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Can we NOT over-enhance inventory!?

Wikkid_SuhnWikkid_Suhn Member Posts: 136
I think making scroll cases, gem bags, and potion satchels available in BG is a great idea. I am not so certain, however, that enhancements such as making items stackable to 99 is an improvement.

This argument is sort of in line with the "rest" debate. How some people felt you should be able to rest anywhere and be able to recover all your spells, and some people felt that there should be certain limitations in place to not make resting a quick-fix to a tough situation. Well, in a similar way, I think that you should not automatically be able to bag every single item you come across in a given quest. I mean part of the fun was in deciding which item was worth for, and whether it made sense to pick up common items npcs dropped for a few extra gold pieces a pop.

Also, not sure if this has been advocated or not, but the Bag of Holding is an item of immense value and should not be easily accessible, if at all, in BG. We are dealing with characters that range from levels 1-whatever the new cap is going to be, and just because it is convenient, it is not necessarily an improvement on gameplay.

Bottom line for me is, ease-of-use does not necessarily make the game better! The challenge is a core part of the game!
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Comments

  • AndreaColomboAndreaColombo Member Posts: 5,524
    @trinit - I love ease-of-use stuff, but it's fine for me if it is left to mods :-)
    CrevsDaak
  • elminsterelminster Member, Developer Posts: 16,315
    I agree, leave it to mods.
    DukeOfSuffolklolien
  • kamuizinkamuizin Member Posts: 3,704
    I believe that item slots are unecessary in Baldur's Gate, as @trinit said, there's no sense in make a scroll and a full plate mail to use both one slot.

    I have 2 options here, one easy to do, that is copy the Vampire: Redemption bag feature, where you in fact truly manage the items in your inventory, and each item use a set amount of slots based in their size. There you have more or less 60 slots if i'm not wrong, and items vary in size based on what they are, as armors used 6 slots, scrolls 1 slot, daggers 2 slot, long swords 3 slot.

    Another option is to completly remove all slots from inventories, make all characters use the design of bag of holding to preserve the already existent feature or create a scroll button on the inventory with infinite slots as the need comes, and only limit inventory based on weight.
    paulsifer42
  • Wikkid_SuhnWikkid_Suhn Member Posts: 136

    it makes no sense to me for one scroll, gem or big metal unit suit to occupy the same slot, that's why i think higher stacks or scroll cases should be introduced, but items in higher stacks produce more encumbrance. (i think scroll case alone weights more than all the scrolls it contained together)

    I know it's a game and all that, but I tend to lean toward realism when it comes to stacking. Sure, scrolls and ammo can easily be grouped together, but suits of armor? I know suits of armor cannot be "stacked" like sheets of paper can.

    I agree with you on scroll cases and also think gem bags and potion cases should be introduced, like in IWD. Those are reasonable features that would reduce clutter in the inventory.

    I have 2 options here, one easy to do, that is copy the Vampire: Redemption bag feature, where you in fact truly manage the items in your inventory, and each item use a set amount of slots based in their size.
    That would be interesting!
    Shareazu
  • trinittrinit Member Posts: 705
    @Wikkid_Suhn: no no, i meant it's illogical that both full armor and one scroll use 1 inventory slot (same amount of space) not that armor should be stackable.
    paulsifer42
  • Wikkid_SuhnWikkid_Suhn Member Posts: 136
    @trinit: Oh okay, like what kamuizin said then.

  • carugacaruga Member Posts: 375
    edited June 2012
    Honestly, inventory management isn't really what appeals to me in the BG and IWD games.

    In a recent BG1 playthrough I recruited Safana and was constantly going into her inventory to put another stack of 10 throwing knives in her weapon slot.

    Even with stacks of 20 arrows/bolts/bullets/darts its simply an annoyance.
    I agree that stacks should be increased, but I think there should also be a balance (as I mentioned elsewhere).

    I would like to see a situation where you still have realistically small stacks of knives, but it's also easier to re-equip, taking away some of the headache without losing the immersiveness of having to re-equip manually. Think 2 or 3 keypresses on the keyboard rather than lots of pointing and clicking. Or maybe just have a programmable AI re-equip but it uses up a round of action to have it do that?

    Or maybe make stacks unlimited, but have (optionally) a window pop up every time a certain number of finite ammo is used, to stop the character burning through it too quickly. You can confirm continued use of the ammo or a switch to melee.

    If the inventory has decent item sorting (alphabetically, by class, by weight, and customizable--and maybe 'group by' as well) it should be easier to re-equip even if you did have to use point&click as there'd be a specific place to return your mouse to.
  • AndreaColomboAndreaColombo Member Posts: 5,524
    @caruga - watch out for the broken link in your post!
  • carugacaruga Member Posts: 375
    Fixed :) comes with dropping the closing quotation mark
  • GraysonACGraysonAC Member Posts: 6
    I'd prefer bag/scroll cases being implemented, both from a fun perspective and from an immersion perspective. Let the Encumbrance system determine how much my party can carry, not imaginary 'item slots'

    Ideas like having items take up different amount of space would be a nightmare to implement code-side, and would break a lot of mod compatibility.

    Caruga, regarding keyboard shortcuts - remember a key feature of BGEE is iPad conversion, where that kind of thing won't help. One fix that'll work on PC and iPad is better, imo, than the team spending time for two fixes.
    carugatenaLunever
  • NWN_babaYagaNWN_babaYaga Member Posts: 732
    In P&P my guys never missed to buy a few bags or a scoll case. So yes I support this too.
    Lunever
  • carugacaruga Member Posts: 375

    Caruga, regarding keyboard shortcuts - remember a key feature of BGEE is iPad conversion, where that kind of thing won't help. One fix that'll work on PC and iPad is better, imo, than the team spending time for two fixes.
    True, I didn't think of that. Although I also think configurable keymaps is essential for the PC version.
    Lunever
  • ElectricMonkElectricMonk Member Posts: 599
    @Wikkid_Suhn I agree that a bag of holding would be too much for BG1. One of the devs, Phillip, also made mention of this point on another discussion, [Request(or not)]Pack mule:
    We'd like to add gem bags, scroll cases, etc. to BG1. They don't dramatically change the game, are somewhat realistic, and make things much more convenient for the player.

    As for a bag of holding... well, that might be a bit much for an 8th level dude.
    So it looks like the devs are thinking along the same lines. I would like to see cases and bags, etc. and somewhat higher ammo stacks (40 perhaps) would be nice.
    YorleenLunever
  • sarevok57sarevok57 Member Posts: 5,975
    since this enhanced version is going to use the ToB engine, im pretty sure all ammo is going to be stacked up to 40, and i can bet that containers arent going to be placed in the game unless they plan on putting them in the new areas
    tena
  • ElectricMonkElectricMonk Member Posts: 599
    edited June 2012
    @sarevok57 yeah I figured ammo would be stackable up to 40 by default as in ToB, just thought I'd state my preference. As for putting containers in the game, Phillip Daigle is one of the developers and the aforementioned post seems to suggest that they are definitely thinking about putting them in (in new areas or otherwise).
  • sarevok57sarevok57 Member Posts: 5,975
    i think for pure spite, i will never buy any container, as people have already posted it was fun filling those inventories full spilling goodies out of yer pockets, i think the containers are a little too much, but thats just my insane opinion :)
  • ElectricMonkElectricMonk Member Posts: 599
    edited June 2012
    @sarevok57 Well I'm a bit torn on containers, they do add a great deal of convenience for players that don't go back to town every day to sell things and take on dungeons in one go, w/out going back to town to rest after each level... several of the people mentioning full inventories also leave the dungeon and head up to the merchant on thee Durlag's Tower map once those inventories are full (leaving behind only those things worth 1-10 gold), and then return to the dungeon. I like having to make choices on what I keep and leave behind, but Durlag's Tower is a good example of a place that has a ton more loot than your party can carry to the point that without going back to town or out to the merchant in the NW corner of the map a few times, you would have to leave tons of valuable loot behind if stacking or containers weren't implemented. Also, containers just make sense, whereas 120 pieces of paper (scrolls, notes, etc.) filling up your party's entire inventory as well as 120 breast plates filling it up to the exact same extent makes much less sense, hence containers for pieces of paper. Gem bags and potion cases I'm a bit less okay with than scroll cases though.
    Yorleen
  • kamuizinkamuizin Member Posts: 3,704
    But anyway if you don't have rep 5- in the end you will end the game with lots of gold, i say we need more things to spend the gold, as we will lost it on transition to BG2...
    Winthalmch202paulsifer42
  • AndreaColomboAndreaColombo Member Posts: 5,524
    @kamuizin - we'd lose anything we'd buy, too!
  • kamuizinkamuizin Member Posts: 3,704
    @AndreaColombo, yet gold has very few uses in BG, anyway i didn't say more items but more things, someone in another thread was talking about more use to taverns, no?
  • AndreaColomboAndreaColombo Member Posts: 5,524
    @kamuizin - touché, I see your point.
  • WinthalWinthal Member Posts: 366
    @sarevok57 I'm right there with ya buddy :P
  • sarevok57sarevok57 Member Posts: 5,975
    @Winthal *gives a high five*
  • WinthalWinthal Member Posts: 366
    @sarevok57 *gives a high five +5* wait wha..?
  • Wikkid_SuhnWikkid_Suhn Member Posts: 136
    *rolls successful saving throw, avoiding high five*
    Robachicken
  • DeeDee Member Posts: 10,447
    edited June 2012
    I'd like them to give an eye toward containers making logical sense. A scroll case, for example, should probably only carry, at most, twenty individual scrolls, whether they're stacked or not. A gem bag should probably be able to carry...if we're talking about small gems here, rings and the like, it would probably fit fifty gems before you start to lose track of everything. A potion case should probably be limited to fifteen or twenty potions.

    That way, a scroll case will save you four inventory slots' worth of scrolls (or more than that, if you've got a bunch of unique ones), a gem bag will save you ten, and a potion case will save you three or four slots. Not enough to get out of hand, but enough to successfully group similar items together in a way that makes sense.

    I would also put these items fairly early on in the game. I recall one mod putting them in Gorion's inventory; I don't know how I feel about that, but you should definitely be able to acquire them at around the same time.
    Yorleen
  • TanthalasTanthalas Member Posts: 6,738
    My last BGT game, those containers (gem bags, scroll cases and potion bags) could be found as early as Beregost I believe.

    I hope ammo belts are also added.

    I can live with a Bag of Holding not being available in BG1.
    kamuizinSterlingArcherYorleenCorvino
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