chevalier
Fri, 8th Sep '06, 2:25pm
Here are today's Neverwinter Nights 2 forum highlights, collected by NWVault (http://nwvault.ign.com). Please take into account that these are only single parts of various threads and should not be taken out of context. Bear in mind also that the posts presented here are copied as-is, and that any bad spelling and grammar does not get corrected on our end.
<font size="3" face="Verdana, Arial" color="#cc6600">J.E. Sawyer, Lead Designer</font>
Dragon*Con: Saving the Best for Last (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495219&post=4296192&forum=95&highlight=)
The version we are showing at the booth is an older one, but the version we are showing at the presentations is only a few days old.
That basically means that the bugs in the old version have been replaced with bugs in the new version.
<font size="3" face="Verdana, Arial" color="#cc6600">Jeff Husges, Designer</font>
Tumble (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=492622&post=4261976&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />So? If Tumble were fixed so it didn't give a blanket +1 Dodge AC for every 5 ranks, most players wouldn't feel it's necessary to do so.<hr />Tumble is nerfed. It now gives +1 AC for every 10 ranks.
More:<hr />Quote: To the previous poster: can you provide a link to where you read Tumble gives +1 AC for every 10 ranks instead of 5? I've seen nothing to that effect on any thread I've read regarding Tumble in NWN2.<hr />Sorry. Missing ye olde Designer tag. http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_razz.gif
More:<hr />Btw, I was wondering, if the 10 rank thing applied to the saving throw bonus from spellcraft, as well.<hr />That's still +1 every 5 ranks.
Battle Sorcerer and Sorcerer Heritage Feats (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493053&post=4268522&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />1. Will I be able to play as a battle sorcerer from Unearthed Arcana)?
2. Will the sorcerer heritage feats (draconic, celestial, infernal) be available (from Complete Arcane and the Player's Handbook 2)?<hr />Only the default sorcerer from the PHB is included. If you were to edit classes.2da and other associated 2das, you could easily recreate the battle sorcerer, though.
No sorcerer heritage feats, sorry.
What algorithm do you use to calculate CR rating in NWN 2? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493268&post=4270596&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Chances are, they just copied the creature stats from the D&D Monster Manuals, or at least got as close to them as they could with the engine in place. With that in mind, figure out how Wizards of the Coast determines the CR, and you have your answer.<hr />Yep, that's what I did. http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif
[Question] Can Humanoid Creatures wear PC armor? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493217&post=4270618&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Can Humanoids, such as orcs, wear player character armor including helmets? In the original NWN they can wear it, but they are not visible and don't changed their appearance, though the properties apply.
thanks<hr />While humanoids can wear and get bonuses from PC armor, it doesn't show up on their models. However, humanoid armor appearances are customizable in the toolset, with unique armor attachments. For example, a lizardfolk chieftain can be made to display a metal breastplate with large turtle shells worn as bracers and shoulder armor.
Warlock ability Observations/critque.... (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=492549&post=4262246&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Any chance of a Dev saying specifically what it is that the Warlocks transform into?<hr />Horned devil, aka cornugon.
More:<hr />How are you certain though, is the Cornugon also known as the "Horned Devil"? Aren't there other horned devils?<hr />If there are, I'm unaware of them. The horned devil in NWN2 is specifically from the MM, which is listed Horned Devil (Cornugon).
More:<hr />Seeing as how the description for The Dead Walk invocation doesn't mention any sort of "you can only control 4HD of undead per caster level", nor did it reference the spell Animate Undead, does this mean that a Warlock can constantly travel around with an army of Undead minions?<hr />One minion at a time.
Might and Magic (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=491028&post=4271018&forum=97&highlight=)
<hr />Quote: Drow are limited to 18th level in NWN2.<hr />Duergar, drow, svirfs, aasimars and tieflings are not capped to any level. They can reach level 20 just like any other race - it just takes them longer.
Questions about Mithral Equipment in NWN2 (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493644&post=4275506&forum=98&highlight=)
Yes, to both questions.
More:<hr />http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_confused.gif
I would assume that the arcane failure chance would work as it is supposed to - as that is the kind of thing we can add ourselves if necessary (it exists as an item property). The change to 'type' (from medium to light armor) I am skeptical of being in. Unless they did some MAJOR changes to how the game data works, this is the kind of change that just doesn't translate well to NWN.
If they were able to make it work - great. But I'm not holding my breath. (That being said - they MAY be able to fake it. Rather than taking a suit of Medium Armor, choosing an appearance that resembles Chainmail and making that suit out of Mithril and having it become light, you start with a suit of Light Armor, choose an appearance that resembles Chainmail and make that suit out of Mithril and name it Mithril Chainmail.
Carl<hr />For armor, "Mithral" is not a property that you apply to an armor, it's an actual base armor item set up in armorrulestats.2da.
More:<hr />Having never seen armorrulestats.2da, is this roughly comparable to armor.2da in NWN1 but (naturally) improved? Or is it a separate 2da with different information?
And if it is similar to armor.2da, can we infer from this that the way it works is that for each material/armor type combination, there is a unique line in armorrulestats.2da which defines the AC, Armor Check Penalty, Arcane Failure Chance, etc?
And if so - is AC now a property that is read from this line, rather than being a property of the torso model (as in NWN1)?
And how is the range or available appearances restricted (or is it restricted) based upon the armortype chosen? Does each torso connect to a particular armor type/ line - or can you have different lines in armorrulestats.2da referring to the same armor appearance (thus creating two identical suits of armor with different base types?)<hr />It appears that armorrulestats.2da is the "new" armor.2da, but with the added capability to specify the weight class of an armor (light, medium, or heavy). Other than that, it appears to work exactly the same as NWN1.
There are no appearance restrictions - you can classify an armor as full plate and make it look like leather. Armor appearance is handled through the armor's blueprint, not the 2DA. The 2DA just deals with the stats.
More:<hr />Does standard (non-masterwork items) and masterwork items receive separate items(rows) as well?
And is there one item(row) for mithral non-masterwork and one for mithral masterwork?<hr />No masterwork items, sorry.
More:<hr />At all, or for specific equipment?<hr />At all.
More:<hr />Is the AC actually determined by the column entry in the armorrulestats.2da?
But in NWN2, it sounds like you choose an armor type in the toolkit and this armor type refers to a line in armorrulestats.2da - and thus sets the various stats of the armor, and then the appearance model is chosen independantly of this. Correct?
Carl<hr />Yes, to both questions. I'd forgotten how NWN1 linked chest appearance with AC; in NWN2, both are independent.
More:<hr />My guess is that - because it is probably the easiest way to handle the data - they went with Mithril lowering it one category for all purposes, including proficiency, in NWN2.
Carl<hr />Yep. Mithral Full Plate is medium armor and requires only medium armor proficiency.
Ambient life templates (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493752&post=4276958&forum=95&highlight=)
There are three ambient life templates: chaser/chased, tag it/tag not it, and hunter/prey.
Chaser/Chased does what it says - one creature chases another.
Tag It/Tag Not It is like chaser/chased, except the creatures switch roles once in awhile.
Hunter/Prey is currently used for cat and mouse ambients in several places. There is a prey factory (in the form of sacks of grain or barrels or whatever) which occasionally generates the prey (the mouse). The mouse will then wander around until it is spotted by the hunter (the cat), at which point it will flee back to the prey factory and disappear for a time.
More:<hr />How is chasee/not it movement determined? Do they just randomly move around the area or does their movement involve waypoints in some way? What happens when the chaser 'catches' (or corners) the chasee?
Carl<hr />They just run all over the map at random. The chased always waits if he catches up to the chasee. Haven't seen a chasee get cornered yet - most of that stuff is used in town exterior maps with plenty of space to move.
More: Nope, hasn't been cut, just omitted in the description. Heads will roll.
More:<hr />In case anyone doesn't know, Jeff is an Obsidian dev... better get that tag sorted if you don't want to get eaten alive you know Jeff!<hr />I am informed that it is "in progress". http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif
More:<hr />I just wanna be sure about this.
Will the dwarven defender both get improved defenses and defensive stance. (Which would give him +8 ac in his stance at level 10)<hr />Improved Defense and Defensive Stance are both in. So, yes, +8 AC at level 10.
More:<hr />The "Improved Defenses" bit in the NWN2 description refers to the "AC bonus" column in the 3.5E DM guide book description of the class. So the bonus has always been there, just not given a specific name before.<hr />Yep, that's pretty much it. Some abilities were classified as class "feats" for easy implementation, and names had to be thought up.
More:<hr />Does Defensive Stance give the canonical bonus to Strength and Con? And if so, given the non-stacking (a good thing, btw) nature of bonuses now, has any thought been given to making that a bonus to hit points, attack and damage (and resistance to tripping/knockdown?), rather than a bonus to strength and con? (As has been suggested for Rage in other threads).
Carl<hr />It gives the standard +2 STR, +4 CON, +2 saves, +4 AC. I'm unaware if this will change.
Complete type up of each Character Background, as seen at Gen Con (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493878&post=4277851&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Thanks for all your effort in transcribing everything!
I wonder if we *must* take a background, or if we can just choose to opt out?<hr />You can select None if you wish.
Any reference to "Discipline" is outdated, obviously. Not sure what it's been replaced with in terms of bonuses or penalties.
Druid/Monk viable combo? Devs please clarify. (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=494842&post=4289858&forum=98&highlight=)
1. You use the claws/teeth/gore of whatever form you're in.
2. Any equipped armor is ignored while in Wildshape form. Unsure about rings and whatnot.
3. Yes, monk AC bonus remains in effect.
4. I don't believe Weapon Focus: Unarmed Strike carries over to Wildshape forms.
5. Yes, flurry of blows is available.
6. Ki strike benefits remain.
7. Wildshape forms have their own stat sets.
8. There are no multiclassing penalties for monks in NWN2.
9. The various speed bonuses/feats all stack. Zoom!
Will traps be scary? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495177&post=4293611&forum=95&highlight=)
Traps can be set to fire repeatedly until they are disarmed. There are at least a few of those around in NWN2.
Open Locks is now more valuable for locked containers, since bashing them open has a good chance of giving you a broken item instead of loot.
More:<hr />Will trigger/source traps still be optional? You know, you step on a plate, and then a projectile or a spell originates from another source?<hr />Projectile traps can fire from a source, and we've tried to make them appear to be firing from locations such as statues and wall braziers, to name a few.
Will there be some mini-games in NWN2 ? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495265&post=4294423&forum=95&highlight=)
There's at least one. It's optional, but rather amusing. http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif
More:<hr />Really, it's good you thought about that, made it optional aswell...Does it have some kind of rewards? http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif<hr />Of course!
Warlock and arcane tricksters: the rules (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495307&post=4295141&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Hmmm... thanks. I wonder if the game will have warlock specific items that increase the damage.<hr />I don't believe there are any items that can increase eldritch blast damage.
<font size="3" face="Verdana, Arial" color="#cc6600">J.E. Sawyer, Lead Designer</font>
Dragon*Con: Saving the Best for Last (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495219&post=4296192&forum=95&highlight=)
The version we are showing at the booth is an older one, but the version we are showing at the presentations is only a few days old.
That basically means that the bugs in the old version have been replaced with bugs in the new version.
<font size="3" face="Verdana, Arial" color="#cc6600">Jeff Husges, Designer</font>
Tumble (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=492622&post=4261976&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />So? If Tumble were fixed so it didn't give a blanket +1 Dodge AC for every 5 ranks, most players wouldn't feel it's necessary to do so.<hr />Tumble is nerfed. It now gives +1 AC for every 10 ranks.
More:<hr />Quote: To the previous poster: can you provide a link to where you read Tumble gives +1 AC for every 10 ranks instead of 5? I've seen nothing to that effect on any thread I've read regarding Tumble in NWN2.<hr />Sorry. Missing ye olde Designer tag. http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_razz.gif
More:<hr />Btw, I was wondering, if the 10 rank thing applied to the saving throw bonus from spellcraft, as well.<hr />That's still +1 every 5 ranks.
Battle Sorcerer and Sorcerer Heritage Feats (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493053&post=4268522&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />1. Will I be able to play as a battle sorcerer from Unearthed Arcana)?
2. Will the sorcerer heritage feats (draconic, celestial, infernal) be available (from Complete Arcane and the Player's Handbook 2)?<hr />Only the default sorcerer from the PHB is included. If you were to edit classes.2da and other associated 2das, you could easily recreate the battle sorcerer, though.
No sorcerer heritage feats, sorry.
What algorithm do you use to calculate CR rating in NWN 2? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493268&post=4270596&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Chances are, they just copied the creature stats from the D&D Monster Manuals, or at least got as close to them as they could with the engine in place. With that in mind, figure out how Wizards of the Coast determines the CR, and you have your answer.<hr />Yep, that's what I did. http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif
[Question] Can Humanoid Creatures wear PC armor? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493217&post=4270618&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Can Humanoids, such as orcs, wear player character armor including helmets? In the original NWN they can wear it, but they are not visible and don't changed their appearance, though the properties apply.
thanks<hr />While humanoids can wear and get bonuses from PC armor, it doesn't show up on their models. However, humanoid armor appearances are customizable in the toolset, with unique armor attachments. For example, a lizardfolk chieftain can be made to display a metal breastplate with large turtle shells worn as bracers and shoulder armor.
Warlock ability Observations/critque.... (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=492549&post=4262246&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Any chance of a Dev saying specifically what it is that the Warlocks transform into?<hr />Horned devil, aka cornugon.
More:<hr />How are you certain though, is the Cornugon also known as the "Horned Devil"? Aren't there other horned devils?<hr />If there are, I'm unaware of them. The horned devil in NWN2 is specifically from the MM, which is listed Horned Devil (Cornugon).
More:<hr />Seeing as how the description for The Dead Walk invocation doesn't mention any sort of "you can only control 4HD of undead per caster level", nor did it reference the spell Animate Undead, does this mean that a Warlock can constantly travel around with an army of Undead minions?<hr />One minion at a time.
Might and Magic (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=491028&post=4271018&forum=97&highlight=)
<hr />Quote: Drow are limited to 18th level in NWN2.<hr />Duergar, drow, svirfs, aasimars and tieflings are not capped to any level. They can reach level 20 just like any other race - it just takes them longer.
Questions about Mithral Equipment in NWN2 (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493644&post=4275506&forum=98&highlight=)
Yes, to both questions.
More:<hr />http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_confused.gif
I would assume that the arcane failure chance would work as it is supposed to - as that is the kind of thing we can add ourselves if necessary (it exists as an item property). The change to 'type' (from medium to light armor) I am skeptical of being in. Unless they did some MAJOR changes to how the game data works, this is the kind of change that just doesn't translate well to NWN.
If they were able to make it work - great. But I'm not holding my breath. (That being said - they MAY be able to fake it. Rather than taking a suit of Medium Armor, choosing an appearance that resembles Chainmail and making that suit out of Mithril and having it become light, you start with a suit of Light Armor, choose an appearance that resembles Chainmail and make that suit out of Mithril and name it Mithril Chainmail.
Carl<hr />For armor, "Mithral" is not a property that you apply to an armor, it's an actual base armor item set up in armorrulestats.2da.
More:<hr />Having never seen armorrulestats.2da, is this roughly comparable to armor.2da in NWN1 but (naturally) improved? Or is it a separate 2da with different information?
And if it is similar to armor.2da, can we infer from this that the way it works is that for each material/armor type combination, there is a unique line in armorrulestats.2da which defines the AC, Armor Check Penalty, Arcane Failure Chance, etc?
And if so - is AC now a property that is read from this line, rather than being a property of the torso model (as in NWN1)?
And how is the range or available appearances restricted (or is it restricted) based upon the armortype chosen? Does each torso connect to a particular armor type/ line - or can you have different lines in armorrulestats.2da referring to the same armor appearance (thus creating two identical suits of armor with different base types?)<hr />It appears that armorrulestats.2da is the "new" armor.2da, but with the added capability to specify the weight class of an armor (light, medium, or heavy). Other than that, it appears to work exactly the same as NWN1.
There are no appearance restrictions - you can classify an armor as full plate and make it look like leather. Armor appearance is handled through the armor's blueprint, not the 2DA. The 2DA just deals with the stats.
More:<hr />Does standard (non-masterwork items) and masterwork items receive separate items(rows) as well?
And is there one item(row) for mithral non-masterwork and one for mithral masterwork?<hr />No masterwork items, sorry.
More:<hr />At all, or for specific equipment?<hr />At all.
More:<hr />Is the AC actually determined by the column entry in the armorrulestats.2da?
But in NWN2, it sounds like you choose an armor type in the toolkit and this armor type refers to a line in armorrulestats.2da - and thus sets the various stats of the armor, and then the appearance model is chosen independantly of this. Correct?
Carl<hr />Yes, to both questions. I'd forgotten how NWN1 linked chest appearance with AC; in NWN2, both are independent.
More:<hr />My guess is that - because it is probably the easiest way to handle the data - they went with Mithril lowering it one category for all purposes, including proficiency, in NWN2.
Carl<hr />Yep. Mithral Full Plate is medium armor and requires only medium armor proficiency.
Ambient life templates (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493752&post=4276958&forum=95&highlight=)
There are three ambient life templates: chaser/chased, tag it/tag not it, and hunter/prey.
Chaser/Chased does what it says - one creature chases another.
Tag It/Tag Not It is like chaser/chased, except the creatures switch roles once in awhile.
Hunter/Prey is currently used for cat and mouse ambients in several places. There is a prey factory (in the form of sacks of grain or barrels or whatever) which occasionally generates the prey (the mouse). The mouse will then wander around until it is spotted by the hunter (the cat), at which point it will flee back to the prey factory and disappear for a time.
More:<hr />How is chasee/not it movement determined? Do they just randomly move around the area or does their movement involve waypoints in some way? What happens when the chaser 'catches' (or corners) the chasee?
Carl<hr />They just run all over the map at random. The chased always waits if he catches up to the chasee. Haven't seen a chasee get cornered yet - most of that stuff is used in town exterior maps with plenty of space to move.
More: Nope, hasn't been cut, just omitted in the description. Heads will roll.
More:<hr />In case anyone doesn't know, Jeff is an Obsidian dev... better get that tag sorted if you don't want to get eaten alive you know Jeff!<hr />I am informed that it is "in progress". http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif
More:<hr />I just wanna be sure about this.
Will the dwarven defender both get improved defenses and defensive stance. (Which would give him +8 ac in his stance at level 10)<hr />Improved Defense and Defensive Stance are both in. So, yes, +8 AC at level 10.
More:<hr />The "Improved Defenses" bit in the NWN2 description refers to the "AC bonus" column in the 3.5E DM guide book description of the class. So the bonus has always been there, just not given a specific name before.<hr />Yep, that's pretty much it. Some abilities were classified as class "feats" for easy implementation, and names had to be thought up.
More:<hr />Does Defensive Stance give the canonical bonus to Strength and Con? And if so, given the non-stacking (a good thing, btw) nature of bonuses now, has any thought been given to making that a bonus to hit points, attack and damage (and resistance to tripping/knockdown?), rather than a bonus to strength and con? (As has been suggested for Rage in other threads).
Carl<hr />It gives the standard +2 STR, +4 CON, +2 saves, +4 AC. I'm unaware if this will change.
Complete type up of each Character Background, as seen at Gen Con (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=493878&post=4277851&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Thanks for all your effort in transcribing everything!
I wonder if we *must* take a background, or if we can just choose to opt out?<hr />You can select None if you wish.
Any reference to "Discipline" is outdated, obviously. Not sure what it's been replaced with in terms of bonuses or penalties.
Druid/Monk viable combo? Devs please clarify. (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=494842&post=4289858&forum=98&highlight=)
1. You use the claws/teeth/gore of whatever form you're in.
2. Any equipped armor is ignored while in Wildshape form. Unsure about rings and whatnot.
3. Yes, monk AC bonus remains in effect.
4. I don't believe Weapon Focus: Unarmed Strike carries over to Wildshape forms.
5. Yes, flurry of blows is available.
6. Ki strike benefits remain.
7. Wildshape forms have their own stat sets.
8. There are no multiclassing penalties for monks in NWN2.
9. The various speed bonuses/feats all stack. Zoom!
Will traps be scary? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495177&post=4293611&forum=95&highlight=)
Traps can be set to fire repeatedly until they are disarmed. There are at least a few of those around in NWN2.
Open Locks is now more valuable for locked containers, since bashing them open has a good chance of giving you a broken item instead of loot.
More:<hr />Will trigger/source traps still be optional? You know, you step on a plate, and then a projectile or a spell originates from another source?<hr />Projectile traps can fire from a source, and we've tried to make them appear to be firing from locations such as statues and wall braziers, to name a few.
Will there be some mini-games in NWN2 ? (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495265&post=4294423&forum=95&highlight=)
There's at least one. It's optional, but rather amusing. http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif
More:<hr />Really, it's good you thought about that, made it optional aswell...Does it have some kind of rewards? http://forums.bioware.com/_commonext/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif<hr />Of course!
Warlock and arcane tricksters: the rules (http://nwn2forums.bioware.com//forums/viewpost.html?topic=495307&post=4295141&forum=95&highlight=)
<hr />Hmmm... thanks. I wonder if the game will have warlock specific items that increase the damage.<hr />I don't believe there are any items that can increase eldritch blast damage.