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[mod] The Return of Xzar and Montaron

LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
A new mod is here... and those who would like to enjoy a more evil run should be happy.

xzarandmonty.png

THE RETURN OF XZAR AND MONTARON FOR BALDUR'S GATE II EE

The mod adds a new quest after the original Xzar & Montaron quest is finished. Follow it and work with what Xzar left you and you'll be able to see the evil pair once again! Finishing the quest allows you to join the necromancer and the fighter/thief and learn more about their aspirations and plans. The mod also introduces two fully-fledged companions, timered talks, scenery talks, banters, interjections, mini-quests/encounters, items... and, hopefully, some fun.

Montaron comes with an additional option: it's not exactly a "romance", but a "adventurers with benefits" option, that's not as long as romances, but is an option for all those Charnames that do not look for "one true love", but neither want to live as a celibate. The option is available to all PCs, regardless of gender, of any non-lawful alignment. To trigger the path, however, you must suggest you'd be interested in Montaron that way. Only then he will give you such an offer.

There is also a third companion, that is more of an easter egg than a full companion. To get him, you will need a very powerful animal on your side and you need to let Xzar do a little experiment on him.

To join Xzar and Montaron, pick up their corpses that are left after their vanilla quest and start the quest by "talking to" Xzar's body.


Special thanks to @megrimlock, @TheArtisan, and Soul for their help with this mod! Cheers!

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Comments

  • AciferAcifer Member Posts: 194
    Congratulations on the release! I'm looking forward to enjoying their rants in BG2 from now on. :D
  • Austin87Austin87 Member Posts: 319
    edited October 31
    This is awesome! Congrats on the release!)
    I will definitely play BG2 with this mod when I can!

    Two questions, please:
    1) Is it possible to translate the mod into another language or will the text still be finalized and we will have to wait with the translation?
    2) Will it be possible to make some cross-mod dialogues from the Smiling Imp's "BG1NPC in SoA&ToB" mod available for your Xzar and Montaron (Montaron-Tiax, Xzar-Deekin, Montaron-Deekin)? I could make the necessary code and add these three banters to the G3 "Crossmod banter pack" mod.
    Here are the texts:
    // Deekin - Montaron
    @649 = ~I don't like to talk a lot, I don't like to whine and snot, I try to keep my cool in everything, even something as worthless as our party.~
    @650 = ~However, I am, dammit, very interested in one question; Why, in the name of all the gods, is there KOBOLD hanging with us?!~ [MONTY41]
    @651 = ~Deekin is a bard, Deekin sings songs and helps heroes do good. ~
    @652 = ~Usually heroes kill kobolds and do good to the world by doing so. I'm not a hero, but even I hate kobolds and try to carve out as many skulls of those worthless, smelly creatures as possible.~
    @653 = ~Deekin has maaaaany bad kinsmen, but Deekin is not like them. Deekin wants to help the heroes do good and sing songs about their adventures. Deekin can sing about the good halflings to Montaron... ~
    @654 = ~Oh, no, don't start talking to me about the damn good nonsense about the halflings! I seriously don't understand why I have to hang out with kobolds, hamsters, insane necromancers, children, grandchildren, grand-nephews of dead gods, what am I even doing here?!~ [MONTY28]
    @655 = ~How did you all get to me?! *With a look of frustration, Montaron convulsively pulls out a dagger with a sharpening stone, stops talking and starts sharpening his knives*~

    // Deekin - Xzar
    @656 = ~So, kobold, rumor has it that you lived with a dragon?~
    @657 = ~Yes, Deekin lived with a dragon, and Deekin sang to the dragon so that the dragon wouldn't eat Deekin. ~
    @658 = ~What kind of paws did that dragon have? Like rabbits, perhaps?~
    @659 = ~Deekin doesn't remember the exact size of a dragon's paw, but Deekin thinks he had dragon paws. ~
    @660 = ~So, the dragon had the paws of the dragon? Then tell me, the kobold who lived with the dragon: WHY DO RABBITS HAVE PAWS LIKE DRAGONS!!!???~ [XZAR33]
    @661 = ~*Shrugs to the side* Deekin doesn't know. Deekin saw few rabbits and does not remember their paws at all. Deekin is afraid of this loud necromancer.~
    @662 = ~Hmm, okay, we need to catch more rabbits so I can get a better look at their paws. The fate of the multiverse has always been strongly tied to the rabbit's paws. I canТt just leave this mystery alone... All the more that Mommy would not approve of it.~ [XZAR23]

    // Montaron - Tiax
    @663 = ~Hey gnome, you muttered in your sleep again last night! I can't sleep because of you! Do it again and you'll regret it!~
    @664 = ~You dare threaten the great Tiax, rogue? If Tiax wants to, he will trample you like an insect! Your very birth was only possible because Tiax decided so!~
    @665 = ~You idiot! When I was born, you didn't even exist yet! How could you have possibly decided anything?~
    @666 = ~The will of the great Tiax is not limited to the pitiful hours and years with which you measure your lives! He can command both the past and the future! The wheel of time only turns because Cyric decided so! ~
    @667 = ~Is that so? So if I were to punch you in the nose right now, would Cyric help you? Would he smite me with lightning or what?~
    @668 = ~You... you... blasphemer! Bow to Tiax's will or you will regret it!~
    @669 = ~My only regret is that I am traveling with a useless fool like you! You're not even fit for the role of a foolish jester!~
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    Acifer wrote: »
    Congratulations on the release! I'm looking forward to enjoying their rants in BG2 from now on. :D
    Thank you!
    Austin87 wrote: »
    This is awesome! Congrats on the release!)
    I will definitely play BG2 with this mod when I can!
    [/spoiler]
    Thanks!
    Austin87 wrote: »
    1) Is it possible to translate the mod into another language or will the text still be finalized and we will have to wait with the translation?
    [/spoiler]
    The mod is already traified, BUT if I was to suggest something, then perhaps it would be a good idea to wait for a while. The mod was released like 2 hours ago and I may have forgotten about something. So maybe let's just give it some time.
    Austin87 wrote: »
    2) Will it be possible to make some cross-mod dialogues from the Smiling Imp's "BG1NPC in SoA&ToB" mod available for your Xzar and Montaron (Montaron-Tiax, Xzar-Deekin, Montaron-Deekin)? I could make the necessary code and add these three banters to the G3 "Crossmod banter pack" mod.
    [/spoiler]
    Sorry, but Smiling Imp's interpretations of BG1 characters are quite different to mine, and we both use different speech patterns, we use description texts differently, how my Montaron drops some consonants, or the tone of Xzar's dialogue... these talks were written with a very different Montaron and very different Xzar in mind. I don't think these are the same personas.

    Cheers!
  • Austin87Austin87 Member Posts: 319
    edited October 31
    I understand you, thank you very much for your answer and for your work! :)
    If you ever want to make cross-mod texts between your Xzar and Montaron and, for example, Tiax (or rework the above proposed banter option), contact me, I will be glad to help!)
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    edited October 31
    Sure, thanks! :) (also for understanding)
  • Kensei_xXxKensei_xXx Member Posts: 83
    edited October 31
    Nice.
    I know you don't check your Mods on EET, but I'll try this one for my new run.
    Let's see how it goes... ;)
  • megrimlockmegrimlock Member Posts: 53
    Whilst we're talking about compatibility, I believe Lava has made this to detect if you have the (PPG/SimDing0's) Questpack installed and to work accordingly.
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    edited October 31
    It's a simple solution :) i included a note in the readme. It says:
    In regard to Simding0's Questpack: the game won't break if you install both these mods, but if you want to enjoy my mod's content, do not use the new quest path added by Simding0's Questpack and follow the original quest. If you follow the Simding0's Questpack's path, you won't be able to join Xzar and Montaron.

    So you can just decide during the game which path you want to follow.

    @megrimlock - thanks for all your help, again :)

    In regard to EET: I included fate spirit patch for EET, but I am unsure if that's all that's needed and it was never tested on that platform. Just letting you know, @Kensei_xXx :)
  • LlewrenLlewren Member Posts: 44
    Congrats on the release! Excited to try this one out.
  • MothorMothor Member Posts: 265
    Another excellent mod has arrived!

    So many companions from BG1 got their chance to shine in BG2 now.

    I wonder if there is any chance for a Safana NPC mod though. She is one of the very few companions from BG1 that does not have a recruitment option mod for BG2.

    And her romance in SoD was rather entertaining. A shame Beamdog lost the rights to update BG2 with how we treated her in SoD.
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    I don't think I'm going to write any new NPCs anytime soon. I am taking things a bit slower from now on. Besides, I suppose it would be good if there was someone else offering new companions, not just me.

    Cheers!
  • Austin87Austin87 Member Posts: 319
    edited November 5
    Mothor wrote: »
    She is one of the very few companions from BG1 that does not have a recruitment option mod for BG2.
    Hello! Safana is available in BG2,BG2EE and EET if you have the "BG1 NPCs for SoA & ToB" installed. She has a lot of dialogue there (more than a thousand lines) and interjections, mini-quest in Docks area, PID-dialogue, a small romance with Coran (if they are both in the party) and two versions of the epilogue (with and without romance).
    There is also a mod "Safana in Amn" by Roxanne, but there is much less dialogue, and this mod is only available for EET.

    Post edited by Austin87 on
  • morpheus562morpheus562 Member Posts: 306
    I don't think I'm going to write any new NPCs anytime soon. I am taking things a bit slower from now on. Besides, I suppose it would be good if there was someone else offering new companions, not just me.

    Cheers!

    I need to figure out how to do portraits. I have a couple NPC ideas floating around.
  • shevy123456shevy123456 Member Posts: 266
    Perhaps AI could help in regards to autogenerating graphics? I think for any test-mod it's ok if it is not 100% complete.

    For me, the two main problems are lack of time due to reallife-related obligations, as well as not fully understanding
    what needs to be done where and how. The gibberling github page has a lot of useful documentation, but it feels as if
    how-to tutorials don't quite seem to exist, leading to the primary option of copy/pasting from an existing mod. Which
    takes time, so I am back to the original problem. I am thinking of starting with something small, though, so the range
    I would consider is an incremental item mod (e. g. start with the first item, move to the next) or NPC mod (more gnomeys
    are needed!). I want to do as much as possible in a "higher" hierarchical structure though, e. g. all dialogue options
    and stats in other files (be it yaml files or a custom format).

    I guess at one point in time I may just copy/paste from Lava since that seems easier and faster than having to compile
    all distributed information pertaining to the format uses or the weirdness that is weidu in general.

    Xzar and Montaron seem fairly scary from the portrait. I actually don't know BG1 well, but they seem like you don't
    want to have them in your home at night ...
  • UlkeshUlkesh Member Posts: 280
    Congratulation for this release!!!
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    Thanks!
  • Kensei_xXxKensei_xXx Member Posts: 83
    edited November 8
    Hey lava,
    I noticed, that, at least for EET, the subclass of your third „companion“ is showing under the Fighter Class as a selectable Kit. That seems a bit odd an is not intentional, I guess?
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    Yep, thanks. That shouldn't be there. It's not just an EET thing. I'll lock it in the next version.
  • UlkeshUlkesh Member Posts: 280
    edited November 9
    This is a really good mod. I've enjoyed particularly the
    heart life death questions that turned into an amulet. I can envision Xzar doing that. Well done!!

    Got two questions:
    It's not exactly clear to me which answers turn the montaron into a friend with benefit relationship. I simply turned him off when I got the first music exchange with him, but I'm afraid I will not have more banters with him. Is that true?

    As for Wilson, is there any particular thing I have to do to turn him into an undead beast? I had thought I could ask Xzar via PID, but it doesn't seem like so

    I truly look forward to these two and Hephernaan together. One day...
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    It's not exactly clear to me which answers turn the montaron into a friend with benefit relationship. I simply turned him off when I got the first music exchange with him, but I'm afraid I will not have more banters with him. Is that true?
    Benefits are turned on when you reply to him stuff like "I wonder if you're really that good in bed." or other stuff like that, sometimes be understood in more than one way. Or giving him a compliment... or there is a PID. HOWEVER, no worries, because that won't make it a must for the two of you to sleep together! :) That would be super weird. In one of the next talks you would be asked if you want to have fun and "nah, that's not what I meant when we talked" is a totally valid answer. I ALWAYS give a "no" option.

    If the benefits talks activated, that means you've seen all normal friendship talks, so you're not missing anything else but the benefits path. There aren't TONS of such talks, I wanted those NPCs to have a bit more than original NPCs, but I didn't want the content to overwhelm or steal too much attention from other companions. You will still be able to see some scenery talks, reactions, banters, etc.
    As for Wilson, is there any particular thing I have to do to turn him into an undead beast? I had thought I could ask Xzar via PID, but it doesn't seem like so
    You need to have Xzar and Wilson in the team. Remember, though, that Zombie version of Wilson does not include much, apart from some very minor contentment. It's a bit more like the original Wilson, without Wilson Chronicles, with just few lines here and there. But it may still be interesting to at least try it out.

    For the change to happen, in the banter between Xzar and Wilson encourage Xzar to change Wilson and that's exactly what's going to happen. (You cruel cruel person!)
    I truly look forward to these two and Hephernaan together. One day...
    Remember that there is no crossmod between them. Not yet. I may create something at one point but right know I'm having a break, enjoying some games etc.
    This is a really good mod.
    Oh, and thank you! That's not all, there is a ToB encounter that's quite... fun :D I believe you may like it and it may feel a bit more epic.

    Anyway, it's nice that you've decided to give these two a shot! Cheers!
  • MothorMothor Member Posts: 265
    Austin87 wrote: »
    Mothor wrote: »
    She is one of the very few companions from BG1 that does not have a recruitment option mod for BG2.
    Hello! Safana is available in BG2,BG2EE and EET if you have the "BG1 NPCs for SoA & ToB" installed. She has a lot of dialogue there (more than a thousand lines) and interjections, mini-quest in Docks area, PID-dialogue, a small romance with Coran (if they are both in the party) and two versions of the epilogue (with and without romance).
    There is also a mod "Safana in Amn" by Roxanne, but there is much less dialogue, and this mod is only available for EET.

    Interesting, any chance of adding her a romance with the player character?

    A continuation of her romance from SoD if possible. :)
  • Austin87Austin87 Member Posts: 319
    edited November 11
    Mothor wrote: »
    Austin87 wrote: »
    Mothor wrote: »
    She is one of the very few companions from BG1 that does not have a recruitment option mod for BG2.
    Hello! Safana is available in BG2,BG2EE and EET if you have the "BG1 NPCs for SoA & ToB" installed. She has a lot of dialogue there (more than a thousand lines) and interjections, mini-quest in Docks area, PID-dialogue, a small romance with Coran (if they are both in the party) and two versions of the epilogue (with and without romance).
    There is also a mod "Safana in Amn" by Roxanne, but there is much less dialogue, and this mod is only available for EET.

    Interesting, any chance of adding her a romance with the player character?

    A continuation of her romance from SoD if possible. :)
    Hello! If someone writes the texts of such a romance, I can code it and add it to the mod. I myself will not be able to write a romance for her at the moment, since it would be difficult for me to write such text. :(
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,859
    It would be cool if you continued discussing BG1 NPCs for SoA & ToB Safana in the thread of the other mod, rather than in that of The Return of Xzar and Montaron. Thank you!
  • DuronDuron Member Posts: 146
    Will try this on my next evil party game. Looks like fun. I always enjoyed having Xzar.
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