A quick heads-up: I've now had multiple reports of crashes in particular parts of the game for players using the Mac client for EE. The crashes seem to be happening in areas built with Adam Miller's Mountain tileset, as described in this thread on the Vault. It seems to be Mac specific, since it isn't happening on Windows. The crashes are hard, and making it difficult for players to continue without a workaround.
I'm going to create a simple test module and hak with one area that uses that tileset. If I can confirm reports of the same error on it, then I'll follow up by submitting a bug report to Beamdog.
The first half of the page contains videos from the two currently available mods, Sanctum of the Archmage: The Sight and The Quest (downloadable here from the Neverwinter Vault). The second features clips from the third module, Sanctum of the Archmage: The Miracle Worker, currently in development.
The Sanctum modules are highly story-based games that emphasize plot, world building, dialogue, and character interaction. In addition to being teasers for the saga and its novels, these scenes are intended to showcase my skills as a writer, storyteller, and RPG designer.
Thanks for your interest, Battle2104_Ecthelion! "Sanctum of the Archmage" consists of two modules: The Sight (Chapter 1) and The Quest (Chapter 2). It is designed for single player only, starting a new, first level character, which should advance to level 9-10 by the end of Chapter 2.
And thanks for the kind comments, all! The second image is of the Midland Inn, a gathering place for travelers in the center of the land where Chapter 3 takes place: the the southern reaches of the Kingdom of Rayche. It's built with Sixesthrice's fabulous Wild Woods tileset, the same one I used to re-make the woods in the beginning of The Sight for the EEv5.0 release. There's some more on it here and here.
A note to Linux and Mac players: based on this report (see this comment and the bug report it links to), there's a known bug in the Mountain tilesets that Sanctum use that seems to be causing crashes on Linux. Since this is consistent with some of the reports I've seen from Mac players as well, I'm assuming this is also a problem with the Mac client.
Now that I know about this, I should be able to take steps to patch Sanctum's "top hak" to fix it. I'm not sure when I'll get time to do this (things are understandably crazy right now!), but it's on my list. I'll follow up here once I have.
Hey Andarian, giving your module a second try. This time the riverbed cutscene gets stuck. After spending 5 minutes watching the beautiful forest, I have to give up and Ctrl+Alt+Del. This is happening on Win7 with the very latest stable build.
@Grymlorde , thanks for the feedback! Before you conclude there's an game bug there, though, check out this set of comments on my module page. Another player discovered that it's possible for that cutscene to look like it's stuck or frozen when it isn't, since you're supposed to temporarily lose control of your character there.
The cutscene takes a little under 30 seconds to run you up to a cliff wall, and then ends. If you're in an overhead camera mode then with all the new foliage it can be difficult to see what's going on, or to realize that the cutscene is actually progressing normally. That's something I should probably fix by bringing the cutscene camera up tighter on the player the next time I do an update.
I'd try it again (maybe after temporarily changing to driving camera mode to see things better) to check if that's the issue. If you still haven't gotten control of your character when they stop moving (~30 seconds after the area transition and the chase music starts), then let me know. I haven't had time to revisit the mod with any of the recent engine updates, and I need to set aside some time to do that in any case.
[SOLVED] I solved the issue by clearing out my override directory. I tried to isolate the offending override but there is none. I suspect that what is happening it that the module is packed to the gills with custom content and that a limit is being hit. I can't be sure what the exact amount is; whether it is the # of files or the amount of texture memory, or something else. I also suspect that Six Thrice's Wildlands tilesets has some memory issues (from my own usage as well). Long story short, I suggest putting an advisory to the effect that you've put in a ton of beautiful custom content and to use overrides and patch-haks at our own risk.
An additional suggestion is that for a future release, to empty out the palette of all custom content that will not be spawned, e.g. placeables. Between CEP and Q, there is a metric ton of placeables. Once you've put them in the module, you don't need them in the palette anymore. I know from experience that it reduces the size of the module. It may also reduce the chances of hitting the resource limit and getting weirdness like the cutscene issue I had.
A third suggestion is since you've customized Q, there's an opportunity to dump duplicate content. For example, there's a significant amount of overlap between sanctum_ee and the saq_ haks. And between bodyrebuild and saq15_race. You've got many of the same 2da files in sanctumpatch_ee, sanctum_qcep_top, and saq15_2da. In my own modules, I've eliminated some weirdness by removing duplicates. Theoretically we should be able to overwrite assets multiple times, but in actual practice I've found it to be less than consistent.
So these are just suggestions, take them for what they're worth. In the meantime I'll continue to play Sanctum 1 and see how it goes.
Grymlorde, thanks for your suggestions. They're all good observations on the amount of cleanup I would have liked more time to do on the last update. I did have warnings at some point that the mod isn't supported with any override content installed; I'll look over the documentation to make sure that's still clearly called out.
I'm glad that you're able to play now, though, and looking forward to your feedback.
I recently became aware of and blogged about a resource that I think might be of interest to fans of my work, as well as others generally in the Neverwinter Nights community. It's an intriguing "world-building" site called World Anvil.
I’m a little concerned to hear that some people are saying Sanctum is a “wizard-only mod.” I’d like to emphasize for the record that that is not true. I worked hard to design and playtest the mods to be compatible with all the basic NWN classes, and to include content for them. To take just one example, there are several interactions that only a ranger or druid with animal empathy will ever even see.
Yes, it’s a good choice to play as a wizard. Yes, it is a good choice for spellcasters in general. No, it is not wizard-only!
A new constitution prepares Carlissa for an era of enlightenment. The harsh traditions of the past fade, and a promise of freedom stirs the air.
In the space of one terrifying day, that promise is shattered in a bloodbath of fire and magic.
In Sanctum modding news: with thanks to them for reaching out, I'm in the early stages of preparing Sanctum Chapters 1 and 2 for inclusion in Beamdog's "curated content" listing. It'll take me a while to find time and I'll have a bit of work to do in tracking down the CC authors whose permission I'll need, but I'll post further when I have an update.
A note on the crash to desktop issues for Linux (and Mac) clients. This appears to be caused by models containing names longer than 31 characters (I have only encountered this with terrains though). I'm writing this here since this is one of the more popular modules and people might be looking for a solution here.
Fixing the hakpaks manually is possible by unpacking them, finding the offending names and replacing them with an abbreviated version.
I have a major announcement regarding the future of my writing and gaming projects.
As of last month, and after decades devoted to a "day job" that left little time for pursuing my passions for writing and game development, I have joined “The Great Resignation” and retired to become a full-time author and IP creator-entrepreneur. Andarian Publishing is now a full-time business.
Here’s what that will mean for the future of the Sanctum of the Archmage novels and games. Since some of this should (I hope!) be of interest to NWN:EE community, I wanted to share it here as well.
After nearly a decade "on the shelf," Sanctum 3 is Now Officially Back in Development. With the full title Sanctum of the Archmage: The Miracle Worker, the third and fourth modules (Mission to Rayche and Treason) will finally continue the game saga from the end of Chapter 2: The Quest. It's too early for me to predict yet when the first module will be available, but I'm hoping to be able to have it out sometime next year.
Volume One in my Sanctum of the Archmage book series, Dawn of Chaos, is in the process of being re-released as a series of novella length "episodes." Those interested in more information should be able to find it here.
For more information, please see the announcement on my website here:
A little help needed, please. I'm playing this module for the first time( i really like it so far, great job!) and i got stuck. I can't find green and blue crystals for access panel. I've searched everywhere(or atleast i think i did). Maybe i'm just a blind idiot hm
A little help needed, please. I'm playing this module for the first time( i really like it so far, great job!) and i got stuck. I can't find green and blue crystals for access panel. I've searched everywhere(or atleast i think i did). Maybe i'm just a blind idiot hm
Spoiler Alert:
There are intact crystals in several crawlways throughout the lower ruins: two on the "Len's Lab" level, two along the right wall in the "Secure Area East" (and also some in a trapped metal storage crate), and one on the righthand side of the Master Control room. If you're missing the green and blue crystals look for them in the Secure Area East (blue) and on the right side of the Master Control Room (green). Remember, you only need to put one full set of intact crystals in the crawlway on the left side.
Let me know if that helps, and thanks for the kind words!
A little help needed, please. I'm playing this module for the first time( i really like it so far, great job!) and i got stuck. I can't find green and blue crystals for access panel. I've searched everywhere(or atleast i think i did). Maybe i'm just a blind idiot hm
Spoiler Alert:
There are intact crystals in several crawlways throughout the lower ruins: two on the "Len's Lab" level, two along the right wall in the "Secure Area East" (and also some in a trapped metal storage crate), and one on the righthand side of the Master Control room. If you're missing the green and blue crystals look for them in the Secure Area East (blue) and on the right side of the Master Control Room (green). Remember, you only need to put one full set of intact crystals in the crawlway on the left side.
Let me know if that helps, and thanks for the kind words!
- Andarian
Thanks! Turns out i'm just an idiot The thing is - there's two access panel in master controll room and i thought, that i need to put 6 crystals in each panel omg. Everything is fine now.
Here i am again in need of assistance, hope i'm not too annoying. How do i complete Beastman Quest?
If you've found the Master Control Room, then you've already encountered the two Transfiguration Consoles in the Secure Area West. One of the options available from their dialogues is to apply a "transfiguration template" to an item that you first put in a chamber next to them. Either one will do.
Use any or all of the Owlbear eggs. At least one of them is a plot item, so you won't have been able to sell it.
Take the result to the Beastman King to complete the quest.
That's excellent news ! Glad development is picking up again.
Thanks for the kind words, Isewein!
And thanks to everyone for their patience since my announcement! It turns out that pivoting your entire life takes an awful lot of time, effort, and preparation, even if the pivot is in the direction of eventually having more time to work on your own projects. I'm making progress, though, and should have some follow-up news soon regarding my plans for the Sanctum modules.
In the meantime, for anyone who's interested in what I've been up to and putting in place regarding that "pivot planning," I've posted a copy of my latest email newsletter online at the link below. At lot of it's about my book publishing plans, which are the first thing I've had to try to put in place, but there are what I think are a couple of other interesting tidbits in it as well.
I thought this might be of interest to readers here. It’s an excellent video review by a gaming vlogger of the first book in my 𝙎𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙧𝙘𝙝𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙚 series, 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙪𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙤𝙨. In addition to some insightful observations about the story, he goes a bit into the tradition of fantasy-RPG inspired fiction (including Neverwinter Nights) that it grew from as well.
In other news, I’ve recently finished a “wide release” of the first volume of my Sanctum of the Archmage novel series, Dawn of Chaos. (“Wide” means it’s available from all major e-book stores, not just on my website or on Amazon.) Those interested can find information about it here and here.
In case anyone was having trouble with this, I wanted to post a quick heads-up that I just discovered and fixed a problem with the “downloads link” for the Sanctum module and tlk files. The links in the download PDF should begin working again shortly. There’s a post to my modules page with the details of what happened (short version: my ISP messed up), along with direct workaround links to use in the meantime if anyone needs them.
Comments
I'm going to create a simple test module and hak with one area that uses that tileset. If I can confirm reports of the same error on it, then I'll follow up by submitting a bug report to Beamdog.
Sanctum Game Videos Now Available!
The first half of the page contains videos from the two currently available mods, Sanctum of the Archmage: The Sight and The Quest (downloadable here from the Neverwinter Vault). The second features clips from the third module, Sanctum of the Archmage: The Miracle Worker, currently in development.
The Sanctum modules are highly story-based games that emphasize plot, world building, dialogue, and character interaction. In addition to being teasers for the saga and its novels, these scenes are intended to showcase my skills as a writer, storyteller, and RPG designer.
Scenes from Sanctum of the Archmage Chapters 1 and 2: The Sight and The Quest (Currently Available)
Scenes from Sanctum of the Archmage Chapter 3: The Miracle Worker (In Development)
Thanks by advance !
And thanks for the kind comments, all! The second image is of the Midland Inn, a gathering place for travelers in the center of the land where Chapter 3 takes place: the the southern reaches of the Kingdom of Rayche. It's built with Sixesthrice's fabulous Wild Woods tileset, the same one I used to re-make the woods in the beginning of The Sight for the EEv5.0 release. There's some more on it here and here.
Now that I know about this, I should be able to take steps to patch Sanctum's "top hak" to fix it. I'm not sure when I'll get time to do this (things are understandably crazy right now!), but it's on my list. I'll follow up here once I have.
The cutscene takes a little under 30 seconds to run you up to a cliff wall, and then ends. If you're in an overhead camera mode then with all the new foliage it can be difficult to see what's going on, or to realize that the cutscene is actually progressing normally. That's something I should probably fix by bringing the cutscene camera up tighter on the player the next time I do an update.
I'd try it again (maybe after temporarily changing to driving camera mode to see things better) to check if that's the issue. If you still haven't gotten control of your character when they stop moving (~30 seconds after the area transition and the chase music starts), then let me know. I haven't had time to revisit the mod with any of the recent engine updates, and I need to set aside some time to do that in any case.
Thanks again for the feedback -- Andarian
An additional suggestion is that for a future release, to empty out the palette of all custom content that will not be spawned, e.g. placeables. Between CEP and Q, there is a metric ton of placeables. Once you've put them in the module, you don't need them in the palette anymore. I know from experience that it reduces the size of the module. It may also reduce the chances of hitting the resource limit and getting weirdness like the cutscene issue I had.
A third suggestion is since you've customized Q, there's an opportunity to dump duplicate content. For example, there's a significant amount of overlap between sanctum_ee and the saq_ haks. And between bodyrebuild and saq15_race. You've got many of the same 2da files in sanctumpatch_ee, sanctum_qcep_top, and saq15_2da. In my own modules, I've eliminated some weirdness by removing duplicates. Theoretically we should be able to overwrite assets multiple times, but in actual practice I've found it to be less than consistent.
So these are just suggestions, take them for what they're worth. In the meantime I'll continue to play Sanctum 1 and see how it goes.
I'm glad that you're able to play now, though, and looking forward to your feedback.
World Anvil on *The Sanctum*
Yes, it’s a good choice to play as a wizard. Yes, it is a good choice for spellcasters in general. No, it is not wizard-only!
In Sanctum modding news: with thanks to them for reaching out, I'm in the early stages of preparing Sanctum Chapters 1 and 2 for inclusion in Beamdog's "curated content" listing. It'll take me a while to find time and I'll have a bit of work to do in tracking down the CC authors whose permission I'll need, but I'll post further when I have an update.
Fixing the hakpaks manually is possible by unpacking them, finding the offending names and replacing them with an abbreviated version.
I have a major announcement regarding the future of my writing and gaming projects.
As of last month, and after decades devoted to a "day job" that left little time for pursuing my passions for writing and game development, I have joined “The Great Resignation” and retired to become a full-time author and IP creator-entrepreneur. Andarian Publishing is now a full-time business.
Here’s what that will mean for the future of the Sanctum of the Archmage novels and games. Since some of this should (I hope!) be of interest to NWN:EE community, I wanted to share it here as well.
For more information, please see the announcement on my website here:
A Major Announcement
Tony Andarian
Spoiler Alert:
Let me know if that helps, and thanks for the kind words!
- Andarian
Thanks! Turns out i'm just an idiot
And thanks to everyone for their patience since my announcement! It turns out that pivoting your entire life takes an awful lot of time, effort, and preparation, even if the pivot is in the direction of eventually having more time to work on your own projects. I'm making progress, though, and should have some follow-up news soon regarding my plans for the Sanctum modules.
In the meantime, for anyone who's interested in what I've been up to and putting in place regarding that "pivot planning," I've posted a copy of my latest email newsletter online at the link below. At lot of it's about my book publishing plans, which are the first thing I've had to try to put in place, but there are what I think are a couple of other interesting tidbits in it as well.
Tony Andarian's Newsletter, The Sanctum - March 2020
FBR: Prologue to Chaos & RPG Inspired Fantasy
In other news, I’ve recently finished a “wide release” of the first volume of my Sanctum of the Archmage novel series, Dawn of Chaos. (“Wide” means it’s available from all major e-book stores, not just on my website or on Amazon.) Those interested can find information about it here and here.
https://neverwintervault.org/comment/65836#comment-65836