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I've been slowly watching through all of the modding tutorial videos that have been posted, and I haven't found a tutorial on how to set up a mod for the main campaign, so I wanted to ask if the instructions found in this thread are still the way to go about doing that. I think that topic was made right around the time the game was coming out, and I've gotten the impression the toolset is, or at least was, still in development.

Most of what I've seen in terms of modding the main campaign has been mods changing game balance or items, or things like that, so I also wanted to ask if it's possible to add quests to the main campaign as my interests lie more along those lines. That other topic says it isn't possible to mod existing entities, which I assume means I wouldn't be able to add dialogue to existing NPCs, but if I'm mistaken about that it would be good to know. Also, if I missed any threads about this that were more recent, feel free to point me in the direction of any posted information that I missed.

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I believe you can mod anything you want from the main campaign. You might need to press a few more buttons to get the wanted results but everything should work fine. What exactly do you want to do right now, so I could help you a bit more? If you only want to add quests simply try it, the larian tuts should provide enough information on how to do that. To start your main campaign mod I made a quick tut on how to start:
http://www.larian.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=548265#Post548265

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You'll want to check out Rhidian's what-we-know-so-far thread too.
http://www.larian.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=529996#Post529996
I can't really offer any help myself as I've not touched the main campaign.

And FromHolland thanks for all your recent tutorial threads. I have a bookmarks folder for particularly useful threads - your Tuts are all happily sitting in there.

Last edited by Noaloha; 27/08/14 03:40 PM.

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Originally Posted by Noaloha
You'll want to check out Rhidian's what-we-know-so-far thread too.
http://www.larian.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=529996#Post529996
I can't really offer any help myself as I've not touched the main campaign.

And FromHolland thanks for all your recent tutorial threads. I have a bookmarks folder for particularly useful threads - your Tuts are all happily sitting in there.
Hey thanks, just sharing some stuff I learned along the way wink

For modding the main files dont forget to copy to module thingy if stuff doesnt work out smile

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I just published a quest mod for the main campaign that has a several hours of playable content. The Mod is called "UnderSiege". The thread and the download is located in this forum, a few posts downwards. One main reason why it isn't available from Steam is that there are several things from which I am not absolutely sure about. And I don't like making publicly available something that could cause some harm to the main campaign and the game play.

So, we would definitely need more information !!

Also, I have noticed that sometimes all skills are totally messed up. Every skill will do something else than it's supposed to do like a Minor Heal skill will throw a Poison Dart or something like that. I am not sure if that's a modding related anomaly or something else.

Also, It's really annoying that a complete restart of the campaign is required so that a small change in a mod will take effect. For an example a bug fix.

Based on the information from a links above, only one mod can be active at a time. What is this all about ?? I have never encountered anything like that in any other game.

Last edited by BioSpirit; 28/08/14 12:36 PM.
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Originally Posted by BioSpirit
Based on the information from a links above, only one mod can be active at a time. What is this all about ?? I have never encountered anything like that in any other game.


You can have multiple mods active at a time, but only one main mod.
(A "main" mod is something that doesn't have any dependencies; "plugin" mods have at least one dependency to the main mod)

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Thanks for the replies, I had somehow missed those other threads which definitely have some useful and more recent information. One thing I was hoping to be able to do was to add dialogue nodes to existing NPCs in order to direct the player(s) towards new stuff, but Rhidian's thread indicates that existing goals and dialogues can't be edited. Breaking plot critical stuff is probably pretty easy if I mess with current NPCs so even if they were more editable it might be best to avoid it.

If I wanted to use another object as a waypoint to a new area rather than the waypoint shrine, would I be able to do that by just adding the waypoint shrine script to that object, and then adding the teleport action in the OnUseAction area? I assume that how it's described in FromHolland's tutorial is a bit different than how normal waypoint shrines work given that those have "send a use event to Osiris" as their OnUseAction, which I assume is because they bring up the menu with the whole waypoint shrine list and there's a selection on where to go... whereas hopefully with the teleport OnUseAction it's just a one way, one location trip. Unless I'm misunderstanding something.

I've also noticed that when creating a new mod and having "Main" chosen as my dependency and data pack, the editor will give an "Error loading mod with ID 'modname'!" message, however if I then try to load that mod, it will be in the list and it will appear to load with no issues. Has anyone else seen this error? Will it cause problems down the line if I ignore it?

Last edited by TurtlesAWD; 28/08/14 09:28 PM.
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Originally Posted by TurtlesAWD
Thanks for the replies, I had somehow missed those other threads which definitely have some useful and more recent information. One thing I was hoping to be able to do was to add dialogue nodes to existing NPCs in order to direct the player(s) towards new stuff, but Rhidian's thread indicates that existing goals and dialogues can't be edited. Breaking plot critical stuff is probably pretty easy if I mess with current NPCs so even if they were more editable it might be best to avoid it.

If I wanted to use another object as a waypoint to a new area rather than the waypoint shrine, would I be able to do that by just adding the waypoint shrine script to that object, and then adding the teleport action in the OnUseAction area? I assume that how it's described in FromHolland's tutorial is a bit different than how normal waypoint shrines work given that those have "send a use event to Osiris" as their OnUseAction, which I assume is because they bring up the menu with the whole waypoint shrine list and there's a selection on where to go... whereas hopefully with the teleport OnUseAction it's just a one way, one location trip. Unless I'm misunderstanding something.
yeh you can use any object for onuseactions, I'm pretty sure teleporting is not bound to waypoints only (if somehow it is use the story thingy and teleport with some story script using IF itemusedsomething)

and for the dialogue thing, I have never tried doing that but I'm just thinking of why wouldnt it work? Maybe copy some keyword files from the main to your own mod? Try it and if you run into trouble just post it here

edit:
for the mod loading error, yeh have teh same thing since the last update...no problems for me though after reloading it

Last edited by FromHolland; 28/08/14 09:40 PM.
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Well since you guys are already on this ...

I will need some help from you FromHolland and Noaloha, probably a few others. Rhidian is already bookmarked, Horrorscope has done half of what i aim to do with skills and equipment for himself already, etc, etc.
Ive fallen a bit behind the curve, due to work i do in RL so ill badger you guys to get some shortcuts.

It wont be anything too complicated. ahem...

For example, for my mod Tinker, Tailor, Hunter linked in the sig, i mean to remove some aspects of the main campaign, like the Homestead and all it brings, that whole super epic fantasy opera part of the plot.

I would also remove companions and henchmen too.

This will of course cause further changes and adjustment, but for now... i am supposing that just removing stuff, be it whole smaller locations such as a homestead or companions and henchmen would not be so complicated to do?

What do you guys think?

Give me some theoretical overview on the matter so i can calibrate the approach with more precision please.


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I believe there are lots and lots of story elements in the homestead level. You'll need to make a list for everything going on in there so you wont break the main campaign, then you'll copy/paste everything to cyseal or anywhere else. This will take a very long time to do as the homestead is the most important thing to the whole campaign (dunno how much story editing is required, probably lots)

For companions/hench just select and delete wink

Last edited by FromHolland; 29/08/14 08:30 AM.
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Those story elements will get replaced by appropriate other story elements.
So no copy-pasting will be necessary.

A lot of work, yes - but thats what ive been saying from the start.

Basically, i will try to make a game be less epic, less of a save universe from big bad evil thing, and a bit more down to earth investigation of two quite mortal and human, beginner Source Hunters, dealing with things quite over their heads.

In general, this will make the campaign a bit shorter, but thats not such of a problem, if it is good.

Cysael will remain, get improved, Luculla forest with its environs, Silverglen, Phantom forest and Hunters edge... maybe even Hiberheim, although that will need to be heavily edited since its really over the top high-fantasy opera part of the game.


Originally Posted by FromHolland

For companions/hench just select and delete wink


best kind of modding :P

thanks.

Last edited by Hiver; 29/08/14 08:50 AM.
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The Homestead has quite a lot of things associated with it, so instead of deleting it as a whole, I would probably change the story element that allows the player to go to the Homestead at all. The simplest method would probably be to either change the Story element that teleports the player when they first encounter a Star/Blood Stone, or change the Star/Blood Stone templates such that they don't trigger the Story element.

If the Homestead is never reached, then the biggest change to the main campaign would be that the players no longer have access to the Teleport Pyramids (and of course losing access to the goodies that the Homestead contains). There would probably be an issue with the end game as well, but besides that there shouldn't be too much of an impact, since most of the game can be played without going to the Homestead at all.

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Thanks Rhidian, i suspected something like that might be a workable solution.

- I have never found teleporting pyramids to be actually useful, or needed, except for cheesing things around. I still havent used them in any of my playthroughs. I usually forget to pick them up at all.

- There is so many goodies in the game i doubt any of the Homestead ones will be actually missed or needed.

- The end game will be changed to fit this different kind of a story.


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I like where you are going with this Hiver, good luck man!

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Thank you. Long way ahead awaits to be crossed.


Roads go ever ever on,
Over rock and under tree,
By caves where never sun has shone,
By streams that never find the sea;
Over snow by winter sown,
And through the merry flowers of June,
Over grass and over stone,
And under mountains in the moon.

Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.
Eyes that fire and sword have seen
And horror in the halls of stone
Look at last on meadows green
And trees and hills they long have known.


The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.


horsey

Last edited by Hiver; 29/08/14 09:28 AM.
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In a main campaign the enemy levels are hard-coded. That's not really a problem when playing the main campaign. However, if you create a quest mod giving you 3 or more levels then your characters becomes over-leveled. Even if you would skip some non-essential battles in the main campaign it would still take some time until the over-leveling becomes re-balanced. So, XP giving quest mods for the main campaign do not work very well in this game.

I was thinking about that I could convert the UnderSiege into a stand-alone mod without a main dependency. But, who is interested about a short stand-alone mod ? The mod is finished before you are even properly warmed-up. Well, I suppose it should be possible to mod a mod. But is anyone interested in modding the UnderSiege and creating additional quests for it or even a next chapter ? Or, would some other mod be a better core-mod ?

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Is there any info around on how to add new quests to the player's journal/quest log? The scripting tutorials posted on the larian youtube channel cover basics in terms of quest creation but I didn't see adding different stages of completion on a quest to the journal in any of the videos currently posted.

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Originally Posted by TurtlesAWD
Is there any info around on how to add new quests to the player's journal/quest log? The scripting tutorials posted on the larian youtube channel cover basics in terms of quest creation but I didn't see adding different stages of completion on a quest to the journal in any of the videos currently posted.


http://www.larian.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=538585#Post538585
Take a look at this thread and ask in here or in there if you have any further questions. The process is sort of simple, but potentially also sort of convoluted and arcane if this will be the first time you've used LSTools, etc.


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I am actually having an error when creating a goal in the story editor and attempting to group it under the _start goal. When I try I simply get a "Grouping node under '_Start' failed" error.

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Create manually a text file with a name you want in ...\Data\Mods\<YourMod>\Story\RawFiles\Goals\

With a following content and then move it under __Start (After restarting a Story Editor)
Code
Version 1
SubGoalCombiner SGC_AND
INITSECTION

KBSECTION

EXITSECTION

ENDEXITSECTION

Last edited by BioSpirit; 31/08/14 08:00 PM.

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