Tresset's Choice Tweaks
Tresset
Member, Moderator Posts: 8,264
Tresset's Choice Tweaks
Tweaks and Fixes for BG that I make for myself, but share with everyone!
Since I started playing the Enhanced Editions of BG, I have always had a few odds and ends in my override folder that I made myself. Most of these are pretty simple and their functions range from bug hotfixes I make while waiting for an official fix from the devs to minor tweaks that make the game much more enjoyable to me. I have now decided to share my tweaks with everyone just in case someone would be interested in them. Most of these tweaks will be in the format of simple override files but a few will be done using Weidu (Weidu and I don't get along very well so I usually try to avoid it). This thread will likely change occasionally and have new tweaks added to it every once in a while, because I often get new ideas and modify my old works as well. Feel free to ask any questions you may have and make sure to let me know if you have found an issue with my tweaks so that I can fix it. I also take requests, so if you have something you want tweaked or fixed then let me know by leaving a comment below and I will see what I can do.
BG1:EE/SoD Tweaks
Infinite Use Algernon's Cloak
In the original BG1, Algernon's Cloak had infinite uses. The devs decided to nerf it to one use/day for some reason. Not sure why... The Nymph Cloak still has a practically bottomless supply of charges (100 max) so why they didn't nerf that one too is beyond me. I simply restored the cloak to its infinite usability. This was the first tweak I ever applied to my EE game. I also added a projectile to the cloak so that I could fix my arch nemesis bug.
Actual Werewolf Claws, Not Modified Bear Paws BG1:EE
This is for the Shapeshifter Druid Kit. It gives both the Werewolf and the Greater Werewolf better natural weapons. In the original BG2 the Werewolf, Greater Werewolf, and Brown Bear forms all had the exact same weapon. I seriously doubt that this was truly meant to be, but the devs are rather insistent on leaving things as they were back then in this case. I, however, found an unused item file in BG2 (and in BG2:EE) that I am 90% sure was meant to be used by the Greater Werewolf and that is what I use for my version of this form. I felt I needed to make a new weapon for the ordinary Werewolf, however. Anyway, the ordinary Werewolf's weapon does 1d8 slashing damage and strikes as a +2 weapon. The Greater Werewolf's Weapon does 2d8 Slashing damage and strikes as a +3 weapon. This fix was designed for BG1:EE and will likely cause string issues in BG2:EE.
Kahrk's New Katana
This will give Kahrk, the self proclaimed "Mightiest of Ogre Magi", a Katana +2 to wield instead of his ordinary one. If you can kill him he will drop it so that you can use it. I mainly decided on doing this to make the Katana proficiency a more viable choice in BG1:EE, and I figured that Kahrk was nasty enough to be a worthy guard of such a valuable item.
Durlag's Infinite Skeleton Trap
This will make the false stairway trap which summons skeleton warriors when tripped reset after it has been triggered, allowing you to grind on skeleton warriors. This trap always used to reset itself in the original and even in earlier versions of the Enhanced Edition, but the devs have since decided to remove this feature.
Longer lasting Priest Kit Specials BG1:EE
I originally made this because I got sick of Priests of Lothander getting the short end of the stick with their special ability. Both Talos and Helm give their priests a special ability that lasts for 1 turn until the priest reaches either level 11 or 12 at which point the duration would increase by 1 round/level (Helm) or 2 rounds/2 levels (Talos). Boon of Lothander would only last strictly 1 round/level, unlike the other two it would not last at least a turn from, levels 1-10, so I increased its duration so that it was the same as Helm's Seeking sword, i.e. 1 turn + 1 round/level after level 10. Now that patch 2.5 is out, all three of these spells were changed to last only 1 round/level. I have updated this tweak so that they last for 1 turn + 1 round/level after level 10. @JuliusBorisov suggested that I increase the duration of Tyr's Divine Favor as well, so I increased it from 2 rounds to 5 rounds. I am not convinced that this is necessary since IMO this ability is much more potent than the others, especially at higher levels, but I aim to please. I may decide to further tweak the duration of Divine Favor later, but I don't think it should last more than 1 turn. I have not changed the priest of Tempus specials. I should note that the descriptions of these spells will show the wrong duration if you install this one. This tweak was designed for BG1:EE and will likely cause String Issues if used in BG2:EE
Staggered Probabilities Fix BG1:EE
This is a fix to a bug that has bothered me for a long time (since the original BG2 actually). This bug strikes specific spells and items when either "Round End" or "Spell Cast" autopauses are turned on. When it strikes, the specific spells and items do very strange things, such as duplicate some effects many times or skip some effects altogether. A few examples of this behavior include:
- Multiple elementals getting summoned by spells that should only ever summon one and similar issues with certain other summoning spells.
- Erratic behavior of the Bigby Hands, Otiluke's Resilient Sphere, Contagion, and others.
- Inconsistent effects (ex. successful saves reported, but the spell takes effect anyway) of Algernon's Cloak, Nymph Cloak, The Captive Audience, and the level 1 priest spell Command.
NRD Contingencies and Sequencers BG1:EE
Originally the contingency and sequencer spells could be cast using Nahal's Reckless Dweomer. These spells could could not result in a wild surge when cast this way because they posessed the "ignore wild surge" flag that prevented it. The only problem with this was that the very next spell cast after the contingency/sequencer would have a 100% chance of having a wild surge. The devs decided that this should not happen so they eddited the "ignore wild surge" flag to also prevent casting spells that have it with Nahal's Reckless Dweomer. I, however, did not mind this behavior so I decided to re-enable the casting of these spells with Nahal's Reckless Dweomer. The only way I could do this while still preventing the spells from surging (which would no doubt cause massive issues) was to switch the flag from "ignore wild surge" to "ignore wild/dead magic". This makes the spells, more or less, the same as they were before the devs' interference; the only difference being that the spells are now castable (with or without NRD) in dead magic zones (which is unfortunate). So you are on the honor system not to use them in dead magic areas! This tweak was designed for BG1:EE and may cause string issues if used in BG2:EE.
Korlasz has Bag of Holding
This will move the Bag of Holding from the Quartermaster's store to the chest in Korlasz's personal room inside her tomb. I did this because I want to be a pack rat with my party members' inventories, especially with the ones that don't come back. Makes it much easier to prepare for things. This may be my only SoD tweak for a while since I, uh, haven't finished my first playthrough yet...
Self Stacking Writhing Fog BG1:EE
For whatever reason, when the devs made the shaman class, they decided to give the unique level 2 spell of that class, Writhing Fog, a harsh limitation. This limitation is that multiple castings of the spell can not stack their effects with each other; i.e. if you throw two Writhing Fogs at the enemy then they will only be affected by one of them. This is the only persistent AoE spell in the game that has this limitation, to my knowledge. I believe that this is a bit too limiting compared to some of the other level 2 spells in the game. Web, for instance, is incredibly devastating for a level 2 spell and, with careful tactics and maybe some ranged attacks or free action, will kill far more than Writhing fog could dream to, and, by the way, it stacks with itself. This tweak will allow multiple Writhing Fogs to stack with each other, meaning there is finally a level 2 'druid' spell worth casting. This tweak was made for BG1:EE and will likely cause string issues if used in BG2:EE.
Fe Ag Hammer
That means "Iron Silver Hammer" for those of you who don't know chemistry (yes, I am a nerd). Anyway, This tweak was requested by @JuliusBorisov. He wanted me to add a weapon for solo clerics that could beat down Greater Wolfwere and Loup Garou since they had absolutely nothing in that category. It took me a while, but I eventually decided to go with a very special weapon that was perfectly usable by any cleric: Spiritual Hammer! While I was at it I fixed a minor cosmetic issue with the +1 version of the hammer by adding an on hit sound effect that the +2 and +3 version had.
Fixed Grease Sound for Less Sonic Damage Done to Player
Much like the official web sound effect change that the devs made in response to complaints of the offensive sound that spell made, this will change grease to use a less offensive sound as well. Come to think of it, I believe the exact same sound effect was to blame in both cases... In any case, I believe this is truly a fix and not a tweak because of the nomenclature used by some of the relevant files. The of the 3 files associated with grease, eff_m31a.wav, eff_m31b.wav, and eff_m31c.wav, only two were actually in use by the spell. The third, eff_m31c.wav was replaced by the somewhat loud and offensive cre_m01.wav file for some reason. Thanks to @Alonso for setting me on the quest to solve this problem!
Broken Doors and Area Transition Fixes BG1:EE
Description here.
BG2 Style Sandthief ring for BG1.
Descritpion here.
Waylaid by Enemies with Music Hotfix.
Description here.
Sensible Illithid Intelligence Drain for BG1:EE
Description here.
Disrupting Torch. (A new magical club for BG1!)
Description here.
Hotfix for BG1:EE Silence spell in v2.6
Description here.
Hotfix for Durlag's Teleport to Chessboard in v2.6
Description here.
BG2:EE Tweaks
Staggered Probabilities Fix BG2:EE
This is a fix to a bug that has bothered me for a long time (since the original BG2 actually). This bug strikes specific spells and items when either "Round End" or "Spell Cast" autopauses are turned on. When it strikes, the specific spells and items do very strange things, such as duplicate some effects many times or skip some effects altogether. A few examples of this behavior include:
- Multiple elementals getting summoned by spells that should only ever summon one and similar issues with certain other summoning spells.
- Erratic behavior of the Bigby Hands, Otiluke's Resilient Sphere, Contagion, and others.
- Inconsistent effects (ex. successful saves reported, but the spell takes effect anyway) of Algernon's Cloak, Nymph Cloak, The Captive Audience, and the level 1 priest spell Command.
- Rasaad's Cloak of Atonement not functioning (except to drain your constitution).
NRD Contingencies and Sequencers BG2:EE
Originally the contingency and sequencer spells could be cast using Nahal's Reckless Dweomer. These spells could could not result in a wild surge when cast this way because they posessed the "ignore wild surge" flag that prevented it. The only problem with this was that the very next spell cast after the contingency/sequencer would have a 100% chance of having a wild surge. The devs decided that this should not happen so they eddited the "ignore wild surge" flag to also prevent casting spells that have it with Nahal's Reckless Dweomer. I, however, did not mind this behavior so I decided to re-enable the casting of these spells with Nahal's Reckless Dweomer. The only way I could do this while still preventing the spells from surging (which would no doubt cause massive issues) was to switch the flag from "ignore wild surge" to "ignore wild/dead magic". This makes the spells, more or less, the same as they were before the devs' interference; the only difference being that the spells are now castable (with or without NRD) in dead magic zones (which is unfortunate). So you are on the honor system not to use them in dead magic areas! This tweak was designed for BG2:EE and may cause string issues if used in BG1:EE.
Increased Rate of Banter
Party banters are actually somewhat rare considering how many of them there are. Sometimes you can play through a whole game of SoA without even hearing all of the ones for your specific party. The problem is even worse in ToB, where it is near impossible to hear them all by the end unless you spend great deals of time just standing around fidgeting. This mod will increase the rate at which banters happen. With it, you will likely hear most or all of the SoA ones by around mid way through the campaign. In ToB you will likely hear most or all of them by around the last third of the campaign.
Cloaks of More Stars
This improves both the Cloak of the Stars and the Cowl of the Stars. Despite the usefulness of a +5 dart I never really wound up using the Cloak of the Stars because 6 was not enough darts for me. I have simply changed the Cloak of the Stars so that the darts do not vanish after a day; allowing them to be stockpiled. The Cowl of the Stars on the other hand was intended to create a number of Melf's Minute Meteors equal to the level of the wearer, but unfortunately, due to an engine peculiarity, it would only look for mage/sorcerer levels and anyone else who wore the cowl only got 5 meteors, regardless of their level. I decided to abandon the level dependency thing and make the cowl simply create 12 meteors every time.
Chaos Shields Stack with Hayes
This will change the two Chaos Shield spells and the Robe of Goodman Hayes so that their wild surge bonuses stack with each other. It also makes the robe usable by wild mages of any alignment. Though simple, this tweak seriously ups the power of wild mages by significantly reducing the risk of their surges and increasing the chance of success of their spells.
Self Stacking Writhing Fog BG2:EE
For whatever reason, when the devs made the shaman class, they decided to give the unique level 2 spell of that class, Writhing Fog, a harsh limitation. This limitation is that multiple castings of the spell can not stack their effects with each other; i.e. if you throw two Writhing Fogs at the enemy then they will only be affected by one of them. This is the only persistent AoE spell in the game that has this limitation, to my knowledge. I believe that this is a bit too limiting compared to some of the other level 2 spells in the game. Web, for instance, is incredibly devastating for a level 2 spell and, with careful tactics and maybe some ranged attacks or free action, will kill far more than Writhing fog could dream to, and, by the way, it stacks with itself. This tweak will allow multiple Writhing Fogs to stack with each other, meaning there is finally a level 2 'druid' spell worth casting. This tweak was made for BG2:EE and will likely cause string issues if used in BG1:EE.
Actual Werewolf Claws, Not Modified Bear Paws BG2:EE
This is for the Shapeshifter Druid Kit. It gives both the Werewolf and the Greater Werewolf better natural weapons. In the original BG2 the Werewolf, Greater Werewolf, and Brown Bear forms all had the exact same weapon. I seriously doubt that this was truly meant to be, but the devs are rather insistent on leaving things as they were back then in this case. I, however, found an unused item file in BG2 (and in BG2:EE) that I am 90% sure was meant to be used by the Greater Werewolf and that is what I use for my version of this form. I felt I needed to make a new weapon for the ordinary Werewolf, however. Anyway, the ordinary Werewolf's weapon does 1d8 slashing damage and strikes as a +2 weapon. The Greater Werewolf's Weapon does 2d8 Slashing damage and strikes as a +3 weapon. This fix was designed for BG2:EE and will likely cause string issues in BG1:EE.
Longer Lasting Priest Kit Specials BG2:EE
I originally made this because I got sick of Priests of Lothander getting the short end of the stick with their special ability. Both Talos and Helm give their priests a special ability that lasts for 1 turn until the priest reaches either level 11 or 12 at which point the duration would increase by 1 round/level (Helm) or 2 rounds/2 levels (Talos). Boon of Lothander would only last strictly 1 round/level, unlike the other two it would not last at least a turn from, levels 1-10, so I increased its duration so that it was the same as Helm's Seeking sword, i.e. 1 turn + 1 round/level after level 10. Now that patch 2.5 is out, all three of these spells were changed to last only 1 round/level. I have updated this tweak so that they last for 1 turn + 1 round/level after level 10. @JuliusBorisov suggested that I increase the duration of Tyr's Divine Favor as well, so I increased it from 2 rounds to 5 rounds. I am not convinced that this is necessary since IMO this ability is much more potent than the others, especially at higher levels, but I aim to please. I may decide to further tweak the duration of Divine Favor later, but I don't think it should last more than 1 turn. I have not changed the priest of Tempus specials. I should note that the descriptions of these spells will show the wrong duration if you install this one. This tweak was designed for BG2:EE and will likely cause String Issues if used in BG1:EE
Drow Illusion Makes Wilson a Spider
Description here.
Deathbringer Assault Fix
Description here.
Prevent Melissan From Turning Undead Party Members
Description here.
Galeforce of Faenya-Dail (A new magical longbow with infinite ammo for BG2!)
Description Here.
Sensible Illithid Intelligence Drain for BG2:EE
Description here.
Improved Rods of Lordly Might and Terror
Description here.
General Tweaks (Works in both games)
Original BG1 Casting Sound Effects
Taken directly from the data files, this will make games use casting sound effects from vBG1. IMHO these sounds are much more awesome. The only issue I have noticed is some minor crackling sounds in a few of the male priest chants. There is nothing that can be done about that though, and it is not... too bad I don't think. I must admit that, while I could have easily compiled this tweak myself, the idea and work for this was actually that of @Akuro.
Instant Trap Spells
This makes trap spells such as Skull Traps, Glyphs, and Symbols explode the instant something comes near them. I know I already uploaded this one in another thread somewhere, but I think I may keep most of my mods in this thread from now on. Anyway, This is a painfully easy fix considering how ridiculous the length of time is that some of these things take to explode. It is really a wonder that the devs have not implemented their own fix to this issue, especially considering how often I have seen people complain about it.
Shadow Armor for Rangers
This simply makes the Shadow Armor usable by rangers. Why not? They get stealth too! I mainly did this for the Stalker kit, but decided to let all rangers use it.
Limited Wish Rabbit Horde Fix
In the current version of the games one of the effects of the limited wish spell is nerfed in that it will only summon 5 rabbits instead of a whole horde of them. This will make the spell will once again summon a whole ton of rabbits.
Bigger Bard Songs
Description here.
Indoor Lightning
Description here.
Improved Luck Spell
Description here.
Rebalanced Poison Weapon ability
Description here.
Allow Stacking Potions
Description Here.
Post edited by Tresset on
60
Comments
I, uh, realized that some of my tweaks will exist in both games (like the shapeshifter werewolf weapons and ranger shadow armor) but I cannot simply put those fixes in the general tweaks category. These types of things, though they do the same thing, need to be specific to either BG1:EE or BG2:EE because the strings and descriptions would be messed up otherwise. Because of this, I will have to rename and re-upload some of my tweaks to prevent confusion.
I also changed the Avenger's spider form fix. The first one I uploaded would have had the problem of the extra movement speed being removed by free action effects. I recently discovered that there are actually two movement modifying opcodes and the second one ignores free action.
I should note that I don't even own IWD:EE (shame on me, I know) so my ability to mod that would be limited at best. If someone wants to convert this stuff to be IWD:EE compatible then that would be fine with me.
Also, It looks like my formatting is starting to get a bit messy up there. I think I may start putting the individual fixes in spoiler tags.
Note to self: Test things first; especially if you are unsure about them.
Edit: further testing with the Book of Infinite Spells reveals that my methods do not seem to actually fix it. I may have to take a closer look at my arch-nemesis to see if other things still refuse to work as well...
I am almost done uploading my current tweaks, but I will still have more to add afterwords since I am always finding stuff to mess with or stuff that needs fixing. If anyone has any requests for stuff they want me to try to tweak or fix then let me know and I will see what I can do.
What is the meaning of this? Screens or it didn't happen
Without my fix:
With my fix:
As far as dragons go, Adalon is pretty naïve all right, but this Ched Nasad albino crowd must have really stuck out like a sore thumb. Well done on squishing such an immersion-breaking bug!
Also be sure to let me know about any issues you may find so I can fix them. I tend to not test things overmuch and I can sometimes make simple mistakes that I don't catch for a while.
I'll try to keep you in the loop but IA's a big mod and have tons of changes, bug-fixes including. I try to mention the important stuff in the on-going progress report and bugfix threads.
This tweak will give bard songs a much larger area of effect. In version 2.0 the devs changed all of the bard songs so that they only affected those within a 30' radius of the singing bard, which is about the same area of effect as a fireball. In version 1.3 and earlier all of the songs (excluding the jester's) would automatically hit only the 6 party members no matter how far away they were or even if they were in a different area. While I do like how the bard song was changed to an area of effect, a 30' radius was a massive nerf to the songs that seriously changed the balance of the bard class. I decided to change the radius of the songs to 235', which is the same as the True Seeing spells. This is as large as I felt comfortable making the area of effect without switching it back to the old behavior. The main advantage of keeping the area of effect is that summoned creatures and non-party allies will now also be able to benefit from the song's effects. I also changed the jester's song to make it have a 60' radius. Thanks to @Troodon80 for helping a bit with the weidu coding!
EDIT: Updated for compatibility with IWD:EE and IWD songs. Should also work if these songs are added to BG1:EE or BG2:EE