Neverwinter Nights Forum News (Feb. 01, 06)

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Here are today's Neverwinter Nights forum highlights, collected by NWVault. Please take into account that these are only single parts of various threads and should not be taken out of context. Bear in mind also that the posts presented here are copied as-is, and that any bad spelling and grammar does not get corrected on our end.

Derek French, Live Team Producer

The Future NWN Updates
There will most likely be one more update (1.68) and then we will probably be done. This could change and there could be another after that. Noone really knows as there are many factors that enter into this, so don't take this as any kind of definative statement. There are many things that the Live Team are working on right now, besides updates to NWN, and they are taking on a much bigger scope. You will have to stay tuned for future announcements.

1.67 Beta 1
There is going to be a Beta 2 at some point.

More: I don't know why I am posting this: it must be my latent desires to have a blog or some such. Or maybe I am just a tease?

I just finished packaging up the PotSC Tropical Tilset hak paks and the tileset loadscreens hak paks. 49 Meg so far, and there is one more tileset to go...

Georg Zoeller, Designer

1.67 Beta 1
Patch 1.67 Beta 1 is now available.

Download
http://nwn.bioware.com/support/patch.html

Patch Notes
Click Here

1.67 FAQ
Click Here

This is a very extensive patch (codename: "your DD module $$ at work") that adds a load of new and updated scripting commands, DM Client features, as well as new content such as creatures, etc.

As with any beta, use at your own risk!

Some *partial* list of the patch changes:

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* Added a boat-load of new scripting commands (check the Toolset for more information):
o GetCreatureWingType()
o SetCreatureWingType()
o GetCreatureTailType()
o SetCreatureTailType()
o GetCreatureBodyPart()
o SetCreatureBodyPart()
o GetHardness()
o SetHardness()
o SetLockKeyRequired()
o SetLockKeyTag()
o SetLockLockable()
o SetLockLockDC()
o SetLockUnlockDC()
o SetTrapDisarmable()
o SetTrapDetectable()
o SetTrapOneShot()
o SetTrapKeyTag()
o SetTrapDisarmDC()
o SetTrapDetectDC()
o CreateTrapAtLocation()
o CreateTrapOnObject()
o SetWillSavingThrow()
o SetReflexSavingThrow()
o SetFortitudeSavingThrow()
o GetTilesetResRef()
o GetTrapRecoverable()
o SetTrapRecoverable()
o GetModuleXPScale()
o SetModuleXPScale()
o GetKeyRequiredFeedback()
o SetKeyRequiredFeedback()
o GetTrapActive()
o SetTrapActive()
o GetInfiniteFlag()
o SetInfiniteFlag()
o LockCameraPitch()
o LockCameraDistance()
o LockCameraDirection()
o GetPlaceableLastClickedBy()
o GetAreaSize()
o SetName() - Sets the name of an Object (a creature, placeable, item, or door) - does NOT work on player objects.
o GetPortraitId()
o SetPortraitId()
o GetPortraitResRef()
o SetPortraitResRef()
* As if the above wasn't enough, we also added new parameters to the following scripting commands:
o GetAbilityScore(object oCreature, int nAbilityType, int nBaseAbilityScore=FALSE)
o GetSkillRank(int nSkill, object oTarget=OBJECT_SELF, int nBaseSkillRank=FALSE)
o SetTrapDetectedBy(object oTrap, object oDetector, int bDetected=TRUE)
o ExploreAreaForPlayer(object oArea, object oPlayer, int bExplored=TRUE)
o SetCutsceneMode(object oCreature, int nInCutscene=TRUE, int nLeftClickingEnabled=FALSE)
o GetPCPublicCDKey(object oPlayer, int nSinglePlayerCDKey=FALSE)
o CreateItemOnObject(string sItemTemplate, object oTarget=OBJECT_SELF, int nStackSize=1, string sNewTag="")
* Added a new OnClick event type for placeables. This event fires immediately when a PC left clicks on a placeable (regardless of how far away they are from the placeable, or whether or not they can reach the placeable for whatever reason). To obtain the player that left clicked on the placeable object, call GetPlaceableLastClickedBy() in the placeable's OnClick script.
* Added 53 new VFX_DUR_AURA_* visual effects (VisualEffects.2da) for use with the scripting command EffectVisualEffect().
* Added 80 new visual effect constants (VisualEffects.2da) for use with the scripting command EffectVisualEffect(). These use the new constants VFX_DUR_AURA_*, VFX_EYES_* and VFX_DUR_BUBBLES.
* Added the ability to force a placeable to be non-static (grey out the static checkbox) for any placeable using skin mesh. This is toggleable in the placeables.2da in a "Static" column. Defaults to allow if column missing.
* The scripting command GetResRef() now works on areas.
* The scripting command PlayAnimation() now works on doors (use the new animation constants ANIMATION_DOOR_*).
* The scripting command GetClassByPosition() will now work with community made custom classes.
* Made the scripting command CopyItemAndModify() work with arrows and bolts using the constants ITEM_APPR_TYPE_WEAPON_*
* Added random facing button to the toolset. This button allows you to select one or more things and change their facing to a random direction.
* Added option to skip multiple hak pak warning message.
* Fixed scripting command ItemPropertyImmunityToSpellLevel(), it was creating a spell immunity property that was one level lower than what it should have been creating.

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We would very much like feedback from you on the patch, please report any kind of issues you find to nwbugs@bioware.com and additionally post them in this thread.

Please do not think "someone else will surely have reported this issue already" when you find a bug, we have no problem with issues being mailed to the bug tracker a number of times.

More:

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Set/GetTrapActive?

Does that mean we can use our own scripts to determine whether the trap can be seen or not?

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Yepp. Read the function descriptions in the toolset, Craig's comments in there are quite useful when trying to figure out what those commands are capable of.

More:

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All right, I've downloaded the beta (with dial-up, took just over an hour), followed the instructions to install, dotted all my eyes and crossed my tees, but the updater will not update. What am I doing wrong?

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Make sure to NOT unzip the patch file, but instead just drop it directly into the nwn main folder. Then run the updater. That should work...

More: Please don't post feature requests into this thread, the patch content is already pretty much locked down. If you want to request features, post in a seperate topic, i.e.

"1.68 suggestions"

In general the addition of scripting commands that modify a characters stats (i.e. SetAC) are very unlikely as those stats are calculated based on a large number of factors and validated through ELC.

1.67 patch discussion (cont.)

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Those saving throw functions only work on placeables and doors, not PCs.

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Yes

Scripting and Legal Rights...

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I wouldn't bother with shutting down the server. As to things being made with the toolset beloging to Bioware (which I think is a slight mistatement of the EULA, though I didn't bother to reread it), he'll just claim he made it without. Again, less than paper thin, but...
Funky

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There is a clause in the EULA that was put in there based on community feedback shortly before release.


4. Distribution and Serving of Modules and User Conversions. So long as you
fully comply at all times with this License, Atari, Inc. grants to you the
limited, personal, revocable, non-exclusive right to: (i) distribute your
Modules or User Conversions by means of providing a copy of the actual Module
or User Conversion code to other users (e.g., via ftp, email, disc copies, etc.)
(collectively "Distribute"); and (ii) to allow other users to play your Modules
by means of hosting your own NEVERWINTER NIGHTS server whereby you retain
sole possession of your Module (collectively "Serve") (Serving User
Conversions is not possible).


Patch 1.67 FAQ
As always...

Q: Is 1.67 out?
A: 1.67 is in beta right now. You can download it here


Q: Will <favorite feature X> be in the patch
A: Please consult the patch notes. While the patch is in beta and not officially released yey, it is unlikely that any additional features will make it into the patch.


Q: I heard this is going to be the last patch
A: While nothing is certain, this is likely not the case.

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There will most likely be one more update (1.68) and then we will probably be done. This could change and there could be another after that. Noone really knows as there are many factors that enter into this, so don't take this as any kind of definative statement.

There are many things that the Live Team are working on right now, besides updates to NWN, and they are taking on a much bigger scope. You will have to stay tuned for future announcements.

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Q: If I install the beta, can I still play on my favorite server
A: No. The installing the beta (as does installing the final patch when it is out) will flag your client as requiring 1.67. You will not be able to join any server that has not been updated yet.


Q: How do I uninstall the beta
A: You can revert back to the previous version using the revert patch (bottom of this page).
1. Download the .zip file which corresponds to your game version (there are different files based on which expansion packs you have installed) and DO NOT UNZIP it.

2. Put the .zip file (again, don't unzip it) into your NWN directory and run the updater.

This will revert your game back to the previous version.

Q: What does beta mean?
A: We release a beta patch to
- get additional help from the community catching issues that might have slipped past the QA process
- give server operators and module builders a grace period in which they can work on upgrading their modules, updating their hakpaks, etc


Q: I am running CEP, do I need updates
A: The CEP team will need to release an update to patch 1.67. Using CEP or any other hakpak means that you can not run patch 1.67 or it's beta until all hakpaks have been updated.


Q: Does my hakpak need to be updated
A: The patch changes a number of 2da's, adds several creatures, modifies palette files .itp and updates several scripts. So yes, chances are that most hakpaks need to be updated, especially if they modify any 2das. There have also been a number of updates to existing tilesets.


Q: Which 2da files have changed
* appearance.2da
* baseitems.2da
* classes.2da
* feat.2da
* footstepsounds.2da
* parts_foot.2da
* parts_hand.2da
* parts_shin.2da
* placeables.2da
* portraits.2da
* skyboxes.2da
* soundset.2da
* visualeffects.2da
* weaponsounds.2da


Q: How do I update (hakpak X)
A: Please contect the hakpak creator. If you feel like upgrading it yourself and need help, please post in the Custom Content forum.


Q: What about <Mac Version, Standalone Server, Linux Version>?
A: Creating each of the patch packages is a complicated and time intensive process. As soon as each package is available, it will be put on the download page here.


Q: Should I use the beta?
A: You should only consider using the beta if:

a) you understand the install and uninstall instructions on the download page. If those don't make sense to you, you are not doing yourself a favor by installing the beta

b) If you want to test new functionality, provide feedback, update your module to the new patch version.

c) If you are *not* playing on a server requiring patch 1.66 or plan on playing on such a server.


Q: Once the final patch is out, should I update?
A: If you are playing NWN single player, there is no reason not to update. If you are playing multiplayer, you should check with your server operator on whether or not they have already updated to patch 1.66 - otherwise updating will prevent you from joining the server.


Q: Which patch versions can online play together?
A: Only patches with the same full version number can play online together. You can only join a server with the same game version number as you have.

Examples:
- NWN 1.66 can not play with NWN 1.67 or patch 1.65
- NWN 1.67 can play with NWN 1.67
- NWN 1.67beta1 can play with NWN 1.67beta2


Q: Weren't there supposed to be new tilesets in the patch?
A: The new tilesets (from the Pirates of the Sword Coast Module) will be released as a seperate, free downloadable content pack once the patch is live. Reason for that is that we do not want to increase the filesize of this already massive patch. Likely the tilesets will also be downloadable through the NWN Auto Updater.

Any more questions? Post them here...

More:

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Is there any way for a builder to get his hands on the full 1.67 beta 2da source? I'm using NWExplorer to look at them, but it's easier to unzip the whole shebang into a new folder.

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Your easiest bet for now is nwnexplorer. The 2da source may not be updated until the final patch, not sure.

More: 1.67 is in beta, to be more specific

More:

Q: I think I found a bug in the beta patch, how to report it?
If the bug is in the game, please send a mail with Patch167Beta1: <Problem description> to nwbugs@bioware.com. Include as much information as possible about your hardware, your installation (which expansion packs, etc), and how to reproduce the bug.

If the bug happens in the toolset, send the mail to nwtoolsetbugs@bioware.com

If you want to, you can post about the bug on the forums as well, but please make sure to ALWAYS send a mail as well, as the Live Team does not always have time to check the forums.

More:

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Mmm...when you say "If you are playing NWN single player, there is no reason not to update", but yet say that most hakpak will need updating... Considering so many of the better modules have been abandoned by their author, that kind of implies that even if you just play single player, patching to 1.67 will prevent you from playing just about any hak-using module that has been forgotten by their author since the release of 1.66, no?

That would definately be a reason to not update, even if you play single-player only...

Or did I understand wrong?

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Many modules might still work, even without updating. However, you will not be able to make use of any kind of 1.67 related features in those modules, which is usually fine.

More:

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Q: Weren't there supposed to be new tilesets in the patch?
A: The new tilesets (from the Pirates of the Sword Coast Module) will be released as a seperate, free downloadable content pack once the patch is live. Reason for that is that we do not want to increase the filesize of this already massive patch. Likely the tilesets will also be downloadable through the NWN Auto Updater.

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Could you elaborate on this one a bit? Are you saying that the tilesets will be basically distributed as a hak? Or once they are downloaded they will be fully integrated into the game just as if they were included in the patch? As a builder on a hak-free PW, I was planning on using the extra tilesets, but if they are released in hak form it casts doubt as to whether we will be able to use them. So if you could just give me a little clarification on this I would be very appreciative.

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They will be in hakpak format, however they will probably have a significantly higher distribution rate than any other hakpak out there (including CEP) if they are downloadable through the official game auto updater. Look at it as a hakpak you are pretty much guaranteed to have on a player's machine (which means there is really not much of a difference from it being in the official resources). People still playing NWN online at this point are very likely to download such content.

As for size and why...

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I don't know why I am posting this: it must be my latent desires to have a blog or some such. Or maybe I am just a tease?

I just finished packaging up the PotSC Tropical Tilset hak paks and the tileset loadscreens hak paks. 49 Meg so far, and there is one more tileset to go...

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Wolf Portrait
With Patch 1.67 this will be possible to do through script, so you do not have to play around with the game resources.

How to override or extend NWN core scripting function

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Sorry for seeming dumb, but given the opportunity for conflicts with patches etc, why is this a better scheme than mass-replacing the original function with a custom wrapper? With both methods, you have to modify every file to add an #include and recompile anyway, so one more mass-replace step shouldnt cause many problems.

And if people are looking for tools to do this sort of thing, I would suggest BKReplaceEm because thats what I use and Ive found it to be very powerful and useful.

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If you build a module from ground up, the main lesson is to include one core include file into every script of your game. This gives you the flexibility to do engine function replacements as described selectively, which is very helpful for debugging.

If you didn't build your module with one core include from the start, you would have to run the mass replace you every time you change a command or want to add a new one. Major hassle.

Inserting the wrapper include would have to be done only a single time, after which you are free to override any game command by just adding it to the include and renaming it in nwscript. Instant profiling for any engine command, etc.

Again, changing nwscript is dangerous stuff and should not be done unless you really know what you are doing - in fact I discouraged it for the last 3 years on these forums - but at this point most people left in the NWN scripting community really know what they are doing, so I'm not soo worried about that anymore.

Also, the patch conflicts are not that of a problem as it's usually easy to find the very few lines that have been added to the file and the few changes that have been made to existing functions. Very localized.

More:

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Personally, I would recommend against using the approach Georg Zoeller describes. I agree with Jassper completely - there used to be a lot of .erf files that had modified nwscript.nss files in them (or default BioWare include files, which is almost as bad). It took a lot of debate on why this was bad, and we are now at a point where I think nobody's going to distribute modified nwscript.nss files. Which is good. I'd hate to see a resurgence of people releasing modified nwscript.nss files.

So, if you're going to modify nwscript.nss, and as Jassper also said: Please don't release it except as part of a module. And, to begin with and in agreement with Primogenitor, before you start modifying it, think very hard about why you need to do so, and if you can't accomplish the same in some other way.

And, once again, remember this (and I think Georg failed to mention it in his article): Only compiled scripts are ever used by the game. So making an override function like that will not change what the function does in BioWare's default scripts, unless you manually open and recompile the ones calling the function. Since overriding functions in BioWare's default scripts is the only really useful application I could see from modifying nwscript.nss, and since that still isn't possible, I'd have to say that I still wouldn't touch nwscript.nss with a ten foot poker.

Now, if it were possible to overload functions, and without having to recompile, that would be neat

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you mean this?

"The game has the compiled .ncs version for all bioware scripts in the resources. That means that even if you change nwscript.nss, those scripts will not behave differently from how they worked before as they do not get recompiled unless overridden in a module.

Maybe that was not clear enough.

Both Lilac and Pri are right in that you should never distribute a modified nwscript file. You should never change it unless you know what you are doing.

Still, the method described is quite handy for certain situations (we used it as well in development) and since it I was asked about if something like this was possible a couple of times now, I thought describing it for those who think they absolutely need something like this would be of value. I would be against limiting knowledge about certain things because someone could do something stupid with it, at least at this stage of the project, nearly 4 years after release

How to override or extend NWN core scripting function

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Could this be added to the Lexicon or would you prefer it to be on your site only. The pictures would just be code boxes, but aside from that, it'd be easily added to the lexicon.

The lexicon email seems to be down at the moment, so not much point emailing it. Me and Lilac who edit are trying to sort it, heh.

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Of course feel free to copy, I just used my website to put it up because forum topics tend to vanish at some point and getting stuff up on the bioware page usually takes ages anyway.

1.68 Function Suggestions

SetTag - won't happen

The only way you can change the tag of an object at runtime is to make a copy of it with a new tag (CopyObject) and discard the old one.

The tag is used internally by the game in many places, it would mess up your module if you could randomly change those around.

SetDescription - Unlikely.

1.68 Function Suggestions
Multiple options here already

a) change the spellscript for the very few offending spells
b) replace the VFX in visualeffects.2da with something less annoying. You can even just remove the sound if that's what's annoying you.
c) override the vfx .mdl in the resources

Personally, I'd go with b) or a) depending on the number of spells you don't like. b) is very flexible because it really just replaces the visual part of the effect and you don't mess with any scripts at all.

DM Specific functions in 1.67
Historically the DM client additions are receiving not a lot of attention by the community during beta.

Patch 1.67 adds a couple of very cool functions to the DM client and it would be cool if some of you could give them a whirl before the patch goes out of beta and tell us if you encounter any problems.

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* Added the ability for DMs to spawn in traps on doors/placeables through the creator (and quickbar slots dragged from the creator menu).
* Made custom triggers and traps from the DM creator menu spawn in correctly (rather than spawn in as a default trap).
* The DM instant kill key (default 'Y') now also works on non-plot items that are on the ground.
* Added a new "Give Alignment Shift" sub radial to the DM's Give/Take creature radial menu.
* Added an "Examine" option to the DM's Examine Creature sub-radial menu.
* When a DM 'Examines' a PC, it will now display their Experience and GP totals as well.
* When a DM 'Examines' an item, it will now also display the value of the item in GP.
* Made a change to try and reduce game lag that has been reported to occur when a DM possesses a creature that is part of a very large faction.

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You can find out more about the beta here:
Click Here

No Carsomyr.. or, a lack of cool swords.
There is an intelligent sword not unlike good old C. that can be found in Hordes of the Underdark, but to learn more about that, you would have to post in the spoiler forum

Craig Welburn, Live Team Programmer

Winged PC Flight
The scripting forum would be the best place to ask questions like this.

That being said, the scripting command that you would be looking for would be:

effect EffectDisappearAppear(location lLocation, int nAnimation=1)

combined with a:
ApplyEffectToObject() call to apply the "fly away" effect to the player.

Stanley Woo, Quality Assurance

An NWN Moment
I was testing the n--ahem, I mean, something we haven't mentioned yet, and I was checking out some secret doors. After this test, I realized that I have never before used Detect Mode in NWN until today. Shocking!