corpses onto swords over, and over and over again--it doesn't make much sense. Therefore, I'm trying to have creatures run away and then return. Of course, I cannot have animals regain their health immediately, but they ought to so retreating has a purpose. Therefore, they gain a slow regeneration effect which activates when they run(also, I figure giving raptors hide in plain sight is acceptable for a swamp/jungle).

The overall effect, based on my showing of it to a few people, is that the raptors behave "intelligently" and manage to not be simple of foes. The AI is also fairly robust, and I shall likely be moving it to other creatures--it's quite nice, but a few bugs are left to be ironed out. This, I hope, should make 'standard' encounters a bit more interesting.

(Obligatory screenshot--post title is from Jurassic Park, for those curious)

Status Update 6/8/09

2009-06-08T20:13:00.003-04:00

As usual, things are progressing smoothly enough. I wrote, perhaps, close to 6000 words this week, which has been a painful process. I like to fancy myself a semi-compotent writer, and churning out so much can be a painful process. With (good) writing, you have to delve into curious grey matter which exists unstated and perhaps unknown to even your concious mind. That, perhaps, seems to be giving myself too much credit, but a low amount of sleep will do that, I suppose. I think, thought, that making companions interact 'more realistically' will be a good end in of itself(though perhaps impossible, it is worth the effort).

Also, I thought this picture looked good--it is from one my many testing jaunts.

More(better) things next week.

What TF2 can teach about game design

2009-06-01T19:39:00.003-04:00

I not so subtly left for some much deserved recreational time(NWN2 is fun, but one does need a break) and managed to slip in a fair amount of Team Fortress 2 into the last week and a half. For those not familiar with the game, I'll try and hew it down to a manageable size:

Players take control of specialized classes(Medics heal, Snipers snipe and Soldiers shoot rockets, etc, etc) and work together to take on another team made up of human players. One chooses the class to play, but the basic structure of the mission--capture the flag or what have you--is understood prior to one playing it. Therefore, players can select a class which they think will be more enjoyable for that particular level/mission. The game is quite free-form, and most servers place no restrictions on what class you can play as: you decide how to best use your individual talents. Certain classes, of course, have advantages over others. Snipers, obviously, do better when their is a large vantage point to look from; spies are very effective when there are side rooms for their stealth to be used effectively. The point being, of course, is that goods maps are made in such a way to accommodate all differing class styles.

As a spy main(someone who uses the class quite a bit), I am very frustrated at 'corridor' design decisions: how can I sneak past someone while invisible if they just bump into me? If used sparingly, it is acceptable enough, but if it is the overarching design of the entire level, then the designer is unfairly placing a burden on certain playstyles and players. This is counterproductive for a few reasons: it discourages players who have favorite classes/roles, it makes replaying the same sort of experience, and it shows lack of imagination. I believe, ultimately, these should be avoided at all costs.

While playing over the last week or so, I have been thinking that often when designing an area/encounter, I am perhaps not thinking of how it might impact certain 'allowed' playstyles(by this I mean, nobody balances a game for the really, really, really crappy builds like Deep Gnome sorcerers). By not including certain advantages/sections for classes to shine, I am demonizing certain build decisions and, well, hurting my design. To this end, I have come up with a few ideas to perhaps allow less powerful builds--because I think power in of itself justifies its use as far as character design--to have a function. Feel free to comment on or criticize these ideas(better yet, promote some of your own!)

Barbarian: Can track creatures; decreased chance of encountering monsters during rest; 'sixth sense' of danger, allowing some chances to know a battle is near.
Druid: Speak with animals; commune with nature; enhanced crafting with certain natural materials.
Monk: After resting, the monk's meditative powers afford small bonuses for a few hours.
Paladin: Alerted to evil creatures--demons, undead, etc--prior to encountering them; cursed items have no effect.
Ranger: Track creatures; cover own tracks to make being tracked harder(this *is* important); speak with animals.
Rogue: Doors are hard to bash; traps are very dangerous.
Spirit Shaman: Speak with spirits in areas.
Warlock: Detect magic.

These are only a few ideas, of course. I have tried, also, to provide bonuses to classes I think are underpowered(or under privileged). The point being, overall, that providing these bonuses makes certain classes more appealing, hopefully making the player experience more dynamic.

The Naga Temple

2009-05-18T18:58:00.003-04:00

Diligently, I have been working on Shagret over the last week. Mostly, it was rather hum-drum work like setting up scripting systems. This can be, well, interesting, and can ultimately decide if a game is good or not, but it does not make for a particularly "exciting" read. So...barring that, I decided to have a new batch of screenshots for my noble(and handsome) readership.

The Naga Temple:
Amidst rotting green, pestilent browns and the ever present black bile of silt: there, looming in the distance, the Naga Temple leers down with unblinking eyes. Your adventure begins there, but it could easily end there as well.

My design principle was, overall, to make the area seem almost too tidy as compared to the swamp: the Nagas ruthlessly must work to keep any and all plants from growing here. Any lack of diligence on their part would mean the end of their temple.

The main hall of the first floor. For screenshot purposes, I disabled monsters. They wouldn't, well, have posed kindly for me(to put it lightly).

Of course, there are side passages in the temple...some of which lead to strange chambers and even stranger treasure. In general, coloring of areas is a fair way of "telling" the player something is different up ahead, I think.

Also, I am pleased to once again feature music from Goran Bastinac. This is the ambient music for the Naga Temple. I think it evokes a powerful yet dangerous place with a faint air of mystery to it.

Gentlemen, I should also like to say that I shall be taking a sabbatical from Shagret for two weeks. As a professional, I understand the value of honesty.

Status: 5/11/09

2009-05-11T22:50:00.002-04:00

This week was spent, for the most part, on making custom creatures. I don't mean to say creatures who were a little bit stronger, or a bat that did cold damage. No, things which behaved very differently. I have the groundwork of a pack hunter AI set in, monsters which flee on low health so to attack later and several interesting monsters I won't be discussing here(need to leave a few shocks, after all). I tend to think that, even if I did write a great story that it'd be marred considerably by poor creature placement/choice. Also, I don't think it's enough simply to vary up what people have already seen(archer, tank, mage). Hopefully I can provide some monsters you've never fought before in an RPG--the systems are running smoothly at the moment, and I plan on doing some more special monsters soon enough.

...I had an awesome update planned, but a curious event--of which there shan't be discussion of--took up a fair amount of my time. Needless to say, I am now left to talking about something I can't talk about: certainly not interesting. Maybe next week.

"Mysteries of Westgate", "Shagret" and Story Dynamics

2009-05-04T19:51:00.004-04:00

Judging by some of the comments over on the NWN2 boards, it would seem that Mysteries of Westgate provides for a divergent narrative: that is, the main story arc of the game is given additional context on multiple playthroughs. This is an interesting approach to take, and somewhat different than how the 'official' NWN2 games went about their narrative arc. There, players would be awfully hard pressed to not get the complete picture at certain junctures within the game. Although multiple playthroughs could potentially add more to the story(options necessarily entail more depth), fundamental aspects of the story could not be missed and were, effectively, handed to the player.

It still seems, though, that the story in Mysteries of Westgate is divided heavily into the tropes of the "good" and "evil" paths--there is nothing necessarily wrong with this approach(as I'd be absurd to argue otherwise), but it somewhat diminishes the value of divergent choice when, ultimately, a narrowly focused, nearly singular, narrative flow is how the game is operating. Although the options and choices one takes in the game have meaning, either implied(left to player abstraction/imagination) or directly referring to in game rules(you kill this person, other guy hates you now), narrative funneling is difficult to put together with the promiscuous phantom of choice--something which, for better or worse, NWN2 is founded upon.

The difficulty, I believe, is in regards to competing(and I use the term somewhat loosely) definitions of what is meant by "story" in a game. Mysteries of Westgate, primarily, is focusing on narrative driven--A to B to C, and so on punctuated by cinematices/expository sequences to fill in the "meaning" of the player's actions--as opposed to looser definitions employed by other games such as Super Metroid. The latter provides story(which I would like to say provides context and meaning for player action) through player interaction solely: one is required to do A to reach B, but there are few cinemas and even less dialogue. Rather, the interaction rests more on the implied relationship between player and player character--one is supposed to "care" about them, in a sense, and stare in wonder at the world around them. The environment and ambiance, in other words, become the prime storyteller.

That approach is met with difficulty in gaming criticism/critiques. There are certain games, such as Silent Hill 2 which place nearly all control over what the game "means" in the hands of the player--context is provided on an experiential level, and it is up to the player's interactions with the fictional world and their own imaginative processes to give larger context and purpose to what they see. Rather than an abdication of responsibility on the part of the designer, they're hoping to make a rich universe which is trying to more fundamentally involve the player into thinking about the characters in it as "real"(as real as models can be, anyways). In real life, it is rare indeed when people speak in paragraphs(oh, they write in paragraphs, but most conversations are quick little banters about mild things). If one were to think of the people in their lives as "characters" in a novel, are their often scenes when the character 'develops for the audience'? I'd say, and my point has likely been foreshadowed, no.

Individual interactions in the real world tend to be more observational than dramatic, focused more on the personal details of the world we see rather than a broader stroke of the whole(one could argue this is a bad thing, but that's a separate point all together). Games as a whole seem filled to the brim with characters harboring all sorts of problems and difficulties--there is nothing necessarily wrong with this, but it misses the point (many) modernist writers were correct to point out: the Stephen Dedalus's of the world are few and far between; search for a Leopold Bloom, as his curious meditations are closer to fact.

The combination, then, of semi-unrealistic characterization(and, yes, I shall suppose realism has a point even if demons are afoot) and the nature of storytelling makes me, perhaps un-rightly so, somewhat aloof from many games. I should like to see characters commenting on the mundane to the mighty, insignificant to the insightful. Rather than a story told in sweeping gestures or cinemas interspersed here and there, the "story" is gathered by the player and provided meaning through contemplation by the player.

That is the direction I'm taking with Shagret. I have a thought out lore, history and world view for the whole of the project, but the interaction of the player with the companions and NPCs will be of prime importance. It is possible, for instance, to finish Shagret(have the credits roll) with having fought nothing, spoken to virtually nobody and have next to no knowledge of anything in the game. Shouldn't this be an option? Likewise, the companions will have lots to say about many things(architecture, weather, monsters, lore, puzzles, your new armor even), and NPCs, too, will be reacting to changes in a fluid sense, not just when you've gathered whatever new item is needed to advance the story. My sense, again, of that word is that "story" is a framework of purpose/meaning for the player which they use to interact with the world. I am trying something different, focusing more on the implied(read: hopeful) relationship between player and world. My favorite games, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Shadow of the Colossus, and Silent Hill all strongly require the player to be committed to the world they are in(one can easily in all three games have no idea at all what the hell just happened in them). Call it being an active player.

This is not to say that games such as Mysteries of Westgate are bad; far from it, really(I'd love to mention the things I like in the game, but spoiler tags simply seem uncouth right now). Perhaps unfairly, I am mentioning it because it's on people's minds(my comments, for instance, would fit the original NWN2's campaign even better). I'm hoping to make a distinction between game types: those which player knowledge is aligned with benchmarks on a narrative scale(Mysteries of Westgate), and those in which there is a fluidity of player knowledge which is strongly related to their involvement with the game(Shagret). The latter is a very heavy gamble, I'm willing to admit that. A player could simply not give meaning to their own actions and think I've been lazy on a production level; perhaps they just want to be swept away by a story grander than themselves. To answer that, I can only promise this: Shagret will be different, and I hope it's palatable to most tastes.

I will give the player the ability fail at giving context(read: story), but these additional freedoms provide me the design flexibility to make companions who will speak of many things, comment(profoundly, profanely, paradoxically or pointlessly) often, and have a world which is less about what I seek for the player to do, but what they seek to do at a given juncture. It shall seem less formal at times, and perhaps have a "natural" feel to it. You can explore the story and action at your own pace...and who knows what might swell up from the fathoms, waiting.

Thanks Ossian! My tone might seem terse, but that's just my nature.
(And more on this friendly serpentine fellow some other week.)

New Music - The Ransid Hive

2009-04-27T16:32:00.003-04:00

Last week, I showcased the Ransid Hive exterior. In that time, I am fortunate enough to welcome a new composer Deflektor from Newgrounds(there are a fair amount of very talented people on that site). He has been kind enough to work on the ambient music for the area and I look forward to hearing more tracks by this talented musician.

And, on a personal note, I am very glad that finals are now over and I have a whole week(!) of no school. Amazing, really, and I can only be pleased that Mysteries of Westgate is slated for release on that time frame. With any luck, I can play it and talk about the game(and maybe play around with the content?). In any case, until next week.

Back into the swing of things

2009-04-20T14:10:00.006-04:00

It has been an odd assortment of weeks, to be honest. The best way to describe that time is to say that school can be complicated when you assume paper assignments are smaller than they actually are(fifteen pages is more work than, say, three). Some of my energies, you might say, were directed elsewhere. In such immortal words, so it goes.

But, I've managed to get back into things and made a few areas over the last week. I sort of have swamp/jungles "down", you might say, as I've made a few of them. This could potentially lead to areas looking the same, though, and I try my best to avoid that. One idea I developed back in my unreleased NWN1 module Beyond the Bog was the idea of "art areas" being separate from main/hub areas. I've included a rough picture below to try and illustrate what I mean. North and South lead to other main/hub areas while the branches lead to the "art areas".

There will be the main/hub area where you are, in a certain sense, required to go, and then you can follow quests along that path. I've posted pictures of that main area before and it's considered more a utility area than an art area. It's for the player to move through onto other things--this is not to say care isn't put into it, but I make the visuals "bland" to make it seem more natural and that the player is perhaps compelled to move on to other things. "Art areas", on the other hand, are strictly optional and, most of the time, are being used for quests/monsters/etc that a player can encounter if they so choose(read my principles & promises on the left sidebar to see what I am talking about). These areas are smaller and have a more focused point: not everyone will go to them and there is no forced reason to go there. Due to this, I take more liberties with design and have a stronger sense of visuals(I'd like to think so, anyways).

In any case, here's some screens of the "Ransid Hive" exterior(those playing along at home might remember the Ransids from a previous update...it's worth noting, though, that the interior featured there has changed drastically. This is due, in part, to SOZ content, but also to some interesting creatures and placeables becoming available which I have changed the design for. Look for it in a later week).

The design here is somewhat like the Julak Swamp, but I've made it rockier and not so thick as before. Also, the vines are substantially less: my logic being that these industrious buggers have removed much of the tangle which the swamp has.

Of course, these bugs have a literal pool of Royal Jelly which is being fed into. They collect nutrients and bring them back to the hive for consumption. Some quick advice: if you want to avoid trouble, don't bother messing with the jelly.

In any case, that's how I go about design. The side areas allow, I think, for a less rigid definition of "real areas" as they are, justifiably, off the beaten path. Exploration is key for Shagret, gameplay and story-wise(speaking of which, I'll get around to talking about that one of these days). However, there is a philosophy behind placement and design which I thought I'd discuss a bit.

(Shout out to the Exotic Dream Placeables pack)

Status Update

2009-04-13T22:38:00.003-04:00

Sometimes it is easy to forget that there's a world outside of this blog--who would know! Point being, I sometimes venture into the terrifying world of the interwebs and find some odd things in the work.

Robinson Workshop: A Purple Worm, of all things, is in the works, along with a Naga, Stirge and conversion of the DLA cobras. I won't be using the Naga model(I prefer my 'own' mythology), but serpentine creatures are amazingly difficult(I have mentioned I did modelling for a few weeks, right?) and these creatures all help fill the dangerous void of monstrous creatures we all so crave.

3yZ: The Exotic Dream Placeables Pack was amazing stuff(I confess it fits very well for my swamp minded campaign), but Venus Fly Traps are quite amazing. I have a sneaking suspicion some of these placeables could be feature in future updates...but who can say.

Now, there are likely some of you readers who would rather me update with something practical(screenshots, perhaps, or something like that). Well, funny story about that: area design is a complicated process and, well, I'm caught about 30% with an exterior right now. I could show my progress of it, but somehow that feels odd. Point being--in my attempt for regular Monday updates, sometimes things just don't line up well for showcasing. Hopefully, next week, I can begin anew with a steady flow of Shagret content. It would make me happier, if nothing else.

Nothing Much to Report(read: Finals Approach)

2009-04-06T21:56:00.002-04:00

In truth, there isn't. Much of last week was taken due to a fairly unbelievable class workload--it's nearing finals and, well, forgive me if my mind is elsewhere for a week or so. Not that I haven't done work, but my fingers need breaks from the mouse...and the weather is getting nicer; building virtual forests loses its luster when the world is in bloom.

That said, work progresses as scheduled, more or less. Next week promises to be more interesting than this, I assure you.

Beholder AI

2009-03-30T17:29:00.004-04:00

Ree's Beholder is, I think, fairly well known in the community. The nasty buggers from D&D lore are the bane of any adventuring group and have a well deserved reputation for evil and mayhem. I like to think that each encounter with one should be memorable and, if it were a tabletop game with friends, that high fives would go around for teamwork. To this end, I have reworked the Beholder AI for Shagret to make it more in line with how I feel the creature is described in the monster manual.

In this case that means the Beholder actively thinks out who it should target with spells: generally speaking, fighters will suffer mind spells and wizards ought to fear instant death and petrification. Beholders, though, can only shoot 3 beams at a time against any given target and they use a combination of challenge rating and other factors to determine who should be hit by what beam(I considered, as the manual says, that the Beholder could only shoot in 'arcs' away from itself, but this seemed awfully complex and beyond my skill level at the moment). Point being, though, that the creature weighs its beams against other creatures before assigning value; that said, one can rarely go wrong with a finger of death beam, so expect to see that start out many volleys.

I've also reworked the Anti-Magic cone. It has a proper 150 foot cone on it and the Beholder places priorities on certain spell effects(if your team is hasted or has displacement, for instance--as the Beholder now needs ranged touch attacks to hit--then it has a greater chance of using the Anti-Magic cone). The Beholder considers this carefully, though, as it *cannot* shoot a beam for 6 or so seconds after the attack--you might think it cowardice, but most Beholders turn tail(or head) and flee until their onslaught can begin anew.

But, one might say, this could be overpowered--the Beholder could easily dispatch certain targets and then fly away unhurt. This is, I think, the point of the creature. Beholders are really, when one thinks about it, a fair creature. They're getting about 9 attacks per round in massive arcs with the ability to disable wizards totally(side note: solo wizards will be bitten to death as the cone will never stop being used). This AI makes them very, very dangerous and more than a match for anyone thinking the creature is just a walk in the park. You better have a strategy beyond buffing prior to combat: in just a blink, you'll be toast.

The Naga Ruins

2009-03-23T17:00:00.003-04:00

Throughout the Julak Swamp, one's PC might be privy to any number of monsters or foul creature. This is not all, however. Amidst the tangle, there are also ruins of Naga temples and structures. What is inside them and their original purpose, though, is left open to the individual. Perhaps lore might be discerned, perhaps companions have things to say(more on them soon enough), or maybe there are things scuttling in the gloom...one must be ready for anything ancient, forgotten or dripping bile onto the floor.

The magical blue flames of the Nagas lick the sides of the ruins: illuminating much, but still there are dark corners. The Julak swamp hides her secrets casually, as if it is a diversion.

One can never be sure what is in the ruins, but our hapless hero seems to have encountered one of the dread Black Hands of the Naga Queen. They are elite hunters and track the PC throughout their adventure: guard your path...to be on their receiving end is a fate perhaps worse than death(shout out to Ree for the great new Yuan-ti model).

And I'm fortunate to once again feature a track by Goran Bastinac of Heaven Rain. This track will be featured in the Naga Ruins: it is mysterious, has puffs of magical lore, and manages to suggest more than it reveals. One can never be too sure what's in the ruins...

Update - 3/16/09

2009-03-16T14:41:00.003-04:00

Work progresses as scheduled(I don't have an excel sheet like some modders do--perhaps, as Travis Bickle would say, I need to get "organezized"--but I like to think my system works. Still, I think that's an interesting way to work and I need to probably do something like that). In any case, this week was primarily spent on conversations and things 'under the hood' which, really are not of much interest to any of us. Hours can be spent on them but then they take up maybe 1 second of game time. They are important aspects of any game that's made, surely, but sort of dull to discuss.

Now, I would like to mention a design aspect of Shagret: all conversations are linear. This style is borrowed, if I might be so kind, from Indigo Prohpecy(a game which is very, very awesome in certain respects, but generally a failure elsewhere). Functionally, this means that there will be no 'menu of choices' which will show up for the player. If you see a choice pop up, that's your only chance to pick it within that conversation. This does, I'm sure you'd guess, require a great deal more writing on my part, but it gives more hypothetical depth to the companions/characters and accentuates replay value. In the end, I hope this amounts to something other that sore hands on my part.

While testing, I thought this screenshot looked rather interesting. Perhaps not as robust as my other shots, but it certainly gets the job done. And, anyways, I should have a screen each week.

As a final note, if there are any 2D artists out there who are looking for a project, I am currently in need of some things made for me(portraits, GUI art, etc). Hit me up at the NWN2 boards(Chaos Wielder) or email me: shagretnwn2@gmail.com

Monster Showcase - Grimwing. Featuring Music, Too!

2009-03-09T13:26:00.005-04:00

Even wet wood burns under its scornful visage. Its wake leaves few to mourn.

In the Julak Swamp, there are dangerous monsters to face and discover. There are the requisite Wyverns, Trolls and other foes one might expect in a swamp. However, there are always anomalies amongst the crowd--those who cull the hunters along with the hunted.

The light singe of moss follows it wherever it goes.

Grimwing, as the monster is known by locals, stalks the swamp in a seemingly random fashion. You are not going to throw on your buffs before meeting him. In fact, he will likely swoop in from above when you least expect it. You have to be ready for anything when venturing through the swamp, and I do mean anything. Save often, save often, save often.

It is not enough for the Wyvern to be powerful physically. It is rumored that, when just a hatchling, the beast ingested some sort of mineral which brought its raging spirit to greater fury. As you see above, the creature only is slightly ablaze...if you see more fire than that, perhaps taking flight would be better.

Vwoosh! You're going to end up like the leaves!

Grimwing will ambush you, but you need to be on your toes even after it appears. If it alights like in the picture, you need to break up your formations--the next fire breath is going to hurt. And I mean hurt(I hid the damage amount to get a screenshot, but the blast hit for 137 fire damage). Of course, defeating this Wyvern might have its advantages...but when he's hunting you, you're not likely to be ready for Grimwing.

Now, some time ago I placed an ad looking for music composers for Shagret. I have been fortunate to speak with many fine people on the subject, and hope to have a wide variety of artists and talents involved with this project. Goran Bastinac of Heaven Rain has been kind enough to work with me on this project, and I would like to feature a demo of one of the tracks he has created. I appreciate his work, and it lends power to the battle against the foes you'll be fortunate, or not, to meet in the Julak Swamp.

Head Cold

2009-03-02T20:53:00.001-05:00

Last week was taken up by a nefarious, nay, devilish head cold(Zork, too, has suffered from misled germs of evil). This is very depressing considering it was my "spring break", of all things. So, because of that, I was not able to prepare the awesome update I've been planning for so many weeks. Give me one more week and you'll be amazed, I promise!

Crafting System Outline

2009-02-23T22:13:00.003-05:00

Shagret will feature a custom crafting system which I hope will address my perceived problems with the crafting systems in the official campaigns. As I see it, there is something odd--if not somewhat breaking with the totality of the game world--when the player is given the ability to craft items better than the best they can discover. If we are to suppose that there were, or still are, individuals of greater qualities than the player, then it would perhaps be nice if the game items reflect that. So, for this, I have tried to put together a system which will allow the player to create custom items while still allowing for awesome artifacts(The Sword of Demonslaying SwordnessOMG!) to exist within the world. I'll outline it below and, hopefully, I can get some feedback in it.

1) Monsters will drop items which are unique per creature. This is nothing new necessarily, but there is a twist. Although monsters drop items irrespective of the player's skills, there are items found in the wild which are dependent on skill. Say, for instance, that a high skill in 'Craft Alchemy' allows the player to notice certain roots others don't know about. The same goes with all the crafting skills--they are used to salvage/find items not dropped from monsters.

Let's say, after adventuring, I have some items in my inventory. For the examples below, let's say "Wyvern Stinger" gives +1 Acid Damage on hit and "Julakian Green Moss" gives +3 Hit Points. I have two of each.

2) Now, I'm an adventurous type and want to get access to those powers. The swamp is dangerous, and I'd be foolish not to have these things. There is a small catch, however: you cannot enchant objects which are considered 'magical'. For instance, a "Gold Necklace" would be allowed for enchanting but a "Necklace of Fireballs" is off limits for the player: it is as it is. This is to keep a distance between what one finds and what one makes. Believe me, there will be a point for crafting but you can, and likely will, find better items than you make. With a potential team of 6(you and 5 companions), you might find the best items going fast. You can craft items to fill in the gaps and create specialty things along the way.

3) I have chosen a "Short Sword" to enchant. The system is capped so I can add 3 properties as I see fit to it. In possession are two "Wyvern Stingers" and "Julakian Green Moss" items. I can either give it +2 acid damage and +3 health, or the other way around(this is assuming I want to max it out now, which isn't necessarily the best option). Adding health, for instance, to a sword doesn't make a whole lot of sense--giving +9 health to a ring, though, might be useful for that weak rogue or wizard in the back. This allows a degree of customization but caps them at a certain point. Also, of course, you can name the item as you see fit.

4) Properties stack. Now, "Wyvern Stinger" gives +1 Acid Damage, but let's say "Alpha Wyvern Stinger" gives +5 Acid Damage. Had the item already been given the Acid Damage property, I can add onto it(assuming I hadn't reached the 3 cap of items to have on it). This would give a total of +6 Acid Damage and 2 items spent on creating it.

5) You can remove properties one point at a time. I might have made my "Short Sword" have +3 Acid Damage from 3 stingers, but removing all the properties--which one can do--just to add the "Alpha Wyvern Stinger" doesn't seem worthwhile. You can remove the property of one stinger to have a total of +7 damage(hypothetically, anyways). All of this is handled through a complex system of scripting and, hopefully, a GUI(assuming I can get around to that). It should be quite straightforward and a powerful system.

I hope I've explained it enough so it makes sense. Any comments/suggestions/criticisms would be very much appreciated since this is still in, relatively speaking, the planning stages. A fair amount of scripting has been done already, but it can be undone and written around quickly enough.

(And, in case anyone was wondering, I did quite well at the tournament. Fun generally all around. Sadly, these sorts of things attract dicks of all kinds, but people are better than that on a whole).

A Tangent!

2009-02-16T15:56:00.002-05:00

Well, I am nearly finished with another area--this is amidst other priorities, scripting and writing. Needless to say, these are some complicated things to juggle. How do I manage to do this, you might ask? I'm glad you, dear reader, asked.

I do play many games in my spare time--or what is left of it nowadays--and one of my favorites is Super Smash Bros. Brawl! for the Nintendo Wii. This weekend, of all things, there will be a tournament at my local college. I'm quite good at the game, if I might be so bold, and plan on attending. The top prize is over $500, which would be quite nice(not to mention fun).

So, I'm doing some amount of training(for those of you play the game, I use Snake and Ganondorf--the former for victory and the latter for fun) and plan on coming back with some money to spend. Next week there will be--I promise!--and interesting update, so wait until then. If nothing else, I deserve a tangent every now and again.

Shattered Dreams

2009-02-09T21:08:00.002-05:00

I'd like to spend a brief moment to say that I am, in addition to working on Shagret, working with Bouncy Rock on the forthcoming mod Shattered Dreams.

My job is that of an area designer, this is something I'm apparently good at, and am working on the project alongside that of this behemoth I've grown attached to. I can attest to the high, high quality of the content involved and am quite confident people will be pleased by what they see when it is finally released. I'm not one for hyperbole, but it's looking like a very good time for NWN2 with Purgatorio being released and then this coming out in its wake. Rejoice, and be merry(maybe drinks around the house).

Also, Shattered Dreams will not be changing the deadline of Shagret or in any way. The projects are apart and I actually become more motivated to work on one if I've been working on the other--my own ethos of design are different from others, and a refresh from myself is always appreciated. Noble readers, fear not(!), many good mods are in the pipeline.

I'm going to see if we can't get some content showcased here on this blog from Shattered Dreams. I think that will be nice and perhaps sate people while I dredge up something more interesting than screenshots. Until next week.

I'm Back!

2009-02-02T20:27:00.004-05:00

Those were a nice two weeks. Although sabbaticals are supposed to be fully clear of work, I managed to squeeze out quite a bit during that. So, in that sense, I suppose it was nice enough(though classes are somewhat heavy now, so fluctuations on progress are bound to happen.

I did make a request for music composers some time ago, and have gotten promising results--that said, what I'm looking for in regards to music is quite large. So, re posting here basically, anyone interested in helping in that department would be greatly appreciated. A whole new score/sound track is what I have in mind(a bit much, maybe, but can't one dream?)

Anyways, here are some screens from an area in progress--there's some issues that need to be dealt with but it's by and large done.

The Julak Swamp, as has been said, is quite thick. Making these jungle/bog sections is more work than you might think. However...there are things to be discovered.

A Naga Temple jutting out from the bog. Its cleanliness should tell you an important thing: you'd be expunged at the first sighting. Tread carefully...

From this vantage point, the temple proper can be seen(its multi-level) and the swamp is just visible in the background. It's quite a transition, I think, and is interesting enough. I suspect the Nagas don't like tourists, but I'm sure you can make due.

Well, next week I plan on doing something different--area screen shots are so dull.

Sabbatical

2009-01-19T19:00:00.002-05:00

I am taking a two week break from Shagret. I will update my blog when that time comes.

I find that taking breaks is good, and as a quasi-writer I appreciate what lack of interaction can do between oneself and the project. Hopefully, when returning, I can have some new(and better thought out) ideas for this project.

Until then, I wish the best!

Sigh...(part trois)

2009-01-12T21:12:00.002-05:00

And, sadly, it's not the kind of trois which would be worth talking about.

No, I am suffering from computer fatigue(and this is the last I shall write about it, so I think). My computer returned from repair on Saturday and, goodness, its hard disk had been wiped yet windows had not been reinstalled. Why is this?--well, apparently, since it's an Alienware computer, it has been designed in such a way that windows cannot, will not, install without a factory approved Alienware CD. That is, only they can do it. I've tried getting in contact with Alienware, but they said it was my problem, basically, so I'm stuck.

I might have to write an elegy for my laptop, as it has drifted off into the land of bricks...it seems.

However, with that behind me, I can perhaps focus more so on making this different comp run smoother. I have begun writing more dialogue, as area design is slightly cumbersome now, so I hope for the best in the future. I will complain more to Alienware, but I believe my old friend is now dead and gone. How sad.

Status - 1/05/09

2009-01-05T17:18:00.002-05:00

I still do not have my real computer back, despite having the IT guys checking it out last Wednesday(they said two/three days, so I am somewhat confused as to not hearing back from them at all). In any case, it is upsetting--I really would like to have it back.

However, Amraphael's suggestions of using a weaker comp has done the trick(!). In the last week, having took a fortnight rest, I am back in the thick of things churning out areas at my normal speed. Things are going well here and I'm getting into the thick of some heavy conversations/scripting(*gulp!*). Shagret got hit hard in the kneecaps, but it doesn't get knocked down that easily.

Here is one of the areas I worked on last week(I'm going to only do one screenshot at a time--padding, if you must know). I'm quite pleased with it, to be honest. A lush, magic glen under the earth. Frurar, the forest, has many of these scenes. I hope you enjoy...and I hope to be back with my old comp sometime this week.

Sigh...(part deux)

2008-12-29T22:47:00.002-05:00

Well, it seems as though my computer support team--of the dreaded Alienware brand--does not deem my plight worth considering. So be it, I suppose. I shall be taking my computer in for repairs tomorrow, and I look forward to shelling out the money. A shame, really, but it has to happen(if not just for NWN2, but to have my own comp again).

I'll be having a long talk with the several people who used my computer, indeed.

However, on a less dire note, Ampharael's suggestion to install NWN2 on a separate comp for minor edits has gone swimmingly. I can kinda/sorta edit interiors, so at least some work can be done. No screens this week, I'm afraid, but hopefully next week can yield more useful information(aside from my somewhat bitter mood over this fiasco).

Sigh...

2008-12-22T11:07:00.002-05:00

Okay, bad news. And no, to clear the air, I'm not quitting the project(seems there has been quite a bit of things like that happening). No, what's happened is my comp I use for NWN2 has been inflicted with a malformed/corrupted .dll file. It's, apparently, one of the basic components Windows uses to boot up and run. I'm not sure if this is a virus or not(I think the file just screwed itself up, to be honest), but it prohibits me from running any programs on that comp. I haven't lost any work, thankfully, but I'm not sure when I can get that other comp up and running. Point is, I need to wipe the other comps hard disk but I can't get on the Internet and money doesn't come cheap here. It is a sad story...one I hope to have fixed soon.

That all said, I can load up NWN1 on my other, weaker, comp and work on some scripting systems. I plan on having a whole new crafting system for my mod, and I'm working out the kinks as I type this. Hopefully, I can have some info on that soon enough.

Status Update - 12/15/08

2008-12-15T17:28:00.002-05:00

Last week was finals so, yeah, no exciting work was particularly done with the mod. This is unfortunate--but it is now done. Areas were, essentially, walk mesh cut and I set up how my companions will look. Additional work, on a serious basis, can likely get going.

Also, I've added a side bar which lists my vault submissions. Why have I done this? Boredom?, Shameless pandering? There are many possible reasons that this could be the case. In any case, it's done.

Also, as an aside, I'm nearly positive that DMCB: Yeoman of the Greenwood will be used by my campaign. There were several small pieces of armor in it that must be used. I suggest, highly, for people to check it out.

Exposed(!), Request, and More Screens

2008-12-08T20:50:00.010-05:00

Elysius(Frank) revealed, sorta, that I'm involved in a side project with the NWN2 community. Rest assured, noble reader, that this is not hurting progression of Shagret. If anything, it reinvigorates me: seeing the stuff that the community is capable of is truly astonishing. There's some good people here, and this project looks to be awesome. More information will be revealed when it's available. I can only say now that it's going along well and you'll be pleasently happy when it shows up.

My Request:
My project is moving along at a good pace, I think, for something so massive(and being worked on by myself only). No, I'm not looking for module/campaign assistance, but I do seek someone who could compose some music for me. I'm already using a fair amount of custom tracks, but there are certain combats(and ambient tracks) which I haven't found a suitable item for. So, if anyone is interested in making some tracks for me, I'd humbly request you email me at: shagretnwn2@gmail.com

Obviously you would get credit, and if the project tanked--which I highly, highly doubt--I wouldn't be weird and keep them/demand you don't release them. Think of this as a commission basis just nobody gets paid.

This is a battle with a Troll: my "universe"(if I may be so bold) does not necessarily follow the D&D monster manual head on. So...expect some interesting things--I mean, my Trolls will act slightly differently(you've been warned here!).

A Naga Temple. The Nagas make their home in the Julak Swamp, driving out all enemies(or creatures) whenever possible. There are few things they fear, and it allows them the freedom to make such expansive temples like this. The player should be warned: they fight intelligently and are vicious in their assaults.

Balance in the wake of Zehir

2008-12-01T20:46:00.006-05:00

Having just finished SOZ(second run) on the hardest difficulty--word to the wise: the final boss is absurdly powerful on this difficulty and you better come ready to rumble--I've noticed how powerful certain tactics are in this game. The final boss, on the hardest level of difficulty, is fully immune to all Bigby and Missile Spells(Isaac or simply Magic Missile), and I found it necessary to change my wizard's spell book just for that opponent.

For good reasons, too. Those line of spells, especially Bigby, are so overwhelmingly powerful that they practically negate any other spell of that level. Take Bigby's Forceful Hand for instance:

Bull Rush works like this: Caster Roll: 1d20 + 14 Defender Roll: 1d20 + Strength Modifier + Size Modifier The caster needs to equal or beat the defenders roll to be successful.
Note: The +14 comes from the 3.5E description: +8 for Strength 27, +4 for being Large, and a +2 bonus for charging, which it always gets.
Note 2: The size modifier is +8 for huge, +4 for large, +0 for medium, -4 for small, -8 for tiny.
This spell will daze and knock down the target at the same time. If they are immune to one of the effects, the other one still takes place. The duration, while short, can be highly effective against any low strength character. Unlike the 3.5E rules for Bull Rush attempts, which push back a target, this is a single bull rush which knocks down the target for the duration. The 3.5E spell likely would need to be redirected to work properly, bull rushing a target each round. Against a low strength character, except those with magical defences, works extremely well. A human rogue with a strength score of 12 will get 1d20 + 1 bonus as his roll. The attackers roll would be d20 + 14. This big difference means the target is very likely to be knocked down for the duration. This spell also works very well against a high strength character. A 36 strength is required to obtain a +14 strength bonus, which will give just under a 50% chance of resisting this spell. A 50 strength will still be defeated 28% of the time. Against a larger amount of creatures, this spell is less beneficial, but against single targets it can work wonders.

This spell is absurdly effective. At a 6 second per caster level duration, it manages to effectively kill the target should they fall victim to it(you're looking at putting the enemy out of commission for a minimum of 11 rounds--more than enough time to kill them). Although there are other strategies available to the player, they are mostly secondary to the brutal effectiveness of this spell. No save, basically impossible to resist, and effective death on failing.

This, along with missile storms for unresistable damage, were my bulwark spells, providing an effective fallback should the enemy ever pose a threat. Although my wizard could cast nearly any spell, she fell back time and time again upon these disturbingly effective offensive items. I found this, overall, to make the game more simplistic than it should have been and centralized spell selection too much. This is not to say I found the gameplay to be dull in SOZ(or other NWN2 mods), but I do find it troublesome that these few spells manage to be universally superior to others.

My point in writing this is the following: I am going to find a way to balance these spells. Or, forgoing that, simply a manner of making more spells viable options for the player. Whether these be simple changes--making monsters take extra damage from elemental magic making Missile Storm seem less appealing--or complex--making Bigby Spells easier to resist and have less duration(3 seconds per caster level?). In any case, with Shagret, I'm going to try and make the combat more fleshed out on the side of the spell caster. I'm tired of seeing every Cleric build have Divine Power as the centerpiece: there has to be some of making other selections seem viable.

Although I might not post on these matters again, I want it to be floating someplace in the background: there will be changes to default spell casting on some level to make it more dynamic and respectful to player choice.

Status Update - 11/24/08: With SOZ content!

2008-11-24T21:28:00.003-05:00

I wrote a brief writeup on SOZ over on the NWN2 boards, so I won't rehash myself too much. Point being, basically, it's a fun diversion and I don't care about companion dialogue being absent. Often I find the characterization questionable, in the first place, so a fun 'old school' adventure is apt. I'll take gameplay over story content most anytime(though the best of games manage to combine both).

Now that SOZ is out, I can begin work on the starting areas of the campaign: The Julak Swamp. The swamp is supposed to be quite foreboding and thick beyond belief. Trees, vines and plants nearly blot out the sun. I did make a few areas prior to SOZ but they...were questionable. Ultimately, it was a good idea to wait. I hope you'll agree with me.

Not all of the swamp is submerged. Certain sections, like shown above, are on 'hard ground'. That, actually, is an important point to note...certain monsters only appear in certain sections of the swamp. Keeping track of the disparate locations has its advantages.

I took some pains to have the more 'jungley' sections to have layered design to them. That is, there are things going on high above you that are not noticeable unless sought out. Perhaps useless, perhaps not.

Here is a ruin you can find very early which is being consumed by the swamp. It's overgrown to a tee, and was the first thing I worked on with SOZ content. Basically, it's the sunken ruins(from MOTB) with nicely colored cobblestone with many, many, many vines/trees in it.

Here is the Julak Swamp, proper. Oh, there is a reason there's no grass in the water or vines hanging above it. Maybe the water isn't very safe...you'll have to wait and see.

As a builder, I find the tools added by SOZ to be quite invaluable. Granted, from the start I wanted a swamp mod, so maybe the expansion was made for me. I like to think so, anyways. I plan on being back next week, but building these areas is quite time consuming, and a new term of school is looming a month off in the distance. Work might slow down, sadly, on all fronts quite soon.

Update: 11/17/08

2008-11-17T14:01:00.005-05:00

Work progresses as normal, or as normal as normal can be. I took a break for a week to cool off a bit, reading and catching up with real life(or what might be called that). That's to explain, for those at home keeping score, why I didn't have an update last week.

Anyways, between working on a NWN2 project with my brother(fyi, Autumn forests are far harder to make than you might think), I've been going back to remake some old areas of mine. One day, who knows why, area design 'happened' and I figured it out. Sadly, some of the older areas of mine--some dear to my heart--needed something of a face lift. This is time consuming and, frankly, dull work, but I'm trying to keep things consistent. I mean, I don't want to have a 'good' area next to a 'bad' area. I'm sure other builders know what I mean--and, yeah, using prefabs just isn't for me. So that means back to old areas.

That said, the newer areas are turning out much better than I could have hoped. Give me a week or so and screens will be available--and maybe a few goodies too--so be patient. Until then, I've got two screens from some random caves I've been working on. Nothing really spectacular, I think, but cool regardless.

Sadly, diffuse lighting doesn't interact with trees how I would like. The area would look much better if that were the case. Work with what you've got?--it's tough keeping areas distinct with somewhat limited options(I mean, a lava cave wouldn't make sense in most circumstances). As always, noble reader, I'm open to suggestions.

I liked the look of this screen. The blue coming up from the pool of water is really cool and made me very pleased upon discovery.

With SOZ out this week--I hope to receive my copy any day--I can get back to some AI work I had on hold. With TonyK now integrated fully, some of my projects might not be necessary so I didn't want to work on them if, you know, it wasn't needed. With the new trees/placeables/etc, too, I can work on the starting area again: the Julak Swamp.

I have many, many placeholder swamp areas made months ago, but the prospect of new content just shifted my attention to different parts of the campaign. In the coming weeks, expect more muck and grime with slightly less magic and wonder. Maybe some awesome new creatures, too...

The Halloween Mod - Impressions of Every House

2008-11-03T20:19:00.003-05:00

Well, together with my brother, the whole of the Halloween mod has been played. Great fun overall, and I thought I'd take a moment--rather than having a full real update--to just outline some of the stuff I thought while playing. The list shall be alphabetic and will have spoilers.

actorofveil: The weird sense of humor had me captivated, that's for sure. The new music, too, had quite some charm.
Adam Miller: I do appreciate the self-referential nature he has taken on. I was a quiet member of the NWN1 community, so I like how he's carried himself over with...humorous results. Additionally, being shrunk is cool.
amraphael: The vague disdain that the avatar had for me was very much appreciated. I didn't want to be poisoned! Additionally, the area design had me quite envious(to tell the truth). Well done.
amstradhero: Always nice to see something a bit different. The game I mean. Cool stuff--I know better than to try and script games. Much of the fun is lost while doing it! ;)
anduraga: Fantastic opening area and a simple, yet relatively well done, puzzle rounds the package out. Also, oddly, ghosts didn't show up too often in the Halloween mod--so nice to see that, too. Dialogue was nice, too.
berra: Well done lighting but, not to sound rude, there seemed too much emphasis on old mods you had made(and perhaps not accessible to the average NWN2 player). That said, I enjoyed snooping around and was impressed by the effort put into the descriptions, conversations in the area.
black rain software: Okay, flat out. This made me laugh. Hard. As a quasi-fan, more so enemy, of Resident Evil, the attention to detail--the crappy detail, in this case--of the opening cinema, had me in stitches. Sure, not for all tastes, but this is one I might invite friends over to see. Bravo, bravo indeed.
chaos wielder: I don't want to talk about my own, really. Just this: I tried something a bit different, and I hope some Lovecraft fans appreciated it. Dunwhich Horror meets Pickman's Model, basically.
dirtywick: Didn't find much to do here, but I liked the area design in any case. You know, for it being Halloween, there sure were quite a few taverns lined with people. What with candy out and about, people should go on some adventures! ;)
eat2surf: Tiki Room=Win. 'nuff said, but the voice acting was comically distant too.
eguintir: I felt like I was intruding someplace and he hated me, which was pretty cool overall. And I got a tour! Wow, talk about being grateful. I would have liked more candy, though.
elysius: Lovecraft would be happy, and putting the mask on is damn cool. Also, the voice acting had just the right level of campiness to be appreciable. One of my favs.
enoa4: Someone hates the toolset, heheh. And, really, we all do. I appreciate someone who is so angry, they'll work in a medium to denounce it. Truly, that's the stroke of genius. ;)
gaming parents studio: Cinema was very well done, I cannot lie. I was very impressed by this, and the witty banter that followed had me astounded: Unicorns can work with Devils, it seems. Halloween--what a holiday! And, yeah, area design had me impressed.
jasonnh: You put, it seems, a ton of effort into your cinemas, and it shows. Very, very well done. This was my first house in the whole of the Halloween mod, so it has a special place in my heart. Gotta be honest, it is quite effective overall.
maxboreas: An interesting change from the rest of them. Assembling my own party was pretty cool and, furthermore, it was nice meeting Bishop(yet again!--traitors always get their time in the sun, figuratively speaking).
neighborhood(jclef): Superb area construction, and I like your little jokes along the way(your quest might have been read off a script, but I still liked going into The Dark Cave!!!). In any case, yours was a somewhat thankless job--so it's good to know your house is so nice.
ree: You, sir(with Liso too) are either a God or a Devil. It may take several years, with profound research done on many levels of philosophical inquiry to figure it all out. But, this I can say now: the jokes worked and this made me laugh more than I'm willing to admit here. The goat music haunts my soul.
shaughn78: There aren't that many 'quests' in the Halloween mod, in the conventional sense. Most were little tricks and jokes(I contribute to these latter ones), so it was refreshing to see a more so traditional quest. So, yeah, liked that. And vampires!--gotta love them.
skunkeen: This doesn't seem really done, so I can't comment.
the grumpy strumpet: Tons of stuff in here(maybe too much). I did lead a rat rebellion, which was cool, and reading some of the strumpet letters was fun. Overall, a solid entry. It had an offbeat feel to it, even within a village of offbeat ideas.
tiberius209: Dracula! This was, without a doubt, the most 'real quest' of the mods(which isn't a problem). The puzzles were well done, areas looked cool, and I liked assembling my group of heroes. Heheh: Mystery if Westgate angst, eh?
vendalus: Murder mysteries are cool, and I liked the rich ensemble of characters assembled for your little party. Halloween allows for Illithid and Death Knights to be together with no questions asked. I quite enjoyed the setting up of the scene: I can't believe he exploded! No murder in the night, just an explosion!
wyrin: You may have forced me to re-rent the Evil Dead trilogy. I'm somewhat upset by this, but the love I have for them outweighs that. To be blunt: this was a fun trip. I enjoyed fleeing the basement in heroic(terrified!) fashion. Lovecraft looks good in red, btw.

Don't worry noble readers: next week shall yield new screenshots on Shagret. Work continues as normal, and I wait for SOZ so I can finally get some shots of the swamp out there(where most of the mod actually takes place).

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T14:26:00.002-04:00

http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=NWN2ModulesEnglish.Detail&id=322

Yes, every modder is required to post a link. Not really, but the mod is eleven degrees of awesome so it does seem apt.

I know I'm enjoying other people's entries, and I hope people like mine. Same time next year, then?

A Texture Tutorial, By (Semi)Popular Demand

2008-10-27T21:55:00.000-04:00

I have received a fair amount of comments for my custom creature skins, whether public or private. Honestly, giving an existing creature a glow map is not very complicated--it simply is something most do not consider doing. For the most part, it isn't very necessary; but, for my purposes(the Animal Gods), I had to change some default textures to get close to what I had in mind. To that end, I learned how to do this.

What's a community, though, without sharing ideas? So, I've put together the following tutorial on how to add/change glow maps(or any texture map, for that matter) to monsters which normally do not have it.

In any case, you'll need a few things for the basic changes I'm outlining:

1) Image editing software which can open .dds files--Paint.net is free and does this. GIMP, vanilla anyways, does not open .dds.
2) MDB cloner from NWN Vault.
3) The vfx editor plugin for the NWN2 toolset(should be there by default).
4) Something to open archived file(Winrar works for me).

The Tutorial:
In the first place, you'll need to export the texture/model of the creature you want to use. For our purposes here, we will be using the Dire Boar.

To find the textures/models, you'll need to find the root install directory of NWN2: for most people it is something like: C:\Program Files\Atari\Neverwinter Nights 2\Data

In that subfolder, there are numerous archived files: NWN2_MATERIALS houses all the default textures while NWN2_MODELS houses all default models(look in the appropriate expansion folders for additional items).

Now, once inside the archive, it can seem to be a bit daunting...

However, it is organized simply enough(I have circled the files we're looking for).

For future reference, notice the spelling conventions:

C_Boar_CL_Body01.dds(this is the texture of the creature: the diffuse map).
C_Boar_CL_Body01_N.dds(this is the normal map texture: gives '3D' effects to 2D images. Too complex for my tastes, and purposes).
C_Boar_CL_Body01_T.dds(the tint map. You'd have to get someone with real talent to explain what all that means).

For our purposes, we will be extracting C_Boar_CL_Body01.dds to a folder we can have easy access to. Do that, and then do the same for the model(the NWN2_MODELS archive follows the same naming conventions--but, to save you some time, the model for the Dire Boar is C_BoarDire_CL_Body01.mdb).

Okay, everything should be nice and extracted at this point(yikes!--sounds gross).

Now, we're going to edit the diffuse map just to see how it reacts with some simple changes.

Voila! I am an artist! This simple change will show up in game easy to see.

Okay, joking aside, it's worth noticing some things about the texture: The boar's body is not logically aligned. Its teeth are by tusks and...really, the textures you'll encounter do not have logic as their goal. If you're going to do real modification, as below, it's primarily an issue of trial and error...mostly error.

Now, with that done, put this altered texture(saved as a .dds file, still) into your documents override folder: on vista, something like, C:\Users\YOURNAMEHERE\Documents\Neverwinter Nights 2\Override

Once put in there, load up the toolset to see how it looks.

My oh my, what a cute little piggy.

See, simple and easy to do. Basically, I have shown how you can edit textures on default creatures--and, if you're clever, placeables--for your own campaign(the campaign folder works as a mini-override just for the selected modules, so the same principle applies). This way, if you want to only have, say, one Red Dragon in your module, you could edit its texture simplistically for that one event.

Basic stuff, really.

Hmmm, but what if I want to make that piggy glow? And, let us say, that I want only one Dire Boar to glow--after all, they're a summon, and it would look silly if they were all glowing.

Below I have more advanced instructions on how to achieve this effect. It gets a bit more complicated--not very much so--so try and bear with me a bit.

Okay, first thing's first: open up the MDB cloner. Once it is up and running, go under File(in the top left corner) and find the Dire Boar model you extracted from the archive. Once you do that, you should get a screen something like I have below.

(I've greyed out the name because, well I have to).

Anyways, notice how there is no texture in the glow map pull down menu. This is something we need to change. Now, you might be tempted to edit as quickly as possible--however, that would miss some things quickly.

First thing's first though...remove that "HI!" Boar Texture out from the override folder. It would cause problems later on. Secondly...

Create a black image that is the same size as the texture you were altering *and* name it however you want(I chose to stay with default naming conventions, so called it: "C_Boar_CL_Body01_I"--the "I" at the end designates a glow map). This prevents other versions of the creature model--default Dire Boars, in this case--from glowing.

In the MDB cloner, select this texture as the default glow map. Save both files, the black texture and the modified model, into your override(or campaign) folder.

If you were to load up the toolset right now, there should be no change with your creature. It should look exactly the same. This is correct, for the time being.

Now, open up the original(un-modified) Dire Boar texture. Below is the Glow Map I created for the Boar God, but you can do any changes you want.

It is the same size, 256x256 pixels, .dds image as the diffuse map. This is important to remember: when modifying diffuse maps into glow maps, the section you edit stays the same between images. That is, I've made the tusks/horns red here, and that means the tusks/horns of the Boar God will glow red.

It takes trial, errors and a great deal of patience to figure this all out if you're going from image editing to toolset and back again. Point is, though, that it's possible.

Now, you've got your edited .dds file, so save it into your override(or campaign) folder. I called mine, naturally, "shagret_boargod.dds". Name yours whatever you want.

You've got to load up the visual effects editor at this point. This tends to terrify people, so I'll walk you through it slowly.

1) File--pull down that menu and select new Special Effects File(sef).

After you do that, you should get a surreal scene like that below:
Why two ugly guys in the middle of a field? Don't ask me. The guys at Obsidian are smashing more than ribs...

Now, I've circled it in the picture above, but select "Add Event". Make that event a "Game Model Effect".

This will create a box under that--the glowing blue object in the following picture.

From here, select, like I have, "Glow Map Texture".

Further down, there is an option for you to select your texture file--if you saved it in the override folder, just find its name(if you saved it in the campaign folder, you need to be running the module which is associated with that campaign to access those textures).

Anyways, you've selected your new texture. Save this sef file into the override(or campaign folder), whichever you prefer(or are using). Name it something easy to remember--for my purposes, I named it the same as the texture: shagret_boargod

Now, go load up the toolset and select the visual effect for the creature(it's in a drop down menu for the creature's properties).

(The other fancy sparks are courtesy of my own VFX editor work--maybe a future tutorial will be written on that? Additionally, the red color is from tinting).

Wow. Isn't that amazing? Here we have to Dire Boars but they look really, really different. Best of all, no .2da work. Easy, easy stuff...once you get the hang of it.

I'd like to say, as a final note, that the changes made could be easily applied to other purposes--we modified the glow map of a specific creature, but you could do the same for diffuse maps. That is, you could maybe make a Red Dragon look white but have another Red Dragon look default. Ultimately, the visual effects editor provides that option.

Anyways, this seems to be about all of it. If you have any questions about this, either comment here or post on my thread going on the NWN2 forums. I'd like to see some fancy creatures every now and then, and I hope this helps someone on that journey.

Happy modding!

Shagret Update: 10/20/08

2008-10-20T21:05:00.000-04:00

It has been quite some time since there has been a proper update about Shagret. What have I been up to all these months? Truth be told, a fair amount, but much of it is in ways of planning and deciding just what is going to be in the campaign. It is difficult, staring at the blinking cursor, to decide what should or should not be in. However, things have gone well since then.

In the coming weeks, interspersed with new screenshots and such(some shown below), I'm going to outline some of the design decisions I am making with Shagret. Hopefully--and by starting a thread on the NWN2 boards, too--I can get feedback/criticism/praise about these decisions. When you hear/see them, I'm sure you'll understand why I am interested in hearing about them. My module is not set in stone and, despite what I might think at times, I am interested in hearing what prospective players are thinking. This campaign will be...a bit different, but I want it to be accessible nonetheless.

Well, that said, here are two screenies from an area I've been working on(not the only area, mind you, just recent work).

The area is a cave within Frurar(the massive forest where most players will go to at the start of the campaign). It is situated under a massive tangle of trees and, due to that, manages to be nearly choked with an incredibly huge amount of roots snaking their way through the soft clay. Going is tough and the roots hide many things...

Like all my non-magical areas, it is only naturally lit: that is, there must be a logical place for all the light to come from. I was getting tired of the default 'cave light' visual effect, so decided to make a new one. If there is interest, I might throw together a tutorial on how to do basic changes such as that(at the moment I'm currently making a guide on how to make new diffuse/glow maps for creatures so modders can have variety--this would be an easy side project, I think). The yellow light of the cave gives it a distinctive aura. Rest assured, there will be some interesting things living in there that might not be happy that you're disturbing them.

Well, I think that's it for this week. Next week will probably have me discussing some design/philosophical issues--really, just for us boring builder folk. Until then, enjoy!

Edit
My prefab is up on the vault: http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=NWN2PrefabAreas.Detail&id=409
If you're interested, go give it a look(and vote, if you'd be so kind).

Done...Again?!

2008-10-17T20:10:00.000-04:00

Well, I made a few changes to the Halloween mod. What can I say? Given a few extra days you've got to add something(cameras, sounds, lights, etc). It seems a better product if not still...a bit different. I'm excited, and kinda scared, to hear what people think. *anxious mutters*

Anyways, and I really mean it this time, there will be an update on Monday for Shagret, of all things. Oh yeah, for real. Even a NWN2 forum post if you can believe it! This should prove to be a big post so be ready for anything.

Done!

2008-10-09T20:48:00.000-04:00

Bouncy Rock Halloween mod finally completed! I believe 'Woot' is the appropriate term.

Well, expect a Shagret update Monday. I'm quite excited, really.

Hope you folks enjoy what I did--it's rather different, I believe, but might have a few guessing how I did it. Which, really, is half the fun.

10/6/08

2008-10-06T11:15:00.000-04:00

Okay,
Bouncy Rock Halloween Mod is almost done now. One, two days tops. Then I can finally get back to that other project I've been working on(*cough* Shagret *cough*).

See you next week and, I promise, with a real update.

Status Update: 9/15/08

2008-09-15T20:18:00.000-04:00

Okay...Monday updates failed. I have a good excuse though: so much stuff has been happening that made modding really hard. College, writing and, egad!, personal things have crept up making it hard to work.

That said, work will start again next week. I promise something for those diligent readers that step on by--it means something to people who have buried themselves with a monstrous project!

Until next week. And, no, the project is not dead. Sometimes posts like this are a prelude to oblivion. Rest assured, that's for later down the line. For now work has simply been postponed.

Status Update: 9/01/08

2008-09-01T13:17:00.000-04:00

Not much has been done this week. Multiple reasons:

1) Personal
2) University starting again
3) Bouncy Rock Halloween fun.

A combination of the three has proven too much. Next week, a real update will exist. Until then, take these scattered words for what they are: a crappy update.

Monster Showcase - Ransid

2008-08-25T10:51:00.000-04:00

Born of carrion and the rotting pestilence of the Julak Swamp, Ransids horde in vast numbers beneath the earth. Foolish are those that seek their guarded prize...

Shagret will feature a great many custom monsters yet to be seen in NWN2. Showing a few off to the public every now and again might not be such a bad idea. Besides, you'll learn to love their mandibles before they bite. This week, I'm going to give an inside look at a Ransid Hive--sure, it might be fun getting the treasure, but how many have thought the same?

Scree!, Scree!--aren't they adorable?

Ransids all start life as an egg(shown above). Depending on the circumstances, they will develop quickly or lie dormant to hatch when the hive needs them. Regardless, when hatched, they begin as nymphs. They're not very dangerous all things considered, and are annoying for the seasoned adventurer(and, honestly, what are you doing here if you aren't seasoned?).

Look!--they're glowing! Are they trying to tell me something?!

After a Ransid nymph has eaten enough, perhaps even from an unfortunate adventurer, they will metamoprh into one of a number of forms. Take, for instance, the pink Ransid on the left: it is a Ransid Warder and provides spell resistance. The form they morph to will be one beneficial to the group at large: if you're slinging spells, more Warders will appear; without revealing what the others do, since it'll be fun hearing about problems people have, I'll leave it at that.

It's rumored that there is a great Ransid Queen that can create an army of nymphs in a matter of seconds. That would be dangerous!--so many bonuses to the little guys and the Queen getting them as well.

It's true! She sure is angry. Look out!--you're about to be sliced in half!

When under attack, the Ransid Queen will produce nymphs at an alarming rate. Leaving aside its vast strength and endurance, the veritable army of (intelligent) insects it creates will leave all but the most cunning of players dead in their tracks(or dead down a gullet--thanks for the seasoning, anyways).

The Ransid Queen is one of several "uber-bosses" in this campaign. It is completely optional, like pretty much everything, and exists only to be experienced. Killing it will be difficult and not every player will be up for it. However, those that do try might be in for a reward most memorable...

There's some history to these buggers.

This campaign is a quasi-remake of one I made for NWN1 called Beyond the Bog and, to those special few that have played it, there will be several other bosses you recall gleefully. There's no time to ponder that: back to modding!

See you next week with a more standard sort of update. And I have no idea what Slivers are. (Over the top writing courtesy of Masahiro Sakurai).

Content Showcase - 8/18/08

2008-08-18T10:42:00.000-04:00

Work has progressed normally this week. The finishing touches were put on two areas(featured below) and no crashes assaulted me. Oh, that's about the best you can hope for with NWN2, so I'll take it in stride.

With that said, I'll move onto showing off some new shots of what I've been doing.

A very dark mine. All the inhabitants are gone--where could they be? If the torches are still lit, then they couldn't be that far gone...or dead. There are no bodies either. What happened to them(or it)?

Mysteries, or relative mysteries like this, won't necessarily be explained in full to the player. Sure, there will be answers, but it might not be explained through a convenient scrap of paper or monologue prone survivor. Infer from what you see and make a call based on that(note to the wise: these screenshots or not necessarily the answer to the puzzle).

Although this cave may seem very dark, I'm trying to create a sense of environment. After all, if caves are bright, then in what sense can I call it a cave? It'd be, to my senses, like calling a forest a forest if it didn't have trees. This gives a point for darkvision, torches and the like; really, let the player squirm and squint for a change.

Ah, but it seems there is something in this mine after all. What could it be? Where could it lead? Why are there still no bodies?

What is this place? These ancient ruins are overgrown and dreamlike: espousing little while tangled in glowing vines.

It was hard, I won't lie, to get the lighting right for this area. More bloom could be used, but it's already pretty high up there. Getting the rights hues off of the trees and placeables was quite difficult but, in the end, I think it was worth it. The glowing floor fog was the selling point on the area, and the roots jutting from the ruin walls just had to be: if you haven't noticed, this campaign is choked with plant life.

Well, that's it for now. Next week, I'm going to try something a bit different. Hopefully you, noble reader, enjoy it. I haven't seen other NWN2 blogs do it, but that might be a reason in of itself. Until then, have finding the right mud.

Status of the Campaign: 8/11/08

2008-08-11T17:25:00.000-04:00

Things have been difficult. For the whole of July, I grappled with what to add and subtract from my mod. The end result, not surprisingly, is that everything I did between about June and now has been worthless. I was not staying true to my defining principles(located below for your viewing pleasure). There was too much talking and too many contrivances that I hope to avoid for this campaign--for instance, companions were given early for the sake of giving the player a companion; there was no thought about how that companion meshed with the overall 'vision' of the world.

Basically, my update is centered around saying there is no update.

This is a sad way to start out a campaign blog, certainly, but it might serve as a reminder for anyone else working on things out there: stay true to your defining goals and don't get lost working in the toolset.

See you next week with some new screens and/or content.

And We're Off

2008-08-11T17:23:00.000-04:00

Here begins a development cycle for this blog/module. Will I succeed? Will I fail? There are so many interesting questions to ask, but almost no time to spare. Luckily, I somehow can manage to type this all out.

Anyways, I am going to try and do weekly updates on the status of this campaign. Wish me luck, and I shall return the favor for your projects.