NWN: Anyone want to share their cool module ideas?

[balut]

With the full retail Neverwinter Nights release a few short days away, I'd like to know if anyone has some cool custom modules planned.

Personally, a few friends and I are planning on recreating some mainstays of classic CircleMUD style areas, ie Midgard, The Tower of High Sorcery, Garamond, etc. Of course, since most stock areas from MUDs were recreations from literary works, some modifications would have to be made.

- Balut

[Jason Lutes]

I've got a couple of ideas I'm toying with, both of them single-player mods and geared around specific chracter classes: one for a starting first-level Thief PC, set in a city, fairly-open-ended but with plot threads involving rival gangs and religious factions; and another built around a Ranger PC who takes a job as scout and tracker for a border fort.

I have mixed feelings about the editor, though. It seems pretty easy to use from the beta toolset, and the scripting possibilities look incredibly deep, but the extreme modularity of the building blocks might be an issue in terms of trying to create a unique setting. For instance, I really don't like that it doesn't allow for slopes in the wilderness, other than the basic "ramp". It seems strange to me that an editor otherwise so rich is so limited in this regard.

But I guess there's a lot of room for user-made toolset additions, and the possibility for "mod packs" put out by Bioware, so my crankiness may prove unfounded in the end.

[Anonymous]

I bet someone, somewhere will attempt to use the toolset to recreate older Infinity Engine games. Imagine a scene-for-scene remake of the original Baldur's Gate using the NWN engine--maybe that's not particularly inventive, but it'd be pretty cool. Someone could probably also make a better version of Pool of Radiance.

[Alan Au]

Thought about it (BG remake, PoS... er PoR2 remake), but decided to leave it to the professionals (like Team BG or some such group). Then again, I might toy around with Ultima Underworld, or if I'm feeling really wacky, System Shock. Not terribly original, but a good tutorial experience.

A friend of mine has been running a Greyhawk campaign. Might be fun to turn the play logs into modules, but I'd need a LOT of free time.

- Alan

[Murph]

I'd like to find the time (and talent) to build one big city with fully-scripted NPCs with routines, wants, and needs -- sleep eight hours a day, eat three meals, go from place to place with purpose rather than wandering randomly -- all the things we've talked about in the "ideal RPG" threads. :) And, of course, a very involved thieves' guild, and some stuff for other classes as well. (A little like Tarant, from Arcanum, which I think is a great city.)

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know if combat is required in this game? Can I reward players with experience for non-combat events? I'd like to build an RPG in which combat is the excepotion rather than the rule--one that's mostly about finding people, learning things and figuring out that a + b = c without someone telling you.

Thanks in advance.

Peter

[Jason Lutes]

From what I understand, you can give the player(s) experience points for whatever you darn well feel like it... From tagging the delivery of a particular item with an EP bonus to awarding them on the fly in live DM mode.

[mtkafka]

I'd like to see an NWN version of Shrine of Tomachoan? or Tomb of Horrors. I like the Deathtrap Dungeon type modules.. though I'm not sure it would be completely possible to do em faithfully with NWN. Theres alot of 'adventure game' type puzzles in those modules. BTW, are there traps in the construction set? and if so, how many?

etc

[Desslock]

There's a deal being worked on with Wizards of the Coast (Infogrames is only peripherally involved, to make available adaptations of some classic modules (I think for a fee, but they'd be pretty detailed creations).

Stefan

[balut]

I'd love to see someone remake Realms of Arkania: Shadows Over Riva using the NWN engine.

- Balut

[Alan Au]

How about "Descent to Undermount" done right?

As for the XP thing, there are a couple points during the Prelude where a key event will cause you to level up. Not a fixed amount of XP, but instead giving you whatever you need to hit the next level. Not sure if this is done on a level basis, or up to a certain amount of XP, or what.

- Alan

[Murph]

Does anyone know if combat is required in this game? Can I reward players with experience for non-combat events?

From what I understand, you can give the player(s) experience points for whatever you darn well feel like it... From tagging the delivery of a particular item with an EP bonus to awarding them on the fly in live DM mode.

That's exactly right. There are several points in the single-player game where you get experience points for non-combat events, so you'll be able to do that in the module.

As for the XP thing, there are a couple points during the Prelude where a key event will cause you to level up. Not a fixed amount of XP, but instead giving you whatever you need to hit the next level. Not sure if this is done on a level basis, or up to a certain amount of XP, or what.

It depends on what level you are, actually, which is even cooler, if you ask me. I took my sixth-level rogue through the prelude, just for fun, and they didn't give me the level-ups that time through.

[Ben Sones]

I run most of my tabletop games combat-light, and I intend to do the same in my NWN campaign. Not that I don't like combat; I just find that it's more dramatic when it isn't going on all the time.

Of course, I'd also like to slow down the levelling a bit. Things go so much faster in a computer game, the whole group would be 10th level in the amount of time it would take a group in a tabletop game to reach 3rd. Fewer fights is probably the easiest way to do that.

[Murph]

Or giving out teensy-weensy amounts of experience for fights, etc. I assume you have control over how much experience they get per fight, should you choose to take that much control.

[Jason McCullough]

I was discussing with a friend of mine that the only real mod I'm interested in making is one so offensive I'd be the only person playing.

You know: child prostitution, slavery, genocide, naughty words.

[Murph]

I'd bet you get a few dozen downloads just from guys around here.

[Tom Ohle]

The one myself and my buddy at Infogrames are working on should be rather offensive. ;) The original title was "Bitch, where's my money?" But we've got something more inventive now. heh

[Doug Erickson]

Jason,

Perhaps the "Furry Concentration Camp" Morrowind mod needs to be moved to NWN, eh?

[Jason McCullough]

I'm entirely for maximuming the shock-to-work ratio, so NWN it is. The Morrowind sdk is kind of junky.

[Martinez]

Just gave a quick call to my local EB store, and they have them in stock! :D

I plan on heading straight there after work!

I have the Interactive Forgotten Realms Atlas and plan on using that as a blueprint for my world.

I don't like dungeon crawls as much as I like above ground, in-city fighting. The dungeons I do have won't be as complex as Undernmountain either. Rather, I would TRY to have a few really unique ones in key places. I will have little hidden "easter-egg" type places but would be far and few between. :wink:

I'd also like to see how well I script some of the NPC dialog. I don't like long drawn-out conversation, but instaed have colorful short things to say.

[Aszurom]

The original title was "Bitch, where's my money?" But we've got something more inventive now. heh

Hrm... I thought I had the market on "D&P - Dungeons 'n Pimpin'"

Does the editor allow for insertion of custom item graphics? The first quest was going to be for a +2 orange fedora. I've already got Bishop Don Magic Juan and Fillmore Slim signed on to do some voice acting.

"The name is Rosebudd - with two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin' "

[Supertanker]

I really like the idea of an adventure along those lines. I think a Thieves' Guild should be more like The Sopranos and less like the Merry Men. Surely there are a number of arsons, extortions, and assassinations that an up-and-coming thief must carry out in his or her climb to the top of the underworld. This would be complicated and difficult in a world that has "Speak with Dead" and other divination spells available. Heck, you might bump a guy off and even if he had it coming, his buddies might raise him from the dead and come after you for revenge.

[Anonymous]

I'd like to try and do a Ravenloft module. I'm not sure if it would be possible, but I imagine there are plenty of undead creatures to work with. The fun part would be creating Strahd, Lord Soth and all of the other cool "Big Bad Guys" from that setting. Somebody will most likely beat me to it though. I don't plan to do any fiddling with the editor 'till I've beat the single player at least once. So I guess I'll see you all in 60-100 hours.

[Martinez]

In my little world, Lord Soth NEVER left Ansalon.

There is a source book out for Ravenloft put out by swords and sorcery using the 3ed rules and d20 system.

Ravenloft

Dragonlance source book is being released in future.

I think both would be good resources for NWN. :)

[Bub, Andrew]

I want somebody to do Keep on the Borderlands... then maybe Tomb of Horrors.

[mtkafka]

"The Morrowind sdk is kind of junky."

eh, I dont think the Morrowind editor is junky at all. I've already made some ok dungeons and new monsters for meself. Compared to the little I've tried with the NWN toolset, its actually more detailed, though harder to use.... hardly junky. Actually if you check out all the mods out for MW, its pretty much an indication that its far from 'junky', imo.

etc

[Thierry Nguyen]

I'm not entirely sure how I would go about doing it, but due to reading Tim Powers' Declare, I feel like doing a single-player adventure involving becoming a double-agent within a mercenary camp at Luskan or whatnot. Something that calls for a mix of using Charisma/Persuade and muscling around.

Then again, maybe I'll just make a short adventure where people Hit Things To Get Loot.

[Jason McCullough]

'eh, I dont think the Morrowind editor is junky at all. I've already made some ok dungeons and new monsters for meself. Compared to the little I've tried with the NWN toolset, its actually more detailed, though harder to use.... hardly junky. Actually if you check out all the mods out for MW, its pretty much an indication that its far from 'junky', imo.'

Let me clarify: it looked like far too much work on first inspection. I have no tolerance at all for the actual tedious build process, so unless it's just brain-dead easy I'm not going to do it.

NWN apparently is just that easy.