New user - have some Qs about building modules

[Legacy_Time4Tea]

               Hi, I recently got NWN1 and I'm looking for some advice on module building. The Aurora toolset looks really cool and I want to use it to make an adventure/campaign for a buddy of mine, which I will DM. Right now I'm working on a starting-level adventure involving some kobolds in an abandoned mine who have kidnapped some people from a nearby village. Anyway, my questions:


1. Is it possible to create an arbitrary-level PC from scratch? I'd like to be able to try out my encounters with a 'dummy' L2 PC to check the difficulty is right.


2. My buddy is going to be playing solo with me as the DM, so what is the best way to give him a couple of henchmen? Can I assign them to him as DM, or would I need to script it in through dialogue?


3. Is there any way to create a totally pitch-dark area, such that without dark vision or a light source, the PC wouldn't be able to see anything? I've tried turning the darkness down as much as I can in the area properties, but even with a L1 human PC, the light level seems to adjust so you can still see. (I want him to be getting nibbled by spiders in the dark ... ;-) )


Thanks in advance! :-)
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MagicalMaster]

               

1. Is it possible to create an arbitrary-level PC from scratch? I'd like to be able to try out my encounters with a 'dummy' L2 PC to check the difficulty is right.

 

I mean, you could just set it up so the module gives you enough XP to reach level 2 on the ClientEnter event or a trigger on the ground.  Could then save that character and load it for future testing.

 

There's also mods like Pretty Good Character Creator that let you do stuff like this, but pretty easy to script yourself for something as simple as just hitting level 2 (and good learning opportunity).

 

2. My buddy is going to be playing solo with me as the DM, so what is the best way to give him a couple of henchmen? Can I assign them to him as DM, or would I need to script it in through dialogue?

 

Script it, but doesn't have to be through dialogue.  Could even just add them as soon as he logs in or crosses a trigger.

 

3. Is there any way to create a totally pitch-dark area, such that without dark vision or a light source, the PC wouldn't be able to see anything? I've tried turning the darkness down as much as I can in the area properties, but even with a L1 human PC, the light level seems to adjust so you can still see. (I want him to be getting nibbled by spiders in the dark ... ;-) )

 

Could do something like apply a Blinded effect if you're particularly cruel, but that also means spellcasters wouldn't be able to cast on anything.

 

Maybe apply a bunch of overlapping Darkness visual effects scattered around the zone (but without the actual Darkness effect -- theoretically should kill all the light).

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Proleric]

               GFFeditor lets you tweak most game files, including players in the localvault folder, but scripted level up is the easy way.


If you reset an area to black, then turn off all the lights by right-clicking on the tiles, the result is close enough to darkness for most purposes (though the tab key will betray lurking monsters).
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Time4Tea]

               Thank you both for the tips!  I just made a 1-room module with a rune circle that levels up a PC every time they walk through it.  Should come in handy for testing and was good practice for trigger scripting.


I tried scripting a couple of NPCs to join as henchmen, but it didn't quite work for some reason. They were added as followers on the sidebar, but weren't following the PC or responding to any radial commands. So, I'm not quite sure what's happening there.


I didn't try out any of the darkness suggestions yet, but I definitely will do over the next couple of days. Thanks again! :-)
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Proleric]

               

Here's a henchman join script that includes the "follow" command. It has to run on the henchman, so it works in conversation with them, or in ExecuteScript with the henchman as the object.

 

   Spoiler
   

// Join script, modified to allow multiple henchmen
#include "nw_i0_henchman"
 
void main()
{
object oPC    =   GetFirstPC();
object oNPC   =   OBJECT_SELF;
 
SetPlotFlag(oNPC, FALSE);
SetAssociateListenPatterns();
SetLocalInt(oNPC,"NW_COM_MODE_COMBAT",  ASSOCIATE_COMMAND_ATTACKNEAREST);
SetLocalInt(oNPC,"NW_COM_MODE_MOVEMENT",ASSOCIATE_COMMAND_FOLLOWMASTER);
AddHenchman(oPC);
 
if (GetLevelByClass(CLASS_TYPE_ROGUE) > 0)
  {
   ExecuteScript("NW_CH_LOCK_ON", oNPC);
  }
else
  {
   ExecuteScript("NW_CH_LOCK_OFF", oNPC);
  }
}

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Terrorble]

               

In the area properties you might get the dark area you want by turning the fog clip distance to something short like 20, setting the fog color to completely black and increasing the moon fog amount to 90 or a 100.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Time4Tea]

               Thanks for the script, Proleric, although I figured out why my henchmen weren't working. I hadn't realized they had to have a henchman script set, otherwise they don't respond. (seems obvious now - doh!)


Thanks for your suggestion as well on the darkness, Terrorble. I'll try that and some of the other ideas over the next couple of days.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Verilazic]

               

I think the game tends to alter the darkness of an area just a bit because who wants to play in an area that is literally solid black. If resetting the area lighting to black and removing the tile light sources isn't enough, you can try creating a darkness effect on the PC or in certain areas, though that might take a bit more scripting.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Time4Tea]

               

Well, my idea was to have certain areas in my cavern level that are so dark that you really need to either have darkvision or a light source to go in there, otherwise the PCs will just get chewed-up by things they can't even see.  It seems strange to me that the lighting should auto-adjust, because then what's the point of the torches and light rings etc.?  Unless the combat still takes into account concealment rules in low-light areas?

 

I tried Terrorble's suggestion of setting a very short fog clip distance, but then it doesn't respond to light sources, so it didn't really do what I wanted.  For now, I've given up on the darkness thing because it seems like it would take a lot of scripting to do properly (any fog/visual effects would have to go away when someone brings out a torch, casts a light spell, has darkvision, etc.).  Maybe one day, when I'm a black belt scripting ninja, I'll come back and play around with setting up pitch darkness ... '>

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Proleric]

               Probably the biggest issue in a torch-lit only area is the tab key, because highlights are even more obvious than normal. Also, a dark screen can look much brighter when playing in RL darkness.


So, sadly, scripting is probably necessary. I've been using cutscene invisibility for creatures and turning off useability for placeables in a dark area - some effort, but arguably more realistic.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Verilazic]

               

It would be interesting to see something like an area where if you wander out of lighted areas you'd start taking damage. It seems like that would only be easy to build if you didn't include dynamic and movable light sources...