Information on pulling it all together to create a great experience. Generally, this section is all about what makes a good game and how you can apply that to your NWN2 module.
anobody posted a complaint about the linear aspect of the NWN2 OC on the boards, which spawned an interesting debate about the linear aspects of Computer Role Playing Games.
BW022 made some good points with his post:
In the game all modules and pre-written campaigns have predetermined plot arcs. It simply isn't possible to write a module which covers every conceivable choose.
Imagine a DM writes a module for her group. About twelve hours consisting of a small town, a murder, and an assassin's complex. Maps, stat blocks, NPC descriptions, etc. The module starts out with a gnome coming into the bar and asking to speak with the PCs.
What do you think happens if the PCs say "We kill the gnome."? Well, maybe the DM scrambles a bit and lets the PCs find a note on the gnome talking about a murder. What then happens if the PCs say "We burn the note and leave the village."
Eventually the DM will say, "Fine. Nothing happens." She no longer has anything prepared. Perhaps the DM is good enough to ask what you plan on doing and then writing a specific adventure for you next week. Is the DM supposed to repeatedly spend dozens of hours on stuff you never do?
Kale Kross made an interesting counter point (which really highlights the importance of a DM):
The best DMs (and I've had the privilege of playing with several like this) don't run their sessions by planning out everything that could happen in a module. Rather, they construct their world and retain a clear picture of it and its inhabitents in their minds. They add some more major NPCs who will have their own agendas within the world as well. Naturally and fluidly, the world will continue to operate, even if the PCs decide to sit on their butts in the local tavern and do nothing. The DM creates a sort of "ecology" that is self-sustaining.
Actions the PCs take as well can have ripple effects within the world. The DM does not have to plan entire adventures or even sesssion. Only a continued sense of what is going on in the world and what will happen is necessary (with a few add-ons as the DM sees fit to throw into his/her world).
Using only these guidelines, the best DMs can do it all on the fly, allowing for true freeform roleplaying and stories that go in any direction.
In this sense, planning a whole quest isn't what's really required. Just planning of the world itself and the NPCs. It's the DM's choice to have an overarcing connection between sessions, but sometimes it's just fun to play for the journey of it.
While adventurers can be heros, not all adventurers are. And the reason we play is for the journey of it all anyway, not to "reach the end." After all, that's why DnD can be freeform and neverending in the first place, so long as the DM keeps it going.
Check out the full thread here:
http://nwn2forums.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=526710&forum=1...
PIPBoy3000 posted something a while ago about how to create a self-extracting installer. He even posted the script he used for Pirate Cards.
Check it out:
http://nwn2forums.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=534921&forum=1...
Download the NSIS here:
http://nsis.sourceforge.net/Download
Once you have it installed, copy his script to a txt file, change the extension to nsi, and update it to reference your project and files instead. Drag and drop it into the compiler window and it will do everything for you.
For those of you wanted to use Drow and looking to give your NPCs a bit more life, here are some resources:
Descent Into Darkness {Drow Campaign resources set in the Forgotten Realms}.
http://drowcampaign.roleplaynexus.com/
Eilistraee’s Drow Translator
http://www.eilistraee.com/chosen/language.php
The Realm's of Otara: Drow Names
http://www.angelfire.com/rpg2/vortexshadow/drownames.html
Most of these were posted in this language thread over at the Citadel:
http://nwcitadel.forgottenrealmsweave.org/showthread.php?t=634
Here are the treasure guidelines as determined in this thread on the FRW forums:
http://nwcitadel.com/forums/showthread.php?t=853
Using this as a guideline will help create a balanced module. This is something I'm always looking for an can never find. Here it is reproduced for your convenience.
I posted the following in another thread since the question came up. These are some very loose guidelines (they could be a lot more detailed) for handing out magic items and wealth in modules. Feel free to discuss, since nothing is set in stone yet.
The two basic guidelines for handing out gold and items are to:
#1 Use the following table of magic weapon (and equivilant) per level
#2 Use a modified version of table 5--1 from the DMG to gauge how much wealth a player of a given level should have. This wealth number is the total value of all items and gold possessed by the player.
Phoenixus magic weapon guidelines
1-3rd = Masterwork weapons
4-6th = no better than +1 weapon/armor or equivilant
6th-9th = no better than +2 weapon/armor or equivilant
10-13th = no better than +3 weapons/armor or equivilant
14-17th = no better than +4 weapons/armor or equivilant
18+ = no better than +5 weapon/armor or equivilant
Note: Also remember that adding special abilities to weapons or armor beyond the enhancement bonus makes them equivilant to more powerful weapon. For a general idea, look at the base gold cost of a weapon with the next powerful enhancement bonus to the one you are handing out and make sure that your weapon or armor is not equal to or greater than that value.
For items like potions, scrolls, and wands, the general idea is only give the player access to items that can cast spells that an equivilant level spell caster could cast, with an occsional item that gives them temporary access to next level higher of spell (but with very limited charges). So, for example, if a first level cleric can only cast cure light wounds, you shouldn't be giving first level character of any class access to potions of cure moderate wounds, except possibly as an extremely rare one-time case.
DMG Table 5--1: Character Wealth By Level (modified to 1/2 vaule)
Level Gold
2nd 450
3rd 1,350
4th 2,700
5th 4,500
6th 6,500
7th 9,500
8th 13,500
9th 18,000
10th 24,500
11th 33,000
12th 44,000
13th 55,000
14th 75,000
15th 100,000
16th 130,000
17th 170,000
18th 220,000
19th 290,000
20th 380,000
Note: One thing to remember is that players will actually spend gold and resources during adventuring, so ou have to make sure they recieve enough gold per encounter to both cover this expenditure and also ensure they have the proper wealth level. One way to easily figure this out is to make the bulk of magic items they acquire expendable items like potions and scrolls, then ensure that they have to use those items to defeat encounters instead of saving them up and selling them.
Further down, Seryn made the following point:
I checked some of the OC merchants just out of curiousity, and the four or so that I looked at all had 100% markups with 40% markdowns, just as an fyi.
Styraxian pointed out this article by Kevin Carter that talks about the placement of NPC/Creatures and their relationship to the environment.
I have a great time playing through all sorts of game worlds—blasting randomly placed enemies, collecting scattered power-ups, earning points, gaining levels, all en route to some nefarious “main boss.” Usually the game world is very transparent though, meaning I can tell I’m in a game from the moment I pick up a controller to the moment I put it down again. As a player, I’m not exploring environments, I’m beating levels. I’m not fighting aliens, I’m defeating scripting.
This isn’t always the case. Sometimes I can forget I’m playing a game. Sometimes I feel I really am crawling through an air vent in the Black Mesa Facility. Sometimes I think I’m actually looking for the orc chieftain who has been leading the attacks on my village. Sometimes I—
Check out the full article Living Worlds: The Ecology of Game Design by clicking the link below:
http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20...arter_01.shtml
Coming up with interesting names that won't have your players rolling their eyes can be difficult. At least it is for me. Here are some good resources to keep you come coming up with another name like "Hard Goodman."
Don't ask my why, but I needed to come up with Kobold names and started looking around. It's an odd subject to do a google search for and the results are even stranger.
My favorite, and probably the most useful, was this:
The Kobold Namer
http://www.dungeonraiders.com/files/kamb/
Just keep hitting refresh for more names.
And speaking of niche needs, try this amusing conversation if you're bored:
http://www.treasuretables.org/2006/07/itty-bitty-niche-products-how-much...
Grey Starr and Dimitria Night-Starr over at Grey's Castle have several quick name generators based on articles in Dragon Magazine. Here's their description from the page:
"All generators here-in are created from the works of Owen KC Stephens from the pages of Dragon Magazine... They follow the exact rules and no changes or modifications were made to the information used."
At the time of this post, they have the following generators:
Random Male Dwarf Names (with Stronghold name)
Random Female Dwarf Names (with Stronghold name)
Random Dwarf Cusses (Swear like a Dwarf)
Visit the site here:
http://grey-starr.ca/index.html
Another good name generator I've found is Samuel Stoddar's Fantasy Name Generator. From his introduction:
One of the perks of creating fantasy stories -- whether by writing a story or game or by role-playing -- is you get to make up the names. Some people relish the task while others are frustrated by it. Some like it but can't seem to create names that are diverse enough. Fantasy Name Generator is a tool that can help you. It can generate an endless number of random names (of people, places, or anything) that would be suitable for use in a fantasy setting. It can generate names on its own, or you can tell it what kind of name you're looking for. Feel free to use this tool and any name that comes out of it (assuming it doesn't accidentally generate a legally protected trademark or something).
Check it out here:
http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/
There's a fun suite of name generators over at Seventh Sanctum that has a lot of good resources.
Check it out here:
http://www.seventhsanctum.com/index-name.php
Here are some of the more useful generators listed:
Tavern Namer - Where's the next drink, next clue, or next bar fight coming from? Inns and tavers are such an integral part of the average fantasyscape that naming them can be difficult (or boring). Skewed towards fantasy-style names, obviously.
Angel/Demon Namer - A mix of latin and hebrew-sounds, this is a generator for Judeo-Christian style Angels and Demons (just don't expect them to actually translate to anything).
Dark Elf Namer - Not all elves are nice, after all.
Dwarf Namer - Need a name for your latest bearded burrowing buttkicker? Come here! Generates names, full names, and clan names.
Elf Namer - Names for both Tolkeinesque elves, Wild Elves, and general fantasy.
Evil Deity Generator - Dark gods, evil spirits, basphemous amorphous horrors - all in one easy package!
Goblin Namer - Need to name members of your Rampaging Hordes of Vaguely Humanoid Evil? This is the place to do it - from first names to last names.
Kaiju Name Generator - Generates names for your general Rampaging Giant Monster.
Tree-Being Namer - Call them Ents, Treants, Treemen, what you will, this generator gives you something specific to call individuals.
Vampire Namer - From "common" sounding names to outrageous fantasy, it's all you need to name your latest bloodsucker!
Ship Namer - Generates ship names in a variety of style - perfect for anything from a personal craft to a starship, just spend some time generating to get one that fits.
I found this handy table to help create drow names that seems to be parked on The Realm's of Otara Role Playing group's site.
http://www.angelfire.com/rpg2/vortexshadow/drownames.html
I'm not sure what the source is, but it's a quick handy way of throwing some names together.
Good puzzles give the players a chance to overcome obstacles on their own terms. They can be a nice change of pace, but they can also be a dead end that kills the action.
It's always good to review what has been done in the past, so this section contains examples, both good and bad, of puzzles in NWN1, NWN2, and similar games.
Mikar posted a FAQ for all puzzles in NWN1: Hordes of the Underdark. It's a great reference for when you are planning our your own puzzles in NWN2.
I made this FAQ because I'm seeing so many questions about the puzzles in HOTU in this forum. I hope that this FAQ will reduce the numbers of threads where people ask for advice on the puzzles.
Check it out:
http://nwn.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=319245&forum=82
I ran across a post by peterb over at Tea Leaves talking about the state of puzzles in video games.
In a video game context, I'm speaking of puzzles as being parts of games. The typical puzzle implementation is self-contained ("Solve this puzzle to advance past this door,") but that is a matter of habit, not a requirement. A puzzle can have a scope that encompasses all of the non-narrative parts of a game, or can even be intimately intertwined.
Further down her gives four general guidelines for making good puzzles in games:
1. The puzzle has to have a reason for existing.
2. The existence of the puzzle should move the narrative forward somehow, even if only by a little bit.
3. The more integrated into your game world the puzzle is, the better.
4. This one is debatable, but I believe that where possible, the puzzle should be to figure out what the puzzle is. That is, if you have to explain the rules to the player when they start, you've already lost. Ideally, once the player recognizes that they have encountered a puzzle, they should be able to solve it within moments of figuring out how to solve it.
Check it out:
http://www.tleaves.com/weblog/archives/000031.html
I came across a post by by peterb over at Tea Leaves where is examines physical locations in games how what makes for a consistent and engaging experience.
The question then is: if you are describing a space that doesn't signify a real-world space, how do you make the player care? How do you increase the power of the virtual space you've created so that, when she is done playing your game, the player thinks of it, on some level, as a "real" place? In this article, I'm going to discuss three techniques: familiarity and reuse, signifiers such as maps and text, and geometric and logical consistency.
Check it out:
http://www.tleaves.com/weblog/archives/000026.html
Arcane Fury posted a message in the modules forum asking what puts people off a mod. Here's a quick list:
Check out the full thread:
http://nwn2forums.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=536202&forum=1...
If you are considering placing your module in Abeir-Toril, the fictional planet of The Forgotten Realms on which Faerûn is located, be sure to check out the wiki.
Abeir-Toril main entry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abeir-Toril
The Faerûn entry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faer%C3%BBn
While digging around looking for some ideas, I came across the Writing Your First Adventure article By Wolfgang Baur on the Wizards of the Coast site. It's a fun read and can help stretch your brain:
If you are ready to design your first RPG adventure, or learn how to improve the adventures you've already got, you've come to the right place. The "Adventure Builder" will cover all the bases, from hooks to background to traps and treasures.
This time out, we'll cover the foundation you need to build a great adventure. It's not the background, the stat blocks, or even the main villain. It's monster selection, and figuring out the size and style of the adventure.
Of particular note is the section on balancing encounters. While this it's a bit different from PnP, it's still worth a look.
While this breakdown is good advice, it's not complete. You'll want to be sure that your ... encounters include encounter variety by class as well as by EL. That is, make sure to include each of the following types of encounters, to give every class and every player a chance to shine.
1) Two Skill Encounters: These are creatures or obstacles that can be defeated by stealth or skill, such as guards, castle walls, cliffs, informants, or low-hp creatures that can fall to a single sneak attack.
2) [Eight] Pure Combats: You need some no-negotiation, straight-up combats that play to the fighter classes. Think orcs, wolves, ogres, giants -- or dragons. Consider tactics first here: ambushes, charge, bull-rush, something to make it more than just attack rolls and damage rolls.
3) Two Magical Challenges: Include two magical challenges that require a knock, a fireball, or whatever other strengths your arcane spellcasters have. They might be lore-based challenges, such as knowing the weaknesses of an extraplanar creature, or they might require the use of Concentration or Spellcraft to manipulate a magical object or unravel a mysterious warding.
4) One Divine Challenge: The divine caster in the party is more than just a medic, so give him or her something to do with at least one undead turning, Knowledge (Religion), or nature-knowledge encounter (if your divine caster is a druid).
5) One Puzzle or Trap: This could be as simple as finding the key to a tough lock, deciphering an ancient script, or finding a secret door with Search, but you should include traps and puzzles for your party to solve. If the party doesn't have a rogue in it, use Knowledge skill checks as a substitute.
6) Two Roleplaying Encounters: Social skills play an important part of the game too, and bards don't like to just sit and do their stuff in the background. Provide at least two roleplaying encounters that can be defeated by the right social skills, bribes, exchange of services, or clever conversation. Examples include a scholar with a clue that the party needs to bypass some defenses or wardings, or a devil who will ally with them against a common foe.
7) One Mook Encounter: This should be against foes of at least 2 CR less than the party, and ideally 3 or 4 less. Think kobolds, bandits, skeletons, wild animals, or any other group of many foes that play to Cleave and area-effect spells. It's fun to see heroes cutting a swath through hordes of foes.
8) One Polder: "Polder" is a Dutch word describing land reclaimed from the sea, but here it's a more general term. As described in detail in Dungeon 135, polders are safe havens for adventurers, places where the party can regain strength. Think Rivendell in Lord of the Rings. Your polder could be a xenophobic elven tree city, a magical rope that generates rope trick spells as a charged item, a bound archon who wards a treasure, or a dwarven merchant caravan. If the party wishes, they can heal up to full strength and level up.
9) One Bigger Fish: To keep the blood flowing, you should have one overwhelming encounter that the party can't handle without serious risk of a total party kill. This could turn into a roleplaying bit of Diplomacy, a chase, or a stealth challenge, depending on how the party handles it -- but they should see that not every encounter in every adventure should be fought.
10) Big Finish: A grand finale encounter with all the trimmings: villain, minions, and a room or terrain that provides interesting combat options.
Note that for the sake of increased combat in a CRPG, I've doubled the combats from four to eight. That's a total of 19 encounters, 11 of them involving combat. Whether that's enough for a full level of play is up to you as a builder, but at least Baur's list will get you thinking about balance.
Check out the article here:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ab/20060728a
Check out the full Adventure Builder Archive here: