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How do you make custom spells (mod) for BG:EE or BG-2?

What tools do you need? Any tutorial? I can't seem to find one. Not easy, but it is not entirely difficult also to script one for NWN-2, I'm hoping it could be like that for BG.

Comments

  • lunarlunar Member Posts: 3,460
    I created Tenser's Floating Bandage ( here is my thread http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/12041/tensers-floating-bandage )spell via fooing around with DLTCEP. It is an easy to use program, I copied and edited some spell effects and patched them up for my custom spell and that's it. If you want a custom spell icon or such you may need a BAM editor, though.

  • IllustairIllustair Member Posts: 878
    edited December 2012
    @lunar
    Nice. Does it require heavy scripting to create one? I'm a bit inspired by the Warcraft D&D conversion you see, and I thought maybe I could translate some of the spells to BG:EE. There's a poll I made by the way in Off-topic, "Burning Legion vs. Toril" I should have known that no one goes to that subforum (or maybe it's just uninteresting haha)..;p
  • lunarlunar Member Posts: 3,460
    edited December 2012
    DLTCEP is simple. I learned it by myself pretty easily.

    Once you open up a spell file, it lists its basic properties in a tab: its school, range, casting time. It uses a projectile, its projectile number. So you can look up to a spell and copy its projectile, for example if you want your new spell to use disintegrate's spiffy green ray-orb projectile, you can copy it. Open a 'new spell' and set its properties, level, type, projectile etc. as you like it.

    For effects, there are a lot of effects in the game files. Open up any spell you want to copy its effect, for example, open cure light wounds healing effect, and copy it. Paste it into your new spell's effect list. You can edit the effect file, say, it cures 8 HP, you can adjust it so that your spell cures 50 HP.

    Or, open up a fireball spell and copy its fire damage effect. It has different effects for each caster level. Say, you open up its level 10 effect. You will see it does 5d6 damage, no save. And another 5d6 fire damage, with a save vs spells attached. So this spell actually hits the victim twice, and one hit is avoided if the target saves. In practice, it does 10d6 damage on a failed save, and 5d6 if the victim saves vs spell. Copy this effect and paste it into your new spell. And adjust the effect: damage amount, damage type (there are code numbers for all damage types, change it to cold, acid, lightning, piercing, magic, etc.) saving throw, etc. as you like. Change saving category to save vs breath weapon, if you like. Apply a penalty (-4 to save, making saving throw more difficult.) Or bonus to save (+4 so it is an easier save to make) Increase damage up to 10d10 if you want. Or just set it 'no save' and be done with it.

    Effects have a 'power level' which is its spell level, for effects to bypass globe of invulnerability and the like. So if an effect's power level is set to 3, it can not penetrate a minor globe of inv. If you set it to 9, its power is effectively a level 9 spell in terms of that effect, for clashing with spell protections.

    Also, effects are labeled as 'not bypass MR, dispelable' or the like. It means what it exactly says. You can set it to 'nonmagical' if you want your spell effect to bypass magic resistance directly.

    It seems complex at first, but if you go step by step, copying the effects of the various spells, and editing them as you like, it is super easy! You just need creativity to combine different spell effects and all. I used Larloch's minor drain's projectile file, and cure light wounds healing effect file, and edited the healing amount. (there is also the percantile chance you can adjust.) In my spell, I had two healing effects. One was set to %00-75 probability and healed 1d4 damage. Other effect was set to %76-100 probability and healed 1d8 damage. SO the game rolls a dice 100, and if it gets a random number of 1 to 75, it uses the first effect. If it gets a number of 76-100 it uses the second effect. Etc.
  • IllustairIllustair Member Posts: 878
    @lunar
    That's very kind of you to have responded in great detail, thanks a lot! Perfectly what I needed.
  • lunarlunar Member Posts: 3,460
    @fredamora

    Oh, no problem! Just sharing some stuff I learned. By the way, creating a spell is one thing, having its unique in-game description is another. They are 2 seperate things, actually. You can create the most awesome spell ever, it will stay in your override folder. You can give the spell to a character via Shadowkeeper. It will work as you intended. But the spell will have no in-game text. (or wonky text)

    When you write its description in DLTCEP it saves the text info into dialog.tlk file, this file is essential as it has ALL the written text in the game. From dialogues to item/spell descriptions, everything. Your edited dialog.tlk stays in BG:EE folder, copying it to Languages-English folder and replacing the english dialog.tlk in there works. (be sure to have a back up of the dialog.tlk folder in Languages-English folder, just in case.)
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