Mod: Avernum, Crystal Souls v1.5 UPDATE

[Globu]

Well, Humakty, I did find a few things that could use fixing, along with a few suggestions.

1) The Avernite Captain's description says equipped same as troops, but has normal shield instead of kite shield, has no helmet, and has full chain main instead of chain mail hauberk. I'm imagining this was unintentional. Also, he has no patrol bonus like the troops from which he arose, and gets female names (nametype 119, misc female).

2) Likewise, the Avernite Archer's description mentions same patrol/peacekeeping training as the avernite guard, but archers get no patrol bonus. Doesn't make sense. Suggest either patrol bonus be added or amendment of description and rationale. My personal opinion is that they should have the patrol bonus too.

3) As mentioned with the Avernite Captain, a couple of other nametypes are mixed up. Avernite mages have nametype 100, misc. male, and avernite archmages have 112, caelum female, which seems oddly out of place given the lack of that cultural paradigm elsewhere in the nation (again, I'm not familiar with the Avernum lore, so if it goes with that, then disregard this comment). Suggest change to whatever is appropriate lorewise, and that they be consistent with one another.

4) Feedback/suggestion on Vahnatai Shapers and High Shapers, and Avernite Mages and Archmages: In line with what you talked about before in the thread, Sombre, I suggest some random element to magic. Beyond the fact that it makes it more consistent with the variation in the vahnatai mages, it just adds that bit of variety and unpredictability I personally love. As far as it impacts me, that's one of my favorite aspects of the game. Of course, I don't know the Avernum series games' lore very well, so take this with a grain of salt if it is inconsistent with that. But either way, count this as a vote for moar randomness in mage magic picks.

[Globu]

Sorry for the double post. Was too late to edit the last one.

I realized that the attack sprite had some uglies about it. I've edited it a bit, hopefully an improvement (mostly on the legs, bow, and her right breast). Getting a tiny bit better at my image-ripping sprite fu.

[Sombre]

I think if you can spot those problems you can easily edit the dm to correct them, in all honesty. You might be overestimating how hard modding is. It's piss easy. Just have a look at the mod manual.

The mod wasn't based too strongly on the lore of avernum at all. It just takes some basic bits and pieces and of course the graphics (with permission) and puts them together in an interesting mod shape. It was the first mod I did so I'm not surprised at all if it's a bit weird.

[Burnsaber]

Globu, that sprite is absolutely beautiful.

That is all.

[Globu]

Originally Posted by Sombre

I think if you can spot those problems you can easily edit the dm to correct them, in all honesty. You might be overestimating how hard modding is. It's piss easy. Just have a look at the mod manual.

The mod wasn't based too strongly on the lore of avernum at all. It just takes some basic bits and pieces and of course the graphics (with permission) and puts them together in an interesting mod shape. It was the first mod I did so I'm not surprised at all if it's a bit weird.

I'm not so averse to the simple aspects as I am to ID juggling in light of maximum compatibility with other mods (obviously yours, mainly) and so forth. I'm a bit more wary of that, as I'm not familiar with the ranges in use and all that. But, with your blessing, I'd be more than happy to apply the tweaks and corrections I mentioned (or collaborate with you, Humakty -- or simply let you handle it ).

Just out of curiosity, Sombre, how broad was your grant of permission for game graphics? Was it all graphics from the series, or just from the first game, or some other criteria?

Originally Posted by Burnsaber

Globu, that sprite is absolutely beautiful.

That is all.

Thanks, Burnsaber.

[rdonj]

Yeah, doing the actual .dm would be incredibly simple. You would barely even need the manual with the work sombre has done already.

[Globu]

Alright, thoughts on the following proposal for random picks.

(Note that the proposals in regard to Vahnatai mages depart somewhat from the fairly strict separation you had between Vahnatai mages (air and fire) and Vahnatai shapers (earth and water), giving some dabbling room inbetween (each has a clear focus, but has randoms possible in all elements). Not sure how important that separation is thematically; if it is, then we just go with randoms only in the appropriate elements.)




Avernite Archmage:

Granted level 3 in one random elemental, and level 1 in two other elemental magic. (Example: F1W1E3.)

Proposed change:
FAWE 2
FAWE 1
FAWE 1
50% chance of FAWED 1
50% chance of FAWED 1

(Rationale: basic Avernite mages have access to death; why would no archmages have it?)

Vahnatai High Shaper:

Straight S4W3E3.

Proposed change:
S4W2E2H2
100% chance of WE
50% chance of FAWE
50% chance of FAWE

(Rationale: For the elemental randoms, simple variety and flavor. For the H2, it seems strange that the lesser Vahnatai Shapers are H2 priests, but that the high shaper hero is not. H3 seems thematically appropriate, but a bit too much balance-wise -- especially when throwing on power of the spheres and all that, so H2 seemed more reasonable to me.)


Vahnatai Shaper:

S3W2E2H2

Proposed change:
S3W1E1H2
100% chance of WE
100% chance of WE
20% chance of FAWE

(Rationale: Variety and flavor.)


Vahnatai Mage:

S1F1A1
100% chance of AF
100% chance of AF

Proposed change:
S1F1A1
100% chance of AFE
100% chance of AFE

(Rationale: Variety and flavor. Lorewise, the Earth addition is justified by new description line: "Some show signs of beginning the transition from a focus on the volatile elements to the stable ones worked by the Shapers.")


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I have all these changes in a putative v1.6, attached hereto.

This is my first edit of a mod, so, eh, pardon if I screwed something up. Seems to work okay.

[Humakty]

It's of course ok with me if you do it on your own, I was under the vague compulsion to try and make a modpack out of Amos mods, updating them in the process, but I'd rather wait to be sure he won't show up again.

So PM me if you still want me to do some stuff.

[Sombre]

I suggest a new thread, so you can stick updates on the first post and edit it as needed.

Regarding permissions, it was along the lines of 'as long as you don't profit from my IP I don't care'. I only asked about stuff from the exile series (inc blades of exile).

[Globu]

Okay. Will do.