Larian Studios Forums Divinity: Original Sin 2 Divinity - Original Sin 2 - Suggestions and Feedback Save\Import\Export Character Option

That they will be adding it for GM mode is something... still it could really hurt campaign co-op play in my eyes if it didn't also exist for that as well.

They already stated it cannot and will not happen for campaign... the reason is that the campaign keeps track of quests you completed during that playthrough so you cant just jump in mid game without messing everything up.

If that were the case, surly the same would be true for a custom campaign?

If by "custom campaign" you mean a non-GM campaign created in the editor, then yes.
In custom GMed campaigns there will be no scripted quests and such and therefor importing/exporting character for use in GM mode will be no, or less, a problem as there won't be any "story data" attached to the character.

Yes, I meant campaigns created by other players that don't necessarily require a GM to play.

I have to admit, if it will not exist for the main campaign AND custom, user-built ones it could seriously hurt the co-op viability of the game for myself and the group(s) I play with - and would be a great shame.

I would love to see this option. Make a tiny tick box to allow imported characters or not. For those worried about random Co-op play I don't do random play so can't comment much on that part.. The custom games (GM/ custom created in toolkit) this would be amazing for friends who wish to continue the story of said characters. It would give the GM or Campaign maker the option to continue with harder battles in their story, rather then having to try and re balance each campaign for leveling.

Oh and for those groups of friends who maybe take turns making a campaign. It would allow them to keep using characters they fell in love with and keep their RP tales flowing. Since saves are host side only.. A neat idea I could see with this is players taking turns making their own lil origin campaign focused on their character, then their friends going through it with them. Dunno prob just my inner RP nerd, but that would be neat to me.

+1000 this idea to Save/Export/Import characters.

You hit the nail on the head there, Ellary. A definite +1000 from me as well. In-fact I am amazed that something like this is not yet in the game - it seems like pretty much a requirement at this point.

Outside of GM mode it is definitely NOT going to happen.. Larian already stated that.

From what I know of the GM mode, it would be easy for the GM to just give enough xp to reach certain level and give money for some loots.

And I am fairly sure you can start our custom campaign by giving xx amount of XP to start with in a room with merchant selling things for your level.

If it's mainly to start at a predetermined level or with certain powers, this really doesn't feel like this is needed.

If all that is possible then why on earth is using an existing character not possible? Copy over a few variables from a save and use it for a module - done! If the module is being started fresh then there isn't even any story or quest related stuff to get in the way, it's just move the character from one game to another.


I disagree with that. They are trying to sell this as the next evolution in RPG's that are akin to PnP etc. Something as simple as continuing to evolve, RP and develop a character that you have invested many hours in is a bog-standard requirement for RP games.

Honestly the importer/exporter needs functionality on all modes, would be nice to take my campaign characters to GM mod or even the arena. Obviously with some kind of scaling for multiplayer balance or the GM scenario. That way people can keep characters they enjoy and continue playing/experiencing what the game offers for longer.

They stated it some time ago.


I never just take one character from one campaign to another and I really don't think this is a MUST HAVE, much less a standard.
Seems to me you complain about a easy of use functionality, you can do without it with no problem. They might add it later if they can and if everyone yells about. To me that is a "nice to have" improvement.

Fair enough that you do not, doesn't mean others don't.

Having to start a fresh level 1 character with every single game, module, campaign and GM game seems completely bonkers to me - you will never get to RP or develop a character. You will always be pushed back to square one, there will be no continuity and it's a hassle that we can do without.

What amazes me the most though, is all the talk in their trailers of PnP etc... if they want players to have a true PnP experience this feature is simply a must.

I have DM'd games before and been part of games DM'd by others - both on PnP and games like Neverwinter Nights and Sword Coast Legends. We developed characters over modules with ALL of those.

Anyway, I feel I have said my part on the matter (and I think at this point I am just waffling ;-)) and I know I am not alone. I can only hope the developers listen because they seem to underestimate how big a deal this is to certain players.

Not a bad feature to have if gms want to start new sessions for different parts of their campaign, but I'm not sure why the gm wouldn't just use the same session/game. A simple work around would be to have the gm level the players up and give them the same items as they had the session before. Again, not really sure why the gm wouldn't just use the same game session for this and avoid the hassle, but all to their own I guess.

Never seen players bring characters from another gm's game in real life pnp, but I'll take some folks word that it happens.

Cool feature, but hardly gamebreaking or without an obvious workaround.

It's all about freedom of choice - let the players decide how they want to play. Such is the point of an RPG, especially one that reports to give PnP freedom to players.

I remember back when SCL was still in development - there were so many people that were very resistant to adding features to the game that it absolutely required. The "hype-haze" made the game seem perfect to them and they couldn't see the many glaring issues. What happened? The game came out and everyone slowly realised that yes, the things players had been discussing for months really did need to be added. The game ultimately flopped. Now, I am not saying that D:OS 2 is anywhere close to the abysmal mess that that game was, but the underlying point remains: why limit yourself and your players?

There are many instances when a feature like this would be a godsend. The very fact that the developers themselves recently mentioned it an a stream proves that they are realising it is required and will be doing something later down the line. I just hope that they realise the importance is all.

I REALLY like this game and I want it to be as good as it can be.

Just realised, I have started waffling again. My Will save must be particularly low today.

having this feature is really important to me, id like to be able to join others online, talk, show off and compare weapons and gear.

as the game stands now, i wouldn't play the multiplayer at anything other than a lan party. why get invested in a character when you only get to play him for a few hours? i love the idea of having multiplayer in this game, i really do but i feel like its current state online multiplayer just gives a random control over one of my character and local multiplayer is just a substitute to handing over the controller when it's my mates turn.

please give us the ability to import a custom character either automatically (your custom character is imported when you join if you have a free party slot) or manually by separating the character files so they can be sent.

most of the problems that arise are really just hand holding problems. for example, are you getting one-shot by enemies? probably shouldn't have joined your level 9 friend with a brand new character...

point is, even if problems arise i would still prefer to have the choice. i bought this game to play with friends as well as solo, while its shortcomings are not a deal breaker it certainly makes it painful to play with them. especially when i had to tell my friend he couldn't use his character he started with.

Well, it's not happening. The game is not designed or balanced around taking a character who did things in one way and inserting them into a game where things could have happened in a totally different way.

There is no need to be so negative about a feature that many would find really beneficial.

It's also something that is totally do-able if the developers wanted to do it.

Here's what could be done...

Firstly, you as a host would have the option of opening up your games in this manner - possibly via a checkbox on the "Connectivity" screen where you invite players. As such, everyone who doesn't want the feature doesn't have to use it. You could even have a "level difference" slider to prevent characters more than 1+ levels joining to retain balance.

Secondly, if the game you are joining is open to this, all that would need to be done is to temporarily replace one of the existing party members (the ones normally controlled by joining players) with the character of the joining player.

Lastly, quests would remain as they were - the host controls them so nothing needs to be changed at all. The joining character would be playing in the hosts game with whatever quests they are currently running... just as it would be if they joined in the existing manner. As such you wouldn;t even have to worry about story progress or quests getting messed up at all. If the developers did find a way to do some form of "quest-syncing" then great, but the way described here would not require them to do that.

...it's really not rocket science. A system like NWN would be ideal, where you have a "vault" where all your characters are kept. I mean jeez, even Sword Coast Legends got that right.

I am not being negative. I am being honest.

The game is not even remotely designed for swapping characters between games. That is something which would need to built into the design from pre-production. It is not something to casually add in and hope it doesn't break anything (it will break a LOT of things).

This is not an MMO or a persistent world. It's an RPG based around taking a single group of characters from start to finish, with the relationships between them as an important part.

It's not intended for swapping characters randomly in and out, and I'm not wasting my time reading your explanation about how a different game designed with a different mindset and programmed in a different way did a thing which is not applicable to this game.