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[MOD] Bubb's Spell Menu (v5.1)

BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
edited October 26 in UI Modding
Please Note: EEex is required to use this mod — EEex is (at the time of writing) only available on Windows platforms.

Overview:

This mod seeks to replace the standard actionbar spell selection with an alternative that is more convenient for the player. The primary enhancements over the default spell selection include:
  • Displaying all available spells at once, (categorized by level). No more endlessly clicking the right-arrow to get to your 9th level spells!
  • A searchable spell list. Know which spell you want to cast? Just type the first couple of characters and press enter.
  • The ability to narrow view to only Mage or Cleric spells; useful for Mage/Clerics.

Screenshots:


BG:EE (no SoD) :

BG:EE (with SoD) :

BG2:EE :

IWD:EE :

Options screen :

Monolithic Display Mode :

Overlay Mode :


Installation:

Download: Here
  1. Install EEex (forum).
  2. Download the zip file above and copy the contents into your game's base folder.
  3. Run setup-bubb_spell_menu.exe and follow the prompts to install.
  4. Make sure to run the game with InfinityLoader.exe after installing EEex.

Mod Compatibility:

Compatible with the following UI overhauls, (when installed after):
  • Dragonspear UI++, (at the time of writing, the latest version can be found in this comment by artyfox; this version is required for compatibility)
  • EET, EET_GUI
  • Infinity UI++
  • LeUI, LeUI-BG1EE, LeUI-IWDEE, LeUI-SoD
UI tweaks can go anywhere in the installation order relative to this mod.
Post edited by Bubb on
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Comments

  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018

    Version 1.0:

    Changelog:
    v1.0: Initial release.
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018

    Version 1.1:

    Changelog:
    v1.1: Added Type category. Fixed alignment issue with search bar. Refactored code.
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018

    New Version: Light

    I'm sure some have felt like the normal version of this mod goes over the top. The menu is big, it's bulky, and it is somewhat intrusive to the world screen. In consideration to this feeling I've made a "light" version of this mod, which only includes a search bar. This version is much more integrated with the vanilla GUI, as the search results are displayed in the hotbar itself; nice and tucked away on the bottom of the screen.

    Standalone features:

    The spell selection uses the default behavior until a term is inserted into the search bar. Once a search term is entered the hotbar transforms into a list of search results; these results mimic the default spell selection behavior.

    Note: The green slot in the search results is the slot that will be picked if "enter" is pressed while typing in the search field. This is useful for quickly picking a spell when you've typed enough characters to narrow the list down to one entry.

    Screenshots

    Searching for "Summon"



    Searching for "Protection from"





    Changelog:
    v1.2: Reverted unintentional edits to message box. Cleaned up code.
    v1.1: Critical fix regarding a failure to pick spell when hotbar was moved before inputting search term.
    v1.0: Initial release.
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    I am curious if anyone is really interested in this mod - I've always thought that the spell menu and the lack of a quick way to search for spells was a weak point, and thus I created this mod. The general lack of reaction to this mod makes me believe that I am a minority, and that most are happy with the default spell selection. While I cannot transform this thread into a poll, I would encourage others to post here and share their thoughts about the hotbar, and the spell selection in general. Do you like what this mod does? Are you happy with the default spell selection? What are the weak points of this mod, and what could I do better next time?
  • kjeronkjeron Member Posts: 2,368
    lefreut said:

    Also it seems that there are way less players willing to try UI mods compared to other mods :(

    I'll second this, it also generally takes them longer to be noticed as well.

    One thing that prevents me from using this, is the loss of spell counts, and AFAIK your correct that there is no way to fix that given how the UI currently is.

    Getting Beamdog to open up the action-bar is a long overdue request. Recreating, if not improving, the action-bar of IWD2 is, IMO, the real goal. You could probably get very close with what you doing here, but the implementation of Modal Abilities and the spell count would be the main issues.
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018
    @kjeron
    I agree with everything you said. It is quite unfortunate how hardcoded some of the UI items are, and how little is exposed to the LUA environment in general. Even when we get comprehensive data that is exposed, it's only exposed when the engine "deems" it to be; just like how the characters table, (which has a TON of information about the party), is only filled with the information of the party members that are selected.

    I already use an ugly hack in which I have to change the spell names to UUIDs and then replace them dynamically at run time, and this is just to identify which spells the character can currently cast! (It has to be this way so summons and the like work with the menus). I've tried to come up with some hacky way to track the number of times a spell can be cast, but alas I always hit a wall :(

    Hopefully Beamdog listens and improves the exposure of currently hardcoded items to the LUA environment, it would make so much more possible.
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018

    Version 1.2:

    Changelog:
    v1.2: Fixed bug where duplicate spell entries were being shown. Cleaned up code.
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018

    Version Light 1.2:

    Changelog:
    v1.2: Reverted unintentional edits to message box. Cleaned up code.
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • ALIENALIEN Member Posts: 1,271
    @Bubb Very nice tweak. Definetly worth including inside EEUITweaks Mod Collection.

    Could you please stop this nonsense of putting last mod release inside new forum post every time? Use first post with single archive or look for better ways/hosting ;)
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018
    @ALIEN
    Heh, yeah, I had an inkling that wasn't right; I'll look into archiving them on the first post and using a different host. This is the first time I have done something like this, so I didn't know what the standard was. Sorry for spamming the forums! o:)

    Edit: I've reworked the OP a bit, hopefully this version puts everything in one place!
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • JuliusBorisovJuliusBorisov Member, Administrator, Moderator, Developer Posts: 22,758
    No problem with making posts about new versions of the mod. I think @ALIEN cares more about visibility - if all the files/links/screenshots are in the OP then any user will find it easier to download and to understand how the latest version looks.

    You can use new comments for explaining changes, and incorporate them into the OP.
  • lefreutlefreut Member Posts: 1,462
    ALIEN said:

    @Bubb Very nice tweak. Definetly worth including inside EEUITweaks Mod Collection.

    It's on my todo list :)
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    In consideration to ALIEN's and JuliusBorisov's feedback I've reworked the OP. How is it now? Too many spoilers?
  • raizoraizo Member Posts: 31
    edited February 2018
    Finally, after all these years, there is something that helps with spell selection.
    If it's possible, please make it so that all the spells are visible at once without scrolling, searching, switching, etc.
    And if they could be categorized by level, preferably in a horizontal way, that would be something.
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018
    @raizo
    I'm glad you like the mod!
    raizo said:

    If it's possible, please make it so that all the spells are visible at once without scrolling, searching, switching, etc.

    If I separate the spell levels into horizontal rows, like you suggest, I could get close to complete coverage, but characters with a large amount of spells would still need *some* horizontal scrolling of some kind. This is because I can't dynamically size the spell BAMs, they are the size they are. I think I could probably fit ~15 unique spells per level on the screen horizontally, (screen aspect ratio might affect this?). I don't think that number is reached anywhere in the vanilla game, so this should be workable. Of course players will almost always have less than 15 spells, I just have to account for the extreme cases. As I think about it, this could work; I'll look into implementing a version of it.
  • AstroBryGuyAstroBryGuy Member Posts: 3,437
    @Bubb - A case to consider is Cleric/Rangers. They get access to all Cleric & Druid spells (at spell levels that overlap). In unmodded IWD:EE, that's 16 1st level spells, 18 2nd level spells, and 27 3rd level spells.

    (I know the mod is currently only for BG2EE, but if you plan to port it to BGEE and IWDEE, the above should be considered.)
  • kjeronkjeron Member Posts: 2,368
    AstroBryGuy said:

    @Bubb - A case to consider is Cleric/Rangers. They get access to all Cleric & Druid spells (at spell levels that overlap). In unmodded IWD:EE, that's 16 1st level spells, 18 2nd level spells, and 27 3rd level spells.

    They may know that many, but it's unlikely they will ever have that many memorized at one time.
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    I've been working on the new version, and I've got a bunch of rough code up and running. I think this version could be something special, so I want to get input as to what people think before I head towards finalizing. Here are some screenshots:

    Normal Case:



    Extreme Case:



    Thoughts?
  • AstroBryGuyAstroBryGuy Member Posts: 3,437
    kjeron said:

    AstroBryGuy said:

    @Bubb - A case to consider is Cleric/Rangers. They get access to all Cleric & Druid spells (at spell levels that overlap). In unmodded IWD:EE, that's 16 1st level spells, 18 2nd level spells, and 27 3rd level spells.

    They may know that many, but it's unlikely they will ever have that many memorized at one time.
    Very true. Wasn’t thinking clearly. :confounded:
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018

    New Version: Extended

    Overview:

    If the list view from the normal version of this mod doesn't strike your fancy, this version very well might. This version emulates the slots from the default spell selection, and arranges them in such a way that all spells will be visible at once. This is useful for players who are irritated by the lack of visibility in the default spell selection.

    Screenshots:

    Wizard's Spell Selection





    Changelog:
    v1.3: I was an idiot and accidentally changed something in WeiDU that broke the mod when you cast a spell, all is fixed now.
    v1.2: Added spell type filtering. Added optional left align.
    v1.1: Fixed Spell UUIDs appearing in the priest spell selection in character creation.
    v1.0: Initial release.
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • MoonWolfMoonWolf Member Posts: 23
    I'll be honestly I mostly didn't care for this mod but This version is great.
  • MoonWolfMoonWolf Member Posts: 23
    So I as going through and making a mage/cleric to see how it looked with quite a few spells. And saw this:


    This is a fresh BG2:EE install with just the extended version of this mod installed and nothing else. Mage spell selection was just fine.

  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018
    @MoonWolf
    Thanks for the report. If you see these strings anywhere else in the game, please let me know. I've updated the main archive in the OP with v1.1 of the extended version, which should fix this issue. Also, in your case replacing your UI.MENU is all that is required to update to the new version.
  • FlashburnFlashburn Member Posts: 1,847
    @Bubb
    The Extended version looks lovely! I am sorely tempted to use it now because it resembles NWN2's quickcast menu. If you could filter between priest, mage, and all spells (perhaps via 3 icons at the top of the menu), I think it would be perfect!

    And this is just my opinion, but I think it looked better when the menu was aligned to the top-left of the screen instead of the center. Unless you can drag it freely, in which case, my mistake.
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    @Flashburn
    I'm glad you like the extended version! I looked up NWN2's quickcast system that you mentioned, and it is eerily similar! I honestly had no idea any other game had a selection like this, but it must mean it's a good system, right? ;)

    Right now the menu is fixed, and I think it would be too difficult to make it draggable, but maybe I could put some buttons somewhere that aligns it to zones around the screen. Also, I think your suggestion of filter buttons is great; I already know of some great BAMs I could commandeer for them :). I'll see what I can do!
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018
    @Flashburn - This version might interest you :)

    Version Extended 1.2:

    Screenshots:

    Cleric / Mage All Spells



    Cleric / Mage Filter By Mage Spells



    Cleric / Mage Filter By Cleric Spells



    Cleric / Mage Left Align




    Note:

    This version requires any old versions to be uninstalled, please do so before attempting to install this version.

    Changelog:
    v1.2: Added spell type filtering. Added optional left align.
    Post edited by Bubb on
  • FlashburnFlashburn Member Posts: 1,847
    I have some UI mods installed already and this mod wants me to overwrite my UI.menu file instead of adding on to it. Is there a way to install it like that instead of having to start from scratch?
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018
    @Flashburn - At the moment there is no way for the mod to dynamically patch your UI.MENU. I've been looking into it, and I might attempt to update the WeiDU installer soon. Alternately, as you say, you could install this mod first, then build up your other mods ontop of it. I've never tried to combine this with anything else, so I don't know how well it will work. Internally this mod changes quite a bit of the core GUI code. Any mods that alter the hotbar / the message box will probably be incompatible, but that doesn't mean you can't try to install them ontop of this mod. Sorry for the inconvenience! :/
  • BubbBubb Member Posts: 1,005
    edited February 2018

    Version Extended 1.4:

    Changelog:
    v1.4: Fixed quickspell selection. Fixed spell uuids showing in temple healing services.
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