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[MOD] Improved Shamanic Dance

argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
edited August 2021 in General Modding

Download: Improved Shamanic Dance (latest)


About

A mod for BG:EE, BG:SoD, BG2:EE, EET and IWD:EE.

One of the more prominent features of the Shaman class is the Shamanic Dance. It allows the Shaman to call forth an endless supply of spirits to fight for their cause. However, in the original version the shaman is practically disabled while the dance is performed. This mod makes an attempt to improve this ability by allowing the Shaman to move at reduced speed while performing the dance.

The dance can be further improved by a number of optional components. More details can be found in the "Components" chapter below.

Available languages: English, French, German, Italian, Polish and Russian

Components

1. Improved Shamanic Dance (main component)

This component allows Shamans to move at reduced speed while performing the dance to give them more tactical options against opponents. To counteract this improvement somewhat, spirits won't listen to any shamans anymore but their own master.

It will also make the Shamanic Dance somewhat more robust. Cutscenes or save & reload operations won't automatically dismiss all the spirits, provided you reactivate the dance quickly enough.

2. Expanded Shamanic Dance for high level characters (requires main component)

This component expands the Shamanic Dance by unlocking another tier of spirits at level 24 and enabling the spirits to protect the Shaman from normal weapons and low level spell effects while the dance is performed.

3. Add spell "Shamanic Pact" (independent component)

This component adds the new level 6 spell "Shamanic Pact" to the Shaman's spellbook. It allows the Shaman to resurrect a target as a spirit after its death and control it for a limited amount of time.

4. Apply Shamanic Dance improvements to Shaman kits (requires main component)

This component attempts to modify the Shamanic Dance of available Shaman kits to behave like the dance of the main class. It should be installed after all mods that are providing Shaman kits.

Since Shamanic Dance can be implemented in many different ways, it is not guaranteed that this component will always be successful.

The following Shaman kits are confirmed to be compatible:
- Witchlight Shaman (Will of the Wisps, by Lava Del'Vortel)
- Spiritwalker Shaman (by Ulb)
- Dreadful Witch (I hate Undead, by Raduziel)

More Shaman kits may be added to the list in future releases.

5. Shaman-specific items (independent component, requires BG2:EE, EET or IWD:EE)

This component scatters several Shaman-specific items all over the region. The list includes items that were originally created for the "Siege of Dragonspear" expansion as well as several new items.

Available items for BG2:EE and EET:
- The Soulherder's Staff +2 (imported from SoD)
- Shroud of Souls (new item)
- Spirit Guide +4 (new item)

Available items for IWD:EE:
- The Soulherder's Staff +2 (imported from SoD)
- Circlet of Lost Souls (imported from SoD)
- Heart of the Mountain (imported from SoD)
- Shroud of Souls (new item)
- Spirit Guide +4 (new item)

Updated Shaman class description:
SHAMAN: Shamans forge a divine connection with the natural world, similar to the way Druids commune with nature, but Shamans are more spiritual than primal. They directly tap into the energies that flow through the earth and air, through plants and animals, and even through the dead, and shape these energies to obey their will. Nowhere is this more evident than in their ability to summon powerful spirits as guardians and defenders. A being of two worlds, Shamans value balance over dominance.

CLASS FEATURES:
  • May only wear leather, studded leather, and hide armor.
  • May not equip shields larger than bucklers.
  • May only use the following weapons: dagger, club, spear, axe, quarterstaff, dart, sling, and shortbow.
  • May only become Proficient (one slot) in any weapon class.
  • May only become Proficient (one slot) in any fighting style.
  • May cast druidic spells.
  • Does not automatically learn all spells of a given level as Druids do. Instead, Shamans select new spells to learn at each level, which they can cast daily without memorization.
  • Gains immediate access to a number of Shaman-specific spells, which can be cast like any other: Spirit Ward, Writhing Fog, Spiritual Clarity, Spirit Fire, Recall Spirit, Shamanic Pact, Spiritual Lock, and Ether Gate.
  • Gains use of the Detect Illusion skill with 20% points as a base and an 4 points per level, up to a maximum of 100% at level 20.
  • May use Shamanic Dance at will.
SHAMANIC DANCE: Shamans can summon spirit allies by performing a ritualistic dance. While dancing, the Shaman takes a -4 penalty to Armor Class, moves at reduced speed and cannot attack, cast spells, use items and special abilities, or perform any other activity. Each round while the Shaman dances, there is a 35% base chance plus 2% for each level of the Shaman that a spirit will answer the call, up to a maximum of 95% at level 30. Any summoned spirits will disappear if the Shaman stops dancing. The spirits grow in power as the Shaman gains additional levels:
  • Level 1: Minor animal spirits (snake, fox, hound), up to 2 spirits at the same time.
  • Level 6: Major animal spirits (bear, panther, boar), up to 3 spirits at the same time.
  • Level 12: Minor nature spirits (lesser air spirit, lesser earth spirit, lesser fire spirit), up to 4 spirits at the same time.
  • Level 18: Major nature spirits (air spirit, earth spirit, fire spirit), up to 5 spirits at the same time.
  • Level 24: Grand nature spirits (greater air spirit, greater earth spirit, greater fire spirit), up to 6 spirits at the same time.
The type of the summoned spirit is randomly determined from all the spirits available at the Shaman's level. For example, a level 12 Shaman will summon either a minor nature spirit, a major animal spirit, or a minor animal spirit, but cannot choose which one appears. Spirits will do their best to protect the Shaman but are not controlled directly.
The Shaman will also be protected by spirits at level 24 and higher. The spirits grant the Shaman immunity to normal weapons and protection against all 1st- and 2nd-level spell effects (which includes adverse as well as beneficial spells).
  • Does not gain bonus spells per day from high Wisdom.
  • Alignment restricted to neutral good, true neutral, and neutral evil.
  • May not dual-class or multi-class.
  • Ineligible for any stronghold. (This affects only the Shadows of Amn campaign in Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition.)
  • Hit Die: d8

Spell description for "Shamanic Pact":
Shamanic Pact
(Conjuration)

Level: 6
Sphere: Summoning
Range: 30 ft.
Duration: 2 rounds/level
Casting Time: 5
Area of Effect: 1 creature
Saving Throw: Neg.

This spell allows the caster to negotiate a contract with the target. If the target fails a Save vs. Spell (with a -4 penalty for matching moral alignments, -2 otherwise) it will be resurrected as a spirit version of its former self after death, as long as the body is not destroyed completely. The spirit can be controlled by the Shaman for two rounds per caster level. Afterwards it will permanently leave the world of the living. The negotiation process is very draining for the caster as it requires a direct connection with the spirit of the target. As a result there will be a 50 percent chance that spells cast in the next three rounds will fail, and strength as well as constitution will be halved for one turn, regardless of the outcome of the negotiation.

Spirits can't talk and won't be able to use any spells or special abilities from their former life. However, they will preserve their basic traits, such as primary stats or resistances. Spirits will attack with fists only. Attack power, accuracy and enchantment depend on the creature level. Undead, golems, summoned creatures as well as targets protected by Death Ward are not affected by the spell. The target's Magic Resistance, if any, does not affect this spell.

Except for the subcomponent "Add spell 'Shamanic Pact'" it is not required to start a new game for the mod to take effect.

Have fun! :)
Post edited by argent77 on
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Comments

  • CalemyrCalemyr Member Posts: 238
    edited May 2016
    Quick question, what do you mean by "To counteract this improvement somewhat, spirits won't listen to any shamans anymore but their own master."? How do they obey any master?
  • bob_vengbob_veng Member Posts: 2,308
    wow! didn't know that

    that's synergy right there, precious precious synergy. so cooool, why would you disable that? :p:)
  • AedanAedan Member, Translator (NDA) Posts: 8,550
    edited May 2016
    Nice!
    Attached the Italian translation :)
    Post edited by Aedan on
    Mr2150
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    Thanks @Aedan ! I've updated the download link in the first post.
    Aedan
  • AedanAedan Member, Translator (NDA) Posts: 8,550
    Great! Thanks a lot!
  • GrammarsaladGrammarsalad Member Posts: 2,582
    edited May 2016
    All of these great little modifications that can just get...lost. Any chance this could get added to tweaks anthology?
    Aedan
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    Good idea. I let CamDawg know.
    AedanGrammarsalad
  • rapsam2003rapsam2003 Member Posts: 1,636
    edited May 2016
    bob_veng said:

    twhy would you disable that? :p:)

    Because balance is key.

    OT: This is an excellent mod, I thinl.
    Mr2150
  • CahirCahir Member, Moderator, Translator (NDA) Posts: 2,819
    @argent77 @Aedan here's Polish translation. For some reason I can't code setup.tra as UTF-8 (without BOM) - don't know if it's needed anyway. Strangely, I didn't have any problems coding mod.tra, though.
    Aedan
  • AedanAedan Member, Translator (NDA) Posts: 8,550
    edited May 2016
    I noticed a very small typo in my translation and I fixed it - @argent77, when you update the mod, can you please use the attached file for the Italian translation?

    @Cahir
    That is strange - I downloaded your translation and both files look correctly coded as UTF-8 (without BOM).
  • CahirCahir Member, Moderator, Translator (NDA) Posts: 2,819
    @Aedan it must have been a glitch in Notepad++, then. It appears it changed coding correctly, but still displays it as ANSI.
  • brusbrus Member Posts: 944
    edited May 2016
    argent77 said:


    This mod improves one of the more prominent features of the shaman class - the Shamanic Dance. It allows the shaman to call forth an endless supply of spirits to fight on his or her side. However, the drawbacks of the original version are severe. You can't move, attack, cast spells, use items or do anything else that may break the dance.

    Could you add optional tweak to play it without the drawbacks ?
  • The user and all related content has been deleted.
  • brusbrus Member Posts: 944
    edited May 2016

    Um, that's exactly what this does.

    Additional to cast spells and use items.
  • AedanAedan Member, Translator (NDA) Posts: 8,550
    That would too much IMHO.
    Grammarsalad
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    @Cahir @Aedan Thanks! Setup.tra uses ANSI encoding since it only contains lines for the installation procedure.

    @brus The current drawback should be of no real consequence since this mod allows shamans to move without stopping their dance. I don't think enabling spellcasting or using items makes sense since it would force the shaman to stop performing their dance (both from a practical and technical standpoint).

    Release v1.2 is ready. I have updated the download link in the first post.
    Aedanbrusmf2112
  • AedanAedan Member, Translator (NDA) Posts: 8,550
    Thanks for the update, argent!
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    I have downgraded the WeiDU installer in v1.2.1 of the mod to prevent compatibility issues with older mods in SoD installations. Download link in the first post has been updated.
  • FlashburnFlashburn Member Posts: 1,847
    edited May 2016
    argent77 said:

    I have downgraded the WeiDU installer in v1.2.1 of the mod to prevent compatibility issues with older mods in SoD installations. Download link in the first post has been updated.

    I tried using this one, but it said that it requires an Enhanced Edition game even though I'm trying to install it on SoD. It worked on BG2EE though, which is weird. Maybe I got this version and the previous version mixed up...
    Post edited by Flashburn on
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    @Flashburn It's caused by the auto-update mechanism of WeiDU installers which attempts to use the latest version found in the installation folder for installing mods. The latest WeiDU beta made incompatible changes to how games are identified which causes older mods to skip installation if SoD is detected. I didn't expect beta versions to be considered in the update process, but they apparently are. That's why I downgraded to the latest stable version.

    To solve the issue on your system, replace all installers (i.e. all setup-xxx.exe files) in your game folder by the setup file found in v1.2.1 of this mod (or use the WeiDU executable directly from the source). Don't miss a single installer or auto-update will replace everything again with the latest beta.
    Flashburn
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    Mod has been moved to GitHub. I plan to add more improvements in the future.
    bruslolien
  • LamaPatateLamaPatate Member Posts: 10
    Hi, I like your mod, I will include it in my megamod configuration.
    I love the Shaman, but I always found the Shamanic Dance useless, until now!
    I also really hope for this mod to fix a bug I have with the Shaman, the kit plus its description are replaced by a "placeholder" text with ETT in the first Baldur's Gate campaign only, it bothers me so much, I pray for this mod to solve the problem.

    And since I'm trying to translate all non French mod I use to have something pretty much English free, I translated your mod in French.
    Actually, I just pasted the original Shaman text in French, apply your changes in the sentences and corrected several orthography mistakes in it.
    argent77lolien
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    Thank you! It will be added in the next release.
    lolienLamaPatate
  • LamaPatateLamaPatate Member Posts: 10
    Hi, I could finally test your mod, it works with EET, but I have a little bug (I think it's one), I saw no one saying it, but when my Shaman does the Shamanic Dance, he moves slowly as intended but doesn't travel the whole path he is supposed to.
    I mean, if I ask him to move 10 feet away, he will only walk like 2 feet instead of the 10th intended, and this only happen with the Shamanic Dance enabled, he walks fine when in a normal state.
    Don't know if it's a known bug or if you wanted it, still it looks very awkward in my opinion, if you don't know what I mean, I could try to record it to show you.
    Sorry to bother you with such vain thing, I mean, it's barely annoying, I can live with it, but as I wanted to report this in case it wasn't already.

    Except for that, the translation works, and I thank you a lot, it makes Shamanic Dance really useful now because my Shaman doesn't always die because of him being attacked and unable to move without the spirit to disappear.
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    I could reproduce the same effect after some testing. It happens when you have AI enabled and assigned the "Advanced AI" script to a shaman. You should either change the script or disable AI completely.
    LamaPatatelolien
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    New version: Improved Shamanic Dance v2.0

    Changes:
    • Added new component "Expanded Shamanic Dance for high level characters" (see description in first post)
    • Added French translation (thanks LamaPatate)
    • Provided French translation for original game content (thanks Gwendolyne)
    • Adapted 'Advanced AI' script to changed dance behavior
    Download link and description in first post have been updated.
    semiticgoddessAedanThrasymachuslolien
  • argent77argent77 Member Posts: 3,431
    I'm thinking about adding a new spell to the shaman - as a separate component:
    Bind Spirit
    (Necromancy)

    Level: 5 (or 6?)
    Range: 30 ft.
    Duration: 1 round/2 levels
    Casting Time: 5
    Area of Effect: 1 creature
    Saving Throw: Neg.

    The spell establishes a link between the shaman and the target if it fails a Save vs. Death (with -1, -2 and -3 penalties starting at levels 15, 19 and 23). If the target is killed while the link is active and the body is not destroyed completely, it will be resurrected as a spirit version of its former self. The returned spirit will be fully under control of the shaman for one hour.

    Spirits can't talk and won't be able to use any spells or special abilities from their former life. Spirits will attack with fists only. Attack power, accuracy and enchantment depend on the creature level. Undead, golems and summoned creatures are not affected by the spell. The target's Magic Resistance, if any, does not affect this spell.
    The technical aspects have been mostly solved by now (except for some minor quirks). The spell scales up to level 23 (which includes duration, save penalties and the spirit's attack power).

    What do you think about it? Does it conflict with the shamanic ethos (since it forces the spirit to remain a bit longer in the world of the living)? Or do you see room for improvement?
    LavaDelVortelGrammarsalad
  • LavaDelVortelLavaDelVortel Member Posts: 2,680
    @argent77 - I actually really like the idea. I think it's not entirely breaking shamanic ethos... perhaps it's just a matter of namind the spell slightly differently? Like "Shamanic Pact" and in description add that for this "favour" shaman leads the dead to their final, neverending rest? :)

    I was also wondering - do you know what happens if both this mod and my Will-o-wisp mod is installed? Does the mod modify mechanic and also new shamans with their different dances will be able to move, or does it modify only the main dance used by pure-class shamans?
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