Let's rate (some of) Argent77's mod \o/
shevy123456
Member Posts: 296
Following the somewhat older "Let's rate Lava's mods", as well as variations of this
in regards to other mods (and older reviews, even decade-old reviews), a continuation
of some sorts if you will here, but for someone else ... let's rate Argent77's mods.
\o/
Argent77 has a prolific github page here, as probably many know - but some younger
ones may not know yet:
https://github.com/Argent77
I should say that I do not know all of the mods there, mind you, so I subsequently
can not talk about all of them either - for instance, I can not say anything about
the Chaos Sorcerer Kit, Improved Archer Kit, NPC Generator and a few more. Those
with more knowledge about other mods not mentioned here should naturally feel free
to share their experience and impressions thereof.
Some mods are not quest-mods per se, such as Bags of Torment. Then there are mostly
convenience mods (Skip Chateau Irenicus specifically, for those who don't want to
re-play the initial dungeon run in BG2, as that can indeed be a bit cumbersome), as
well as visual/graphical mods/changes (BiffedAreasFix etc...), so I will primarily focus
on quest-content related mods, and/or mods that have a larger impact on the gameplay
overall, such as the golem construction mod. The golem construction mod is not a
quest-mod per se, but I will talk about it because I think it is a fairly interesting
mod, in many ways rather unique in its own right.
One exception to the "quest-centric mods" or "storyline-centric mods" I'll make is for
the Wares of the Planes mod (aside from the Golem Construction mod), because while the
Wares of the Planes mod is not a quest-mod per se either (it is basically a unique
merchant with some items), it kind of almost feels as if it could also be a quest mod
or quest-like mod, e. g. if the NPC would have some background story and more
interactions. But as it is it is an item mod of course, not a quest mod. (Note that
there may be one or two other item-mods by other developers with a unique merchant
as well; some merchant called Ruann or something like that. I recall that because
whenever I entered the map where he was, he seemed to mass-cast some spells -
apparently he was scared of being robbed.)
I'll also give some additional ideas here or there in regards to the mods I will
cover, but that's a secondary objective (and several of those ideas I have already
stated before, so I'll be rather brief about those already-made suggestions).
Thus, for the purpose of my own post here, I will focus only on the following
five (5) mods made or maintained by Argent77, in no particular order:
- WaresOfThePlanes
- TestYourMettle
- DjinniCompanion
- A7-TotLM-BG2EE
- GolemConstruction
I'll also link in to the specific github page after each mini-review, to simplify
reaching the individual mod content's homepage for those who may be interested
in trying these out.
So, without much further ado, past that introduction step, I'll somewhat
arbitrarily "rate" these mods, starting with my own personal favourite. That
is, first one to be mentioned, may be the most interesting mod.
I'll avoid too many obvious spoilers, but new players should possibly prefer to
give these mods a try on their own, forming their own conclusion before reading
past that point, if they don't want any spoilers at all. Or if they are ok with
a few semi-spoilers, then continuation past this point is fine. I'll use a
little line with some --- characters as separator next:
The rating of the mods is, of course, a subject matter of personal preferences.
All mods are quite solid, so this is simply preference. Naturally others may
have a totally different order, so the following is simply my order only.
1) The one I actually like the most, in regards to actually playing it (also
repeatedly playing it), is the djinni companion mod.
There are several reasons for this.
The most important reason, IMO, is that it feels like a whole storyline in its
own right actually, e. g. from "obtaining" the djinni, to then progress through
various substories (the kidnapping one specifically is my favourite substory
part, but there are other interactions, e. g. in ToB with another djinn or
the part in the Underdark, etc ...).
There is also a story-arc in regards to the Underground, as briefly mentioned.
That one is nice because the fights involving drow can be quite interesting
in general (you have the whole entourage, yes? Warrior, cleric, mages; I've
lost battles where I focused on the tanky warriors but neglected the mages
doing their mass-damage spells), although I may confuse this partly with another
mod in the Underground (but if I recall correctly, the djinni refers to something
that can be found there; one reason I may be confused is because there is also
Viconia's quest in regards to her daughter, which I think is another mod. Or
some overlapping content, I don't recall correctly. Basically it's all "kill
more drows" really).
Of course gameplay-wise the djinni is also rather strong/useful in his own right
and can be brought back to a physical form after some time, if he perished
before. He is fast and kind of agile so in many ways feels indeed like a complete
additional NPC. There are various means to influence some behaviour of the djinni
or make the djinni carry items, so there is usefulness to be had here. Sometimes
this has to be done due to a few odd situations where the djinni may behave
oddly (I have had that specifically with charm-effects of spells; there may be
something slightly buggy in regards to charm effects and resetting away from
hostility to normal, but this is most likely independent of the mod here, as
I have also noticed this in other parts of the game).
So in several ways, the djinni feels like a full NPC; the personality is kind of
what one may expect of a djinni (aka serving his master calmly).
Ideas for extensions could be a whole djinni city if Argent77 ever has way too
much time on his hand (e. g. similar to the areas by Acifer's Call of the Lost
Goddess, where one has extensive places such as the demon-centric area, the
staircase with the mighty squirrel hero and other unique beings or that heavenly
gate where I suspect planetars to be living; how would a city of djinni and
efreeti look like? Possibly some merchant/bazaar place, colourful clothes and
so forth ... now if only AI could be used to auto-generate a multitude of
different areas based on some combination of keywords and some level of
randomness), a female djinni companion (two in one bottle! Imagine you try to
call the male djinni but he is still hung over from the party last night, so
the female djinni has to appear instead) or, perhaps much simpler, an extension
to the kidnapping substoryline (e. g. bounty hunters get hired to ambush
lateron, with mixed classes and tactics, or even before the very first kidnapping;
or, an even stronger boss that realises his minions sent out, failed, so he
has to do it again. This could be like mentioned here at
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Rakshasa a unique maharajah, or if that
seems too over the top, a Rakshasa champion or ruhk or rajah champion, something
of that sort).
At any rate, this small mini-review concludes the first mod here.
Github link:
https://github.com/Argent77/DjinniCompanion
2) The second one to pick was actually Trials of the Luremaster.
The mod is, if I understood it, quite old - which is good in that it is probably
extremely well-tested overall.
The mod can be difficult and challenging, in particular on a first attempt; it
took me a little while to adjust to it. Past that point it wasn't that hard,
although a few fights are still more challenging than others.
Area-wise, the mod has one really great dungeon in regards to undead.
I am not the biggest fan of dungeons usually, but the dungeon with the undead
was really great; it is probably one of my all-time favourite dungeon for
undead at the least, and perhaps overall too.
Obviously there are more areas that can be explored; the palace/keep was visually
great. One effect I like in particular is the damaged bridge. That spot is nice
in the sense that it provides an in-game explanation of the toggle "can access
/ can not access" situation.
I much prefer this as a solution to e. g. mods that make it suddenly impossible
to leave an area, without any explanation as to why. (This is done in other mods
to disallow easy escape paths, but I never understood the in-game rationale in
those mods to suddenly make doors or staircases vanish, without even changing
the map itself - so you have an open door, but you can never leave, just like
in the song "Hotel California". So, the damaged bridge is a much more visually
elegant solution, in my opinion. There are actually several effects that are
similar to this, like a talking door/moth of some sorts and perhaps a few more)
There is a large array of different monster/enemies available here as well.
One that was quite unique in particular were the giant suit of armours. I think
that was also a fairly unique idea, at the least in BG2 (I don't know Icewind
Dale well, so perhaps it is not as unique there). Would be neat if that could
even be a spell or something, e. g. where a plate armour is carried by the
party and that can then be animated into a walking suit via some magic. Although
to be fair, those suits looked huge, so it would have to be a large plate armour
too. And probably also some more than merely a plate armour; I don't recall
offhand how they looked, but I think they had metal arms and legs too - I need
to watch them again more closely next time. Anyway, I found that idea quite
unique as well.
There are also a few riddles in there, although they are not that difficult, so
it is mostly a fight-through mod in the end.
I usually go through it either before venturing into the Underdark, or after
that (e. g. in Chapter 6). Both is possible but past Chapter 6 the mod seems
to be fairly easy even on insane difficulty, so for a more challenging variant
I tend to go through it before venturing into the Underdark. In that case a
few fights can be rather challenging; in particular the palace guards, since
they soak up a lot of damage usually while trying to surround the party. Also,
one cave with harpies can be very hard. Here I found that repositioning helps;
first time I managed to win here was by running to the top left area quickly
and doing some quick shot hits with the warriors; in subsequent runs I managed
to occupy the area next to the entrance on the bottom right - this could be
more difficult, in particular if you have low hp characters, but positioning
helps a lot, as always. Once a foothold is established I found that the
subsequent fights are often much easier. Being surrounded by enemies is often
by far the worst option, so being able to e. g. have them all come in from
one side, helps a lot. I also did this to the minotaurs; and area effects
also help a ton in such a case.
So repositioning and moving/blocking the paths of some sorts helps. (This is
also usually necessary in the very first fight, where I tend to begin by
repositioning the party quickly.)
The mod is probably complete as-can-be and may not receive any larger changes,
due to also being e. g. used in Icewind Dale, but a few smaller ideas may be
to e. g. think about extending the palace area a little bit (for instance some
damaged towers could have a smaller cellar part or something) or a larger
kitchen/diner area (there is a kitchen, and a diner area, though disparate,
but perhaps a second one for the manservants / butlers could be added); and
perhaps for the last fight one or two new unique opponents (like, a fallen
druid, or something of that kind; or some gnome mage who tried to become a
necromancer but tragically perished). I am not necessarily saying to make
the end fight more challenging, so these one or two new unique opponents
may join the fight after, say, 3 rounds or so, coming from a small nearby
chamber (may have to extend this a bit; also, does the king have a bed?
I forgot to check, may need a proper royal bed).
Lorewise perhaps an extension to the Luremaster could be considered - for
instance if there would be a small cemetary and one grave is in particular
of importance to the Luremaster based on the background. Or a post-fight
request, not unlike the one in regards to the Sphere in Amn. Anyway, these
are just a few semi-random ideas here and there; content-wise I think the
mod is complete as it is, so extending it may not be worth the time
investment. But even small changes may still be interesting for players
who already played it over a hundred times.
Github link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-TotLM-BG2EE
3) The third one is GolemConstruction.
Now, that one is unique in many ways and I think we'll be able to find
quite some players who think this is the best mod from the list here.
I believe one argument to be made here in that regard is that the ability
to build different golems, is pretty cool in general. Quite unique; and
in-game logical in the sense that you face some golems already, so someone
had to build them, right?
You may chase for certain ingredients for those golems, and then build a
specific golem. They also look rather nice visually; the maggot-carrying
golem is hilarious. Imagine the smell as you go to purchase some items
and that maggot thing is creeping nearby, flies buzzing about.
The fleshy golems look a bit like a thin, oversized/tall human. Clay golems
are epic in their own right and the small clay golem looks kind of cool
and cute. (I suggested even tinier golems; would have been hilarious to
have like 10 HP golems that mostly just are there to annoy.)
Iron golems are pretty awesome visually; they may look the best from all
golems actually, although I don't know the rare ones. I don't remember if
there were changes to the graphics of the iron golems or whether there were
not; I used to think they looked different before, but I may be wrong.
Either way they are quite cool visually. They seem quite slow but sturdy.
I kind of prefer clay golems - being fast is so important in combat.
I haven't really managed to build truly larger or unique golems yet, so there
is still some unknown parts to be considered. Often I try to settle for clay
golems or flesh golems (the latter ones seem to be fairly easy to build so
I tend to go for them quickly rather than wait until I'd be able to have
clay golems).
Of course it does not stop there, as the mod also allows enemy spellcasters or
enemies to have (one) golem. This makes some fights more challenging, e. g. I
found that I tend to run around them in order to attack enemy spellcasters,
in particular in the early part of the game. Which can be a bit difficult when
there are many enemies. It's not a big deal in the non-early parts of the
game, but in particular the first few ambushes can be difficult since the
party may not have good equipment yet. It's still not too hard though, in
particular once the other enemies are dead.
Storywise there are also interjections in regards to some places where golems
can be built; naturally the big sphere, but also at the least two other places
(perhaps more). It's also quite fun to try to find all places with golem manuals
to learn from, kind of like a mini-subquest in its own here.
I think storyline-wise this is also the only small complaint I may have, or see
an area for improvement in this regard; and one reason why I like the djinni
companion mod more. Golem construction could probably benefit from some
quest-connection, even if it may be small-ish. Some arc that connects the pieces
together, a bit like how the djinni story unfolds.
This could be some mage who wanted to learn more, but somehow ended up being
corrupted by power in his quest (or, similar of some sorts; could have been killed
by a special golem, or perhaps by someone else who wanted that knowledge for him
or herself and killed that mage). Through some of the golem manuals one may also
find diaries or pieces or fragments of events happening, until perhaps the final
showdown to happen in some kind of tomb, or a similar place that could explain
why that unique golem may still be there; or why it may only be active in certain
situations, such as revenge or as a final guardian of the dead mage, until someone
revives the mage - or he makes a revival towards a lich (not so unique but hey);
and as lich he may also have access to more unique forms of golems, shadowy or
ghost-like golems or ice-golems, you name it. There could be a few unique golems
too, and perhaps also another golem type to learn when finishing the quest, a
bit similar to the maggot golem in unique appearance. For instance, rather than
golems, to be built by the leftovers of dead people or those large ghouls. Could
then also be slowish, look a bit like a ghoul + golem mix, and have paralysing
touch and perhaps larger fangs. Anything that may be more unique, a bit like
Lava in regards to the scary bee-morphs (I mean there are some larvae, right?
So they can grow; perhaps some can grow into some other monster-like type).
I am not entirely sure what would actually fit in regards to unique golems
here here; golems are kind of constructions, so even a golem-hybrid that slurped
up undead traits may not make a whole lot of sense - but perhaps some golem type
that requires living sacrifices on an altar every once in a while to power it up;
or something of that nature. That could explain why it is inactive for such a
long time - nobody sacrificed anyway. And surely the leader of the party would
not sacrifice anyone ... right?
A defiler mage who may draw energy from areas of some sorts, perhaps further
corrupting the druid's grove, could also be a possibillity - that is, draw
power from plants and so forth, to feed the unique golem. Of course other ideas
may be possible too. Even without a quest or storyline for a real connection,
the mod is still very unique - probably one of the most unique mods in total.
(I am actually not sure of how many other mods are similar to it, in regards
to offering something unique such as golem companions. Do we have other mods
that offer something unique? Perhaps some spell-mods or kit-mods with some
unique abilities.)
One smaller idea for possible improvements I have had, aside from unique golems
or a storyline, was to e. g. incremental builds for golems (e. g. build them
larger at a later time, that is incremental in nature; that could also cost
more compared to directly building the full golem type at once, as you may
probably lose some material due to regular wear-and-tear, especially on clay,
flesh and maggot golems, possibly less so for the hard materials, though if
you hit them with a sword, a bit wear-and-tear should be a natural consequence),
some more ingredients to be placed here or there or offered as a reward,
perhaps slightly better in-game documentation (for instance, in the Dusk NPC
mod it was quite easy to know what ingredients are required; in the golem
construction mod it confused me quite a bit more), but these are then just
smaller ideas. I think the djinni companion with the subquests / subadventures
will make players be more interested in actual continuation of the story (in
particular if they do not yet know that storyline), which is one big reason why
I think the golem construction mod could also benefit from having a larger
storyline connection, even if the stories may be much smaller in nature
(the djinni mod story is quite large, actually).
Github link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-GolemConstruction
4) The fourth mod is Wares of the Planes.
Now this is an item mod, so it does not fit well here, although it also has a
story of some sorts, part of which can be explained in a cut-scene (that, well,
explains it, or at the least part of it and a bit of background of the merchant).
Some things relate to the fact that the merchant is traveling, which is a good
idea, IMO. For instance, the merchant may leave an area, and go to a known
target area, but it takes a few days, so that is the waiting time before
the merchant will then show up in the next area.
The mod is unique in regards to the items it offers. Some items are great, some
are useful, some are "better not buy them". I especially love the rings as well
as the earrings. If I recall correctly there are also some non-combat related
items. I may misremember, but I think one sets free some kind of exotic creature;
if that was from the mod (could have been from another mod, it is hard to tell if
you don't read the full-item list of mods). I kind of liked the idea of offering
a pool of different items, some better, some worse, because there is some thought
given to non-combat too, even if the creature that comes from the item, may be
fairly useless. But we have similar "useless creatures", such as various chicken;
and a very pretty rooster. I forgot which mod it was, but one mod adds a unique
rooster thing. I seem to remember in ToB to have released various chicken and
that rooster as the boss of those chicken, in the hope of producing more chicken.
Kind of annoy Cespenar by overcrowding his place with numerous chicken. (I think
they spawn more chicken, but I may misremember. That's a miniquest in its own
right.)
Naturally there may be some things I forgot to mention in regards to the traveling
merchant mod here (and I don't think I tried every item either), but one reason why
I like the mod, as idea (even aside from the items, which are the core of the mod
really), is that I kind of want to have some similar mod eventually. Not an exact
copy, of course, but just carrying good ideas from the mod: useful/unique/interesting
items, though possibly not really overpowered ones per se (debatable what is overpowered
or not, but in doubt I think it is often better to go towards the slightly-less
powerful items, as otherwise everything ends up with mega-items, which takes a bit
away from challenges); a traveling merchant, which is a GREAT idea (probably I'd focus
on gnomes + a traveling caravan/wagon instead, so them traveling should also be part
of the mod), perhaps also smallish quests here and there (e. g. Lava's traveling
merchant from Southern Edge as idea for inspiration) and so forth.
So perhaps the only real suggestion to be had here, aside from adding more interesting
and unique ideas for items, would be to expand a bit on the traveling merchant, background,
perhaps he is a hunted person (e. g. see the cut scene; if rescued he may offer a slight
discount for a short duration or so). If we look at the first cut scene, and also keep in
mind that he carries quite many interesting items/weapons/armours, which bandits or thieves
may find appealing, then it may also beget the question "how did he obtain these things", was
someone angry at how these were obtained, is he ambushed during travel, and so forth. Or
he may have some invisible companion like a fairy dragon or an imp or what not, that may
help steal/accumulate items, and gets paid in whatever these creatures prefer (rainbow almond
cookies or whatever they may eat, chilly-honey coated pine apple for the imp, you name it.
I don't know the cuisine they prefer but they may want to exchange useless items for great
rewards to them, just like in Dorn's quest where there is a fairy dragon who wants something
too).
I think many players may test the mod out primarily because of the items offered. For some
items I could not decide whether they are good or bad to be had really, so I focused on those
items I understood better. (There is also an "identify all" component, e. g. where you don't
know what the item does before the purchase, which makes a lot of in-game sense, so this is
the more logical variant - but I kind of wanted to know what the items do, as I would tend to
reload if an item is not worth the investment; it may be interesting to have items that take
a while in "development", e. g. like a hatching egg, and only then one could decide whether
it is a useful item or not so useful. If memory serves me right, though, all earrings and
most rings seem quite nice, so they seemed to be worth the gold-investment usually.)
Github Link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-WaresOfThePlanes
5) TestYourMettle I have ranked on position #5. It is not a bad mod in any way as such,
mind you, but I really really suck at changing dungeons and that is one part of the mod.
The idea for the mod is great, though. I'd wish the whole mordron/machines idea would be
extended even more, like some subculture like gnomes, but machine in nature; Acifer has
one of them one of his quest, or at the least one that seems similar. So the idea is
quite unique or somewhat unique; you don't get to see many mods featuring these modrons
The fights are also pretty interesting in the mod and one enemy is particularly annoying
(e. g. group explosion effect, beware of Aerie exploding to angel dust). Finding the
proper ways in that dungeon was a bit difficult for me; the first target was quite easy
to be found in the end and the fight there was interesting. The second one I was unable
to find back then, and past that point I kind of gave up. (There have been changes since
then so perhaps others find it much easier now, but I get kind of discouraged when things
are too difficult, and dungeons in general can be difficult; that one just confuses me.
I tend to prefer fights in the open field. This usually allows for more variety too.)
Would there be ideas for extension of the mod? Well, the fighting part is probably one of
the core ideas of the mod, since the monsters are quite unique in this regard (and it can
be used as an XP farm, so this may be useful to some players), and one has to help the
machines ultimately (though an evil option to kill the machines would be fun, too). Even
if they speak in gibberish for the most part (even with the translation I found they
still speak in riddles) and only add to the confusion. So naturally ideas for improvements
there are somewhat obvious, e. g. improve the existing parts; but I think extending the
lore (or tapping more into the lore) about the machines would be better. Right now the mod
is primarily about helping the machines there, in the place where the unique item can be
found, as well as fighting, fighting and more fighting. Another idea could be that one
young modron joins as some kind of companion. Perhaps with some disadvantages, e. g. permadeath
if killed or something like that, and not too strong. Could be a bit more like a familiar
in strength or a bit stronger, but not as strong as e. g. the djinni or a golem. But
having the machines kind of more widespread would be great. Perhaps there are outposts
in other cities - a whole machine underground network! Digging to new areas. To infinity
and beyond!
Argent77 is already quite busy with mods, so I am not suggesting to tap away more time in
this regard as such, but in particular in regards to the machine lore, as well as their general
uniqueness and the game lore, perhaps someone else may feel to want to extend the
mordor/modron/machine idea/lore (as a subculture), and if that were to be done, there could be a
larger connection between different machine-communities or so. (Could even offer multiple cross-MUD quest-solutions, e. g. Acifer's modron could get a new home in the machine-home of Argent77's
mod, once the main quest there is resolved. Or some corrupted modrons be found as slave
and they can be rescued.)
Github Link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-TestYourMettle
Anyway, this concludes this mini-review. I am sure I have forgotten several things so
anyone with more knowledge is welcome to add.
in regards to other mods (and older reviews, even decade-old reviews), a continuation
of some sorts if you will here, but for someone else ... let's rate Argent77's mods.
\o/
Argent77 has a prolific github page here, as probably many know - but some younger
ones may not know yet:
https://github.com/Argent77
I should say that I do not know all of the mods there, mind you, so I subsequently
can not talk about all of them either - for instance, I can not say anything about
the Chaos Sorcerer Kit, Improved Archer Kit, NPC Generator and a few more. Those
with more knowledge about other mods not mentioned here should naturally feel free
to share their experience and impressions thereof.
Some mods are not quest-mods per se, such as Bags of Torment. Then there are mostly
convenience mods (Skip Chateau Irenicus specifically, for those who don't want to
re-play the initial dungeon run in BG2, as that can indeed be a bit cumbersome), as
well as visual/graphical mods/changes (BiffedAreasFix etc...), so I will primarily focus
on quest-content related mods, and/or mods that have a larger impact on the gameplay
overall, such as the golem construction mod. The golem construction mod is not a
quest-mod per se, but I will talk about it because I think it is a fairly interesting
mod, in many ways rather unique in its own right.
One exception to the "quest-centric mods" or "storyline-centric mods" I'll make is for
the Wares of the Planes mod (aside from the Golem Construction mod), because while the
Wares of the Planes mod is not a quest-mod per se either (it is basically a unique
merchant with some items), it kind of almost feels as if it could also be a quest mod
or quest-like mod, e. g. if the NPC would have some background story and more
interactions. But as it is it is an item mod of course, not a quest mod. (Note that
there may be one or two other item-mods by other developers with a unique merchant
as well; some merchant called Ruann or something like that. I recall that because
whenever I entered the map where he was, he seemed to mass-cast some spells -
apparently he was scared of being robbed.)
I'll also give some additional ideas here or there in regards to the mods I will
cover, but that's a secondary objective (and several of those ideas I have already
stated before, so I'll be rather brief about those already-made suggestions).
Thus, for the purpose of my own post here, I will focus only on the following
five (5) mods made or maintained by Argent77, in no particular order:
- WaresOfThePlanes
- TestYourMettle
- DjinniCompanion
- A7-TotLM-BG2EE
- GolemConstruction
I'll also link in to the specific github page after each mini-review, to simplify
reaching the individual mod content's homepage for those who may be interested
in trying these out.
So, without much further ado, past that introduction step, I'll somewhat
arbitrarily "rate" these mods, starting with my own personal favourite. That
is, first one to be mentioned, may be the most interesting mod.
I'll avoid too many obvious spoilers, but new players should possibly prefer to
give these mods a try on their own, forming their own conclusion before reading
past that point, if they don't want any spoilers at all. Or if they are ok with
a few semi-spoilers, then continuation past this point is fine. I'll use a
little line with some --- characters as separator next:
The rating of the mods is, of course, a subject matter of personal preferences.
All mods are quite solid, so this is simply preference. Naturally others may
have a totally different order, so the following is simply my order only.
1) The one I actually like the most, in regards to actually playing it (also
repeatedly playing it), is the djinni companion mod.
There are several reasons for this.
The most important reason, IMO, is that it feels like a whole storyline in its
own right actually, e. g. from "obtaining" the djinni, to then progress through
various substories (the kidnapping one specifically is my favourite substory
part, but there are other interactions, e. g. in ToB with another djinn or
the part in the Underdark, etc ...).
There is also a story-arc in regards to the Underground, as briefly mentioned.
That one is nice because the fights involving drow can be quite interesting
in general (you have the whole entourage, yes? Warrior, cleric, mages; I've
lost battles where I focused on the tanky warriors but neglected the mages
doing their mass-damage spells), although I may confuse this partly with another
mod in the Underground (but if I recall correctly, the djinni refers to something
that can be found there; one reason I may be confused is because there is also
Viconia's quest in regards to her daughter, which I think is another mod. Or
some overlapping content, I don't recall correctly. Basically it's all "kill
more drows" really).
Of course gameplay-wise the djinni is also rather strong/useful in his own right
and can be brought back to a physical form after some time, if he perished
before. He is fast and kind of agile so in many ways feels indeed like a complete
additional NPC. There are various means to influence some behaviour of the djinni
or make the djinni carry items, so there is usefulness to be had here. Sometimes
this has to be done due to a few odd situations where the djinni may behave
oddly (I have had that specifically with charm-effects of spells; there may be
something slightly buggy in regards to charm effects and resetting away from
hostility to normal, but this is most likely independent of the mod here, as
I have also noticed this in other parts of the game).
So in several ways, the djinni feels like a full NPC; the personality is kind of
what one may expect of a djinni (aka serving his master calmly).
Ideas for extensions could be a whole djinni city if Argent77 ever has way too
much time on his hand (e. g. similar to the areas by Acifer's Call of the Lost
Goddess, where one has extensive places such as the demon-centric area, the
staircase with the mighty squirrel hero and other unique beings or that heavenly
gate where I suspect planetars to be living; how would a city of djinni and
efreeti look like? Possibly some merchant/bazaar place, colourful clothes and
so forth ... now if only AI could be used to auto-generate a multitude of
different areas based on some combination of keywords and some level of
randomness), a female djinni companion (two in one bottle! Imagine you try to
call the male djinni but he is still hung over from the party last night, so
the female djinni has to appear instead) or, perhaps much simpler, an extension
to the kidnapping substoryline (e. g. bounty hunters get hired to ambush
lateron, with mixed classes and tactics, or even before the very first kidnapping;
or, an even stronger boss that realises his minions sent out, failed, so he
has to do it again. This could be like mentioned here at
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Rakshasa a unique maharajah, or if that
seems too over the top, a Rakshasa champion or ruhk or rajah champion, something
of that sort).
At any rate, this small mini-review concludes the first mod here.
Github link:
https://github.com/Argent77/DjinniCompanion
2) The second one to pick was actually Trials of the Luremaster.
The mod is, if I understood it, quite old - which is good in that it is probably
extremely well-tested overall.
The mod can be difficult and challenging, in particular on a first attempt; it
took me a little while to adjust to it. Past that point it wasn't that hard,
although a few fights are still more challenging than others.
Area-wise, the mod has one really great dungeon in regards to undead.
I am not the biggest fan of dungeons usually, but the dungeon with the undead
was really great; it is probably one of my all-time favourite dungeon for
undead at the least, and perhaps overall too.
Obviously there are more areas that can be explored; the palace/keep was visually
great. One effect I like in particular is the damaged bridge. That spot is nice
in the sense that it provides an in-game explanation of the toggle "can access
/ can not access" situation.
I much prefer this as a solution to e. g. mods that make it suddenly impossible
to leave an area, without any explanation as to why. (This is done in other mods
to disallow easy escape paths, but I never understood the in-game rationale in
those mods to suddenly make doors or staircases vanish, without even changing
the map itself - so you have an open door, but you can never leave, just like
in the song "Hotel California". So, the damaged bridge is a much more visually
elegant solution, in my opinion. There are actually several effects that are
similar to this, like a talking door/moth of some sorts and perhaps a few more)
There is a large array of different monster/enemies available here as well.
One that was quite unique in particular were the giant suit of armours. I think
that was also a fairly unique idea, at the least in BG2 (I don't know Icewind
Dale well, so perhaps it is not as unique there). Would be neat if that could
even be a spell or something, e. g. where a plate armour is carried by the
party and that can then be animated into a walking suit via some magic. Although
to be fair, those suits looked huge, so it would have to be a large plate armour
too. And probably also some more than merely a plate armour; I don't recall
offhand how they looked, but I think they had metal arms and legs too - I need
to watch them again more closely next time. Anyway, I found that idea quite
unique as well.
There are also a few riddles in there, although they are not that difficult, so
it is mostly a fight-through mod in the end.
I usually go through it either before venturing into the Underdark, or after
that (e. g. in Chapter 6). Both is possible but past Chapter 6 the mod seems
to be fairly easy even on insane difficulty, so for a more challenging variant
I tend to go through it before venturing into the Underdark. In that case a
few fights can be rather challenging; in particular the palace guards, since
they soak up a lot of damage usually while trying to surround the party. Also,
one cave with harpies can be very hard. Here I found that repositioning helps;
first time I managed to win here was by running to the top left area quickly
and doing some quick shot hits with the warriors; in subsequent runs I managed
to occupy the area next to the entrance on the bottom right - this could be
more difficult, in particular if you have low hp characters, but positioning
helps a lot, as always. Once a foothold is established I found that the
subsequent fights are often much easier. Being surrounded by enemies is often
by far the worst option, so being able to e. g. have them all come in from
one side, helps a lot. I also did this to the minotaurs; and area effects
also help a ton in such a case.
So repositioning and moving/blocking the paths of some sorts helps. (This is
also usually necessary in the very first fight, where I tend to begin by
repositioning the party quickly.)
The mod is probably complete as-can-be and may not receive any larger changes,
due to also being e. g. used in Icewind Dale, but a few smaller ideas may be
to e. g. think about extending the palace area a little bit (for instance some
damaged towers could have a smaller cellar part or something) or a larger
kitchen/diner area (there is a kitchen, and a diner area, though disparate,
but perhaps a second one for the manservants / butlers could be added); and
perhaps for the last fight one or two new unique opponents (like, a fallen
druid, or something of that kind; or some gnome mage who tried to become a
necromancer but tragically perished). I am not necessarily saying to make
the end fight more challenging, so these one or two new unique opponents
may join the fight after, say, 3 rounds or so, coming from a small nearby
chamber (may have to extend this a bit; also, does the king have a bed?
I forgot to check, may need a proper royal bed).
Lorewise perhaps an extension to the Luremaster could be considered - for
instance if there would be a small cemetary and one grave is in particular
of importance to the Luremaster based on the background. Or a post-fight
request, not unlike the one in regards to the Sphere in Amn. Anyway, these
are just a few semi-random ideas here and there; content-wise I think the
mod is complete as it is, so extending it may not be worth the time
investment. But even small changes may still be interesting for players
who already played it over a hundred times.
Github link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-TotLM-BG2EE
3) The third one is GolemConstruction.
Now, that one is unique in many ways and I think we'll be able to find
quite some players who think this is the best mod from the list here.
I believe one argument to be made here in that regard is that the ability
to build different golems, is pretty cool in general. Quite unique; and
in-game logical in the sense that you face some golems already, so someone
had to build them, right?
You may chase for certain ingredients for those golems, and then build a
specific golem. They also look rather nice visually; the maggot-carrying
golem is hilarious. Imagine the smell as you go to purchase some items
and that maggot thing is creeping nearby, flies buzzing about.
The fleshy golems look a bit like a thin, oversized/tall human. Clay golems
are epic in their own right and the small clay golem looks kind of cool
and cute. (I suggested even tinier golems; would have been hilarious to
have like 10 HP golems that mostly just are there to annoy.)
Iron golems are pretty awesome visually; they may look the best from all
golems actually, although I don't know the rare ones. I don't remember if
there were changes to the graphics of the iron golems or whether there were
not; I used to think they looked different before, but I may be wrong.
Either way they are quite cool visually. They seem quite slow but sturdy.
I kind of prefer clay golems - being fast is so important in combat.
I haven't really managed to build truly larger or unique golems yet, so there
is still some unknown parts to be considered. Often I try to settle for clay
golems or flesh golems (the latter ones seem to be fairly easy to build so
I tend to go for them quickly rather than wait until I'd be able to have
clay golems).
Of course it does not stop there, as the mod also allows enemy spellcasters or
enemies to have (one) golem. This makes some fights more challenging, e. g. I
found that I tend to run around them in order to attack enemy spellcasters,
in particular in the early part of the game. Which can be a bit difficult when
there are many enemies. It's not a big deal in the non-early parts of the
game, but in particular the first few ambushes can be difficult since the
party may not have good equipment yet. It's still not too hard though, in
particular once the other enemies are dead.
Storywise there are also interjections in regards to some places where golems
can be built; naturally the big sphere, but also at the least two other places
(perhaps more). It's also quite fun to try to find all places with golem manuals
to learn from, kind of like a mini-subquest in its own here.
I think storyline-wise this is also the only small complaint I may have, or see
an area for improvement in this regard; and one reason why I like the djinni
companion mod more. Golem construction could probably benefit from some
quest-connection, even if it may be small-ish. Some arc that connects the pieces
together, a bit like how the djinni story unfolds.
This could be some mage who wanted to learn more, but somehow ended up being
corrupted by power in his quest (or, similar of some sorts; could have been killed
by a special golem, or perhaps by someone else who wanted that knowledge for him
or herself and killed that mage). Through some of the golem manuals one may also
find diaries or pieces or fragments of events happening, until perhaps the final
showdown to happen in some kind of tomb, or a similar place that could explain
why that unique golem may still be there; or why it may only be active in certain
situations, such as revenge or as a final guardian of the dead mage, until someone
revives the mage - or he makes a revival towards a lich (not so unique but hey);
and as lich he may also have access to more unique forms of golems, shadowy or
ghost-like golems or ice-golems, you name it. There could be a few unique golems
too, and perhaps also another golem type to learn when finishing the quest, a
bit similar to the maggot golem in unique appearance. For instance, rather than
golems, to be built by the leftovers of dead people or those large ghouls. Could
then also be slowish, look a bit like a ghoul + golem mix, and have paralysing
touch and perhaps larger fangs. Anything that may be more unique, a bit like
Lava in regards to the scary bee-morphs (I mean there are some larvae, right?
So they can grow; perhaps some can grow into some other monster-like type).
I am not entirely sure what would actually fit in regards to unique golems
here here; golems are kind of constructions, so even a golem-hybrid that slurped
up undead traits may not make a whole lot of sense - but perhaps some golem type
that requires living sacrifices on an altar every once in a while to power it up;
or something of that nature. That could explain why it is inactive for such a
long time - nobody sacrificed anyway. And surely the leader of the party would
not sacrifice anyone ... right?
A defiler mage who may draw energy from areas of some sorts, perhaps further
corrupting the druid's grove, could also be a possibillity - that is, draw
power from plants and so forth, to feed the unique golem. Of course other ideas
may be possible too. Even without a quest or storyline for a real connection,
the mod is still very unique - probably one of the most unique mods in total.
(I am actually not sure of how many other mods are similar to it, in regards
to offering something unique such as golem companions. Do we have other mods
that offer something unique? Perhaps some spell-mods or kit-mods with some
unique abilities.)
One smaller idea for possible improvements I have had, aside from unique golems
or a storyline, was to e. g. incremental builds for golems (e. g. build them
larger at a later time, that is incremental in nature; that could also cost
more compared to directly building the full golem type at once, as you may
probably lose some material due to regular wear-and-tear, especially on clay,
flesh and maggot golems, possibly less so for the hard materials, though if
you hit them with a sword, a bit wear-and-tear should be a natural consequence),
some more ingredients to be placed here or there or offered as a reward,
perhaps slightly better in-game documentation (for instance, in the Dusk NPC
mod it was quite easy to know what ingredients are required; in the golem
construction mod it confused me quite a bit more), but these are then just
smaller ideas. I think the djinni companion with the subquests / subadventures
will make players be more interested in actual continuation of the story (in
particular if they do not yet know that storyline), which is one big reason why
I think the golem construction mod could also benefit from having a larger
storyline connection, even if the stories may be much smaller in nature
(the djinni mod story is quite large, actually).
Github link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-GolemConstruction
4) The fourth mod is Wares of the Planes.
Now this is an item mod, so it does not fit well here, although it also has a
story of some sorts, part of which can be explained in a cut-scene (that, well,
explains it, or at the least part of it and a bit of background of the merchant).
Some things relate to the fact that the merchant is traveling, which is a good
idea, IMO. For instance, the merchant may leave an area, and go to a known
target area, but it takes a few days, so that is the waiting time before
the merchant will then show up in the next area.
The mod is unique in regards to the items it offers. Some items are great, some
are useful, some are "better not buy them". I especially love the rings as well
as the earrings. If I recall correctly there are also some non-combat related
items. I may misremember, but I think one sets free some kind of exotic creature;
if that was from the mod (could have been from another mod, it is hard to tell if
you don't read the full-item list of mods). I kind of liked the idea of offering
a pool of different items, some better, some worse, because there is some thought
given to non-combat too, even if the creature that comes from the item, may be
fairly useless. But we have similar "useless creatures", such as various chicken;
and a very pretty rooster. I forgot which mod it was, but one mod adds a unique
rooster thing. I seem to remember in ToB to have released various chicken and
that rooster as the boss of those chicken, in the hope of producing more chicken.
Kind of annoy Cespenar by overcrowding his place with numerous chicken. (I think
they spawn more chicken, but I may misremember. That's a miniquest in its own
right.)
Naturally there may be some things I forgot to mention in regards to the traveling
merchant mod here (and I don't think I tried every item either), but one reason why
I like the mod, as idea (even aside from the items, which are the core of the mod
really), is that I kind of want to have some similar mod eventually. Not an exact
copy, of course, but just carrying good ideas from the mod: useful/unique/interesting
items, though possibly not really overpowered ones per se (debatable what is overpowered
or not, but in doubt I think it is often better to go towards the slightly-less
powerful items, as otherwise everything ends up with mega-items, which takes a bit
away from challenges); a traveling merchant, which is a GREAT idea (probably I'd focus
on gnomes + a traveling caravan/wagon instead, so them traveling should also be part
of the mod), perhaps also smallish quests here and there (e. g. Lava's traveling
merchant from Southern Edge as idea for inspiration) and so forth.
So perhaps the only real suggestion to be had here, aside from adding more interesting
and unique ideas for items, would be to expand a bit on the traveling merchant, background,
perhaps he is a hunted person (e. g. see the cut scene; if rescued he may offer a slight
discount for a short duration or so). If we look at the first cut scene, and also keep in
mind that he carries quite many interesting items/weapons/armours, which bandits or thieves
may find appealing, then it may also beget the question "how did he obtain these things", was
someone angry at how these were obtained, is he ambushed during travel, and so forth. Or
he may have some invisible companion like a fairy dragon or an imp or what not, that may
help steal/accumulate items, and gets paid in whatever these creatures prefer (rainbow almond
cookies or whatever they may eat, chilly-honey coated pine apple for the imp, you name it.
I don't know the cuisine they prefer but they may want to exchange useless items for great
rewards to them, just like in Dorn's quest where there is a fairy dragon who wants something
too).
I think many players may test the mod out primarily because of the items offered. For some
items I could not decide whether they are good or bad to be had really, so I focused on those
items I understood better. (There is also an "identify all" component, e. g. where you don't
know what the item does before the purchase, which makes a lot of in-game sense, so this is
the more logical variant - but I kind of wanted to know what the items do, as I would tend to
reload if an item is not worth the investment; it may be interesting to have items that take
a while in "development", e. g. like a hatching egg, and only then one could decide whether
it is a useful item or not so useful. If memory serves me right, though, all earrings and
most rings seem quite nice, so they seemed to be worth the gold-investment usually.)
Github Link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-WaresOfThePlanes
5) TestYourMettle I have ranked on position #5. It is not a bad mod in any way as such,
mind you, but I really really suck at changing dungeons and that is one part of the mod.
The idea for the mod is great, though. I'd wish the whole mordron/machines idea would be
extended even more, like some subculture like gnomes, but machine in nature; Acifer has
one of them one of his quest, or at the least one that seems similar. So the idea is
quite unique or somewhat unique; you don't get to see many mods featuring these modrons
The fights are also pretty interesting in the mod and one enemy is particularly annoying
(e. g. group explosion effect, beware of Aerie exploding to angel dust). Finding the
proper ways in that dungeon was a bit difficult for me; the first target was quite easy
to be found in the end and the fight there was interesting. The second one I was unable
to find back then, and past that point I kind of gave up. (There have been changes since
then so perhaps others find it much easier now, but I get kind of discouraged when things
are too difficult, and dungeons in general can be difficult; that one just confuses me.
I tend to prefer fights in the open field. This usually allows for more variety too.)
Would there be ideas for extension of the mod? Well, the fighting part is probably one of
the core ideas of the mod, since the monsters are quite unique in this regard (and it can
be used as an XP farm, so this may be useful to some players), and one has to help the
machines ultimately (though an evil option to kill the machines would be fun, too). Even
if they speak in gibberish for the most part (even with the translation I found they
still speak in riddles) and only add to the confusion. So naturally ideas for improvements
there are somewhat obvious, e. g. improve the existing parts; but I think extending the
lore (or tapping more into the lore) about the machines would be better. Right now the mod
is primarily about helping the machines there, in the place where the unique item can be
found, as well as fighting, fighting and more fighting. Another idea could be that one
young modron joins as some kind of companion. Perhaps with some disadvantages, e. g. permadeath
if killed or something like that, and not too strong. Could be a bit more like a familiar
in strength or a bit stronger, but not as strong as e. g. the djinni or a golem. But
having the machines kind of more widespread would be great. Perhaps there are outposts
in other cities - a whole machine underground network! Digging to new areas. To infinity
and beyond!
Argent77 is already quite busy with mods, so I am not suggesting to tap away more time in
this regard as such, but in particular in regards to the machine lore, as well as their general
uniqueness and the game lore, perhaps someone else may feel to want to extend the
mordor/modron/machine idea/lore (as a subculture), and if that were to be done, there could be a
larger connection between different machine-communities or so. (Could even offer multiple cross-MUD quest-solutions, e. g. Acifer's modron could get a new home in the machine-home of Argent77's
mod, once the main quest there is resolved. Or some corrupted modrons be found as slave
and they can be rescued.)
Github Link:
https://github.com/Argent77/A7-TestYourMettle
Anyway, this concludes this mini-review. I am sure I have forgotten several things so
anyone with more knowledge is welcome to add.
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