The cities, villages, jungles, swamps, ruins, temples and tombs of the ancient Aztec world.
Gameplay Length
Varies depending on how many side quests you undertake.
Number Players
1
Language
English
Level Range
8-14
Races
Any
Tricks & Traps
Medium
Roleplay
Medium
Hack & Slash
Heavy
Classes
Any
Scope
Large
DMNeeded
No DM Required
Single or Multiplayer
Single Player
Max Character Level
14
Max # Players
01
Min # Players
01
Min Character Level
08
Content Rating
Everyone
Alignments
Any, but there will be adjustments to alignment available depending on roleplay and decisions.
Gameplay Hours
24
Description
There are old rumours that state that a powerful priest used to rule the ancient city of Teotihaucan, which now lies in ruins deep in the jungle. It was said that he had power over even the dead by use of a powerful staff. The story tells that he was vanquished by an ancient foe, and the staff was broken into four pieces. The rumours state the pieces of the staff are buried in the crypt of the priest Axayacatl and his consort Alaertha.
Lately, merchants who travel the road that passes by the ruined city have reported sightings of creatures that should be dead but now walk amongst the living. Perhaps Axayacatl and his consort Alaertha have risen again from their slumbers and are amassing an army to wreck a great revenge upon the living. You have been summoned by the local towns to investigate the ruined city to find the source of the local disturbances.
This module is set in the ancient world of the Aztecs or Maztica and has as many elements of that era as possible.
The primary non-tileset hak containing much of the custom content. Unpack to your hak folder and overwrite the existing "Axayacatl Hak" that came with the CA_hak_files.rar. Updated 12/23/2010
IMPORTANT: Place this hak file in your hak folder and rename it to "Axayacatl 2da" (remove the "_") to replace the Axayacatl 2da.hak file that you would have installed from the CA_hak_files archive. This is important as it will help fix the problem with the doors not showing up in the game.
IMPORTANT: I checked through my hak files to try and locate a possible source of problem with the doors and found this discrepancy. The original LOK Dungeon tileset that I included with the "CA_Tileset_hak_files.rar" archive contained the visualeffects.2da file which I remember caused all sorts of strange issues so this is the version without that troublesome file. THIS IS PART OF THE DOOR ISSUE FIX. Unpack it into your hak folder and overwrite the existing hak file that came with the "CA_Tileset_hak_files.rar" archive. Again, I'm sorry for all the problems - I hope you all can be patient enough to get through these bugs.
Replace the CODI-DDSwamp.hak file that came with the CA_Tileset_hak_files.rar archive with this hak. Unpack it to your Hak folder and overwrite the existing hak.
Catena, I'm sorry I've taken so long to respond to your comments. Regarding the trolls, the script on the trolls forces you to finish each combat by a "coup de gras" - in this case you must finish the troll by means of fire or acid. This is achieved by having a torch equipped in the offhand or by having a weapon that applies fire or acid damage. The most sure way is with the offhand torch. Regarding the altar:
*spoiler alert*
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
you must place the vial of blood on the altar (into it's inventory) for it to work. This will cause the altar to explode and expose a hidden trapdoor.
I hope you can get to see these hints and continue to enjoy the module.
I downloaded this recently and it look great except when I meet the trolls. As soon as I kill them off, my character just seems to get stuck and remain in the same place. You can't move anywhere or do anything. Anyone else had this problem.
Thanks for the detailed reply! And good to hear you're still working on it, I'd be happy to try again after the next update.
I understand and respect your comment on (2.), just let me clarify what I meant from the perspective of a player with a completely opposite playstyle. I seldom play different modules with the same character for two reasons, the first being immersion and the second balance. I also get kind of attached to my characters but more regarding their name, look, story and roleplaying choices, less because of their stats and equipment. That's why for me it would feel weird to transfer a character who is the hero of Neverwinter or who just escaped from an asylum or who is a vampire or prophet or whatever into an Aztec/Maztica setting all of a sudden. Additionally to that there can be huge differences in equipment, depending on what modules you played through before. Some have uber items, in others magical equipment is very hard to come by. So the character level alone is just a vague indication on what to expect, because there is no real equipment level standard among builders there might still be huge gaps in power between characters depending on the modules they come from. And it's virtually impossible for a builder to balance a module based on such unknown variables. So if you enter a module with the wrong set of equipment (too weak or too powerful) it may well spoil your fun. I'm also not in the habit of saving my characters at every level, so it would be a pure coincidence if I have a character of the required level ready. Most of the time, I either start with a fresh one, hoping that it will be leveled up and equipped according to the module's challenge. And that's what I meant with the comment about the lack of money, if you start with a lvl 1 character (provided the module adapts to it, which apparantly isn't the case with this one). The other option for me is to use something like the "Pretty Good Character Creator" to level up my fresh character before loading the new module. This does also provide my character with sufficient money to buy +1, maybe +2 equipment and full plate but it still leaves me uncertain if that's what the new module was balanced for. So for players like me, clear indications ("there is no level-up option in-game", "you should have at least +2, +3 weapons in order to play the game") are always welcome! :)
On another note, I often see magic-users treated as the weakest of classes in SP modules but I've yet to see that proven true. I've never had much difficulties with them unless the encounters were programmed in such a way that the enemies constantly spawn only at very close range (which I'd consider a bad design choice anyway). Personally I've had much more issues with rogues in single play, while I think magic-user can hold their own pretty well, especially from lvl 7 upward or so.
Olivier_Leroux - I appreciate the time and care you put into your comments and suggestions regarding the module - it really helps to know exactly what people are looking for and what bugs them the most.
First of all, let me say that you are right about it being a beta as the only person who tested it thoroughly before releasing it was me. I was reluctant to call it a beta though as I have often skipped over beta modules because of preconceptions without giving it a chance. The truth is I worked on it too long and it sat on the shelf for long periods of time so that finally I just wanted to get it out there. Unfortunately, I chose the busiest time of year (Christmas) to release it and since then have had no time to do anything to it except get it to work.
I will address each of your points as you have laid them out.
1.Instead of providing fixes for the buggy hak files, remove all the corrupt files and patches and upload a version of the module's hakpak that's patched already, thereby reducing the number of files to download and facilitating the installation.
I completely agree with this and intend to do so once I�ve had time to make the changes and fix the bugs.
2. There already is an in-game check if the PC's level is appropriate, so why don't you add the option to level up in case the PC is found too weak? Or, if I understand correctly what I read here in the comments, that the challenge level of the module is adjusted to the PC's level, then why don't you tell players in-game instead of making them feel like they won't be able to beat game because the module was meant for stronger characters? The suggestion that equipment might be a factor doesn't help much in this regard since there is no indication what equipment would be required to survive in your module and low level characters are not likely to have a lot of money to spend on the equipment provided in the module either. Personally, I'm in favor of in-game level-up options, item strips, pre-generated starting equipment and/or provided money, to ensure that the module is balanced properly for each and every character you enter it with and to avoid unease and confusion on the part of the players. If you don't want that, I suggest at least adding clear indications as to what kind of equipment is required (+1? +2? etc.).
This was my attempt to equalize the experience point reward for different leveled characters of different classes. I wanted to have it such that a fighter of 8th level would receive the same xp as a magic-user of 14th level because I�ve always thought that magic-using classes were a bit weaker in solo play so should come in at a higher level but receive the same reward. Your comment about low level characters not having any money to afford good equipment doesn�t really apply here as the starting level of the game for fighter classes is lvl 8 and most characters have at least +2 or +3 equipment by that time. The point was to indicate that if you had a character with really good equipment, you can get away with not being as high of a level. I, unlike you, have never much cared for level-up options, item strips, pre-generated starting equipment unless it is a 1st level module. I get kinda attached to my characters the way they are and want to try to challenge them with what they have and don�t want them changed, so with this sentiment in mind, I kept this module as open as possible and instead, tried to inform players at the beginning so they could decide for themselves.
3. The areas are nice but much too large for what they actually contain from a gameplay point of view, making them seem rather empty despite the effort put in area building and despite the wandering NPCs. This could be remedied by adding more and varied NPC conversations and side quests or NPC scenes/dialogues to be witnessed, secrets to be found, whatever. Anything that fills up the 'empty' space with life and makes the long roads from point A to B less tedious.
I agree with you on this as well�originally I was planning on adding more side-quests/ dialogues etc. and then, as I stated before, by the end, I just wanted to get the thing out there. I will see about fleshing it out some more when I get some time.
4. Additionally to or also because of the long roads I had a hard time finding the exits to the city. Looking at the maps in the provided walktrough it all makes sense but in-game noone told me where to go and I had to search the whole map for exits which is frustrating not only because of its size and emptiness but also because there are lots of open borders that would suggest an exit but don't have a transition. I'd advice to display the whole city map including map pins for the exits right from the start or at least make NPCs point players in the right direction. And if exploration is meant to be part of the game, it should be a rewarding experience (see 3.).
Yes, I see your point�again, something I would have never thought about as I always knew where the exits were, so I will either add directions to the city dialogues or display the full city map on enter as you suggested. Thanks for that insight.
5. I love the custom weapons you created but before I even got to see them I had already spent my money on bland default weapons unfit for the setting, not knowing there would be other merchants than the ones in the center of the town. I think the more particular a module is to its setting the better it becomes. I know it's a lot of work but in my book just a small selection of custom equipment fit for the setting is ten times better than a large selection of default equipment that looks out of place for your adventure and destroys the suspension of disbelief.
Cheers, I completely agree with your sentiments regarding having a bunch of default equipment that doesn�t fit the scene, and I did make some effort in this regard by including the Maztica Weapons hak, however, there are certain restrictions in the game that did cramp my style in this regard (like all those British accents in the voices). I will however, spend some more time on the stores in the city to get it to reflect better the setting.
6. In the village south-east of the main city I entered an open crypt (quite large, non-descript and empty, too, except for the last room) and was able to bash down the door that lead to some kind of boss and a conversation that assumed I knew more than I actually knew at that point. You might want to prevent that by making the door undestroyable or by using conversation variables to ensure the PC is ready for the (otherwise spoilerish) conversation.
Hmm�thanks for the tip�I did try to do strange things when I was playtesting the module to see if I could break it or ruin the plot or such, but you can�t think of everything, so thanks.
7. The cutscene on death is pretty cool the first time but it shouldn't be repeated every time you die, without any option to skip it.
Yeah�I kinda wondered whether that would be a downer or not�ok I�ll see what I can do with that.
8. The text in conversations could occasionally be split up in smaller portions that are easier to digest, but all in all I've got to congratulate you on the high level of polish regarding the writing. Much kudos for that!
Thanks! I do find badly written dialogues really spoil the fun. I�ll take a look at that as well. Cheers.
Again, thanks for your positive criticism and recommendations � They really help! I hope I can get some time to put some polish on it soon. Keep an eye out for it!
This module has great potential but it still feels more like a beta release to me. There are several things that prevent me from enjoying it as much as I would like to, so despite all its promise I can't bring myself to continue playing it in the state that it is currently in. I hope you don't mind a few suggestions on how to further improve it and make it accessible to a larger audience. Don't take it as criticism but as well-meant advice; after all the time you invested in the building of your module, I take it it's in your interest too that it's well received by lots of players and worthy of being a Hall of Fame entry. I'd love to play an updated version of it.
1. Instead of providing fixes for the buggy hak files, remove all the corrupt files and patches and upload a version of the module's hakpak that's patched already, thereby reducing the number of files to download and facilitating the installation.
2. There already is an in-game check if the PC's level is appropriate, so why don't you add the option to level up in case the PC is found too weak? Or, if I understand correctly what I read here in the comments, that the challenge level of the module is adjusted to the PC's level, then why don't you tell players in-game instead of making them feel like they won't be able to beat game because the module was meant for stronger characters? The suggestion that equipment might be a factor doesn't help much in this regard since there is no indication what equipment would be required to survive in your module and low level characters are not likely to have a lot of money to spend on the equipment provided in the module either. Personally, I'm in favor of in-game level-up options, item strips, pre-generated starting equipment and/or provided money, to ensure that the module is balanced properly for each and every character you enter it with and to avoid unease and confusion on the part of the players. If you don't want that, I suggest at least adding clear indications as to what kind of equipment is required (+1? +2? etc.).
3. The areas are nice but much too large for what they actually contain from a gameplay point of view, making them seem rather empty despite the effort put in area building and despite the wandering NPCs. This could be remedied by adding more and varied NPC conversations and side quests or NPC scenes/dialogues to be witnessed, secrets to be found, whatever. Anything that fills up the 'empty' space with life and makes the long roads from point A to B less tedious.
4. Additionally to or also because of the long roads I had a hard time finding the exits to the city. Looking at the maps in the provided walktrough it all makes sense but in-game noone told me where to go and I had to search the whole map for exits which is frustrating not only because of its size and emptiness but also because there are lots of open borders that would suggest an exit but don't have a transition. I'd advice to display the whole city map including map pins for the exits right from the start or at least make NPCs point players in the right direction. And if exploration is meant to be part of the game, it should be a rewarding experience (see 3.).
5. I love the custom weapons you created but before I even got to see them I had already spent my money on bland default weapons unfit for the setting, not knowing there would be other merchants than the ones in the center of the town. I think the more particular a module is to its setting the better it becomes. I know it's a lot of work but in my book just a small selection of custom equipment fit for the setting is ten times better than a large selection of default equipment that looks out of place for your adventure and destroys the suspension of disbelief.
6. In the village south-east of the main city I entered an open crypt (quite large, non-descript and empty, too, except for the last room) and was able to bash down the door that lead to some kind of boss and a conversation that assumed I knew more than I actually knew at that point. You might want to prevent that by making the door undestroyable or by using conversation variables to ensure the PC is ready for the (otherwise spoilerish) conversation.
7. The cutscene on death is pretty cool the first time but it shouldn't be repeated every time you die, without any option to skip it.
8. The text in conversations could occasionally be split up in smaller portions that are easier to digest, but all in all I've got to congratulate you on the high level of polish regarding the writing. Much kudos for that!
But above all, don't get discouraged by anything I wrote. I'm confident with just a little more work invested to give it the final touch it could be an excellent module deserving the attention of a large, admiring audience. :)
Hi folks, I finally solved the files/loading hurdles and have finally begun to play. The graphics are lush & colorful - what a nice way to begin! Just one quick question: Are there "henchpeople" in this mod? (I looked through all the previous posts but couldn't find any mention.)
It seems that my persistence has paid off... well, that and my decision to finally READ THE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS. The problem was that I had neglected to rename the new Axayacatl_2da.hak as instructed so it did not overwrite the old file. Everything seems to be working fine now that I've got that all sorted out. I'm glad I was persistent because this looks like a splendid module and I look forward to playing it. Give me some time to play it a bit and then I'll be sure to come back and vote. Thanks!
I've worked with toolsets/editors for some other popular games but have never used this toolset since I've only been playing for almost a month now, so before I attempt to edit anything I'll try DLing again and re-installing VERY CAREFULLY. If I still have problems or get it to work I'll let you know one way or another. Thanks for the assistance.
Herculine, it's important that you overwrite any original files with the individual ones provided. These replacement files contain the correct information that allows the doors to work. If you have done so, I don't know what could be the issue and I'm sorry it's not working for you. Perhaps you can use the workaround that others have found such as moving the start position to the farmlands area...?
I just re-DLed and re-installed this but still it's not working for me. When the game tries to load the first area, "bedroom", the progress bar will reach 75% and go no further. I'm 99% certain I've installed it all correctly since I've installed approx. 6 GB of modules from the NWN Vault and got them to work. I'm running v1.69.8109 of the game. Anybody have any ideas what I might be doing wrong?
Hi.I wish everyone a Good Christmas and good gaming rest of this year.I like your game,will vote when i are finish with your modules.
So again haw a Great Cristmas everyone. :)
2 files (Axayacatl Hak, Unpacking Instruction.txt) have now been updated so please make sure you update your existing download or download all files before starting the module. I think that should do it for updates for now. Thanks for playing.
Nielium, the level range for this module is loosly class based - that is to say that I found that the best level for fighter classes was about 8-10, rogue/assasin classes was about 10-12, and magic-user/cleric classes was about 12-14. This being said, there is a script at the beginning of the module that makes an adjustment to the XP scale to attempt to even the playing field for those classes at different levels. You can start with any class at any level and there is no level-up program. Those are the suggested levels to play at. Cheers and enjoy.
I was reading some of the posts here and I'm thinking of playing this mod. I noticed that the minimum character level is 8, but does the mod level you up to 8 or do you need to use a pre-rolled lvl 8 character to start?
Thanks in advance!
Posted by Xenovant at 2010-12-21 07:24:33 Voted 10.00 on 12/21/10
Thank you for making this module!
I will vote now. I must say that this module has everything: good use of the custom content, good music, tons of details everywhere, lots of original ideas and scripts, etc. The plot... it's the typical bad guy that wants to conquer the world but in an original aztec world and with an original way to stop his army that I liked a lot (I won't say how, it would be a spoiler).
I give a 10 to the module, that is like fresh air here in the vault, and other 10 to the creator for the great support ;)
Xenovant,
Thanks for all of your remarks, suggestions and help and I'm glad you stuck it through the bugs to finish it. I will attempt to fix the things you found and re-post the module, however, I don't forsee getting a sequel out anytime soon - I have been working on this one since I got the game in 2002 and only finally got it together to put it on the Vault now! In the same time others have put out soo much great content! I was working on a winter/mountain themed module based on Mountain Dwarves and Goblins but I lost steam. Again, thanks for taking the time to post your findings and I'm glad you enjoyed the mod. Cheers.
Posted by Xenovant at 2010-12-20 20:58:19 Voted 10.00 on 12/21/10
I have finished the module without the walkthrough and exploring a lot. I must say that that it's pretty well done, I love the endless traps almost everywhere. The bug of the game not loading at the beginning doesn't appear with the fixed 2da.hak, but there are some bugs that I have found:
- As I said in a previous post, the general is killed by the royal guard. I have discovered why: the boars sometimes go berserk and attack the citizens, in result the citizens become hostile to them and since the general has the same faction as the boars... he is attacked too. The fix would be to change his faction to other one. I recommend you to use the plot flag in the important npcs (the general, the chief, the seer, etc.)
- You have overriden the ghoul appearance with a rabbit and when a ghoul is supposed to appear (in the crypts for example)... you will see a rabbit... zombie? xD
[SPOILERS]
- I have joined the staff parts and used it to hit the gong to become evil. When I went back and reported to the Chief, I could report that indefinitely to get 3200 exp points each time.
- I couldn't finish the "stop the bad priest and its army" journal entry. I killed him and talked to the dracolich god in the underworld but I couldn't report that to the chief
[/SPOILERS]
Are you going to update the module with new content, quests,etc. or this could be considered the final release? I'm asking this for know if I can vote now or if I should wait a little longer. A good addition would be a crypt override with an aztec feeling. You could use the egiptian override, that can be found here in the vault, changing the textures of the walls.
There is still one update pending that will complete the experience. I am waiting for Beyond_The_Pale to upload the correct "Axayacatl Hak", which contains a wav file that gives voice to Mictlantecutli - Lord of the Dead. Once this is complete, anyone dying during the module should hear his voice welcoming you to the land of the dead.
Posted by Xenovant at 2010-12-20 17:15:57 Voted 10.00 on 12/21/10
The doors are ok now, thanks. To the people that still have problems with them: download the updated "Axayacatl_2da.hak", rename it to "Axayacatl 2da.hak" (it's without the "_") and download again the module if you have edited it with your toolset with the old and bugged "Axayacatl 2da.hak", the toolset may delete the doors if it finds that are invalid. Of course you will have to start a new game like "werelynx2" says
when you have new hak in your hak folder, you should probably restart the game(the mod itself) in order to let the new hak load properly _________________________ Thanks Rolo:)
Xenovant, it appears you are correct about the genericdoors.2da file. I have now uploaded the Axayacatl 2da.hak file directly from my hak folder which appears to be working for me at least. Anyone who is having this problem with the doors should download this updated Axayacatl 2da.hak file and place it in their hak folder and hopefully is will solve the hang problem and door issue. Sorry for all the problems people...I should have done this at another time when I had more time to respond.
When I try to play this module the game freezes when the first area is loading. Is this because some of the files still are missing from the upload, as mentioned in previous comments?
If so, when can we expect them to be uploaded?
Sorry if I sound like a noob, but I've only been playing NWN about a week but I've fallen in love with it!
Site
at 2012-03-25 13:38:26
