a story driven, single player campaign (part 1 of an expected 2 or 3) - for character levels 9-14. Balanced for play on 'Hard' (normal D&D rules) mode, with full Area of Effect damage rules from friendly fire enabled (you can spam your way through with mass fireballs too easily with 'normal' rules enabled - if you prefer an easier combat game, then choose 'Normal' rules or, better yet, play with a level 14 character).
Storyline - you are a semi-retired, moderately successful mercenary who has settled down to a relatively quiet life in the countryside. You then receive a last call to action - a plea from the Constable of Nestlehaven - a small city-state west of Neverwinter and just north of the Kryptgarden Forest on the Sword Coast...
Character info - if your character has less than 42,000 XP, you will be advanced to 42k - thats approx level 9. AT THE END OF THE MOD YOUR CHARACTER GETS AUTOMATICALLY EXPORTED.
All items are stripped out - but placed in loot bags, in case you want the items post-game (or if you want to use them in the mod - but this may upset the balance). Your character gets exported automatically at the end of the game. There is a goodly collection of items, appropriate to a level 9 or 10 character, in your starting base. You can find everything you need to finish the mod (many 'better' quality items are available in side-quests or private homes) at approx level 11/12 (assuming you started at level 9).
Mod is difficult for level 9/10 players. Major tactics and frequent resting should be required.
Moderate challenge for level 11/12, some tactics, frequent resting, and trap-laying might be required.
Should be straight-forward for levels 13/14.
NPC's will join you as you progress. They all have personalities, and will discuss with you what they think of you, your progress, and your other companions.
The things you do in-game, and your choices re: alignment, will *matter*. There is a very large alignment-based quest-set. You will also begin laying the groundwork for later-on joining a faction. If you anger a certain faction too-much, or do things contrary to their interests, you will have very little chance of joining them later (there are 4 factions you can join - 3 of which are clear in part 1).
There are many 'skill' checks - some occur openly (such as in conversations) and others don't (such as spotting tracks and having certain conversation paths and choices available to you later).
There is an existing 'economy.' You cant just sell everything you buy to the first merchant you see. They all have limited amounts of gold (there are 9 merchants) so you will find that you need to balance your sales with purchases (maybe selling the loot you don't need for an item you do). Most of the higher level items are found in side-quests, private homes, or some of the 'shadier' stores.
You should be able to play - and enjoy the mod - as any character build. The only NPC I 'force' on you, and just for a short while, is a Rogue w/ high Magic Use abilities. She can be dismissed about midway through the mod if you don't want her around anymore (but if you aren't playing a thief, I advise you to keep her!).
Total playtime if you stick mainly to the main storyline - about 5 hours. If you do all the sidequests/private homes/etc (there are a lot, and not all are obvious) and talk to all the different people you meet - approx 8 hours.
Possible Bugs and Problems:
1> There are a few areas where you have keys to open doors-the keys MUST be on the character who will be doing the opening
2>Certain 2da files or other things in your override directory can interfere with or break the journal and/or some of the placeables (just like with any mod that uses custom stuff). So if you experience strange behavior/visuals/missing journal, check your override directory
3>I cannot guarantee that the mod will work with the new classes introduced in MOTB. They have NOT been tested with NHIN.
Full spreadsheet included with all quest states and variables used - will help you modders who want to see where things were done.
Intro file attached (latest version of files always are uploaded separately).
Full walkthrough avaialble as a separate download.
Latest Version - 1.16 - uploading now, Jul 21, 8pm EST. Changes a few BitchBrew scripts for better reliability on certain systems; allows player to revisit Merris Basement. Fixes a few typos.
Possible bugs:
Bitch's Brew Challenge : if you are experiencing an NWN2 crash when you accept the 'challenge' in the Bitch's Brew Tavern, there is now a dialogue option to skip the fight. Just keep refusing to fight him. The occassional crash for some people is caused (I believe) by numerous sound overlays, or rapid 'clicking' by users trying to skip the fade to black's, which, even at minimum delay, is several long seconds on some computers. I cannot replicate this crash, so I cannot be certain what causes it, but at least a half-dozen people have had it. Some people have reported that dismissing everyone from your party right before the challenge works - you can get all your party members back at the Merc n Mead, so it might be worth trying if you want to do the arena fight but are having the crash problem.
in the Sage Tower (or anywhere)- if you find your party is not following you - simply do a BroadCast command 'Follow-Me' and they will follow-again. This is apparently sometimes an engine bug, as I had it occur to me in the OC as well.
PLEASE let me know of any other bugs - I got hit pretty hard with 1.06 introducing a lot of unexpected behaviors (new perception scripts really did a whammy, as I was very careful about placing enemies at the edges of certain perception ranges, and on giving every encounter a barkstring combat convo, which required major script overhauling to fix) and I want to put part1 to rest so we can move full-speed on part2.
Thanks everyone for playing!
I have included, in the zip file, my Spreadsheet that I used to plan the mod. It has four or five workbook 'tabs' at the bottom of the sheet - these contain script names that are used, which scripts do what, when things execute, variables used and tracking info, all quest states and quest state info, location of all doors, whats behind them, where they lead to, etc.
I've included this to help any would-be mod builders understand what I did, where I did it, what is executing, etc. I only wished I had something like this when I first started learning (by pulling apart, piece by piece, the mods that make up the OC campaign, and then making changes to them, to see what resulted). If you like the way I did something, then this spreadsheet can help you find the associated scripts, convos, and variables that I used to do it. The more modders in the community, the better off we all are. If you are just starting out, I also recommend you read one of the tutorials that are here on the vault('Dont Panic' guide, NWN2 Toolset guide, some of the 'movie' tutorials, etc) and spend some time on the bioware forums, the citadel forums, and other community resouces.
Updated Walkthrough, June 20. Contains a 'general hints' section now, before the specific walkthrough, so players who just need a little help with certain areas or battles can find it without revealing everything.
This is the final cutscene of the mod, for those folks who downloaded between 6-25 and 6-28, and don't want to start over just to see this (and I don't blame you!!). Just copy it to your modules directory, and start a new module - and select this. Doesnt matter what character you choose - your character was exported during your conversation with Mumphreys, so you will have it for part2.
10 - A Masterpiece, Genuinely Groundbreaking 9 - Outstanding, a Must Have 8 - Excellent, Recommended to Anyone 7 - Very Good, Deserves a Look 6 - Good, Qualified Recommendation 5 - Fair, Solid yet Unremarkable 4 - Some Merit, Requires Improvements 3 - Poor Execution, Potential Unrealized 2 - Very Little Appeal 1 - Not Recommended to Anyone
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